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Police: Two Dead, Five Others Shot At Florida State University; Trump: I think We'll See A Very Good Deal With China; Italian PM Meloni Talks Trade With Trump At White House; U.S. Senate Democrats Urges Town Hall Crowd To Pray For Country; Recovering Pontiff Makes Prison Visit On Holy Thursday; Three Endangered Socorro Dove Chicks Hatch In London Zoo; Meteorologists: Poland Set To Be Warmest Country In Europe. Aired 2-2:45a ET

Aired April 18, 2025 - 02:00   ET

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

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[02:00:28]

KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN HOST: Welcome to all you watching us around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is CNN NEWSROOM.

A mass shooting on a U.S. college campus leaves two people dead, what we're learning about the suspect's background.

President Donald Trump teases that he's talking with China about a trade deal even as markets are still in flux from tariff threats.

And Hamas is fully rejecting a ceasefire offer from Israel. The militant group's counter proposal is sparking outrage on Israel's far right.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from Atlanta. This is CNN NEWSROOM with Kim Brunhuber.

BRUNHUBER: New details are emerging about America's latest mass shooting that claimed the lives of two men and sent five people to hospital with gunshot wounds. It happened on the campus of a well- known university Florida state in the state capital of Tallahassee. One of the witnesses is a priest who described the panic.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LUKE FARABAUGH, WITNESS: People were coming with faces of terror and it was fear that I had not seen before. And it was very -- I mean, it really shakes you up. And I was able to go to campus pretty soon after that to see if anybody needed anointing of the sick, something we provide as a church as the sacraments and times like this.

And so, unfortunately, the crime seemed already started to be established so that I didn't want to press.

And so I did see, you know, a body at that time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: The suspected gunman is 20-year-old Florida state student, Phoenix Ikner, who was hospitalized after being shot by police. Officers say his injuries are serious but not life threatening.

The Tallahassee police chief said Ikner did not comply with demands but doesn't believe he fired at officers.

We're told he's the son of a sheriff's deputy and used her handgun to carry out the attack. He also trained with law enforcement in the past.

Authorities say three guns were found on the FSU campus after the attack. According to the Gun Violence Archive, there have been 81 mass shootings in the U.S. so far this year and that's defined as four or more people shot or killed in a single incident not including the shooter. Six of those have been in Florida.

All right. Let's get a check on financial markets. In Asia, this hour, a bit of a mixed bang. The Nikkei is up one percentage point. The Seoul Kospi is up about half a percentage point. And the Shanghai Composite is down less than half a percentage point.

Donald Trump's global trade war is dividing uncertainty in financial markets around the world. But on Thursday, he predicted deals with a number of countries within the next three to four weeks.

The president says he's 100 percent sure negotiations with the European Union will produce results. He acknowledges administration is talking directly with China but he refused to say if he's spoken personally with Chinese President, Xi Jinping.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Nobody can compete with us. Nobody.

I think we're going to make a very good deal with China.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: All right. Let's go live now to Seoul with CNN's Mike Valerio. So, Mike, the president optimistic that a deal can be made shortly. Is Beijing sharing that optimism?

MIKE VALERIO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, no. I mean that's the short answer, Kim. Sorry to be so blunt about it.

But for a little bit of a reality check on this side of the globe, we do not, Kim, have any kind of reporting from Beijing that this optimism is shared in the Chinese capital. So I think it is so striking to tell our viewers in the U.S. watching on Max and around the world that we do hear these pronouncements from President Trump in the Oval Office saying, oh, yeah, three to four weeks. Deal is going to get done with China. But there's nothing and nobody in Beijing who is using any kind of similar language.

So what we're looking for is 3:00 P.M. Beijing time, about an hour from now. That is when we're going to hear a briefing from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

And, of course, Kim you bet, us and our colleagues, are going to be asking the spokesperson behind the lecture. And President Trump says this, what if any kind of comments are happening?

And we can tell you before we pivot back over here to South Korea and Japan, Kim, that are reporting from Beijing is conveying that Beijing thinks that the United States has a huge attitude problem to put it lightly.

