Return to Transcripts main page

CNN News Central

U.S. Special Envoy Witkoff Meets With Putin in Moscow; Sources Say, Trump Officials to Hold Dinner on Epstein Strategy Tonight; Sean Combs Legal Team Approached Trump Admin About Pardon. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired August 06, 2025 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news from CNN overnight, the vice president set to host a Jeffrey Epstein-themed dinner party. The most powerful people in government set to gather at his house tonight to discuss the scandal and how to get the administration through it.

JESSICA DEAN, CNN ANCHOR: Plus, the recession alarm bells are ringing. That's the takeaway from the dismal July jobs report. Why experts say the labor market is flashing warning signs.

And a wall of water, torrential floods tear through a mountainous village in India with entire homes washed away.

I'm Jessica Dean with John Berman. Sara and Kate are today, and this is CNN News Central.

BERMAN: We start with this breaking just a short time ago, face-to- face with Vladimir Putin. U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff just arrived in Moscow, shook hands with the Russian leader. This is just days before President Trump's latest deadline threat to Russia. make peace with Ukraine or face fresh sanctions.

Russia is hoping today's face-to-face meetings will help them avoid the new punishing measures. They include secondary tariffs on countries, including China and India that buy Russian energy.

Let's get right to Moscow. We're lucky to have CNN Senior International Correspondent Fred Pleitgen on the ground there. Good morning, Fred.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, John. Yes, I'm actually outside the Kremlin walls where currently Steve Woff is meeting face-to-face with Vladimir Putin. As you've mentioned, I'd say that meeting's probably been going on for about two hours, maybe a little less so far. Steve Witkoff got here in the earlier morning hours today, Around 7:00 A.M., his plane touchdown here in Moscow.

He was met by Kirill Dmitriev, who is, of course, the head of a Russian direct investment fund, and really the point person for Steve Witkoff every time he's been on the ground here in Moscow. It was quite interesting to see when Steve Witkoff walked into that room with Vladimir Putin and the two men said they're helloes. There was not only Vladimir Putin in the room, but also Yuri Ushakov, who, is of course, a senior Kremlin and one of the people who has always been part of these negotiations where you've had Steve Witkoff basically alone representing the United States and Vladimir Putin, then flanked by Kirill Dmitriev and Yuri Ushakov.

It's unclear how these negotiations are going so far, but certainly they are still going on. So, clearly, there is a lot to talk about. And you're absolutely right, the message from the U.S., no doubt, will be that President Trump's patience is wearing thin as far as the conflict in Ukraine is concerned.

The president, of course, saying that he wants a ceasefire immediately. The Russians talking much more about generally trying to improve relations between the U.S. and Russia, but, certainly, they have been taken aback by some of the comments that they've heard from the Trump administration over the past couple of days, not just the threat of sanctions against Russia, but especially those secondary tariffs that the president has been threatening, especially against India that has really called up the Kremlin in the form of the spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, who came out and said that he believes that kind of talk is illegal, that everybody should be able to choose their own trading partners.

So, clearly, the two sides I think understand very much that this could be a pivotal meeting, but also right now that those very warm and cozy relations that we've seen between the Putin administration and the Trump administration certainly seem to be taking a pretty quick nosedive and have been over the past couple of weeks.

BERMAN: Yes. Look, the Kremlin well-practiced at flattering Steve Witkoff in the past, a bit charmed by Vladimir Putin. We will see if this has changed at all.

Frederik Pleitgen just outside the Kremlin this morning, great to have you there, keep us posted on these very important meetings.

And breaking overnight, Ukraine says Russian strikes killed at least six people over the past 24 hours. That includes an attack on a recreation center in Zaporizhzhia. It also wounded 12 people, including four children. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the strikes cruelty aimed at instilling fear and said they make zero military sense. Jessica?

DEAN: We have some new CNN reporting breaking overnight on the controversy that simply will not go away for President Trump, and that's the Jeffrey Epstein investigation. Sources telling CNN top administration officials will gather tonight at Vice President J.D. Vance's, official residents for strategy session. And the goal, we're told, is to form a unified response to the Epstein situation.

[07:05:00]

Now, expected to attend the dinner with the vice president, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Attorney General Pam Bondi, FBI Director Kash Patel, and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.

Now, you'll remember Blanche held a lengthy interview last month with Epstein Accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell, who was convicted to conspiring with Epstein to sexually abuse minors. We now know there are audio recordings and a transcript of that interview, and the Justice Department is weighing whether to release those materials.

