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The Brief with Jim Sciutto
CNN International: Washington Police Under Federal Control; U.N. Says Killing of Journalists "Grave Breach" of International Law; Israeli Strike Kills Multiple Journalists in Gaza; Colombian Presidential Hopeful Uribe Dies; Trump Delays Higher Tariffs on Chinese Imports for 90 Days; Alaska Summit Between Trump and Putin; Trump's Federal Takeover; Trump Nominating E.J. Antoni to Lead Bureau of Labor Statistics. Aired 6-7p ET
Aired August 11, 2025 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[18:00:00]
RICHARD QUEST, CNN BUSINESS EDITOR-AT-LARGE AND CNN ANCHOR, QUEST MEANS BUSINESS: Hello and welcome to you joining us wherever you are in the
world. I'm Richard Quest in New York. And this is "The Brief."
Ahead this hour, Donald Trump's D.C. takeover. Why the president's bringing in the National Guard and the FBI for good measure. Mr. Trump once again
delays higher tariffs on Chinese imports for 90 days. And the chipmakers in NVIDIA and AMD have got their own trade deal with the United States
government in hopes of one day being allowed to sell more advanced chips to China.
Jim is off tonight. I'm with you for the hour. We begin in Washington where President Trump says crime is out of control. The U.S. president is
declaring a public emergency that would allow him now to corral the powers of the federal government to take over law enforcement in the District of
Columbia, D.C.
According to the Army, around 800 National Guard troops will be deployed to the capital. Of those, up to 200 will provide physical support to law
enforcement, and the rest will take on administrative and logistical roles. The president says he's also willing to deploy active-duty military to
address crime if it's needed, and he wants Congress to pass a law to ban no cash bail. He refers to someone being released from custody ahead of a
court date without the need to pay any money. D.C. largely removed cash bail in 1992.
The president says the police presence will be overwhelming and they'll give officers the authority to do, in his words, whatever the hell they
want. He added these measures could go far beyond the nation's capital.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: You look at Chicago how bad it is. You look at Los Angeles how bad it is. And we have other cities that are very bad.
New York has a problem. And then you have, of course, Baltimore and Oakland. We don't even mention that anymore. They're so far gone. We're not
going to let it happen. We're not going to lose our cities over this, and this will go further. We're starting very strongly with D.C. and we're
going to clean it up real quick.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Now, it's worth noting that many crimes in Washington, D.C. have actually fallen. Assault with a deadly weapon, robbery, violent crime, and
property crime. As you can see from the numbers, they are all low.
Kristen Holmes is at the White House. Well, this is all a bit of a quantum leap, isn't it? He's going to totally new areas. I mean, we had a whiff of
it with Los Angeles and riots but now it's full throttle.
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Richard, that's true. And one of the things we heard President Trump say over and over
again on the campaign trail was that this was something he wanted to do. But he really hadn't seen him taking any kind of action. And that changed
over the last several days. On Thursday and Friday of last week we reported that he had started to ramp up the federal presence of law enforcement.
Most of this coming after a former Trump administration staffer was beat up and taken into the hospital, and President Trump speaking out against the
crime in D.C., even though of course, as you note, the crime has gone down this year, it had been spiking during COVID.
Now, one thing to just look at, let's take a look at what exactly is in this crime plan. So, you mentioned this, mobilizing 800 National Guard
members, putting D.C. police under federal control. The attorney general, Pam Bondi, is going to be in charge of the police, and FBI agents are among
others going to be patrolling the city.
A couple of interesting points to note, mayor Muriel Bowser of D.C. seemed to acknowledge that there wasn't much they could do legally. She also
acknowledged that there is still a crime problem, that they are not where they want to be in terms of fixing it. And she tried to walk a diplomatic
line essentially at times saying that maybe it would be a good thing to have more law enforcement on the ground because, again, D.C. is still a
city that has an enhanced level of crime.
The other part of this that was so fascinating was that Bowser has tried really hard to have a relationship with this Trump administration. She has
to be working with them on several things. She did note though, however, on this that she got somewhat of a heads up on the National Guard, but one
thing they were completely taken aback by was this idea of the police department being put under federal control. That was something that they
learned in real time from that press conference.
[18:05:00]
QUEST: So, now, of course, as you say, because of the unique status of D.C., there's not a huge amount that can be done. I guess the attention
turns, A, to any legal challenges and, B, to which city is next.
HOLMES: Yes. And President Trump mentioned Chicago, he mentioned New York as places that they were essentially looking to see how this worked in D.C.
and then move forward. Again, this is something President Trump has mentioned before. He had said one of the ways he could fight crimes in
cities was by deploying the National Guard.
