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Quest Means Business
Source: 21 Federal Workers Resign In Protest Over DOGE Efforts; White House Says It Will Decide Which Reporters Can Be With President In Small Group Events; A Closer Look At Ukraine's Critical Minerals Portfolio; Interview With Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas About Mass Federal Layoffs; Elon Musk's Starlink Gets Contract To Upgrade FAA Network. Aired 4-5p ET
Aired February 25, 2025 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:07]
PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: So the markets did end up rallying after a rough start. Much of the market now reacting to consumer
confidence, but the main hit actually was taken by the NASDAQ, which we will have an update on that for you later. Those are the markets and these
are the main events.
Twenty-one staff members resigned at the Department of Government Efficiency to protest Elon Musk's attempt to reshape the government, as the
U.S. and Ukraine appear near a deal on rare earth minerals, the E.U. is now pushing for its own access to natural resources, and U.K. Prime Minister
Keir Starmer vowing to boost defense spending to a level not seen since the end of the Cold War as he prepares to meet Donald Trump.
Live from New York. It is Tuesday, February 25th. I'm Paula Newton, in for Richard Quest and this is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
And good evening.
Twenty-one federal workers resigned today in an apparent protest against DOGE and its efforts to reshape the government. They were originally part
of the U.S. Digital Service, the agency that was rebranded as DOGE. The group penned a resignation letter stating: "We will not use our skills as
technologists to compromise core government systems, jeopardize American- sensitive data, or dismantle critical public services."
Meantime, Elon Musk, the head of DOGE is set to attend Donald Trump's first Cabinet meeting tomorrow despite not being a Cabinet member.
Sunlen Serfaty is in Washington, D.C., and she has been keeping up with all the latest updates for us.
I mean, Sunlen, how significant is it given this is a mass resignation because you can kind of hear the echo coming from Elon Musk right now on X
saying that they weren't important employees or that they weren't needed, et cetera.
SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it is a good point, Paula, and I am sure that we will potentially hear that from him and
potentially President Trump in in future days.
I think for these employees, that wasn't the point. They tried to stick it out according to a source within the agency, tried to see what DOGE was
going to do, and then finally made the decision to leave and really trying to send a message with their departure on why they are leaving and what
they are leaving behind.
These are highly skilled, highly trained workers who have worked in the federal government for many, many years. These are people that are part of
the technology staff. As you said, it was under USDS, United States Digital Service that morphed into DOGE.
These are engineers, designers, data scientists, product managers, people who have their hands in many critical projects throughout the federal
government. In essence, for right now, the only people that can do this job.
So the fact that you have 21 of these people saying that they are going to step down, resigning today is significant, and in their resignation letter,
which I note was addressed to White House chief-of-staff Susie Wiles, they put -- they say point blank the headline is "We Resign."
And they make clear in this letter and you read a little portion of it, but they make clear in the letter that they are resigning because they observed
DOGE's actions. They say that they were firing technical experts, mishandling sensitive data and breaking critical systems. So very clear
that these employees could not sit idly by.
And I spoke to a source with knowledge of these resignations, and they tell me that last Tuesday, a week ago, was the first time that a DOGE employee
actually led their weekly staff meeting, and the message was to try to move on, note and acknowledge that this had been a tough time, but that they
wanted to go forward.
And these staff members then got to talking and said, what can we do to send a message? We can't sit here and continue to see this mishandling. So
decided to come out with this full statement today, hopefully to make a splash with their resignation and their opinion -- Paula.
NEWTON: Yes and you did point out that, look, it was sent directly to Susie Wiles and she is the chief-of-staff, clearly a powerful person inside the
White House.
Do you get any sense that the White House team is listening?
SERFATY: I think time will tell, but I think if the past is precedent, probably not. I think the message that we will see from the White House is
that this is, in essence, what DOGE has intended to do, to weed out people who are, in essence, not up to the task and not behind the mission fully.
So I think that we will likely see that message, but again, in this source I talked to within this agency, noted, these are people who are very highly
trained. It is not a one-to-one, you can send a new person in. People who know critical systems and products and projects that they are working on
right now. So to fill these sort of critical jobs might be easier said than done.
[16:05:05]
NEWTON: Yes, and we've heard that from so many people, as you and others on our team have done the reporting, right? It is the expertise that is
walking out the door.
Okay, Sunlen, we will leave it there for now. Thanks so much.
Now, at this hour, U.S. President Donald Trump is, in fact, signing executive orders at the White House. Usually there would be a group of
journalists at events like these. Now, in a major change in policy, the White House says it will decide which reporters can attend events like this
and if they can even attend.
