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One World with Zain Asher
BLS: 22,000 Jobs Added in August, Far Fewer Than Expected; Hundreds Detained in Massive ICE Raid at Hyundai Plant in Georgia; UK Deputy PM Angela Rayner Resigns Over Tax Affairs; Trump Praises RFK after Senators' Tough Questions; Caribbean Fisherman Exposed to Growing Tensions; Variety: Animated Star's Theatrical Release Set for August 2027. Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired September 05, 2025 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
PAULA NEWTON, CNN HOST, ONE WORLD: A disappointing U.S. Jobs Report is out today raising fears that job growth is swollen. "One World" starts right
now. Now as that job market all eyes on the Federal Reserve and potential interest rate cuts later this month. Plus, a UK government reshuffle is
underway at this hour after Britain's Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Minister Angela Rayner resigned.
And tensions escalating between the U.S. and Venezuela over the deadly American military strike on suspected drug boat in the Caribbean. Live from
New York. I'm Paula Newton, and this is "One World".
Job seekers in the U.S. could be facing tough times ahead. New numbers out just this morning show job growth in the United States has almost come to a
grinding halt. The U.S. economy added just 22,000 jobs last month, far fewer than expected, and this is what happened next.
The unemployment rate ticked up a 10th of a point to 4.3 percent. Analysts say businesses are fearful about tariffs and the broader economy. Now,
despite those dismal jobs' numbers, U.S. markets being resilient so far, they were actually up when the numbers came out, but as you now see, have
turned negative. We will wait to see what happens in the coming hours. They are waiting for a reaction from the White House.
Now, remember, many had thought that the markets would take off on the fact that there would be perhaps not one, but two interest rate cuts. These are
the first job numbers we've seen from the Bureau of Labor Statistics since the president fired its commissioner over what he alleged without proof,
were fake numbers. Last night, Trump would not commit to trusting the new data, listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Tomorrow, we have a Jobs Report coming out, the first since the BLS Commissioner, who you fired, won't be there. A lot of people
will be turning to you to see if you believe the data that's released. Can you commit to saying the data will be credible?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: The number, I don't know they come out tomorrow. But the real numbers that I'm talking
about are going to be whatever it is, but will be in a year from now, when these monstrous, huge, beautiful places, the palaces of genius, and when
they start opening up, you're seeing, I think you'll see job numbers that are going to be absolutely incredible.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Meanwhile, a new BLS Report out Wednesday showed for the first time in more than four years, there were more people looking for work than there
were job openings. We want to bring in Matt Egan, to break down the numbers for us.
Matt, I mean, look, these were eye popping numbers. No one really expected it to be a very optimistic report, but this was something else entirely, as
you can see from the president's reaction because normally, presidents will get a preview of these numbers around mid-afternoon or the day before.
MATT EGAN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Yeah, that's right, Paula. Look, this is a weak report, and it is raising these concerns that the job market is
stalling out after years of historic resilience. As you mentioned, just 22,000 jobs added during the month of August. That's just a fraction of the
77,000 that had been expected.
The unemployment rate 4.3 percent that's up from 4.2 percent when you look at the trend for unemployment rate, you know it is still relatively low. On
the left side of your screen this is 2022 it actually got to as low as 3.4 percent in early 2023 but it is clearly moving noticeably higher.
This is actually the highest level since late 2021. And Fed Chair Jerome Powell, he said that this is the metric that he's watching most closely
right now to get a sense for how the job market is doing. And the fact that it's going up does, of course, show that it is weakening.
And when we look at the trend for the last few months in terms of jobs added, look how much it's slowed down. I mean, it's kind of incredible to
think about it, but just as recently as December of 2024 just a few months ago, the U.S. economy was adding more than 300,000 jobs.
But look how much it slowed down to around 100,000 and then after this revision, we now find out that June, the U.S. economy actually lost jobs.
That's the first time that that's happened since December 2020, back during COVID. This breaks a streak of almost five years of uninterrupted job
growth, the second longest streak in American history, and clearly it remains weak in terms of hiring.
Now, when you look at some of the categories here, the good news is that some sectors are still adding jobs. Health care, social assistance, adding
47,000 also 28,000 in leisure and hospitality. I think the bad news here, of course, is that's really where most of the jobs are right now and have
been.
This is very, very concentrated. And the other bad news is that some sectors like construction are losing jobs. And look at manufacturing losing
12,000 jobs in August. This is the fourth straight month that manufacturing is losing jobs. I just talked to Matthew Martin over at Oxford Economics.
He told me that manufacturers were basically paralyzed right now by all the uncertainty over trade policy, which is ironic, right?
