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Trump Pauses Military Aid To Ukraine After Clash With Zelenskyy; Arab Leaders Meet In Cairo For High-Stakes Summit On Gaza Reconstruction; Trump Tariffs On Canada And Mexico Take Effect; Japan Battles Worst Wildfire In Decades As Thousands Evacuate; Triple Threat Storm Bears Down On Central And Southern US. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired March 04, 2025 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[10:00:18]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from CNN Abu Dhabi. This is Connect the World with Becky Anderson.
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Welcome to this second from our Middle East programming headquarters here in Abu Dhabi where the time is
7:00 in the evening. And anticipation building for President Donald Trump's speech to Congress tonight following the launch of his punishing tariffs
against Canada, Mexico and China that's sparking a global trade war.
You're looking at the live U.S. markets falling at present amid inflation fears. We'll hear from Canada's outgoing leader Justin Trudeau due to speak
in 30 minutes time.
All eyes tonight will also be on the U.S. president's position on Ukraine after an order to pause all military aid to Kyiv on the heels of that
infamous Oval Office spat on Friday.
Plus, Arab leaders meeting in Cairo as we speak to lay out their own vision for a post war Gaza. I'm learning that Egypt is proposing excluding Hamas
from governing the enclave in favor of an independent Palestinian committee.
Well, U.S. President Donald Trump bearing down on Ukraine just ahead of his biggest speech since Inauguration Day. His pressure campaign to end the war
between Ukraine and Russia is sure to be a major theme as he makes his joint address to Congress just hours from now. That's as his decision to
pause military aid to Kyiv reverberates far beyond Washington.
The Ukrainian government and the world frankly, still trying to digest the move unveiled overnight Monday.
Meanwhile, the Russian aerial assaults keep coming. The Ukrainian prime minister's response for an American Patriot missile system is the only way
for Ukraine to defend itself against Russia's ballistic missile attacks. CNN's chief international security correspondent Nick Paton Walsh following
this from the ground.
The Ukrainian capital, Kyiv is where Nick is and we are already seeing the prime minister publicly stressing the importance of the Patriot missile
systems. Nick, do we know yet what the immediate effect of this pause in U.S. military aid will have on the battlefield?
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Immediately today? The effect will be on morale will be what we saw in late
December 2023 where there was a sort of several month pause in 60 billion worth of U.S. aid that had a significant impact on how Ukrainian soldiers
frankly performed and felt and indeed marked a turning point in them being on the offensive after a relatively bad counteroffensive to them being in
defensive pretty much since then.
So that's already being felt practically in the weeks ahead possibly. And one or two or three we will see the stocks of Patriots defense missiles
that shoot down Russian ballistic missiles dwindle, possibly to zero. Every morning. Zelenskyy said once when he wakes up, they have to count and see
if they have enough to get through the following days.
That's always been sensitive, but now they're pretty much stopping and they're reliant entirely on the U.S. for that. That will be a critical
thing in terms of defending big cities like this Kyiv.
Secondly, though, in about May or June, we will see a critical shortage of artillery ammunition that will have a significantly detrimental ability for
the Ukrainians to hold the Russians back. Yes, this is mostly a drone war now to some degree, but artillery is still used to stop Russians in the
initial phase of their defenses while they get the drones up in the air.
This is really the most seismic blow that Washington can deal to Kyiv. Is it performative? Is this another negotiating tactic from President Donald
Trump from his Manhattan real estate days?
Well, it's beginning, I think, for many Ukrainians to feel as though we are seeing a side of the Trump administration that is not always wanting to act
in Ukraine's favor, to put it at the most generous terms. And President Zelenskyy now faces a very complicated choice. We have not heard from him
since this announcement was put out in the small hours of last night.
Some of his officials have suggested they will be able to get through, they will find ways like they have done in the past. And indeed, I should point
out that there was not really an expectation of another massive tranche of aid from the Trump administration in the months ahead. So this is really
about stopping the remnants of Biden authorizations. Trump would say, well, I'm going to engineer a piece. Why do I need to send more military aid?
But Zelenskyy now has to basically choose between two not great options.
[10:05:00]
One, to accede the demands of Trump's cabinet and advisers, that he really publicly apologize, that he signs up to the rare earth minerals deal, that
he seems willing to sign up to as well. And he also commits to peace, according to Trump's terminology. That's a very loose framework. It isn't
clear what kind of peace, whose peace? The peace America negotiates with Russia? The peace that the European partners of Ukraine propose?
