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The Brief with Jim Sciutto
CNN International: Epstein Mentioned Trump Multiple Times in Private Emails; House Returns to Vote on Bill to End Government Shutdown; Trump Admin.: IEA's Predictions on Peak Oil "Nonsensical"; New Corruption Scandal in Ukraine; Trump Asks Israeli President to Pardon Netanyahu; Rising Tensions in the Caribbean; Venezuela Announces "Massive Mobilization" of Military; Gay Dating Apps Vanish in China. Aired 6-7p ET
Aired November 12, 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]
JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR, ""THE BRIEF"": Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Jim Sciutto in Washington, and
you're watching "The Brief."
Just ahead this hour, newly released files show that convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein mentioned Donald Trump multiple times in private emails.
Ukraine's energy minister resigns and the justice minister is suspended as a corruption scandal rocks the government in Kyiv. And popular gay dating
apps disappear from app stores in China, raising fears of a crackdown on the country's LGBTQ plus community.
We begin with revelations that convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein mentioned Donald Trump multiple times in private emails, this according to
newly released emails from Democrats on the House Oversight Committee. In one redacted 2011 email, Epstein says the future president spent hours with
one person at Epstein's house. Democrats describe that person as an Epstein sex trafficking victim.
Republican committee members have named her as Virginia Giuffre, who died by suicide earlier this year. Republicans accuse Democrats of redacting her
name because she did not publicly accuse Trump of wrongdoing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: These emails prove absolutely nothing other than the fact that President Trump did nothing
wrong. And what President Trump has always said is that he was from Palm Beach and so was Jeffrey Epstein. Jeffrey Epstein was a member at Mar-a-
Lago until President Trump kicked him out because Jeffrey Epstein was a pedophile and he was a creep.
Ms. Giuffre maintained, and God rest her soul, that she maintained that there was nothing inappropriate she ever witnessed, that President Trump
was always extremely professional and friendly to her.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: Epstein sent some of these emails to his longtime friend and accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell. She is currently serving a sentence for sex
trafficking. Epstein died back in jail in 2019. We should point out that Mr. Trump did not send or receive any of those emails and he has not been
accused of any criminal wrongdoing.
In the last several hours, Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva was sworn in, ending her 50-day wait, narrowing now the Republicans' majority in the
House. Moments later, she became the decisive signature needed for what's known as a discharge petition to get to a vote to release the Jeffrey
Epstein case files. That signature, number 218, now forces a vote that could ultimately lead to the release of all those files. House Speaker Mike
Johnson said he delayed swearing in the congresswoman because of the shutdown. Democrats said it was because she was that crucial vote, deciding
one on the petition.
Joining me now, Kevin Liptak. Kevin, you have new reporting about pressure on Republicans regarding Epstein?
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, and we saw this play out at the White House today as it became clearer and clearer that Adelita
Grijalva would be sworn in.
They were going after the Republicans, the handful of Republicans who had signed on to this discharge petition. They brought in Lauren Boebert,
conservative Republican from Colorado, to the White House Situation Room, of all places, to try and convince her, essentially, to take her name off
this list. They had recruited Pam Bondi, the attorney general, Kash Patel, the FBI director, to have this discussion with her in this most sensitive
room in the entire White House to essentially say that this is not a step that she should be taking.
This was a failed effort. She did not take her name off this list, nor did Nancy Mace, who is another Republican that the president was trying to get
a hold of today, essentially to say, take your name off of this list. And I think that just illustrates how much the White House believes that this
discharge petition and this eventual vote is going to be a problem for them.
This is essentially going to force every Republican in the House of Representatives and eventually every Republican in the Senate to go on the
record about whether the administration should release all of these documents and kind of pit them, one, their loyalty to Donald Trump, but
two, versus their loyalty to their constituents, many of whom have agitated for the release of these documents. It's a very uncomfortable and awkward
position for them.
[18:05:00]
And it was just interesting that they really pulled out all the stops to convince her to take her name off, and she didn't.
SCIUTTO: Well, it also raises the obvious question, if these files are totally fine and not embarrassing at all for the president, why all this
pressure on Republicans to vote against releasing them?
LIPTAK: And I think that this lobbying effort today may have backfired on them. If Lauren Boebert goes into the White House and is being tried to be
convinced by all of these senior, senior-level administration officials that these documents can't be released, what in that would make her think
that there was not a conspiracy or that there was not a cover-up underway? It essentially kind of caused her to dig her position even further.
You know, the president has said that these documents may have been created by his political rivals, that they might be phony. That has been their
rationale sort of up until now. But, yes, it raises a big question of why they don't want these documents out.
