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Biden Addresses U.S. Election Result For First Time; Allies Jockey For Positions In New Trump Administration; Fed Cuts Interest Rates By A Quarter Point; Republicans Take Senate, Defend Narrow House Majority; The Future of Trump's Legal Cases; Reactions From China And Taiwan To Trump's Victory; Israeli Strikes Hit Northern Gaza. Aired 3- 4p ET

Aired November 07, 2024 - 15:00   ET

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

[15:00:21]

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN HOST: You are looking at a live shot from the White House. President Joe Biden addressed the nation from there just a short time ago. The first time he has spoken since Donald Trump won the election.

Right now, it is 3:00 p.m. in Washington and 3:00 p.m. here in Atlanta, 8:00 p.m. in London.

I'm Lynda Kinkade. Let's get you right to the news.

Well, the American experiment endures -- those words from outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden following President-elect Donald Trump's decisive comeback victory this week. As the world braces for a second Trump presidency, Mr. Biden says he will commit to a peaceful transfer of power come inauguration day. He spoke from the Rose Garden a short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: For over 200 years, America has carried on the greatest experiment in self-government in the history of the world. And that's not hyperbole. That's a fact, where the people, the people vote and choose their own leaders, and they do it peacefully, and where in a democracy, the will of the people always prevails.

Yesterday, I spoke with President-elect Trump to congratulate him on his victory, and I assured him that I'd direct my entire administration to work with his team to ensure a peaceful and orderly transition. That's what the American people deserve.

I also hope we can lay to rest the question about the integrity of the American electoral system. It is honest, it is fair and it is transparent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, President Biden is also facing backlash from his own party for his role in the tumultuous election. Joining us now to discuss is Kevin Liptak, live from Washington.

Good to see you, Kevin.

So four years ago, Biden ran on a promise to restore the soul of the country. He's now on the way out the door given that VP Harris, a loss this election and he is again urging Americans to put aside their differences and promising for a peaceful transition of power, what was your key takeaway?

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, and I think these kind of speeches are always difficult for presidents to give. You know, I was in the Rose Garden when President Obama delivered a very similar speech back in 2016, when Trump won the first time around. And it was a very sort of dour appearance.

I don't think that that was the atmosphere that President Biden was speaking in. Today, he actually seemed rather upbeat. But of course, that does mask some very heavy disappointment among Democrats at the outcome of the election. And, of course, his focus now is ensuring that this is a smooth and peaceful transition of power. And you talked and you heard him talk about speaking to President Trump. They're trying to arrange a time for him to come to the White House to meet potentially as early as next week.

Of course, the subtext to that is that President Biden was not offered an equal transition to power back in 2020. President Trump didn't invite him to the White House. He didn't engage in all of sort of the technical parts of a transition that will help ease that. And so when President Biden is talking Trump, what he's really saying is that I'm doing for you what you refuse to do for me four years ago. And so that is kind of the subtext there.

Similarly, when he talks about how this can put to rest any questions about the integrity of the election, he is essentially saying that you know, to Donald Trump after four years of putting into question the results of the 2020 election, you're certainly very happy to accept the results when you won. And I'm going to accept them, too because that's the American tradition and that's the American way.

Of course, he was also in that speech today trying to burnish his own legacy, talking about his accomplishments in office and all that he was able to achieve. And he said that potentially some of the effects of those steps won't be seen for years potentially ten years. And you could almost hear Democrats kind of gritting their teeth when he was saying that because, of course, you know infrastructure that takes ten years to come into place may be great policy, but for a president who is looking to get reelected this time around, its not necessarily good politics.

And I think one of the big questions for President Biden is why Americans weren't able to understand more of what he did while he was in office. And he's essentially saying there is that by design it's not going to be ready for ten years. And so I think certainly there will be some Democrats who might be frustrated at that view of his legacy, as he's preparing to depart. KINKADE: Yeah, exactly. Certainly a lot of soul searching within the

Democratic Party.

Kevin Liptak for us in D.C., good to have you with us. Thanks.

Well, Donald Trump's victory no doubt marks a turning point for U.S. politics.

[15:05:03]

But uncertainty remains for who will fill some of those key positions in the next Trump administration. Right now, the president-elect is in the process of assembling his next cabinet. These critical areas include attorney general, chief of staff, secretary of homeland security and the next secretary of defense.

Well, sources tell CNN that Trump could announce his decision on key positions within the next few days. His closest allies, like the ones seen here, could soon become part of that new administration.

Well, let's welcome CNN's Jeff Zeleny, who joins us live from D.C.

Good to see you, Jeff.

