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Dems Won't Help House Speaker End Shutdown; Outrage Over ICE Activity Fuels Nationwide Protests; Judge Orders Release of Five-Year- Old and Father; Winter Weather Nightmare; Rafah Crossing Partially Reopening; Over 30 People Killed in Israeli Strikes; Trump: Iran "Seriously Talking" to U.S. After Strike Threats; Mine Collapses in DR Congo. Aired 4-5a ET

Aired February 01, 2026 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:00]

KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to all of you watching us here in the United States, Canada, and around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is CNN Newsroom. The partial U.S. government shutdown will go on longer than lawmakers expected. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries is telling the House Speaker not to count on Democrats to end it. A winter storm wreaks havoc on much of the U.S. More low-temperature records could be broken today. And the Rafah Crossing linking Gaza to Egypt is partially reopening, a key part of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta, this is CNN Newsroom with Kim Brunhuber.

BRUNHUBER: The partial U.S. federal government shutdown will likely continue until at least Tuesday. The House of Representatives is in recess until Monday, and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries is warning Republicans that they can't rely on Democrats to help fast-track the Senate-approved funding bill. That measure only includes a two-week stopgap funding extension for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Democrats are demanding broader reforms to immigration and customs enforcement after deadly ice operations in Minnesota. Donald Trump has approved the latest version of the bill, and this is what he has to say when asked about DHS reforms.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: We'll talk about it. It's not appropriate yet. We have to let a little time go by. But we'll talk about it. But, you know, we want -- I got elected from law enforcement for the border, for the economy. Things I've done a great job with. When you the lowest crime rate in the history of our country recorded in 125 years, to be exact. So, I'm fulfilled so much. We'll have to talk about that over the next three or four days.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: CNN's Camila DeChalus brings us the latest from Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAMILA DECHALUS, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, looks like the partial government shutdown is going to last longer than anticipated. Right now, CNN is reporting that the House Minority Leader, Hakeem Jeffries, just recently told the House Speaker Mike Johnson that Democrats will not help Republicans with passing the remaining spending bills in order to end this partial government shutdown.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY), U.S. HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: We need a full and complete debate. And what I've made clear to House Republicans is that they cannot simply move forward with legislation, taking a my way or the highway approach, in the absence of House Democrats convening, which we're going to do tomorrow, and having a discussion about the appropriate way forward, and making sure that in this two week period of time that is contemplated by the continuing resolution that would freeze ice funding for 14 days, that there's a robust ironclad path to bringing about the type of change that the American people are demanding.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DECHALUS: Now, this is a very big deal because just yesterday, the Senate reached an agreement to pass the remaining spending bills that fund different parts of the government. And that included a short term funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security.

Now, House Democrats now say that this is a major issue for them, and they do not want to fund the Department of Homeland Security, especially in light of the recent events of a federal agent who shot and killed Alex Pretti. Now, to be clear, Mike Johnson could try to move forward and pass the remaining spending bills with just House Republican support. But even that is not guaranteed because some conservative members, they have problems with some of the provisions and the spending packages.

Now, if this partial government shutdown continues, here's who will be impacted. First, let's start off with travelers. They could face major delays at airports because many of the federal workers include air traffic controllers and TSA employees. They will go and miss paychecks. And also, this also includes who will be impacted. Americans will not be able to secure federal loans to buy homes or operate small businesses.

But not everyone will feel the impact right away. For instance, millions of people who rely on the SNAP benefits program, also known as food stamps, are not expected to see any disruptions at this time. But to be clear, if the government shutdown does last longer, then the impact of this could be felt bigger. This means that national parks could close, passport processing could slow down, and other key federal services could be delayed.

Camille DeChalus, CNN, Washington. (END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: Democrats' pushback to funding ICE comes as outrage over the Trump administration's immigration crackdown is fueling protests across the U.S. Demonstrators rallied Saturday against a judge's rejection of a request from Minnesota state and local governments to immediately stop the federal operations in Minneapolis.

[04:05:00]

The crowds celebrated another judge's decision to release a five-year- old boy detained by ICE agents, along with his father, more than a week ago. Julia Vargas Jones was with protesters in Los Angeles.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JULIA VARGAS JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That judge ordered not only that Liam and his father be released latest by Tuesday, but also that the government file an update with the court to say whether or not that happened by no later than Wednesday.