SCIUTTO: And it raises a question as to whether some of these Republicans are looking to the midterms when their seats will be up and wondering
what's going to help them more, right?
LIPTAK: Yes.
SCIUTTO: Kevin Liptak, thanks so much. As House Speaker Mike Johnson's narrow majority shrinks even narrower, lawmakers are taking their final
steps before voting on a funding bill to reopen the U.S. government, marking an end, it's hoped, to the record 43-day shutdown. If it's
approved, the Senate-backed bill will land on President Trump's desk to sign. The White House is expecting that to happen, quote, "later tonight."
But House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has railed against the bill, in particular over health care provisions. Some Democrats are calling for the
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to step down for allowing it to clear his chamber with several Democratic votes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY), U.S. HOUSE DEMOCRATIC LEADER AND U.S. HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: And our message to the American people is no matter what
happens on the floor later on today, our promise to you remains the same. House Democrats will continue to fight to make your life more affordable.
House Democrats will continue the fight to address the Republican health care crisis. And House Democrats will fight to extend the Affordable Care
Act tax credits. This fight is not over.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: We're just getting started. Joining me now, CNN Senior Political Analyst Ron Brownstein. Good to have you on. I asked for you in particular,
Ron, because I wanted your opinion on two things. One, Democratic Senator Tim Kaine, who's one of the Democratic votes who went with Republicans to
move this forward, he wrote in a piece in the New York Times today that he was a negotiator and that he knows the GOP was not going to budge on these
ACA Obamacare subsidies and not allow a vote to reopen before reopening the government. Do you believe that? Do you believe that that's what he was
hearing?
RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST AND BLOOMBERG OPINION COLUMNIST: Yes, I think that's what he believes. And look, the history,
Jim, is that, you know, the other major government shutdowns we've had, whether it was '94, '95 -- or excuse me, '95, '96 with the Republicans
shutting down the government against Bill Clinton or 2013 with Ted Cruz shutting down the government against Barack Obama, or even the weird 2018,
2019 kind of self-shutdown under Trump, the party precipitating the shutdown has not gotten what they wanted.
You know, it has not been a lever powerful -- sufficiently powerful, to force a president to do something they really don't want to do. But I think
a lot of Democrats are just kind of mystified and staggered that the defectors chose this moment, when Trump's approval rating was clearly
taking a hit, when Trump himself acknowledged that the shutdown had hurt them in the midterm elections, that they chose that moment to throw in the
towel, I think has really kind of shocked and dismayed a lot of Democrats.
SCIUTTO: There is an optimistic read among some Democrats that the party had already won the shutdown by highlighting the GOP's willingness to say,
you know, take away aid from the most vulnerable. I mean, talk about SNAP or food stamp benefits. Is that, in your view, too Pollyanna-ish, that
read?
BROWNSTEIN: Well, I actually think two things are true at once. I think the way this shutdown has ended has, in fact, left Republicans with a
political problem. I mean, they are clearly identified as opposing continuing the subsidies under the ACA, which are overwhelmingly popular,
and ending them, I think, compounds their vulnerability on health care, which is one of the few issues on which more voters express trust in
Democrats than Republicans. I mean, like 15, 16 million people are going to lose health care if the subsidies expire when combined with the effects of
the reconciliation bill. So, that's true.
But I think there's another thing that's equally true, is that the collapse of the shutdown strategy, I think, sent a very clear message, not only to
Democratic voters, but to the White House, that Trump, you know, kind of gambled correctly. He thought if he turned up the heat, turned up the
pressure on Democrats by threatening the food stamps, that enough of them would cave. And he was right.
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And the fact that they did, I think, sends a really clear message. It's going to be very hard for the Democrats in Congress to threaten Trump with
any other legislative tactic, I think, from this day forward. And that, I think, a lot of Democratic voters kind of recognize that and are deeply
frustrated.
So, both things can be true. The Republicans kind of compounded their policy problem, but Democrats compounded their image of weakness.
SCIUTTO: Before we go, of course, Democrats feeling with a bit of wind at their backs after the elections last Tuesday. But I do remember that
Democrats did pretty well in special elections prior to the 2024 presidential election. And, of course, they got smoked, right? I mean,
House and Senate, too.
BROWNSTEIN: Right.
SCIUTTO: I mean, do you see similar signs for the midterms? In other words, you could overread some of the trends that we saw in those elections
last Tuesday?