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt says the administration will handpick the pool reporters. The White House pool shares information with other news
outlets when the space is limited. Now, Leavitt says, reporters from so- called legacy media outlets will still be part of the pool, but won't have "monopoly over the privilege of access."
Stephen Collinson has been following the latest from Washington. And Stephen, without getting too much in the weeds here, can you explain to
everyone why this is important? And those of us who have been watching this second Trump White House have noted that some of the questions haven't
really been questions at all, but some of the people attending have really made pointed statements in support of the President, almost like you would
at a rally.
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR REPORTER: That's right, Paula.
What normally happens in these events is that a small group of reporters for wire text agencies, although the Associated Press has been kicked out
by the White House, still photographers, a print pool, a T.V. reporter and crew will go into these events, will travel on Air Force One when the
President moves around in the U.S. or abroad, and then they will report back.
The print poolers and the T.V. poolers especially will print back -- report back to their colleagues. This group of people has been chosen for decades
by the White House Correspondents Association, the journalists themselves. What the White House is going to do now is to throw out all of that
tradition and that system, and they are going to decide who gets to go and the justification from their point of view is that the media environment
has splintered. It is very different.
There is a whole bunch of new outlets that should deserve to get in, which sounds laudable, but as you point out, what is likely to happen is that
you're going to get a lot of pro-Trump outfits going into these events that will perhaps decrease the amount of serious questions and policy questions
that the President will get, and he is going to get a more favorable audience.
For example, in his press conference yesterday with Emmanuel Macron, the first question was about a favorable poll, which had nothing really to do
with what was going on. So really, what this probably is more about is suppressing press freedom than expanding it.
NEWTON: Yes, it brings a new meaning to the word without fear or favor. Stephen, just an update as well now on the DOGE and the e-mails and the
confusion going out to all of those federal employees, the White House claiming that they got a million responses to their "or else" ultimatum.
Tell us what you did last week.
COLLINSON: Yes, you know, maybe we will take that with a pinch of salt. This isn't frankly, the most truthful White House, so I guess, we will wait
till we see the information about that.
I think what has been taking place is absolute chaos. No one in the government seems to understand what exactly Elon Musk is doing. You have
him sending out e-mails and then some of the most authentic MAGA Cabinet secretaries are now saying, well, they don't want Elon Musk deciding what
happens to their personnel.
So big confusion inside the White House, inside the administration. The question, I think, is does this impact Trump's attempt to actually do some
substance to substantively change the government in his second term? Does it create a political price for Trump and lawmakers, which may change him
to change course, perhaps, and perhaps distance himself from Musk?
I don't think we are at that point yet, but I think it is one of the questions we should be thinking about as this chaos goes on. There is
certainly not unity throughout the administration on this question, as the White House says.
NEWTON: Yes, and if Elon Musk is attending this Cabinet meeting tomorrow, it will be interesting to see if anyone in Cabinet does, in fact,
articulate their concerns with the way Elon Musk and DOGE have been handling this.
Stephen Collinson for us, thank you again. Appreciate it.
COLLINSON: Thanks.
NEWTON: Now, President Trump will be meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Washington on Thursday.
Mr. Starmer is vowing to boost defense spending to a level, in fact, not seen since the end of the Cold War. The Prime Minister says it is a new era
in Europe, his words, and that allies must do more for their own security.
Nic Robertson has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: This was an absolute pitch to the British public, putting the story in their living rooms,
beginning by saying, imagine this scenario. You're walking your child to school, you're on the way to work, you hear the crashing of the bombs and
the missiles, and it is not in a distance, it is not on the television, but it is actually close to you, it is affecting your lives.
[16:10:07]
He wanted to make this real. He wanted people to understand why he feels that the country has come to this point, a decision three years in the
making, he said and what really turned him about journalists sort of trying to have him say that this was under pressure of President Trump, in effect,
to have him appear as if he is on the back foot, as if he is weak, as if the decision has been taken out of his hands, as if it is President Trump
that is dictating how the British government's budget should be divvied up. That's in essence, the thrust of it.
And his push back on that was very clear. War has changed. Russia is acting in British skies, in British seas, in British cyberspace and on British
soil. The novichok poisoning of Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury in 2017.
The point that he made was, I have been there to Ukraine. I've seen it with my eyes. This is different. This is not the war of 2022. This has changed.
I see the reality. I've made the decision. It is a decision that has been coming over a long period of time and this is not the pressure of Donald
Trump.
Keir Starmer here is doing something that is huge, in essence, in a way telling the country that it is sort of going to a more serious war footing.
We need to take money from other places. It is a serious, big decision.
