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Laura Coates Live
Pete Hegseth Confirmed As Defense Secretary By One Vote; Former Proud Boys Leader Speaks To CNN After Trump Pardon; Trump Issues Demands In Return For Wildfire Aid; Newark, New Jersey Mayor Blasts "Unlawful" Immigration Raid. Aired 11p-12a ET
Aired January 24, 2025 - 23:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[23:00:00]
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ABBY PHILLIP, CNN ANCHOR AND SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: All right, everyone, thank you very much. Have a great weekend. Thanks for watching "NewsNight." We'll see you tomorrow morning, 10 a.m., with our conversation show "Table for Five." We've got a great group of guests for you tomorrow morning. "Laura Coates Live," though, starts right now.
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LAURA COATES, CNN HOST AND SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Tonight, the former leader of the Proud Boys now free after being pardoned by President Trump and vowing legal revenge. My interview with Enrique Tarrio is tonight on "Laura Coates Live."
We're going to get to the interview in just a moment, but we begin with the breaking news on Capitol Hill tonight. A wild finish to a wild first week. Yeah, it's the first week of Donald Trump's second term. His pick for defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, just got confirmed by the skin of his teeth. Republicans had to pull in Vice President J.D. Vance for that tie-breaking vote. This after Senator Mitch McConnell seconded to President Trump by voting. Mm-mm.
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J.D. VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: The vice president votes in the affirmative and the nomination is confirmed.
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COATES: That vote was historic. It's just the second time in history that a vice president had needed to cast a 51 to 50 tie-breaking vote to confirm a cabinet nominee. Vance joking on X tonight, saying, I thought I was done voting in the Senate. When McConnell joined senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski in giving the old thumbs down, he refused to reveal how he would vote until he reached the Senate floor. But now, he is not holding back. In a searing statement released just a few moments ago, he wrote this: The United States faces coordinated aggression from adversaries bent on shattering the order underpinning American security and prosperity. In public comments and testimony before the Armed Services Committee, Mr. Hegseth did not reckon with this reality.
Now Hegseth had faced serious questions over allegations of sexual assault, alcohol abuse, and also financial mismanagement of veterans' charities. He denies all of that happened. And the man he will soon report to is very pleased with tonight's outcome.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: We just heard that we have a great secretary of defense. We're very happy about that, and we appreciate everybody's vote.
UNKNOWN (voice-over): Are you disappointed that McConnell voted no?
TRUMP: I didn't even know that, no. I don't know that. I just heard that we won. Winning is what matters, right?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COATES: Talking more about this break news is Scott Jennings, CNN political commentator and former advisor to Senator Mitch McConnell, and Ameshia Cross is also here, a Democratic strategist and former Obama campaign adviser. Good to see both of you.
I'll begin with you, Mr. Kentucky, because Senator Mitch McConnell voted no and said in a statement that effective management of the military is a daily test with certain consequences and -- quote -- "Mr. Hegseth has failed as yet to demonstrate that he would pass this test." Pretty scathing assessment. What is the broader message you might be sending to President Biden -- President Trump tonight. Excuse me.
SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR, FORMER SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO PRESIDNET TO PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH: Well, look, I think he's saying that he just didn't think Pete Hegseth was qualified for the job. I mean, I read the entire statement, which also wrapped up by saying he looked forward to working with Pete Hegseth together to strengthen the United States Military, take care of our troops, and fight our adversaries around the world.
So, I don't view this as a standoffish vote necessarily. He clearly is going to work with Pete Hegseth because he is the chairman of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, which means he'll be right in the middle of all the policy funding decisions that go into the Pentagon.
And I also think it doesn't really portend anything else. I think he's likely to vote for virtually all the other nominees, maybe a couple of other exceptions, and he has already voted for several to date.
So, you know, I think for McConnell here, at the end of his career, I think he's hyper-focused on national security matters. He had an opinion about this. You know, he's like every other senator. He gets one vote.
I happen to think Hegseth was an interesting choice and thought he deserved a confirmation, which he ultimately did get, thanks to the tiebreaker. So, I wish him great success.
I do agree with Mitch McConnell that this is a time of great consequence, and I also think that the Pentagon hasn't been all that well run for the last four years. We do need change.
COATES: You know, he did say on that very point that a change agent was not going to be enough to persuade him. He wanted something more substantive to sink into. But he also told our colleague, our own Manu Raju, that he is telling his colleagues that he is unshackled. And so, this idea of him being towards the end of his Senate career, he seems to be all out of concern for how he might be viewed by, say, the president of the United States and trying to stick in the loyalty line.