That framework, or just a general feeling with the president that he would like. He feels now that Zelenskyy is more pro-peace. That's a complex thing
to do, certainly the public apology when you're a wartime leader or on the other side he risked the possibility that U.S. aid, which looked like it
was likely to dry up and is in some ways utterly irreplaceable, particularly the Patriots, and intelligence sharing, may disappear in the
months ahead. That's an exceptionally difficult balance.
But I should point out for you, Becky, being in Ukraine here every morning for the past two weeks, we have woken up pretty much with some kind of
bombshell. All of it a distraction from the horrors of the front line and the bombardment of Ukraine cities every day and increasingly leaving
Ukrainians feeling that outside of European allies who are scrambling to pull together what they can, they're increasingly on their own with
Washington looking more towards Moscow's viewpoint than theirs.
ANDERSON: Yes. Nick Paton Walsh is on the ground for you. Thank you, Nick. I'm joined now by CNN's Stephen Collinson in Washington, D.C., Shashank
Joshi, who is the defense editor for The Economist. He's in London. And CNN's global economic analyst, Rana Foroohar is in New York.
Shashank, let me start with you. Pick me up on Nick's assessment. How quickly do you expect this pause in U.S. military aid to be felt on the
front lines?
SHASHANK JOSHI, DEFENSE EDITOR, THE ECONOMIST: I think that Ukraine, as Nick said, is in a position where it can go through the coming months
without a huge problem, depending on what is being cut off. If it's mainly artillery and ammunition, Ukraine will be fine as long as it remains on the
defensive.
That would change if air defense interceptors begin to run dry more quickly. For instance, if Russia increases the rate of missile or drone
attack, particularly using ballistic missiles, which, realistically, only American Patriot systems can intercept in Ukraine today.
The big problem would come if the pause expanded to include intelligence sharing and the provision of Starlink communications. If that happened,
then the impact would be immediate, felt within hours and days, rather than weeks and months.
ANDERSON: Let's just explore why it is that the Trump administration says it is acting as it is. Stephen, let me bring you in here. Trump's senior
adviser John -- Jason Miller joined CNN a few hours ago and he explained this approach. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JASON MILLER, U.S. SENIOR PRESIDENTIAL ADVISER: President Trump is the only person stop talking about stopping the killing. And sometimes leaders can
use the carrot, sometimes they can use this stick. And in this case, I think President Trump is using the 2 by 4 to go and get his point across to
President Zelenskyy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Has the administration given an explanation on how Donald Trump expects to get any concessions from the Kremlin and what those concessions
might look like at this point?
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR REPORTER: I think the approach of the last couple of weeks, Becky, shows that the administration doesn't have
any real clue about how it's going to create a peace for Ukraine. Mr. Miller's comments there talk about taking the stick and trying to coerce
action. What he's doing, he's taking the stick to the victim of this conflict, the country that was invaded. And I don't think we should really
lose sight of that.
It seems pretty clear that Trump wants to impose a peace on Ukraine and it's a peace that probably won't take into account its fears that in future
it could come under attack from Russia again. The reason the Europeans are so concerned about this is not just because of Ukraine. It's because they
understand that a peace that doesn't last ends up threatening them.
Those issues are not something that Trump very much cares about. He, I think, is seeing the Ukraine issue as somewhat of a sideshow as he tries to
improve relations with Russia and Vladimir Putin and his reordering of the global international system. I think that's his priority.
And in many ways, the way they've treated Ukraine over the last few weeks shows that they don't believe that its future is a priority.
[10:10:00]
And in many ways that aligns with Russia's position on this, as on many other issues in foreign policy.
ANDERSON: Rana, this is a transactional Donald Trump. We knew that was what the world would get when he got a mandate from the U.S. public to govern.
Is it a fair argument that America can't sustain the cost and level of support to Ukraine while dealing with its own issues, economic issues, for
example, at home?
RANA FOROOHAR, CNN GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: No, I don't think it's a fair economic argument. It's been pointed out by a number of analysts that this
was a very cost effective war for the U.S. particularly if you think about it, not just in terms of aid to Ukraine. The U.S. was providing about a
third of that, but it was key in areas that we've heard about, logistics, intelligence, air missile defense, et cetera.
But really this was not a stretch financially. This is really about a reordering of the world on a giant global poker table that Trump -- in
which Trump sees America as sort of, you know, the biggest player. He is using the U.S. economic mind, he's using the U.S. consumer market, he's
using U.S. military power as a kind of a chit to be thrown down in a high stakes poker game with the rest of the world.
It's interesting to me that the Trump administration thinks that they're somehow going to be able to turn Russia towards the U.S. away from China. I
think that's a pretty naive game that's being played. It's also very, very risky.