BROWNSTEIN: I think this is a little different than the special elections. This is a lot of people voting. I mean, the Democratic advantage in special
elections is that they're now the party. They win more better-educated voters who tend to turn out more in those lower turnout elections. I mean,
the history is that these Virginia, New Jersey governor races, in particular, give us some indications of what's going to happen the next
year.
And one particular signal, above all, I think, is instructive for 2026, which is that all year, as Trump's approval rating has been declining,
traditionally, you would say that pointed toward the kind of result we would have, a bad election night for his party. But there was a counter-
narrative among many pundits and even strategists that said, well, look, the Democratic image is really bad, too, and maybe that will offset voters'
doubts or disappointments about Trump.
We had a real-world test of that. And what we found was that there's really no contest. Half of voters in Virginia and New Jersey said they had an
unfavorable view of Democrats, and it didn't matter that much because, as in the past, their view of the president who was actually in the White
House mattered more than their view of the party that was out of the White House. And that specific signal, I think, is very relevant to 2026.
It says to me that anywhere where Trump's approval rating is under 50 percent, Democrats are going to have a realistic shot, no matter the
headwinds they face in that state or district in terms of views of their own party.
SCIUTTO: Ron Brownstein, it's why I had you on. Thanks so much.
BROWNSTEIN: Thanks for having me, Jim. Good to see you.
SCIUTTO: Always makes me feel smarter. Well, joining us now, Johnny Olszewski. He's a House Democrat, co-sponsor of the Epstein-Files
Transparency Act. Thanks so much for taking the time.
REP. JOHNNY OLSZEWSKI (D-MD) AND CO-SPONSOR, EPSTEIN FILES TRANSPARENCY ACT: Thank you.
SCIUTTO: First, your reaction to what was contained in these emails.
OLSZEWSKI: Yes, it's disturbing and it's disgusting what's in those emails. And it really reinforces the point of the fact that we need to
release these files. The American people deserve full transparency on what transpired. They deserve to know the extent to which President Trump knew
about or participated in these crimes, these sexual abuses of young girls.
And, you know, if President Trump truly has done nothing wrong, he should be leading the fight for transparency, not pushing to hide what's in the
files, colluding with Speaker Johnson to prevent those releases.
Reporting today suggests there were calls and lots of pressure. I want to applaud those few Republicans who held strong on the right issue here. And
it just reinforces the point about why we have to release those files as quickly as possible.
SCIUTTO: It's CNN's reporting that President Trump is now applying pressure to those handful Republicans voting with Democrats here, including
Lauren Boebert, taking her into the Situation Room to apply that pressure. Do you see Republicans caving to the president on this, based on your
conversations?
OLSZEWSKI: I'm a new member, but it's my understanding that once those signatures are finalized, they cannot come off. And so, that's why you saw
the level of pressure by the president, pulling members into the Situation Room. And, again, I know that that takes a lot of courage for members to
stand strong, but I applaud them for doing so here, protecting survivors of sexual violence, knowing that President Trump has been complicit in knowing
about it, based on the emails and having spent hours with one of those survivors.
So, it just really shows what happens when Democrats and Republicans come together. It's unfortunate we're not doing that with this government
shutdown and reopening the government. But in the case of these Epstein files, I really applaud those four members who stood strong. We'll see
where the rest of the Republicans in Congress stand when we take a vote on the release. And I hope that more Republicans join us in saying this is the
right thing to do. No matter how rich or powerful you are, you should be held accountable.
SCIUTTO: We should note that the president has repeatedly denied any involvement in or knowledge of Epstein's sex trafficking. I want to talk
now about the shutdown, and it does appear the shutdown's over. How have your constituents reacted to Democrats in the Senate providing the votes to
reopen the government, in effect giving up on what had been their redline issue, which was maintaining these enhanced ACA subsidies?
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OLSZEWSKI: Well, again, just on the Epstein issue, I know the president's denied it, but I would just reinforce if he has done nothing wrong, he
should be leading the charge to release the files. As it relates to the shutdown itself, I am deeply disappointed with what we're being asked to
vote on tonight. We can reopen the government and meet the needs of the American people.
There are three fundamental flaws with what we're considering. One is that it does nothing to address the ACA subsidies, which amounts to a tax
increase on hardworking Americans. Two, it allows Trump to unilaterally come back and cut the funds that we're about to give to him. And three,
there is this disgusting self-enrichment provision that allows United States senators to give themselves million-dollar checks from the American
taxpayers for having their phones legally subpoenaed.
It is corruption and cronyism at its finest. It is why Americans hate politics, and it's why my constituents are frustrated with the deal that
came across, and it's why I'm voting no on this particular option that's before us.