[11:05:00]
Because the overall economy is suffering from all the uncertainty caused by tariffs and trade policy. They're supposed to be propping up manufacturing,
right? But that's not happening, at least not yet. In fact, we're seeing the opposite with that sector losing jobs. One last point here, Paula, the
black unemployment rate as recently as May was at 6 percent now 7.5 percent. Economists say that is a canary in the coal mine when it comes to
the job market.
NEWTON: Yeah, and very punishing for households, for black households in the United States, that you have to say real jobs and real livelihoods on
the line there. Matt, you and I have discussed this before. We talked about construction and manufacturing being down.
Now, look, if the Federal Reserve decides it's going to cut a quarter point, or maybe even some not a majority yet, but some are betting perhaps
a half a percent that could stimulate the housing market, right? What is something the president has been calling for, for some time?
EGAN: Yeah, absolutely. Look, investors are growing increasingly confident the Fed is going to cut interest rates, right? There's now an 88 percent
chance of a quarter of a point cut at the next meeting in less than two weeks. There's even a 12 percent chance of a jumbo-sized interest rate cut
of half a percentage point. That is up from 0 percent just a day ago.
And the market is pricing, and no chance that the Fed just keeps interest rates steady. Now, to your point, interest rate cuts could help. Of course,
it takes months, if not, you know, quarters, for interest rate cuts to really feed into the U.S. economy, but it would help, certainly
residential, certainly real estate construction.
What I thought was interesting was the market reaction, right? We saw the market kind of pop a little bit this morning. It looked like one of that
classic bad news is Main Street is good news for Wall Street moves.
But now, as you noted at the top, we're seeing a reversal with U.S. stocks solidly in the red. And I got to say, Paula, I think that this reaction
makes a lot more sense, because sure, investors want lower interest rates, but they don't want the Fed to feel like it needs to come to the rescue.
NEWTON: Yeah, and something you and I will no doubt discuss next week, inflation is not exactly at 2 percent where the Fed wants it, and that is
also a complicating factor. Matt Egan, for us, really grateful to you for breaking down those numbers.
EGAN: Thanks Paula.
NEWTON: Now, moments ago, we heard from U.S. government officials about what appears to be one of the largest raids at a single site in ICE's 22-
year history. 475 people were arrested Thursday at a Hyundai plant under construction in Georgia. The Special Agent for Homeland Security in Georgia
addressed the arrests moments ago, listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVEN SCHRANK, SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE, HOMELAND SECURITY INVESTIGATIONS: This has been a multi month criminal investigation where we have developed
evidence, conducted interviews, gathered documents, and presented that evidence to the court in order to obtain a judicial search warrant.
Yesterday, we executed that search warrant and gathered additional evidence that will support this investigation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Now, some important points there that that agent had said that criminal charges has not -- have not been laid as of yet, and then they
have turned over those 475 people arrested to ICE agents. Now, once the plant opens, it was supposed to produce batteries for Hyundai's electric
vehicles. Hyundai says it's cooperating with law enforcement.
We do want to get perspective on all of this from Washington Post Global Economics Correspondent David Lynch. He has a new book coming out next week
called "The World's Worst Bet: How the globalization gamble went wrong and what would make it right"?
Thank you for joining us, especially as we have these two stories top of mind today, both of them really rocking the American economy. I want to
turn first to the job's numbers. What do you think it says overall about the president's strategy on both tariffs, but also the economy itself?
DAVID LYNCH, GLOBAL ECONOMICS CORRESPONDENT, WASHINGTON POST: Well, it says reality is not cooperating with the president's ambitions. What we're
seeing in the labor market is a pronounced weakening over the past few months, and the problem really comes from Washington.
The constant uncertainty about what tariffs are going to be, in effect, what level they'll be set at? What countries they'll apply to, has really
sort of frozen CEOs in their tracks, very difficult to make an investment, even if you're inclined to cooperate with the president's goals of
reshoring manufacturing.
If you don't know what the tariffs are going to be six months from now or a year from now, you're better off just sitting tight and waiting to find
out. And I think that's what a lot of businesses are doing. And if you look back really, over the last four months, the economy has added almost no
extra new jobs. It's basically just stalled, frozen in place.
And the other consideration is that the DOGE process of streamlining the federal government has sent a government hiring into reverse. That's
normally been a tailwind for the economy. Now it's a headwind, and all of this is weighing on job growth.
[11:10:00]
NEWTON: Yeah, and to be -- to understand here that with the big, beautiful bill, this was not supposed to happen, right? It was supposed to really
give some rocket fuel, in the president's words, to the economy. I want to get back to this issue of the statistics we just had up, though.