So these are early days, but there must be some pretty passionate, intense conversations going on right now about who's rumored to be in this transition team. And also, are there key positions. What are you hearing?

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Look, there's no doubt that one of the most popular places to be right now, if you're a Republican, is down in Mar-a-Lago, of course, Donald Trump's vacation resort in Florida where people literally are lining up to try and get attention, or perhaps to curry favor to join his cabinet.

But look, this is going to be a very swift process, as it always is likely faster than eight years ago because he knows what he wants. He has been the president before. So at the beginning of this, though, will be his chief of staff. We're getting a sense of a few potential names of chief of staff.

Of course, his campaign manager essentially, Susie Wiles, was one of the people really who coordinated all of this and if he selects her she would be the first female chief of staff. There has never been a chief of staff in the White House to a president who was a woman. So this certainly could be her. We'll see if she wants to move from Florida to Washington, but also a couple other names there.

But bigger than that -- I mean, this is a moment for the former president to sort of put a stamp on his incoming administration. One thing we are hearing again and again he apprizes above all is loyalty. You'll remember from his first term, he found several cabinet secretaries that disloyal in his view. Jeff Sessions, the attorney general, was chief among them.

So look for a loyalist and a yes men, if you will, to join his administration throughout the ranks, but particularly in key positions in the cabinet.

KINKADE: And, Jeff, we've heard Elon Musk's name, the world's richest man, his name has certainly been tossed about as well. I understand Trump doesn't take too kindly to people like asking for jobs outright. What are you hearing about that?

ZELENY: Look, I think it would be a big surprise if Elon Musk joined the cabinet. He has said he's not interested in joining the government. And I think that the former president has said that as well. He said Elon Musk is a businessman who needs to be kind of outside the reins of government. But the question is what types of influence he will have.

As you know, Elon Musk gets a lot of business contracts and things from his government contracts. So that will be one of the many long list of potential conflicts of interest. But look, he will have a key role in this.

One thing that is not likely to be as front and center is family. Donald Trump, Jr. has been very active in the campaign, but Ivanka Trump, for example, and Jared Kushner, they have not been active in at all. That's the former president's daughter and son in law. So I do not expect this to be as much of a family affair as it was eight years ago.

But there is no doubt, this -- things are moving very quickly here, and the former president is likely to come to Washington as early as next week to potentially have a meeting at the White House.

So 74 days until the inauguration. But a lot of this hiring and positioning will be done between now and then.

KINKADE: All right. Jeff, it's been a busy week for you, too. So, good to have you with us. Thanks so much. Appreciate it.

ZELENY: My pleasure.

KINKADE: Well, still ahead, a big announcement from the U.S. Federal Reserve. What the new rate cut means for the U.S. economy

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:12:02]

KINKADE: Welcome back. I'm Lynda Kinkade.

The U.S. Federal Reserve, making a unanimous decision today. Just a short time ago, the Central Bank cut interest rates by a quarter point. This is the Fed's second cut this year. How would take -- take a listen to Fed Chairman Jerome Powell.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEROME POWELL, FEDERAL RESERVE CHAIRMAN: At today's meeting, the committee decided to lower the target range for the federal funds rate by a quarter percentage point to 4.5 percent to 4.75 percent. This further recalibration of our policy stance will help maintain the strength of the economy and the labor market, and will continue to enable further progress on inflation as we move toward a more neutral stance over time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Let's take a quick look at the big board for market reaction. You can see just really pretty flat right now.

Well, joining me now is the host of "FIRST MOVE", Julia Chatterley.

It's kind of been in the red in the green on and off today just getting what was expected to be a quarter of a percent cut. But, you know, there's a lot of questions right now, Julia, about the future of Jerome Powell. Before we get to that, just take us through what else he had to say today.

JULIA CHATTERLEY, CNN ANCHOR, FIRST MOVE: Well, the good news was the quarter of a percentage point rate cut. Good news for borrowers and utterly expected. So, certainly, no surprises there.

But the critical question, of course, is that were two days after a presidential election, and it's sort of a political earthquake. The policies could be an economic earthquake going forward. And we just don't know, so the path of future interest rate cuts just got that more uncertain.

And, of course, that was and has been already the questions that he's getting asked he was very straight from the outset nonpolitical. Powell will call him. I've got the quote here. I'm not going to talk about anything that relates directly or indirectly to the election, he simply can't because he doesn't know what's coming, but he doesn't want to talk about the prospect and the impact of potential tax cuts in the United States, potential tariffs in the United States, and the impact perhaps, of big limits to immigration, too. The expectation is it could limit growth, it could raise prices for consumers, and that will complicate their job.