It hears the comments that the president makes in the Oval, but then it hears comments from Vice President Vance or Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Vice President Vance, specifically, when he called the people of China peasants from whom we borrow billions of dollars in the United States to buy their manufactured goods.

Pronouncements like that, Beijing has a huge problem with when it hears President Trump saying one thing and the Vice President saying another thing.

[02:05:09]

Meantime, if we go back to Seoul and Tokyo, looking at the markets, one of the reasons why both of the capitals are in the green right now is because both Seoul and Tokyo, Kim, think the negotiations for South Korea and Japan are headed in the right direction.

We had good signals coming from Ryosei Akazawa yesterday, the minister from Japan, who's negotiating. He was photographed in the Oval Office. Some pretty rosy pronouncement.

South Korea has its turn next week. And the thinking is that the White House wants deals done with these two U.S. allies pretty early to show the world that it doesn't just sow chaos, but it can get deals done with these huge American exporters, which of course are under these 25 percent aluminum, steel and auto tariffs, Kim. So that's what we'll be watching here in this corner of the world and the week ahead.

BRUNHUBER: Interesting. We'll check in with you next hour when we expect that response from Beijing. Appreciate that.

Mike Valerio in Seoul, thanks so much.

Well, President Trump discussed trade and the war in Ukraine with Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni. She glossed over a question about Trump's assertion that Volodymyr Zelenskyy could be blamed for the war. And she insisted Italy is coming close to meeting NATO's requirement to spend two percent of GDP on defense, but she was much more conciliatory on the issue of trade and tariffs, saying, she wants to make the West great again. Here she is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GIORGIA MELONI, ITALIAN PRIME MINISTER: I'm sure we can make a deal. And I'm here to help on that. I cannot look the deal in the name of the European Union. My goal would be invite President Trump to pay an official visit to Italy and understand if there's a possibility when it comes to organize also such a meeting with Europe.

I'm sure that, together, we are stronger. And I have to find a way. I'm here to find the best way to make us both stronger on the two shores of the -- of the Atlantic.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: And joining me now is Amy Kazmin, Rome correspondent for "The Financial Times." Great to have you on the program. Thanks so much for being here with us.

So before we get to the specifics, the tone of this meeting was striking. Prime Minister Meloni seemingly went down the checklist of all the Trump touchstones. She attacked DEI and woke ideology and talked about making the West great again.

What struck you most?

AMY KAZMIN, ROME CORRESPONDENT, THE FINANCIAL TIMES: Well, definitely the friendly tone of the meeting was noticeable. I think for anyone walking into that Oval Office, even a global leader walking into the Oval Office in front of the world's media, there has to be considerable nervousness having watched the treatments that Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy got, you know, several weeks ago. So anyone going in there would have to be nervous.

But the tone of the meeting was, in fact, incredibly friendly, all smiles, lots of friendly banter. Donald Trump showered praise on Giorgia Meloni, calling her one of the great leaders of the world. And it was clear that there was a really positive and friendly vibe between them.

BRUNHUBER: Right. OK. So the big question then, can she leverage that vibe, that position she has a sort of this Trump whisper into a deal for Europe?

KAZMIN: Well, frankly, I think that question is yet to be answered. I mean, she went in there and she had the meeting. It seemed to go well for her. And she definitely is trying to position herself as someone who can help be a bridge between the Trump administration and Europe.

Trump administration is not so keen on dealing with the European Union. President Trump has been very reluctant to engage with European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, who's been seeking a meeting, so far to no avail.

So Giorgia Meloni has invited Trump to come to visit Italy. And suggested that Italy could be the venue for a bigger meeting with other European leaders.

But really, I think it will be seen in the days and weeks ahead whether this meeting, which was definitely very amicable and friendly, can actually lead to concrete results in terms of pushing along the trade growth talks between the United States and the European Union.

Giorgia Meloni, as the leader of Italy, is not in a position to negotiate a trade deal for Italy with the United States, nor can she negotiate on behalf of the European Union. So that is something that has to be done by E.U. officials.

So it's a tricky situation for her, but I think she will be hoping that somehow she can use what sometimes has been called diplomatic good offices to kind of push things along.

