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The Situation Room

Trump Administration Targets Environmental Protections; Interview With Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine William Taylor; Republicans Probe Biden Administration. Aired 11:30a-12p ET

Aired July 30, 2025 - 11:30   ET

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

[11:30:00]

MICHAEL OREN, FORMER ISRAELI AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED STATES: But, really, bottom line is, it's tragic, Wolf. It's tragic for the Palestinians.

Hamas is going to conclude, I'm just going to hold on. The world thinks that Israel's starving the Palestinians. I'm getting a Palestinian state recognized by France and Britain. Why should I make negotiations -- make conditions -- why should I make concessions around the negotiating table?

And this is precisely the reason the why Hamas has walked away from negotiations for a cease-fire. And the people who are going to suffer the most, Wolf, are not Israelis only. It's certainly, certainly the Palestinians.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: The former Israeli Ambassador to the United States Michael Oren.

Thanks so much for joining us, Ambassador.

OREN: Thank you.

BLITZER: And up next: Two of former President Biden's top aides will be in the hot seat up on Capitol Hill, as Republican lawmakers are intensifying their investigation into the former president's cognitive decline.

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[11:35:10]

BLITZER: Right now, a former top a to former President Joe Biden is back up on Capitol Hill. The former Biden counselor Steve Ricchetti is sitting for an interview with the House Oversight Committee, as the Republican panel ramps up its investigation into the former president's cognitive decline and any possible attempts to conceal it from the public.

CNN correspondent Arlette Saenz is here with me in THE SITUATION ROOM.

What do we know about this interview, Arlette? ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, Steve Ricchetti, the

former counselor to former President Joe Biden, has been up on Capitol Hill for about two hours now as he's sitting for this interview before the House Oversight Committee.

He is one of two former senior Biden aides who are testifying behind closed doors up on Capitol Hill this week. Tomorrow, we anticipate the former senior adviser Mike Donilon will also be testifying in this closed-door setting.

And these two men are quite important. They are some of the longest- serving and closest advisers to Biden. They actually were in the room with Biden when he made that final decision back in July of 2024 to drop out of the 2024 race.

Now, both of these men have signaled that they are sitting down voluntarily for these interviews. That is a different approach that they are taking compared to a few other aides who had declined to cooperate and ultimately were subpoenaed for their appearance. That had included Dr. Kevin O'Connor and other senior aides, like Anthony Bernal and Annie Tomasini.

And in each of their interviews, they decided to plead the Fifth. Now, we will see. We're still waiting to learn how exactly Ricchetti's interview is panning out. But this is just the latest in a series of former Biden aides who is being called up to Capitol Hill as part of the House Oversight Committee's investigation into whether President Biden had suffered any mental decline, cognitive decline while he was in office.

We also anticipate that, between now and mid September, there will be six other additional former Biden aides, as House Oversight Chairman James Comer has made very clear he wants to question more of these individuals to what exactly they knew about President Biden's state while he was in office.

BLITZER: Are these hearings open-door or are they behind closed doors?

SAENZ: So far, everything is behind closed doors. These have been transcribed interviews. It's unclear whether they might try to move these hearings into a more public setting as things advance. But for the time being, all of these hearings have been taking place behind closed doors.

BLITZER: Arlette Saenz, thanks very much for that update.

And just ahead, President Trump sharing new details about the fate of the nearly 300,000 Ukrainians who've actually fled to the United States as war rages on back home.

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[11:42:05]

BLITZER: President Trump is now keeping the door open for Ukrainians who escaped the war with Russia and fled here to the United States, saying they can stay here in the U.S. until the conflict ends, a reversal from his previous position.

It's the latest example, by the way, of Trump's growing frustration with Vladimir Putin as the White House tries to broker a peace deal. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm disappointed in President Putin, very disappointed in him. So we're going to have to look. And I'm going to reduce that 50 days that I gave him to a lesser number, because I think I already know the answer, what's going to happen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: There are now just, what, nine days left for Russia's president to agree to a cease-fire under President Trump's new deadline.

Joining us now to discuss this and more, the former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bill Taylor.

Ambassador, thanks so much for joining us.

As you know, around 280,000 Ukrainian nationals have fled here to the United States. They have come to the United States since the Russian invasion back in 2022. The residency status was cast in doubt by Trump's executive order cracking down on asylum seekers. But how significant is this change that has just been announced? They can at least stay, remain here in the U.S. until the war is over.

WILLIAM TAYLOR, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO UKRAINE: It's a big change for those people, for those Ukrainians who are here. That's good news.

I have talked to a bunch of them and they're very eager to continue to contribute to their community and make the case for support to Ukraine. But the other thing you have mentioned, Wolf, is important, and that is, this is another indication that President Trump has -- is fed up with President Putin and is supporting the Ukrainians in multiple ways.

BLITZER: When you say multiple ways, is this going to translate into military action and military supplies that will help Ukraine defeat the Russians in Ukraine?

TAYLOR: Has already.

His announcement a couple -- about a week ago saying he was going to allow the Europeans to buy weapons from us to provide to the Ukrainians, that's already starting to flow. The Europeans are using weapons that they already have, giving it to the Ukrainians right now. It's already flowing in, and then the Europeans are going to turn around and buy from American firms.

So that is -- that's all -- that's a big change. That is a big change that's already having an effect.

BLITZER: As you know, a couple of weeks or so ago, the president gave the Russians a 50-day deadline to end this war, otherwise face enormous consequences from the U.S., these tariffs that would be imposed on countries that deal with Russia.

