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Sources Say, White House Has List of Agencies It's Targeting With Mass Firings; Soon, Judge Sentences Sean Diddy Combs; Labor Department Not Releasing September Jobs Report. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired October 03, 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]

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: The battle of the shutdown getting even nastier. The Senate expected to vote again today. However, as the President gets ready to follow through on his threats of mass permanent firings. The White House telling CNN there already know which departments will be targeted and thousands of jobs are on the line.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: We are standing by to the sentence of Sean Combs this morning, and we're just seeing the letter he wrote to the judge overnight.

And the most anticipated album since her last one, millions of fans up all night to listen to Taylor Swift's Life of a Showgirl. The reviews are in.

Kate is out today. I'm John Berman with Sara Sidner. This is CNN News Central.

SIDNER: Breaking this morning, the battle over the shutdown getting darker. We are now in day three. Thousands of federal employees are waking up on edge as mass firings threatened by the White House could come as soon as today. Sources telling CNN the White House has already put together a list of agencies they intend to target with cuts, some because of their DEI policies.

But according to officials, mostly because the administration simply doesn't think they align with the president's priorities.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: We're going to start looking across the board at layoffs and at agencies that we feel do not best serve the American taxpayer, that may need to be halted or permanently cut.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: The attacks on the Democrats don't stop there. Multiple furloughed Department of Education workers say that an automatic out of office message was sent from their emails on their behalf without their consent. And what did they say? They say they're unavailable because Senate Democrats are refusing to vote and fund the government.

There is little hope at this point for an end to this today, at least. In just hours, Democrats expected to vote down the Republican short- term spending plan in the Senate, and a move that would almost guarantee the shutdown extends into next week.

CNN's Alayna Treene is live from the White House with the very latest. Do you have a sense of which agencies are on the list here?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Not yet. Although, as I mentioned, when I talked with White House officials yesterday, Sara, they do already have a list that they are looking at, a list of the agencies that they're looking at cutting. They would not divulge the specifics with me beyond saying that, really, they're targeting agencies that they believe do not align with the president's priorities.

And I think we have to be clear, the context here is so important that, you know, typically during a shutdown, yes, you do see a lot of federal workers furloughed, which is essentially being temporary laid off because there's no more money coming in to the government and so they can't pay these workers. What the Trump administration is thinking about doing is quite different. They are looking at permanently firing thousands of people and arguing that this shutdown is a good pretext to do that.

Now, talking about some of those agencies, I will tell you that Russell Vought, he's the White House's budget chief, he essentially has had a list of places that he believes need to be cut budgets and different -- you know, different programs, for example, that he believes could be slashed. He had that for a long time. He has been looking at kind of mass layoffs for some time now. But now they're arguing the shutdown gives them a good opportunity to do that.

And one thing as well that I think we need to be clear on is that this has never happened before. We dug into the data and looked at the 14 or so shutdowns that have happened under previous administrations. No other president or administration has used a shutdown to implement these kinds of cuts and mass layoffs that this administration is talking about.

And all of this comes, of course, as we're still seeing really no end in sight to this shutdown itself. Negotiations have not really begun in earnest. Of course, we saw some of the Democratic leaders and, of course, the Republican leaders in the Congress come to the White House on Monday that did nothing to stave off a shutdown.

And instead, we're still seeing both sides blame the other and really have no real substantial way of how they're going to get out of this.

[07:05:01]

I want you to listen to what we heard from both House Speaker Mike Johnson, but also the House minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA): If they don't, and if they keep the government closed, it's going to get more and more painful because the resources run out and more and more things have to be reduced and eliminated.

Democrats are the ones who have decided to inflict the pain, not the president.

REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY): They've been firing federal employees all along. That's a shame. These are hardworking public servants.

They need to come to the table. We can go back to the White House or they can come up here and we can have a conversation to end this shutdown. They're hurting the American people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: Now, Sara, in my conversations with people in that building behind me, they told me that they are looking at announcing these, what they call riffs (ph) reductions in force, but really those mass layoffs as soon as today could potentially also begin over the weekend. All to say they are looking to move very quickly and, again, take advantage of what they argue is an opportunity with this shutdown down.

SIDNER: Yes. And part of the messaging I found interesting that you had, you know, the speaker saying, look, Russell Vought takes no pleasure in these firings. And then you had Donald Trump posting an A.I.-generated video of Russell Vought as the grim reaper. So, it is hard to kind of put those two things in the same vein without thinking that that really is a little extra punishment, making fun of those who will be fired apparently shortly.

So, thank you so much for all your reporting there at the White House for us. John?

BERMAN: All right. It is sentencing day for Sean Combs convicted in July on two prostitution related cows. He's expected to speak in court before the sentence is handed down. New this morning, we're getting a look at the pre-produced video his attorneys plan to show highlighting the positive contributions they say he has made in his life. We're also getting a preview of what he might say in a letter to the judge pleading for mercy, writing among other things that he's been, quote, humbled and broken to his core. Now, we should know that Combs was acquitted on the most serious charges in this case.

