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CBS Cancels "Late Show" Weeks After $16M Settlement With Trump; CNN Poll: Americans More Skeptical Of Israeli Actions In Gaza; Trump Pushes DOJ To Release "Any & All" Epstein Grand Jury Files; Trump Diagnosed With Chronic Venous Insufficiency. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired July 18, 2025 - 06:30   ET

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

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[06:31:09]

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JIMMY FALLON, LATE NIGHT SHOW HOST: Well, guys, President Trump's handling of the Epstein files continues to dominate the news. Yeah, I wonder if we're ever going to see the Epstein files.

At this point, our best chance is if Coldplay shows them on the Jumbotron.

(CHEERS)

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JESSICA DEAN, CNN ANCHOR: As President Trump tries to make the hype around the Epstein files go away, he once again finds himself in the middle of the scandal.

Good morning, everyone. I'm Jessica Dean, in for Audie Cornish today. Thanks so much for joining me on CNN this morning.

It is 6:31 here on the east coast. We're so glad to have you.

Here's what's happening right now. A collection of letters given to Jeffrey Epstein on his 50th birthday include one from President Trump. This is according to "The Wall Street Journal". The letter includes a drawing of a naked woman and a Donald signature with the line "Happy birthday and may every day be another wonderful secret".

The president denies this letter is from him, and the White House has called the report fake.

New overnight, the House passed $9 billion in DOGE cuts. The package includes spending cuts to foreign aid and public broadcasting. Only two Republicans voted against it in the House, Representatives Mike Turner and Brian Fitzpatrick. Dangerous flash flooding across parts of New Mexico. Several people

had to be rescued from rising water there. This is the 12th flash flood in the area in the past year, and just last week, three people were killed after being swept away by flood waters. Officials say damage from last year's wildfires are to blame.

It is the end of an era. CBS is canceling "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert". It will go off the air next May. The announcement, coming just days after Colbert criticized a $16 million settlement paid by CBS News's parent company Paramount to settle a lawsuit filed by President Trump.

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STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST, "THE LATE SHOW" ON CBS: Next year will be our last season. The network will be ending the late show in May and -- I share your feelings. It's not just the end of our show, but it's the end of "The Late Show" on CBS. I'm not being replaced. This is all just going away.

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DEAN: Now, CBS calls this a financial decision, but some are wondering whether the move was at all politically motivated. Senator Elizabeth Warren tweeting, quote, the deal looks like bribery. America deserves to know if his show is canceled for political reasons.

CNN media analyst Sara Fischer is joining us now.

Sara, good to see you this Friday morning.

I, first, just want to get your take on CBS's decision.

SARA FISCHER, CNN MEDIA ANALYST: Jessica, if it was a political decision, they have enough plausible deniability to say that it was a financial one because of the current state of late night and comedy television. It's very expensive to produce something live every single day, and viewership and ratings for traditional television continue to drop.

So even if this was political, CBS can get away with saying it wasn't. But I think what you're seeing from Senator Warren's tweet is that people just don't believe that this was a total financial decision, given the backdrop of what you just announced, the settlement with Donald Trump, all the political pressure, et cetera.

DEAN: California Democratic Senator Adam Schiff was a "Late Night" guest last night when this announcement was made. I want to take a listen to what he told Colbert about Trump.

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SEN. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA): He wants to make news organizations CBS and Paramount afraid. He wants to make ABC afraid. And he is succeeding.

In the first term, there were at least some people to stand up to him. The Secretary Mattises, the John Kellys and others that had some stature who were willing to say, Mr. President, that's a stupid ass idea.

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DEAN: Sara, how would you assess the state of news media in this era of the Trump administration?

FISCHER: I agree with the former congressman. It's under a lot of political pressure. And he's right that news companies are buckling. I mean, both ABC and CBS settled lawsuits that legal experts say they could have won in court, likely because out of fear of political retribution.

[06:35:06]

Of course, we know that CBS was undergoing a merger with its parent company, and they felt as though they needed to settle that lawsuit in order to get regulatory approval of that deal. We're also seeing the Trump era FCC go after media companies for their DEI policies, which is not typically something that has really fallen within their jurisdiction and their priority list.

And you're seeing media companies all changing their DEI policies in response, telecom companies, too. It's worth noting that T-Mobile changed its DEI policies to get a few deals of its own approved. And so, I think media companies feel this pressure.

