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Millions Set to Lose SNAP Benefits; Andrea Joy Campbell is Interviewed about Suing Regarding SNAP; Trump Wants Nuclear Testing; New Suspects Arrested in Louvre Heist; Tom Curtis is Interviewed about Beef Prices. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired October 30, 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: What are your thoughts?

BRETT BARLEY, BUXTON, NORTH CAROLINA RESIDENT AND PROFESSIONAL SURFER: Well, I mean, my job professionally surfing has been somewhat revolved around big waves. So, you know, for me, the bigger the system I see over my whole life, the more excited I am because we're going to get an opportunity here to surf waves that you don't get to surf, you know, super often. We maybe get four to five big swells between September and March each year since I was little. Real big ones. Like the ones we've seen this past month. And for me that's exciting -- it used to be exciting.

But now, with the state of things, like my favorite wave that I grew up surfing, the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, you can't surf it now. These homes fall down. There's debris in the water. There's debris on the beach. And, you know, it's pretty hard to be excited about something that I know is going to terrorize my town. And so now the storms and the swell numbers and the forecasts I used to look at and get excited for, I dread, because now I know what that means. And right now there's no end in sight to how bad it can get because, like I said, with no buffer and with -- with the sandbars moving in as homes fall down, it just -- it's continuing.

SIDNER: It's hard to watch.

BARLEY: It is.

SIDNER: And some of the family tradition of building those homes, gone.

Brett Barley, thank you so much for joining us this morning. Really appreciate it.

A new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news this morning, a new order from President Trump, upending decades of U.S. nuclear policy, ordering the Pentagon to restart tests on America's nuclear arsenal. Russia is now responding.

Five more suspects arrested in connection with the Louvre jewelry heist. So, where are those crown jewels?

And he is team USA's biggest hype man. Flavor Flav is back and better than ever for another Olympics. This time taking on bobsledding. He'll be our guest.

I'm Kate Bolduan, with Sara Sidner and John Berman. This is CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, this morning, millions of Americans are scrambling to figure out how to feed themselves and their children. They lose crucial food benefits when the SNAP program runs out of money this Saturday. That is because of the government shutdown. This is what one recipient just told us about how she will manage the situation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELIZABETH AUSTIN, SNAP RECIPIENT: We'll pull from other parts of our budget. And that means my kids will go without. My daughter's birthday's coming up. You know, it means I'll compensate in other areas that I shouldn't have to compensate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: All right, with us now is CNN political analyst, bureau chief for "The Boston Globe" in Washington, Jackie Kucinich.

Jackie, great to see you this morning.

JACKIE KUCINICH, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Hi, guys.

BERMAN: Which way are the winds blowing right now as this moves -- the shutdown moves day by day as we move closer to this Saturday deadline on SNAP? What seems to be happening with senators and members of Congress in regards to the shutdown?

KUCINICH: I would say the winds are stagnant, but the vibes are moving more toward something. What that is, John, that's unclear. Right now they're not talking to leadership, which is where, you know, all the -- all the action would start and rest. But at this point, we're kind of in the same spot that we've been at this -- at this time because nothing that they're talking about solves the Democrat's biggest argument, which is the ACA subsidies being extended, or the Republican's argument, which is, pass this and then we'll talk about the ACA.

But there is an acknowledgment that particularly these food programs that are expiring are going to cause some real pain in the country and in every single one of the states that those senators represent.

BERMAN: A vibe shift, though. Look, I don't think we want to overreact about that, but that's a little different.

KUCINICH: It's not nothing.

BERMAN: Not nothing. And some, particularly senators, seem to be talking to each other?

KUCINICH: Yes, there is some optimism. There are senators talking to each other about potential compromises and ways out of this. But again, I think until there is actually, you know, until you have Senator Thune and Senator Schumer involved, and for that matter President Trump, who is on his way back from Asia. He'll be back here, I think, around 3:00 p.m. Until he is engaged, it really is just talks at this point.

Now, you're right, there is reason for optimism because they are talking, which is -- which is, you know, something. But again, when you're trying to put food on the table, you really need action from these senators.

BERMAN: Yes, you brought up President Trump. And it is interesting. He does land back in Washington --

KUCINICH: Yes.

BERMAN: Or Joint Base Andrews at around 3:00 there.

What difference could it make? I mean what could happen if President Trump -- he likes making deals. He keeps telling us how much he likes making deals. If he walks off that plane and says, hey, let's get together and fix this.

KUCINICH: Well, he hasn't really been engaged in this shutdown for any meaningful way except for that he had that meeting at the Rose Garden, of course, with members of the -- with members of Congress and congratulated everyone for sticking together.