In terms of legality, it works a little bit differently in D.C. than it does in cities like Los Angeles or Chicago. Because of the fact that D.C.
is not its own state. That was what you heard from Bowser during her press conference, was that again, legally there's not much they can do because of
the fact that D.C. is not its own state. Certainly, when it comes to cities like Chicago, Los Angeles, there would be much more pushback and likely
much more legal hurdles to actually take these steps.
Right now, I think what you're seeing is President Trump believing that this practice could actually work. He was presented with a list of people
who were arrested for various crimes. I was told he was talking about it all weekend, how they were going to get rid of crime because he had seen
these arrest numbers from over the weekend. I will tell you, they presented us with only five arrests, and many of them were not for high violence
crimes. But that he -- this was something that he wanted to do and believed was working in terms of federal law enforcement. Of course, something we're
going to see here.
Also, there's still a big question as to how the federal law enforcement is going to interact with the police department, how they're going to be
working in tandem. Of course, everyone's biggest fear is that you have rogue law enforcement agents that are unidentified. Mayor Bowser said she
would try to protect against that.
QUEST: Kristen at the White House, grateful. Thank you. Now, Israel is facing an international storm of criticism following the killing of several
journalists in Gaza. On Sunday, the attack killed seven people, and least five were affiliated with Al Jazeera's news network. Israel says it
targeted an Al Jazeera correspondent, Anas al-Sharif, insisting he led a Hamas cell, an accusation that's been roundly denied by al-Sharif. Nada
Bashir reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On Monday, mourners gathered in Gaza, carrying the bodies of Palestinian journalists killed in a
targeted Israeli strike late Sunday night.
Among them, journalists from the international news network, Al Jazeera, including prominent Palestinian journalist Anas al-Sharif. Al-Sharif had
become a much-respected household name in the Arabic speaking world and beyond, delivering live news coverage around the clock from across the Gaza
Strip, risking his life on a daily basis to continue his work, documenting the daily horrors inflicted on the people of Gaza.
Al-Sharif was in a tent with other journalists marked with a press sign near the entrance of the now destroyed Al-Shifa Hospital when he was killed
by an Israeli strike, according to the hospital's director. Al Al Jazeera also confirmed the deaths of their staffers, Mohammad Qreiqeh, Ibrahim al
Zaher (ph), Mohammed Noufal, and Moamen Aliwa.
The news outlet issued a statement describing the attack as a desperate attempt to silence voices ahead of the occupation of Gaza. The Israeli
military had previously accused al-Sharif of leading a Hamas cell. The military claimed al-Sharif joined Hamas in 2013 and accused him of leading
a Hamas cell that advanced rocket attacks against Israel. The IDF said they had unequivocal proof of al-Sharif's link to Hamas, posting an undated
photo, apparently showing him with slain Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and publicizing images of documents that include personnel lists, terrorist
training courses, phone directories, and salary payments. CNN cannot independently verify the documents.
Previously, al-Sharif had vehemently denied the allegation that he was affiliated with Hamas. In a statement shared on social media, the reporter
said, I'm a journalist with no political affiliations. My only mission is to report the truth from the ground as it is without bias.
The U.N. special repertoire on freedom of expression had also previously denounced the, quote, "unfounded accusations" by the Israeli military.
Describing Israel's claims as a blatant attempt to endanger his life and silence his reporting on the genocide in Gaza. The U.N. official also cited
growing evidence that journalists in Gaza have been targeted and killed by the Israeli army on the basis of unsubstantiated claims that they were
Hamas terrorists.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists at least 186 journalists have been killed since the beginning of the war in Gaza.
[18:10:00]
In the minutes before he was killed, al-Sharif, who was also a father, separated from his two children for months while reporting she this message
on social media, if this madness does not end, Gaza will be reduced to ruins. It's people's voices silenced, their faces erased, and history will
remember you as silent witnesses to a genocide you chose not to stop.
Nada Bashir, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: With me now, Kenneth Roth, former Executive director of Human Rights Watch. Ken, let's just take that last quote from him where he says,
you know, a genocide that you are you did not stop. But it's almost impossible to know what will now stop Israel in continuing because, as you
write -- as you said before, you know, Israel says this man was Hamas, other say he wasn't, or whatever, will never know, you know, it's
unsubstantiated. But Israel does seem impervious to any form of pressure at the moment.
KENNETH ROTH, FORMER EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH: Well, I mean, Richard, there is one person who could stop the genocide tomorrow, and
that's Donald Trump. If he were to say that the United States will stop sending the $3 billion in military aid every year, and the massive arm
sales to Israel, Netanyahu would have to listen. So long as that military aid and arms, they keep flowing, Netanyahu proceeds with his killing and
starving of Palestinian civilians.