SCIUTTO: You heard Ron Brownstein prior say that this is exactly what President Trump predicted. I mean, he basically made a bet that eventually
Democrats would cave, or enough Democrats would cave to reopen the government if he applied enough pressure. I mean, is this going to be
further emboldening of the president, in your view?
OLSZEWSKI: It may. We have to remember, though, that Republicans control the White House, the House, and the Senate, so they own all of this,
including allowing President Trump to illegally withhold funding. I mean, this is a president that used food as a weapon against the American people
when the funding was in place specifically for purposes like a government shutdown. So, this is a president who clearly has no problem withholding
food, having his transportation secretary cause chaos at our airports.
Again, we should be coming together as a bipartisan Congress to do all of these things, to fund the government, to support our troops, to make sure
people are fed, while also protecting against things like the president unilaterally pulling back funding without having senators self-enrich
themselves. I mean, this is, again, corruption at the highest levels. It's disgusting, and again, it's why Americans are so fed up with politics these
days.
SCIUTTO: Before we go, I do want to ask about this enormous military buildup off the coast of Venezuela by the U.S., including its biggest, most
advanced, newest aircraft carrier and the whole carrier group that comes with that, as you know, and a whole host of other military resources there.
Are you concerned that the Trump administration is preparing to go to war against Venezuela?
OLSZEWSKI: I will say the Trump administration has shown history of willing to take unilateral military action without consulting, seeking
approval, letting Congress know anything about the activities, even though Congress is explicitly supposed to have a role in those conversations. And
so, anytime we see military action being undertaken by this administration, this president, it's deeply concerning.
I'm sure I'll be joining my colleagues in Congress in calling for more information and transparency, at least to Congress, if not the American
people, something this president has struggled mightily to do during his tenure.
SCIUTTO: Congressman Johnny Olszewski, we appreciate you joining the program.
OLSZEWSKI: Thank you again.
SCIUTTO: Still ahead, from Peak Oil to peak pessimism, experts say that oil and gas demand may not begin falling now until mid-century. What that
all means for the global climate crisis, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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SCIUTTO: Welcome back. In today's Business Breakout, U.S. stocks finished Wednesday's session mixed. The Dow rose to fresh records in hopes of the
43-day U.S. government shutdown finally ending tonight.
A.I. chip giant AMD bucked the downward trend for tech. Its shares rose 9 percent after the CEO, Lisa Suh, spoke to analysts. She expects sales to
grow some 35 percent a year for the next three to five years. That's a lot. Suh dismissed rising concerns about the rapid pace of A.I. spending. She
says more spending will only lead to more A.I. innovation.
Checking some of today's other business headlines, President Trump is set, in the next hour, to host a private White House dinner for some of the
biggest names on Wall Street. Sources say the guest list includes J.P. Morgan, Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, David Solomon of Goldman Sachs, and a number
of other financial executives. The dinner underscores Trump's effort to get corporate America on board with his economic agenda, despite headwinds.
White House officials tell CNN President Trump has met with advisers on how to improve his poll numbers on the economy. The sources say advisers have
discussed whether the president should travel the country to give speeches focused on economic issues. They say the president is told to stop playing
down concerns about rising prices. That's interesting. Poll numbers continue to show inflation remains the top concern for Americans.
Google has filed suit in the U.S. in hopes of shutting down a fraudulent text message scheme that has targeted millions of people worldwide. The
phishing scheme, as it's known, which is said to originate in China, is called Lighthouse. Its software allows scammers to mimic trusted sites in
order to trick victims into giving up their personal information. Google is requesting unspecified damages from the anonymous defendants, accusing them
of computer fraud, false advertising and racketeering.
The 30th annual U.S. Climate Change Conference is now underway in Brazil. This amid growing doubts the world can meet Paris climate accord goals and
keep temperatures in check. Global carbon emissions are set to hit yet more record highs this year. And a new report from the International Energy
Agency says that fossil fuel demand could grow until 2050, a full 25 years from now, under current policies. Big change from two years ago when it
said oil and gas consumption could peak by the end of this decade. It says that could still happen, but only in another scenario.
The White House has called those Peak Oil projections nonsensical, putting U.S. funding for the IEA in jeopardy. The IEA is funded by a member of
countries, with the U.S. footing most of the bill based on the size of its economy. In today's report, the IEA says without the deployment of clean
energy technologies, the rise in carbon emissions over the last five years would have been three times larger than what it is now.
Joining me now, Rob Jackson, climate scientist, professor at Stanford University. Rob, good to have you.
ROB JACKSON, EARTH SYSTEM SCIENCE PROFESSOR, STANFORD UNIVERSITY: Of course. Thank you.