This was from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Donald Trump has been at war, saying that the last time there was a bad jobs report that he believes the
numbers were rigged. I want you to listen to his Commerce Secretary now, just in the last few hours, doubling down, listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HOWARD LUTNICK, U.S. COMMERCE SECRETARY: If the leader is bent in against Donald Trump, then they're going to have, you know, such errors and those
things are bent. We've seen that in all sorts of agencies throughout this government. The people, the holdovers from the Biden Administration, were
just they're just bent against the president's success.
They're rooting against America and against Donald Trump. He can't replace somebody two weeks ago, and you expect fundamental change, but what you
will get is an agency that's on side, just trying to do the best and put out the correct numbers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: OK, there are only correct numbers. They're the ones that alleged that the numbers were being rigged. I will say I follow these numbers
closely, as I'm sure you do as well. There were -- I wish it was coming as a shock to me at how antiquated the collection of these numbers actually
are.
I'm sure there is room for reform. But when the Commerce Secretary himself doubles down on this, what are we supposed to think about any numbers being
released from the federal government now?
LYNCH: Well, first of all, I don't think there's anyone outside of the White House or Commerce Secretary Lutnick's Office who takes seriously the
idea that the problem in the labor market is that the BLS professionals have been cooking the numbers to disadvantage the president.
I don't know of any economist who takes that charge seriously. Are there antiquated elements of the government's attempt to collect data? Of course,
but that's not a question of integrity or professionalism. This kind of complaint reminds me of a kid who flunks his calculus exam and decides to
blame the teacher. The teacher is unfair to him. No, the problem is he has studied, and he didn't do well enough on the test.
NEWTON: And so given all of this at the same time, we have these raids going on at work places. The latest being quite large we just reported on
it is also according to the State of Georgia, majority South Korean. And this is where I do want to pull out and talk more to your book and what you
have studied for so many years here.
You know, does the Trump Administration have a point here? Who are these people? This is a South Korean plant, and yet they are supposed to be
employing, by and large American workers. I do want to caution there are no criminal charges launched here. We don't even know what this is about.
But in terms of what you studied in the last few years, how has that issue of globalization really framed the backlash that we're seeing now?
LYNCH: Sure. Well, what I get into in my book is really the 30-year story that takes us from the optimism and indeed triumphalism of the 1990s after
the end of the Cold War, when globalization was really welcomed as something that was going to lead to widespread shared prosperity here at
home, and more peaceful, harmonious relations with countries like China and Russia.
Now you fast forward to today, and that's not where we find ourselves. And part of the failure that I think is at the root of sort of the phenomenon
that brought Donald Trump to the White House, is our failure to provide for the folks who were left behind as that new globalized economy was created.
Politicians, from Bill Clinton on, always said there'd be winners and losers, quote, unquote, in this process, but that that was OK, because the
winners would provide the relocation assistance, the job retraining, the other support that folks, particularly in the manufacturing sector, needed
to participate in this brave new world.
And that never happened, and the resentment that was caused by that, as well as resentment over failures to police the border and control
immigration, is what led us to where we are today.
NEWTON: Yeah, and it will be interesting to see, because the president is still pretty resolute in the fact that he believes he has support for these
raids and support for reshoring of jobs. David Lynch for us from "The Washington Post", appreciate it. Thanks so much.
LYNCH: Anytime.
NEWTON: We turn to the Middle East now, where Hamas has released a video of some hostages in Gaza City.
[11:15:00]
The propaganda video shows captive Guy Gilboa-Dalal, apparently it was filmed last week. CNN has geo located the video to Gaza City.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GUY GILBOA-DALAL: My name is Guy Gilboa-Dalal, the prisoner held by Al- Qassem Brigades in Gaza City.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Now this is the 700th day of the war in Gaza, and Israel is ramping up its assault. Health officials at Al Shifa Hospital say IDF strikes on
Gaza City overnight killed more than a dozen people, including at least seven children. And Israel's military now says it holds 40 percent of Gaza
City. Tens of thousands of reservists are being mobilized as part of Israel's full takeover plan.
CNN's Jeremy Diamond has been following all of this from Tel Aviv for us. Jeremy, grateful to have you here. I mean, look, it is a tough video to
wake up to, not just for the family, but for Israel writ large, we've had hundreds of thousands of people, literally in the streets, demanding that
these hostages be released.
What has been the reaction on the ground, as people view obviously, with absolute torment that latest video that was released?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, there's no question that these are difficult images for many Israelis, and particularly for the
families of these hostages. Guy Gilboa-Dalal was kidnapped, you know, 700 days ago today, and his family had not seen him in a hostage video for six
months now.
