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Sentencing for Sean "Diddy" Combs; Rep. John Garamendi (D-CA) is Interviewed about the Shutdown; Lori Chavez-DeRemer is Interviewed about the Jobs Report Delay. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired October 03, 2025 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:00]

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: This school to make childhood magical and learning magical. And you know every day I try to make this show magical for John Berman, and it never works. So, congratulations because you have done it. I have failed. I need to come to class.

Allison Foerster, thank you so much. We really do appreciate it.

A new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts now.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, very shortly we could learn the sentence for Sean Combs. Will he spend years in prison? This as we're getting our first look at a letter he wrote to the judge overnight.

Mass layoffs as soon as today. White House insiders say an announcement could be coming in their latest move in the government shutdown.

And this morning, an explosion lights up the sky near Los Angeles. What we now know about this huge fire at an oil refinery.

Kate is out. I'm John Berman, with the fabulous Sara Sidner. This is CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

How much time will Sean Combs get behind bars? Very shortly sentencing gets underway in New York after his July conviction on two prostitution related counts. New this morning, courts say -- court sources say that this really could last a while, all day the sentencing could, potentially even lasting into Monday. We're also learning that attorneys for Combs plan to play a pre-produced video highlighting what they say are his positive contributions to society. Also, in a letter to the judge overnight, he was asking for mercy, writing that he has been, quote, "humbled and broken to his core." We should note that Combs was acquitted of the most serious charges in the case.

Let's get right to CNN's Kara Scannell, who as Sara has long noted, spends more time in courtrooms than most attorneys. You covered this case from the beginning. Today, the beginning of the end.

KARA SCANNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is, John, it's the beginning of the end. And Sean Combs will learn his fate, whether he is going to serve several more years in prison, or if he could be ending this prison sentence. He has been detained for about a year since his arrest last September. A big day today for him. And his lawyers have done a last-ditch effort to try to convince the judge that Combs is not the violent man that prosecutors say he is. They've submitted a 15-minute video montage of Combs' life, portraying him as a father, a loving father, someone who is involved in his community, who lifts other people up. And also submitting a letter to the judge, this three-and-a-half-page letter. Combs admits -- says that he is sorry. It's the first time we've heard that from him since the charges were announced. He says, "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 speaks to the domestic violence that's at the center of this case, something that the prosecutors have leaned on for why he should get a sentence that they say of more than 11 years in prison. Combs addresses that. That video that the jury saw repeatedly of him kicking and dragging Cassie Ventura in the hotel room after one of these freak-offs, that's the -- the sex drug-fueled events that was part of the sex trafficking charge that Combs was acquitted of. So, Combs says of that, he says, "the scene and the 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 carry forever."

So, the defense, as you 'd expect, trying to show him as a changed man. Someone who is taking accountability. But the prosecution is expected to spend considerable time laying out why they think he is violent, that people are afraid of him. Cassie Ventura submitted a letter to the judge saying that she fears for her safety, has moved her family away from New York and is worried about retribution for her testimony. She is not expected to be here today, but prosecutors are going to have one other victim speak to the judge. This is a former employee of Combs who testified under the pseudonym Mia. She is expected to speak for about five minutes. She says she is still psychologically scarred from Combs and is dealing with this to this day.

But this is expected to go on for several hours we're learning. There are long presentations expected by the attorneys. Four of Combs' lawyers want to speak. Combs himself will address the judge. And part of the issue here is going to be these arguments over technical -- technicalities within the sentencing guidelines and whether Combs should get enhancements or not enhancements. That is going to eat up some of this time as the judge hears all of this.

And then he will hand down his sentence. The prosecution is asking for more than 11 years. Combs' lawyers are asking for 14 months in prison. That would essentially be time served, since he has already been in jail since his arrest. So, a lot at stake for Combs and a lot at stake for his victims.

John.

BERMAN: Yes, a big disparity between what the attorneys on each side are asking for here. We will see how this develops throughout the day.

[09:05:00]

Great to have you there. Kara Scanell, thank you very much.

Sara.

SIDNER: All right, joining me now is CNN legal analyst Jennifer Rodgers. And we're also going to be going out to the scene where Laura Coates is in just a bit.