And the biggest concern, Jessica, is not necessarily that they're paying lawsuits. The biggest concern is that they feel like they have to self-censor themselves because they're afraid of what that means for retribution. And that's why I think you have people concerned about the canceling of the late show with Stephen Colbert. It's a form of self-centered, self-censoring in a way.

DEAN: All right. CNN media analyst Sarah Fischer, thanks for stopping by this morning. We appreciate it.

FISCHER: Thank you.

DEAN: We have some new CNN polling out this morning revealing a shift in American attitudes toward Israel over the war in Gaza. Back in October of 2023, roughly, roughly half of Americans felt Israeli actions in Gaza in the wake of the Hamas terror attacks on October 7th were fully justified.

But now, just 23 percent feel that way. That's a drop of roughly 27 points in the past two years. The number who feel the actions are not at all justified has nearly tripled, and the drop in support for Israels actions can be seen across the political spectrum, with support shrinking by 15 to 30 points for Republicans, independents and Democrats.

Now, the polling is out just one day after Israel conducted a military strike on Gaza's only Catholic Church, killing three people there.

Joining us now, CNN senior political analyst Ron Brownstein.

Ron, thanks so much for being here with us this morning. I first just want to start with that polling that we just walked through. The biggest shift in attitudes away from Israel seen among Democrats. But we also saw that shift among independents, among Republicans.

What do you think this says about the state of the war and U.S. support for Israels actions?

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: You know, whatever else Benjamin Netanyahu has accomplished in his career, in indisputable part of his legacy is to further isolate Israel in the world in a way that's reflected here in the U.S. You know, Israel -- support for Israel has become a much more partisan issue than it was 20, 30 years ago.

I mean, the concern in in the Democratic coalition is highest. But as you point out, even Republicans are moving in a way that is more critical of Israel. And this is I think, you know, this is just an inexorable result of the choices they have made in Gaza. You know, it's really not shocking that support has diminished, given the images that Americans see month after month after month of what has happened there on the ground.

So military successes, enormous military successes in the last year, particularly against Hezbollah and in Iran. But this sense that Israel is more isolated internationally than it was, you know, a generation ago is inescapable.

DEAN: And I do also want to talk about a separate topic as well, immigration increasingly becoming a bigger issue for protests. We saw these good trouble protests at more than 1,600 places across the country. Organizers seem to be particularly animated by the massive budget increase for ICE that was just passed by Congress.

Here's a clip.

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MAYOR BRANDON JOHNSON (D), CHICAGO: We will not be intimidated by the militarized force that Donald Trump has put before us. Just like Dr. King said, whether it's racism, whether it's militarism, or whether it's capitalism, we will stand up for justice in Chicago and lead the way for the rest of this country.

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DEAN: And, Ron, your most recent piece, has a warning for national Republicans on this issue as we see more raids across communities all across the country. You write, although few congressional Republicans represent places likely to feel that pain, it could threaten the national party's 2024 gains among immigrant communities.

What did you find as you dug into the issue? I know this is something you've covered for decades now.

BROWNSTEIN: Long time. Yeah.

DEAN: Yeah.

BROWNSTEIN: Well, you know, we talked about it before, Jessica. I mean, you know, the phrase, the $10 phrase that political scientists use is that immigration is a thermostatic issue where the public opinion generally moves in the opposite direction of policy at the national level. People support a harder line, supported a harder line when Biden was president, and now they are recoiling from part of what Trump is doing.

He still gets very strong marks from the public for his actions on the border and gaining control of new entries. But, you know, as we've seen really from the first months of his administration and continuing to grow more and more unease in the public about the way the deportation, the interior enforcement is unfolding.

[06:40:02]

And I think, you know, as you as you note, very few Republicans in Congress represent constituencies with a large immigrant population, whether we're talking about the House. Only 33 House Republicans have districts where the share of foreign-born residents exceeds the national average. Only four Republican senators from the 20 states with the highest share of foreign-born people.

But at the national level, as the Pew Research center validated, voters showed a couple of weeks ago, Trump's gains among naturalized citizens, you know, people who become naturalized who were born abroad was much greater than his gains in 24 among native born citizens.

And so the risk of a backlash, I think, is real, because it's not what we saw in the one big beautiful bill was not only this massive increase in funding aimed at the undocumented, we saw sweeping cutbacks in eligibility for all sorts of safety net programs, from the Affordable Care Act to Medicaid, for people who are here legally. I mean, if you look at it from, you end to end, this was probably the bill that this bill was probably more hostile to immigrants than anything since the 1924 act that shut out -- shut down immigration for the next four decades.