SCIUTTO: It's nice to have big goals, but I wonder, was predicting Peak Oil in 2030 a bit overoptimistic?
JACKSON: Perhaps in retrospect now, maybe. But it reflects the reality in many ways. Renewables are now the cheapest, safest, cleanest form of power
everywhere around the world. Two-thirds of the new electric capacity we installed last year in the U.S. was solar. And the Chinese are building
like crazy. They installed 300 gigawatts of solar just last year. That's more than we've ever built in the United States.
So, our competitors are betting on renewables. So, I'm still optimistic that we will not see this 2050 growth of fossil fuels. I hope not for our
health and the climate.
SCIUTTO: But can the world address climate change without the world's largest economy, the U.S., and one of the largest polluters on board? And
even, you know, in the current situation, you have an administration that's openly attacking not just climate measures, but even climate science.
[18:25:00]
JACKSON: You do, and it's unfortunate. You know, our businesses need the best economic and energy data that they can have to plan. And we don't need
the United States bullying the IEA to promote a fossil fuel agenda. I wouldn't want Russia or China bullying the IEA, and I don't want the U.S.
doing it either. It's unfortunate and bad business.
SCIUTTO: The IEA report says that A.I. could potentially accelerate innovation in the energy sector. But I wonder how that conflicts with all
the energy demand from these giant A.I. data center farms, right? They're just I mean, they're just sponges, right, for power.
JACKSON: They are, and one of the biggest wildcards in trying to plan for clean energy is that energy use just keeps rising year after year. And that
means for all the renewables that we build, we tend to prolong the life of fossils to keep all of our capacity online. So, only for coal in the United
States and Europe are we really seeing fossil use decline. So, rising energy demand makes our job harder for clean energy.
SCIUTTO: How do you see U.S. private sector companies reacting to this administration, right? Because they like to make long-term plans, right,
that don't follow the political cycles here. They might very well make a bet that you have someone who's at least less hostile to climate policies
and science in three years' time. But, you know, they're certainly not talking about it the way they used to. And you have seen a retreat from
some of those technologies. I mean, one being electric vehicles in this country.
JACKSON: Yes, electric vehicles will win eventually because they're simply better products. They're faster. They're more reliable. They're cheaper to
run. But they're not winning over the U.S. economy yet. I think companies are making decisions on cost, as they should. And as I said, renewables are
the cheapest form of power that exists now. And the heavy data companies are investing in solar and wind and renewables And so, ultimately, I think
the clean energy sources will win.
SCIUTTO: And it's certainly taking place in China right now, from what I hear. Rob Jackson, professor of Earth Science at Stanford, thanks so much
for joining.
JACKSON: Thank you.
SCIUTTO: It is the end of the line for the 238-year-old U.S. penny. The U.S. Mint of Philadelphia produced the very last ever penny in a ceremony
earlier today. U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach had the honor of striking that final coin. President Trump offered an end to penny production earlier this
year -- ordered, rather. That's because the cost of making a penny was costing almost four pennies. Consumers will still be able to use the penny
for purchases. They are sure to remain in circulation for many years.
That said, many retailers are considering rounding up prices to the nearest nickel. Of course, it's up, not down. Experts say that the money saved on
penny production could be offset by the need to make more nickels. Imagine that.
Coming up, Ukraine hit by a new corruption scandal triggering outrage as people are coping with energy shortages from ongoing Russian attacks. We're
going to have the details next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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SCIUTTO: Welcome back to "The Brief." I'm Jim Sciutto. And here are the international headlines we're watching today.
The White House has newly released emails from convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein mentioning Donald Trump multiple times prove the president,
quote, "did nothing wrong." House members from both sides of the aisle are once again calling for the release of all remaining Epstein documents and
materials. Trump has not, we should be clear, been accused of any criminal wrongdoing.
The House has now cleared a key procedural hurdle to set up a final vote towards ending the longest government shutdown in U.S. history. 43 days as
of today. House Speaker Mike Johnson has spent the day selling this government funding bill to his razor thin Republican majority. He believes
he has the votes. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, however, has railed against the bill, urging members to vote against it because it does
not guarantee extensions for Obamacare subsidies, which had been, well, why Democrats got into this fight in the first place.
Dramatic scenes in southwestern China after part of a newly constructed bridge collapse. The Hongqi Bridge opened just months ago in Sichuan
province along a national highway linking the country's heartland with Tibet. Wow. Look at that cloud of smoke. On Tuesday, a landslide wiped out
one end of the bridge, turning it into dust and debris. The bridge had already been closed after cracks were spotted. Thankfully, no one was hurt.