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What might this mean for Tulsi Gabbard --
JENNINGS: Yeah.
COATES: -- or RFK, Jr. or Kash Patel, or is this unique in your mind?
JENNINGS: Well, I think anybody who's in the national security space is going to get real scrutiny from McConnell, and they should get scrutiny from all the senators. I still think, and I've said this for many weeks, I still think Tulsi Gabbard has work to do to get confirmed. RKF is interesting. I mean, both he and Gabbard are Democrats. I guess Gabbard has switched party. But they are, you know, career Democrats. So, they may get some Democrat votes which, of course, could change the math on the Senate floor.
COATES: Uh-hmm.
JENNINGS: But I still think Gabbard has some work to do to get confirmed. Obviously, she hasn't come up for a vote yet but will in the near future. RFK is an interesting guy. I mean, he is a candidate, he's a Democrat, and he's a pro-choice Democrat at that. So, my assumption is he may have a fighting chance at getting Democrat votes, which would mitigate some of these Republican no votes.
COATES: We will see from the Hill, though, Ameshia, to what this might mean at the Pentagon. I mean, Vice President J.D. Vance had to cast a tiebreaking vote for Hegseth. This was a razor-thin, obviously, margin. Could that possibly undermine his authority at the Pentagon where his qualifications were already challenged during his confirmation hearings?
AMESHIA CROSS, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST, FORMER OBAMA CAMPAIGN ADVISER: Absolutely, and I definitely think that it will because -- I mean, we've already seen letters from veterans. We've already seen letters from service organizations that are oriented with several military servicemen across all of the armed services that were, quite frankly, very -- they found his nomination to be problematic.
They found his history to not be one that would benefit this role. They also found that the command that he would be in charge of, quite frankly, one that he was not up to task for. And I think that those people are not going to be dissuaded by the fact that a tiebreaking vote happened today.
What we do know about Pete Hegseth is that from a Republican Party that keeps talking about merit day in and day out. This is a guy who does not fulfill any of the tenants of this role or of those who have previously held this role in high esteem, specifically those who were Republican nominees. They think that there were better options available.
But at this point, they have who they have, and he's going to have to live up to the muster. He's going to have to figure out how to manage personnel that he is going to be tasked with. He is going to have to manage how to move different products from various places across the globe. He is going to have to manage to understand the backgrounds, the cultures, the specificities of the areas in which we are in conflict regions.
Those are things that he has shown throughout those hearings that he, quite frankly, did not have any length of understanding of. So, he's going to either have to learn it really quickly or he's going to have to figure it out on the spot. Either way, that's who they choose.
COATES: Yeah. Ameshia, I wonder --
JENNINGS: Can I -- can I -- can I --
COATES: One second, I want you to respond, but I want to ask Ameshia another question. Do you think that Democrats did an effective job of trying to bring that out? They focused a great deal on misconduct, allegations, alcohol abuse allegations. Given all that you said, why couldn't they make the case that they felt he was truly not fit for this role?
CROSS: Well, I think Democrats had a missed opportunity in actually going after his lack of qualifications. Instead, they chose to go down the route of the, you know, leave the allegations that came from ex- wives and his personal background in terms of infidelity. Those are things that might matter to a certain group, but at the end of the day, the things that should matter the most, quite frankly, are those that are the fitness for the job based on the fact that he does not meet basic qualifications. Those are very real things.
COATES: Hmm.
CROSS: But Democrats voted how Democrats should have voted in this instance. I think that, you know, laying this entire thing at the feet of Democrats is problematic because Republicans made this decision. They chose someone who is still suited for the role.
COATES: Scott?
JENNINGS: Yeah, well, Ameshia doesn't seem to be aware that Pete Hegseth served for 20 years at the United States Military, Iraq, Afghanistan, two bronze stars, an Ivy League graduate. I mean, he has dedicated most of his life to serving the United States Military. He is fully aware of where we are engaged around the world because he himself was there.
(CROSSTALK)
COATES: I can't hear you. Hold on. Wait. I can't hear you both. Hold on. I want to go back to Ameshia.
JENNINGS: Yeah, I know.
(CROSSTALK)
-- she won't stop interrupting me.
COATES: Well, hold -- excuse me. I'll let you finish, please, Scott, then I'll go back to Ameshia. It's awfully hard when we're remote. Go ahead, Scott.