He is one of 20 hostages who are still believed to be alive and are being held in Gaza by Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups. But what you
hear from him here as well is the fear of what is going to come next and what is already beginning, and that is this major Israeli military
offensive to capture Gaza City.
In the video Guy Gilboa-Dalal, says that he is having nightmares about the prospects of that offensive and he says that he believes it means, quote,
we will die here. He also says that there are eight other hostages also being held in Gaza City, and that their Hamas captures have made clear that
they will not be moved out of the city as the Israeli military closes in.
Now it's, of course, important to note that this is a hostage video. It is a propaganda video. It is one by its own nature. That means that Guy
Gilboa-Dalal is speaking under duress, but what he is talking about is very real, and it speaks, of course, to the fears of so many of these families
who for weeks now have been taking to the streets in greater numbers, alongside hundreds of thousands of Israelis to demand that this Israeli
government not move forward with this offensive.
But instead take the ceasefire and hostage release deal on the table and ultimately end the war in Gaza. But instead, Gaza's -- Israel's Defense
Minister, Israel Katz saying that the gates of hell are now being opened on Gaza City.
NEWTON: And Jeremy remind us where we're at with this military campaign, because as devastating as been, especially with the new strike on the
hospital as well, they're really only just getting started, right?
DIAMOND: No question about it. I mean, we are watching as this military operation is beginning to take shape as the bombardment is intensifying, as
Israeli troops are beginning to move into parts of Gaza City.
But we -- you know this is really just a small portion of what we are likely going to see in the coming weeks as the Israeli military actually
closes in on the actual population center in the center of Gaza City, where so many, including those who are on the outskirts of Gaza City, have begun
to move as the Israeli military has closed in.
And in the last 24 hours, 69 people have been killed across Gaza according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. Just last night alone, in Gaza City,
there were more than a dozen people who were killed in overnight strikes on residential buildings as well as tented encampments, where so many of those
displaced Palestinians were living, among those more than a dozen people who were killed, at least seven of them were devastatingly children.
And so many of the images that we saw from the aftermath of these strikes, you can see rescue workers coming out with stretcher after stretcher with
very small bodies of children who were either dead or injured, including some who were severely burned in some of these strikes. One image that
really struck me was that of a toddler who was killed in these strikes while sleeping while wearing these Christmas themed pajamas on them.
Now Gaza's Civil Defense also talked about the scenes of those who survived, but one mother, for example, crawling on the floor of her charred
home, searching for her children. And again, we expect that this will continue to intensify, that we are only still in the early stages of what
is an extraordinarily significant military offensive, and one with a likely very heavy human toll attached to it Paula.
[11:20:00]
NEWTON: Yeah, and Jeremy, it was just a few days ago that you brought us that harrowing piece of again, more children, undeniably innocent and
suffering at this hour in Gaza. Jeremy Diamond for us. Appreciate it.
Russia is sending mixed signals about the possibility of peace talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, but the Kremlin has made a very
clear message for Western Leaders. Spokesperson Dmitry Peshkov says a huge amount of work is needed before any top-level meeting can take place.
Vladimir Putin, however, is once again extending an invitation for Zelenskyy to go to Moscow, something the Ukrainian President has already
rejected. It comes one day after European Leaders agreed to send troops to secure post war Ukraine, a move that led to this warning by the Russian
President.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VLADIMIR PUTIN. RUSSIAN PRESIDENT: Regarding possible military contingents in Ukraine this is one of the root causes trying to involve Ukraine and
NATO. So, if any troops appear there, especially during the ongoing hostilities, we assume they'll be legitimate targets for defeat.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Meanwhile, today's remarks -- today marks yet another deadline that U.S. President Donald Trump gave Putin to make a peace deal with Kyiv.
We'll have much more on this next hour, when my colleague Bianna Golodryga speaks with Ivo Daalder. He is a Former U.S. Ambassador to NATO.
Coming up for us, the British government is facing a significant setback following the resignation of one of its brightest political stars. What
does this mean for the embattled prime minister? Stay with us. Plus, Portugal observing three days of mourning after 16 people were killed in
funicular development.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NEWTON: Britain's embattled Labor Government is facing further uncertainty and yet another major setback following the departure of one of its top
leaders. Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner has resigned after admitting that she failed to pay enough property taxes on her second home.
Rayner, who also served as housing secretary, insists she made a mistake. It all comes as pressure mounts on Prime Minister Keir Starmer's
government, which is already facing low poll numbers and lagging significantly behind the anti-immigrant reform, party -- Reform UK Party.