It's amazing.
Two top Ukrainian ministers are now out of office amid an ongoing investigation into a major corruption scandal in the energy sector there.
The energy and justice ministers have resigned after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for their dismissal. The country's latest corruption
scandal has sparked fresh anger among Ukrainians who are struggling with power shortages, the result of enormous and lasting Russian attacks
targeting energy infrastructure.
Tetiana Shevchuk is the head of international relations at the Anti- Corruption Action Center in Ukraine. Thanks so much for joining.
TETIANA SHEVCHUK, INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS HEAD, ANTI-CORRUPTION ACTION CENTER: Good evening. Good morning.
SCIUTTO: Good morning to you. Good evening to us. First, can you explain to our viewers in the simplest terms, how deep did this corruption go?
SHEVCHUK: This is indeed one of the biggest corruption scandals in Ukrainian history we have so far. The organized group that was revealed by
Ukrainian Anti-Corruption Bureau was working, we would say, with Ukrainian national nuclear power operator Ukrenergo. And basically, they were getting
kickbacks for every procurement the company had. And in a year, at least documented amount of bribes they got amounts almost $100 million. This is
only the episodes that were revealed this week and we expect more to come.
But the biggest issue is that the people involved in this scheme were close business -- former business associates of President Zelenskyy and top
people in his team, including two ministers, Energy Minister of Justice and one former minister, Vice Prime Minister Chernyshov.
[18:35:00]
SCIUTTO: Is there any evidence that the president knew about this? I mean, as we noted, he did demand their dismissal once the corruption was revealed
publicly.
SHEVCHUK: Currently, there are no evidence that can confirm whether President Zelenskyy knew or didn't know about the situation. But at this
point and at the spread of the corruption within the state company, it shows that at some point people in the government neglected their role of
controlling the company. So, we believe that the president should know about the problems. And at some point, he didn't react properly.
SCIUTTO: I wonder what this reveals more broadly, because, of course, corruption has been a concern in Ukraine going back many years. But there's
been a lot of attention and a lot of resources focused on addressing corruption. Is this, in your view, more a sign that corruption continues
largely unabated or is this perhaps a sign that oversight is working to some extent?
SHEVCHUK: For Ukrainians, this is the story of fighting corruption in the first place. Because we used to have problems of such corruption or use of
state companies for years. And never the investigators were able to track it to the highest-ranking officials, especially if it concerned the circle
of the first people in the state government, like a president.
So, Ukrainians do see it as a sign that we are doing everything right in fighting corruption. Because probably you remember that we had a huge
protest in July against attempts to take control over anti-corruption institutions. And people are now celebrating that they were right to
protect those institutions. And now, they're showing the results.
SCIUTTO: Yes. You can see why that brought them out into the streets then during those protests. Tetiana Shevchuk, thanks so much for joining our
program. And please be safe as well.
Well, President Trump has written to his Israeli counterpart, the Israeli president, asking him to issue a pardon to Israeli Prime Minister and Trump
friend, Benjamin Netanyahu. The Israeli leader is on trial on charges of fraud, bribery and breach of trust in three separate cases. He has pleaded
not guilty in all of them.
We should note the office of Israeli president is ceremonial. However, President Isaac Herzog does have the power to issue pardons. Jeremy Diamond
has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: Mr. President, why don't you give him a pardon?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT (through translator): What began as an astonishing request at the Israeli parliament podium in
October, now inked onto formal White House letterhead. The president of the United States urging the Israeli president to fully pardon Benjamin
Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, writing, while I absolutely respect the independence of the Israeli justice system and its requirements, I believe
that this case against Bibi is a political unjustified prosecution, referring to Netanyahu by his nickname.
Netanyahu welcoming the incredible support, writing, as usual, you get right to the point and call it like it is. Trump's attempt to interfere in
a sovereign country's judicial system marks an extraordinary breach of diplomatic protocol. But it is also the culmination of Trump's frequent
criticism of the case.
He first began floating the idea of a pardon for Netanyahu in June, calling the case a ridiculous witch hunt against their great wartime prime
minister.
TRUMP: You know, we'll be involved in that to help him out a little bit because I think it's very unfair.
DIAMOND (voice-over): The Israeli prime minister has been on trial for more than five years. Amid a slew of delays, he only took the stand for the
first time late last year. The first sitting prime minister to do so in Israel's history.
He is facing charges of fraud, bribery and breach of trust in three separate cases. In one, he is accused of receiving cigars, champagne and
other expensive gifts from wealthy businessmen in exchange for political favors. In the other two, he is accused of discussing quid pro quo
arrangements to receive more favorable coverage in Israeli media.