The problem that he's got today is he just doesn't have the answers, and he doesn't want to weigh in until we know more. And I think that's reasonable. But it doesn't stop people asking what he would like to focus on is how solid the economy is. The fact that they've still got room in their mind to cut interest rates. The question is how much?

KINKADE: Yeah, exactly. I mean, Trump is certainly going to inherit a very strong economy.

CHATTERLEY: Yeah.

KINKADE: But during his last term, he attacked Jerome Powell many times. I'm wondering whether you know, now that that Trump is newly elected, whether Powell's days are numbered.

CHATTERLEY: So what we were hearing earlier today from an adviser close to Trump is that the president will keep Jay Powell in his position until his term ends to may 2026, although that could change. Of course, there's always the Sword of Damocles hanging, but Jay Powell himself was asked about the prospect of potentially being removed by the next president.

[15:15:06]

Just listen to how he responded.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REPORTER: Some of the president-elect's advisers have suggested that you should resign. If he asked you to leave, would you go?

POWELL: No.

REPORTER: Can you follow up on it? Do you think that legally you're not required to leave?

POWELL: No.

REPORTER: Some of the president-elect's --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHATTERLEY: Isn't that funny? So the law is not totally clear, but American presidents don't have explicit legal rights to remove the head of the Federal Reserve. It's an independent agency. It would come down to Congress, of course, but I just -- I love those responses because it was pretty clear. And it sounds like he is going to stay around, which is good news.

The irony, Lynda, very quickly, is that they're on the same team effectively in this case, we know the former president, the president- elect likes lower interest rates and that's what, of course, the Federal Reserve is trying to do.

And ultimately, what might complicate that is the president-elect's choice over policy. So, I guess the way I could put it is ball in your court Donald Trump.

KINKADE: Exactly. I mean, if this tariff plan plays out the way it's expected, you know, we might not see any more cuts. Well see how things go.

CHATTERLEY: Yeah, not necessarily expected, by the way. It could be a lot of rhetoric. It could be a lot of hot air. And we don't actually see massive tariffs. But to your point, we have to wait and see.

KINKADE: Exactly. Julia Chatterley, always good to see you. Thank you so much.

CHATTERLEY: Thank you.

KINKADE: Well, Donald Trump has said he will impose a tariff on goods. Certainly throughout the campaign, he spoke of tariffs ranging from 10 to 60 percent, those higher tariffs on goods from China and Mexico. He does claim that the tariffs will boost American manufacturing and bring in billions of dollars to help pay for tax cuts, as well as other policy initiatives. But it is unlikely that the revenue from tariffs would fully cover his proposals and tariffs would likely raise prices for the average American.

CNN's Vanessa Yurkevich explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Imagine everything you buy that comes from outside the U.S., like wine, cheese, and laptops, get more expensive. Well, that's what economists say would happen under former President Trump's tariff proposal.

A tariff is basically a tax on products, and Trump wants to put them on everything that comes into the U.S. That's $3 trillion worth of goods a year. In order to cover the higher tariffs, companies will have to raise prices, and that cost ultimately gets passed down to you, the consumer.

So here's his plan: a 60 percent tariff on Chinese imports, and up to 20 percent on imports from other countries.

Trump says it will protect working class jobs and punish countries making goods with cheap labor in unsafe conditions. The self- proclaimed tariff man is hoping the tariffs will incentivize Americans to buy more made-in-America products, and the tariffs could, in theory, raise trillions of dollars to help fund tax cuts.

But economists at Goldman Sachs warn the tariffs could backfire, instead raising prices on American families, killing jobs, and setting off another trade war.

Countries could then retaliate, putting their own tariffs on U.S. goods that they buy. The cost to the average American family, by one estimate, more than $2,600 per year.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Our thanks to Vanessa for that report.

Well, for the first time in four years, Republicans will have control of the White House and the Senate. But a Republican majority in the House of Representatives is still up in the air. CNN has not yet made a projection in the battle for the control of the House, since votes are still being counted in dozens of races. Right now, Republicans are defending a narrow majority, but it could take days until the final results are known.

CNN's Annie Grayer is tracking those results live from Washington.

Good to have you with us, Annie.

So, it seems the House and certainly Speaker Johnson are increasingly bullish about holding on to control of the House. Just how powerful will that trifecta be if it happens? ANNIE GRAYER, CNN REPORTER: You can't underestimate how powerful it

would be and Republicans have been preparing for potential trifecta months. House Republicans and Senate Republicans have been meeting behind the scenes in the lead up to the next Congress, trying to already lay the groundwork to implement some of the key pieces that Donald Trump has been running on namely, on the border and tax cuts.