Jennifer, I want to start with you.

I want to read a little bit of this -- of this letter that -- that Sean Combs submitted or his attorneys submitted to the court. And it says, "over the past 13 months, I have had to look in the mirror like never before. My pain became my teacher, my sadness, my motivator. I have to admit, my downfall was rooted in my selfishness. The scene and images of me assaulting Cassie play over and over again in my head daily. I literally lost my mind."

How impactful is that considering Cassie also wrote a letter that we just heard Kara talk about where she says she's worried about retribution.

JENNIFER RODGERS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yes, I think it was a pretty good letter, Sara. I mean, I think that Diddy will speak to the judge in the proceeding. And so the judge, obviously, will be able to see him and evaluate that as well. But it's a pretty good letter. You know, he doesn't make excuses. He admits the violence. He talks about it. He talks about how he's changed, his faith, his sobriety. So, you know, I think as these letters go, you know, sometimes defendants won't really take responsibility for what they've done.

SIDNER: Right, try to (INAUDIBLE).

RODGERS: And he does. So, I thought it was pretty good.

SIDNER: Important for him to sort of take responsibility in order for the judge to say, OK, maybe he is starting -- or is becoming rehabilitated.

RODGERS: Yes.

SIDNER: Laura, I'm going to go out to you, out at the court waiting for this sentencing to get underway here.

Laura, we understand that Combs' lawyers are going to play this 15- minute video. Do we know what's in that video?

LAURA COATES, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF LEGAL ANALYST: Well, first of all, yes, t hat is a luxury to have a defendant be able to -- a convicted felon be able to play a video that is potentially a collection of home videos talking about his fatherhood, trying to portray him as somebody who needs to return to his family. Consistent with what he is saying in his letter to the judge about wanting to be viewed, not as a celebrity, but viewed as a family man, a son, a father of seven children. And he wants that to be on display.

But the single biggest point of contention that everyone is wondering about, Sara, is to what extent this judge will take into account the violent accusations that were alleged in the courtroom but then not convicted when it came time to the jury verdict. Specifically, the prosecution is saying, you have to take into account, not things he was acquitted for, the racketeering, the sex trafficking, which requires fraud and force and coercion, but the manner in which he performed, the things that he was convicted of. I'm talking about transportation for the purpose of prostitution. The prosecution wants the judge to consider the violence.

Now, the defense is saying, well, hold on a second, your honor, the jury did hear that, sex trafficking, there was an acquittal, that contemplated fraud and force and violence. If they didn't think that was an issue to convict, you can't contemplate it right now.

So, we're wondering, when a judge has had the bulk of a summer, we're talking months --

SIDNER: Yes.

COATES: To consider what he will ultimately do, has had Diddy in jail this entire time pending this moment, I wonder what will be the single most persuasive factor for this judge going into today. And it could very well be the constraints of the guidelines that put him at the lower end and far away from where the judge, the prosecution says, should be 11 years.

SIDNER: Stay with us, Laura. I want to get back to Jennifer real quick here because dovetailing off of what Laura said about these other charges that were there, but they were not convicted, can a -- can a judge do that at this point, use some of the testimony and some of the evidence from the trial to say, like, I know you were not convicted of these crimes, but we're going to consider this in the sentencing for the other crimes that you were convicted of?

RODGERS: So it's interesting, Sara, because it used to be the case that a judge could consider anything. Explicitly, a judge could consider acquitted conduct. But last year the guidelines were changed, and now it says they are not supposed to consider acquitted conduct.

The issue is, is there overlap here? Can you fairly say that some of that evidence about coercion and force actually also does go to the crime of conviction, namely the transportation for purposes of prostitution. So, the judge is going to have to figure out, you know, what that conduct that he is or is not going to consider, is that fairly cabined within the crime of conviction? And he has to sort that out before he can decide on the sentence.

SIDNER: Laura, if you are still with us, I am curious, because you were out there for the entirety of this trial and you covered it ad nauseam. I mean, so well, I'm curious what the scene has been, because it has been a pretty crazy place when it comes to those who have come to see, you know, Sean Combs in person and see what happens in this trial. COATES: As Kara Scannell or Elizabeth Wagmeister will tell you from the duration of this entire trial as well, there has been no shortage of people who have been deeply interested, and some invested in the outcome of this particular trial. There is -- every single day there are hoards of people who are gathered outside the courthouse, either to see who is arriving, or to lend support, or critique to those who come.