[18:40:00]
Netanyahu maintains his innocence and hasn't asked for a pardon. While the Israeli president does have the power to issue pardons, his office says
that can only happen following a formal request from the person seeking it.
TRUMP: It's a little risque, you know, I'm bringing up a pretty sore subject in Israel, but the people were fantastic.
TRUMP: By wading into one of Israel's most divisive issues, Trump is putting his own sky-high approval among Israelis on the line.
CROWD: Thank you, Trump. Thank you, Trump.
DIAMOND (voice-over): In a country where the mere mention of Netanyahu's name --
STEVE WITKOFF, U.S. SPECIAL ENVOY TO THE MIDDLE EAST: To Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu --
DIAMOND (voice-over): -- often triggers a charged reaction.
Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Jerusalem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCIUTTO: Coming up, Colombia is the latest country to suspend some intelligent sharing with the U.S. over U.S. deadly strikes on suspected
drug boats near and around Venezuela. Joining us next, former U.S. ambassador to Venezuela. Coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCIUTTO: New developments in the rising tensions in the Caribbean. Colombia is now suspending intelligence sharing with the U.S. over deadly
U.S. military strikes targeting alleged drug boats in the region. The Colombian president says, quote, "The fight against drugs must be
subordinated to the human rights of the Caribbean people." This after CNN reported that the U.K. is no longer sharing intelligence with the U.S.,
again, about those deadly strikes.
The Pentagon sent the aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald Ford, the largest warship in the U.S. Navy, to the Caribbean. In response to the U.S.
buildup, Venezuela announced a major mobilization of its military forces.
Joining me now, James Story, former U.S. ambassador to Venezuela. Thanks so much for taking the time.
JAMES STORY, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO VENEZUELA: It's great to be here tonight. Thank you.
SCIUTTO: So, first, I wonder what your best read is of what all this military force is about. Is it about laying the groundwork for significant
military action, or is Trump hoping that fear does the work for him and that someone inside the country forces Maduro out on their own?
[18:45:00]
STORY: Well, I certainly think under the first Trump administration, the president often talked about all options are on the table. And I believe
that he now has those options deployed off the coast of Venezuela. The preferred outcome, of course, is somebody close to Maduro seeks his
departure, and then the restoration of democracy can move forward. However, the president has enough assets in the region to take kinetic actions if
you were to make that decision.
SCIUTTO: Given your time in Venezuela, I wonder, and based on what you know about the opposition there and what you know about people around
Maduro and the military, et cetera, I mean, do the candidates for forcing him out of power in some way, does a big U.S. military presence increase
the likelihood of that, or could it possibly do the opposite?
STORY: Well, it certainly depends on how that force is deployed, for instance. If that force is deployed broadly against the military, I think
that could be a net negative. I think one of the lessons we learned from Iraq, of course, is this idea of de-Bathification.
When there is a transition in Venezuela, maybe it's this month, maybe it's next year, but it will happen one day, there are two big issues that have
to be addressed. One is the re-institutionalization of the country. In other words, rebuilding all the institutions that have been destroyed over
the last 25 years of Chavismo.
And the second is the large number of illegal armed groups in the country, to include organizations such as the FARC, the former guerrillas from
Colombia, and the ELN, also from Colombia, as well as Tren de Aragua, the Colectivos, and the Carta de los Soles. So, you have all of these
organizations there, and you need an extant military in order to address that illegality, criminality, if you will, instability that would result in
the country to some extent. So, it depends on how the president decides to do it.
SCIUTTO: You ran narcotics in both Colombia and the Western Hemisphere. Looking at these deadly strikes on boats that the administration says are
drug traffickers, narco-terrorists, et cetera., is that the best way to fight drug traffic to the U.S. in your view? Is it an effective way to do
so?
STORY: Well, what I'll say about drug trafficking organizations is that they are transnational in nature. We call them transnational criminal
organizations. In other words, any one nation can't really handle them because they don't adhere to territorial boundaries. They're also not
democracies, and they don't make decisions by committee.
So, they are already moving their methodologies for shipping those drugs north from the go-fast boats to other methodologies that they have. What
concerns me from the very beginning is that which we can see today, which is the amount of intelligence we're going to receive from the region will
begin to dry up. The French, the Brits, now the Colombians have all decided they're not going to share intelligence with us.
And in order for us to go after the institutions, go after these organizations, we have to work in concert because, again, they're
transnational in nature.