And you can't underestimate the difference to the kind of Washington that Donald Trump is entering this time, compared to back in 2016, when he first arrived. It's a much friendlier Washington for him where he has key allies across both chambers of government. House Speaker Mike Johnson is openly touting his working relationship with Trump, and the two speak regularly.

So the issues that Trump ran into in his first term, where there were a lot of Republicans who stood up to him and kind of, you know, prevented key pieces of his agenda, that doesn't seem like it's going to be the case. The Republicans in Congress now very much want to be a working partner with Trump.

[15:20:02]

And so it's all going to come down to who gets control of the House. As you mentioned, it's too close to call.

Democrats are hoping that this -- that they can flip the House and be the final check on a Trump administration. But were just going to have to see how these races play out.

KINKADE: All right. We'll be watching closely.

Annie Grayer, good to have you with us. Thank you.

Well, President-elect Donald Trump is in the middle of several legal cases. And now that he's been elected, the fate of many of those cases is unknown.

Special Counsel Jack Smith is now in talks with the Justice Department leadership about how to end federal cases against him. And Trump's legal team is expected to request a New York judge to cancel his scheduled sentencing in a hush money case.

Joining us now to break this down for us is CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig. He is also the former assistant U.S. attorney from the Southern District of New York.

Good to have you with us, Elie.

So, let's start with those two federal cases against Trump, his alleged mishandling of classified documents, efforts to interfere with the 2020 election, and obviously, Special Counsel Jack Smith now winding those down.

ELIE HONIG, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Yeah, those cases are never going to see the light of day. They are never going to reach trial. Donald Trump is not going to be convicted on them. He's not going to ever be sentenced on them.

And this is really happening for two separate reasons. First of all, Donald Trump has said publicly that he intends to fire Jack Smith, quote, within two minutes of getting sworn in. I don't think there's any surprise about that. But even beyond that, Lynda, it's important to understand the Justice Department itself has a longstanding policy going back to Watergate in 1973, saying we do not believe we have the power to prosecute, to try and to imprison the sitting president.

So here -- here we are in a situation where someone who's been indicted is about to become the sitting president. So even putting aside Donald Trump's threats and promises to fire Jack Smith, Jack Smith was going to have to close up shop anyway. And he's now seemingly accepted that reality.

KINKADE: And, of course, here in the state of Georgia is the election interference case. It's a state level case. Does Trump have any power over that once he's president?

HONIG: No, he does not have any power over either the state cases, the Georgia case or the New York hush money case that you referenced before. But those cases are both to varying extents, sort of teetering on their own lack of merit. The Georgia case is about I believe, about to be dismissed anyway, there's an appeal pending about it. There's issues with prosecutorial misconduct. And so I think that case is likely to go away.

With respect to both state cases, one thing that is very much clear to me is there will not be a state level criminal trial of the sitting president. The state authorities do not have the power under our Constitution to try and potentially imprison the president. The principles called the Supremacy Clause, which essentially says the federal government has to be supreme to the state government.

So you can't have a situation where some local elected county D.A. is imprisoning the commander in chief. It just doesn't work in our system and it won't happen here.

KINKADE: So that essentially potentially rules out the sentencing that is expected to take place in November 26th?

HONIG: Maybe because the judge can still decide, I'm going to go ahead and impose announce the sentence on November 26th. But if there is a prison sentence, Donald Trump will not have to serve it now while he is the president elect, or while he is the president. Could it be imposed for four and change years from now, in January of 2029? I wouldn't count on that just as a practical matter.

But the judge may feel like it's important. Look, we had a jury trial, and the jury found him guilty, and therefore, I need to go ahead and impose a sentence. Even if he may not be required to serve it, just in the interest of completeness and the interest of finishing out the case.

KINKADE: Interesting. Staying across it all. Elie Honig, good to have you with us. Thank you. HONIG: Thanks, Lynda. All right.

KINKADE: Well, as Donald Trump prepares to head back to the White House, the future of America's foreign policy takes center stage.

Coming up, we'll look at the implications facing some of the world's major flashpoints.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:26:21]

KINKADE: Welcome back.

Two corners of the world we're watching closely, China and Taiwan, which are locked in a battle over Beijing's sovereignty claims on the island. Military drills on both sides and a possible trade war with the U.S. All of these are raising concerns as Trump is set to take office.

Marc Stewart is in Beijing and Will Ripley is in Taipei and filed this report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Beijing is likely bracing for a future of uncertainty.