QUEST: Right. So, let me just put --
ROTH: And that's what --
QUEST: Forgive me for jumping in, forgive me for jumping in because this is something that develops from what you've just said. Why do you think
Donald Trump isn't or won't?
ROTH: Well, I mean, Trump is distancing himself from Netanyahu slowly. We've seen this in various regional things, such as, you know, his deal
with the Houthis that didn't involve an end to attacking Israel. His lifting of sanctions on the new Syrian authorities. You know, even his
insisting that Netanyahu accept two temporary ceasefires, you know, now his refutation of Netanyahu's false denial that there is no starvation in Gaza.
So, we see Trump backing away from Netanyahu.
At this point, I think, you know, Trump naively thinks that he can somehow negotiate a piece when what's needed is first pressure on Netanyahu to stop
the killing. And sadly, there's nobody else in the world but Donald Trump who could do this. Otherwise, the genocide will proceed. And, you know,
that's obviously why this journalist was killed because he was in the epicenter of where Netanyahu next wants to invade, Gaza City.
QUEST: The European nations, more statements, more threats. Germany not supplying arms. The U.K., some very strong language coming out of not only
the U.K. and France, but again, they don't seem to have anything like the ability to pressurize the administration. And I also wonder, even within
Israel now, why there isn't more pressure against?
ROTH: Well, I mean, I think you're right, the Europeans are finally stepping up. You know, Germany, which never differs with the Israeli
government, has cut off arm sales and is, you know, outraged at the killing and the starvation. This broad move toward recognizing a Palestinian State,
you know, does help to foreclose the two options that Netanyahu prefers, which is, you know, either mass expulsion of Palestinians, to just get rid
of them as a problem or, you know, permanent apartheid, permanent occupation.
And so, you know, a group of European countries, plus Australia, have now said, no we want a Palestinian State. But, you know, I get back to the key
is Trump. And you know, I think that Trump, you know, although he presumptively does give a green light to Israel, you know, he's foremost
concerned about himself. Clearly, the American people are outraged by what's happening, even MAGA Republicans are slowly turning against Israel.
So, I mean, I think that he is going to feel increasing domestic pressure to do something. I just hope he does it before it's too late. I mean, the
killing, the starvation goes on and on and Trump watches it. And at this point, still effectively does nothing but aids and abets it.
QUEST: I'm grateful. Thank you very much. It's morning now for you in Melbourne. Thank you for joining us, Kenneth Roth.
ROTH: Thank you having me.
QUEST: Now, turning to Russia's war on Ukraine. And President Trump once promised to end the war within 24 hours of taking office. Now, he's framing
his upcoming talks in Alaska with Vladimir Putin as a way to feel out what the Russian leader's parameters are for a peace deal. The president said
he'd know in two minutes whether a deal were even possible. Here's what he said when asked if Ukraine's president would even be there.
[18:15:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: First of all, Volodymyr Zelenskyy is not invited on Friday?
TRUMP: He wasn't a part of it. I would say he could go, but he's gone to a lot of meetings. You know, he's been there for three and a half years.
Nothing happened.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And what is the definition?
TRUMP: I mean, do you want somebody that's been doing this for three and a half years?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Now, Mr. Trump later clarified he'd like to speak to Russia's Putin before he speaks to Zelenskyy and E.U. leaders. He said he'd like the next
meeting to include both the Russian and Ukrainian president.
Ukraine has a different take on it all, of course, when it comes to the potential ceasefire. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh has been asking Ukrainians how
they feel about their leader not even having a seat the negotiating table.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: People boarding the train now here as torrential rain actually begins. This is
Kramatorsk Railway station. Why are we here? Why is this important? Well, it is the de facto capital of Donetsk region, the parts of Donetsk region
that are still held by Ukraine. That's important because reports have been suggesting that as part of the opening stages of a potential deal between
the United States and Russia, Russia may get this part of the Donetsk region, that is fought for for ages, but not managed to take an exchange
for a ceasefire as part of a U.S.-Russian deal.
Ukraine's outright rejected any ceding of territory to Russia and a lot awful lot of the people we've been speaking to here in Kramatorsk feel it's
surreal that a meeting in Alaska on Friday on the other side of the world couldn't almost be further away from this frontline town could decide their
fates after years of Ukrainians dying to defend this area.