And you can see this in the markets. It's very risky. What the U.S. is trying to do in terms of separating itself from traditional allies. So not
only U.S. turning away from Europe by supporting Putin over the Ukraine in this situation, but you're seeing a tariff war beginning at the same time
with adversaries and allies alike.
So, I think there's a tremendous confusion right now. And you can absolutely see it in the markets which are down really across the board.
People don't know what to expect and they don't understand what the strategy is and they don't understand what victory looks like.
ANDERSON: And we are looking at those markets down over one and a half percent on the Dow, the NASDAQ and the S&P 500 as we speak.
Shashank reports suggest that the U.S. decided to halt this aid to Ukraine without consulting NATO's. According to the Polish Foreign Ministry, the
decision made without discussion or consultation with NATO or the Ramstein Group, which of course coordinates support for Ukraine. How do NATO and
Europe adjust at this point?
JOSHI: I think they have been operating on the assumption that if they, particularly the French, and where I am here, the British put together a
proposal saying we will put troops on the ground and Americans won't have to go as long as you back us up from a distance, that they could shape
Trump's diplomacy in a more positive, constructive direction to ensure that any ceasefire would last, that it would have teeth, it wouldn't just be
broken in a year or two.
I think what we are seeing, though, with the blow up in the Oval Office, the presidential social media posts and now the unilateral halt in aid, is
that this effort to put skin in the game and engage the Americans, it's not yielding fruit. And I think at some point the risk is that we see a more
dramatic rupture with the Europeans.
But right now, and I was in Paris just yesterday, I saw intensive efforts to try to broker another Trump-Zelenskyy conversation, including
encouraging Zelenskyy to express regrets. Not necessarily grovel, as Donald Trump may want, but express regret.
But I'm afraid we're seeing a White House that doesn't really appear to be interested in diplomacy involving its allies. It appears to be instead set
on offering unilateral concession after concession to the Russians with no attempt at pressuring them. And I'm afraid everyone here is just reeling
with shock, surprise alarm and grave disquiet at what they are seeing.
ANDERSON: Look, stand by, Shashank. Thank you. And to you, Stephen and Rana, because Ukraine, of course, just one of Mr. Trump's dizzying
upheavals to U.S. policy as Rana pointed out the U.S. president will take to the podium.
[10:15:00]
Tonight in the halls of Congress to lay out his plan for the next four years. That address comes as Trump embarks on what is now full blown trade
war effectively overnight, a 25 percent tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico kicking in, as well as an additional 10 percent on Chinese goods.
I want to dig into this first though. Let's just bring our audience up to speed on how America's three biggest trading partners are responding.
Mexico's president spoke just moments ago a go. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLAUDIA SHEINBAUM, MEXICAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We have therefore decided to respond with tariff and non-tariff measures which I
shall announce publicly next Sunday. It is in no way our purpose to initiate an economic or commercial confrontation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: OK. That's Mexico's position. We are expecting to hear from the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau any moment now after he called
President Trump's tariffs, quote, unjustified. CNN's Paula Newton breaks down Canada's reaction for us.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Canada has a free trade agreement that Donald Trump negotiated and signed in 2020. This is not China, someone that
the U.S. had considered an adversary. This is Canada and really it is ripping up the trade book, if you will, for what they have negotiated
already with allies.
So what is Canada doing? Well, it is hitting back with 25 percent tariffs on good meat and vegetables, dairy products, alcohol. Think about it,
Becky. Anything in the United States and we're talking about things like bourbon or wine or beer will get a 25 percent tariff. But more than that,
many provinces here in Canada, I would say the majority will now be taking U.S. alcohol off their shelves and refusing to sell it. This is the kind of
trade war that we're in for right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: That's Paula Newton on Canada. China hiking tariffs mainly on food products imported from the US. Last hour, CNN's Marc Stewart explained
what analysts are calling Beijing's targeted response.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: In 2018, American farmers dealt with the hardships of tariffs. China has made this very calculated move to again
target farmers, target people who work in food service to target the agriculture industry. These are job. These are people in the United States
who live in the Midwest, who live in the middle of America, the heartland. China knew exactly what it was doing.