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: While in Taiwan, many are buckling up for what could be a bumpy four years ahead.

STEWART: At one point, Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping seemed to get along well. But U.S.-China relations turned sour over trade disputes and COVID response. With Trump's threat of more and significant new tariffs, a trade war looms again and continued regional tension, both in China --

RIPLEY: And in Taiwan, as well as new security concerns. Trump has threatened tariffs on Taiwanese tech exports like advanced chips. He's also said Taiwan should pay more to the U.S. for protection from China without specifying what that actually means, especially as Chinese leaders vow to unify with this island, staging major military exercises.

STEWART: One shift from the past, Trump's criticism of alliances is part of his America first approach may help China on issues ranging from Taiwan to the South China Sea.

RIPLEY: Trump's win also brings uncertainty for the Korean peninsula. Will Trump try to build on previous diplomacy with Kim Jong-un, who has sent troops to fight for Russia and Ukraine? Could Trump cancel military exercises with South Korea again, risking tensions with Seoul, a crucial U.S. ally?

STEWART: A new White House could mean a whole new approach to U.S. policy in Asia. RIPLEY: Forcing allies and adversaries to get ready for whatever curveballs may be coming their way.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: We turn now to the crisis in the Middle East. At least 27 people have been killed in a single Israeli airstrike in northern Gaza, according to Gaza's civil defense. It comes as officials in Lebanon deal with the aftermath of overnight Israeli strikes on a southern suburb of Beirut and Hezbollah stronghold, some hits landed near Beirut's international airport and earlier, Hezbollah fired a barrage of rockets on Israel.

Well, President-elect Donald Trump has said he wants to bring peace to the region, but he has also called on Israel to finish the job against Hamas. In his -- if his first term is any indication, he will likely keep the Middle East high on his agenda. Sources say the former Iran special envoy, Brian Hook, is expected to lead the transition team at the State Department.

[15:30:02]

Earlier, Hook spoke with CNN about his experience during the first Trump administration. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIAN HOOK, FORMER U.S.SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE FOR IRAN: President Trump's first foreign trip was to the Middle East and as a consequence of a great strategy toward the Middle East, focusing on shared interests, he was able to, I think, make a number of significant accomplishments that the leaders in the region all recognize as successful. And so he has a lot of friendships in the region with leaders, those friendships have, I think, are only going to deepen. And I think the cooperation and the bonds of friendship security and commerce are all going to be much better in -- in the coming years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, joining us now to discuss Trump's foreign policy agenda is Nic Robertson, our senior diplomatic editor.

Good to see you, Nic.

So let's start with the reaction in the Middle East to Trump's reelection. How can we expect Israel's conflicts to change with Trump at the helm?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yeah, I think look, I think the fact that Brian Hook is going to lead the transition as well is a really clear indicator that the Middle East absolutely is going to be very, very high on the agenda, and an Iran being a particular focus of that. And later in that interview, Brian Hook laid out what I've heard from sources as well, that there Trump would likely put economic pressure on Tehran, even though today the spokesman, the foreign ministry in Tehran, has said that that Trump's election, you know, offers a new opportunity for the United States to consider a new strategy.

That's not at all. I think the direction that Trump will be headed in pressure on Iran, but he will also look to those strong relationships he built, particularly with Saudi Arabia, particularly with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, to move more quickly towards a normalization with Israel. That's going to be a difficulty for all the reasons we've heard about. So much recently that, you know, the crown prince is now set as a standard that the costs for him for doing that would be for Israel to recognize or at least get on an irreversible path to recognizing a Palestinian state. That's not sort of, you know, possible at the moment.

But I think also, you know, how does a region react as well? We've got a sense of that already Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, even as the votes were being cast, was firing his defense minister, you know, that's probably not something that he would have done if he really thought that Kamala Harris would have won the election. We've seen as well a decision made in the Knesset today about removing from Israel any family members of terrorists who commit a terrorist act with a family member might have said something.

So there are things that are being done already by Prime Minister Netanyahu that perhaps wouldn't have happened under a Trump administration -- or not happened rather under a Biden administration, that wouldn't have happened quite -- quite so quickly.

So even though were only in this the very beginning of a transition phase, I think you'll perhaps see that from Prime Minister Netanyahu and then the war in Lebanon. You know, what they're weighing up in the region there is, is will Israel -- will Prime Minister Netanyahu go for a ceasefire, proposed by the Lebanese, you know, it's a -- with a -- with a sort of a temporary ceasefire, but meeting some of the conditions of what he's asked for to make the northern border of Israel safe. Will he go for that or will he -- you know, will he upscale and uptick the military action?