JENNINGS: Yeah, good. So, again, he has served overseas, in hotspots where he was decorated for doing so. I think he's quite aware of what our servicemen and women are facing in hotspots around the world because he himself lived it. He's also quite aware of what they face when they get back home because he has also lived it.
And the one thing he is not, and I will grant you this, he is not a D.C. insider, he is not a career bureaucrat, he is not the expected Washington choice. But Donald Trump was also not the expected or desired Washington choice, and I don't think he was elected to make all the desired Washington choices. I think he was desired -- I think he was elected because people want shakeup in Washington, D.C., particularly at the Pentagon, which has been, I think, tragically run for the last four years with embarrassment after embarrassment.
[23:10:06]
So, I say, let's get a guy who served this country, who has great credentials and great qualifications a chance to succeed here. Let's give this man a chance to succeed. I hope he does. We should all hope he does. Our national security is on the line.
COATES: Ameshia, I know we have very little time. Please respond.
CROSS: No, I agree with him. I do hope the man succeeds. I think that at the end of the day, you know, our national security is on the line, and we know that there are several unfortunate actors across the globe who want to test that day in and day out.
With that being said, I still stand on this man is, quite frankly, not qualified. I have family members in my own family and in my own lineage who have served two decades plus in the United States Armed Forces. That does not mean that you should automatically be secretary of defense. This is a guy who became secretary of defense largely because Donald Trump likes his culture war narrative on Fox News every weekend. That is not a qualifier to lead the nation's strongest military.
COATES: We will see how it all goes. Scott Jennings and Ameshia Cross, thank you both for joining me tonight.
JENNINGS: Thank you.
COATES: Next, one of the convicted ring leaders of January 6th is speaking out about his pardon and what he means by wanting retribution. My interview with former Proud Boys leader, Enrique Tarrio.
Plus, federal agents detained multiple people during an immigration or operation at a New Jersey seafood store. Now the mayor says his city is being unlawfully terrorized.
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[23:15:00]
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COATES: Well, the sweeping January 6 pardons have been one of Donald Trump's most drastic moves in the first week of his second term. And in just a moment, I'm going to talk with one of the most controversial people who got one. His name is Enrique Tarrio.
You've probably seen him before. He is the former or is he leader of the Proud Boys, one of the far-right groups that had a significant presence at the Capitol that day. Now, Tarrio got the stiffest sentence of the nearly 1,600 people charged over the riot, 22 years in prison for a seditious conspiracy. Three other Proud Boys were convicted of the same thing. Several members got convicted of other charges.
This video shows one Proud Boy smashing a window with a police riot shield. It allowed the first wave of rioters into the Capitol building. He was sentenced to a decade in prison. Another Proud Boy was also sentenced to 10 years. Prosecutors say that he used pepper spray on police, later bragging he was effing handing it to them. But the DOJ said Tarrio was the man at the top. And at his sentencing, the judge called him the group's ultimate leader, motivated by revolutionary zeal.
Now, Tarrio was not at the Capitol the day the riot happened. That's because he was arrested in D.C. days before and ordered to leave. Why? For burning a Black Lives Matter banner at a D.C. church and bringing high capacity rifle magazines into the district. But prosecutors said that he monitored the riot as it unfolded, expressed support for it, and was in touch with Proud Boys on the ground. The day after, on January 7th, he told several members he was -- quote -- "proud of you all."
Well, Tarrio is now a free man, having been released from prison after Trump granted clemency to him and everyone else charged over January 6th. And tonight, he's got plans to get back at those he thinks wronged him.
Enrique Tarrio, he joins me now. Enrique, welcome. Thank you for joining me. I want to begin with where people have seen you most recently. In your latest statement today, you talked about what happened. You don't like what happened, especially to police officers. But you called the prosecution for yourself and so many others a miscarriage. Do you see what you have done as anything wrong?
ENRIQUE TARRIO, SEDITIONIST, ACTIVIST, FORMER LEADER OF PROUD BOYS: I don't see as what I've done anything wrong. I was improperly indicted. I see it -- I do see it as a miscarriage of justice. And I think, like I said before, you know, I don't -- I can't condone, like, assaults on a police officer, but I think President Trump said it right, he was going to go case by case, and he did.
And it wasn't the actions that he pardoned, it was a miscarriage of justice that he pardoned -- that why he pardoned and --
COATES: Isn't that one and the same in the end, though?