[02:10:59]

BRUNHUBER: Yes. All right. So while Donald Trump and Giorgia Meloni see eye-to-eye on many things, it seems Ukraine isn't necessarily one of them. I thought it was fascinating that Meloni referred to Putin as the invader when speaking in Italian. But then when she kind of interrupted the translator who was going to say that in English, then she translated herself without mentioning her comments about Putin. What did you make of that?

KAZMIN: We were laughing in our office as we watched that. It was an incredible moment.

I mean, when the Italian journalist asked Meloni, in Italian, to make a comment on the way that Trump has described the conflict in Ukraine, I mean, there was an intake of breath because we realized that was a very fraught moment for Giorgia Meloni.

Giorgia Meloni has been a very strong advocate of the Ukrainian cause. She's met Zelenskyy many, many times. She's been very clear in describing Russia as the invader. This is an invasion. Ukraine is fighting for its liberty and freedom.

If you look at her address to the Republican CPAC conference, shortly after the invasion in 2022, she's absolutely clear. Who is the aggressor? Who is the aggressed?

She has tried to tone it down publicly since Donald Trump has taken office and talked about peace and seemed to be much more conciliatory towards Putin.

But I think in general, she is still quite strong in her support of Ukraine. And that was a very fraught moment for her. And I think people here in Italy thought she handled that very deftly.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, absolutely. While it'll be interesting to see J.D. Vance going to Rome apparently today. We'll see what comes out of his meetings with Meloni there, as well as his strips to the Vatican.

Amy Kazmin in Rome, thank you so much. Really appreciate having you on.

U.S. and European officials hold high-level talks on Ukraine. And the White House waits for word from Moscow about its ceasefire proposal. More of that and more, coming up. Stay with us.

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[02:15:43]

BRUNHUBER: The Hamas official says, the group is fully rejecting Israel's ceasefire offer from earlier this week. Instead, the militants are calling for a comprehensive proposal to end the war.

Now this rejection has prompted calls from the Israeli far-right for an escalation of Israeli military action in Gaza. They're urging the Prime Minister to unleash, quote, hell.

The Israeli plan had called for a 45-day truce when both sides couldn't negotiate a permanent ceasefire, it didn't guarantee an end to the war. Now under the proposal, Hamas would release the remaining Israeli hostages in stages.

The U.S. and Ukraine are moving ahead with their deal on critical minerals. On Thursday, they signed a memorandum of intent getting a step closer to the full agreement.

And as President Donald Trump says, that agreement could be signed as early as next week. Now sources say the deal would apply to all of Ukraine's mineral resources, including rare earth minerals, plus oil and gas.

Now the agreement would include a joint investment fund overseen by a board made up mostly of Americans. U.S. businesses would also have the right to make the first offer for a future natural resource projects in Ukraine.

Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump says, he expects to hear back from Russia this week about his proposed 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine.

On Thursday, U.S. and European officials met in Paris to discuss Ukraine and the war.

Our Nic Robertson reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: So these were important meetings, big meetings, because it was the first time since February, senior U.S. officials, senior European officials, leaders even, had met to discuss the ceasefire arrangements that the United States has been calling for, President Trump has been calling for since February.

Of course, Ukraine has already signed up a long time ago. Now, it feels to this unconditional ceasefire, the pressure has been on President Putin and it was the U.S. envoy, Steve Witkoff, who has been meeting face-to-face with President Putin and the census been in Europe, that Witkoff is being spun and played by Putin, that Putin isn't serious about getting into a ceasefire right now. So Witkoff, Marco Rubio, Secretary of State, meeting with Emmanuel Macron, the French President, the French Foreign Minister, that was the first sort of big meeting, a lunch, a working lunch for the day. But then there were lots of other meetings. Rubio, Witkoff, meeting with European counterparts, British, French, German Foreign Ministers.

Also, those countries had their national security advisors or equivalents in the room. And as well at these meetings, you had the Ukrainian defense minister and the Ukrainian foreign minister.

So a lot of conversations, not a lot of detail coming out. But a French official has described the meetings in this way, saying, they were very strong strategic opportunity.

And actually goes on in quite effusive language to say this. There was an excellent exchange, a high-quality exchange, a substantive exchange that allowed us to converge on the essential goals for -- which for us is a solid piece for Ukraine, which means a solid piece for Ukraine and for the Europeans.

