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Sources Say, White House Anxious to Close Deals, Trade Agreements; U.S. and Ukraine Sign Critical Mineral Resources Agreement; Tesla Dismisses Wall Street Journal Report of Board Plan to Replace Musk. Aired 10-10:30a ET

Aired May 01, 2025 - 10:00   ET

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

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PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now, impatient four deals, new CNN reporting about White House anxiety for trade agreements as Americans face economic uncertainty.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: And DOGE job cuts, a stunning new report saying that President Trump's cost cutting initiative is responsible for almost half of all layoffs in the United States so far this year. How's that impacting the overall U.S. economy?

Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer with Pamela Brown, and you're in The Situation Room.

We begin this hour with new reporting about anxiety and impatience over at the White House. Sources now telling CNN there is intense pressure to pro produce deals or announcements, especially on new trade agreements. President Trump and his top economic advisers have said trade deals are close. But with economic concerns growing and poll numbers dropping big time, the administration is looking for a deal to celebrate.

Let's go to CNN White House reporter Alayna Treene. She's standing by with the latest. Alayna, what are you learning?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, Wolf, well, you're exactly right. I mean, in my conversations with top White House officials, Trump administration officials as well, they told me that pressure is mounting for the administration to announce some sort of good news, to give the American public some sort of optimism and really a reason to, in the president's word, be patient as they continue to try and negotiate these deals. That's why we're seeing such an intense focus now behind the scenes on them trying to hurry and kind of hustle to announce some sort of trade deal.

Now, we have heard from the president himself, but also his top economic advisers, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. We just heard from Kevin Hassett, his director of National Economic Council, just moments ago telling CNBC, I'm sure there'll be news by end of the day when it comes to a potential trade deal. All of this, again, as I'm learning that behind closed doors, there is anxiety to show some sort of progress here. They recognize that there's only so long Americans can actually be patient.

Now, one thing that struck me is what one of sources familiar with some of these conversations told me about the behind-the-scenes dynamic. They said that the messaging is strategic and that they are not where they need to be right now when it comes to these trade deals., So again, I think if we hear any announcements in the short to immediate term, it's going to be because they recognize they really need to get out there and publicly give Americans good news, Wolf.

BLITZER: Lots of concern over at the White House. Alayna Train, thank you very much. Pamela?

BROWN: All right, Wolf. After months of negotiating, the U.S. and Ukraine finally have a minerals deal. This economic partnership agreement is giving Washington access to Kyiv's rare Earth resources. And in exchange, the U.S. is establishing a joint reconstruction investment fund in Ukraine.

CNN Chief National Security Correspondent Alex Marquardt is here with us. So, Alex, help us understand the complexities of this agreement.

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: It's very complex. After so much back and forth, we finally had this deal. Scott Bessent, the treasury secretary who negotiated, said it's called it a historic economic partnership.

But we need to be clear about what this is. This gives the Trump administration an argument that they are getting something in return for continued U.S. support. And this gives the Ukrainians an effort to keep the Americans engaged amid this very, very tumultuous relationship.

There is a win in this deal for the Ukrainians in that there's no paying back element. That's something we've heard Trump talk about numerous times. The U.S. will only profit for assistance that they provide in the future.

There's also a bit of a blow in this deal for the Ukrainians in that there's nothing guaranteeing future American security guarantees, which is something that they have also been seeking.

There's a very important point to make here though. In terms of the natural resources and the minerals that are in Ukraine, it's very unclear what they actually have. So, we don't know what kind of profits are going to come from this joint investment fund. There is no modern day assessment of what they have.

What we know Ukraine to have in terms of critical and rare Earth minerals are fairly modest in global terms. And much of what they have is in the eastern part of the country, which is occupied by Russia. It takes a lot of time and a lot of money to extract and process these minerals and natural resources.

So, it's very, very unclear to what extent the U.S. will actually stand to profit. I think the key point here is that Kyiv is trying to hug Washington closer in order to keep them engaged and maintain that U.S. support.

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BROWN: It's interesting because Stephen Miller was just in the White House briefing room. He's a top adviser, obviously, in the White House. And he framed this as payback actually for what the U.S. has already given Ukraine. You're saying that's not exactly what's in this deal.

The White House has also argued that it would -- it could deter future Russian attacks because, theoretically, you would have U.S. contractors in there trying to mine for these minerals, and that that could potentially deter attacks from Russia. What about that argument?