But that is the risk here. That is the concern. The air raid sirens are being persistent while we've been here. But really, in the next days, a lot
of hard diplomatic work has to be done to work out whether President Zelenskyy of Ukraine is going to be in Alaska, whether he is going to meet
Putin and Trump, or have a subsequent meeting after Putin and Trump have met with Trump separately. Europeans deeply concerned that a deal might get
hatched there, that Ukraine and Europe has to accept. And European position now saying clearly, they want to ceasefire first and then the current line
of contact needs to be the starting point for negotiations, essentially freeze the fighting and then discussions can potentially happen.
But just look behind me here at the normal traffic in and out every day of this railway station, back to the capital Kyiv, and imagine it manifold
higher in highly unlikely events. Ukraine has outright rejected that some kind of deal hands this massive city over to Russia.
Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, Kramatorsk, Eastern Ukraine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: The Colombian senator and the presidential candidate, Miguel Uribe, Turbay has died. He's 39 years old. And the right-wing opposition leader
was hospitalized in June after being shot at a campaign event. Six people have been arrested in connection with the attack. Uribe was the grandson a
former president and his mother, the journalist Diana Turbay was killed in 1991 after being captured by Pablo Escobar's Medellin cartel.
Stefano Pozzebon is standing by. A very sad, I mean, appalling that anybody standing in politics, whatever (INAUDIBLE) views gets -- this happens to.
But how will it be greeted tonight in Colombia that this death has now taken place?
STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Yes, Richard. Well, I think that everyone in Colombia is still coming to terms with the shock of his death,
especially as it comes more than two months after that horrible attack that occurred here in Bogota on June 7 when Uribe was shot several times, at
least twice in the head while speaking at a rally to his supporters. He was one of the leading candidates of the opposition. He was vying to be the
challenger against the left-wing to reclaim the presidential palace, the presidency of Colombia for the right-wing coalition.
I think that, right now, many Colombians are still trying to understand how this loss and how this void, of course, will leave the nation. The
president, Gustavo Petro, has joined a stream of condolences to the family and the flags at the presidential palace have been taken at a half-mast in
respect.
We were able to speak with several Colombians today, and I think one of them really summed up how the country is feeling. Take a listen to what one
told to our cameras.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): It's truly unfortunate, a great loss for Colombia because we have lost a brilliant man, the best the
country had at this moment as our presidential candidate. About his wife, we can only ask God to give her and her family peace, and we send them a
heartfelt embrace. Dr. Miguel Uribe was my boss when he was secretary of government, and he was a wonderful human being. He didn't deserve this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[18:20:00]
POZZEBON: And of course, it's impossible to analyze or to think about this death without taking into -- without looking at the context where this is
happening. Colombia remains a very dangerous country for social community leaders, for example, for environmental leaders, irregularly tops the
statistics for murders against the environmental leaders and community leaders in in the last -- in -- among the Americas, which is already one of
the most murderous regions in the world.
Of course, it's a country that has tried in the recent years to shake off the legacy of a violent past when it comes to politics. But perhaps this is
just a chill reminder that this country has not completely turned the page. Richard.
QUEST: Stefano, I'm grateful. Thank you, sir. Now, in a moment, as "The Brief" continues, a deal between the A.I. chipmakers and the president.
NVIDIA and a MD agree to hand over 15 percent of their revenues to the U.S. government and are doing so voluntarily. It's not a tax, it's not a tariff.
They're paying it over.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Monday's trading on Wall Street has been lower. Investors are gearing up for Tuesday's consumer price, the CPI inflation. The Dow --
well, you can see the numbers for yourself. They're all sort -- and what was interesting about it was the way that towards the very end of the day,
the market did go further lower.
Shares of Intel though were at more than 3 percent. The chief execs meeting with Donald Trump at the White House, you remember Donald Trump has beaten
him up saying he should resign over conflicts of interest. Goal down 2 percent. The president said there will be no tariff on the precious metal.
There was a technical spike because of the triangulation of gold between London (INAUDIBLE) and New York. And that could have got caught by tariffs,
but apparently not now.
And the big talking point was NVIDIA and AMD. They have agreed apparently to pay the U.S. government 15 percent of their revenues when they sell
certain semiconductors to China. And in doing so, they get the export license to do so. President Trump has called the A.I. chips obsolete.
[18:25:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: This is an old chip that China already has. And I deal with Jensen, who's a great guy. And NVIDIA -- the chip that we're talking about, the
H20, it's an old chip. It China already has it in a different form, different name, but they have it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Now, the deal comes as the president's extending a tariff truce with China for 90 days. The decision came only hours before the deadline
expired. President Trump's calling his meeting today with the Intel chief executive, Lip-Bu Tan, a very interesting one. It follows days after the
president demanded the immediate resignation of Tan, calling him highly conflicted over his alleged ties to China. The president says Tan and his
cabinet members will meet and then bring some suggestions to him next week.