CNN's Nic Robertson has been following all of this late breaking news for us from London. And Nic, look a big shock and definitely a bruising
situation for the Labor Government.
[11:25:00]
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yeah, and I think the words that Keir Starmer wrote in his three-page handwritten note to Angela
Rayner after she handed in her resignation kind of speak to that a trusted colleague, a true friend, somebody who really showed the social mobility of
the country.
This is a very significant political figure who's been close to his side since he's been Prime Minister, a significant player in his government, the
deputy prime minister, somebody that he's relied on sort of -- to sort of keep, if you will, the support of the left wing of the party, as is sort of
try to cue it along a more centrist course.
But the language that is used there pays testament to somebody who's one admiration, particularly for the working classes in the UK. You know, she's
talked about her own career and trajectory, leaving school at 16, pregnant without qualifications, becoming a grandmother when she was 37 and when she
became an MP 10 years ago, talking about she wished all those people that said to her back then you will never amount to anything they she wished
they could see her now.
So, you know, when the prime minister tells her -- talked about her in the terms of the embodiment of social mobility. He's really talking about
somebody who sort of expresses and lives the core values of the Labor Party, and that's one of the reasons why this loss will be big for him.
I remember meeting with her out on the election campaign trail a few years -- a few years ago, she was a powerful figure, a strong voice within the
Labor Party. So, this is a loss for the prime minister, but he's already moving beyond it. Of course, politicians will has already appointed a new
deputy prime minister taken the Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, made him the Deputy Prime Minister.
Shifted the Home Secretary into the Foreign Secretary's position, shifted the Justice Secretary into the Home Secretary's position. So significant
reshuffle going on for the prime minister. More significantly, as you say, he's not doing well in the polls, the leader of the opposition, in fact,
commented on Angela Rayner's resignation and said, essentially, he didn't fire her.
He should have fired her. She had referred herself to the ministerial ethics committee just a couple of days ago, and they decided that she
hadn't heeded the warnings that she was given in deliberating the tax consequences of this house purchase that she made, and that was the reason,
that was the context for her resignation.
But there are those who will criticize the prime minister now outside of the Labor Party for not firing her. That would be something that he will --
he will find himself facing political heat from the opposition on.
NEWTON: Yeah, and a lot of ammunition again for reform -- Nigel Farage and his party as they mount yet another campaign. Nic Robertson, grateful to
you and grateful for you going through her biography, omething that is incredibly important to labor supporters there. Thanks so much.
Now, authorities in Portugal are working to figure out why a funicular in Lisbon derailed, killing 16 people. The country is now observing three days
of mourning. Isa Saores has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ISA SOARES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Lisbon in mourning and shaken to its call after a deadly funicular crash. As the sun rose over the
Portuguese Capital, it revealed the extent of the damage of Wednesday evening's accident, with one of its two linked cable streetcars in tatters.
The Gloria Funicular is extremely popular with both tourists and locals. Its cars have carried passengers up and down a steep cobbled street in the
heart of the city for over 140 years, each car operates as a counterweight to the other. But last night, something went horribly wrong.
BRUNO PEREIRA, EYEWITNESS: I'm looking at the funicular, which came from Bairro Alto, from Sao Pedro De Alcantara viewpoint, completely
unrestrained. It looked like a toy, banging from side to side on the Gloria Street cobbles. I hear screams, and then, all of a sudden, a big bang.
SOARES (voice-over): More screams and a massive plume of smoke followed as passengers from the lower car frantically tried to climb out of the windows
and flee the scene. Abel Esteves was one of them.
ABEL ESTEVES, SURVIOR: Well, when I saw the other funicular going down, I shouted to my wife we're going to die here because I thought the elevator
was coming to hit this one.
SOARES (voice-over): But the funicular crashed into a building, stopping it from plunging even further. Local authorities say it's too early to
determine the cause of the derailment, but the Lisbon firefighters regiment says that a cable detached along the line causing the descending funicular
to lose control.
[11:30:00]
CARLOS MOEDAS, LISBON MAYOR: Obviously it's an accident that shouldn't have happened. That is a tragedy that has never happened in our city.
SOARES (voice-over): 40-year-old and father of two, Andre Marques is the first victim to be identified. He was the vehicle's brakeman according to
the Transport Workers Union. There are also multiple foreign nationals on board. Lisbon City Council suspended operations of other streetcars in what
is known as the City of Seven Hills and ordered immediate inspections according to local media.