I think when you look to Gaza, the concern there really is that at Netanyahu is pushing forward with what was known as a generals plan, which essentially forces all Palestinian residents out of the north of Gaza, something, again, that the Biden administration strongly objected to.

KINKADE: And, Nic, what about Europe's major conflict? Russia's invasion of Ukraine which Trump said would not have happened on his watch. He plans to end it on day one. What are you hearing from the leaders of Russia and Ukraine?

ROBERTSON: Well, the Kremlin spokesman today actually said something that was interesting which really sounded like sort of pre-positioning for, you know, what Putin's position may be towards what Trump -- President-elect Donald Trump has proposed here? The Kremlin spokesman said, look that ending the war in one day, that's just not realistic.

But I think there's an understanding within the Kremlin now that with -- with Trump in charge, when he gets to the White House, he is going to want to end that war. And you see, you know, you see Russia trying to make the gains that they've -- that Putin has promised Russians he would make, take Donetsk and Luhansk, make some gains there in the east, put pressure to retake territory in Kursk, inside of Russia proper, that Ukraine took recently.

So you kind of see those moves but also today, you know, after quite a delay compared to other world leaders, President Putin actually said that he congratulated President-elect Donald Trump on winning.

[15:35:05]

You know, when you're dealing with Putin, you don't know what he's thinking. But clearly, there's sort of some -- some pre-setting up here of expectations that Trump should expect from Putin if he comes with this pressure to end the war, that, you know, this is not going to be a rollover for Putin. It's not -- he's not going to give Trump everything that maybe, maybe -- maybe Trump wants. I think you get that sense of psychological tactic of waiting more than a day after the other world leaders before he offers congratulations, that that he absolutely knows that that is something that will be seen by President-elect Donald Trump and -- and the idea as well of saying that, well, maybe it won't end in a day.

He's already setting the framework there for a potentially longer, more difficult negotiation. And what we've heard from President Zelenskyy today, and we've got a sound bite to play here, which I think is important. He's saying, look, the West has really got to buckle up. Europe and the United States are going to buckle up.

This sort of, how he perceives, it appears, Donald Trump behave with Putin before won't work, he said. Listen, listen to what Zelenskyy said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: We need sufficient weapons, not supporting talks, hugs with Putin will not help. Some of the leaders have been hugging him for 20 years, and things are only getting worse. He thinks only about wars and will not change. Only pressure can put limits on him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTSON: So that's really a message there, not just for the incoming U.S. president but for European allies and partners as well. Zelenskyy is going to rely on them and their message that they need -- they need Trump. They need the United States. They need that support and pressure to force -- to force Russia to the terms that is that will be acceptable eventually to Ukraine.

KINKADE: All right. A lot to stay across. Nic Robertson for us in London, thank you.

Well, still ahead, Donald Trump has promised big changes to U.S. immigration policy if elected. We're going to take a look at what may happen to undocumented migrants in the U.S. once he takes office.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:40:25]

KINKADE: Welcome back. I'm Lynda Kinkade.

Illegal immigration was one of the main topics for Donald Trump during his campaign. Now, officials in the Department of Homeland Security are preparing for a major change in the policy at the southern border.

A Trump adviser told CNN's Anderson Cooper what that could look like.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRYAN LANZA, SENIOR ADVISER, TRUMP 2024 CAMPAIGN: There's going to be a staged process. There's going to be a phase in. The easiest people to target are the criminals, the people who here have committed violent crimes illegally that are still here. You know, that's going to be step one.

And once we sort of understand what step. Once we understand how step one moves forward, we'll understand -- we'll move to the next layer. But let's be clear to the American people, we are going to deport illegal aliens who've broken our laws and who have been violent to our people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, if the Trump administration actually proceeds with this plan, it would be a major policy shift from his previous administration.

Priscilla Alvarez explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: This is about arresting and detaining those undocumented immigrants who are already in the United States.

Now, to do that, there needs to be a lot of preparation. And that is exactly what was quietly happening behind the scenes both among Trump allies and some in the private sector. The private sector because the federal government often relies on contractors to help manage and build these facilities. And so they have been quietly preparing with discussing what the possibility of this could look like. And now sources tell me they are expecting that to ramp up.

Now, a key component of any type of mass deportation plan is going to be detention space, because whoever they arrest, they need to put them somewhere and so the federal government has over the last several years, been quite limited in how much detention space they have, only a few ten, tens of thousands. But still far less than where many in the in the incoming Trump administration would want that number to be.