Paul Triolo is a partner at DGA-Albright Stonebridge group. There's so much to unpack here. I mean, each time we turn round, there's a --
PAUL TRIOLO, PARTNER, DGA-ALBRIGHT STONEBRIDGE GROUP: There is.
QUEST: -- different bit of weirdness. Can I just go first of all with the deal with AMD and NVIDIA, simply because the U.S. now has a commercial
interest in a specific company and therefore, arguably, would say, yes, you can export this. Yes, you can export that because it'll bring us more
money. And at the same time, arguably, regardless of any other consideration.
TRIOLO: Yes, Richard. This is a very unprecedented situation we're in here, right? We're sort of an uncharted territory. Again, if this is
confirmed, I think the companies have been a little bit tightlipped about this whole thing. Trump has sort of, you know, been commenting on it.
I mean, it's amazing at one level just to have the president commenting about, you know, GPUs and A.I. semiconductors in the way he's been doing
over the last couple of days. Along with weighing in on the whole Intel CEO issue with Lip-Bu Tan.
So, we're really in a strange state here where U.S. policy around these issues is evolving on an almost minute by minute basis, which is causing a
lot of heartburn, both in Washington and in Beijing.
QUEST: But, Paul, what's the problem with it? I mean, you know, I can hear others saying, look, this is great. It brings money into the U.S.
government. It makes common sense. They're not getting advanced chips yet. So, what -- so, Paul, what are you getting yourself all excited about?
TRIOLO: Well, there are opponents for this on both sides, right? On the one hand, the idea of shipping these H20 GPUs, for example, to China is
opposed by many who think they're going to give China a little bit of a leg up on designing and fielding A.I. models. I don't really agree with that
point of view. I think these are, as the president said, and others have said -- you know, these are fourth -- really actually seventh or eighth
tier GPUs that were designed specifically for China with lower capabilities here. So, in that sense, I think it's good that NVIDIA and AMD are allowed
to sell these types of GPUs.
The issue of the revenue, though, again, this is unprecedented. We don't know what that would be used for. Presumably it could go for enhancing
export controls at the Commerce Department. But the other side is China. How China has viewed -- is going to view this. And there are those in China
who think, for example, that they don't want to accept this being addicted to these lower capability GPUs, for example, that the U.S. is offering.
So, interestingly, Trump also talked today about the next generation of chips, the GPUs that are designed, the Blackwells, and how those might be
made available to China. So, we have a sort of a slippery slope here where the U.S. is going to allow some level of chips -- technology to go to
China, but it's not going to be the best.
QUEST: Right. But can I put on the table that you and I are of a certain era and a certain generation, and we'd look at things in a particular way.
And here we have a transactional president who is doing something different and do we, you and me, do we need to be the ones that say, no, let's see
what might come out of this, let's see if there's any good in it, instead of immediately sort of saying, well, it's all going to end badly and it
will all end in tears and it's a very bad idea?
TRIOLO: No, no, no. I'm not saying that all. I think it's very interesting development that the president has seen fit to attach these conditions to
the licenses for exporting these GPUs. I think it's a good idea that they're exporting these particular GPUs, because as, you know, they're --
as I said, they're not the most advanced. It doesn't really change the fact that the U.S. will maintain controls on the most advanced GPUs.
And it's an interesting twist. Hey, you know, take that revenue. And use it to beef up some of the areas in the Commerce Department that could use more
funding. It's just that it's a little strange I think for many who've been looking at this for a long time, these issues to have U.S. export controls
tied to this kind of thing, this kind of revenue generation and transactional bargain that the president seems to be wanting to push here.
[18:30:00]
But no, I'm -- it's novel, it's innovative. And so, we're going to have to roll with it. Again, I haven't heard confirmation yet from the companies.
I'm waiting for that before I agree to this. But the president seems to be touting this in meetings he's having with the CEO --
QUEST: Paul --
TRIOLO: -- at least and other journalist. So, you know, this looks probably going to be a done deal. The mechanisms are still, you know,
unclear, because we're uncharted waters. But it's a -- I'm not saying it's a bad thing. It's kind of -- it's just that, you know, we - the question is
sort of, where does this -- how far does this go? What other types of things might be subject to this kind of transactional --
QUEST: Exactly. Particularly when, of course, the Constitution specifically bids taxes on exports, and this is all a voluntary. Anyway,
look, you and I will talk more about it as it plays out, because as you say, it's one of those things we need to understand. Well, I'm grateful for
your time tonight, sir. Thank you for taking it. Thank you. Now --
TRIOLO: Thank you, Richard.