One item on the list of these various tariffs on agriculture products, tariffs that range in anywhere from about 10 to 15 percent. In addition to
what we've already seen are soybeans. Soybeans are important here in China because they are used to feed pigs. Pigs make up the pork industry, a very
important commodity, a very important part of the Chinese economy. But it's not just these tariffs. It's the language that we are hearing from the
Chinese government, from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The response today, it's a lot more pointed than we've heard even just days ago.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: All right. Marc Stewart on the response from Beijing. Let's bring back our panel. Rona is in New York, Stephen in D.C. and Shashank is in
London. And Rana, many economists say this is going to mean real pain for U.S. consumers already fed up with the cost of living. That was something
that Donald Trump was elected on to bring down the cost of living. The U.S. treasury secretary pushing back on that. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCOTT BESSENT, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: We have the experience of President Trump's first term where the tariffs did not affect prices. And it's a
holistic approach that there will be tariffs, there will be cuts in regulation, there will be cheaper energy. So I would expect that very
quickly we will be down to the Fed's 2 percent target. So I'm expecting inflation to continue dropping over the year.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Rona, your take?
FOROOHAR: Well, I think that Trump too is very different than Trump won. I think Trump won was primarily about, you know, perhaps justifiably raising
the scrim on the U.S.-China trading relationship and saying, look, this isn't working. You know, there were tariffs, but it was really a cold war.
It was more a war of words.
There was a certain amount of tech decoupling in terms of what was happening between the U.S. and Europe. It was very -- it was a PR war in
some ways. Yes, there were tariffs on certain European goods and Europe retaliated with tariffs on, you know, very iconic American goods, Harley
Davidson motorcycles, et cetera.
But it was not the kind of across the board, broad based tariffs on both adversaries and allies that we are seeing now being done at the same time
that Trump is ripping up the NATO playbook and changing geopolitics.
[10:20:09]
And I think that you can see in the market reaction that people understand that we are at a pivot point. You know, political economies tend to swing
in one direction or another about every 50 years or so. And I think market participants look out and say, boy, we are at that pivot point. We are at
that post Bretton woods moment where the entire global trading system, the entire global geopolitical situation is changing and markets don't like
uncertainty and that's what they're getting right now.
And it's interesting to me, by the way, that even though, yes, the S and P is down, and by contrast, certain European sectors like European defense
stocks are way up, you also see broad based European indexes down. It shows you that once a trade war starts and once the U.S. markets start to fall,
there can be broad based global impact. So this is a very Hobbesian world we're living in right now.
ANDERSON: Yes. And those are the markets live. We are what, just not even an hour into the trading day. The Nasdaq down just over 2 percent as we
speak. Stephen, you write in your latest column that moving forward with these tariffs reflects a duel between Trump's political heart and his head.
Explain.
COLLINSON: While Trump has long believed against most of the analytical evidence that tariffs are a powerful tool that U.S. politicians have been
reticent to put them into effect. And ever since the 1980s when he was a real estate mogul in New York, he's believed that the United States should
use tariffs as a weapon.
At the same time, he's always viewed, since he was in politics, the stock market as a barometer of his own performance. And I think you can argue
that if you're putting 25 percent tariffs on a wide range of goods and those tariffs stay in place for a considerable amount of time, there's
absolutely no way that those costs are not brought onto the consumer. That is something that could really hurt Trump's political standing and that of
Republicans running into the midterm elections next year.
Especially since the cost of groceries, the price of vehicles, the difficulty in getting mortgages and rent, was at the core of the reason
Trump was elected in November. I think there is a sincere belief among many people around Trump, and perhaps the president himself, that the United
States needs to change the global trading system to bring back manufacturing jobs to the United States.
The issue here is Trump only has three years and 10 months left in office, a company is going to wait him out and not take the hugely expensive
decisions to relocate manufacturing. And if those prices do rise, the very people that Trump is trying to help by reviving American manufacturing,
blue collar workers in Midwestern rust belt states that have been really hurt by globalization, they're going to get hurt in the process.
So is Trump willing to pay the political price for this fundamental reshaping of the economy that he's trying to pull off.
ANDERSON: Yes, it's fascinating, isn't it? Shashank, finally, if we take all of these actions, from tariffs meant to bring manufacturing back to the
United States, to freeing up resources in Ukraine through this minerals deal, which is a sort of phase one, as it were, of Donald Trump's peace
deal, as he might explain it, between Russia and Ukraine.
I mean, I just wonder, from your perspective, is this going to give the US an edge on the world stage in the long term?
JOSHI: I think the U.S. may free up some resources, as you say, but maybe it gets a little bit of lithium or gallium or other resources out of
Ukraine. But I see an American government that is shredding its alliances, that it's losing goodwill and that understands the price of everything but
the value of nothing.