TARRIO: Just -- no, it's not because the process has to be fair, right? If the process isn't fair, then the process is corrupt. If the process is corrupt, therefore, the only solution to this is a pardon.
COATES: What part of the process do you feel was unfair to you?
TARRIO: I think starting with the biggest one because -- I don't think we have enough time on this show for me to talk about all those things, but I think the biggest problem that we had is the jury pool. It wasn't fair not only to the J6 jurors but it's also unfair to those jurors to be seated. An example, in my case, the judge asked. it was simple question. How do you feel about the Proud Boys and Enrique Tarrio?
COATES: Uh-hmm.
TARRIO: And they said a whole array of things. They said white supremacist, Nazis, all sorts of things.
COATES: But Enrique, assuming it is as it's supposed to be when you have a jury, when you have the wider (ph) process, and they are instructed --
TARRIO: Uh-hmm.
COATES: -- to follow the evidence, part of the evidence that was presented included text messages from you, correspondence as well, do you think that those same pieces of evidence where you seem to condone and encourage, do you think -- and by the way, part of those messages include things like you're proud of my boys, in my country, don't effing leave, make no mistake we did this. How would that have been different in any other part of the country or a juror?
TARRIO: Those statements -- those statements were made publicly on my public parlor (ph).
COATES: Uh-hmm.
TARRIO: They weren't made privately, and they were made after the fact.
[23:20:00]
Did I celebrate the situation that was happening at the Capitol as I saw it at that very moment when I posted it? Absolutely. I think a lot of America celebrated what happened at the Capitol. Whether they like it, whether some people like those statements or not, I mean, that's just reality and it's a fact.
COATES: A lot of people condemned it as well.
TARRIO: I wholeheartedly agree, and they have the rights to their opinion. I'll defend their rights to say that just as I defend the rights of anybody's opinion on what happened on January 6th.
COATES: Let me ask --
TARRIO: And I don't think it was a revision of history. I'm sorry, go ahead.
COATES: No, I want to finish your point, but I just remember your sentencing. You called it a national embarrassment. You spoke about how you felt about -- you apologized to police officers and lawmakers who fled in fear that day.
One of the things you said was, I am extremely ashamed and disappointed that they were caused grief and suffering, and I will have to live with that shame and disappointment for the rest of my life. I thought of myself morally above others, and this trial has humbled me and showed me how wrong I truly was to believe that.
So, sitting here today, do you no longer believe those statements?
TARRIO: I want to be clear. When I say I am sorry or I apologize for those -- for those -- to those officers that were assaulted and those members of Congress that were scared, I want to be clear, I said I'm sorry for it, but then I said but I -- it wasn't because of me, it wasn't because of my actions that that occurred, it's just me being sorry for what happened that day. You know, I truly was. So, I do stand by those statements.
COATES: You know, I am curious why you celebrated the actions that day. What did you believe was happening? And did you believe that members of your organization were involved in the violence?
TARRIO: As of right now that I can think of, no Proud Boys were convicted of like direct assault on a police officer. They walked in and they walked out.
COATES: Well, you know, you say they walked in and walked out. Dominic Pezzola, who's a member of your group, as I understand it, smashed open a window.
TARRIO: Uh-hmm.
COATES: He allowed riders to enter the Capitol.
TARRIO: Uh-hmm.
COATES: Quote -- "robbed a Capitol police officer of his riot shield." That's not just walking in and out. And the reason I -- I understand that you are saying that you were innocent of the charges that you were indicted of. It's being very dismissive of what has been alleged and what we've seen, don't you think?
TARRIO: Well, here's another thing in my case with Dominic Pezzola. Dominic Pezzola could probably talk to you about his actions that day. But they superseded the indictment and they brought Dominic Pezzola in because they didn't have enough on Ethan Nordean, myself, Joe Biggs, and Zachary Rehl. He was -- actually, what the DOJ did with him is they paraded him from different indictments as time progress in order to muddy the waters for the situation of other defendants also.
COATES: But he was violent that day. Whether he was part of it, a superseding indictment. I wonder, you have been known as the leader of the Proud Boys. I know in recent statements, you have said that the media should no longer refer to you as the ex-leader and that you're not providing as of four years ago information on the structure of the Proud Boys.
TARRIO: That's right.
COATES: But assuming you are viewed as the leader of the Proud Boys, do you take any responsibility for how members of the organization conducted themselves?
TARRIO: I can't take responsibility for something that I didn't do.
