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Trump Takes Over DC Police, Warns Same May Happen in Other Cities; Interview with Ankit Jain, (D) Shadow Senator, Washinton DC: Trump Orders Federal Takeover of DC Police, Deploys National Guard; Trump: Russia and Ukraine Peace Requires Land Swapping. Aired 8-8:30a ET

Aired August 12, 2025 - 08:00   ET

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

[08:00:00]

CLARE DUFFY, CNN BUSINESS WRITER: ... the first cities that is using this technology since it launched last year. And in this demo, we saw some of the safeguards that are built into this technology, namely these fill in the blanks that are automatically inserted by the AI into these draft reports that are supposed to encourage police officers to go through them thoroughly, add information, change errors, and make sure that they're really correct and complete. But I will say we also saw that it's fairly easy just to delete all of those fill in the blanks, submit the report.

And it wouldn't be clear what a police officer has added or not added because that original AI drafted report doesn't get saved. Just whatever the police officer submits. That is what then goes on to become sort of the basis of a case that prosecutors will look at. Defense attorneys will look at.

And of course, if you've been accused of a crime, that is really important to you. What is in that report?

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: So there are real legal concerns that are being raised on this. What are they?

DUFFY: Yes, so this obviously comes at sort of a fraught time for the use of AI and technology by law enforcement. We've seen in other places the use of facial recognition lead to false arrests. And so there are experts that are looking really closely at this new application of AI.

The ACLU is already warning police departments that it doesn't think they should use this technology because of concerns about biases that the AI might insert into the report. Errors that might not be caught by the officers. And in Utah, they are requiring a disclosure that AI has been used to draft a police report so that everybody can sort of interrogate that and understand what's going on here.

BOLDUAN: Yes. I mean, the transparency, at least, should be the basis, right? Thanks, Clare. Really interesting reporting. Much more -- there's going to be much more on that for sure.

A new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts now. JESSICA DEAN, CNN ANCHOR: President Trump taking federal control over the D.C. police force, claiming crime and homelessness are out of control. And now he's warning it may not stop with the nation's capital.

Feeling out, Vladimir Putin. That's how President Trump's describing what he will do during Friday's summit in Alaska. He's leaving open exactly what may come out of the meeting as EU leaders make a new demand this morning that Ukraine must have a say.

And all eyes on the Bureau of Labor Statistics. We are standing by for new inflation data this hour as Trump taps a BLS critic to be its new commissioner after firing the old one because he just didn't like the job numbers.

I'm Jessica Dean with John Berman and Kate Bolduan. This is CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, this morning, what is next? Maybe where is next? We have a live look at the Washington, D.C. Armory, where National Guard troops are expected to report for duty today. The president's plan to take over policing in the city calls for employing roughly 800 guard members there.

We're also getting a new look at federal law enforcement agencies, their officers staging across Washington overnight. Yet, despite the president's portrayal of the city as overrun by, quote, bloodthirsty criminals, violent crime has dropped 26 percent there compared to this time last year.

The president's announcement sparked protests in the streets outside the White House. And while Washington's mayor, Muriel Bowser, calls the move, quote, unsettling, she indicated there is little she can do to prevent the takeover from the president.

CNN's Alayna Treene is at the White House with the latest this morning. So what is next, Alayna?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, look, I think a key question, of course, is how long can we expect this? We know that the president, under the authority that he cited, part of the Home Rule Act, he's able to do this for about 30 days, until mid-September. And then after that point, he will need congressional sign-off to have this federal takeover continue.

Of course, the key question is, one, whether Congress would allow that, and also if the president even wants to do that. But that's already kind of shaping up in some of the discussions we're hearing with lawmakers about how are they going to message on this. And that is a key question, is how is this going to play politically?

Because as you mentioned, you know, the timing of this is interesting. We have seen, you know, crime is still very high in D.C., but it's fallen since some of its highs, specifically back when you look at 2023. And so why now and how long the president wants to do this? Another key question as well is, is this going to be a model for some other cities? We heard the president yesterday say that potentially, if this is successful in D.C., he might try to do something similar in deploying federal law enforcement to cities like Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, all cities the president mentioned when addressing the press yesterday.

But there's also questions about how this is actually going to work here on the ground in Washington.

We know that many people in local law enforcement, that includes Mayor Muriel Bowser, were kind of caught off guard by this. They had been alerted, we have reported, according to our conversations with people here at the White House, that the White House had alerted them of the activation of National Guard troops to the city.

[08:05:00]

But they were caught off guard, John, by the federal takeover and the president using the D.C. Home Rule Act, Section 740, to really have this authority far more -- be far more potent.