But now, in the last few days, he's reduced that to 10 to 12 days. And, what, there are nine days left right now. Is Putin going to pay attention to that, or does he think that's all a bluff?

TAYLOR: Putin hopes it's a bluff. Putin hopes that this -- that President Trump will chicken out.

But President Trump, as you say, has gone from 50 to 12, now to 10. There's nine days left. President Trump's made it very clear by that reiteration that he's serious about this. So we will see a week from Friday.

BLITZER: What's going to cause Putin to change his policy and end this war?

[11:45:03]

TAYLOR: When he figures out he can't win, when he figures out that we're going to continue to support the Ukrainians, the Europeans are going to continue to support the Ukrainians.

The Ukrainians will never give up, as you have indicated over and over. They're fighting until the end, until they win, until they prevail. When Putin understands that, he will then come to the table, at least for a cease-fire.

BLITZER: What are you hearing from Ukrainians about the clear change in President Trump's tone?

TAYLOR: Really pleased. I have got good friends on the front line. I have got good friends in the army. And they said morale out there skyrocketed when he heard both -- the two packages, both the economic, as well as more important were the weapons that we just talked about.

BLITZER: I want you to listen and watch what Trump said about Putin earlier this month. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I go home, I tell the first lady, I spoke to Vladimir today. We had a wonderful conversation. She said, oh, really? Another city was just hit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: So what do you make of Melania Trump, the president's wife, obviously?

She grew up in the former Yugoslavia and her impact or influence that's potential right here on what the president is doing? TAYLOR: The Ukrainians now see her as a hero. She is well-known around Ukraine for exactly that, for making the point to the president that people are dying.

And that apparently has gotten through to the president, that President Trump has a conversation with Putin, and then 27 people two days ago die again right after the president made his announcement. So this has apparently gotten through to the president, and the first lady has been part of that.

BLITZER: Yes, well, it's very interesting, indeed.

All right, thanks very much, former Ambassador William Taylor joining us.

Up next: President Trump wants his EPA to roll back years of work limiting greenhouse gas emissions here in the U.S. What the landmark move could mean for Americans, that's next.

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[11:51:01]

BLITZER: We're following a stunning reversal that could have unprecedented climate impact.

The EPA is now looking to repeal a 2009 study linking manmade climate change to health hazards. Doing so could strip the government of its most powerful way to control pollution and fight climate change.

Let's go live right now to CNN's chief climate correspondent, Bill Weir, for more on this.

Bill, so what do we know about this latest move?

BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is a big one, Wolf.

In the first Trump term, they tried to work around the endangerment finding. This time around, they're trying to blow it up entirely. And this is massive. This goes back to a 2007 Supreme Court decision that says the EPA has the responsibility to regulate the kind of pollution that can overheat the planet.

The so-called endangerment finding came out in 2009, a couple of years later, and found just that. It says, look, the smokestack pollution, the stuff coming out of our tailpipes, our factories is overheating the planet. It affects people's lungs at the ground level, but, overall, it has a huge impact on global health.

The Lee Zeldin EPA now, which is taking a chain saw to every kind of regulation, wants to completely gut it, take away that as the underpinning for climate regulation. And it'll go to a public comment period now in a couple of months. It'll wind its way through the courts. But in the meantime, it is a golden age for polluters. The White House is basically signaling to big factory owners and car

makers, whoever, you can do whatever you want while this is fought. The Chamber of Commerce, big auto manufacturers weren't asking for this. There is no sort of economical upside to this at this particular time, although the White House is saying that is the reason for the decision, to unfetter all kinds of economic growth that's being somehow held back by regulations around pollution.

BLITZER: Could a future president, Bill, actually reverse this move?

WEIR: It really depends on the courts. It'll take a couple of years for it to wind through. It'll be -- go to a court of appeals, likely in D.C., and possibly up to the Supreme Court.

Unless they say, no, Congress does have the right to regulate this, future presidents would be eliminated from doing this entirely. That could be a big deal. But, in the meantime, years will be lost in the climate fight, as the biggest, most successful economy in the world steps away from any climate action at such a pivotal time.

BLITZER: A huge move indeed.

All right, Bill Weir, thank you very, very much.

In Central England today, by the way, people lined the streets of Birmingham to a bid farewell to Ozzy Osbourne, the godfather of heavy metal. A marching band of sorts led the funeral procession for Osbourne, the legendary front man of Black Sabbath, who went on to build a successful solo career.

The marching musicians played one of his biggest hits, "Iron Man," and the crowd happily joined in at times, showing their devotion, a light moment for a man once known as the King of Darkness, a hyperbolic nod to his pioneering role in heavy metal.

Osbourne's family also said goodbye. His wife of 43 years, Sharon, was visibly emotional. She then turned and gave a peace sign to the crowd. Ozzy Osbourne died last week at the age of 76.

And, to our viewers, thanks very much for joining us this morning. You can always keep up with us on social media @WolfBlitzer and @PamelaBrownCNN.

We will see you back here tomorrow morning and every weekday morning at 10:00 a.m. Eastern.

"INSIDE POLITICS," today with Manu Raju, is coming up next.

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[11:59:47]

MANU RAJU, CNN HOST: Today on INSIDE POLITICS: leaving no stone unturned. Senate Democrats have a new strategy to keep the Jeffrey Epstein scandal front and center. But will a century-old law actually force the Justice Department to release the files still looming over the White House?

Plus: district duel. We're getting the first look at the Texas GOP's push to redraw the congressional map in their favor.