[09:05:06]

He's someone who likes to make deals. He's someone who wants these -- he knows that health care is going to go up, and he has an eye toward the polls. So, if he start -- if his -- if his approval starts going in the wrong direction, you know he's going to start engaging, because that's just the kind of president that he is.

BERMAN: Jackie Kucinich, great to see you this morning. Thanks so much.

Sara.

SIDNER: All right, anger is boiling over what is happening there with those SNAP benefits on Capitol Hill. Two senators going at it. Senate Majority Leader John Thune erupting at Democratic Senator Ben Ray Lujan on the Senate floor.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BEN RAY LUJAN (D-NM): In a nation blessed with such abundance, allowing our fellow Americans to go hungry is sadly right now a policy decision. I would argue a political decision. Not a financial necessity.

Now, the Trump administration has yet again made the decision, made the choice to allow our fellow Americans to go hungry.

SEN. JOHN THUNE (R-SD): And the senator from New Mexico was absolutely right. SNAP recipients shouldn't go without food. People should be getting paid in this country. And we've tried to do that 13 times. And you voted no 13 times. This isn't a political game. These are real people's lives that we're talking about. And you all have just figured out, 29 days in, that, oh, there might be some consequences.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: Meanwhile, a coalition of 25 Democratic run states is suing the Trump administration to prevent billions of dollars of cuts to those food benefits. They filed the lawsuit in Massachusetts federal court.

And joining us now, Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell.

Thank you so much for being here.

You are suing the Trump administration over the failure to fund SNAP during a shutdown, something that has never happened in American history. What is the argument you are making here?

ANDREA JOY CAMPBELL (D), MASSACHUSETTS ATTORNEY GENERAL: One, we're making it crystal clear that hunger isn't political. It is a human rights issue. And so, I'm proud to co-lead this coalition of A.G.s, only Democratic attorneys general, across the country, and three governors, to go to the court in hope that the court will not only mandate, but require the Trump administration to continue SNAP benefits for SNAP recipients, not only in Massachusetts, but across this country. And there are over 42 million Americans that depend on these benefits, over one million here in Massachusetts, mostly seniors on fixed income, children and people with disabilities.

SIDNER: We just heard Senators Lujan and Thune, you know, blaming, you know, one another, or one party or another. Is there someone that -- that you blame? Because this lawsuit is against the administration, saying, look, you are to blame for this. You can fix this, if nothing else.

CAMPBELL: As a, frankly, fellow elected official, we're accountable to the people. And I have been absolutely disheartened by the lack of action on this specific issue by the Trump administration. Never in the history of our country, including during government shutdowns, has an administration stopped SNAP benefits from flowing. The Trump administration has now $6 billion in a SNAP reserve fund, and other resources, to be able to continue this funding for SNAP recipients all across this country. They are choosing not to. And now, of course, we have to go to court to demand that they release these funds on November 1st and beyond. And I'm hopeful that the court will agree with us later today when we have the hearing this morning. SIDNER: Look, we've been seeing how the administration has been

reacting to this shutdown and where they're putting the blame. They're using government websites to -- to blame Democrats. An example of one of these, we're going to put up on the screen, where you see several different agencies, including the USDA, saying, look, Democrats chose to shut the government, knowing full well that SNAP would soon run out of funds.

What do you make of the administration using these websites that are government run, where people go to get information, to put the blame where they feel like it squarely belongs, on Democrats?

CAMPBELL: It's total nonsense. The USDA has the full authority and the power to not only make sure that SNAP funding continues on November 1st and beyond. Never in the history of our country has a government and a political -- and I should say a presidential administration stopped funding for SNAP recipients, including during government shutdowns. The USDA has the full authority to continue this funding. It is a policy choice. It's a choice they're choosing not to help 42 million Americans across this country, which is shameful to say the least. And I'm hopeful and confident that our lawsuit hopefully will change that.

[09:10:04]

And just a reminder to your listeners, as a Democratic attorney general, we do this work, regardless of whatever letter is by your name or your political affiliation. This is about helping people, delivering for real Americans who are suffering, especially during -- during and before the holidays.

SIDNER: Yes. I mean in less than two days people will not see that benefit. And we've already talking -- talked to a mother who is trying to figure out where she can take funds to try to feed herself and her children. It is a real tragedy for a lot of families not having these extra benefits.

Andrea Joy Campbell, thank you so much for joining us today on CNN NEW CENTRAL. Appreciate your time.

Kate.