QUEST: It's "The Brief." Let me brief you a little bit more. Russian drones continue to decimate parts of Ukraine. President Vladimir Putin gets
ready for an Alaska summit with his American counterpart on Friday. We'll break it all down.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Now, welcome back to "The Brief." I'm Richard Quest. Jim's off tonight. Here are the headlines that we're watching on your behalf over the
course of the next few hours. Washington, D.C.'s police force is now under the control of the federal government, citing a safety emergency. President
Trump's deploying hundreds of National Guard and federal agents to the city. All this despite police data showing a decrease in crime over the
past two years.
Funerals have taken place for a group of journalists killed by an Israeli attack on Gaza City. They were among seven people killed by an Israeli
strike on Sunday, United Nations described the attack as a grave breach of humanitarian law.
[18:35:00]
Investigations are continuing following the deadly explosion at a steel coking plant near Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania. Authorities say one person
has died another is unaccounted for. At least 10 people have been hurt. The cause of the explosion is unclear.
Friday's summit in Alaska between President Trump and Putin is facing several logistical and geopolitical hurdles. Now, it's unclear what a
potential ceasefire in Ukraine would actually look like. And then, of course, Hamlet (ph), the missing bit, Ukrainian President Volodymyr
Zelenskyy, it's a bit like Macbeth without the ghost.
What role will Zelenskyy play? European leaders appear to be increasingly nervous. They may -- they're worried, not unreasonably, that Ukraine may be
asked to make territorial concessions, and that feeling is based on comments like this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: There'll be some land swapping going on. I know that through Russia and through conversations with everybody to the good -- for the good of
Ukraine. Good stuff, not bad stuff. Also, some bad stuff for both.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Now, land swaps. Here are some of the most significant land swaps, switching, handing backs, whatever you want to call it of the last century.
They all involved profound social and cultural implications, and decades later, there was fallout. The Turkish-Greek population exchange. I've been
to the -- I've actually been to the village where that was involved. The Sudetenland in 1938. We all know what happened after that. And 1947,
partition of India and Pakistan, where -- which rumbles on today.
Michael Carpenter is with me. He was the senior director for Europe at the National Security Council under the Biden administration, also former U.S.
ambassador at the OSCE. I gave those examples. I'm sure, sir, you've got many more. It doesn't end well when land switches are forced on a party
after war.
MICHAEL CARPENTER, SENIOR FELLOW, INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STRATEGIC STUDIES AND FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE OSCE: No, Richard, that's
absolutely right. But I think, in this case, it also begs the question of what exactly is Russia going to give, because there was a lot of confusion
after Trump's envoy, Steve Witkoff, came back from his meeting with Putin in Moscow. He claimed that the Russians were going to give something to
Ukraine.
But then, since then, it appears that Putin. Has confirmed that the Russians just demand territory from Ukraine and are not going to give
anything back. So, this is just simply ceding five oblasts or regions of Ukraine to Russia. That's not a good deal for anyone, and that's not going
to end well for the population of these territories where there's been widespread rape, torture, and instances of extrajudicial killing.
QUEST: So, let's -- just humor me for the purpose of this question. Let's assume that this is what's on the table, hand back, the Donbas region,
(INAUDIBLE) and all those other areas, hand them over, and Zelenskyy says, well, even if I wanted to, I couldn't because of the law and I'm not going
to anyway. So, now we get to a question of whether Trump just says, right, I'm off. And then what do the Europeans do?
CARPENTER: Right. So, Trump said this in his press conference that there is a good probability that he could walk away and say good luck to the
Ukrainians and just leave it to them to continue fighting without any U.S. support. And that also begs the question of whether the U.S. would continue
with its sanctions on Russia or whether Trump would decide that there should be some easing of sanctions because of this new situation where he
has tried but has not brokered a peace deal.
So, there's a lot of questions here, but a lot of also concern that inviting Putin to U.S. soil legitimizes someone who has been indicted for
war crimes by the International Criminal Court. This is a big deal to allow him to travel to the United States to be feted as a head of state and to be
received by President Trump, the president of the United States.
QUEST: I mean, in my weekend reading, the consensus was in all the papers that I read that Putin's got exactly what he wanted, a one-on-one meeting
with President Trump where he can advance his cause, two strong men dividing the world as they see fit.
CARPENTER: It sure looks like that from the outside. This appears to be a meeting of two leaders who believe in the concept of spheres of influence,
which, of course, famously were agreed in Yalta at the end of the Second World War. And that did not end well for tens of millions of East
Europeans.