COATES: So, you take issue with the prosecutors even presenting evidence that you encourage those members that you weren't hands off?
TARRIO: I didn't really know what was going on, but I did see. And to me, what I really thought was -- you know, some Trump supporters took a Capitol tour and went wild. I didn't know that somebody had broken into the building.
COATES: You really didn't think that it happened, Enrique? I mean, I -- a strains credulity for me. I mean, given that you had this, I think it was called the ministry of self-defense.
TARRIO: Uh-hmm.
COATES: People looked at you --
TARRIO: Uh-hmm.
COATES: -- and the trial proceeded. And again, I understand that you have been pardoned and the case has been prosecuted and has been convicted.
TARRIO: Yes.
COATES: But I want to stay on this point. You really didn't know that there was an extent of the violence that took place as you were celebrating or watching it? You had no part in the plan?
TARRIO: At the very moment, the scenes that you're showing right now, at that very moment, that's not what I tuned into.
COATES: At the very least, you knew it wasn't a tour of some Trump supporters in the Capitol, right? We can be honest about that.
[23:24:58]
TARRIO: I would -- I would wholeheartedly agree that it definitely wasn't a tour.
COATES: I was really curious, Enrique, when I heard you talk about, after getting out of prison, that you wanted retribution. Against who? How would you get it?
TARRIO: So, let's talk about what retribution is because in most interviews, I did clear up what I meant by retribution. I meant investigations. So, they need to be investigated. And if they did everything correct and they did everything by the book, there shouldn't be anything for them to worry about.
COATES: Who's to blame?
TARRIO: There shouldn't be. Here, I want to be unequivocally clear that by no means am I asking for violent retribution to anybody. I don't condone any violence towards any elected official. Actually, I don't condone violence to any human being, but I do think that it needs to be -- the process needs to be investigated.
COATES: And so, who would you be investigating? The prosecutors? The attorney general? What does that look like?
TARRIO: I mean, I'm not in the legal field, but I think we should start from the top to the bottom. I think we should start with Merrick Garland, move our way down to Matthew Graves, and specifically in most of these J6 cases, some of the lead prosecutors in this case.
COATES: Do you believe that, given the platform that you have, Enrique, and frankly the clout you have for those who follow you, you have invited an investigation that may not be above board or that might result in people who are not officially in the law enforcement community or investigative capacity, that they might take it upon themselves to kind of have a vigilante approach, even if nonviolent?
TARRIO: I don't think that anybody should be vigilantes and do it themselves, but to talk about the investigations themselves. It speaks to a broader issue, a broader issue of how many laws we have in this country. So, the criminal justice reform is something big and it's something that needs to be talked about more. COATES: Would you be willing to or are you seeking an invitation from the White House to discuss those very ideas that you have about reform? Have you been invited or had any correspondence with President Trump or any member of his administration about that?
TARRIO: I wish I had Trump on speed down. But, unfortunately, I don't. But no, I have not been contacted by the administration. But I would love a chance to speak with the president about criminal justice reform.
COATES: We'll see if he does invite that conversation. There are members of law enforcement who were humbled by the experience out of anger and frustration and injury. In fact, there is a former D.C. Metro police officer, I'm sure you've heard of, Michael Fanone, who sustained injuries during the riot while defending the Capitol. He had this to say to the founder of the Oath Keepers, whose sentence was, of course, commuted, not pardoned, Stewart Rhodes. Listen to this.
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MICHAEL FANONE, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST, FORMER D.C. METROPOLITAN POLICE OFFICER (voice-over): This is what I would say to Stewart Rhodes, go (bleep) yourself. You're a liar.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COATES: He's speaking to my colleague there. I can only assume that the message extends to all who were involved and what took place. What is your response?
TARRIO: My response is simple, Laura. Maybe some people don't like it, but Officer Fanone is an opportunist. He has gotten his situation, which is a poor situation to be in, but he is an opportunist. He's trying to sell books.
COATES: How is he an opportunist?
TARRIO: He's trying to go on tours.
COATES: He was violently attacked, though, Enrique. He was violently assaulted. He didn't welcome the opportunity to have that happen. What do you mean?
TARRIO: Well, I like to put things in compartment. I'm not -- I'm not saying that what he went through wasn't tragic, but right now he's an opportunist. He's trying to sell books. Like the other officers, Officer Dunn, he ran for Congress, failed at that because -- I mean, people see right through it. I think the constituents of Maryland saw right through it.