So, Republicans are you know, it is in many ways, I think, the parallel of what's happened on Medicaid. They are they are not adjusting their agenda to fit the contours of the new coalition that Trump is assembling. And we will see whether they can hold those voters with these policies.

DEAN: Yeah, we certainly will.

CNN senior political analyst Ron Brownstein, thanks so much. Appreciate it.

BROWNSTEIN: Thanks for having me.

DEAN: President Trump seems to be serious about reopening Alcatraz. His attorney general and interior secretary taking a tour of the shuttered prison in San Francisco Thursday.

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PAM BONDI, ATTORNEY GENERAL: Alcatraz could hold the worst of the worst. It could hold middle class violent prisoners. It could hold -- it could hold illegal aliens. It could hold anything.

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DEAN: The notorious prison once housed the most dangerous criminals in the country. It shut down in the 1960s due to crumbling infrastructure and high maintenance costs. It's estimated it could cost billions of dollars to reopen.

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REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): It was closed decades ago, maybe 60 years ago, because it was too expensive to run as a prison. It -- to convert it back to prison will cost billions of dollars. At the same time as they are increasing the national debt to the tune of trillion dollars to give tax cuts to the richest people in America, taking food out of the mouths of children with their ugly budget.

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DEAN: All right. The group chat is back to talk more about this.

Rob, what do you -- what do you think of the president's proposal here?

ROB BLUEY, PRESIDENT AND EXECUTIVE EDITOR, THE DAILY SIGNAL: Well, clearly, as we've heard from Tom Homan, there's a need to have detention facilities for the millions of illegal aliens who entered this country during Joe Bidens four years in office. And so, this is a potential solution to use a facility and a place that we know is secure, based on what you heard the attorney general say there.

But I think ultimately, what it comes down to is the president has delivered a promise. Going back to your conversation with Ron Brownstein on deportations, I think that the American people are grateful that the president has taken seriously this issue of increasing crime in this country and addressing a problem that was out of control over the last four years. And so, whether or not we put them at Alcatraz or we find another solution, like Governor Ron DeSantis has proposed in Florida, it doesn't necessarily matter.

What we need to do is make sure that we are prioritizing legal immigration in this country and a path forward so that those aren't jumping in line over those who are doing the process legally.

DEAN: Lulu, like so many issues we encounter, there's the practicality of this. Can it be done? How much would it cost? How does that work? Then there's the political part of it, right? And kind of getting into what Rob's talking about there.

LULU GARCIA-NAVARRO, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I just have to laugh. I'm so sorry. And again, rob, I have the utmost respect for you and your work.

But, you know, when you say you know that waste, fraud and abuse and that there has to be money that isn't spent for certain things, and then you say, okay, it's great that we open Alcatraz again, something that has been closed for 60 years. We saw the conditions that it is in. It's a tourist attraction now as a place to incarcerate people.

And also saying that it doesn't matter in the manner in which people are incarcerated, you know, there is -- these people are human beings. It certainly matters the manner in which they're incarcerated.

I'll also just finally say about Alcatraz that I think this is a distraction. I think, you know, the word Alcatraz has been used in Florida now, and the Alcatraz is being used as a place to tour. This is just another part of the show of this administration. They are constantly trying to program this and use it as a distraction around what is really happening.

DEAN: Noel, do you -- do you agree? Do you think this is a distraction?

NOEL KING, CO-HOST & EDITORIAL DIRECTOR, "TODAY, EXPLAINED" PODCAST: Yeah, 1,000 percent agree. I mean, this is a wonderful distraction from the Epstein files. And I'm glad that Pam Bondi got to go out and spend some time on camera and not have to take hard questions about that.

[06:45:04]

But we need to be really straight about this. Alcatraz was closed down because it was too expensive. It's too expensive because there is no water on Alcatraz. There is no electricity, which means everything that goes to Alcatraz has to be brought in by boat.

That is not a way to run a prison. It's an unfair premise to say that taxpayers should foot the bill for a prison that can hold, I don't know, fewer than 400 people. And on top of that, we're going to have to ship in food and water every single day.

It was closed down in the 1960s because it didn't make sense. And 60 years later, it doesn't make sense. The Trump administration promised they were going to save the American people money. And this is not the way to do that. I'm sorry. I think it's absurd.