[02:20:05]

So the French playing this as a meeting that was successful, but we don't know who convinced which side of what.

We know clearly that Emmanuel Macron is someone who knows President Putin very well. And he may well sat there and have listened to Steve Witkoff explaining the conversations he's had with President Putin. But Emmanuel Macron is a sort of leader who would want to give his input back to the U.S. side.

So the exchanges, the details is unclear. But the narrative emerging is that this moves in the right direction quite how and at what speed is absolutely unclear what has been very clear.

And some of those national security advisors in those meeting with the U.S. officials, very firmly, believe that Putin absolute -- absolutely not committed to getting into a ceasefire.

I believe that, in fact, that he can still win on the battlefield. That's what we've been hearing over recent weeks.

So again, the substance of those meetings is not clear, but the French playing it, you know, as a success, moving the ball in the right direction. Again, how much? Unclear.

Nic Robertson, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: Four people were killed and another severely injured when a cable car plunged into a ravine in southern Italy on Thursday.

Authorities say cable snaps during severe weather on the Monte Faito cableway near Sorrento. Fire officials say rescuers evacuated 16 people from the cars below the break. The cableway overlooks the Bay of Naples and the Mount Vesuvius volcano.

It reopened just a week ago after being closed for renovation.

Well, there's some anger and frustration. U.S. lawmakers find themselves taking major heat from voters at town hall meetings across the country.

Will the outrage make a difference on Capitol Hill? Well, the answer that coming up next here on CNN NEWSROOM. Please stay with us.

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[02:25:52]

BRUNHUBER: With Congress in recess, U.S. lawmakers, have been meeting with her constituents at town halls across the country, and some of those meetings have turned violent.

Well, first, this is longtime democratic Congressman, Jim Clyburn, at a town hall in his home state of South Carolina on Thursday. Here's the crowd that pray for the country, which he fears is sliding into autocracy.

Clyburn faced a mostly friendly crowd, but many other lawmakers have faced anger from voters. They're upset with the Republicans about Donald Trump's overhaul of the federal government, and by Republicans' deferential response.

And Democrats, too, are facing criticism with voters saying, they're not doing enough to fight back against Trump and the Republicans.

All right. Joining me now is Natasha Lindstaedt, professor of government at the University of Essex. Good to see you again.

So as I mentioned there, most Republicans are shying away from holding town halls, not so most Democrats. Here's Democratic Congressman Jim Clyburn.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JIM CLYBURN (D-SC): All we can do is share with you what we're doing and ask for your prayers that this country will not allow itself to go the way of Germany in the 1930s, when people stood by.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: So a very strong, and some might say, inflammatory statement there from Clyburn. Democrats are being told loud and clear that their voters want them to do more to stand up to Trump.

But we saw in the last election, voters didn't really respond to these grand arguments about Trump's threat to democracy.

So, are Democrats sort of stuck on the wrong message here?

NATASHA LINDSTAEDT, PROFESSOR OF GOVERNMENT, UNIVERSITY OF ESSEX: Well, I think now that it's actually happening, that Trump has been, you know, with -- within under 100 days, accelerated the autocratization process where he's consolidated a lot of power in his hands. He's been ignoring the rule of law going against judges.

We believe deporting people that haven't committed any crimes, attacking civil liberties and so on and gutting the federal government. I think Democrats are starting to feel it and independents as well.

So they're seeing that that messaging, which sounded like fear- mongering during the 2024 election, is feeling real, that people are seeing the effects of what Trump is doing.

And it's resonating a little bit better this time as people are becoming up in arms and are seriously concerned about what could happen next. Because Trump has been floating the idea of a third term. That really would be the nail in the coffin for U.S. democracy, at least temporarily. So their right to highlight this at the moment.

But probably the bigger issue is what Trump has been doing to the economy. And you have some 58 percent of the public, according to a CBS poll, saying that Trump is causing prices to go up.

[02:30:06]

BRUNHUBER: Yeah. And, certainly, many Democrats are being urged to focus on just that, the economy.