COATES: (INAUDIBLE) sentencing address law enforcement (INAUDIBLE) to them as well?
TARRIO: I defended the situation, and I would defend the plight of what happened to any officer that was there that day. But I'm talking about after the fact, right? After the fact, he has become an opportunist. I mean, he has become a contributor to multiple stations. It's not advocacy at this point. It goes beyond that. And I think his anger -- I mean, you saw him. He's sitting there, he's cussing, he's angry. I don't think it's genuine. I'm sorry.
COATES: You don't think he was justifying his anger. I hear you, Enrique, when you discuss that people begin to discuss and have conversations about what happened. But if you were sitting with Fanone addressing January 6th and the officers who were fighting against people you have said we're not tourists of the Capitol --
[23:30:05]
TARRIO: Uh-hmm.
COATES: -- you don't -- you don't extend the empathy to what he endured on that day? It gets washed away by what he has done since?
TARRIO: I think -- I think, yes, I empathize with him probably on that day. After that, I don't. I'm very clear with my feelings on things. I can -- I can go ahead and say thank you for your service, but you are an opportunist.
COATES: I appreciate speaking with you today and having you answer the questions and engage in this conversation.
TARRIO: Thank you so much, Laura. I appreciate it.
COATES: For reaction to this wide-ranging interview, I want to bring in former chief of Homeland Security and Intelligence for the government of the District of Columbia, Donell Harvin, who I note was sounding the alarm even prior to January 6th in our conversations. You just heard him speak about and deny responsibility. His conviction, he says, was a miscarriage of justice. What's your response tonight?
DONELL HARVIN, FORMER CHIEF OF HOMELAND SECURITY AND INTELLIGENCE, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: Well, my response is that the jury spoke, the judge spoke, and they found him guilty. He was contrite in court. Clearly now he has less contrition. I think it's really important that the entire population of the American public be very clear-eyed about the fact that the pardoning, particularly of the violent individuals from J6, constitutes state-sponsored extremism. These individuals are violent.
I know he says he doesn't condone violence, but that's, quite frankly, B.S. We tracked his group and other groups like his for years, even before January 6. You don't have to listen to me. You can just go to Google and google Proud Boys and fight, and you'll see fights, so in types of fights. This is what they do. They don't write their congressmen, they don't sign petitions, they don't do what other people do to participate in violence, to participate in democracy. They participate in democracy with violence.
COATES: He suggested that the pardons were given because there was a venue issue, really, or that there was a miscarriage of justice and not having fair trials. He also called for retribution for his imprisonment. He tonight, though, said he is not calling for violence, just what he calls an investigation, an investigation of people like Merrick Garland, January 6th prosecutors as well. Is that how you think his followers will hear it?
HARVIN: Well, I can't get into the mind of violent extremists. I mean, that's what they're classified as. These groups are classified as violent extremists, domestic violent extremists. It is good that he comes out publicly and says that. That'll put a lot of people at ease.
But once again, at the end of the day, this isn't over, Laura. Right? Just because Trump won and they're out of jail, they're not going to go back to their (INAUDIBLE) and be normal citizens. These individuals have been given a carte blanche, a green light to pick up any calls on the right and continue to demonstrate and perhaps violence.
Saw this before during COVID. They were showing up at school board meetings and arguing and getting into tussles about mask mandates and vaccine mandates. And so, once again, this legitimizes violence on the right, and it should be concerning for everybody.
COATES: An ominous warning and one I wonder if the president fully considered when he granted a kind of blanket pardon or clemency across the board. We'll see repercussions of this surely. Donell Harvin, thank you so much.
Up next, President Trump dangling wildfire aid to hard-hit California, but only if they agree to two demands. One of which, by the way, has nothing to do with the fires. The mayor of Pasadena standing by live to respond.
And later, New Jersey officials outraged and demanding answers after a controversial immigration raid, they say, was unconstitutional. So, what really happened?
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[23:35:00]
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TRUMP: I appreciate the governor coming out and meeting me. Gavin, thank you very much. They're going to need a lot of federal help. Unless you don't need any, which would be okay.
GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM (D-CA): We're going to need a lot of federal help.
TRUMP: So, we're going to take care of things.
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COATES: President Trump and California Governor Gavin Newsom meeting tonight for the first time since fires ravaged the Los Angeles area. The president's visit coming after a trip to North Carolina earlier today, where he floated the idea of putting conditions on aid to the Golden State. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: I want to see two things in Los Angeles. Voter I.D. so that the people have a chance to vote. And I want to see the water be released and come down into Los Angeles and throughout the state. Those are the two things. After that, I will be the greatest president that California has ever seen.