Now, it's important to note that the government could still appeal in this case. They had in the past called Liam's father, quote, "illegal alien." And they had actually said that the reason why Liam was sent with his father to the facility in Dilley, Texas, 1,300 miles away from his home in Minnesota, is because his father asked them to take his son with him.

Now, there's been a lot of questioning back and forth on this specific matter, because when that photo was taken of Liam with his little backpack and bunny hat being taken into custody with his father, his mother was just inside that house, steps away from him.

And so, the question was, why didn't she get custody of Liam? Well, a family friend told CNN that she was terrified and that actually agents had asked Liam to knock on the door to see if anybody was home, and that then his mother heeded the advice of some neighbors who said, don't open the door. She was terrified, this family friend told CNN, of also then being detained herself. And she's four months pregnant and has a teenage son as well.

Despite all of that, it's the story and that image of Liam with his backpack being taken to a detention facility that is resonating here in Los Angeles. All afternoon on Saturday, we've been seeing signs of Liam or his hat, mentions of his name, bring Liam home, one protester saying. And then they came for a child with the bunny ears and still people were silent.

Now, I want you to listen to what one of these protesters had to say when I told her that a judge had issued an order for the release of Liam and his father.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Along with all the other judges that have told this administration what they need to do, they do not do any of it. And nobody stops them. Nobody. And this is just a catastrophe for our country and our democracy. JONES: We're seeing a lot of abolish ICE signs here in downtown Los Angeles. Some people are saying we just have to protect children. And it seems like this is a gathering where people are coming together and agreeing on this one particular cause.

Julia Vargas Jones, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: Major winter storm could bring near blizzard conditions to much of the southeastern United States in the coming hours. The storm has already brought the biggest snow in years across the region. Several states have reported more than a foot or 30 plus centimeters of snowfall.

Now, this dangerous weather system could wreak more havoc before it heads out to sea early Sunday. Coastal flooding risks are expected to ramp up overnight and hundreds of daily cold temperature records could be broken through Monday.

Now, Interstate 85, just north of Charlotte, North Carolina, has reopened after a crash left drivers stranded for hours. The backup began when a tractor trailer and a Jeep collided. Well, it got worse as more snow fell and dozens of other trucks and cars became stuck on the highway. Emergency agencies, including 12 members of the National Guard, were called in to rescue drivers and clear the road. Light snowfall is expected to continue in the area. CNN's Rafael Romo is just outside Atlanta, Georgia, where an extreme cold warning remains in effect.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's a winter wonderland. We're located in Monroe, Georgia, a beautiful town about 50 miles east of Atlanta. And I got to tell you, the snow here has been heavy during most of the day, probably where we are, it's two, maybe three inches and it's still snowing. But it's the kind of snow that it's powdery. It's a little bit fluffy. It's not necessarily heavy. It's not the kind of snow that you can use for snowballs or to build a snowman. So, probably a lot of disappointed children here.

This is the Walton County Courthouse behind me. And believe it or not, in spite of this conditions and in spite of the fact that the winds can get gusty at times, we ran into a lady who was enjoying the whole thing. She was walking down the street and she told us that, yes, it's cold.

Yes, it's a wintry mix. But the reality is that she feels like what she was experiencing is a little bit of a late Christmas present. This is what she had to say.

[04:10:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was anticipating it being a little bit of an inflated forecast and not expecting too much ground coverage. So, it's nice to see a little bit of Christmas, delayed Christmas. I love it. I think it's magical.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: And that's part of the challenge here that when it's snowing, that's not the problem. The problem is that the wind is very strong, is very gusty at times, and it feels like it cuts your skin. In spite of those circumstances, we ran into a couple. They told us that every Saturday morning they go on walks. They were thinking about whether they were going to do it this morning or not. But they said this is something that we rarely enjoy in the South and we're going to bundle up and get out there. This is what they have to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: As it is during on Saturday mornings is our we walk in the city, go get local coffee. But today we decided to not stop us from doing that. So, we decided it was romantic for us to go and walk in the snow.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: I also wanted to show you the conditions of the streets here. As you can see, the parts where officials have been able to salt and brine are in decent condition. But if you go to some of the side streets, maybe not so much. And there's a very serious part to this storm. And it is the fact that it is very, very cold by midday. The temperature was already 25 degrees, but it felt like five degrees when you take into account the wind chill. So, officials say if you don't have to go outside, stay home. And as always, remember to take care of people, pets, plants and of course, the pipes around your house.