But you talked about deportation. Earlier this week, Republican Senator Chuck Grassley held a town hall and had a heated exchange about the Maryland man who was wrongly deported to El Salvador.

Now, this is an issue that, unusually, has even divided Republicans, especially with President Trump musing that he'd even be willing to deport U.S. citizens.

LINDSTAEDT: Exactly. I mean, this should be a slam dunk issue for Trump, for the Republicans. It's -- you know, immigration is his best issue. Second would have been, I guess, the economy. And if Trump just focused on the way that he handled immigration in his first term he would have been very popular because that actually would have been the way the entire American public felt that there needed to be a little bit tough -- more tougher stance on immigration.

But he's gone too far with this one because there's been a lot of publicity about this Maryland man who's been wrongly sent to El Salvador in an extreme prison with, you know, incredibly dangerous gang members. And we don't know what is going to happen to him. And Trump has been ignoring the courts. I mean, there have been several courts, including the Supreme -- the Supreme Court, that has made it clear that he needs to return that the man Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was sent to El Salvador, he shouldn't be in any kind of prison there.

And that actually the U.S. does have the power to return him, but instead, the talking points of Trump and his Republican, congresspeople are basically saying they don't have the power to return him, even though they've admitted that this was a mistake. And I think that's why it is so divisive. People know this is wrong.

BRUNHUBER: Now, all of this comes as two new polls find Donald Trump's approval rating slightly lower, now at around 44 percent.

So, when you dig into the numbers, what stands out to you?

LINDSTAEDT: Well, I think what's kind of interesting is when we've been talking about these town halls and, you know, Democrats have been holding town halls in Republican districts. Republicans have been advised not to hold town halls at all just because they've been so full of angry constituents. It sounds like there's a groundswell of Republicans that are angry at this point, but that's not really the case.

If we look at the overall numbers. You still have 90 percent support from the Republicans for -- for Trump. Forty-four percent, that's pretty low for a president in the first 100 days. That's slightly above what Trump faced right in the 2018 midterms.

So, this is really about what his approval rating tends to be. It's always around 40 percent, somewhere between 40 and 45 percent. The main issue is that he's pursued economic policies that are so dangerous and destructive that they're going to have a huge impact at some point. And one can only predict that if they remain you know, if these -- these economic impacts come into effect by the time the midterms come, you know, the Democrats gained 41 seats in 2018. I think it will be quite a bit more in 2026, given the way the polls are looking at the moment.

BRUNHUBER: Yeah. Still, so many twists and turns before then. Appreciate your analysis, Natasha Lindstaedt. Thank you so much.

LINDSTAEDT: Thanks for having me.

BRUNHUBER: Millions around the world prepare to celebrate Easter as Pope Francis marks Holy Thursday with a visit to prison. The latest public appearance from the recovering pontiff. That's coming up next.

Stay with us.

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[02:38:36]

BRUNHUBER: Today, Christians around the world are observing Good Friday. The Vatican will mark the day with their annual celebration, though Pope Francis isn't expected to attend. The pontiff did make a surprise appearance at a prison on Thursday. The 88-year-old has been recovering after a five week spell in hospital, battling a severe illness. The pope was greeted with applause at the prison and offered well-wishes to inmates ahead of Easter. Francis has visited prisons regularly during his papacy, especially on Holy Thursday.

Well, the London Zoo says it has successfully hatched chicks from a species that's extinct in the wild. Three Socorro dove chicks hatched in late March. The species comes from an island off the coast of Mexico. There are just 181 individual doves left, all under human care in captivity. The dove chicks hatched as part of a breeding program to help the species grow again. The London Zoo is working with other organizations to reintroduce the dove back to its native habitat by 2030.

Poland is basking in some unseasonably warm weather. Forecasters say the country is set to be one of the hottest places in Europe, with unusually high temperatures for April. Warsaw, for instance, is predicted to hit 82 Celsius today. Now, people in one. Well, that's Fahrenheit, I guess.

People in one coastal city flocked to the beach to enjoy the sun, although many were enjoying the pleasant conditions, some expressed concerns over global warming.

I'm Kim Brunhuber. Thanks so much for joining me this hour.

"WORLD SPORT" is next and I'll be back at the top of the hour with more news.

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