Now, we did hear the mayor kind of address this yesterday. You mentioned it, but she said that it is unsettling and unprecedented and warned that people, you know, may trust police less because of this. I want you to listen how she put it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR MURIEL BOWSER, (D) WASHINTON, DC: This action today is unsettling and unprecedented. I can't say that given some of the rhetoric of the past, that we're totally surprised.

What would be a disaster if communities won't talk to the police, if a crime has been committed and could help solve that crime. That could be a disaster. It would be a disaster if people who aren't committing crimes are antagonized into committing crimes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: Now, I do think just noting the mayor's response has been important. She has actually, when we had first heard that the president was planning on doing this, she had been notably silent, not talking about it until Sunday. And now I think she's choosing her words very carefully because she recognizes that there's really not much she can do once the president had made this decision.

Because D.C., unlike other states, it's not a state, D.C. is just, you know, it's a government here, but it's not, you know, we don't have the right to vote, anything like that. And so it's very different in Washington than perhaps if the president was trying to do this in a state like California or Illinois or New York. And so there's a bit of a gray area here with how she is responding.

But again, questions of whether this could be potentially a model for other cities. And I also think the big picture is when you look at the president himself and why he's doing this, the timing, again, as I noted, is a bit odd given where crime is in the city. But it is something that has long been something that is simmering within him.

We know that this is an issue that he cared deeply about during his first term. But the people around him told him not to do it. This time, the people around him are telling him it's a great idea.

And so that's part of what is playing into all of this. But again, a key question moving forward and what we're actually going to see is how this plays politically. And right now, that's still unclear -- John.

BERMAN: Alayna Treene at the White House this morning. Thank you so much -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: Joining us right now is a Democratic Senator, Ankit Jain. He represents the District of Columbia in the U.S. Senate. Thanks for being here.

So today is supposedly a new day as the president has taken over the police department. What is different this morning, Senator? Is it clear what people in D.C. are going to see that is not what they saw yesterday?

ANKIT JAIN, (D) SHADOW SENATOR FOR WASHINGTON, DC: I mean, I think we're all waiting to see exactly how this is going to play out. I have a lot of concerns, but this was not coordinated with the local government, right? So we're all trying to watch and see what exactly is going to happen ourselves.

What I'm worried about, you heard the president say that the police can do whatever the hell they want right now. I don't think the problem in D.C. is that we have not enough police brutality, right? So what we need is police that actually helps us solve crimes and people who are willing to come to police and say, I know who did this crime.

And I'm worried things are only going to get worse from here, but it's a little bit of a to-be-seen to understand exactly how this is going to play out on the ground.

BOLDUAN: The mayor called the police takeover unsettling and unprecedented. What do you call it?

JAIN: I call it an abuse of power, right? The only reason this can happen to us in Washington, D.C., is because we are not a state. In no other city can the president take over the local police force. And I think that is ridiculous and insane. And the only way it can be stopped is if Washington, D.C., becomes a state. And so statehood is not just about representation, not just about democracy, but real people are impacted on the ground because we're not a state.

And we're seeing that right now. We're seeing -- we're going to be seeing the attacks on D.C. residents because we are not a state. So it just -- we just need to rededicate ourselves to the fight for statehood, because that's the the ultimate solution to what we're seeing here. BOLDUAN: The mayor, she has been noticeably diplomatic in her comments throughout. And at a time that Democratic voters are saying that they want to see their representatives push back more forcefully. Do you think she is doing enough?

JAIN: You know, she is in a difficult position. I don't envy where the mayor is right now. I know she's trying really hard to make this as least bad as possible for the residents of D.C. And so I'm not going to micromanage her response. I know she's trying really hard. And at the end of the day, we're all on the same team. We all agree that this is unnecessary, unprecedented, and it needs to stop as soon as possible.

BOLDUAN: The head of the D.C. police union praised the president's move and talked about how they -- he says they're facing a historic officer shortage. Let me play what he said yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GREGGORY PEMBERTON, PRESIDENT, DC POLICE UNION: We completely agree with the president that that crime in the District of Columbia is out of control and something needs to be done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[08:10:00]

BOLDUAN: What's your response to that?

JAIN: Well, first of all, is -- crime is decreasing in D.C., right? We're down 26 percent from last year to this year. We're down from pre-COVID to this year. So it's not just a decrease this year. It's been decreasing for several years now.

The president has lied relentlessly about crime in D.C. D.C. is -- I encourage everyone who's watching this to come to D.C. It's a beautiful city. I don't agree with this idea that, you know, it's an unsafe city, right? Like we can always do better, of course. We want to continue to do better. We want to continue driving down crime.

But there are so many other cities in this country that are so much worse than D.C. And I guess I'm asking you had Tim Burchett -- Congressman Tim Burchett, on just before. And you asked him, would you like the National Guard deployed in Memphis, which is worse than D.C.? Would you like it deployed in Nashville, which is worse than D.C.?

