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What We Know with Max Foster
Venezuela: Trump's Blockade Order "Reckless And Serious"; Putin: Will Achieve Objectives Militarily If Necessary; Trump Administration Expands Travel Ban List To 39 Countries; Australia Mourns As First Funerals Held For Victims; Rob Reiner's Son Makes First Court Appearance On Murder Charges; Next Hour: Brown University Shooting News Conference; Polls Suggest Trump Losing Support Among Base. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired December 17, 2025 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[15:00:29]
MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST: U.S. President Donald Trump steps up the pressure on Venezuela.
This is WHAT WE KNOW.
Venezuelan government is calling U.S. President Donald Trump's planned oil tanker blockade a reckless and serious threat. Mr. Trump says he's ordering
a total and complete blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers going into and out of Venezuela. Officials in Caracas described those comments as
overbearing, arrogant and supremacist.
A short time ago, Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro spoke by phone with the U.N. secretary general, who stressed the need for member states to
respect international law.
Let's go straight to Caracas, Stefano.
We're not talking about legitimate oil tankers here, though, are we?
STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Yes, exactly, Max. Well, we're talking about oil tankers that have been under U.S. sanctions for several years.
The moment when the U.S. actually sanctioned the Venezuelan oil exports was in 2019, during the first Trump presidency, when he was throwing his
support behind another opposition leader named Juan Guaido.
From that moment, trading in international trade on Venezuelan exports has been under sanction. The difference this time is that the United States has
taken the decision of going after these tankers that so far have been physically allowed to travel to the likes of China, Russia, India and Iran.
These are the countries that purchased Venezuelan oil despite the sanctions. As I was saying, the United States and Donald Trump personally
seem to have made the decision to physically go after and seize those tankers. And that decision has been formalized with this announcement.
Dramatic announcement late on Tuesday.
This announcement, which has been rejected strongly by Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro here, who is all too aware that that would be a devastating
blow for his country's economy. Take a listen to how Maduro characterized this announcement.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NICOLAS MADURO, VENEZUELAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We tell the people of the United States our truth, and it is very clear imperialism and
the Nazi fascist right wing want to colonize Venezuela to take our wealth oil, gas, gold, iron, aluminum and other minerals. We have sworn to defend
our homeland. And in Venezuela, peace will always prevail.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
POZZEBON: And, Max, it's hard to put into context how dependent the Venezuelan economy as a whole, Venezuelan as a whole country, depend on
those exports. We're talking about more than 90 percent, Max, of foreign income, and we have yet to see a direct consequence here in the streets of
Caracas. We're coming to you live from a petrol station. Venezuela also needs to import several components in order to manufacture gasoline out of
the crude oil that Venezuela has aplenty.
However, we can definitely foresee that if this blockade remains in place, if indeed the United States will prevent anyone in the world to purchase
Venezuelan crude oil, well, the consequences, the economic consequences for this country and for its population. They are in the middle between Donald
Trump and Nicolas Maduro will be harsh, especially in the new year. Of course, we're talking about an incremental stance.
Right now, the Venezuelan government still has some cash. They can still import the first necessity good first aid kit, for example, and all of
that. But of course, if you strangle all the lifeline, the economic lifeline coming down from those exports, well, indeed it will be a return
to the worst aspects of the economic crisis that this country has seen in the last few years -- Max.
FOSTER: Stefano, appreciate it. Thank you for joining us from Caracas.
The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, again saying his troops will take Ukrainian territory by force if Kyiv won't agree to give it up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We would prefer to do this and eliminate the root causes of the conflict through diplomacy. If
the opposing country and its foreign patrons refuse to engage in substantive discussions, Russia will achieve the liberation of its
historical lands through military means.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Territorial concessions have become a major sticking point in peace talks with Russia, demanding Ukraine formally cede Crimea, the entire
Donbas and parts of the south, including areas Moscow hasn't captured militarily. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said again this week
that his country has no plans to give up land to Moscow.
[15:05:03]
Fred Pleitgen is following developments for us from Moscow.
Is this a negotiating tactic by Putin, or does this completely undermine the negotiations? I mean, how should we look at it?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I don't think it completely undermines the negotiations. In fact, Vladimir Putin
also at various stages in that very long speech to some of his top military brass, said that Russia does remain committed to the diplomatic process,
but of course, also then put forward those quite severe threats also to the Europeans, but then also to the Ukrainians as well, where he did indeed say
that if no compromise is reached, if the diplomatic process fails, then the Russians will continue, because of course, the conflict in Ukraine very
much the armed conflict is continuing to win territory back by military means. That's something that the Russians have said.