Let's get right to see as Kara Scannell outside the courthouse this morning. A big day for Sean Combs, Kara.

KARA SCANNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John. It is. It is the day that Sean Combs will learn his fate if he will spend years in prison or if he could be released in just a matter of months. This all comes down in just a few hours from now. And as you said, in the last 24 hours, he has made a push to try to present a softer side to him, the side of a father, with that pre-produced video that was submitted to the court and that he wants to play today, as well as a letter. He's trying to counter the image that the prosecution has, that he's a violent man and a man that should be punished and spend years in prison. Combs writing a letter to the judge, three and a half pages, and in that letter he apologized for his conduct. It's the first time he has done so since he has been charged in this case and throughout the trial. He wrote, I want to apologize and say how sincerely, sorry I am for all of the hurt and pain that I have caused others by my conduct. I take full responsibility and accountability for my past wrongs.

He also addressed what has been at the heart of this case and the heart of the government's push for him to serve years in prison, and that is the physical violence that came out at this trial, that video at the Intercontinental Hotel where Combs is seen punching, kicking, and dragging his girlfriend, Cassie Ventura. That was a key part of the case played repeatedly during the trial. So, Combs addressed that, apologizing to Ventura. He said to the judge, the scene and images of me assaulting Cassie play over and over in my head daily. I'm sorry for that and always will be. My domestic violence will always be a heavy burden that I will have to forever carry.

Now, the prosecution will address the judge today, and they are asking the judge to sentence comb to more than 11 years in prison. A key piece of this, they say he's a violent man and that he has shown zero -- sorry, he's not shown that he is making any sort of amends in this case, and they say that he needs to be punished for this.

Now his team, and as part of that, the government says that they are going to call one of the victims who testified at the case. She was a former employee of Combs, Mia. She alleged that Combs had physically assaulted her and sexually assaulted her. She's not part of the prostitution related charges that he was convicted of but the judges allowing her to speak to the court, that is supposed to last about five minutes.

And we are not expecting to hear from Ventura or the woman who testified under the pseudonym, Jane, who was also part of that sex trafficking charge of which Combs was acquitted. We're not expecting them to be here today, so it'll be the prosecution speaking and Mia speaking for about five minutes. Then Combs is expected to address the court himself. We already have a sense of what he's going to say, but it's expected to be a packed courtroom with his family and friends there, as they've been throughout the trial. and then he will learn whether he's going to face years in prison or if he will get out in what he's hoping for a 14 month sentence essentially time served. John?

BERMAN: It will all unfold shortly this morning.

[07:10:00]

Kara Scannell, great to have you there, thank you very much.

Breaking overnight, an explosion, a huge fire rips through one of the largest oil refineries on the West Coast, the fireball visible for miles. A CNN exclusive on a disturbingly fast-growing phenomenon across the country, fake ICE agents terrifying communities.

And an in-depth line-by-line analysis of the new Taylor Swift album. It has been out for a few hours. We've got all the reviews.

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[07:15:00]

BERMAN: All right. There is breaking news this morning. Police say one of the two victims who died in the attack at a synagogue outside Manchester and England was accidentally shot by officers aiming for the killer. Two Jewish worshipers were killed, three others seriously injured in the attack, which was a stabbing attack. Police say one of the three people hospitalized also suffered a gunshot wound. Officials say they believe the suspect did not have a gun, therefore, it must have been the police gunfire that hit the victims. Sara?

SIDNER: Wow. All right, thank you, John.

New this morning, today was supposed to be the release of the September jobs report from the government. Instead, the agency behind the critical report is closed because of the government shutdown. And there will be no more employment data until the government is funded and open again.

Now, Senator Elizabeth Warren responding to all this, the top Democrat, of course on the Senate Banking Committee, calling on the Trump administration to go ahead and release that report. She says, the decision to withhold it leaves economists and analysts in the dark.

CNN's Matt Egan joining us now. She's not wrong in some ways, right? You do have the private report that has come out because obviously that is not closed down, but with these government reports, so many people rely on, including the Fed, using those for what to do next.

MATT EGAN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Yes, absolutely, Sara. Look, the government shutdown, it's causing this information blackout, a self- inflicted information blackout when it comes to the most critical economic numbers. And the first major casualty is, yes, the monthly jobs report, which is kind of like the MVP of the monthly economic numbers that could get put out. And you're right, it does leave people in the dark here about what's going on. I mean, this report was supposed to come out in, what, just over an hour, but it's not because the BLS is dark.

Now, Elizabeth Warren. She is calling for the Trump administration to release her report anyway. She says that former BLS staffers tell her that the data's been collected and the report is likely ready for release. She put out a letter to Trump officials asking them to release this report, and she said, withholding this data would undermine the Fed's ability to make informed decisions that affect every American household, through interest rates, the job market and price stability. And it's true, Fed officials, they always say they are data-dependent. They make decisions on whether to lower interest rates or raise them based on the data. But right now, there is no official data to be reliant on.