It is very hard for governments in an incremental war, like the three-year war in Ukraine, to explain to people why they are making such a significant
change. That's what he is doing here right now. That's the thrust, not to show weakness in the face of President Trump. These are decisions he has
come to in National Security interest. There must be benefits.
He played up how, for example, this could benefit the economy, benefit jobs. He would make sure that this defense spend is money spent in the U.K.
These are important sells.
This is not going to be easy for him to push this concept over the line with the British public. They are receptive to it, but he is a politician
making tough choices, taking a step, signaling a step change from the end of the Cold War, saying we must do this if we want our children to have the
peace and stability we have had over the past 80 years, since World War Two.
This is a significant speech. He is saying we now need to step back to a time past we didn't have to expect to do.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Our thanks to Nic Robertson there at Downing Street.
Now, both the U.S. and Europe are eyeing Ukraine's critical minerals. I will speak to the CEO of the Critical Metals Corporation and ask him why
they are so valuable.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:15:25 ]
NEWTON: The Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra is performing in Warsaw, Poland to mark the third anniversary of the war.
(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)
NEWTON: So beautiful. That's Beethoven's Ninth Symphony and the E.U.'s official anthem.
One way or another, it does seem as if the end of this war may actually be in sight. French President Emmanuel Macron says a truce could be just weeks
away, and already both Europe and the U.S. are talking to Kyiv about the country's resources.
Ukraine is potentially a rich source of minerals like lithium, graphite and nickel. Those elements are used in nuclear reactors, magnets, electric car
batteries and other green technologies. Critical minerals that are also vital, and this is key here -- for the defense industry. It is used in the
production of aircraft, missiles, and tanks.
One of Ukraine's largest assets is lithium, which is concentrated in the center and east of the country. Here is the thing, though, getting those
minerals out of the ground can be quite difficult.
Mining requires major investments up front and equipment and infrastructure, and companies don't make those investments, usually without
guaranteed security on the ground.
Tony Sage is chairman and CEO of Critical Metals Corporation, and he joins us now. Really good to have you as we continue to have so many more
questions rather than answers on all of this.
Listen, your company has been eyeing Ukraine's critical mineral potential for some time. I've read that you're ready now, I believe to invest a
billion dollars to extract lithium from there. Why are Ukraine's critical minerals so valuable? And why do you believe the Trump administration has
made this a priority issue in a peace agreement?
TONY SAGE, CHAIRMAN AND CEO, CRITICAL METALS CORPORATION: Well, let's go back a few years before the war. Germany had over 50 percent of its energy
requirements from Russia. All of a sudden that's cut off.
Look at their economy now. It is exactly the same as with rare earths. China controls 97 percent of the world's rare earths. Now, you don't want
that concentrated in any mineral or even any commodity for one country, especially a country that could be in conflict with the West.
So the critical minerals that are in Ukraine are essential to be extracted for the benefit of the West.
NEWTON: And yet we haven't seen the so-called West really do much about it. You've seen the potential of critical minerals in some countries get
completely squandered by whether its regulation, lack of capital investment. What would be different in Ukraine, especially given the
obvious, right? There are security problems on the ground and those will be there even if there is a truce with Russia.
SAGE: Yes. Look, I agree with that. But you've got to start somewhere.
NEWTON: So, tell me why you don't agree then. Go ahead and disagree. Tell me why you don't agree with that.
SAGE: Well, because I think Russia needs the peace. I mean, their economy is not great. So once a peace treaty is made, I think, and the delineation
of property has happened, I think you'll have a -- like you will in most of the countries in the eastern bloc and ex-Soviet Union. I've dealt in
Kazakhstan, for example. I've had no problems in extracting my minerals there in that country, and I think that country will be the -- Ukraine will
be the same after a truce has been declared.
NEWTON: And you don't think there need to be security guarantees to make sure that happens?
SAGE: Look, I think in any truce, you're going to have to have some guarantees on both sides. I think what Trump has done is just bring it to a
head. It should have been -- I agree with what you said earlier, it is two years too late. Too many people have died.
But bringing it to a head, I mean, we've been very unlucky. I bought the lithium deposit that we've got three months before the war. We had people
on the ground. It was very terrible for my staff. They had to leave the country quickly. We had to get them out.
So, it has been a three-year wait. I've been urging everyone on every side to get this done as quickly as possible. It has taken a long time.
I am glad to hear Mr. Macron saying that it is only weeks away. We've been praying for this moment for a long time, not only for our resource and
extraction, but also to stop the death.
NEWTON: And when we go to the critical minerals piece of this -- titanium, lithium -- as we just discussed, so there is graphite. You actually have a
long list of what the Mighty 17 they call it, what Ukraine might have.