What they have said they want to do, Max, is they want to win back their territory and achieve what they call all of the things that they want to
achieve with what they continue to call the special military operation. And the Russians have said that their goals essentially have not changed.
And you're absolutely right. Part of that is preventing Ukraine from becoming part of NATO. Of course, we know that the U.S. has put forward
what it calls those platinum security guarantees for the Ukrainians if they decide not to try to get into NATO. And the U.S. says those are not going
to be on the table forever.
But the biggest issue, no doubt by far, is the territorial question. As you've already mentioned, the Russians are saying, and Vladimir Putin once
again said today, the Russians want to have all of those regions of the Donbas -- so Donetsk and Luhansk oblast especially also or also places that
the Russians don't yet control or don't control and might not control in the future. And the Ukrainians say they simply cannot do that. Volodymyr
Zelenskyy, of course, has said that at various stages.
So, the negotiations certainly are difficult, but they are ongoing. And I think one of the things, Max, that we've seen this week is that there does
seem to be a degree of diplomatic momentum after those talks that happened in Berlin at the beginning of this week. And the Russians, while putting
forward these threats, are saying that they still also remain committed to the diplomatic process. That, of course, is led by the Trump administration
-- Max.
FOSTER: Fred Pleitgen in Moscow, appreciate it. Thank you.
To Gaza now, where officials say torrential rain, flooding and freezing temperatures have killed at least 17 people. They include a two-week old
baby who died of hypothermia. Others have died due to building collapses. Officials say flooding has destroyed the majority of shelters for people
displaced by the war, as well as their essential belongings like clothing and blankets.
UNICEF describes conditions for children in Gaza right now as catastrophic.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JONATHAN CRICKX, CHIEF OF COMMUNICATION, UNICEF STATE OF PALESTINE: I mean, the situation of children on the ground here in the Gaza strip is -- I
mean, it's really horrendous. I met with dozens, dozens of children who are either barefoot or with just those plastic sandals. And I visited so many
tents which are flooded. And when they are not flooded, you can see the water dripping in.
Those tents are really, the most basic shelter you can find. You just have like a piece of tarp like this, a piece of plastic, which is stick to a
structure of frame, a wood frame, and then -- and then -- and then that's it. You have two mattresses on the ground, and maybe a couple of boxes with
the belongings.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Now, people with documents issued by the Palestinian Authority are amongst those now on an expanded travel ban list issued by the Trump
administration.
The updated list of countries with full or partial travel restrictions to the U.S. is now up to 39 from the previous list of 19 countries and more
African countries are included. The White House says the countries listed have demonstrated, quote, severe deficiencies in screening, vetting and
information sharing.
CNN's Larry Madowo is in Nairobi, Kenya, with more on this.
And these are countries that do look to America, want to spend time in America. And it must be a real frustration to them.
LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is a frustration, especially with the World Cup coming up and then the Olympics. But for Africans, American doors
are closing for even more African nations, 26 of the 39 countries facing full or partial restrictions are in Africa, so nearly half of African
countries can now not access the United States in a free manner, as it has been before.
Five new countries face full restrictions and entry limitations. We're talking about Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, South Sudan and Sierra Leone that
have been added to that list, and 11 more African countries have been added to the list of countries that will face partial restrictions starting 1st
January 2026. They include major countries like Nigeria, Tanzania, Zambia, Togo. It's a very long list.
And the American complaint is that these countries face oppose national security, national security and public safety threats to the United States.
[15:10:02]
Some of them because they have terrorism problems. The government has no control over it. There's no information sharing. So those are countries
like Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger. Also the backdrop for that, many of these countries have had recent coups. And where there's a -- the strong anti-
western sentiment there, Nigeria is included in that. Theres countries like South Sudan and Sudan as well that are added to that.
In some cases, the U.S. complains that these countries have high visa overstay rates. That's what they've been added to this list. And they
expect that these governments begin to cooperate with the United States to make sure that they accept migrants from their countries when they're
deported.
South Sudan, for instance, is being added to that list because they say historically, south Sudan has refused to accept their deportees. When the
United States wants to deport them there, even though South Sudan has agreed to accept migrants not just from South Sudan, from other countries,
they have a deal with the United States. It did not work here.
But I think the way this has to be understood for many in Africa, they see this with that background of President Trump having allegedly said that
these African nations and Haiti were S-hole countries, and he recently talked about having said that, in this private meeting with some U.S.
lawmakers. So people see that with President Trump saying, why don't we accept -- accept more migrants from Sweden and Norway and white majority
countries instead of countries from here in Africa?