The prosecutor general's office is opening a formal investigation. As Lisbon mourns, there are already calls for accountability over how
something so tragic could happen. Isa Soares, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Still to come for us on "One World", what's in a name? Donald Trump wants to change the name of the U.S. Department of Defense. What he wants
to call it, and why? Plus, what Donald Trump is saying about his Health Secretary after Robert F. Kennedy Jr. faced off with skeptical U.S.
Senators.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NEWTON: Welcome back to "One World". I'm Paula Newton in New York. And here are the headlines we're watching this hour. Russian President Vladimir
Putin is once again extending an invitation for Ukraine's Leader to meet with him in Moscow, in a proposal that Kyiv has already called
unacceptable. On the very same day however, the Kremlin said a huge amount of work is needed before any top-level meeting can take place.
Britain's Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner is calling it quits after it emerge, she failed to pay the right amount of property taxes. Her departure
is seen as another setback for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. British Foreign Minister David Lammy has been appointed the new Deputy Prime
Minister. That is despite last year's landslide election victory the Labor Party is facing a rising challenge from the Anti-Immigration Reform UK
Party.
[11:35:00]
And a short time ago, Thailand's Parliament picked Veteran Politician Anutin Charnvirakul to become the country's next Prime Minister. This,
according to an unofficial running tally broadcast live on TV. Comes after week after the former prime minister was removed from office over a
controversy and ethics violations.
Later today, Donald Trump plans to rename the U.S. Department of Defense. He will sign an executive order changing the name to the Department of War.
The Defense Department was called the Department of War for much of America's history, but the name was changed in 1949 after World War II.
Now at the same time, Donald Trump is standing by his Health Secretary after a very tough day on Capitol Hill. Trump voiced praise and support for
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., on Thursday, just hours after the Health and Human Services Secretary clashed with Senators during a Finance Committee
Hearing.
Kennedy was repeatedly blasted by Democrats and even faced several skeptical Republicans who questioned him about his controversial stance on
vaccines. Take a listen to some of the back and forth.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're a charlatan. That's what you are.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're just making stuff up. You're talking gibberish.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Secretary --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know what you're talking about. Is this the question, Senator Cassidy, or is this the speech you don't want me to
answer? How can you be that ignorant?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Senator Cattwell,
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And you're wrong.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You are a hazard to the health of the American people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: OK, I want to go straight to the White House and CNN's Alayna Treene, we will get to that in a moment. I do want to get first to this
name change, but it's a name change, but not really, right? I mean, this is going to be some kind of a secondary name. Maybe the letterhead won't be
changing. I mean, is this really a branding exercise more than anything else?
ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: We'll have to see where this heads, because you're right. I mean, legally, it's very much unclear if the
president actually has the authority to do this, because, as you mentioned, kind of in that lead in this was -- this used to be the Department of
Defense. Used to be named the Department of War.
It was changed under in 1949 under then President Harry Truman, and it was changed under an act of Congress. And so, this would likely need another
act of Congress, a law, a bill to be passed, that type of thing, to make this a more permanent and legal change.
But this executive order is essentially laying out what you said, Paula, which is kind of a secondary nature of this. So, you know, the Department
of War, name, Secretary of War, Deputy Secretary of War, that type of nomenclature, that is what is going to be kind of informally put in this
executive order today.
And it directs agencies and the Defense Department and others to refer to the Defense Department as the Department of War, as well as the Secretary
as The Department, or excuse me, the Secretary of War, that type of thing. And so, we are hearing from our conversations people at the White House,
they gave us a fact sheet on some of this order that it will also essentially tell other agencies to refer to them like that.
We could see a change in the signage, potentially. But again, from a legal standpoint, it's unclear how much further they're going to bring this. Now,
the order also does direct the Secretary of Defense, soon to be Secretary of War, to potentially try to go through this with legislation and other
moves.
So, we could see potential other follow ups to make this more permanent. But for now, I guess calling it a branding exercise is a bit accurate
there, Paula.
NEWTON: Yeah. But as you point out for now, and there is a lot in the name, defense is something completely different than being at war. We will wait
to hear more about that. I do want to get back to the hearing. You know, despite the back and forth and the grilling that he took, it seems that the
President Trump understands that RFK Jr., his voters aren't quitting RFK Jr., despite what happened in that hearing.
TREENE: Yeah. I mean, look, I think it's clear apollo that was obviously a very combative hearing we saw yesterday. It's also clear that a lot of
prominent Republicans are growing weary of him and the way that he's handled policy and his rhetoric all around the Health and Human Services
Department.