Can you explain why these are -- to use another word -- critical in the globe at this point in time, including the needs going forward, not just to
the green industry, obviously, but of defense as well.
[16:20:17]
SAGE: Yes, defense is the main one for the west. I mean, you look at the last three years, it has been horrific. How many missiles do you think have
been sent? Every single missile needs a guidance system. All of those guidance systems rely on rare earths.
Elon Musk could not send a rocket into space. He could not launch the satellites he launched without rare earths. Now, if you're relying on China
completely for all of these minerals going forward, already China has banned the export of gallium, which is extremely important.
Antinomy, they are banned. So, as I said earlier, you can't have one country. The whole of the west relying on one country to supply these
minerals. It has got to be diversified.
Greenland is another one why Mr. Trump wants to get Greenland. It has got one of the biggest resources of rare earths in the world outside of Russia
and China, even bigger than what the Ukraine has got. So, that's the attention that Trump has got on Greenland as well.
So, yes, there are rare earths in other places other than the Ukraine, but the Ukraine has got all of the attention right now. It was Greenland about
four or five weeks ago, but both countries have a lot of rare earths and that is why I think Trump is keen to end the war in one place and acquire
Greenland in the other.
NEWTON: You've explained a lot to us and there, and I am glad that you brought up the issue of Russia.
Listen, I only have about 30s left, but Putin claims, listen, why leave Russia out of this? He says claims to have ten times of everything Ukraine
has. Would you see them as a reliable partner going forward?
SAGE: No. I think under the current regime, no. I mean, he has proven twice now 2014 with Crimea and 2021 with Ukraine. So he can't be trusted, nor can
China. And that's why there is such a push by the West, not only Trump but the E.U. have been in contact as well with our company in particular,
because we've got a massive rare earth deposit in Greenland, as well as one in Ukraine.
So, yes, unfortunately, I've been put into the mix on this rather quickly, but yes, in both countries, the main part of my job is to start the
extraction process, get the minerals out of the ground, get them to where they need to go.
NEWTON: ASAP. I am sure you will. Tony, your misfortune is our fortune. We appreciate you being on the show and really hope to speak to you again as
we continue to follow this story. Thanks so much.
SAGE: Right. Thank you. Fantastic, Paula. Thank you. Bye-bye.
NEWTON: Take care.
Now, the Philippine Finance Secretary says his nation's political instability doesn't worry him long term. The trouble started after the 2022
election. Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. won the presidency with Sara Duterte as his running mate. It was in fact, a unity ticket, with the candidates coming
from separate political dynasties, and you will recognize those dynasties.
But the alliance has unraveled. Vice President Duterte was impeached this month for allegedly plotting to assassinate President Marcos, among other
charges.
Richard Quest asked Finance Secretary Ralph Recto if he is worried.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RALPH RECTO, PHILIPPINE FINANCE SECRETARY: Unfortunate in the Philippines, unlike in the United States -- in the U.S., you elect the president and the
vice president together. In the Philippines, we elect them separately and that's what happened there.
There was a unity during the elections, and now there are problems. Right? And all of that will be resolved during the elections in 2028.
Of course, there is an impeachment process ongoing. The Senate now is unable to meet as an impeachment court because Congress is not in session
and elections are around the corner.
So this will be resolved by legal means.
RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST, "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS": Sure. But how destabilizing is it within the country? Or is this the sort of things
that people in the elites of Manila worry about, but actually doesn't have much effect for --
RECTO: I don't see much effect. And like I said, we will resolve that in the elections. So the opposition now is led by the Duterte faction and then
you have the administration faction, you have the candidates for the Senate. You have candidates at the local government level.
I suspect -- you know, I've been in, in politics also for roughly 33 years now. I used to be a congressman. I used to be a senator. So I am familiar
with elections, and I can make a prediction that in this election, 90 percent of the congressmen of the ruling coalition will win; 90 percent of
the local government units of the ruling coalition will win.
Today, based on the surveys, nine out of 12 senators will win from the ruling administration.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[16:25:10]
NEWTON: Okay, two thieves who bought a winning lottery ticket in France are being offered part of the jackpot. Stay with me here. They bought the
winning ticket with a stolen credit card. It turned out to be worth $525,000.00.
Now, the card's owner says the thieves deserve some of that money because he never plays the lottery. France's National Lottery Operator says they
can't confirm the story because no one has yet claimed the prize.
Melissa Bell is in Paris, and forgive me, Melissa, but I love a good French twist. You've got this one for us. Can you explain? Because this is a bit
nuts.