SCIUTTO: You have other players here. Of course, you have Russia with interests inside Venezuela and a presence there. You've got Cuba there.
China is certainly watching this closely, and it's got a large presence in Latin America. I mean, given all the powers involved, is there danger that
Venezuela becomes something of a proxy war?
STORY: I don't believe so. I think that for the Russians, for instance, this is an economy of force mission. In other words, they can occasionally
send a destroyer to Venezuela. They sent a -- in 2019, they sent a nuclear- capable long-range bomber, a Badger, I believe, to Venezuela. They can kind of keep the United States tied up in knots over this issue.
And they use Venezuela -- the Russians use Venezuela as a platform to undermine democracies across the hemisphere. But this is economy of force.
They really can't join in another proxy war or any kind of war, considering what's happening in Ukraine.
I think it's clear that for the Chinese, this is a long-term commercial play. Who's it existential for? Of course, the Cubans who rely on free or
subsidized oil and hydrocarbons from Venezuela. I don't think, though, that this is going to end up being more generalized were hostilities to begin.
SCIUTTO: Ambassador James Story, thanks so much for joining.
STORY: Thank you, Jim. Pleasure to be here.
SCIUTTO: Coming up after the break, fears of a crackdown on the LGBTQ plus community in China after two popular gay dating apps were removed from app
stores. There was a story coming up. Well, the story coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:50:00]
SCIUTTO: Two of China's most popular gay dating apps have disappeared from app stores in the country. Between them, they have millions of users. There
are fears this is part of a wider crackdown on China's LGBTQ plus population. Steven Jiang has the story from Beijing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEVEN JIANG, CNN BEIJING BUREAU CHIEF: Two of China's most popular gay dating apps have vanished from the country's app stores for both iPhone and
Android users, sparking renewed fears of fast shrinking space of LGBTQ visibility and rights in China.
Over the weekend, many Chinese internet users noticed they could no longer download the apps Finka and Blued, although it seems current users are
still able to access and use the apps. Cyber authorities in Beijing haven't confirmed the news, but a source familiar with the matter told CNN that the
removal happened amid allegations of pornographic and vulgar content on these platforms. Apple also cited regulatory compliance as the reason in a
statement to Wired magazine.
Homosexuality isn't illegal in China, and traditionally, ancient Chinese society has been fairly tolerant. For a while in the early 2000s, many saw
progress on this front as personal freedoms grew along with the economy. But activists and experts say that changed under Xi Jinping, with the
strongman leader tightening the grip of the ruling Communist Party over every aspect of Chinese society, cracking down on civil groups and freedom
of expression, with many LGBTQ organizations shut down and related content censored online, including a very targeted campaign against so-called
feminine portrayals of men in Chinese pop culture.
With the latest news, our source said he still expects the two apps to return, but he's not very optimistic about their long-term prospects,
saying they may have to lay low or even transform to survive in the current environment. It's not lost on many here that just as the U.S. Supreme Court
chose to effectively oppose same-sex marriage in the U.S., millions of LGBTQ Chinese are finding it a lot more challenging to find their future
partners here.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCIUTTO: Intense solar flares are bringing on some just incredible, colorful displays in the northern hemisphere right now. Check out this one.
This is the Northern Lights, Aurora Borealis, as seen in Iowa and even way down in Virginia, not far from here. A powerful burst of energy from the
sun sends solar wind crashing into the Earth's atmosphere. They then interact with the geomagnetic storms. They can be seen as far south as
Florida.
There is a downside, of course. Solar activity has the potential to disrupt communications, power grids and GPS. If there are clear skies tonight, do
keep an eye out for more auroras. They could be dipping once again much further south than usual. Some of the pictures are just incredible.
[18:55:00]
Since his election back in May, Pope Leo has been unafraid to speak out on the big issues of our day. He has some pretty strong opinions about the
world of cinema, too. The Pope is now revealing his favorite films of all time ahead of a star-studded Hollywood event that will take place Saturday
at the Vatican. So, here are his top four movies.
Number one, the 1946 holiday classic, "It's a Wonderful Life." It is definitely one of my top ten, maybe even top five. "The Sound of Music,"
starring Julie Andrews. Watched that as a kid a million times. And two more contemporary films. Interesting one here, "Ordinary People." That was
directed by Robert Redford and starred Mary Tyler Moore. And finally, "Life is Beautiful," starring Roberto Benigni. Interesting that last year's film
about electing a new pope, "Conclave," did not make Pope Leo's list.
Thanks so much for your company today. I'm Jim Sciutto in Washington. You've been watching "The Brief." Please do stay with CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:00:00]
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