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The Situation Room

Interview With James Carville; Interview With Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-FL). Aired 11:30a-12p ET

Aired March 04, 2025 - 11:30   ET

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

[11:30:01]

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: It's certainly...

WESLEY CLARK, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: It's not about fentanyl. It's about how to keep America safe, and this isn't the way to do it.

BLITZER: It's hard to believe that this is going on.

General Clark, "The Wall Street Journal," in that editorial today, "Trump Takes the Dumbest Tariff Plunge," they also write this: "Mr. Trump is whacking friends, not adversaries."

Do you agree with that?

CLARK: I do. I do.

And, Wolf, I was talking to some other analysts this morning, some very smart people on the inside. I think some people working in the administration really understand that President Trump's being played by Mr. Putin. But I don't know if President Trump really understands that.

After smashing our relationships with allies -- and I'm sure this will make President Putin really happy too -- after doing this and enticing Putin to come to the table, what are we going to say to him? He's going to ask for more and more and more. What's it really about?

And so I look at this as a severe departure from a normal pattern of United States' national security processes. We're bipartisan. We're nonpartisan on national security. And President Trump has come in here and wants to turn the table upside down. He wants to somehow cozy up to Mr. Putin and disregard and insult and separate the United States from our allies.

This is not going to end well.

BLITZER: Yes, it's a pretty -- very, very serious situation unfolding right now, U.S. credibility with allies on the line right now.

General Wesley Clark, thank you very, very much.

And we will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [11:36:10]

BLITZER: Tonight, President Donald Trump will address a joint session of Congress for the first time since returning to the White House. And it's still not clear how Democrats will respond.

The party has struggled with its message and how to effectively stand up to Trump during his second term. Freshman Senator Elissa Slotkin of Michigan has been tapped to deliver the Democrats' official rebuttal after the Trump speech.

Joining us now, Democratic strategist James Carville.

James, thanks so much for joining us. You and I have known each other for a long time.

What do you think Democrats should be focusing on in their response later tonight?

JAMES CARVILLE, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Well, I'm here in self about possible Democratic actions during the speech.

And this -- I don't know how much of it is true. I would urge the Democrats to understand that this is a -- the most critical point I have seen in the United States in -- and I'm 80 years old. I don't remember. I was born in the day of the Battle of Leyte Gulf. The first kamikaze was on the day I came into this world.

And this man is actively trying to destroy the United States, and I think we ought to treat this moment with real gravitas. I think we have got a very good selection in Senator Slotkin to deliver the rebuttal.

But my advice is either don't go or go and sit on your hands and look grim, because the country is in a grim position right now. And I hope the Democrats act like that.

BLITZER: Yes, the relationship with close allies, Canada -- who would have believed that the U.S. and Canada are doing what they're doing right now because of what the Trump administration is leveling against Canada?

The Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau, James, just gave a very important speech addressing President Trump directly and the American people about the impact of these new U.S. tariffs, telling Trump -- quote -- "You're a very smart guy. This is a very dumb thing to do."

What do you make of this?

CARVILLE: Well, I think that, as you pointed out, "The Wall Street Journal" editorial page have accused him -- people are flummoxed. And I am too, because I have come to think maybe Donald Trump hates the United States.

I -- it's a very significant thing to have. Then look at Mexico. North America for the past 20 years has been an economic powerhouse. I mean, if you look at the economic power of Canada, the United States and Mexico, it's pretty impressive.

And I just -- I don't know, because try to explain, why is he doing this? Why is he doing this to Zelenskyy? Why is he voting with North Korea and Russia and, God knows, Belarus in the United Nations? And I just can't get it out of my mind that I think this man -- there's some possibility, we have to consider the possibility that our president hates our country.

People say, no, he's just full of resentment or something. And that could be true. But that does explain why he's going out of his way to hurt the country at every juncture that he can, I mean, to the point of siding with North Korea and Belarus.

BLITZER: You're referring to that United Nations resolution which the U.S. joined North Korea, Belarus, Russia in avoiding -- didn't want the U.S. -- under the Trump administration didn't want to criticize Russia for its invasion, its brutal invasion of Ukraine.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: Some Republicans are speaking out against Trump's tariffs on goods from Mexico, Canada and China. Others say they think voters will get on board.

Listen to what GOP Congressman Mark Alford said about this. Listen to this.