But the other interesting story related to this here in Africa is today South Africa deporting seven Kenyan nationals and briefly detaining two
Americans who were allegedly processing Afrikaner refugees for admission to the United States. South Africa insists that there is no white genocide.
CNN has done our own investigation. We found no evidence of white genocide.
But the United States has opened its doors to Afrikaner refugees, many of them who are white South Africans. And they're the only ones who are still
allowed to come to the United States. And they appear to have been using these Kenyan nationals who came in as tourists to process they're
essentially asylum papers to be accepted into the United States. And South Africa is accusing the Americans and the Kenyans of using undocumented
migrants in South Africa to process refugees when they believe these do not qualify to be refugees in the first place.
So, two important stories, Max, related to immigration to the United States and Africa.
FOSTER: Okay, Larry Madowo, appreciate it. Thank you.
The surviving suspect in Sunday's Bondi Beach massacre in Sydney has now been charged with 59 offenses. Australian police say Naveed Akram faces 15
counts of murder, 40 counts of attempted murder and other charges, including committing a terrorist act. His father, the other alleged gunman,
was shot and killed by police at the scene after the attack on a Jewish Hanukkah celebration.
Now, the charges come as the families of the victims begin to say goodbye. There were emotional scenes as the first funerals were held.
CNN's Will Ripley has more from Sydney.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The hearse has just arrived with the bodies of one of the rabbis. Let's just pause for a moment
and take this in.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
RIPLEY: The funerals are now underway for the 15 people killed in Sunday's terror attack and some of the hardest scenes are here in Redfern, where
family and friends gathered to remember the youngest victim, 10-year-old Matilda. She leaves behind not just her parents but her younger sister,
Summer.
Sunday, the day of the attack, was a day of face painting, playing with goats and having fun with her parents, who say they were just briefly
separated in the crowd, a moment that turned into a nightmare.
VALENTYNA, MATILDA BRITVAN'S MOTHER: She was running around happy and then in seconds what I see before my eyes is she is lying on the ground. I just
can't explain how it happened.
MICHAEL, MATILDA BRITVAN'S FATHER: I grabbed my shirt and I was talking to her because she was --
VALENTYNA: She was in shock.
MICHAEL: She was in shock. She was telling me that she -- it's hard to breathe. And I was -- I was holding -- I was holding her and I was like,
calm down, please, please, please. I was trying to pull her out but the shooting would just not stop.
RIPLEY: As this city mourns, families here are left with the same questions, how this happened and why.
ELLIOT, WITNESS: It's our loss. It's our community's loss.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Elliot was there. He knows many of the victims.
RIPLEY: What's it like to grow up as a Jew here?
ELLIOT: You just live in, like, utopia here. This utopia has just turned to dystopia.
RIPLEY: Have you noticed a rise in anti-Semitism since October 7th, 2023?
ELLIOT: Incredibly. I mean.
RIPLEY: Here in Australia?
ELLIOT: Incredibly.
RIPLEY: October 7th is when Hamas attacked Israel. The retaliation that followed has killed or injured more than 10 percent of
Gaza's population in the last two years. An independent U.N. inquiry said Israel is committing genocide. Israel denies that.
There have been protests worldwide, including here in Sydney. During this period, Australia, like many places, has seen a massive spike in
antisemitic attacks.
[15:15:04]
ANTHONY ALBANESE, AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER: We want to stamp out and eradicate antisemitism from our society.
ELLIOT: The restaurant we're coming up to here was burnt down. There's a school, there's a daycare that was also burnt down. There's been
antisemitic graffiti. There's been kids having eggs thrown at them. There's everything.
It kind of has gotten lost. Not to us. We've been begging our government. We've been telling them -- swipe that way.
RIPLEY: I'm going to read some of them.
RIPLEY (voice-over): He shows me the comments to social media posts about the attack.
RIPLEY: Can you guys see this?
"Ha, ha, ha. Rot in hell."
"Rest in Bondi Beach piss water. You aren't a genocide defender."
Oh my God, I can't go on actually.
ELLIOT: You know, I don't even need to comment on that because ...
RIPLEY: And this is -- I mean ...
ELLIOT: This is constant. I mean, this is everywhere.
Look at this view.
RIPLEY: I see what you mean by utopia.