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COATES: Now, to be clear, experts have told CNN there is no connection between water battles in Northern California and hydrants running dry during the Los Angeles fires, and his calls for statewide voter I.D. would be an unprecedented demand in exchange for federal natural disaster relief.
Joining me now, Victor Gordo, the mayor of Pasadena, California. His city faced extensive damage from the Eaton Fire just earlier this month.
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Mayor, thank you for joining us. I have to know, after all you've seen in your community, what is your reaction to President Trump floating the idea of putting conditions on the aid that California might receive?
MAYOR VICTOR GORDO, PASADENA, CALIFORNIA: Well, you know, first, it's appalling, but let me just first say, well, I'm grateful that the president and his team came out to California. As mayor of Pasadena, I am very disappointed that he didn't come out to see the dead and the people who are grieving for their lost ones, and importantly, the first responders, the thousands of firefighters who have fought courageously in these times.
And to say that he's going to condition relief for any or all of these people based on a political agenda is absolutely unacceptable. This is not the time for bureaucratic or political haymaking. This is the time to be the best president of the United States now, unconditionally, Mr. President.
COATES: And Mayor, speaking of the timing and what the devastation looks like, I mean, estimates put the economic loss, the economic loss from these fires, at more than $250 billion, to say nothing about the sentimental devastation and the loss of livelihood and security for so many people. How would any delay in federal aid impact your state and your city, frankly, the ability to recover?
GORDO: Economic aid, both from the federal level, the state and the county, and our own municipality is going to be key for us to rebuild our communities. And without it, it won't -- it just simply -- it simply won't happen. This is the time when people expect all levels of government to work together to ensure that people have the opportunity to rebuild their lives in the community that they love.
COATES: So integral into rebuilding is often FEMA and the recovery efforts are able to help finance and lead. Trump floated the idea of eliminating FEMA earlier today. I want you to listen to what he had to say.
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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I think we're going to recommend that FEMA go away. FEMA has been a very big disappointment. They cost a tremendous amount of money. It's very bureaucratic, and it's very slow.
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COATES: Now, mayor, Trump says that he wants the disaster relief to be up to state governors. In the potential absence of FEMA, how would that impact future disaster response? Is that practical or a pipe dream?
GORDO: You know, I think it's both impractical, a pipe dream, but more importantly, I think it's a response to not take the time to conduct an analysis. Look, there are going to be some things at all levels, including the federal government, the state, and even our own municipality, things that we may not want to repeat. There are going to be some things that we do different, we want to do differently in the future. But there are also going to be some things that we did very well.
And so, I think we need to conduct an analysis of our response at all levels before we shoot from the hip and say, well, we -- this agency is or is not needed. It's one thing to say, we're going to learn and improve. It's another thing to just hold cloth, say we're going to do away with an agency that has a long history of responding in these situations.
I can't imagine what it would have taken to stand up the emergency operation center without -- you know, that had thousands of people, including 4,000 firefighters and thousands of civilians, responding to this fire without the assistance of FEMA. And I think it's irresponsible to simply say from one day to another, they're out.
COATES: Mayor Victor Gordo, we're continuing --
GORDO: Without --
COATES: What did you say? I missed the last part of what you said, mayor.
GORDO: Certainly, to come to that conclusion without a proper analysis would be inappropriate and, in my view, irresponsible. What's the plan B? Who responds in a situation like this within hours and stands up the operation that I personally witnessed and talked to you about a few days ago?
COATES: Yeah.
GORDO: It's an immense -- an immense responsibility.
COATES: Mayor Victor Gordo, thank you for joining us at this time.
Up next, controversy over President Trump's deportations. The city of Newark, New Jersey now at the center of it all after federal agents reportedly targeted a local warehouse without a warrant and even detained U.S. citizens.
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The city's mayor joins me next to explain what happened and what he plans to do about it.
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COATES: From the air to the ground and from coast to coast, clear evidence that President Trump's deportation plan is now in full effect. The first military planes carrying migrants left the country yesterday. The White House sharing these images of people in handcuffs lining up to board the deportation flight back to Guatemala. Reinforcers to the military and National Guard are at the border as well. Video shows troops arriving at the California-Mexico border today.