But Donald Trump is not one of them. And he did say last night at a dinner he was gathering with -- he said that he didn't watch the hearing, but he
had heard that Kennedy did very well. And he also said that he likes the fact that he's different. He said it's not your standard talk.
A lot of it has to do with, you know, controversial subjects on medicines and vaccines, but he liked that Kennedy is different. And we did hear
similar praise from some other top officials here at the White House, one of them being the Vice President J.D. Vance, who kind of attacked some of
the Senators on that panel, arguing that they were lecturing and trying to gotcha Kennedy on this.
But I actually think a lot of this stem back my reporting on this to the campaign trail. I mean, I remember how aggressively the then Trump campaign
went after Kennedy to try and get him to drop out and endorse Donald Trump.
[11:40:00]
One of the people who was key to that was actually Trump's son, Donald Trump Jr., and a big reason for it was they recognized that Kennedy had a
lot of appeal among a lot of the conservatives and the voters that Trump was going after. And they knew, particularly when it came to the health
messaging, that they believed was a winning message.
And so, since being in the White House, we've actually seen Trump, and this is unusual for him, give Kennedy a lot of leeway and a lot of space to do
his own thing. All to say, we'll have to see whether or not this public pressure, particularly from a lot of people in the health system, ends up
having any impact on the White House, but for now, they are standing by him Paula.
NEWTON: Yeah, and whether or not it will have impact on public health, especially now, most schools have resumed in the United States. Alayna
Treene for us, thanks. Grateful to you. Still ahead for us, fishermen off the Coast of Venezuela may be soon wading into choppy waters as the U.S.
ramps up its military presence in the Caribbean. We'll have that report.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NEWTON: Now the escalating tensions between the U.S. and Venezuela, two Venezuelan military planes flew near a U.S. Navy vessel in international
waters on Thursday, in a move the Pentagon calls highly provocative. This comes days after a deadly U.S. strike on a boat that the U.S. alleges was
carrying drugs from Venezuela.
President Trump posted video of the attack. 11 people were killed. Venezuela is mobilizing millions of reservists in the meantime, as the U.S.
ramps up its presence in the Caribbean to combat drug cartels, some designated foreign terrorist organizations now by the United States.
Stefano Pozzibon spoke to fishermen who make their living on the seas where warships are now gathering.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): U.S. warships heading towards Venezuela. Tensions are rising in the Caribbean Sea after President
Trump announced the U.S. conducted a kinetic strike that took out an alleged drug trafficking speed boat, killing 11 people.
But on shore, the sea looks calm. Work has not stopped for these artisanal fishermen, says Eduardo Loa. You can be a bit nervous, of course, but we
still have to go out fishing. Otherwise, what are we going to eat? Authorities have not issued warnings to keep this boat at bay. And with
Venezuela's economy still in dire straits, nobody can afford an idle day.
[11:45:00]
Small scale fishermen like -- normally stay within 20 nautical miles from the coast. They hardly risk encounters with the U.S. Flotilla, but still
spend hours at sea without any comms. You stand up on the boat and look around, all you see is the sky and the sea.
The government's line more belligerent. On Wednesday, Nicolas Maduro inaugurated a monument to its alliance with China, boasting close ties to
Beijing on the day of Xi Jinping's massive military parade, and issuing a direct warning to Washington.
We're good people, people of peace, but let it be known, we are warriors fierce when they mess up with our land, our history and our rights. For
now, the seas are calm in Venezuela, but choppy waters may lie just ahead. Stefano Pozzebon CNN, Chichiriviche, Venezuela.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: For more on the implications of this, U.S. strike. We want to bring in Santino Regilme. He is an Associate Professor of International Relations
at the University of Leiden. And he has recently written an op-ed entitled "Numbers over rights, how Trump's drug war travels". And I'm grateful for
you being here.
You know the president himself posted that video. And for Americans looking at this, or other people that are the victims of drug smugglers, they might
look at this with sheer simplicity and say, look, the president is getting tough. You say something different, though, that this really is a game
changer in terms of the war -- in terms of the way the war on drugs will be prosecuted.
SALVADOR SANTINO REGILME, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS, UNIVERSITY OF LEIDEN: Indeed. Well, thanks a lot for the opportunity to be
here there. There are several aspects here. Number one would be the legality of the strike, right? And the second is about the human rights
implications, right?
So, in terms of the legality the U.S. strike on a civilian vessel in international waters bypasses due process, raising serious questions about,
you know, under international law, and violating the most basic human right, which is the right to life. Remember that these are suspected drug
traffickers, and they also have the right to due process like any other human persons.