Rafael Romo, CNN, Monroe, Georgia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: A crucial gateway for Gaza is partially reopening after almost two years. Israel will allow passage through the Rafah border crossing will explain who can cross and under what conditions.

Plus, several mines have collapsed in eastern Congo beneath a devastating landslide. Still ahead, we'll have the latest on the rising death toll as officials assess the fallout. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:15:00]

BRUNHUBER: After almost two years, Israel is partially reopening Gaza's gateway to the world. Right now, officials are carrying out preliminary work at the Rafah Border Crossing with Egypt before they allow people to cross. Once those preparations are completed, only pedestrians vetted by Israel will pass. An Israeli official said they plan to allow 150 Palestinians to exit Gaza daily and just about 50 to enter. The reopening was stipulated in the U.S.-brokered ceasefire plan to stop the war in Gaza.

Let's get more now from CNN's Oren Liebermann live in Jerusalem. So, a partial reopening. Oren, give us a sense of where things stand and where things go from here.

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Kim, both the Palestinian who's in charge of the technocratic committee that's set to run Gaza as well as Israel are portraying today as effectively a trial phase for a larger reopening, still limited though, that's supposed to happen in the next few days.

So, today, according to COGAT, Israel's coordinator of government affairs or activities in the territories, you're seeing Egypt, the European Union, which will run the crossing itself, as well as a number of other parties involved in operating the crossing, essentially doing a dry run for what will be the limited opening of the crossing sometime in the next few days.

Now, Israel doesn't say when the crossing will actually be open to pedestrian traffic, and as you pointed out, it is only pedestrian traffic. What was a crucial crossing for humanitarian aid as well as commercial goods will now be limited by Israel to only the passage of a relatively small number of pedestrians.

But Ali Shaath (ph), who runs that Palestinian technocratic committee, says the crossing will be open for operations tomorrow and that a number of Palestinians will be able to leave and enter. According to an Israeli security official, it remains a very limited number. 150 will be allowed to leave and only 50 will be allowed to enter. Those who enter will be subject to an Israeli security screening as well as the other processes of screening for the operation of the crossing.

Now, the reopening of Rafah has been delayed for more than three months since that ceasefire agreement went into effect in mid-October. Israel had refused to open the crossing until all of the living and deceased hostages held in Gaza were returned. It was that final deceased hostage, Ran Gvili, who was returned last week, and that led to this point and the reopening of the Rafah Crossing.

As you point out, it's not a complete reopening. It is limited to a relatively small number of pedestrians who will be allowed to go back and forth, and there are still no indications that it will, at least anytime soon, be open for humanitarian aid or for commercial goods to pass through Rafah. Kim.

BRUNHUBER: All right. Appreciate that. CNN's Oren Liebermann, thanks so much. Now joining me now from Gaza City is Yousra Abu Sharekh. She is the Gaza Program Coordinator at the International Network for Aid, Relief and Assistance, and she joins us on the phone.

Thanks so much for being here with us. So, you've lived through almost two years of this crossing being shut. I mean, what does this moment mean, do you think, to the people of Gaza?

YOUSRA ABU SHAREKH, INARA: Yes. Actually (INAUDIBLE) sense of hope for people. Yes, it's not enough as we talking about (INAUDIBLE) of the border. The number of people are allowed to (INAUDIBLE) is very limited comparing to the number of people who are in need for immediate evacuation, not only for health or for life-saving health services, we are talking about 20,000 cases are in urgent and time needed for evacuation to be treated outside Gaza Strip.

We are talking about also students. We are talking about people who have their business, their families outside Gaza Strip. So, they need to evacuate. So, 50 or 70 on a daily basis would never be enough.

[04:20:00]

And if we do a quick calculation and math for this, it may take one, maybe more than one year, about 20 months, for those cases to be evacuated for health services. And everyone knows that they are sensitive to time, and some people died while they are waiting for evacuation. We lost about 1,200 cases during the war for cases that they just wait for their evacuation.