ELLIOT: Things are going to be OK, because, at the end of the day, the one thing they can't take from us is that we live in the most beautiful place
on Earth.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Will Ripley, CNN, Sydney.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: Nick Reiner has made his first court appearance. He's accused of killing his parents, the film director Rob Reiner and his wife Michelle. A
January 7th date has been set for arraignment during today's court proceedings in Los Angeles. Nick also waived his right to a speedy trial.
On Tuesday, Los Angeles prosecutors announced plans to file two counts of first degree murder charges against him.
Josh Campbell joins us now from Los Angeles.
I mean, did we get any sense of him, his state of mind, why he did this?
JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPNDENT: Well, this was a very brief hearing that occurred today. In fact, the only time that we actually heard
from him was the judge asking him if he wanted to waive that right to a speedy trial.
[15:20:03]
And what that means is, under U.S. law, the government can't just keep prolonging a prosecution indefinitely and keeping someone in jail. But in
this case, it was his own attorney who said, look, we need more time to go over what the body of evidence is here. We need more time to prepare. And
so, again, as you mentioned, this has now been pushed back to January. He will remain in custody because no bond has been set in this case due to the
seriousness -- seriousness of the offenses here.
As far as the charges, again, very serious charges. We're talking about two counts of first degree murder, which under California law means prosecutors
have to show that there was some type of premeditation that occurred before the actual alleged murders took place.
So, this wasn't an accident. This wasn't something that happened in the crime of passion. They have to prove that this was something that had some
type of forethought.
Now, as I mentioned, he will remain in custody. We did hear from prosecutors providing some gruesome details yesterday about what they
discovered at the residence. They say that both of the victims here, Rob and Michele Reiner, they were stabbed. The murder weapon here, according to
them, was a knife.
I asked the district attorney if Nick Reiner had confessed, had provided any information to police. The D.A. said they're not ready to provide that
information yet. They will be addressing that information throughout the court proceedings.
And finally, it's worth noting that were hearing this outpouring of support and grief around the world for members of the Reiner family. I'll read you
a statement. We just got in a short time ago from the surviving children of Rob and Michelle. This is a statement from Jake and Romy Reiner.
They say that, quote, "Words cannot even begin to describe the unimaginable pain we are experiencing every moment of the day. The horrific and
devastating loss of our parents, Rob and Michele Reiner, is something that no one should ever experience. They weren't just our parents, they were our
best friends."
They then went on to thank people who have expressed such support for them. They also asked for privacy during this time as they continue to grieve.
Just a truly, truly tragic situation here for those surviving kids not only losing their parents, but their brother. Now the prime suspect, Max.
FOSTER: Josh Campbell, thank you.
CAMPBELL: You bet.
FOSTER: Police will hold a press conference next hour to discuss the latest on their hunt for the killer who opened fire on a Brown University
classroom over the weekend. Authorities say they're now looking for someone who may have crossed paths with the suspected shooter on Saturday.
Police say the person they're looking for isn't a suspect, but may have spoken to the person of interest. Now, Rhode Island's attorney general says
he expects police to make an arrest, though he didn't say when it might happen. A CNN analyst said that kind of confident talk from the attorney
general probably means investigators have solid leads in the case.
Let's bring in CNN chief law enforcement analyst John Miller.
Just explain, John, who exactly they're looking for. Its not the prime suspect or it is, you know, in terms of this video.
JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: So, Max, we're waiting for clarification at this upcoming press conference at 4:00.
But what we know is they have a picture of an individual wearing a blue jacket with a gray hoodie under it, who crosses paths with the gunman, and
it appears in this brief encounter that they may have exchanged words they want to know who that person is, not because they're a suspect at all, but
they want to find out from that person. Were there words exchanged between you two? Do you know this person? You know, what did they say, if anything?
And what language, if not English?
I mean, they're going to want to know an awful lot that whatever they can learn about what probably took a second or so in terms of the encounter,
the big underline here is they don't think that that person has anything to do with it. It's just in their vast video canvas from all of these cameras.
It's the only place where he crosses paths with another person, where it seems like there might have been some actual contact.
FOSTER: It's extraordinary the amount of video that they've got now, and they must have a huge amount of leads from the public because it's been so
high profile. How little, you know, evidence they've managed to gather. What do you make of this talk of an arrest?
MILLER: Well, I think what we're seeing there is the videos have generated a large number of tips, and they are going through a triage process where
not all tips are created equal. They look at the ones that are most viable, that seem the most logical, that are the that are the most
investigativable, if you will. And they send teams out on those and they'll get through the rest as they get through the top ones first.