[18:40:00]
This has the sort of the same flavor to it. And there is a lot of concern because President Trump could have invited or insisted that President
Zelenskyy attend to this summit and yet, President Zelenskyy is not going to be there, even though the fate of his country is going to be discussed
between these two leaders.
QUEST: OK. I want to come back to -- I'm going to push you on this, if I may. Europe and the sort of the wishy-washy ability, you know, of Europe to
come up with a coherent, unanimous response, bearing in mind they've got Viktor Orban on Hungary on one side and Poland on the other and
diametrically opposed. So, what's the best that the E.U. can come out of this with?
CARPENTER: Well, the E.U. will have to come up with a position together with President Zelenskyy as soon as the outcome of the summit is announced.
And if it is, again, a requirement that Ukraine cede its territory to Russia, one would think that most of the E.U. would oppose that because
that will create a long-term security dilemma for the European Union.
However, the Europeans also have some things that they can do on their own that, so far, they have resisted doing because there is an absence of
political will to do them. One of those things is seizing the roughly 300 billion euro in frozen Russian assets, which could be used to help fund
Ukraine's defenses of its sovereignty. European leaders have resisted doing that so far, maybe if they get desperate in the aftermath of this summit,
they will consider doing so.
QUEST: Michael, as we -- as the summit happens and the aftermath, we'll need you to help us understand exactly what's going on. Thank you, sir. I'm
grateful for your time tonight. Thank you.
CARPENTER: Thank you.
QUEST: As you and I continue, President Trump's launched a federal takeover of Washington D.C.'s police force. More cities could be next. The
legality of this is, well, certainly in Washington's case perhaps it's on strongest grounds, but elsewhere, that's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Jim's off tonight. You've got me instead. More now on President Trump's federal takeover of law enforcement in the American capitol. He's
placing Washington, D.C.'s police Department under his control or to be more precise, the attorney general will be running things and deploying the
National Guard. He says it's to combat crime in the nation's capital. The D.C. mayor, Muriel Bowser, points out actually crime rates are down.
[18:45:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MURIEL BOWSER, MAYOR OF WASHINGTON, D.C.: This year, crime isn't just down from 2023, it's also down from 2019 before the pandemic, and we're at a 30-
year violent crime low. We're not satisfied. We haven't taken our foot off the gas, and we continue to look for ways to make our city safer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: CNN's Legal Analyst Michael Moore is with me. The legality of this, look, D.C. is a unique construct, so the president has the power to do
this. But I mean, let's not let the facts get in the way of why he's doing it. Why is he?
MICHAEL MOORE, CNN LEGAL ANALYST AND FORMER U.S. ATTORNEY: Well, Richard, I'm glad to be with you. You know, the -- you're right about D.C. being an
unusual place, and that is because there's no governor over D.C., somebody that typically would have the authority over the National Guard, as we've
seen, you know, where Trump's authority to use the National Guard has been challenged in other states like California.
In this instance, he does in fact have the right, if he wishes to, to bring in the National Guard to do certain things, certain federal functions
because D.C. is typically a federal jurisdiction. It's foolish on his part, frankly, to do it without the assistance and the cooperation and the local
authorities. But that seems to be what he's doing.
The challenge, frankly, as it relates to use of the National Guard and other places, is federal law and there's an old law on the books, over a
hundred years old that called the Posse Comitatus Act, and that act essentially says that you can't use United States troops, military troops
against United States citizens. And so, that's one of the reasons you're seeing it challenged in other places like California.
He is not able to come in and just federalize the City of D.C., he can't do that, but he can actually use the Guard for certain federal purposes if he
wishes to.
QUEST: But listening to the president today, there -- this is obviously part of a bigger strategy which is to try and enforce federal dictate, if
you will, on other cities and states. How do you see that playing out?
MOORE: You know, I think you're going to see this play out in the courts, frankly, as we're seeing in California, and that is he'll be challenged in
other states if he tries to do this. There's some fear, and you're seeing some people raise the concern that, in fact, he's trying to get the
American public used to seeing federal troops on the streets as if somehow he's going to make a large police state, especially as we approach upcoming
elections. Whether or not that fear is justified, I don't know. But I do think you're going to see this be challenged out in the court.
I think the other issue for him, frankly, is he would much rather be talking about, you know, coming in and being the great crime fighter and
the great city cleanup or -- and that type of thing as opposed to talking about the Epstein case and other things that are in fact where he's
underwater at this point, at least, certainly with his base and other people. So, this is a distraction.
And so, he knows, he has certain powers that he can in fact use in Washington. And I think just as he is known to do and prone to do, he
throws out these bombs as if he's going to do it in other places --
QUEST: Can I --
MOORE: to keep the media sort of jammed up on that so that there is, at least for him, a break in the negative press he's been getting over the
last few weeks.