And what brought this home for me was not just the ghastly treatment metered out to Ukraine and Zelenskyy in the White House, but it was also
the threats made by people close to Trump to expel Canada from the Five Eyes signals intelligence collection and sharing alliance. That may not be
very widely known, but it's a vital bit of diplomacy and intelligence structure that allows America to collect and share intelligence from around
the world. The high north and Canadian territories in the Arctic, Cyprus in the Mediterranean, the Pacific.
[10:25:00]
And I see an administration that simply doesn't understand the importance of alliances to America's global military position and its national
security and is doing lasting damage to those things with every passing day.
ANDERSON: And your point is a very good one. I'm going to have to leave it there. To all of you, thank you very much indeed for joining us.
Well, you're watching Connect the World with me. Becky Anderson. Time in Abu Dhabi is 25 past 7 in the evening. Next up, rebuilding Gaza. Arab
leaders hold an emergency summit in Cairo to discuss an alternative to Donald Trump's controversial vision for the Strip. That is after this.
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ANDERSON: Well, I've been learning new details about the day after plan for Gaza being discussed right now in Egypt. CNN has obtained a draft of the
90-page proposal which says in part that Hamas would be excluded from any future leadership of Gaza once the war ends.
The leaders want to present an alternative to Donald Trump's widely condemned proposition of taking control of Gaza and placing its population
elsewhere to create a so called Riviera. Jordanian sources say they will present the plan to the U.S. president in the coming weeks.
Paula Hancocks following the discussion. She joins us now. What more are we -- what more are we learning at this point?
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, we're listening to the leaders of these Arab states speaking at the moment. We've heard from
Egypt, from Jordan, the U.N. Secretary general is there and everybody has unanimously said there will be no displacement of the Palestinian people
with this Egyptian proposal goes very much against what we heard from the U.S. president that Palestinians would be moved from Gaza.
They have also said that there will be some kind of a Palestinian committee, it'll be independent, it'll be technocrats who will be advising
on bringing aid in and distributing aid and the reconstruction of Gaza that is temporary, though they don't give an exact time limit. But at some point
that will eventually be handed back to the Palestinian Authority.
So in the Egyptian proposal, the Palestinian Authority will take control of Gaza, which of course means that Hamas will not be part of that plan.
ANDERSON: Hamas would be excluded from any future leadership of Gaza. Then once the war ends, that's a very important word here, once the war ends,
because as we learn more from what is going on in Cairo with Arab leaders meeting at an emergency summit.
So there is an enormous amount of uncertainty about what happens next in Gaza short term.
[10:30:03]
And whether this temporary truce will be extended or whether the Palestinians will get an opportunity to get into a sort of, you know, long
term ceasefire, permanent ceasefire, which of course we have to consider the hostages who are left there, the aid that at present is blockaded. So
what are we learning?
HANCOCKS: So one Israeli official tells CNN that the next 48 to 72 hours are key, saying that at this point returning to a state of war, returning
to military action in Gaza is one of the options that is on the table. At this point, Israel is saying that it wants to extend this temporary
ceasefire another 42 days. They want all of the hostages to be released within that time along with Palestinian prisoners. When Hamas rejected that
is when they stopped all the humanitarian aid going in.
But of course come across a lot of backlash from NGOs, from the humanitarian aid groups who were there from other countries around this
region, Egypt, Qatar, two key mediators when it comes to this ceasefire deal, saying you can't use humanitarian aid as a war -- a weapon of war. So
that has come against some backlash.
So far Israel has said that this extension of phase one, so continue the temporary ceasefire is the U.S. Trump administration's idea. They haven't
confirmed that. But this is what Israel is saying at this point. And we know that the Middle East envoy for Donald Trump, Steve Witkoff is coming
back in the next few days according to the State Department.
So it's very much up in the air at this point, exactly how it's going to play out. But Israel is making it very clear that the prospect of going
back to a full on war has not been taken off the table. In fact, it is one of the options being considered.
ANDERSON: And this of course, Steve Wyckoff is the Donald Trump's envoy to Gaza. This framework being described certainly by the Israelis as a
mediation proposal because at the moment it is impossible to bridge the gaps between us, and as they describe Hamas, the murderous terror
organization regarding Phase B or Phase 2. Good to have you. Thank you very much indeed.
Still to come, President Trump's tariffs on Canada will not go unanswered. That promise from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who is set to speak any
moment now on the levies he calls unjustified. We are watching for the very latest reaction for you from Ottawa. We expect that up next.
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[10:35:00]
ANDERSON: Welcome back. You're watching Connect the World with me Becky Anderson, just after half past seven here in Abu Dhabi. Here are your
headlines.
And the world will be watching as U.S. President Donald Trump addresses a joint session of Congress in the coming hours to outline his
administration's agenda, accomplishments and goals for the year ahead.