BOLDUAN: So, breaking overnight, President Trump is on his way back to Washington right now after wrapping his visit to Asia. And he is also now vowing to restart nuclear weapons tests in the United States. The president's directive was issued just as he was headed in to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, would upend decades of U.S. policy and throw into question what's been a critical international moratorium on testing, all amid growing tensions with the world's superpowers.

CNN's Kevin Liptak is at the White House with much more on this.

Kevin, what are you learning about this, this morning?

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, there's not a lot of clarity about what exactly the president is ordering up here in this most provocative message. You know, the U.S. hasn't tested a nuclear weapon since 1992. So, this would really be a reversal of decades of practice.

And just to set the scene a little bit for how this all went down, the president issued this message as he was aboard Marine One, flying to that airport in South Korea, where he was due to meet the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, for talks that were ostensibly meant to sort of create a dialog to avoid surprises and confrontation. So, the president kind of upending that objective before they even sat down.

And even as the president was asked about it on Air Force One, as he now heads back here to Washington, it wasn't precisely clear what he is talking about. You know, he was asked whether this was about China, and he said it wasn't. Listen to more of what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It had to do with others. They seem to all be nuclear testing.

REPORTER: Russia?

TRUMP: We have more nuclear weapons than anybody. We don't do testing. And we've halted it years, many years ago. But with others doing testing, I think it's appropriate that we do also.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIPTAK: Now, both China and Russia have observed that moratorium on nuclear testing for decades, along with the United States. What nuclear engineers say is that they're able to test these weapons using computer simulations. So, this leaves open the question of whether the president was talking, perhaps, about testing the delivery systems. And perhaps what has caught his attention is Russia's tests over the last few days of a nuclear capable cruise missile. That has certainly added to the provocations. But certainly for a president who is in Asia looking to stabilize some of these relationships, particularly with China, this is just evidence that his foreign policy remains as volatile as ever.

BOLDUAN: Good point, Kevin. It's good to see you. Thanks so much for the reporting.

John.

BERMAN: All right, breaking this morning, several new arrests in connection to the heist at the Louvre. What investigators are saying about where the $100 million in stolen jewels, where they are now.

Soaring beef prices. How you might taste it in that next bite of burger.

And the new robot that can clean and dance. But don't worry, the company that makes it says there are safeguards in place to make sure it doesn't exterminate humanity.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:18:09]

SIDNER: Breaking this morning, five more suspects have been arrested in connection with the brazen daylight heist at the Louvre. One of the suspects is believed to have been part of the four-person team that robbed the museum, stealing more than $100 million worth of crown jewels. Those jewels are still missing, however.

CNN's Melissa Bell joining us now from Paris, outside the louvre, which is now open.

What's changed? And what can you tell us about these arrests?

MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's significant that now we're 11 days into this manhunt, Sara, and authorities believe that they have now, in their hands, three of that four man team that was actually here on that Sunday morning and carried out the heist.

The two that have been arrested over the weekend, now placed under formal investigation. The other one that you just mentioned, one of that four-person team. All three of them, we understand, tied to the scene of the crime by DNA evidence that was left behind. And certainly the two that were arrested over the weekend are -- were known to police services. So, this made finding them much quicker.

It is the other four, we understand, that were not here on the day necessarily, but authorities say that they believe that they may have some answers for them about how this was organized. So, we don't know exactly what their suspected level of involvement was, but certainly that now authorities have seven people in their custody that they think are going to be able to provide them with some answers.

It's been 11 days of manhunt, 11 days also of searching, of course, for the jewels. No sign of them yet. But these quickened developments in the investigation do suggest that at least they're getting their hands on an idea of how this happened.

One of the big remaining questions, I think, given all the DNA evidence that was left behind, that had led to these three who were there that morning, the question of who organized this and when it -- whether any of the others now arrested were part of that wider team that organized this most extraordinary heist, because there is a sense that whilst it was extremely well prepared, a lot was left behind that more professional robbers might not have left behind.

[09:20:07]

For instance, the two that I mentioned, the two now under formal investigation, were really known to the police for things like petty theft and very low-level robberies. Nothing like the scale of the ambition of what we saw here on Sunday, the 19th of October. So, still, the hunt for the jewels continues. But there is progress in the hunt for those who may have been responsible, Sara. SIDNER: Yes. I mean, everyone wants to know where the jewels are, but they have managed to find now, I guess, seven people that they believe are involved in this. Everyone interested in this case.

Melissa Bell, thank you for great reporting throughout.

Kate.

BOLDUAN: Cattle ranchers are furious over President Trump's plans to bring down beef prices by bringing in more from other countries. So, what does Burger King think about it? Yes, that Burger King. The president of Burger King is our guest.