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So I can't work out, Paula, whether this is the luckiest or the unluckiest guy in the world. He
gets his credit card stolen from his car, realizes fairly quickly that the thing has been broken into, cancels the card, but only after he understands
from the bank that 50 euros have been spent on it.
He goes along to the bar where the money has been spent, and finds the two men that the barman says were apparently homeless, have come in, bought
cigarettes, bought a lottery ticket and won. In their excitement, they left everything else, ran off with the ticket.
So now, he is trying to find out because he can't claim this money because they have the ticket, how he can get his hands on at least part of his
share.
His novel idea, launching this radio appeal here in France to try and get them to come forward and the deal he is offering is that if the thieves
come forward, he will not press charges, and he will offer them half of what he earned.
If he gets the money, he says, he is going to buy himself a house. But what the barman said is that these are two homeless people. I tis unclear
whether they're going to hear the appeal -- Paula.
NEWTON: And that is a key question here. You know, they say he is not going to press charges. I wonder what the authorities think about all of this.
BELL: Well, for now, if I were in the shoes of the thieves, I don't know if I'd come forward, frankly, because it is an interesting offer.
NEWTON: It is a good thing.
BELL: But who knows what might happen in between. And I suspect this is what is going to keep them away. The problem is, there is only eight days
left, right? If he can't get his hands on this ticket, all the money is lost for everyone. But perhaps the most surprising is that these two
thieves walked off knowing they had won the lottery ticket. We now know they haven't tried to claim it yet, and the time -- the clock is, of
course, ticking on this amount of money, $525,000.00. It is half a million dollars, a huge amount.
And for now, I would suggest, Paula, that it is looking pretty unlikely he is going to find these. Still, he is doing the rounds, the media rounds,
trying to get his message out and telling them, you need not worry. Just bring the ticket back and we will figure this out, half and half.
Huge amount of money, presumably for the homeless people who had that lucky streak. I think, though, guessing in eight days, it is probably is unlikely
they come back as it was that they won the lottery to begin with. One card, $525,000.00 on a stolen credit card. Imagine the odds.
NEWTON: The odds are close to nil, I would say. But I do know the odds are good, Melissa, that you will update us on this story.
Melissa Bell for us in Paris. Really appreciate it.
Still to come for us, federal workers brace for even more DOGE led layoffs. We will hear from the mayor of Kansas City, Missouri, where the federal
government is a major employer.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:31:22]
NEWTON: Now about two dozen federal workers and contractors assembled on Capitol Hill today. They had either been fired, furloughed or placed on
administrative leave.
The group was there to urge lawmakers to stand up to Trump administration's sweeping federal workforce cuts. The impacted workers were unable to meet
with any senators, but some staffers agreed to hold short meetings with them.
Now economists say the DOGE led layoffs will have a profound impact on local economies, where federal employment is concentrated. One community
bracing for more layoffs is Kansas City, Missouri. About 30,000 federal employees work there. That number accounting for about 2.5 percent of
overall employment in the area.
Now, the Internal Revenue Service, the IRS, the Environmental Protection Agency, that's the EPA, and the Department of Veteran Affairs and some of
the federal agencies with a regional -- are just some of the few federal agencies that have a regional presence there.
Quinton Lucas is the mayor of Kansas City, Missouri, and he joins me now.
It is good to see you, Mayor Q, as we realize that's how you're known in your city. I mean, listen, these have got to be tough times there. What has
been the effect on your city and obviously specifically the residents because you know the narrative that's out there, that people will find
other jobs in these communities and that this will not be a burden on places like Kansas City long term.
MAYOR QUINTON LUCAS, KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI: So these are people who in many cases, most cases, have dedicated careers to the federal government. These
aren't folks that are all just a bunch of, you know, with respect to 22- year-olds, these aren't folks that are either fresh out of school or just starting. These are people who said that I'm going to make financial
sacrifices to work for our nation's government, to do important work, like making sure we're drinking clean water, making sure that we have safe
bridges, and frankly, making sure that the bureaucracy that is the IRS actually answers calls from us, does processing that's necessary.
And so while their jobs aren't always the most fun, this is the sort of thing that has a real impact. And when you talk about the effect it's
having on Kansas City, and there are several, first, I was talking to a federal worker today from the Bureau of Prisons, by the way, who said, this
is having such a morale impact on the work that we do. We know we're necessary. We know we're essential. We're not guilty of some level of
wokeism.
Instead, we're just trying to do our jobs, and it's telling them that they're not appreciated and wanted, and that is demoralizing. The next step
is, it is ending jobs for a number of people at a time where, you know, if you have a whole bunch of people with a very detailed experience, if you're
a detailed air traffic controller, for example, aren't that many other places to go. And so this is something that has a real impact besides just
saying, oh, well, you can find a new job tomorrow.