Now even so, even if contractors are lined up and there are some who are, there -- money is going to be critical to this. This is going to be an expensive operation. Previous analysis has shown that it costs nearly $11,000 just to arrest, detain process and remove one individual. Plus, whatever it would cost to fly them out to their home country.

So certainly this is an expensive endeavor. Officials say they are preparing for that. Now at the Homeland -- the Department of Homeland Security, they -- has been -- has been a mixed bag of emotions. They are no strangers to whiplash when it comes to immigration policy. And they're certainly bracing for what this could look like.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Our thanks to Priscilla Alvarez there.

Well, joining us now to discuss this more is Todd Schulte. He is the president of FWD.us, the bipartisan immigration political organization.

Good to have you with us.

TODD SCHULTE, PRESIDENT, FWD.US: Thanks for having me.

KINKADE: So Donald Trump said on day one he will carry out the largest mass deportation plan in history, which includes the death penalty for people smugglers. How would you describe this plan?

SCHULTE: We should take him seriously and we should take him at his word that he's going to try to do this. But we should remember he was president before and this isn't just up to him. People have agency now.

I think if you look at the election when he was president, before, people did not like his immigration policies, where he ripped families apart. I think people were unhappy with President Biden's immigration policies and the perception of chaos. But we should take seriously what it means to go after hundreds of thousands and millions of people who built their lives here and understand it's going to be on all of us, not just to say no to that, but to say there's a better way to keep families together and build a sort of immigration system that we need.

KINKADE: And it's interesting you mentioned some of the numbers when we heard Donald Trump during the campaign. He threw out all sorts of numbers. Anytime he was asked about this policy from thousands to over 20 million people, and he did claim and his campaign managers claimed that they're going to start with criminals.

I just want to play some sound.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: So the Border Patrol, because they've had it, they've never done this before. They released a list of criminals in our country.

We have 13,099, exactly, 13 -- during their -- during their term, they tried to say, oh, this is over 40 years now. This is during their three and a half year that they've been there, 13,099 murderers. These are murderers.

And under Kamala Harris, 13,099 illegal alien, convicted murderers are roaming free in the United States.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Now, that statement is outrageously false. It has been debunked, but it certainly builds a narrative that people coming to the U.S. are criminals, right?

[15:45:05]

SCHULTE: I don't think it needs to build a narrative. I think people should call it out for what it is, which is lie what he is actually promising to do is to, I think, do three things. He is promising to go after millions of families, including people who have a U.S. citizen family member. He is promising to slash legal immigration, and he is promising to take away status from people like Dreamers who built their lives here.

Now, there's other things, but at the core, that's the guts of what he's trying to do. And it's on all of us to say, and in case people are listening, tens of millions of people woke up scared and feeling targeted this week, and we both need to work hard to protect those people. But it's on all of us, all of us who are listening to find ways that we can act to protect those people and build the immigration system that upholds the best of American values. That's going to be the challenge in the weeks and days and months and years ahead.

KINKADE: Todd, talk to us about who is most at risk with this policy. I mean, certainly young children, but also the 1 in 3 Latinos who could be deported under this plan. It's interesting when you consider that this group, especially Latino men helped propel Trump into office this election. Talk to us about that.

SCHULTE: Let me talk about who's most at risk first. You hit this, children, people who came to this country as young people. If you remember when he was president, one of the first things he tried to do was take away what's called DACA, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. This is a protection for Dreamers.

The average DACA recipient has been in the United States for 25 years. They came here when they were six. So we got to be ready to say not only is that the wrong thing to do but those people deserve a pathway to citizenship. They're at risk and many people like them who have a temporary status, other people at risk are folks who are U.S. citizen households who have an undocumented family member.

But to your point 1 in 3 Latinos in the United States lives in a household where they themselves or live with someone who's at risk of family separation. That is not this is not about the border. This is not about what's happening to people coming tomorrow. That's part of it. This is about American families here today, and we're going to have to

show up in every single community. And again, fight for people, but fight for the immigration system that we ultimately have to build. We need that affirmative vision.

KINKADE: It was interesting. We just saw an alert from Donald Trump saying hell push forward with his plan no matter how much it costs. And just looking at the cost of this proposal, the American Immigration Council, which is obviously an immigration estimates that this plan to deport even 1 million undocumented immigrants, a year would cost over $88 billion. And then on top of that, there is, of course, the declining labor, the decline in federal tax revenue. That could all add up to over $1 trillion.

So where does this policy make sense if at all?

SCHULTE: It doesn't -- I mean, it doesn't make sense, $88 billion, $1 trillion, $10 trillion. These are big numbers. They are kind of impossible to fathom numbers. They are crashed the global economy numbers.