And an incredible discovery. The message in a bottle from World War I that just washed up on the Australian shore.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:25:43]

BERMAN: All right, the average price of beef has hit record highs. Last month beef prices, you can see there, rose 4.8 percent. That's the largest increase in four years. Drought, shrinking herds, the rise of imported beef have all helped to lead to this boost in prices. President Trump has suggested an increasing low tariff beef imports from Argentina might ease the rising prices, but that plan is facing backlash from cattle ranchers, many of whom supported the president.

So, despite rising beef prices, sales at Burger King are rising.

With us now, Tom Curtis, president of Burger King U.S. and Canada.

Great to see you this morning.

TOM CURTIS, PRESIDENT, BURGER KING U.S. AND CANADA: Hey, thanks for having me, John.

BERMAN: I do want to talk about beef prices because the prices are so dramatically higher than they've been. How does that impact your business?

CURTIS: So, you know, we watch beef prices, obviously. And over the past three years, beef prices have actually doubled. And then recently, just in the last couple of weeks, cattle futures have come back down.

What we try to do, and what we have to do, is we have to even out those ups and downs for our consumers. So, you might see beef prices going up dramatically at the grocery store. We're going to try to even those out over the course of time, because what Americans need is they need consistency. They need consistency of prices at the drive through.

It makes it tough on our owners sometimes, our franchisees. I was a franchisee for 20 years myself. And so, you know, they've done a fantastic job of keeping prices constant during up and down -- during the ups and downs.

BERMAN: What have you seen in terms of consumer behavior, particularly in regards to beef, but in general? Because it's been a weird year, right? I mean this has got to be one of the quirkiest years -- well, we had the pandemic a few years ago, but this has been a pretty quirky year in and of itself.

CURTIS: Yes, the -- the environment's been choppy, as we call it, over the last -- really over the last year or two. And once again, for us that means consistency. And what we've seen -- when we see ups and downs in commodity pricing, what we try to do is, as I said, take the variability out of it. If you want to be on a roller coaster, you go to Six Flags. If you want to get a hot burger at a consistent price, you go to Burger King.

BERMAN: And you haven't seen consumers back away or lean in based on anything?

CURTIS: We've seen -- like I said, we've seen a little bit of both over the last year or so. But, once again, we've -- we've kind of been on this journey, if you will, for the last five years, of improving our assets.

BERMAN: Yes.

CURTIS: We've been remodeling about 400 restaurants a year. We're doing that again this year.

BERMAN: Reclaim the flame, you might say.

CURTIS: Reclaim the flame. Yes, our -- our board put $400 million into the brand. Now, 120 of that went to -- went to marketing. But really the lion's share of it, the $280 million of it, went to improving the guest experience, providing training for our team members and putting money back into the -- the digital experience and the condition of the restaurants.

BERMAN: You were talking about -- we've talked about beef prices here. One of the things that you seem to also be doing, you're not getting rid of the chicken and other things you offer there, but you really are trying to emphasize the burgers.

CURTIS: Yes, and we've seen a lot of competitors that have tried to lean into chicken during these high beef prices, but what we believe is that America comes to us for burgers. So, do we have great chicken offerings? Absolutely. Do we have variety in our chicken offerings? Absolutely. But we're going to be here with the America's favorite burger. We're going to try different ways to serve it and give it to the Americans in different ways with different innovation. But we're a burger brand and we're going to stay a burger brand.

BERMAN: In general, well farmers have been hit very hard by the tariffs right now. It's -- day to day it's unclear to chart because right now China may be buying soybeans and they may get some relief there. But, obviously, you depend on farmers so much, whether it's the cattle farmers and, obviously, for the bread (ph). I mean you order huge, huge numbers there. How -- how is their suffering impacting you?

CURTIS: Well, I think what we do also impacts them. So, once again, we continue to lean into beef, continue to lean into beef products. And we'll continue to do that. And maybe that's our way of supporting the American farmer. But, you know, we're -- we're not immune to anybody's plight, whether it's the consumer or whether it's the farmer.

BERMAN: Right.

CURTIS: And I think Americans love dependability and consistency. And that's going to be our plan during the turbulent ups and downs of the economy.

BERMAN: Well, I will tell you, for more than 50 years I have almost single handedly worked to prop up the fast food industry.

CURTIS: Thank you.

BERMAN: So, I've been -- I've been there for you. But thank you for everything you've done.

CURTIS: All right.

[09:30:00]

BERMAN: Appreciate it, Tom Curtis.

CURTIS: All right. Thank you.

BERMAN: Sara.

SIDNER: All right, thank you, John.

A major shift in U.S. policy. President Trump ordering the military to immediately start testing nuclear weapons for the