Let's bring in CNN's Alayna Treene at the White House this morning. Alayna, this is your reporting. What more are you learning about tonight's strategy session?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes. I mean this is really interesting that the fact that the vice president is going to be hosting these top Trump administration officials, really the ones who have been the leaders in kind of handling the administration's, you know, entire handling of this Epstein case that they'll be meeting tonight at the vice president's residence.

I'm just going to walk through who's going to be there again. So, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, of course, the vice president, who is the one hosting this dinner, Attorney General Pam Bondi, FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.

And as you mentioned, Jessica, it's not just about strategizing over, you know, what is going to come, the administration's posture on all of this, but also trying to present a united front. We have seen some divisions within the Trump administration and between, really, the White House and the Justice Department as well on how all of this has been handled.

Now, this meeting comes, as we broke yesterday as well, that we know that there was an audio recording made when Blanche went to Florida to sit down and interview Ghislaine Maxwell, of course, Jeffrey Epstein associate, someone who's been convicted for sex trafficking and other crimes related to him. He interviewed her for more than ten hours, I'm told. And now the Trump administration, and specifically the Justice Department, is going through digitizing that audio, transcribing it, redacting portions of it.

And there's really a question of if and more so when they will release that publicly. When I talked to some officials here at the White House, they said that it could be as early as this week that they publish that information.

Now, all of this as well as coming, as we're hearing that behind the scenes, there have been some conversations these officials tell me more preliminary about having Blanche do a press conference or even appear for a high-profile interview, including possibly with Joe Rogan. Again, they say that that is not decided. These discussions have been preliminary. But some of the background, again, as we're seeing kind of the messaging and the strategy over Epstein come into light particularly at a time when we know that the administration had been very quiet and kind of struggling with how they wanted to move forward with all of this.

And I also think one thing to point out as well about some of these discussions is that they are kind of twofold. There have been people here within the White House who said, you know, a lot of the Epstein coverage has died down. The story is kind of quiet right now. Why bring this back up and resurface it at a time when they're more successfully kind of avoiding it? But then there's a lot of people as well who believe that this is an opportunity to retake the narrative here, control of that, and also try to control the optics more.

So, you know, stay tuned for whatever decision they make, but there'll be a lot of this discussed this evening when they gather at the vice president's residence.

DEAN: Yes, it will certainly be interesting to see what comes out of that. Alayna Treene at the White House, thank you so much. John?

BERMAN: New details about multiple past encounters between authorities and the New York City shooter who killed four people. The Las Vegas Police Department released new body cam videos and 911 calls of past run-ins, including a 2023 incident at a casino.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am calling from Red Rock Casino on Charleston. We have an irate guest. He has no visible I.D., so he cannot cash out.

He's refusing to leave. He's making a spectacle of himself. There's about ten officers on him right now.

BERMAN: You heard it right there. He was detained for refusing to show identification while cashing out winnings. He repeatedly refused to comply with officer's questions before being removed from the building in handcuffs.

In 2024, he was pulled over for not having license plate on his car and was ultimately arrested for driving with a suspended license. In 2022, his mother called police terrified that he was going to kill himself after telling her, quote, could not -- he could not take it anymore. Later in 2024, police were sent to his apartment after his mother called authorities to warn them of similar suicidal threats.

Officers were made aware that he was in possession of a firearm and was taking sleeping pills. Police ultimately removed him from his home and admitted him to the hospital.

We should say, if you or a loved one are struggling with suicidal thoughts, please contact 988.

All right, a CNN an exclusive, lawyers for Sean Combs say they've approached the Trump administration about a pardon, but the president says, past comments from Combs make pardoning him more difficult.

[07:10:00]

A preventable disaster, the missed warning signs in a new report on the Titan submersible implosion, including why the sub was left in an outdoor parking lot over the winter.

And the terrifying moments in entire village washed away by deadly floods.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DEAN: This morning, a CNN exclusive. A defense attorney for Sean Combs is speaking to CNN's Elizabeth Wagmeister, and making some headlines.

[07:15:02]

Nicole Westmoreland, a member of Combs' all-star defense team, revealed new information about the case, including about Combs' state of mind, and if they've reached out to the Trump administration about a possible pardon.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Have people in Sean Combs as orbit, have they had conversations with the Trump administration?

NICOLE WESTMORELAND, ATTORNEY FOR SEAN DIDDY COMBS: Yes. My understanding is that. We have reached out.

WAGMEISTER: Reached out is one thing. Having a conversation is another. Do you know if there have been active conversations about a pardon?

WESTMORELAND: Yes. We've -- it's my understanding that we've reached out and had conversations in reference to a pardon.

WAGMEISTER: President Trump, when he was asked about this pardon, he said, quote, I was very friendly with him. I got along with him great. And he seemed like a nice guy. I didn't know him well, but when I ran for office, he was very hostile. And the president indicated that a pardon is likely not on the table because of that break in his relationship with Mr. Combs years ago. How is he feeling now about the chances of a pardon given the president's commentary?