MARQUARDT: Yes. To be clear, on the paying back part, as the U.S. continues to support Ukraine, they will get paid back in profits from this fund. But it's what's going forward, not what has been provided in the past, for example, from the Biden administration. And amid all these arguments and pleas, if you will, from Ukraine for security guarantees going forward so that Russia can't invade again, the U.S. has declined to give that. But what they're saying is if we have investments in Ukraine, if we have people on the ground in Ukraine, that's a kind of security guarantee because we'll want to protect that.

BROWN: All right. Alex, thank you so much.

BLITZER: And the former vice president, Kamala Harris, is back on the national stage and she's not holding back at all when it comes to the man who defeated her in November. In her first major speech since she left office, Harris slammed President Trump for setting off, in her words, and I'm quoting her now, the greatest manmade economic crisis in modern history. That's what she said.

CNN National Politics Correspondent Eva McKend is here with us in The Situation Room. What else did we hear from the former vice president?

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, this speech really served as a call to action and a pep talk for Democrats. She focused heavily on the economy, calling the tariffs reckless and hurting, impacting American families regardless of political affiliation. So, really, the economy continues to be the North Star for Democrats.

But she also called out other aspects of this administration, saying that it is not okay to disappear American citizens, or anyone for that matter, without due process. She applauded Democrats, who, in her view, are standing up in this moment, having backbone, resisting the administration, as well as colleges and institutions who are fighting back to maintain their independence. Let's take a listen.

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KAMALA HARRIS, FORMER U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: We all know President Trump and his administration and their allies are counting on the notion that fear can be contagious. They are counting on the notion that if they make some people afraid, it will have a chilling effect on others.

But what they're overlooking, what they have overlooked is that fear is not the only thing that's contagious. Courage is contagious.

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MCKEND: So, all eyes now, Wolf, on what the vice president does next. Does she decide that she wants to run for governor in California? Does she want to hold off and mount another presidential bid? Does she decide to not run again at all? We do know from advisers that if she does, in fact, decide to run for governor, we will know by the end of the summer. Wolf?

BLITZER: We'll see what she decides. Thanks very much, Eva McKend reporting for us. Pamela?

BROWN: All right, Wolf. New this morning, the State Department is now responding after a CNN report that the Trump administration is considering a plan to send undocumented migrants with criminal records to Libya and Rwanda.

CNN's Priscilla Alvarez joins us now. You broke this reporting, Priscilla. What is the State Department saying now?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is something that the Trump administration has been increasingly interested in, and that something is sending migrants to other countries, even those countries that they may not be from as they try to ramp up deportations.

Now, in this case, the conversations in considerations by the Trump administration are centered on migrants with criminal records, sending them to Libya and to Rwanda. Unclear what nationalities they are considering here because so much of that would be dependent on the receiving countries as well. But it is telling of the strategy here by the administration to try to expel people and do so quickly.

Now with Rwanda, the conversations that my colleague, Kylie Atwood, and I have been reporting on have been more on an ad hoc basis, the receiving of migrants. And they're still finessing the cost structure of this. Because unlike El Salvador, the conversations here are not about sending people to prisons, so much as just sending them to these other countries.

Now, with Libya, I'm told the Trump administration is interested in potentially negotiating a safe third country agreement, which is to say, allowing for asylum seekers at the U.S. southern border to be sent there. This is an idea that it came up in the first Trump administration, specifically with the Western Hemisphere, and having other countries in the Western Hemisphere receive migrants for them to make their asylum claims there. But this is an idea that is being tossed around internally within the administration, the Trump administration now as well.

Now, again, Secretary Rubio has said, and he said so at the cabinet meeting yesterday, that he is working on negotiations with third countries, with these countries, to try to negotiate where these migrants may be sent to.

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But, certainly, this is just part of a trend that we are seeing with this administration and wanting to do this.

I will also note that there was a ruling by a federal judge not long ago that temporarily blocked the administration from sending someone to a country that wasn't their own without prior notice or an ability to contest it. So, even as these ideas are being considered, there could be some legal challenges that arise moving forward.

BROWN: All right.

BLITZER: I have a quick question. If this does get approved, will these migrants who will be de deported by the United States to Libya and Rwanda, would they go to prisons in Libya and Rwanda or would they just simply be able to move around freely in those countries?

ALVAREZ: These considerations don't appear to include anything about prisons, as we saw with El Salvador, but rather just going to those countries and roaming freely.

BLITZER: All right, thank you very much.

BROWN: A big distinction because there's a big difference between going to a mega prison, like what we saw in El Salvador, and being released into a country.