[09:10:10]

Sean "Diddy" Combs' mother arrived moments ago. His family also in tow, who have also been here throughout the duration of the trial, including different motions to try to get him released from jail. But this has become a cultural and social and at times political flashpoint. Political being, because, of course, there was a posthumous pardon granted by the now president of the United States for a Mann Act violation of then boxer Jack Johnson, a very different circumstance at a time when the Mann Act, also known as the White Fugitive Slave Act, was used in very different contexts in order to make sure that interracial relationships were also punished, and along with other aspects of it. Here we're using the Mann Act in a very different way, leaving (p) this particular federal government who prosecuted.

But there has been a whole lot of people who are wondering, in a -- can we call it a post-Me Too world? I don't know that we can. But in a post-Cosby, Weinstein trial Me Too world, what would be the outcome here?

And what we've seen truly is the court of public opinion on full display. I am honored to obviously be on CNN and a part of the so- called legacy media, but the influencers and live streamers who were here every single day giving their take, giving what they believe should happen here, have been a deep part of this court of public opinion.

SIDNER: It is all very interesting.

Laura Coates, thank you to you. We -- I know we'll be hearing more from you.

And, Jennifer Rodgers, really appreciate you coming on this morning.

John.

BERMAN: All right, this morning, police in England now say one of the victims who died in the synagogue attack was likely shot by police.

FEMA holding on to hundreds of millions of dollars meant to help states prepare for emergencies.

And everything we have learned in just the last few minutes about Taylor Swift's new album, including what is Sara Sidner's favorite song?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [09:16:45]

SIDNER: This just in to CNN. The federal government just put $2.1 billion in infrastructure funding on hold in Chicago as the government shutdown heads into day three. Another of Trump's punishments to Democratically run cities during the shutdown. The White House budget chief saying the freeze is, to, quote, "ensure funding is not flowing via race-based contracting."

And President Trump is promising more pain. Thousands of permanent firings that could be announced today after his discussion with Russell Vought, the director of the Office of Management and Budget. Trump posting an A.I. generated video with Vought as the grim reaper.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (singing): Russ Vought is the reaper. He wields the pen, the funds and the brain. Here comes the reaper. Dems you babies. Here comes the reaper.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: Joining me now is Democratic Congressman John Garamendi of California.

I just want to get your reaction on how you'd characterize that video that the president put out as hundreds of thousands of families are dealing with furloughs.

REP. JOHN GARAMENDI (D-CA): His entire action on the shutdown has just been reprehensible. It is not worthy of a president. It's just a terrible way in which to run a country, to lead this country. And here we are. We're just going to have to live with this.

SIDNER: Back in 2013, when the Tea Party was a thing, and the -- and the government shut down, you said that this was a pointless, destructive and preventable crisis orchestrated by the 80 person Tea Party. Republicans are now basically saying that about Democrats. Do you see the parallels there?

GARAMENDI: No, I don't. What I see is the Republican Party, led by Trump, absolutely refusing to deal, negotiate, even talk to the Democrats about the public policy issues. The budget, the tax policy, and now the shutdown.

Keep in mind that there was a -- that the Democratic leadership requested a meeting with the president more than, you know, ten days ago. The president refused to do that. Actually did a meeting the day before the shutdown, which by all accounts was just a nonstarter and resulted in the president putting out a video, an A.I. generated video, that was, frankly, quite racist.

SIDNER: He's --

GARAMENDI: So, the negotiations did not take place way, way back with the beginning of the big, ugly bill. Trump called it beautiful. There was nothing beautiful in it. It was $1 trillion tax cut, 80 percent of that tax cut went to the super wealthy. To finance that, the Republicans decided to absolutely gut the health care programs for the working men and women. The Medicaid programs are going to be slashed in 2026. And right now the subsidies, the support for health insurance programs and the ACA are going to terminate in another month or two months. All of that is an attack on the working men and women and on our health care system. That's what they did.

And so we've asked for negotiations.

[09:20:00]

We wanted to negotiate. And the Republicans have simply refused to do so up to this moment.