And so my question is, why are we -- are we going to federalize every single police force that's worse than D.C.? My stats have us as actually 51 using the 2025 stats. Are we going to federalize all 50 cities that have worse crime than D.C.? And so to say that we are having an issue where we need to be federalized, I think that is ridiculous. What we were doing is working. We need to be allowed to continue doing what we are doing before.

And I will say that a lot of the problems we have had in D.C. is the federal government not fulfilling its responsibilities that it already has over D.C., right? Many people don't know that the federal government has a lot of authority already over our criminal justice system. Every single judge who is on our local court is nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate.

The president has not been nominating any judges. The Senate has not been confirming. So we have a judicial vacancy crisis in D.C. Two out of every five -- one out of every five judges in D.C. is unfilled. And two out of the nine high court positions are unfilled. What does that mean? It means that cases are delayed. You see higher crime.

You have a U.S. attorney's office. Every single adult crime is prosecuted by an attorney appointed by the president. We don't have our own local prosecutor for adult crimes. And you had Jeanine Pirro, who is the president's appointee, go on Fox News the other day basically begging people to apply to work for her because she has a huge shortage in her office. Why is that?

Because her predecessor, Ed Martin, also an appointee from President Trump, fired dozens of hardworking prosecutors whose only crime was prosecuting violent January 6th insurrectionists. So I guess I would ask her and I would encourage journalists to ask her, is she going to offer those people their jobs back? If we have a huge crisis in staffing in that office, there are a lot of people who would like to continue to work for the office.

And if she's not going to hire them back, how can she blame D.C. for not prosecuting crimes when it's her own fault that she's not hiring the prosecutors she needs?

BOLDUAN: Very clear that this is not over. Senator Ankit Jain, thank you for your time -- John.

BERMAN: All right, European leaders demanding Ukraine have a say in its own future as President Trump and Vladimir Putin prepare to meet without Ukraine's president about ending the war.

And after the anemic jobs report that bothered the president so much he fired the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. We are standing by for new inflation numbers in just minutes. What might he do if these are not so good?

And then two Chinese military vessels collide on the high seas. Why this is a concern for international security.

[08:15:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BOLDUAN: This morning we have new comments in from Ukraine's leader just days ahead now of President Trump's historic meeting with Vladimir Putin. As President Trump talks about, as we've heard him say yesterday, land swapping with Russia, President Zelenskyy is saying that he's grateful to European leaders for -- and here's the quote -- their clear support of our independence, territorial integrity, and he added, we all support President Trump's determination and together we must shape positions that will not allow Russia to deceive the world once again.

European leaders earlier had stressed and continued to that Kyiv must have a say in its future, and here's President Trump's take yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This is really a feel- out meeting a little bit and President Putin invited me to get involved. There'll be some land swapping going on. I know that through Russia and through conversations with everybody.

To the good, for the good of Ukraine. Good stuff, not bad stuff. Also, some bad stuff for both.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: Joining me right now, CNN Global Affairs Analyst, former National Security Council coordinator Brett McGurk.

So Brett, Ukraine's being left out in the cold right now. Between Trump and Putin, does one enter this summit with more leverage or in a better position?

BRETT MCGURK, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: OK, that's a great question. Actually, the president comes in much stronger here, and when I used to negotiate with the Russians, one of my Russian experts said, you know, the Russians approach a negotiation like a bear approaches the dance. They will determine when the dance is going to end, unless you're the bigger bear.

And here, I think the president has built up some cards, as he likes to say, over the last month. He's been very clear. Without a ceasefire, he is going to impose significant sanctions on Russia and purchasers of Russian energy products.

He's made clear he is going to keep the military pipeline flowing to Ukraine through NATO with weapon systems purchased by NATO allies. So he has kind of firmed up his position with the declared objective of a ceasefire.

I think if he goes in, Kate, with a very clear position to Putin, stop this war on the line of contact. That is my core demand. If we leave this meeting without that, I'm walking out.

That is really important, because the way, and your lead-up just alluded to it, what Putin really wants out of this summit, coming to U.S. soil and sitting with the American president over maps to basically decide the future borders of Eastern Europe.

[08:20:00]

That is an image that Putin would covet. That would be really bad. I do not think we should give that to him.

Bottom line here, Kate, you have got to sometimes come in with a clear objective, simple objective. Stop the war. We need a ceasefire on that line of contact. Then we can talk about the just resolution and the endgame.

BOLDUAN: Brett, you said something to me last night that I have been sitting with, which is that a failed summit for Trump is not necessarily a bad thing. Why is that?