And here we are not talking about also only the operational capacity of the border, we are talking about the logistics and the administrative checks and operations that will take time, and we are not guaranteed or certain about the time needed for those cases to be evacuated. Some may also lose their lives because they are waiting for their approval. As you know, they should be pre-approved by Israel to be able to leave Gaza Strip.

So, it's complex, it's not a very easygoing process, and we are talking about also families outside Gaza who are in need to return to Gaza Strip to reunion with their families.

BRUNHUBER: Yes. Let me ask you about that, because you've been rightly focusing on the evacuations and all those important medical cases that need to leave Gaza, but of course there's a huge backlog of people waiting in Egypt who want to return to Gaza. But as we heard from our reporter there, about three times as many people are allowed to leave Gaza as are allowed to enter. So, is there a certain sense of frustration or anger about this, that they're restricting especially the number of people allowed to return?

SHAREKH: Yes. Of course, especially when we are talking about humanitarian cases. We are talking about people who are allowed -- unapproved to evacuate during the war, and leaving their kids, leaving their siblings, their families, their parents, their people. So, they are in urgent -- and their priority is to return to Gaza, especially if they have ended up and finished their treatment plan. So, what's the point of them waiting or staying outside Gaza Strip while everything of their support system is inside Gaza Strip?

So, they want to reunite with their families. It's not just a kind of wish or hope, it's a matter of humanitarian story. Some were not allowed to take their husbands, for example, or their children. So, their priority is to return back to Gaza Strip so that they could live their life together. Even during the harsh times, they don't have a problem to go through the harsh conditions of Gaza Strip, but the most important thing to them is to be with their families, which is very important to them either in both sides of that story, like either inside Gaza or outside Gaza Strip.

So, yes, this is very urgent, and the international community should put more pressure on these cases to support them to return to Gaza Strip in order for them to be with their families. In addition, we are talking about students who finished their school outside, and they want to return to their families.

BRUNHUBER: Yes.

SHAREKH: So, many -- thousands of families, thousands of stories that could be here for these people outside Gaza Strip, they want to come back to Gaza and grieve together their losses as well.

BRUNHUBER: Yes. And of course, it was such an important route for aid to enter into Gaza, which as yet is not being allowed in. We'll have to leave it there, but really appreciate getting your insights from Gaza. Yousra Abu Sharekh, thank you so much for speaking with us.

SHAREKH: Thank you.

BRUNHUBER: President Trump says Iran is conducting serious negotiations with the United States, but he isn't saying whether he's decided to launch a military strike against Iran. The president has warned the U.S. could take military action if Tehran doesn't agree to negotiate a nuclear deal. He's made similar threats during Iran's violent crackdown on anti-government protests. Now, he's avoiding questions about specific military plans. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I certainly can't tell you that, but we do have very big, powerful ships heading in that direction, as you know. I can't tell you, you know. But I hope they negotiate something that's acceptable.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Saudi Arabia's defense minister reportedly said that if the U.S. backs off a strike, that will only embolden Tehran. What's your reaction to that, sir?

[04:25:00]

TRUMP: Some people think that, some people don't. If you could make a negotiated deal that would be satisfactory with no nuclear weapons, they said they should do that, but I don't know that they will. But they are talking to us, seriously talking to us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: So, as talks and threats continue, the U.S. is sending a message by boosting its military presence in the region, and that includes moving the Lincoln Carrier Strike Group to the northern Arabian Sea to assist any potential military action that Donald Trump decides to make.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy now says Ukraine doesn't expect the ongoing peace talks to resume until next week. Negotiations with the U.S. and Russia were originally scheduled to start in the coming hours in Abu Dhabi, but Zelenskyy warned earlier they could be postponed or moved because of the U.S. tensions with Iran.