BLITZER: Yes. And I don't think you want to be in a prison in Libya or Rwanda for that matter. I'm sure it's a tough place.

BROWN: For sure. Priscilla Alvarez, thank you so much.

BLITZER: And new this morning. Tesla is now denying a Wall Street Journal report that its board is searching for a new CEO to replace Elon Musk. This comes as Tesla has lost more than a third of its value since Donald Trump returned to the White House. With Musk overseeing Trump's Department of Government efficiency, or DOGE, as it's called, car buyers are looking to other brands and Wall Street has backed away.

CNN Media Correspondent Hadas Gold is joining us from New York right now. Hadas, what are you learning about all of this?

HADAS GOLD, CNN MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, according to The Wall Street Journal, this search began about a month ago. And let's take a look at what Tesla's stock was looking like about a month ago. We have seen its stock absolutely tank. So, look at what started happening after January, February, March. And then last week, we also heard that Tesla posted first quarter earnings that were down 71 percent during the first quarter of 2025. So, about a month ago when the Wall Street Journal says this was going on, this is when we are really seeming to be in the peak of the sort of brand crisis for Tesla, where we were seeing attacks on Tesla dealerships, their sales plunging. The Wall Street Journal says that board members started engaging with executive search firms to try and find a success for Elon Musk at Tesla, and that board members had also demanded that Elon Musk spend more time at Tesla. This is also something we had heard from investors over the last few weeks, saying, Elon, please come back to Tesla. Spend your time there. I also heard from some investors who saying, Elon, you have so tainted the brand with your politics that you actually just need to step away entirely and leave as CEO.

But why this matters, and this is such a bombshell, is that Elon is so connected to Tesla. It's so much a part of his story, his persona, and his wealth. If you look at some of his other companies, like SpaceX, like X, he has installed CEOs there, people that he trusts to run his companies. That is not the case at Tesla. Some people that I've spoken to who know Musk, they say Tesla is Elon. Elon is Tesla. And I think that's why this is so important.

We have heard the denial from the board chair, calling it absolutely false. And I do want to put up what Elon Musk posted on X. He says that this story was an extremely bad breach of ethics, that The Wall Street Journal should would publish a deliberately false article and fail to include an unequivocal denial beforehand by the Tesla Board of Directors. I have asked The Wall Street Journal for a comment or reaction to that, have not heard back yet.

But some analysts, including Dan Ives from Wedbush, are saying they believe that this sort of a prompt for a search was a warning shot, sort of a big flashing sign for Elon saying, hey, you really need to do something right now and come back to your companies. Wolf?

BLITZER: All right. Hadas, excellent reporting, thank you very, very much. Pamela?

BROWN: All right. Still ahead right here in The Situation Room, Wolf, the last tariff free shipments, new CNN reporting on exactly when you'll feel the staggering 145 percent tariffs on goods coming from China.

BLITZER: And later, the CEO of General Motors tell CNN tariffs will cost the automaker four to $5 billion this year. What that means if you're shopping for a new car.

Stay with us. You're in The Situation Room.

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BROWN: Happening now, the last ships from China bringing cargo unaffected by President Trump's massive new tariffs are sailing into American ports. So, that means the countdown to supply shortages and rising prices has officially begun. Goods that were loaded after April 9th are going to be hit with a 145 percent tariff,

BLITZER: Huge tariff. Let's go to New York right now. CNN Business and Politics Correspondent Vanessa Yurkevich is watching all of this unfold, Vanessa, how soon will we see the prices on Chinese-made products jump here in the United States?

VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, it could be weeks. And as Pamela said, you have ships that are sailing across the ocean into New York ports that next week will be carrying that higher tariff of 145 percent. But I should note there will be fewer ships and less cargo because it is simply too expensive for some importers to do business with China right now.

So, once those ships come into the U.S. ports, retailers have said that they have about five to seven weeks of pre-tariff inventory. However, once that inventory runs through, and for smaller businesses, it will be less. Those higher priced, higher tariffed items will make their way onto store shelves.

And businesses will have to make a decision. Do they continue to place those orders with China at that higher rate or do they choose not to bring that product in?

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And that is where you can wind up with a situation of shortages.

Now, JPMorgan is projecting that they expect a 75 to 80 percent drop in imports from China this year because of these higher tariffs, especially around back to school items and holiday items, because, Pamela and Wolf, those items are starting to come in right now and will be coming in through October. Those are the key time periods to watch for consumers.