MCGURK: You know, I've been -- you know, if you go back to 1986, a very famous summit between President Reagan and Gorbachev in Reykjavik, Iceland, it was about nuclear -- cutting back nuclear weapon systems, which Reagan really wanted to do, and they thought they were pretty close to a deal. But in that summit, Gorbachev demanded that the U.S. agree not to ever deploy the missile defense system called Star Wars at the time. And Reagan said, no, absolutely not. And the whole summit collapsed.

And as they were walking out to what became that historic photo, a very grim demeanor after that summit, Gorbachev asked Reagan, you know, what else could we have done? And Reagan said, you could have said yes to what we had on the table and not put those additional demands on.

That was a failed summit. It collapsed. It raised tensions in the height of the Cold War.

A failed summit heading into midterm elections here in the U.S. I'm sure the White House didn't like that very much. But historians looking back said that summit actually set the foundation for historic nuclear weapons treaties and ultimately for -- it ultimately led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union and everything else. But that was really important. The summit failed, but it actually led to the objective.

So if you look at what's happening in Alaska, I think the president's early here in his second term. If he keeps to a firm bottom line and says, look, Vladimir, we've got to have a ceasefire. That's been my demand from the start of my presidency. Without a ceasefire, we're not going to be able to have this protracted process. Let's stop the war, stop the killing, get into the process.

I think you actually then set the foundation for a just resolution to this war. If Putin gets what he wants and he's able to put the burden back on Zelenskyy and he's able to convince Trump that he is the reasonable actor here, I think we're in for a very difficult coming period in Ukraine because that leverage the president built up here over the last six weeks or so I think would dissipate. I know that is a concern of the Europeans. Let's hope that doesn't happen.

Bottom line, Kate, the president comes in with a strong hand. And if he plays it, I think it can set the foundation for peace and a just resolution to this war.

BOLDUAN: I was just thinking there are a few days before they're supposed to meet on Friday. And if Russia or Ukraine makes a big push on the battlefield in this time, I would say let's say if Russia makes a big tries to make a big push in Ukraine within these days, how does that impact or do you think should impact if the summit happens or how the summit plays out? MCGURK: Yes, my experience in negotiations with the Russians before you sit down, they often do something to kind of set the conditions in their favor. It would not surprise me. I know they are making an offensive here, moving on various areas of eastern Ukraine.

And I think they'll probably will tend to do that. That's why, again, Kate, I go back to this point. The president from the beginning of his presidency, you need a ceasefire.

In March, the Ukrainians agreed to his demand. And Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who will be at the summit, said at the time Russian reciprocity is the key to peace now. The Russians have done nothing but escalate the war.

And so if you see that in the run up to the summit, I think that is a very bad sign. And again, it just it suggests that perhaps this summit has not been as well set up as you might want.

So you've got to keep it simple. You've got to try to go for one objective. It is that ceasefire. And the outcome is more important than the performative aspect of the summit.

The outcome really matters here. I know there's a lot of concern in Europe, a lot of concern with the Ukrainians. If you're not at the table, sometimes you're on the menu. That's a legitimate concern. But if the president stays firm, you could set the foundation for peace. That's what we all want.

BOLDUAN: Yes, the outcome being more important than the performative nature of the summit is something people need to probably remember. Brett McGurk, it is great to see you. I'm sure we'll talk before then.

MCGURK: Thanks, Kate.

BOLDUAN: And you can read more of Brett's great new analysis that just posted on CNN.com right now -- Jessica

DEAN: President Trump replacing the Washington, D.C. police force under federal control. So how do Americans feel about that? Harry Enten is here to run the numbers for us.

And President Trump also naming his pick to head up the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the agency that compiles key jobs and inflation data. What we know about his nominee, just as a key inflation report, is set to be released at any moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DEAN: President Trump putting other major cities on notice as he takes over the D.C. police force and mobilizes 800 National Guard troops into the nation's capital. The president saying he wants federal agencies to combat crime that he believes is out of control.

Let's bring in CNN chief data analyst Harry Enten to break these numbers down for us. So, Harry, let's start first with -- do D.C. residents actually want this? HARRY ENTEN, CNN CHIEF DATA ANALYST: No, no, they hate this whole idea. I think there's some idea out there that Trump's somehow a conquering hero. But he's, in fact, is welcomed in Washington, D.C. as Eagles fans are Commanders games. What are we talking about here?

Well, take a look here. D.C. residents on Trump and local issues. He's too involved. Look at this. 71 percent say he is too involved in this.

And this of course, was even before Monday's actions compared to just 11 percent, just 11 percent who say they want him more involved. In fact, a majority of every single demo tested by The Washington Post in a poll earlier this year found that they believe that he was, in fact, too involved. D.C. residents hate, hate, hate this whole idea of Trump getting involved in local issues.

DEAN: But how do they feel about crime?

[08:30:00]