QUEST: You know, I was talking earlier to our Brian Stelter, our media editor, and when I heard about all of this morning, "Wag the Dog," the
movie from the 1990s came to my mind. You know, the facts are -- well, let's not let the facts get in the way. The facts can create an alternative
reality. The alternative reality here being that D.C. is so bad that you have to take it over and deal with it. But if you keep saying it often
enough and you have the FBI director, and you have the A.G. and you have everybody else, eventually that does become the received wisdom. And Paul -
- Muriel Bowser, Mayor Bowser sort of saying no, no, just sort of own details there, details.
MOORE: Right. He's done this though. You know, if you think about his past, he's done it, just like he began to talk about problems with the
election. He says it over and over and over again, it suddenly becomes sort of the talking point for the MAGA movement.
But here, he's on somewhat of a safe ground to say he's going to come in and he looks like he's the great savior for D.C. But in fact, as you point
out, the criminal stats and the crime rate there, as it has been in another place of the country, in the country are dropping. And so, his -- he sort
of fabricated this emergency situation, much like he did in California, but he fabricated this emergency situation to look like that he's the man in
charge coming in to save the day.
[18:50:00]
And again, as you -- you're right, it's the tale "Wag the Dog," but it's also, you know, follow my red herring over here instead of looking at
actually what's going on in my administration, including prices going up, tariffs going in place, the Epstein file controversy, and on where he's had
some really tough weeks lately you know, press.
QUEST: I'm grateful, sir. Thank you very much indeed. Breaking news to bring to your attention. Just in, President Trump's announced that he's
nominating E.J. Antoni to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics, BLS. Mr. Trump had pushed out, fired the previous commissioner, Erika McEntarfer,
who was appointed by Joe Biden over disappointing job numbers.
The man has a -- the man is a conservative economist with the Heritage Foundation, PhD, doctorate, the whole lot. We'll talk more about him in the
days ahead to see exactly from which angle he comes to that new job, assuming he's, of course, confirmed.
Coming up in just a moment, AOL says bye to an internet -- look, there are those of us of a certain age, beep, beep, beep. Do you remember that?
You've got mail. It's going.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: The White House says the United States and China have agreed to pause tariff hikes on each other's goods for further 90 days. It's the
uncertainty for making it difficult for companies to understand the price of importing goods. Ryan Petersen is the chief executive of Supply Chain
Logistics. I asked him, when you look at tariffs, who he thinks is ultimately paying the price of the tariff.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RYAN PETERSEN, CEO, FLEXPORT: It is going to be a balance between the importer and the exporter and then, ultimately, it will flow through to the
consumer through higher prices. There are cases where the exporter pays the tariff actually, it's called a foreign importer of record, and it's one of
the biggest sort of angles in all of this is for a foreign company that doesn't have any LLC or entity in the United States can still import goods
to the United States. They pay the duties in that case. About 60 percent of all the sellers on Amazon are such companies. So, there are a lot of cases
where that where that is the case.
That said, at the end of the day, either -- there's only a couple things that can happen, either the companies make less money or the prices go up
for the consumers. And we all know what companies are going to choose when given choice.
QUEST: Right. But until now, there's been a sort of an unwritten understanding that the companies are, until they got to a certain point,
they were prepared to eat it. Now, we're starting to see more companies put the toe in the water of saying, no, we are going to pass this on. I suppose
the -- you know, hunting in a herd, there's safety in numbers. Do you expect more companies to do that?
PETERSEN: Yes, and I think it's also partly points back to what you were saying earlier about certainty. I mean, if you thought these tariffs that
are super temporary, then you probably don't want to change your pricing strategy, which is a bit longer term than that.
[18:55:00]
Now, that it's started to settle and you get a better picture for where things are going to land, I think more companies are comfortable. There's
also an element of like, hey, wait, if you're an apparel company, for example, wait till the next season's line comes along and raise prices then
rather than doing it mid-season. But you are -- yes, you are seeing prices go up, especially in the e-com space where -- in D two C, direct to
consumer e-com.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: All right. Finally, tonight, listen to this and tell me what it is. Yay. Those of us from a certain generation, three decades dial-up internet.
Oh, I remember it well. Well, now, the -- this -- that noise, AOL is saying it's discontinuing its phone-based service at the end of next month, even
though we're all on broadband, there are apparently 160,000 people that still use dial-up according to one numbers. Anyway, AOL says it's getting
rid of it. It's going finally. I remember the first time I heard it, I thought the world had opened up.
And that's program for tonight. I'm Richard Quest in New York. You are briefed. And this is CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:00:00]
END