BROWN: Right. And just to follow up on that, you heard President Trump yesterday acknowledged that the price of toys could go up, that shelves won't have as many toys, dolls for kids. But it's not just toys coming from China that American consumers buy, right?

YURKEVICH: Oh yes. We buy a ton of stuff from China. We get apparel, footwear, electronics, microchips that are used for anything that beeps. These are key items that we rely on China for. And we get more apparel, shoes and electronics from China than any other country.

And, Pamela, I have spoken to retailers and supply chain economists about whether or not they can reposition to manufacture in other countries and then bring that product in from those countries. It takes too long to set that up and it is not going to replace now that deficit of product that we normally get from China, Pamela.

BROWN: McDonald's, for its part, just reported its worst quarter since the height of the pandemic. Is Trump's trade war to blame for that?

YURKEVICH: Yes, in some ways, it is. Because this is the second decline in quarter that we have seen back-to-back, a decline of 3.6 percent in same store sales. That is the worst since COVID in 2020 when people were told to stay home. And the CEO of McDonald's says this is because of economic uncertainty and they're just not seeing the foot traffic. I will say that it's not just McDonald's. You have Chipotle, you have Domino's, you have Starbucks, all reporting weaker earnings just because of this economic uncertainty, consumer sentiment declining, and consumers starting to pull back in their purchases.

BLITZER: We're also getting a new look at the scope of the DOGE sweeping job cuts here in the United States, Vanessa. Tell us about that.

YURKEVICH: Yes. We were waiting to see when these cuts would really show up in data. And we're getting it right now we're hearing from Challenger and Gray, this new report signaling that government jobs were the largest cuts all year of any type of industry. The cuts were up 680 percent from the same time period last year, amounting to over 280,000 job cuts from the federal government.

We will note though that also other industries are expecting to do layoffs in the month of April. We just finished the month of April, but they were projecting layoffs up over 100,000. Compare that to last year guys when it was 64,000. So, really, this all just paints that picture of uncertainty for businesses as they're trying to figure out how to position their business among this trade war.

BROWN: Vanessa Yurkevich, thank you, as always. Wolf?

BLITZER: And the price of toys, so many of those toys being imported from China, is going to go up and up and up. And if you were planning, I know you had three little kids, spending, let's say, $100 for various toys coming up over the next few months, you could wind up spending about $150 for all those toys because of the tariffs that are now being imposed.

BROWN: It's why you're seeing a lot of people stockpiling right now. They're trying to get that in, buy those future gifts before the tariffs really hit, because it can have a big impact on a lot of American families.

BLITZER: It's going to have a huge impact on a lot of families out there. We're watching all of this unfold.

Meanwhile, President Trump's tariffs will cost General Motors up to $5 billion this year, that according to CEO Mary Barra. The automaker is the first major company to estimate in dollars just how much these sweeping tariffs imposed by Trump will cost.

Listen to what Barra told our friend and colleague, Erin Burnett, earlier this morning.

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ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: February 1st, tariffs were announced and they changed in March. Then they changed again in March. Now, they have changed in April. I mean, Mary, I know you've spoken to President Trump directly about the tariffs. When is the last time you spoke to him and was it this week post his most recent shift? And has he given you the confidence that this is it, that you actually know the rules of the game and they're not going to change again?

MARY BARRA, CHAIR AND CEO, G.M.: Well, I've had I spoke to the president when I last visited the White House, but I've been speaking to many members of his administration multiple times a day over the last several weeks. So, I've had regular communications and really feel that the White House and the administration are listening to understand the situation.

And so we do know that there's more conversations going on. For instance, the negotiations going on with Japan and South Korea, China, and many of the other countries that impact from a supply chain perspective.

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So, we think that there's more impact potentially. But, again, right now, the clarity that we got was so important because it allows us to make decisions for our footprint in the U.S. and in North America to be able to respond to the tariffs and make sure that we have a growing and strong U.S. auto industry.

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BLITZER: That was General Motor CEO Mary Barra speaking to CNN's Erin Burnett. And, Pamela, clearly a lot more of that interview will air on Erin Burnett OutFront later tonight, 7:00 P.M. Eastern.

BROWN: That's right. She's been doing a great job getting these CEOs to talk about how the tariffs are impacting their companies.

And up next here in The Situation Room, 24 states and Washington, D.C., are suing the Trump administration, claiming its massive cuts to the service and volunteer agency, AmeriCorps, are illegal. One of the plaintiffs joins us live next

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