Immediately after his speech, Democratic Senator Elisa Slotkin will deliver her party's rebuttal. CNN will car both events live.
Well, Canada and China have announced retaliatory tariffs to the latest levies slapped on their countries by President Trump. Mexico's president
said she'll announce tariff and nontariff measures against the United States this weekend.
Analysts warn the new Trump tariffs will hike prices and further strain the U.S. economy.
Well, Ukraine is stressing the importance of U.S. military support one day after President Trump decided to pause aid shipments.
The Ukrainian prime minister says American Patriot missiles are the only way to deflect some Russian attacks. He added that Kyiv wants to preserve
its partnership with the U.S. and find a way to peace.
Well, at least 1,200 people have been forced to evacuate northeastern coastal city in Japan as the country continues to battle its worst wildfire
in decades. According to officials, the fire has burned about 2,100 hectares of forest since it started. Though the blaze has subsided in some
areas. Several dozen homes have been damaged. More than 2,000 first responders have been deployed to help fight the flames.
And right now, more than 55 million people across the central and southern United States are under severe weather warnings as a violent and powerful
storm threatens to bring potential blizzard conditions, tornadoes and fires.
In New Orleans, officials rushed to reschedule Mardi Gras Day events and shorten parade routes to avoid what they say is potentially destructive
weather. And in Texas, the storms forced a ground stop at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport. CNN's Derek Van Dam live from the Extreme Weather
Center for you. Derek.
DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, Becky, we're already noticing some of the video coming in from the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex of the damage
from these storms that rolled through earlier today. What you're looking at directly behind me is a moving company and some of the debris left behind
where the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport reported winds of 74 miles per hour. Remember, that is equivalent to a Category 1 hurricane here
in the Atlantic seaboard.
Now, this isn't the end of the rough weather for the day today. We're talking about New Orleans now, who is currently under a high wind warning.
So this is in advance of these storms that will approach later today.
And I'm thinking about all the people, the hundreds and thousands of people who are flocking the streets of New Orleans to celebrate Fat Tuesday, the
Mardi Gras celebrations, and new this morning from the Storm Prediction center here out of the United States, we have this hatched area. You see
from Shreveport, Louisiana, Jackson, Mississippi all the way to the Gulf coast inclusive of New Orleans, where tornadoes could become particularly
strong. EF2 or greater. That's winds of 111 miles per hour.
To prove my point, we already have a newly issued tornado watch, meaning conditions are primed and ready for tornadic development. There have been
intermittent tornadoes developing across this line of storms now just entering northwestern Louisiana. In and around Shreveport, there was a
tornado warning which actually is still in effect for the suburbs of Shreveport.
This is radar indicated. It's already knocked out power for hundreds and thousands of customers across the state of Texas, some into southern
Oklahoma. This storm advances east, brings rough weather overnight into Atlanta, then reorganizes along the Eastern seaboard for the day tomorrow.
So this is the multi-day severe weather threat that we are undergoing across the Deep South and eventually the east coast for tomorrow.
This is part of a larger, very potent spring like storm system that is marching eastward. It's got so many different components, very dynamic
storm system that will bring blizzard conditions to the Plains as well as parts of the Midwest.
Check this out. Just south of Minneapolis, all the way to Omaha. That shading of red is a blizzard warning, meaning that blizzard conditions are
in store within the next 36 hours. It doesn't necessarily mean the amount of snow. It's the winds that drop the visibility below a quarter of a mile
for three consecutive hours. And that means blizzard conditions will ensue.
So this is the culprit, the reason the cold front moving eastward behind it, a lot of wind and very dry environment. So that is a recipe for fire
danger. That's why we have this extreme fire threat.
[10:40:00]
Becky, really we're talking about a triple threat with this spring like storm from blizzard conditions to severe weather in the south and then on
the western side of this storm system, the extreme fire threat that we're monitoring so closely already sparked off a dust storm in El Paso, Texas,
which you can see here on this satellite image from yesterday. So really incredible just to witness everything coming together in this very spring
like storm. Back to you.
ANDERSON: Derek, that set is amazing. I'm sure you're going to have an awful lot of fun in that new studio. It's great. Thank you, sir.
VAN DAM: So much explain. All right. Thank you.
ANDERSON: And that is really important stuff. Yes, yes. The extreme weather set. CNN headquarters for you, right? Canada's Prime Minister Justin
Trudeau is holding a news conference to address the new U.S. tariffs that is scheduled pretty much now. We are keeping an eye on that few. As soon as
it happens, we will get you to it live, of course.