And then ultimately I think it's going to have an impact on all of us. I want to make sure that my family, my kids, my wife can land in an airport
safely. I want to make sure that we actually are able to have, I don't know, just basically clean drinking water. Those sorts of things are what
are jeopardized by this dramatic approach now.
And I'll make one final point. Yes, fundamentally, I don't think anybody is against auditing and efficiency. What we're against is the fact that this
is the sort of thing that should be done with a scalpel, not an ax. They are cutting off entire agencies. They are taking over entire large
functions.
NEWTON: Now, Mayor --
LUCAS: That is a problem in Kansas and all around America.
NEWTON: Mayor, I'm sure most residents would say you've really done a good job of outlining the problem. They want to know what you're going to do
about it. You are a Democratic mayor in a Republican dominated state. What are the Republicans in your state saying to you? Because I know people like
Mark Alford, the congressman there, are getting an earful.
[16:35:06]
LUCAS: You know, I think that the first thing that Republicans were trying to say to us is this is just us looking for accountability. That's actually
why I made the last point. I think all of us are saying you can do accountability. You can look at government waste a thousand different ways.
What you need to do, though, is make sure that you're being responsible with the steps you're taking.
Sending an e-mail to 2.2 million federal employees, from prosecutors to prison guards to judges, and everyone under the sun is not the sort of
thing that is even remotely responsible in any way. And I think what you are seeing in a place like Missouri, where Donald Trump won by 18 points,
yet people are filling up a Republican congressman's town hall, is basically people are saying, please be smart with it. Respect the American
worker and respect all of us as Americans.
That's what you're doing. So we're going to continue to advocate. We're going to continue to talk about our neighbors and our friends and our
workers. And more than anything, we're going to hope that common sense ultimately can prevail.
NEWTON: In terms of really making this point, though, not just to DOGE, but to Capitol Hill, you know that there is a budget out there right now. Some
people are talking about cuts, even to things like Medicaid, but also there are other federal grants, other federal transfers that are under threat
here.
What do you think the budget of your office, Kansas City, will look like if a lot of these of this federal money just gets stalled?
LUCAS: I mean, here's the thing. Our federal money that comes here does things like helps us get illegal guns off the streets, working with the
ATF. It allows us to build nine bridges that are crumbling. So the real impact isn't that, you know, we lose one extra poetry professor with the
greatest respect to them. It's that our bridges are unsafe and getting closed down. It's that our transportation system isn't functioning in a way
that can help people get to jobs and to work. That's the impact.
A city like mine has $360 million right now of federal grants that we've been awarded. Those go to areas primarily like public safety and
transportation infrastructure. It isn't wild eyed stuff. It isn't radical ideas. It's making sure we have roads, interstates, bridges and airports
that work. And if you multiply this across America, these are the funds that are getting cut right now, not funds for things that are irresponsible
or reckless. Instead, things that are going to impact the safety of Americans in every community.
NEWTON: Mayor Quinton Lucas, Mayor Q, the mayor of Kansas City, we will leave it there for now. But again, we'd love to continue to check in with
you just as we see how the DOGE fallout continues in America. Appreciate your time.
LUCAS: Hey, thanks so much.
NEWTON: And some breaking news just in to CNN. A Ukrainian official says the U.S. and Ukraine have now agreed on a deal on natural resources and
reconstruction. Ukraine's President Zelenskyy is now expected, in fact, to travel to Washington shortly. The source says the White House has proposed
Friday for that meeting.
What is still we don't have details is what exactly this deal looks like, whether or not there will be any concrete security guarantees on the table
for this, and whether or not the European Union, if there's still some room there for the European Union to be part of this deal. We will say that
President Donald Trump is in the Oval. He was signing executive orders. And we will have more information for you on exactly what he said there in the
next few moments here on CNN.
Now, meantime, while Elon Musk vows to cut federal spending and waste, his Starlink company is landing new government work. Starlink is owned by
SpaceX and provides satellite internet service. The Federal Aviation Administration has agreed to try it out even though it already has a
contract with Verizon. Elon Musk claims Verizon's network just isn't getting the job done. The move is raising questions about conflicts of
interest.
Anna Stewart is in London.
This was wholly predictable, right? It is something that many people articulated from the first moments of the Trump presidency.
ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, and with the number of businesses of course with Elon Musk, and it's hard to know, you know, which conflict of
interest here to look at first. I mean, there's the fact of course that Elon Musk has huge power and influence within the government and this
company, SpaceX, is really reliant on government contracts like contracts with NASA.