BLUEY: But taxpayers also shouldn't foot the bill for the large cost of illegal immigration. I just point that out as well.

DEAN: All right. All of you, stay with me. We have more to talk about coming up.

After the break on CNN THIS MORNING, released the testimony after a MAGA uproar. President Trump plans to unseal grand jury transcripts from the Jeffrey Epstein case.

And reunion rumors. Is Fleetwood Mac getting back together?

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DEAN: It is 50 minutes past the hour. Here's your morning roundup.

A new twist in the protein shake murder trial. The daughter of the woman killed said her father asked her to create a deepfake video of her mother requesting the fatal ingredients herself. She testified her father gave her step-by-step instructions on how to make the I video. Craig is accused of poisoning his wife's smoothie with cyanide and other drugs.

Juul is now getting the okay from the FDA to keep its e-cigarettes on the market. The company previously discontinued several flavored tobacco products after being blamed for sparking the teen vaping trend. The FDA's decision applies to both tobacco and menthol vapes.

Is Fleetwood Mac reuniting? Fans are asking that question after Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham posted this on their individual accounts. Nicks, and if you go forward, and Buckingham, I'll meet you there. Those lyrics from their song "Frozen Love". Mick Fleetwood posted a video of him listening to that song yesterday as well.

The president appears to have found an off ramp amid the growing pressure to release the Justice Department's findings on Jeffrey Epstein. In a Truth Social post, Trump said he's asking Attorney General Pam Bondi to produce, quote, "any and all pertinent grand jury testimony-related information."

The post came hours after a "Wall Street Journal" report detailing the contents of a 50th birthday letter Trump sent to Epstein, and amid growing calls from his MAGA base and Republicans in Congress to release any additional information on that case.

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REP. TIM BURCHETT (R-TN): It's been delayed so much that I think a lot of the evidence has either been tampered with or destroyed, and that's really what bothers me.

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DEAN: Joining us now to discuss, former Palm Beach County state attorney Dave Aronberg.

Dave, good morning to you. Thanks for being here with us.

When it comes to releasing -- what this call from President Trump to release any and all information, what might be released that hasn't been already? We've heard from Pam Bondi, who says there's nothing else to see.

DAVE ARONBERG, FORMER STATE ATTORNEY, PALM BEACH COUNTY: Yes, Jessica, and I take her at her word. There's not much -- at least not in the grand jury transcripts that the public really doesn't know. The grand jury met and ended up filing the charges against Jeffrey Epstein. He was indicted.

And there are grand jury secrecy rules. So, there will be redactions even if they are released. And it's a question of whether a judge will even allow them to be released. Of course, if a judge rejects the request by the Trump administration to release the grand jury records, that's a win for Trump, too, because then he can blame it all on liberal judges. Of course, he may have been the one who appointed the judge, but whatever.

So, this is a move to try to placate the base, but they're not going to be placated by this. They aren't demanding the redacted grand jury records. They want the Epstein files, which are in the hands of the Department of Justice. And it doesn't look like we're going to get those.

DEAN: And, you know, look, we -- you talk about the files, a list. There are these words that I think that the public has really grabbed on to, that there is a tangible list that exists or that there is this file that's been hidden away. Do you think that that -- it's as simple as that, that there is this thing, the silver bullet that could answer all these questions, it's just being hidden away? Or just legally in terms of putting a case together like this, is it more complicated than that?

ARONBERG: It's pretty clear there is no client list. The people closest to this. There is no client list.

Jeffrey Epstein's former lawyer, Alan Dershowitz, says there is no client list, but there are files, documents, images that have not been turned over to the public, in part because of privacy rules.

But the reason why this is not going away is that the Trump administration officials, namely, Dan Bongino, Kash Patel, the -- Donald Trump's son, they have all been perpetuating this myth. They've been using this lie as a way to help their own careers, and now, it's biting them in the butt.

I mean, this is what happens when you continue to feed the alligator. The alligator is always hungry, and eventually, it's going to bite your face off.

And so, this is a problem of their own making, and their base is not going to be satisfied by these grand jury records. And not only will they be redacted, the Trump administration says they're only going to request and release the pertinent ones. What's pertinent? Well, it's in the eye of the beholder.

So, this issue is not going away.

DEAN: And so, what more -- let's say it plays out just kind of like you laid out. They released, they -- they say, okay, we're going to release it. But the judge says we're obviously redacting this or he or that judge blocks the release, whatever the case may be, what else -- what other moves are there for President Trump or Pam Bondi, if they want to try to be more transparent?