But they also have suspects. And when I say suspects, they're potential suspects. They're looking at this individual who may have been the subject
of a tip, or this individual who may have been referred by another law enforcement agency, and part of that is going out and talking to these
people, asking them to come in.
[15:25:00]
Depending on the investigative strategy, another part of it, and this is very telling, Max, is certain people, they're asking for what we call a
buccal swab. It's a Q-tip inside the mouth where they take a DNA sample, which tells us they have DNA to compare it to, and that gives them a tool
where they can say, if one of these people turns out to be a match to DNA, we recovered at the scene that we believe to be connected to the shooter,
then that becomes somebody we focus on very heavily until we get that resolved.
It's another way to eliminate suspects, and you can get back to them later, depending on where or if they fit into the picture at all.
FOSTER: Okay. John Miller, appreciate it. We'll have that press conference later on as it airs.
Still to come, new surveys suggest the U.S. president is losing support amongst his base. We'll look at the poll numbers.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: The Trump administration is standing by the White House chief of staff, Susie Wiles, after she gave an unusually candid interview to vanity
fair. Now, in the article, Wiles says President Trump has what she calls an alcoholic personality, even though he doesn't drink. The U.S. president
agrees with her, though. Wiles also says U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, quote, "completely whiffed" her handling of the Epstein case files. Bondi,
in turn, blames the magazine.
Now in the coming hours, Donald Trump will address the nation, but he will do so as new polls suggest support for the U.S. president is waning. Recent
surveys say the number of Americans who strongly approve of his leadership has slipped to one in five, and there are declines in other polls, too.
Harry Enten crunches the numbers for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HARRY ENTEN, CNN CHIEF DATA ANALYST: Hey there, Max.
Look, Donald Trump is going to address the American people tonight at 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time with his thoughts on the year past, and probably as well
his thoughts on 2026.
But the American people at this particular point are already scoring Donald Trump. And I don't think Trump is going to like the results.
What are we talking about here? Well, let's just start off with the baseline. His net approval rating. Well, get this, it has been negative. He
has had a negative net approval rating every day since March 12th. That is 281 days in a row. My goodness gracious that Donald Trump has an approval
rating has been underwater. That's why I've been keen on saying that he has spent more time underwater than Jacques Cousteau.
Now, why has Donald Trump been underwater for such a long period of time? Well, when we dig into the individual issues, I think you can see why. Take
a look here. I've got for you five different issues across the board. And this is Trump's approval rating on all of them.
And guess what? He's underwater on all of these issues. When we look at immigration, he's six points underwater. We look at foreign policy. He's 14
points underwater. Trade and tariffs, he's 15 points underwater.
The economy, 16 points underwater. That was the reason why he was given a second term by the American people. But yet, he's 16 points underwater on
that.
No doubt that the trade and tariffs, which of course has been a key component of his second term, has a major, major role playing a major role
in that. And of course, the Epstein case, which has dogged his second term in office, he's 29 points underwater on that.
You look at this -- negative, negative, negative, negative, negative and again, even negative on immigration, which of course has been such a strong
part of his campaigns. It was the big reason why he won the 2016 Republican primary. It has been one of his strongest issues during his second term in
office. And yet even on that issue, it is negative.
Now, I think there are a lot of Donald Trump supporters who would make the argument, hey, look, we are still 11 months or 10 months in charge until
the midterm election. By that point, maybe his net approval rating will go positive and he won't be a drag, a drag on the Republicans running for
Congress. Well, it's possible, but if you look at history, it ain't too likely.
Why do I say that? Term two negative net approval ratings at this point, when positive by the midterm, Richard Nixon, it did not go positive.
Richard Nixon was forced out of office.
George W. Bush, it didn't go positive either, right? Republicans suffered major midterm losses in 2006.
How about Barack Obama? It did not go positive. By the time of the midterm, Democrats lost the United States Senate back in 2014.
So, at this point, who is to say with Donald Trump? But when you look at the data you see all these days in a row in which he's been underwater, you
see all these different issues in which he's underwater. And you go, this question mark right here is likely going to become an X. It is not likely
that Donald Trump's approval rating gets positive by the time of the midterm elections.
Of course, my dear friend Max Foster, we're just going to have to wait and see. Oh, and happy holidays, my dear friend. Happy Hanukkah, merry
Christmas, or whatever you decide to celebrate this year.
Back to you, my friend.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: The great Harry Enten as well. Thank him. Thank you for joining us.
So, what we want to know is can Donald Trump turn the polls around?
Joining me now is CNN's senior political analyst, Ron Brownstein. I mean, it's fascinating to look through those numbers, isn't it? Still very early
in his presidency, though.
RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Yeah. Well, I think, you know, Trump has almost always been, facing a net negative approval during
his time in office. It was when he was out of office that he really improved in the esteem of the public. I mean, you know when inflation
soared under Biden, voters tended to push back in their mind the things they didn't like about Trump. And to recall the main thing they did, like
about Trump's first term, which was the economy was strong in their view.
Now in office, I think the equation has largely been reversed. I mean, I think most voters feel they have not gotten the principal thing they
expected from the Trump presidency, which was an improvement in their cost of living and their affordability. And they are getting a lot of things
they either didn't expect or didn't really want, such as, you know, the very militarized immigration enforcement as opposed to control of the
border and this kind of sense of chaos, symbolized by what I think is going to be seen as a turning point in this term. The demolition of the East
Wing, the pardons, the constant you know, vitriol, like his comments about Rob Reiner.
So, you know, Trump in theory, I think was more attractive to many voters than Trump in practice has been.
FOSTER: We can never underestimate him, though, can we? You know, polls often go against him, but he pulls through when it comes to election day.
How could he pull this around, do you think?
BROWNSTEIN: Well, again, I mean, he that was most true when he was out of office, both in 2016 and 2024. And even in 2020, as you note, he did run
better than maybe polls expected.
[15:35:09]
Trump's power is that he can motivate a lot of irregular voters who, you know, tend to be drawn to him. You know, he hasn't shown the ability to not
show the ability to really do that in the off-year elections during his first term, `17 and `18. He did not show the ability to do that in `25. But
he did in both 2020 and 2024.
So, if there is a path forward, you know, its some combination of voters becoming more optimistic about the economy and Trump having more success
than he's had when he's not on the ballot at getting the irregular -- getting irregular voters out to you know, to vote for other Republicans. I
mean, the problem is, is that expectations about the economy right now in polling are very consistently negative. I mean, that's a huge -- you can't
overstate in Trump's first term, whatever else was going on, confidence in his ability to manage the economy was a floor underneath him. It was
lifting it up.
And now, his approval ratings on the economy are worse than at any point during his first term, whether it's Gallup or Quinnipiac or other Marist
poll out today. And it's just fundamentally reversed the equation.
FOSTER: He probably cares because of his ego, but should he really care as a president? I mean, this is going to be his last term, and he's probably
not going to run for another similar job afterwards. Does he need to be popular?
BROWNSTEIN: Well, I mean, you know, obviously they are worried about Democrats taking over the House. They've gone to extraordinary, really
unprecedented lengths to try to avoid it by triggering this spate of mid- decade redistricting unlike any we've seen in American history.
And, you know, I think he does not like any president, does not favor the prospect of the other party coming in when he leaves office, undoing many
of the things he's done. I mean, that's one of the patterns we've gotten into in American politics. You know, each president comes in and
immediately erases the blackboard of literally hundreds of things that their predecessor did.
So, I think he feels like he has a lot at stake in this. And in fact, as you and I have talked about before, he is the single most, you know, the
views of the incumbent president have become the single most important factor in all of our elections for any other office. We are moving in a way
that I think you would understand toward a quasi-parliamentary, where voters are choosing less between two individuals than between which party
they want to have their hand on the tiller for the country. And that choice is revolves around views of the performance of the president more than any
other single factor.
FOSTER: Ron Brownstein, fascinating chat. Thank you again for joining us today.
BROWNSTEIN: Thanks.
FOSTER: It's the final moments of trade on Wall Street. And stocks are in the red. The Dow Jones down around a third of 1 percent today.
This is our business breakout.
Crude oil prices are rebounding from near four-year lows on Tuesday, the U.S. benchmark had fallen to its lowest level since 2021 due to positive
signs in Russia, Ukraine peace talks. But then U.S. President Trump ordered what he called a total and complete blockade of oil tankers going to and
from Venezuela, bringing the prices back up.
Warner Bros. Discovery has fired back a formal response to Paramount's hostile takeover bid launched last week. The board for the parent company
of CNN is advising its shareholders to reject Paramount's buyout offer, saying it, quote, "provides inadequate value". Warner Bros. says it intends
to press on with a takeover offer from Netflix.
How about this for a sign of the times? The Oscars will no longer be broadcast on normal TV, as we call it from 2029. Instead, the Academy
Awards will be shown live on YouTube. The streaming site announced it had signed a deal that will run until 2033. ABC, which is owned by Disney, has
been the home of the Oscars for decades.
CNN's media analyst Sara Fischer joins me now.