Well, Russia's brief pause on striking Kyiv is set to expire on Sunday. That's happening as Ukraine endures more power outages because of malfunctioning lines to Moldova. Temperatures are expected to drop as low as minus 30 Celsius or minus 22 Fahrenheit while power and heat are out across the country. President Zelenskyy says the capital is trying to cope. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): The situation is most difficult in Kyiv. There is a significant heating deficit. Almost 3,500 buildings in different districts are without heating. The city authorities, municipal services and energy workers promise to correct the heating situation as much as possible by tomorrow morning, but the pace must be faster.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: In Miami, Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev held talks with U.S. negotiators on Saturday. U.S. officials called the meeting productive and constructive.

At least 200 people are known dead after heavy rain triggered a massive landslide that collapsed several mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo and officials are still counting. The area is controlled by M23 rebels. The mines produce metals the world needs for high-tech products from phones to aircraft engines.

And joining me now with the latest live from Nairobi, Kenya, is CNN's Larry Madowo. Larry, tragedy on a huge scale here. What are we learning about what happened?

LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We're still trying to understand a bit more about what happened here, but what we know based on authorities in the region is that the ground caved in. This is a rainy season in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo and many artisanal miners were buried underground. Many women and children, men working in these conditions were buried when this happened.

And it's been a painstaking process since Wednesday to try and retrieve the bodies and get a full toll of the people that were killed there. A few were injured and have been receiving treatment in nearby hospitals, at least 20, according to the authorities in Rubaya in the eastern DRC. This area has been under M23 rebel control since 2024, and they're the ones who've appointed a governor who's been giving some of these statistics. I want you to listen first to a survivor in hospital talking about what happened.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HABATI MUSANGA ERASTO, NORTH KIVU GOVERNOR UNDER M23 ADMIN. (through translator): We sympathize with you for this tragedy that has happened to you, but we ask you to help us develop strategies to end these kinds of tragedies. I just learned that in 2017, more than 2,000 people died after another landslide. With what has just happened to you today, we ask the population to be vigilant.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MADOWO: That is the governor of the North Kivu province, but he was appointed by the M23, part of the alliance, the alliance -- the Congo River Alliance. They are allegedly backed by Rwanda, even though Rwanda denies that. And he speaks to something that the Congolese government is also talking to, that there have been similar disasters in this part.

The Congolese government put out a strong statement blaming this on the M23 and Rwanda for illegally exploiting Congolese natural resources. And they say, as of early 2025, a cabinet circular declared this place a red site and made it illegal for any mining or marketing activities regarding this particular area, and therefore any mining, including artisanal mining, should be illegal.

But they say that the M23, backed by Rwanda, continues to exploit these mineral resources, but especially endanger the local populations who are working in these wild, exploitative conditions to keep supplying this cotton to Rwanda, which exports it as Rwandese minerals. CNN has reached out to the Rwandan government for comment. We haven't heard back yet.

But that is the counterpoint from the Congolese government in Kinshasa, saying that if the people were not working here, as it is illegal to be working there in the first place, this would not have happened. And the Congolese statement also says that in May last year, 300 other people were killed in similar circumstances in this exact same area. And that is why they've declared it illegal to be carrying out any of these activities. But they continue to be there, endangering their lives, because Rwanda needs this supply of cotton, which the rest of the world requires.

[04:30:00]

Rubaya alone contributes about 15 percent of the total supply of the cotton in the region. So, it's very important. And the U.N. has claimed that the M23 is exploiting and using this cotton to essentially keep funding its insurgency in that region.

BRUNHUBER: I appreciate the context there. Larry Madowo, thanks so much. Well, a major winter storm threatening much of the southeastern U.S. Just ahead, we'll have the latest on the bomb cyclone that could bring near blizzard conditions and break temperature records in the coming hours.

Plus, what we're learning from the newly released Justice Department files from the Jeffrey Epstein investigation, including some of the powerful men whose names are mentioned. We'll have those stories and more coming up here on CNN Newsroom. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BRUNHUBER: Welcome back to all of you watching us here in the United States, Canada and around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber, this is CNN Newsroom.

Winter storm could bring near blizzard conditions to much of the southeastern United States in the coming hours. In North Carolina, it's already made for a transportation nightmare. State authorities counted at least 750 highway collisions on Saturday and more than a thousand flights were canceled at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, according to FlightAware.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, Britain's former Prince Andrew, faces growing pressure at home to answer questions about his ties to Jeffrey Epstein. It follows the latest release of three million documents in the file tied to the convicted sex offender. Among them is a photo that appears to show Mountbatten-Windsor, on his hands and knees, leaning over an unidentified woman or girl. It's not clear when or where the images were taken. No captions or context for the photographs were provided with the document release, and neither the photographs nor the email messages suggest any wrongdoing.