[11:40:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MARK ALFORD (R-MO): We all have a role to play in this to right- size our government. And if I have to pay a little bit more for something, I'm all for it to get America right again, to start whittling down this $36.5 billion or trillion worth of debt that we have that's unsustainable.

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You think that a lot of your constituents feel the same way, they're willing to pay a little bit more?

ALFORD: Well, I think so.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: So you famously said -- and I remember it because we were all down in Arkansas in Little Rock at the time during the Bill Clinton campaign -- it's the economy, stupid.

So what's your response to Congressman Alford's claims that Americans won't mind paying the price for these tariffs?

CARVILLE: Wolf, I'm trying to take a deep breath here, so I don't come out of my chair and start punching my computer.

But as I recall, when he ran, he was going to bring grocery prices down from day one. And he was going to give relief to the American consumer. We're not two -- what are we, six weeks into this, maybe not even that. And now he said, well, you might have to pay more, but it's good for your country.

Did anybody ever hear that? Then you have, in what has to be one of the most colossally, I don't know, funny, stupid, what's the word to it, the secretary of agriculture actually suggested people grow chickens in their backyards to deal with the price of eggs.

So this is where we are. Yes, you're going to have to pay more, but you're going to like it. And if you want to help it a little bit, get some chickens and put them in your backyard. It -- I'm not kidding, OK?

We have seen this with our own eyes. And I'm sitting in this chair just trying to take a deep breath and say a couple of Hail Marys for strength to -- again, to not just punch the computer in frustration. But this is where we are, man. And we shouldn't get ourselves.

BLITZER: It's hard to believe this is going on.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: And you make an important point, because farmers, the agricultural community in the United States, agricultural states, they're going to pay a huge price right now, because the U.S. exports a lot of farm products to Canada, and Mexico, for that matter. But that's going to clearly dry up in the face of all of these tariffs and this trade war that has developed between the U.S. and these two neighbors.

James Carville, thanks so much for joining us.

Much more news coming up. We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:45:54]

PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST: After President Trump's decision to pause all U.S. military aid to Ukraine, there's growing evidence that he is siding more often with Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin, since returning to power.

Trump has made false claims about the war, calling Ukrainian President Zelenskyy a dictator who started the war, after which the U.S. voted against a U.N. resolution that condemned Russia's war in Ukraine. Then came Trump's tense Oval Office meeting with Zelenskyy, leading to the Kremlin's comments about America's move, saying they -- quote -- "largely coincide with our vision."

And, just this week, Trump said that the U.S. has been less time worrying about Putin. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said -- quote -- "Nobody wants peace more than Ukrainians" in response to all of this.

I want to discuss more now with Republican Congressman Carlos Gimenez of Florida. He is a member of the House Armed Services Committee.

Congressman, thank you for being here.

Are you concerned that this White House is changing its allegiance to align itself with Russia, as Russia said it is viewing?

REP. CARLOS GIMENEZ (R-FL): No, I'm not concerned with that one bit.

I think that the president of the United States is trying to bring peace to the Ukrainian and Russian war. We need to stop this senseless bloodshed. And so I'm not concerned about that at all. I know what he's saying. I think what he's trying to do, and is probably pretty successful at it, is knock Zelenskyy off of his spot, which is, I want to regain all of my territory, I want to go back to 1991 borders.

That's just not being realistic. We need to get to a point where we bring Russia to the table, have Ukraine at the table, but with the United States at its side. I understand now that Zelenskyy has said that he's willing to sign the mineral rights deal and come back to Washington.

And so I hope that happens. And once he does that, then he will have America by his side. And then Zelenskyy and Ukraine will be in a much stronger bargaining position when he has America as an ally by its side with American interests now at play in Ukraine.

BROWN: I just laid out, though, a list of evidence of Trump siding with Putin and what Russia said publicly, that the U.S. is aligning with us.

I mean, how can you not see that as moving closer to Russia? And how can you see it as trying to get peace when you call Zelenskyy a dictator, but not Putin himself, who you have called a murderous dictator?

(CROSSTALK)

GIMENEZ: Because you need to get Zelenskyy off his spot.

Zelenskyy, as long as he felt that somehow we were going to back him all the way and that he wanted all his territory back and he wasn't going to budge, then there was no room for negotiations. And so, yes, you need to knock him off his spot a little bit. Hey, wait a minute. We're not in it all the way. You need to be -- you need to work with us.