I mean, it's a massive shakeup, isn't it? A real sign of the times I think Brian Stelter described it as.
I'm interested though, you know, is there a problem with award shows generally? Younger people not really that interested in them. Or is it a
problem with the platform?
SARA FISCHER, CNN MEDIA ANALYST: It's both. So for one, award show ratings have been declining as traditional television viewership has been
declining. But what happened is we saw an unprecedented dip in viewership, Max, during and right after the pandemic, and part of that was because
there was less happening in Hollywood, movie production was shut down, but a large part of it was viewers said that the shows had begun to be feeling
too political, that they were becoming political progressive moments, as opposed to these nonpartisan celebratory moments of Hollywood art.
Now, we've seen some awards show ratings tick back up from there, but I think what's going to happen is in moving these shows to streaming the
various associations that are responsible for putting on these shows, and in this case, it's the Academy for Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
They'll be able to tap into a far more global audience. That's not as concerned about domestic politics. And I think that grants them a lot more
exposure to build their businesses.
FOSTER: There's also the issue of expecting people to sit through such a long show, right? Particularly younger people or people that aren't, you
know, tuning in every -- every year. I'm wondering, you know, does this now mean that YouTube will produce it and might they produce it in a different
way that does reach a wider audiences, something that they really understand?
FISCHER: Yes. But I don't think that the shows format is going to fundamentally change. At the end of the day, the academy is still
responsible for hosting this, and they will have a set number of categories that will need to be agreed upon by YouTube to actually be broadcast.
Remember, there are plenty of categories that don't actually show up in the award show, in part to your point to keep it short, but there's many that
the academy will demand remain, so I don't think that this show is going to fundamentally shift so much.
One thing I will note, though, this show is one piece of this. But YouTube is going to get rights to everything. So, you're talking about the red
carpet show before where they check out everybody's outfits. You're talking about behind the scenes footage during the event, the governor's awards,
the academy luncheons, the nomination process. So, this is a big sweeping rights package. It's not just that one night.
FOSTER: We don't know what money was involved, do we? But is it really about the money or just keeping the Oscars relevant? Because it will get a
much broader reach, won't it, on YouTube?
FISCHER: I mean, it's definitely in part about the money. Every single group that puts on an award show is trying to elicit billions of dollars in
rights. And we know that YouTube can cough up that kind of cash. I mean, if you take a look at what they pay for the NFL Sunday ticket, that's a $2
billion a year arrangement.
So, this is definitely going to be lucrative. But I do think that for YouTube, the real reason that they want this is because they want to
showcase the power of live. YouTube TV, which only exists in the U.S., has now become the third largest live pay TV provider in the country,
surpassing major cable and satellite firms.
So, for them, this is their ability to say to everyone, we're not just about short viral clips. We can host big live events, and we can do it
without latency issues, without the stream crashing. YouTube estimates, Max, that this feed can reach up to 2 billion people globally. I mean,
that's a massive number to be tuning in to what's already one of the most popular award shows in the world.
FOSTER: It's going to be really interesting to see. Sara Fischer, thank you for joining us and talking us through that.
Still to come, we are just two days away from the deadline to release the Epstein files. We'll tell you what to expect and what may not be revealed
as well, when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:46:03]
FOSTER: After months of angry finger pointing and accusations, we are now on the verge of knowing what is in the Epstein files. The clock is ticking
towards a Friday deadline for the Department of Justice to release all of its unclassified records, documents, communications and investigative
materials related to Epstein. Congress has specifically demanded travel logs and information about Epstein's associates.
Joining me now is M.J. Lee.
Are you expecting to get an entire dump of this information on Friday? Because it's an enormous quantity of stuff, isn't it?
M.J. LEE, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL ENTERPRISE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. And, Max, you know, you said that we are on the verge of getting the Epstein files. I
think my only caveat at this moment would be we might be on the verge, right, because the reality is that the Justice Department actually hasn't
said much at all about this expected release. As you said, the deadline is Friday. According to this bill that President Trump recently signed into
law.
But there has not been any sort of formal guidance on exactly when the Epstein files are going to come out and what kind of information and how
much information is going to come out. But generally, you're right that we expect this to be a big dump of information. More than anything, we have
seen to date.
And I will just say some of the reporting that we've been doing has been about the Epstein survivors who are really in a state of high anxiety right
now because of all of this uncertainty around what exactly they can expect. And, you know, when I've spoken with them, I've asked them and tried to get
a clear sense of what is it that you want to see and what is it that you don't want to see?