[04:35:00]

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is calling on the former prince to testify about his links to Epstein before Congress.

Meanwhile, President Trump says information in the files proves he was the target of a conspiracy between Epstein and author Michael Wolff, who's written several books about him. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Not only does it absolve me, it's the opposite of what people were hoping, you know, the radical left, that Wolff, who's a third- rate writer, was conspiring with Jeffrey Epstein to hurt me, politically or otherwise, and that came through loud and clear. So, we'll probably sue Wolff for that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sir, did you speak -- or did you have any --

TRUMP: And maybe the Epstein estate, I guess. I don't know, but we're going to certainly sue Wolff.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: CNN Senior Reporter Marshall Cohen has more from Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARSHALL COHEN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: This was by far the biggest drop that we have seen, about 3.5 million pages of material. There were also more than 182,000 images and videos. The Justice Department says that this is the final batch and that they now have fully complied with the transparency law that Congress passed with nearly unanimous support last year, forcing all of these disclosures.

So, what did we learn? Well, according to CNN's review, President Donald Trump was mentioned more than 1,000 times in the new documents. Now, remember, we've known for years that Trump was close personal friends with Jeffrey Epstein in the '80s and '90s before Epstein's conviction on state sex crime charges in 2008. But these documents added a lot of new details.

We saw notes, for example, from an FBI interview in 2021 where one of Epstein's victims said that his longtime accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, brought her to a party in New York and, quote, "presented" her to Trump, and that Maxwell later made clear that she was, quote, "available." Trump and the woman never did anything together, according to what the woman told the FBI.

There also was a spreadsheet that the FBI put together just last year which contained uncorroborated and unverified sexual assault allegations against Trump. Now, let me be totally clear that the president has said that he cut ties with Epstein in the mid-2000s, and he denies wrongdoing. He has never been accused by law enforcement of any involvement in any of Epstein's crimes.

Other prominent figures also came up in the Epstein files. It really wasn't just Trump. There was a whole wide array of people in there. Tech billionaire Elon Musk, according to some of the emails, tried coordinating with Epstein to visit him in the Virgin Islands. Other messages showed that Howard Lutnick, who is now the Commerce Secretary, planned meetings with Epstein long after he claimed that they had stopped speaking.

And there were also new pictures of the former Prince Andrew. Some of those strange images showed him on all fours leaning on top of a woman who herself was lying on the floor. All of these men deny wrongdoing and have not been accused by authorities of any crimes.

Marshall Cohen, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BRUNHUBER: Canada's prime minister is calling on President Trump to respect Canadian sovereignty. Just ahead, the separatist movement calling for the province of Alberta to become an independent nation. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:40:00]

BRUNHUBER: The U.S. is getting drawn into a debate over sovereignty in Canada, and leaders in Ottawa aren't too happy about that. Now, it concerns the oil-rich western province of Alberta. The Financial Times is reporting that U.S. State Department officials met three times since last April with a group called the Alberta Prosperity Project. It's pushing for a referendum to make Alberta an independent nation. A White House official told CNN they meet with many groups and no support of succession has been made.

Still, the controversy forced Prime Minister Mark Carney to send a diplomatic, if direct, message to Donald Trump. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK CARNEY, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: I respect the U.S. administration to respect Canadian sovereignty. I'm always clear in my conversation with President Trump to that effect, and then move on to what we can do together.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: And joining me now for more on this is Mario Canseco. He's the president of Research Co. and is an analyst of public opinion research. Thanks so much for being up early with us. Really appreciate it.

So, first, just the context here. What's behind this all? I mean, this idea of western alienation isn't new. Same with the concept of independence in Alberta. It sort of comes and goes. So, what's driving the momentum now that this province should break away from the rest of the country?

MARIO CANSECO, PRESIDENT, RESEARCH CO.: What is driving this movement now is young people. This is a question that I've been asking for the past few years. We usually have about one in five people in Alberta who think that this is a good idea. But the last time we asked earlier this year, it reached 31 percent.