But here's what I want people to focus on. You're a parent. How is it going to feel when your kid comes home from school and says, you know what, one of my classmates didn't show up, or one of my classmates did show up, but when we were leaving school today, ice showed up. Or a sheriff showed up and took their mom away.

This is going to show up in every community in the country unless were all able to say this is not who we need to be as a country. And so it is going to just wreak havoc on the economy sure. But we all have agency to fight back. We've done it before. We're going to need to do it again.

KINKADE: Todd Schulte, good to have you on the program. Thanks so much for your time.

SCHULTE: Thank you.

KINKADE: Well, 2024 is breaking records when it comes to global temperatures. With Donald Trump returning to the White House, there is concern about U.S. leadership in the fight against climate change. That story next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:51:35]

KINKADE: You were looking at part of the Mountain Fire that's tearing through Ventura County in southern California, right now. It spread rapidly since Wednesday morning, destroying more than 14,000 acres.

That's more than 5,000 hectares in a matter of hours. There is alarming new climate data saying that 2024 will be the hottest year on record and it will exceed the threshold of the important Paris agreement. President-elect Donald Trump pulled the U.S. out of that agreement during his first term, and has promised to do it all over again.

Let's bring in CNN chief climate correspondent Bill Weir who joins us now from New York.

Good to see you, Bill.

So scientists certainly sounding the alarm again, saying time is running out. We need action.

Trump is likely to pull the U.S. out of the Paris accord again. I mean, what impact does that have?

BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT: Well, if you think about it, it was a year ago at COP28 in the Emirates when the world finally agreed, the U.S. among them, that the end of fossil fuels is here, that civilization has to electrify and move on. Well, now, a year later, the COP29 starts next week in Azerbaijan, the specter of Trump, the most notorious climate denier in recent history, will carry over these negotiations.

So maybe middle of the road on the fence, countries may say, why should we bother if the richest, most powerful, historically biggest polluter is not going to clean up their own mess? And then it cedes the ground to places like China and Europe for new industries that are just now taking hold in the United States, a lot of them in Republican districts. So it may be hard to claw back.

And you can see the chart there. This is the first year where we're going to smash past that 1.5. This was supposed to be the ceiling because who knows how much you have to adapt to a 2.0 world or something. But at the ocean temperature charts, you see as well this is what is throwing water cycles out of whack from Asheville, North Carolina, to Eastern Spain, and the Amazon has a drought right now, tributaries are drying up.

So the United States not being fully engaged in this very global problem, you know, the atmosphere doesn't end at any border. It's just staggering to people who work in the climate space and the environmental space. A lot of the Californias of the world and other big cities are saying we will keep the momentum going and the momentum will keep going.

But under Donald Trump, he's vowing to strip it all back really to make good on promises to friends in the oil and gas industry who donated hundreds of millions of dollars into his campaign.

KINKADE: Yeah, certainly, a dark cloud over the COP29 Summit next week.

Bill Weir, we will speak again really soon. Thanks so much.

WEIR: You bet.

KINKADE: Well, how CNN viewers are reacting to Trump's win. CNN asked viewers how they feel about it and what they had to say. Take a look.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

OPERATOR: Thank you for calling CNN.

VIEWER: If you would have told me, I would be supportive of the Trump candidacy four years ago, I would have laughed out loud. I think we really need a reset as a nation. I don't feel like I change. I feel like the goalposts have shifted something fundamentally needs to change.

VIEWER: My husband and I are extremely disappointed that Trump won, and to be honest, we are a bit afraid of the next four years and what they will entail for our family. We're recently retired and I think we're going to be heading out of the U.S. for our retirement.

[15:55:04]

It's just not a good place to live anymore.

VIEWER: I think it's the best thing ever. Our family will be able to afford food, and we will be more safe because the border will be closed. We look forward to the next four years, as the last four years has been miserable.

VIEWER: I'm really just calling on behalf of my long term partner. He's a trans man and were really scared. He's really scared about his health care access. We know for a fact that its only a matter of time that his health care will be stripped from him, and I'm scared that were now not going to be able to have the right to get married. We're in a southern state.

VIEWER: I am a 28 year old black woman and I do believe that Trump will make this country rich, healthy and great again. We don't have the opportunity that our grandparents had.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, that was the CNN viewers sharing their thoughts on Trump winning the election.

I'm Lynda Kinkade. Thanks so much for your time today.

"QUEST MEANS BUSINESS" is up next, and I'll be back in a couple of hours with much more news.