And the one thing that they all feel really strongly about is that the names of the survivors and the victims, and any identifying information be
redacted. But other than that, you know, they want to make sure that everything that can get out will get out. They want to have a better sense
of the people that were around Jeffrey Epstein, who might have helped him, who might have been even friends with him, even if what it actually
amounted to was just simply a turning of the blind eye.
They think some kind of transparency around that, once and for all would be important. The other thing I would just point out is that because of all of
this uncertainty and the drip, drip of disclosures that we've seen so far, all of that has been pretty triggering for some of these women. I want you
to listen to a little bit of my conversation with them recently.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHARLENE ROCHARD, EPSTEIN VICTIM: So, when the first set of pictures came out last week, that really kind of threw me for a loop because I was on the
island, and one of those pictures was the room I was in. And so -- and I kept going back telling people, no, there was a phone. There were -- there
were phone. I know I called somebody when I saw the phone, I was like, no, my memory is correct, I am correct. So, some things are validating when you
see them and then other things are just actually completely traumatizing.
JESS MICHAELS, EPSTEIN VICTIM: And doesn't this lend to why it is so frustrating that the survivors' experience is not centered in all of this?
Because there's a lot of context that survivors could be giving to those photos right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: A huge week for Epstein survivors. M.J. Lee, appreciate it. Thank you.
Still to come, FIFA may have backed down on some World Cup ticket prices. There are still some fans who say they haven't gone far enough, though.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:52:12]
FOSTER: Fresh after cutting some of the ticket prices at the World Cup, FIFA is now promising to boost the prize money for the winners. FIFA says
prize money will be up 50 percent from the last World Cup, with the winners taking home $50 million. All this comes after Tuesday's climbdown on
tickets, with FIFA now promising a set number of $60 seats. That followed a protest over prices that stretched into the thousands. Some fans are still
unsatisfied.
A few minutes ago, the New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani posted, "Here's what we actually need. End dynamic pricing, cap presale prices and
set aside 15 percent of tickets for local fans at a discount."
The beautiful game must be for everyone.
"WORLD SPORT's" Don Riddell is here.
Does seem as though they can't really do much right on this one, because they don't seem to be that many of these cheaper tickets, even available,
Don.
DON RIDDELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: Yeah, I mean, it made for a good headline yesterday when FIFA announced that they were going to be selling these
tickets for $60 or what, 45 in the U.K. But there are hardly any of them. So, to put it into context, I think it's going to be about 1.6 percent of
the tickets for every game will be sold at that price. And if you take, for example, a game like England, Croatia, which is arguably one of the more
box office group stage games, that will be played in front of a crowd of about 70,000 people, 800 of those tickets will be sold at this $60 price.
So, when the fans say FIFA aren't going far enough, clearly, they're barely doing anything to change the narrative on this one. But it made for a good
headline. They're selling some tickets at affordable prices because FIFA have been absolutely hammered by what some have described as quite simply
extortionate. The gouging of the fans at this upcoming World Cup is way more than it has been at previous World Cups.
So, for example, took about the opening round of games for the host nations. The average get in price is about $1,800. That's about three times
what it was at the last World Cup. The final get in price of between four to eight and a half thousand dollars. We've never seen prices like that or
anything like that at a World Cup before.
So there are a lot of fans who I think some were already going to find it difficult to travel into the United States because of the new travel
restrictions and the government policies under the Trump administration and now wondering how on earth they can afford it. And this new move by FIFA is
not really going to change the narrative that much.
FOSTER: And it's so hard for them to plan as well, isn't it? What matches they might go to, what travel they need.
Don, thank you so much.
Check out the animals at London Zoo. Getting into the holiday spirit seems like Santa arrived pretty early there. Zookeepers handed out bags of treats
to the primates on Tuesday, and the monkeys.
[15:55:05]
Monkeys were treated to stockings garnished with sweet corn, whilst the gorillas got to rummage through festive bags of their favorite snacks.
Finally, tonight, a killer video that scientists have never seen before. Apparently, researchers attached a camera to the back of an orca whale in
British Columbia, Canada. They found the orcas were cooperating with nearby dolphins to hunt for salmon.
It appears the dolphins were using their sonar to find larger salmon too big for the dolphins to handle. Now, the orcas would then kill the big
salmon and the dolphins would share the feast. This kind of cooperation between killer whales and dolphins has never been observed before in the
wild, and humans could learn a bit from it, too.
I'm Max Foster. That's WHAT WE KNOW.
After the break, we'll have more on the press conference in particular that we're expecting from Brown University and the shooting there.
END
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