In this case, it is the FAA. Now, the FAA also actually regulates SpaceX for rocket launches. And then there's the fact you pointed out that post
from Elon Musk on X, a platform he owns, let's not even go there, but saying the Verizon system is not working and is putting air travelers at
serious risk. Who is he speaking as? And this is where it keeps getting quite confusing.
Is he speaking as, you know, Donald Trump, the president's right hand man, someone with huge influence in federal government? Is he speaking as the
CEO of SpaceX which is competitive with the likes of Verizon for a contract like this? And we're seeing this again and again. It's not limited to
SpaceX. We can talk about cars, A.I., PCIs in the brain, tunnels underground and social media.
NEWTON: Yes. The social media component has actually been fascinating here because the federal employees say that they actually look at X just to
figure out what is going on. Even that small corner of Elon Musk's world has expanded here, right? It is more eyeballs for everything that he does.
STEWART: Absolutely everything. And X is a particularly interesting one just because it's almost become legitimized. I mean, I think we were
speaking last week about how advertisers have flooded back to X as a result of it being legitimized. It's kind of part of how you find out what's going
on in the U.S. government.
And the other big one, Paula, today is Tesla. Now interestingly, this has finally perhaps a story where it's not just the Musk Midas touch. Tesla
sales in Europe have absolutely plummeted 37 percent in January versus last year. And this is largely due people are thinking perhaps due to brand
reputation damage. Elon Musk has been involved in U.K. politics, calling for the ouster of Keir Starmer, the prime minister.
He's been involved in German politics backing the AfD in the recent election, the far-right party. He's called the E.U., un-democratic, and
their market share is falling quite significantly in Europe.
NEWTON: Something we'll continue to keep an eye on because there is -- there are a lot of parts to his business for sure.
Anna Stewart, for us, thanks for summing that up. Appreciate it.
And that is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS. Stay with us, though. Up next, the "WORLD OF WONDER."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:45:11]
QUEST: October sun. And it is absolutely perfect. I always enjoy returning to places for a second and third time. I think it's in some ways more
interesting because visiting new places is relatively straightforward. You work out where you haven't been and you just start working your way through
them.
But when you return to a place, it's much more of a conscious decision, and you go back and you see things that have changed and the restaurants that
you've been to before, you enjoy and see if they're still there, and you actually get to experience the change and shift.
Catania is a place undergoing change. While it retains a scruffy charm, locals tell me it's gentrifying rapidly. Located on the east coast of
Sicily, it's becoming part of a well-trodden tourist trail on the Italian island. Famed for its food so no visit is complete without a trip to the
fish market. And I've got one of the city's top chefs to show me.
The market, ah, the fish market.
MARCO CANNIZZARO, CHEF, BAVETTA: Fish market of Catania?
QUEST: Yes, yes.
CANNIZZARO: They now buy the fish for the lunch.
QUEST: So what are we looking for?
CANNIZZARO: I'm looking for a squid, sardinas, and mahi-mahi.
QUEST: Squid, sardines and mahi-mahi.
Now, what does that tell me?
CANNIZZARO (through text translation): Spectacular.
QUEST: Spectacular.
CANNIZZARO (through text translation): Beautiful. Beautiful.
QUEST: This one? Yes. Look at it. Two kilos. Slept in the sea last night.
CANNIZZARO (through text translation): I need some sardines.
QUEST: He's doing all the work for you.
CANNIZZARO: Not cleaning. Yes, yes. A simple --
QUEST: Yes, yes, cleaning.
CANNIZZARO: All right. Come on.
QUEST: Oh, that sun.
It doesn't rain much here. And I'm not completely sure the locals have fully understood how to use umbrellas.
This oyster stall provides me the chance to try those tips I picked up on a recent trip to Boston.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through text translation): Keep being a journalist. Let's see what happens.
QUEST: I thought I'd mastered the art. But the locals are not impressed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through text translation): Listen to me, leave it. No, you're going to hurt yourself for sure.
QUEST: No. Oh, no.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He said you're going to hurt yourself. I'm not joking.
QUEST: One more go. No? OK. All right.
CANNIZZARO (through text translation): Oh, yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well done.
CANNIZZARO: Well done.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through text translation): Well done. OK.
QUEST: Before the oyster man told me to shuck off, I managed to prize one slippery little mollusk out of its shell.
CANNIZZARO: Well done.
QUEST: Thank you, sir.
My sweet tooth is legendary. And there's a Sicilian specialty of which I adore. Manolo pastry stuffed with sweet or ricotta that is everywhere. And
I want to know how to make one. Marco is going to teach me. And the first step, make the pastry.