Still ahead, we are following more fallout, of course, from the Trump administration sweeping USAID Funding cuts, including a dire warning from
an official placed on leave for speaking out. That after this.
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ANDERSON: Vice President J.D. Vance just spoke to reporters on Capitol Hill saying Ukraine has to come to the negotiating table in order for aid to be
restored. This is, of course, ahead of Donald Trump speaking to the joint Houses of Congress tonight. Let's have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
J.D. VANCE, U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: Obviously, I'm here to talk about my friend Rich Colby. I think he'll make a great, great policy lead at the
Department of Defense. It's why the president nominated him. And I just wanted to be here to give a word of encouragement, a word of approval and
just lend my reputation to bridges confirmation, because I think he's a really, really important person for us to have at the Department of
Defense.
We have gone for too long, letting our industrial base get degraded, allowing our troops to not even have the munitions that they need to fight
the wars of the future. President Trump really believes in peace through strength, but a core part of peace through strength is ensuring that our
troops have the weapons that they need in order to fight the next war, if, God forbid, it necessarily comes.
So bridge is an important part of that defense policy. I think the Senate will confirm them and I'm glad to be here and so speak on his behalf,
having to take a few questions that you guys.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just (inaudible) the Ukraine right now and give Russia an advantage.
VANCE: Look, what the president has said very clearly about our Ukraine policy is that he wants the Ukrainians to come to the negotiating table. We
want the Ukrainians to have a sovereign and an independent country. We think the Ukrainian troops have fought very bravely, but we're at a point
here where neither Europe nor the United States nor the Ukrainians can continue this war in definitely. So it's important that everybody come to
the table. And the president is trying to send a very explicit message.
[10:45:04]
The Ukrainians have got to come to the table and start negotiating with President Trump.
UNDIENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you have hope for the mineral deal? Do you believe that the mineral deal can still be reached with Ukraine?
VANCE: Yes, I certainly do. And I think the president is still committed to the mineral deal. I think we've heard some positive things, but not yet, of
course, a signature from our friends in Ukraine. But look, the mineral deal is a really important part of the president's policy.
Number one, the American people have got to get some payback for the incredible financial investment we've made in this country. A lot of the
aid that the Europeans have sent has come in the form of money that is getting repaid to them. Well, it's really ridiculous and frankly an insult
to the American people that the Europeans are getting a better deal than the American people.
The president is just trying to assure that the American people get a fair deal while simultaneously incurring we have access to some minerals and
resources that are very important for the economy of the future.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: And Donald Trump, of course, will deliver a speech to Congress tonight. Expect to hear about Ukraine. And I'm just being told that
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has just tweeted that he wants to reaffirm Ukraine's commitment to peace. So more on that as we get it.
Meantime, more fallout from Elon Musk's DOGE cuts. A top official at USAID has been put on leave after sending out a scathing 20-page memo claiming
that the Trump administration is keeping the government from doing life- saving work.
Nicholas Enrich, an acting administrator, says cuts by the White House will no doubt result in preventable death, destabilization and threats to
national security on a massive scale. And as CNN's Kyung Lah reports, these cuts are taking a toll on the home front as well.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RUTH GARFINKEL, LOST JOB WITH USAID CONTRACTOR: My job brings in about 75 percent of our household income with two small children, one still in
daycare. We have a lot of childcare expenses, so not a lot of savings.
KYUNG LAH, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Ruth Garfinkel in Durham, North Carolina is not a federal employee. That didn't stop what
happened.
LAH: Life changed in January for you?
GARFINKEL: Yes. I worked for a USAID contractor and without USAID funding contracts, then there's no job for me.
LAH (voice-over): She's taken out a home equity line of credit under North Carolina House to now stay afloat. Her family, part of an economic ripple
effect of federal cuts, felt acutely in the so called Research Triangle of North Carolina, where a CNN review shows in the last fiscal year USAID
agreed to pay more than $1 billion to groups based in the state.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Real things are happening. People are losing their jobs now.
LAH (voice-over): Walk with Durham's mayor through the city's downtown and you quickly learn there are a lot of Ruth Garfinkel's here. People who
don't work for the federal government but for the organizations that receive USAID funding.
LAH: FHI down the street furloughed. How many?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I believe they've furloughed about 200 employees so far.
LAH (voice-over): CNN found more than 300 people laid off or furloughed in the state from USAID related cuts. But that may be just the tip of the
iceberg. The mayor expects local numbers to climb as subcontractors and other businesses report layoffs.
LAH: That's loss of income directly to the city.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: City to county to state, but most importantly, the families.