[06:55:05]

ARONBERG: They can release the files. Now, it would go against DOJ policy. It has been a tradition that the Department of Justice will not release the names of people who are uncharged, unless you are charged, you're not going to be put out there. And that is something that's been the policy of the Department of Justice for years.

But, you know, if there's anything this administration does, it's break norms, break rules. But this is the one rule they're abiding by. And the fact that that birthday card is out there makes people believe -- well, maybe that's the explanation for not turning over these files to the public. Maybe they just don't want the president to be embarrassed by his relationship with Epstein.

The truth is, though, is that it's been well-documented that Trump has been friends with Epstein. There's no evidence that Trump has been part of a child sex trafficking ring, but they don't want to keep this smoke around any further. But they're not going to get rid of it by putting their head in the ground. They're going to get rid of it by transparency. After all, they fed this beast from the beginning.

DEAN: Yeah. All right. Dave Aronberg, former state attorney for Palm Beach County, thanks so much for being with us.

ARONBERG: Thanks for having me.

DEAN: President Trump has always proclaimed himself to be a near perfect physical specimen.

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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Dr. Ronny Jackson is a doctor. He's an admiral. Where's Ronny Jackson? He told me -- he said I'm the healthiest man ever to be president, by far. He said if I wouldn't eat junk food, I'd live 200 years. Where is he? He's the greatest. We love you, Ronny.

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DEAN: So, when the White House announced the president is suffering from a disease called chronic venous insufficiency, it was something of a first, an actual admission of any human frailty. That is a circulatory condition where the veins in the legs have difficulty returning blood to the heart.

It's relatively common, particularly in people over the age of 70, and it can cause ankle swelling in its early stages, something the cameras picked up when recently zeroing in on the president.

The group chat joins us one last time today.

Welcome back, everyone.

Noel, look, there is kind of a striking -- they've never admitted any sort of health complications or problems really at all. Obviously, you don't wish ill health on anybody, but what do you make of this disclosure?

KING: Well, I'm glad it came. I mean, I think that President Trump is up against what were all up against, right? Getting older is really difficult. And this is a condition that is associated with age, right? I think the bigger story ultimately is a sense in this country that were electing a lot of leaders who are pretty advanced in age.

And I think they're, you know, we see increasing calls. Maybe we should get some younger people into office. But, you know, I wish the president well. Aging is difficult. And it's hard on all of us, truly.

DEAN: Yeah.

Lulu, were you surprised to see this admission, or did you think that they would do this? Something like this?

GARCIA-NAVARRO: I mean, I think it's good, right? We need to know the president's health. Equally, I think it's important because he's the leader of this country for us to know what condition he's in. And obviously, I wish him well. And I hope that it is indeed not as serious as his doctors are saying.

But, you know, there is a pattern here of the president's health being hidden. I mean, in the first administration, we found out later that he almost died of COVID 19. That was not disclosed at the time. And so, I think there should be more transparency about all presidents' health, the previous president, Biden, and this one too.

DEAN: Yeah. I mean, Rob, that's been a push and pull for a long time is kind of how much disclosure, how open to be. And different presidents have obviously done it differently.

BLUEY: Well, certainly. And as Jake Tapper has reported in his book, I mean, certainly things were not done well in Joe Biden's administration.

And so, I think that's why, you see, I hear a theme of transparency throughout the show this morning. And that's, I think, why Karoline Leavitt decided to come forward with the letter and the information yesterday. And there has been a decision made by this white house to make sure that they are telling the American people about the president's health.

Now, Jessica, as you pointed out, this is a common condition, I think over 150,000 Americans are diagnosed with this every year. So, my prayers are with the president. I hope that he will be able to get the treatment that he needs and overcome this.

DEAN: Yeah. All right. Well, it has been a wonderful Friday morning with all of you. A nice summer, Friday, a good way to kick it off. Our thanks to each of you. Anything I - we're going to have to look forward to see if there's going to be -- we'll get this weekend. But we keep -- I -- please watch this weekend as we host in the evenings, but we've been catching a lot of news on the weekend, so I'm sure well have some then as well. But a big thanks to all of you. We really, really appreciate it. And thank you for waking up with us this morning. I'm Jessica Dean.

Again, you can catch us right back here starting at 4:00 p.m. tomorrow. We'll be here until 8:00 p.m.

"CNN NEWS CENTRAL" is going to start right now. Have a great day.