So I understand the strategy very well. And so you're telling me that what -- that Russia is saying now that Trump is closer to them. You really believe Russia? I don't believe a word that Putin says. And so, look, the president is trying to bring peace to Ukraine and Russian war.

If it were anyone but Donald Trump, you -- the press would be saying, wow, what a great initiative, really looking out for peace for once, instead of an endless war. So I'm fine with what the president is doing. I didn't like what happened on Friday, especially when Zelenskyy should have just said, thank you very much. He came to sign the agreement and he hedged on that.

Now he's going to come back to the table and sign the agreement. Again, signing that agreement then puts America by his side, puts America by Ukraine. Our interests are now aligned. That's a pretty good security agreement.

BROWN: All right, you're talking a lot, Congressman. I have to jump in here.

GIMENEZ: Go ahead.

BROWN: I always like to give you time, but I also want to make sure that we're having a dialogue and a conversation. As you well know, it was the vice president, J.D. Vance, who interjected in that meeting.

But, look, you say that this is all about getting peace. But what do you say to the fact that all of these concessions have already been made, and Russia has not come to the table with anything that I have seen? You have the Senate Intelligence Committee, the top Democrat there saying it is -- quote -- "abundantly clear that Trump hasn't secured anything in return for helping Putin."

What has he gained from all of these steps he's taking to appease Russia?

[11:50:00]

GIMENEZ: At this point, he hasn't gained much, but he needs to get Zelenskyy to sign the mineral rights deal. And then when he does that, then you now have the United States next to Ukraine.

We have the same interest now in Ukraine. We have a national interest with the rare earth minerals in Ukraine, where we will have American companies in Ukraine, and we will help rebuild Ukraine.

Unless you have America standing by your side, then you're not going to get the Russians to come to the negotiating table. And that's what the president is trying to do. I understand it is unconventional. Yes, it's unconventional. But I think that he's working it. He's working it in the way that he knows how to.

BROWN: Very quickly -- and we will see.

Are you concerned about prices rising? Target's CEO said prices are going to rise in the next couple of days. Donald Trump said he would lower prices day one. That's not happening. Do you want to see more urgency?

GIMENEZ: No, what I want to see -- I mean, you're talking about the tariffs.

What I want to see is, I want to see Mexico and Canada stop shipping fentanyl that's killed over half-a-million Americans in the last five years. What do you tell the families of those that have lost their lives due to the inaction of the Mexican and the Canadian government? That's what these tariffs are really all about. And the number one job, the number one job of a government is to

protect its citizens. And Donald Trump and his tariffs is looking to do just that.

BROWN: Right.

GIMENEZ: Instead of taking kinetic actions, taking economic action in order to protect American lives.

BROWN: Right, and, as you well know, that the Canadian prime minister just said that less than 1 percent of fentanyl seized at the border was from Canada, and it dropped 97 percent from -- in January, compared to December, according to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

They are arguing this isn't about fentanyl. You say it is.

Congressman Gimenez, thank you so much. We appreciate your time.

We will be right back.

GIMENEZ: Thank you, ma'am.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:55:19]

BLITZER: We'd like to end the show today with a tribute to Carl Dean, the man who stood by Dolly Parton's side for nearly 60 years.

On Monday, he passed away at the age of 82. The two met outside a laundromat in Nashville when she was 18.

BROWN: Dean was the inspiration behind several of Parton's songs, including one of her most famous. Yes, her 1973 hit "Jolene" was inspired by a bank teller who had a crush on Dean. Parton said it became a running joke between them.

And she also wrote a love letter to Dean in the form of the song "From Here to the Moon and Back."

BLITZER: And in a brief statement on her Web site, Dolly Parton wrote this in part: "Carl and I spent many wonderful years together. Words can't do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years."

Our deepest, deepest condolences. May his memory be a blessing.

BROWN: Absolutely.

Well, thank you so much for joining us. You can keep up with us on social media @PamelaBrownCNN and @WolfBlitzer. See you back here tomorrow and every weekday morning for our expanded two-hour SITUATION ROOM at 10:00 a.m. Eastern.

BLITZER: Dana Bash, our good friend and colleague, will interview the Senate majority leader, John Thune, on "INSIDE POLITICS" right after a short break.