LAH: People think USAID is cutting funding to other countries.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's happening right here in my city. When those jobs are gone, that means I have one less resident that could support the small
businesses here locally. That's one less resident that can contribute to the tax base right here in Durham.
LAH: Making it harder and scarier for some in North Carolina are the trolls celebrating these job losses. One company that announced cuts in North
Carolina shared with us emails like this. Hate letters sent by mail and if you dare look on social media, plenty of cheering for the suffering in the
state.
BRIANNA CLARKE-SCHWELM, NORTH CAROLINA PUBLIC HEALTH ALLIANCE: These are real businesses here in North Carolina. They support other businesses.
LAH (voice-over): Brianna Clarke-Schwelm leads a North Carolina public health alliance.
CLARKE-SCHWELM: A lot of people are applying for unemployment right now. A lot of people are also pulling their kids out of child care. They're also
thinking about their mortgages. They're thinking about if they're going to stay in North Carolina, if they can afford to stay living here.
SADIE HEALY, TRACKING JOB LOSSES FROM FOREIGN AID FREEZE: 13,124 jobs have been lost or furloughed.
LAH (voice-over): Sadie Healy and her business partner have been tracking the ripple effect of the individual U.S. job losses. Organizations and
workers are messaging them directly. Then they use that data and publicly post on their USAID Stop-Work website.
[10:50:00]
LAH: Walk me through some of the hardest hit states.
HEALY: Yes. You have Florida, you have North Carolina. South Carolina.
LAH: In your perspective, especially having the messaging and the phone calls that you're getting, is this very much an American problem?
HEALY: This is 13,000Americans that just suddenly lost their job who didn't have a plan and didn't know this was coming. So maybe they have some
savings. But like you make cuts and that's going to affect your local economy.
LAH (voice-over): Healy and her partner Meg McClure forecast that if all active USAID contracts and grants are cut, the groups based just in North
Carolina could lose more than $2 billion. But it's already having an impact now.
GARFINKEL: I'd like them to know that they are harming ordinary people and it's really short sighted and frankly cruel.
LAH: Kyung Lah, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Right, the podium is set not to expect to see the prime minister, the outgoing prime minister, of course, Justin Trudeau there. In just a few
moments, he is expected to make a speech about the retaliatory task tariffs that Canada is slapping on the U.S. as a result of the overnight execution
of tariffs by Donald Trump on Canada, on Mexico, of course, as well, and on China. So more on that as we get it.
I also want to get you President Zelenskyy's post from just a few moments ago. It was several paragraphs long. As you see, these two stood out to me.
And this of course, is ahead of Donald Trump 45 days into his administration making a speech to both houses of Congress tonight. And he's
sure to speak on Ukraine. Of course, he paused U.S. Military aid to Kyiv overnight.
These are the words of Zelenskyy in part. We do really value how much America has done to help Ukraine maintain its sovereignty and independence.
And we remember the moment when things changed when President Trump provided Ukraine with javelins. We are grateful for this. Of course, that
was in the first Trump administration.
He went on to say our meeting in Washington at the White House on Friday did not go the way it was supposed to. It is regrettable that it happened
this way. It is time, Zelenskyy says to make things right. We would like future cooperation and communication to be constructive. And he also says
he is willing to sign the minerals agreements. Right. Let me take a very quick break. We will be back after this.
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ANDERSON: Minding you we are standing by for a press conference or certainly a speech by Justin Trudeau of Canada in response, of course, to
the retaliatory tariffs that Canada has slapped on the United States.
[10:55:00]
So more on that as we get it. I also want to bring you more of President Zelenskyy's post from just moments ago. Of course, it follows what has to
be described as a disastrous meeting between the Ukrainian president, the U.S. president and the vice president in the Oval Office on Friday.
Look, Donald Trump and J.D. Vance suggesting that Volodymyr Zelenskyy was frankly insulting the president and the American people, asking for an
apology from him. And this is his tweet to a degree. His response, I think, to this. It was several hours. Several hours. It was several paragraphs
long, two stood out to my team. And I just want to get you those again because I think these are really important from Zelenskyy.
Then we do really value how much America has done to help Ukraine maintain its sovereignty and independence. And we remember the moment when things
changed when President Trump provided Ukraine with javelins. We are grateful for this.
He then goes on to say, regarding the agreement on minerals and security, Ukraine is ready to sign it anytime and in any convenient format. We see
this agreement as a step towards security and solid security guarantees. And I truly hope it will work effectively. Those are the words of Volodymyr
Zelenskyy. I'm going to leave it here, but CNN continues, of course. "Newsroom" up next.
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