And that is the big question here. The second part is also about the idea of framing these traffickers, suspected drug traffickers, as Narco
terrorists. A key aspect here is that calling a suspect or a human person as Narco terrorists does not give the U.S. government a license to kill.
At the very least, it strips people of their human rights protections guaranteed through the internet, through international law, and that
includes the United States government that is -- that is expected to be compliant with those expectations.
NEWTON: Yeah, and to pardon the pun, these are uncharted terror. This is uncharted territory, even for the United States. So, as I said, was quite
aggressive in prosecuting the war on drugs, and still is.
And I point to your writing here, saying that you know, the most urgent corrective is to abandon the fiction that equates militarized, punitive
drug enforcement with public safety. You argue that, look, the drug problem is a hell a public health issue in the United States?
REGILME: Indeed. And the problem here is that there are decades of militarized drug policy. The United States government has provided a lot of
military aid and different forms of assistance to South American countries and many other countries in the Global South, but this is largely through
militarized approaches, right?
So, and there's a lot of the problems in terms of drug narcotic drug trade is really about three issues. So, the first one is about supply, right? A
large number of there is a growing number of consumption demand from the United States, and this is largely based on fentanyl and other types of
synthetic opioids, which is not really relevant in the case of Venezuela.
Number two, there's also the question of the of particularly the reasons why people actually get into drugs, and this is largely because of very
serious structural conditions such as poverty, economic inequality and lack of economic opportunities, both in the United States but also in drug
producing countries, at least for specific drugs, in this case relevant to South American countries. So, I think that's a key issue.
NEWTON: And of course, it is a key issue, and it's a key issue that's been debated for decades. And Americans, you know, many of them, these voters,
have said, look, it hasn't worked. Whatever we've done hasn't worked. If you believe that the president and his defense secretary, or apparently now
the secretary of war will have the mandate to continue on with more of these operations. What are your fears in terms of how it will transform the
region?
REGILME: Yeah, I think my fear is that this particular instance of summer execution, for lack of a better term in international waters in the
Caribbean, is a start or a pretext for something more serious, particularly a more intensified military intervention, in the case of the United States,
to the domestic politics of South American countries.
[11:50:00]
And in this case, Venezuela, in fact, possibly violating, you know, territorial integrity of sovereign states. So that is, I think, one of the
key issues relevant to this particular incident are crises.
NEWTON: And it certainly does risk escalation. And you can see that just in the dramatic operation that they released the video of there. And I should
say again, the Secretary of War not saying that it will be the last operation. Santino Regilme, we'll have to leave it there for now. Thanks so
much.
REGILME: Thanks.
NEWTON: Now, we will be right back with more news in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NEWTON: So, Catholics, young and old, are flocking to Rome for a special ceremony this weekend, Pope Leo is set to canonize a 15-year-old Italian
boy, Carlo Acutus, who died of leukemia in 2006. Now he's credited with two miracles, the reported healing of a Brazilian boy with a birth defect and a
young woman from Costa Rica injured in a bicycle accident. His mother describes Carlo as a normal child who played computer games and stood up to
bullies at school.
Now a significant piece of Hollywood history fetched a healthy price tag on Thursday. The prop lightsaber used by the Darth Vader in "The Empire
Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi" was sold for more than $3.6 million at auction. Considering it is my vintage I am not surprised.
It was the highest priced item, in fact, sold by collectibles company Prop Store, and it fetched about half a million dollars more than what had been
expected for the unique piece of sci-fi movie history, and indeed, it is unique and iconic. Hundreds of props, in fact, were up for sale, including
one of 12 volleyballs.
So yes, they did use 12 that were used to portray Wilson in the film Castaway. The Distress and Mourn Wilson was estimated to be worth 20 to
$40,000 but ended up selling for more than 100,000. I'd say that's a good take on that. Look at it. You can't even bounce it. OK, finally, this hour,
we have some good news that might actually get rid of your blues. That rascal bluey, hey, send it to the big screen.
[11:55:00]
Now I have a dog named Blue, so I'm all for this. Variety is reporting that BBC Studios and Disney are shepherding the animated feature film based on
the Australian children's series. The film will continue the adventures of Bluey, a lovable, inexhaustible blue heeler dog lives with her mom, dad and
little sister Bingo. I still can't believe our dog's name is Blue -- well before this even happened, even though they're dogs, they live like humans,
with very human problems.
Bluey and her antics are big with kids. And this is key here, because it's not just big with kids, right? Big with parents as well, because some
things the kids make you watch are annoying. The film is set to release in August 2027 not a moment too soon. Stay with CNN. There is more "One World"
after the break with my colleague, Bianna Golodryga.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