You could look at it differently and say 62 percent are saying they don't want to do anything related to this movement. They want to stay within Canada. But the fact that the number is higher now than it was just two years ago was certainly eye-catching.

BRUNHUBER: Yes. Any idea why young people might be more supportive of this than their elders?

CANSECO: There's a couple of issues at play. One of them is the fact that there's a sense of desperation from young residents of Alberta. And this is something that we see in other parts of the country with the issue of housing. Very complicated to get into the market. This is making people become really angry at the federal government. And it's one of the reasons for the numbers to be where they are. There's a lot of young people who are dissatisfied with the housing market.

They've been voting consistently for the federal conservatives who have not been able to form the federal government after the last three elections. So, it's definitely something that is weighing on them. And it's making them more likely to say, if we went to it alone, maybe things would be better.

BRUNHUBER: In general, I mean, there's this idea in Alberta that they contribute more to the country than they're getting back in terms of taxes and so on. How much of that is playing into this idea?

CANSECO: That is something that we notice, particularly when we look at the numbers from the rural areas. You look at the way people are reacting to this idea in Edmonton and in Calgary, and it is young people in the urban areas who are dissatisfied with things and want to change. When you look at the rural areas in Alberta, it's the middle- aged and older residents who are more likely to say that they are tired of the whole thing, that they're working too hard, that the federal government isn't listening.

So, it's a very interesting coalition where you have the older residents in the rural areas and the young ones in the cities thinking that this is the right way to go.

[04:45:00]

BRUNHUBER: One of the reasons this is making headlines is because, as I mentioned, some of these Alberta separatists reportedly met several times with the U.S. State Department. The Premier of British Columbia called these meetings treason. More broadly, I mean, what was the reaction there in Canada when that news broke?

CANSECO: Well, I think it was very clear that there was a lot of dissatisfaction with what was happening in Alberta. that there was a lot of dissatisfaction It's certainly been an issue that people are finally paying attention to. One of the reasons is we also ask a question to Albertans about where they would like to become a state. And the numbers are a little bit lower than what we see for independents, but it's still about one in five people who say it would be a great idea to become American.

After everything that's happened over the past year and a half, the overtures from Donald Trump mentioning Canada as the 51st state, it's making people who like that idea more likely to be voicing those issues. But those who don't like it are certainly saying that they don't want to be part of it. So, it's not something that is making people happy because we've had fights over sovereignty, as you know, particularly in Quebec. And this is bringing back memories of those times in 1980 and 1995.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, I'm originally from that province, so I know it well, but I just want to ask you about that, what you were saying there, because it's really counterintuitive. We've seen, you know, many Albertans do see President Trump as an ally, but as you mentioned, I mean, this is coming at a huge time of tension between these two countries, where the rest of the country, I mean, it seems to have fueled the opposite, more and more patriotism.

CANSECO: That is definitely what we're seeing. You know, looking at the numbers for Donald Trump in Canada prior to the 51st state government, he seemed to have more following among conservative voters and also people in Alberta. After the 51st state government, everything shifted. You know, now there's fewer than one in five Canadians who are happy with the way things are going in the United States.

But the group that is really calling for independence or for joining the U.S. is very vocal on social media, more likely to be saying things. And this is part of the reason for the issue to continue to be out there in the eye of many Canadians. This isn't something that we were talking about that widely just two months ago, but the fact that this meeting has happened, the fact that you have a lot of people now mentioning this more seriously is very different from what we saw just a few weeks ago.

BRUNHUBER: Yes. And social media, I guess that is one reason why maybe younger people might be more engaged with this issue than older people. All right. So, I want to end on sort of, you know, where we go from here. Concretely, this group needs to collect a certain number of signatures by May to force a referendum on independence. Do you think that they can actually get there? And if they do, I mean, what happens next?

CANSECO: Well, it's a very challenging timeline. There's certainly a chance that they can do it. They've been very successful essentially gathering signatures in areas where they've been right now canvassing, particularly rural areas. Winning the referendum is going to be complicated, but we need to remember the lesson of Brexit in the United Kingdom. A lot of people voted based on false pretenses and ended up having second thoughts just the day after all the votes were counted.