SIDNER: Congressman Garamendi, let me ask you about where we are right now. Is there anything happening that gives you some sense -- I mean are Democrats going to go ahead and -- and say no to passing this bill on the vote today? And if so, is there any negotiation happening at the -- at this hour?

GARAMENDI: Well, the Republican leader, Senator Thune, said something that I think is very, very important. He said, let's just pass this seven week continuing resolution and we will sit down and we'll negotiate on this issue of the subsidies for the health insurance programs for the working poor and for the working men and women and families. Well, if he wants to negotiate, sit down and do it today. There's time. And what is it, 9:15, 9:20 in Washington, D.C. Senator Thune, sit down with the -- with the Democratic leadership and negotiate it now. It's very simple. All you need to do is add a paragraph to the continuing resolution that would say that the subsidies for the ACA health insurance premiums will continue. Done. Then we'll pass this bill. It will be done. And it could be done by noon. And the, I don't know, I could get on an airplane and be back in Washington tomorrow morning.

SIDNER: That is an interesting proposal. We'll see if they -- that is responded to, Congressman Garamendi.

Lastly, we have something in common. As you and I both discovered, you have also been battling cancer. I know you've been getting treatment for blood cancer since last year. And I want to get your response to something that was in "The New York Times" recently. They published this bold statement, and I want to show you what it says. I'm sure that you have seen this. It says, "Trump Is Shutting Down the War on Cancer," basically canceling funding to a bunch of research entities. Are you seeing the impact of this, and what is your greatest concern about this?

GARAMENDI: Well, first of all, after one year of treatment, I am in remission. And I'm going to stay there.

SIDNER: (INAUDIBLE).

GARAMENDI: We'll continue with treatment probably for the rest of my life. But I am in remission. And I know that you -- you're having success yourself.

But the fact of the matter is that the big ugly bill, as Trump has continued to implement it, is absolutely gutting health care research all around this nation, and specifically gutting research in the major cancer research centers, most of which are in blue states. So, he's -- he's using his revenge to go after all kinds of health care research, cancer research specifically, and targeting specific states where most of the research is done. It is, again, reprehensible. It is not becoming of the president of the United States to do that. The effect of it is going to be that thousands or hundreds of thousands of Americans will not ever have a treatment for their specific cancer.

I count myself lucky because I do and did. But the reality is that the war on cancer is stalled, and the president is specifically responsible for that. And I must also lay blame on the Republicans because the big, ugly bill actually cut the research funding, all across this nation, on all kinds of research, energy research, health research and also research into the very nature of the way in which we work or fail to work with each other.

SIDNER: Congressman John Garamendi, we will leave it there. I am happy to hear that you are in remission as we speak now. It is a lifelong thing that you have to pay attention to, but it is good news to hear that. Appreciate you coming on and taking the time right now.

GARAMENDI: Thank you.

SIDNER: All right, let's go to live pictures now from a place you are well familiar with, Congressman, El Segundo, California, in the Los Angeles area. Crews pouring water on a major fire at an oil refinery there. We will give you an update on what's happening this morning.

And Florida's Treasure Coast is living up to the name. $1 million worth of silver and gold coins found in a shipwreck.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:29:04]

BERMAN: It is the first Friday of the month. And the first Friday of the month is usually jobs Friday, which means the report from the Labor Department on how many jobs were added in the last month. But thanks to the government shutdown, there is no release of the official jobs report for September this morning. Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren is calling on the Labor Department to release the data. She says withholding it leaves analysts and economists in the dark and leaves the Federal Reserve without the complete picture of current economic data needed to make decisions.

With us now is the secretary of labor, Lori Chavez -DeRemer.

Thanks so much for being with us. Appreciate your time this morning.

Elizabeth Warren, the senator, is saying, look, all this data was prepared before the shutdown. You have it before you. Why not just release it? What do you say to that? LORI CHAVEZ-DEREMER, LABOR SECRETARY: Well, I couldn't agree with

Senator Warren enough. If -- to release this report, we need the government open. That's exactly right.

[09:29:59]

You know, the markets do depend on this information. And every single month, since I've been on the job, we have released the information and worked with BLS. We need that government open.