WESTMORELAND: I think that Mr. Combs is a very hopeful person and I believe that he remains hopeful.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: Combs was found not guilty last month of the most serious charges against him, but he still faces sentencing in October for transportation to engage in prostitution.

Elizabeth Wagmeister will join us ahead at 9:00 A.M. with more on this exclusive. John?

BERMAN: All right. This morning, new details about the Tennessee murder suspect accused of killing four family members. Austin Drummond was caught in the woods after leading authorities on a week-long manhunt across Tennessee.

Drummond's a convicted felon with alleged ties to a violent street gang. He was out on bail on a separate attempted murder charge.

This is the person who called 911 to alert police.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And when I seen him, I duck, I was hoping he didn't see me and then take off. So, as soon as I did that, like I said, I dialed 911. That was it. Let them have him. I'm glad they got him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: This manhunt was based on the fact that Drummond was wanted for the murders of four people. Investigators said three of the victims are related to his girlfriend. Their bodies were found hours after the baby daughter of two of the victims was found in a car seat in a, quote, random front yard.

Authorities said prior to his capture, Drummond had been hiding out in a vacant building. He is due in court tomorrow.

Overnight, the fire raging in Southern California became the biggest of the year there. More than 80,000 acres are torched in St. Louis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties. No word on what started it. As of mid-July, more than 220,000 acres have burned in California. That's almost double the average over the past five years at this point, according to Los Angeles Times, that doesn't even include this fire.

Cars left charred and totaled in St. Louis. The message spray painted onto the street leading to a hate crime investigation.

And what might be the biggest question many of you have this morning, where will you be able to watch NFL Red Zone? For my sake, I hope we get an answer ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:20:00]

DEAN: This morning, new questions after a damning report into the Titan submersible disaster, including what, if anything, might change in the submersible industry. Investigators from the Coast Guard say the deaths of five people in the 2023 implosion could have been prevented, and a more than 300-page report they found the sub's operator, OceanGate, had what they called a toxic workplace culture plagued by critically flawed safety practices.

We have more now from CNN's Jason Carroll.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A preventable tragedy. That's how a scathing new report from the Coast Guard describes the 2023 implosion of the Titan submersible that instantaneously killed all five people on board. The report also stating the Coast Guard believed former OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush was criminally negligent.

JASON NEUBAUER, DEPUTY CHIEF, OFFICE OF INVESTIGATIONS AND ANALYSIS, U.S. COAST GUARD: Mr. Rush had somehow survived, we would've made a recommendation that the Department of Justice do a separate inquiry criminal investigation into the matter.

CARROLL: What led to the implosion, the Coast Guard Marine Board of Investigation finding the primary contributing factors were OceanGate's inadequate design, certification, maintenance, and inspection process for the Titan. In one example, the board found OceanGate ignored warning signs and did not bother to investigate safety issues with Titans hull after an incident in 2022. During that previous incident, a loud banging noise was heard during Titan's ascent, a possible sign the hull was not structurally sound. The report's findings echoing accounts from OceanGate's former employees, several of whom testified last year about cutting costs and safety issues, issues they say Rush ignored.

DAVID LOCHRIDGE, FORMER DIRECTOR OF MARINE OPERATIONS, OCEANGATE: There was a big push to get this done and lot of steps along the way were missed.

STOCKTON RUSH, FORMER CEO, OCEANGATE: I've broken some rules to make this.

CARROLL: Rush was a highly controversial figure among deep sea explorers well before the catastrophic implosion.

RUSH: I have no desire to die.

CARROLL: A recently released Netflix documentary explored his vision for Titan and its eventual demise. Submersible experts were critical of Rush's approach to building Titan, saying its construction was not founded in tested science. The Coast Guard accused Rush of gross negligence in its report, saying his company did all it could to avoid oversight by the scientific and maritime community, saying he exhibited negligence that contributed to the deaths of four individuals.

NEUBAUER: I think it was very serious. The fact that the vessel was operated, in our opinion, illegally, you know, with paying passengers with no certification, no even registration for the vessel itself, really, I haven't seen that before.

[07:25:11]

CARROLL: In addition to Rush, the four others who were killed in included fame deep sea explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet, British adventurer Hamish Harding, businessman Shahzada Dawood, and his 19- year-old son, Suleman.

Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: Still ahead, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer meets with President Trump for the third time this year. Her approach with the president much different than her counterparts in the Democratic Party. Will her strategy pay off?

And devastating video shows the moment a wall of water swallows an entire village. The urgent search now for survivors.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:30:00]