So, this is crucial, particularly for younger voters. They don't participate that much, but if they're voting based on the idea that for the sake of argument, the New York Giants are going to be playing in Calgary at some point, things could be different.

BRUNHUBER: All right. Yes, I can't quite see that. Listen, it's a fascinating topic. Interesting to see where it leads. Mario Canseco, thanks so much for joining us. Really appreciate it.

CANSECO: My pleasure, Kim. Anytime.

BRUNHUBER: All right. We'll be right back with more here on CNN Newsroom. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: Have a look at this. Tourists visiting Niagara Falls this weekend are in luck. After more than a week of freezing temperatures, the beloved natural wonder has been transformed like a scene out of a movie with crystalline formations surrounding the fall's snow-covered trees and ice coating the river. The falls are shared by Canada and the U.S. right on the border. Now, one visitor said she never thought of visiting the falls in the biting cold of winter. She said it seemed like a crazy idea, but it's beautiful, as you can see.

Well, Serbia's Novak Djokovic is facing off against world number one Carlos Alcaraz in the Australian Open men's title match when it gets underway in Melbourne. Currently, Djokovic is off to a strong start, taking the first set six games to two. Now, if the 30-year-old Serbian can secure a win today, it would mark a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam victory.

Meanwhile, the women's singles final. Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina won her first Australian Open title in a major upset over world number one Aryna Sabalenka on Saturday. CNN's Patrick Snow has the details.

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PATRICK SNELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: A women's tennis champion is crowned at the Australian Open on Saturday, a really famous victory for Elena Rybakina, who triumphed in a thrilling contest against Belarusian star Aryna Sabalenka. This was a rematch of the 2023 final.

Sabalenka looking to win this tournament for a third time. Neither player -- you know, had even dropped a set going into this final, but all that was about to change as the Russian-born Rybakina, who now represents Kazakhstan, starting very strongly indeed here by breaking her opponent's serve in the very first game, and that was really important, that was crucial, in fact.

Rybakina taking full advantage of it, going on to win the set six- four, and all of a sudden, the two-time champ had a lot of work to do. Sabalenka, though, digging deep in the second set as a loose forehand from Rybakina, giving her opponent the chance to level at one set apiece, and Aryna needing no second invitation. One set all.

The decider was tense, dramatic, Sabalenka powering her way into a three-games-to-love lead, and at that point, she must have thought it was job done, but Rybakina had other ideas, winning five straight games, including a really important break of serve to go 4-3 up.

[04:55:00]

And then comes the moment as her 2023 disappointment is washed away, a powerful ace to seal a wonderful career moment for Elena, the joy and elation of victory is Rybakina's to savor as she adds the Aussie Open triumph to her Wimbledon crown from 2022. Elena Rybakina now a two- time Grand Slam champion, and our congrats to her.

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ELENA RYBAKINA, TWO-TIME GRAND SLAM CHAMPION: I want to say thank you, of course, to you guys for such an incredible atmosphere. It was a battle, and honestly, your support kept us going, and thank you so much to Kazakhstan. I felt the support from that corner a lot. And yes, thank you, everyone who made this tournament possible. It's a really happy slam, and I always enjoy coming here and playing in front of you guys.

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SNELL: Joy for Rybakina. It's more despair, though, and pain for Sabalenka. When it comes to these Grand Slam singles finals, the Belarusian player has now lost three of the last four major finals she's been in, and after defeat to Madison Keys in 2025, she's also now lost her last two finals in Melbourne. Aryna's thoughts now on a terrific final with Rybakina.

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ARYNA SABALENKA, WORLD NUMBER 1 IN WOMEN'S SINGLES: I mean, she played an incredible match, and I tried my very best. I was fighting to the very last point. I had my opportunities. It feels like I missed a couple, but, I mean, it's tennis, you know. Today you're a loser, tomorrow you're a winner. So, hopefully, I'll be more of a winner this season than a loser. So, hoping right now and praying.

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SNELL: Sabalenka will have to continue her wait for a fifth major title. Congrats to Elena Rybakina, your 2026 Australian Open champion. With that, it's right back to you.

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BRUNHUBER: And that wraps this hour of CNN Newsroom. I'm Kim Brunhuber, who will be back with more news in just a moment.

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