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And in New Jersey, outrage after federal law enforcement agents detained workers at a seafood restaurant in Newark. A source says agents were acting on a tip reporting unauthorized workers. Immigrant groups say that three people were taken into custody, and the mayor says the city was -- quote -- "unlawfully terrorized." But Trump's border czar says all of those actions were just a start.
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TOM HOMAN, BORDER CZAR: If you're in a country illegally, you're on the tip because it's not okay to, you know, violate laws in this country. You've got to remember, every time you enter this country illegally, you violated a crime under Title 8, United States Code 1325. It's a crime. So, if you're in a country illegally, you've got a problem. And that's why I'm hoping those who are in a country illegally, who have not been ordered removed by the federal judge, should leave.
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COATES: Joining me now, the mayor of Newark, New Jersey, Ras Baraka. Mayor, thank you so much for joining me this evening. You mentioned that among those detained were U.S. citizens and also, I understand, a military veteran. When you heard that news, what was your reaction?
MAYOR RAS BARAKA, NEWARK, NEW JERSEY: I was immediately appalled that the temerity of these folks to go into a local restaurant in the back and basically violate everybody's constitutional rights, asking for their papers, their IDs, taking pictures of them, even fingerprinting some of the people inside of the establishment as well, going behind there -- it's problematic. It's problematic for so many reasons. One being it violates the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution. It violates due process, right? It does not give -- make people secure in their persons, in their property, in their papers. It is an issue. And we should not allow the Constitution to be violated this way. It becomes a slippery slope. And once this happens, then we open a door to other kind of opportunities for people to violate our rights.
COATES: You know, when I heard about that, my mind went as you did to the Fourth Amendment -- the Fourth Amendment, idea about unreasonable search or seizure and having to have probable cause to even stop. It does protect people from those things without a warrant. Do you think about any action the city could take to prevent this from happening again? Has there been any warnings issued? Has there been any high alerts or are you really at the mercy of whenever you have to react to it?
BARAKA: Well, obviously, we are reacting to it because these people have completely gone crazy, that's for sure. But we have mobilized our folks in the city, our nonprofit and community-based organizations, to provide, know your rights, to provide legal counsel, to show up to scenes like the one that happened yesterday to make sure people's rights are not being violated, to shine light on this, and allow these people to know that we're not just going to sit by and allow them to continue to do this without shining some light on what's happening here in our city.
And maybe around the country, this is also happening, that people can galvanize and mobilize around the protection of their neighbors, of their family members, of folks that work and live in their community.
This is egregious. I mean, anybody could have been in the store that day. And how are you able to identify by looking at somebody, whether they're undocumented or whether they're a criminal? That by itself is a violation of people's rights, right? The violation of due process. It is a problem. Anybody, I don't care what your position is on immigration, this is a problem, right? And people should understand that clearly.
COATES: Well, CNN has reached out to Homeland Security investigations, by the way, to determine if a warrant was ever issued prior to the search. We have not heard back on that point.
But the concern about profiling is at the core of the concern for so many people, the core of concerns about how to implement an immigration policy or detention and deportation. And part of that implementation, we understand, is that Trump's DOJ says it will go after any local officials who resist their immigration efforts, could even prosecute them. What's your response to that admonition, dare I say, threat?
BARAKA: Right, it is a threat. It's a -- I would say it's a thinly- veiled threat. It's ridiculous. Obviously, you know, if they come to Newark and obviously try to arrest us here in the city, I don't think it'll go as easy as they anticipate. That's number one.
But number two, I think that to tell people that you'll arrest them for upholding the Constitution of the United States speaks of another larger problem that we need to discuss around what the Trump presidency means to all of us, to the Constitution, to assign executive orders that dismiss the Constitution of the United States.
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To run policy that runs amok of the Fourth Amendment is really enough for us to begin to question what's happening here. Are we the democracy that this country said we were at one point? Are we losing, you know, the core value of what it means to be an American?
We are allowing these things to happen, to erode our rights, to erode because fearmongering has been created, making you believe there's some kind of insidious crime wave that does not exist between the migrant and immigrant population. I mean, it's a ridiculous notion.
COATES: Hmm.
BARAKA: The foundation of it is lies.
COATES: Mayor Ras Baraka, thank you so much for your insight. We'll look to see what's happening in places like Newark and beyond as these policies find their way all across this nation. Thank you.
BARAKA: Thank you.
COATES: And thank you all for watching. "Anderson Cooper 360" is next.
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