CANNIZZARO: Cannoli. I need the flour 260. 30 grams of --
QUEST: Yes, shortening. This is the pastry bit that I always get wrong.
CANNIZZARO: OK.
QUEST: Yes, yes.
CANNIZZARO: Cocoa powder, six grams. Salt. 20 grams of eggs.
QUEST: What?
CANNIZZARO: Twenty grams.
QUEST: Look, 22.
CANNIZZARO: 23, happy. Marsala, 60 grams.
[16:50:06]
Ten grams of vinegar. 20 grams of sugar.
QUEST: Mix it together.
CANNIZZARO: Two hours in the fridge.
QUEST: Two hours.
CANNIZZARO: And then I have this.
QUEST: Here's one I made earlier.
Roll the pastry.
CANNIZZARO (through text translation): And now the final fold.
QUEST: Wow.
Cut to the required size. Creates the cannoli shapes.
CANNIZZARO: And press.
QUEST: And then drop them into a deep fat fryer. The final step of preparing cannoli, that's the plural of cannolo, is fill them with sweet
sticky ricotta just before serving.
What do you think, James?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right. That's pretty good, mate. Are you happy?
QUEST: I'm very happy. Showtime.
And I believe I might have succeeded.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Mount Etna is the largest active volcano in Italy. Always referred to in the feminine form, this summer she was particularly volatile, with an
eruption in August that sent ash and lava into the ether.
There's the car we're going to go, and then from now we get to four-by- fours and then we go up toward the summit. It's going to be exciting. Looking forward to it.
Even more interesting, my companion in the cable car is the man who owns the company that's taking me to the top.
This could all be wiped out by a volcano eruption.
FRANCESCO RUSSO MOROSOLI, OWNER FUNIVIA DELL'ETNA: Yes. Yes. It happened five times and no insurance company covers the risk. They say it's
impossible on the volcano cover the magma risk. It's impossible.
QUEST: You've a brave man.
MOROSOLI: No.
QUEST: Ever modest, Etna slowly reveals more of herself the higher you go and the closer you get.
This is Giuseppe. In fact they are both Giuseppes and they are both Etna experts. This may be everyday stuff for them, for me it's extraordinary.
That's Etna, isn't it? So the original cone was formed when?
GIUSEPPE DISTEFANO, ETNA WALK: This formed about 500,000 years ago.
QUEST: With a volcanic eruption?
DISTEFANO: Yes.
QUEST: Hey, James, this is so way cool. I'm on a volcano, clouds, volcanic -- oh, my. Whoa. It's warm.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is it really?
QUEST: Hey, hey, hey, one of my experts. So just a quick question. So when you get a sort of depression like that, what would that be?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, this would be, because, for many reasons. One, the most common is because there's a huge lava bomb flying, boom, exploded.
QUEST: So it's a crater.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a crater. It's a newfound crater, this one. Yes.
QUEST: Fascinating. Look at it. I think what I find most fascinating about all of this is that it came out of the earth just back in August.
We spent several hours on Etna, looking, wondering, and occasionally stopping to ask silly questions.
[16:55:05]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's on top.
QUEST: Now, I'm not saying we would, but could we walk up there?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you want to?
QUEST: No, no, I don't. Is it dangerous?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Maybe.
QUEST: It's the sound.
Eventually it was time to leave.
James.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
QUEST: One last shot.
I couldn't have planned it better because just as we were turning to go.
Yes, yes, yes, we are coming up. Hey.
This has been here more than half a million years, spewing and belching when it wants to. We are a pinprick in time. Not even that and we are so
irrelevant in the grand scheme of things to what that's doing and yet we are everything to it. It's -- how do you -- I don't know. The truth is, I
just feel in awe of it.
To paraphrase that old saying, when you are tired of cannolo, you are tired of Catania. Never. Because there's always room for one more and you'll want
to come here and have a few canola of your own.
Captivating Catania, definitely tasty part of our "WORLD OF WONDER."
You thought I'd forgotten. Never. It truly is a WORLD OF WONDER.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
Jake tapper, CNN ANCHOR: -- always insisted he did not commit. He's now getting a new trial. His lawyer is going to join us live in moments to
share Glossip's reaction to this big news.
Plus, brand-new details from the Vatican about Pope Francis's health after the 88-year-old pontiff got a CAT scan today. He remains in critical
condition.
We're going to start this hour with breaking news. President Trump moments ago speaking about a potential deal between the United States and Ukraine
to the tune of billions of dollars just as we learned that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reportedly plans a trip to D.C.
END