Now, economists were expecting that this report today, that was supposed to come out today, was going to show that hiring picked up a little bit in September, right? The consensus was for a gain of 50,000 jobs. That's still pretty low, but that would be more than twice the very weak piece of August.

Now, even though there's no official jobs report, there's a lot of other indicators out there that do paint a similar picture, which is that the job market is slumping, right, construction job openings falling at the second fastest pace in history. There's now more people who are unemployed than there are open jobs. There's also the fact that the hiring rate has slowed to very, very low levels.

And then there's the ADP report that you were mentioning that showed that hiring that private sector payrolls in the month of September, they collapsed. They felt much, much more than expected.

The other thing that really stood out is what you can see on the screen there, that chart shows how hiring is going in terms of business size. And what really stands out is it's only the orange line, which is the biggest companies that are actually hiring right now. Everyone else is shrinking in terms of workforce. And it's not just the jobs report. There's a whole number of different indicators on jobs, on inflation, imports and exports, all of which are not expected to come out as long as this shutdown goes on.

And I do think that's the other thing here. It's not just that we have an information vacuum. It's that it's coming when the economy is weak. I mean, this would be like a pilot losing all of their instruments when they're flying and not on a sunny day, but at night in a storm.

SIDNER: That is really dire when you think about it in that way. But they need this data to try to figure out what to do to try to buoy the economy. We will see what happens. We'll see how long this lasts. But if it lasts too long it's -- we're definitely going to see the effects of it, I think you're saying.

EGAN: Yes, absolutely, Sara.

SIDNER: All right, thank you.

EGAN: Thank you.

SIDNER: All right, Matt Egan there for you guys.

Later this morning we should mention, we're going to speak with the labor secretary. We're going to -- John Berman will be talking to labor secretary coming up. So you want to stick around for that.

Ahead Amazon resumes, drone deliveries today in Arizona after two drones crashed into a crane, sparking a fire. And some people are popping champagne after the Yankees, some people, where are you people? I'm not hearing cheers in this room. That's what I thought. Oh, John's crying.

[07:20:00]

We'll talk all about that coming up.

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BERMAN: All right, a big victory for a Massachusetts native in longtime Red Sox fan. Let's get right to CNN's Andy Scholes. Good morning, Andy. I'm trying.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yes, I liked the way you didn't say Yankees at all in that intro, but sorry about your Red Sox, but, I mean, what are you going to do on a night where a Yankees rookie pitcher Cam Schlittler was just so, so good. You know, he grew up a Red Sox fan, as you mentioned, and not only did he knock them out, he did it in historic fashion.

Schlittler's stuff was just electric all night long. The 24-year-old making his postseason debut pitched eight shutout innings with 12 strikeouts without a walk. Schlittler is the first pitcher ever to do that in a postseason game. And get this, Schlittler had never even done any of those things. He had never pitched eight innings, never had 12 strikeouts, and he had never not allowed a walk. I mean, just what a time to have the game of his life.

The Yankees would win four to, nothing to advance to the divisional round, will though face the Blue Jays. and here was Schlittler after his incredible performance.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAM SCHLITTLER, NEW YORK YANKEES ROOKIE PITCHER: It was an epic environment, really. So, you know, one in a lifetime opportunity.

[07:25:01]

Just going to make sure I'm going to take it all in. It's definitely a dream to, you know, play Boston in the playoffs and end their season.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: All right. Padres fans meanwhile are likely still sick this morning. Top of the ninth, they're down by two Xander Bogaerts at the plate, full count. He gets rung up by the umpire on the pitch that was just way, way low. It wasn't even close to a strike. Next season, Bogaerts could tap his helmet to challenge that call. It should have been a walk.

The next two Padres reached base, so it would've been bases loaded, no outs, potentially. Instead, Freddy Fermin flies out to end the game later. San Diego leaving the tying run on base. The Cubs, they win that series 3-1 in game three. They move on to face the Brewers. All right, finally, on Thursday night football, the Rams were hosting the shorthanded 49ers. Brock Purdy out for San Fran, but no worries, because Mac Jones just continues to play great. He threw for 342 yards and two touchdowns.

This game went to overtime. And instead of kicking the field goal for the tie, Sean McVay is going to go for it on fourth and one from the 11. The Niners stuffed Kyren Williams. They celebrate as they hold on to win 26-23. McVay said that was a bad call and he was sick about it afterwards.

But, John, Mac Jones, 3-0 as a starter for the Niners, Kendrick Bourne at 142 yards receiving, your former Patriots doing quite well there in San Francisco.

BERMAN: Yes, no kidding. And I had the Rams in a survivor pool, so that was great. It really went well for me last night.

Andy Sholes with the sports --

SCHOLES: Yes, a rough Thursday night.

BERMAN: All the sports games went really well. Andy, thank you very much. Have a good weekend.

All right, falling into the ocean again and again, it keeps happening. New video of the latest home loss to the storms churning off the coast. Just amazing.

A new backlash this morning after the FDA green lights a new generic abortion pill.

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