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Erin Burnett Outfront
Musk Holds Oval Office Press Conference With Mostly Quiet Trump; Trump: U.S. Can Take Gaza; Marc Fogel, American Imprisoned In Russia, Released, On Plane To U.S.; Ex-Canadian FM Threatens Tariffs Against "Trump Constituencies". Aired 7-8p ET
Aired February 11, 2025 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[19:00:34]
ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: OUTFRONT next:
The breaking news, Elon Musk takes over the Oval Office, standing over Trump as he took questions for the first time since arriving in Washington.
Plus, a takeover. Trump saying the U.S. is just going to take Gaza and send 2 million residents to other countries, including Jordan. He met with the king of Jordan tonight, and the Jordanians are breaking their silence. The foreign minister OUTFRONT live.
And an OUTFRONT exclusive tonight, American school teacher Marc Fogel. He is released from Russia.
A surprising exchange on his way about to land back here in the United States. How is he tonight? His sister, many of you know her from the many times she spoke about her brother here, will be OUTFRONT.
Let's go OUTFRONT.
And good evening. I'm Erin Burnett.
OUTFRONT tonight, the breaking news, the Musk show. President Trump tonight appearing with Elon Musk in the Oval Office, the first time the two have taken questions together. And who was the one standing taking most of the questions. having the president in this odd -- odd, jarring setting looking up to him. Well, it was Elon.
This was Musk's first press conference since Trump's election, and he took over Trump literally. You know, in all these images, kind of looked like he'd been pushed off to the side because Elon was the center of it. I mean, at times Trump seemed annoyed.
I mean, it wasn't just that Musk dominated. He did speak for about 20 of the 32 minutes, so about 63.5 percent, if you're counting of the time. It was as Musk physically owned the entire event. He and his child were the center of the attention.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ELON MUSK, TECH BILLIONAIRE: Well, the -- as I mentioned earlier, really, the first order of business is to make sure we're actually collecting -- sorry for this. I thought my son might -- might enjoy this, but he's sticking his fingers in my ears and stuff. So it's a bit hard to hear sometimes. Hey, stop that!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: It was hard to focus on what Musk was saying, which was talking about DOGE, right? And talking about that slashing tens of thousands of jobs.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MUSK: There need to be a lot of people working for the federal government, but not as many as currently. The people voted for major government reform, and that's what people are going to get.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Musk, who has billions and billions and billions of dollars in government contracts, was repeatedly asked in this press conference about his own conflicts of interest.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REPORTER: The White House says that you will identify and excuse yourself from any conflicts of interest that you may have. Does that mean that you are, in effect, policing yourself?
MUSK: Well, we actually are trying to be as transparent as possible. Well, all of our actions are fully public. Transparency is what builds trust, not simply somebody asserting trust.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Yet Musk, you see him there and add his foot in all of that. I don't know if you could see it under our lower thirds. There was his child. It was not just dominating the press conference when he was talking about DOGE in these questions. He was not being transparent about his financial interests.
So, according to the White House, Musk is planning to file a confidential financial disclosure. The White House claims that this is the norm, but, of course, there is nothing normal about that when it comes to Elon Musk or someone with his influence now.
I mean, he is, of course, the richest man in the world. He was not elected by voters. He was not approved by Congress. Anyone who has any small amount of the authority that he has in the U.S. government discloses their financial information.
So take the Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and I picked him because -- I mean, he's poor compared to Elon Musk, but he has a lot of money. And his financial disclosure report is 21 pages. It's public, hundreds of millions of dollars for his net worth. Again, pocket change for Elon Musk. But Scott Bessent disclosed all these holdings. He then divested from
dozens of funds and trusts to take the job as treasury secretary and to avoid any conflicts of interest.
So what are we going to see publicly from Elon Musk, who is really above the Treasury and secretary of state and all of these other departments? Nothing.
Again, Musk took $3 billion in federal contracts last year alone, nearly $20 billion over the past decade.
And that is not all that may not see the light of day tonight. A watchdog group filing a lawsuit challenging the Trump administrations attempt to keep DOGE's records secret until 2034. They are coming across the U.S. government and slashing things, and they want to keep the records secret until 2034, 10 years.
Jeff Zeleny is OUTFRONT live outside the White House.
So, you know, Jeff, just looking at this moment, and it was pretty incredible to watch today, you know, in the Oval Office, Musk speaking for most of the time that, you know, physical imbalance where he's standing.
[19:05:07]
And then, of course, his child being essentially the main focus of it, it was odd. What do we know right now when you look at this situation, this images that we saw out of the Oval Office and this first press conference together about Musk's and Trump's relationship right now?
JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Erin, it was extraordinary. And you could tell that they have a good rapport. The president does not normally allow anyone on his staff that I can recall in the first administration or so far in this administration to speak that long, to sort of be the center of attention. But that was the point of all of this, of course.
I think if we take a couple steps back, Elon Musk is actually a fairly new friend of the president. He, of course, contributed about a quarter of $1 billion in terms of spending to help him get elected, he said. Before he was half Democrat, half Republican, but generally voted Democratic.
However, he now is all in for Donald Trump, as we could see. But the relationship, of course, is still developing. But I thought I think it was extraordinary just the fact that this happened and I'm told the reason it did is they wanted to begin a public relations campaign, if you will, to push back against all of the criticism of DOGE and what it's doing.
We've seen judges across the U.S. making rulings and things. And so this was Elon Musk's opportunity to say, look, I'm just looking for waste, fraud and abuse, but never mind the conflict of interest. So we didn't really learn any more in terms of who is going to be guarding the henhouse, if you will. But I think there was a big comfort level. But there was also a power play. This is coming a week after time
magazine, of course, said Elon Musk on the front cover, sitting behind the Resolute Desk. It was clear today that Donald Trump was the president and Elon Musk is working for him -- Erin.
BURNETT: All right. Jeff Zeleny, I mean, certainly I guess that's the image that they wanted to portray.
ZELENY: Right.
BURNETT: I want to go to Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal now, former attorney general of Connecticut, sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Senator, you watched that. Was that your reaction when you saw that press conference? Elon Musk and his son standing at while Trump was sitting at the -- at the resolute desk. But Elon Musk, 20 of the 32 minutes were devoted to Elon in this press conference. What did you see there?
SEN. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (D-CT): It's an obvious public relations ploy, Erin, to push back against a lot of the criticism. Musk has dropped precipitously in popularity. I talked to my Republican colleagues and they are aghast at the unpopularity they're hearing from their constituents. But it also seems to be an effort by Donald Trump to be the president and show that he's in charge.
And the issue here really is transparency. If Elon Musk wants transparency, he should make available fully and completely all of those financial disclosure forms. I demand that he make public all of his finances.
BURNETT: Well, you know, it's interesting when you say that when I -- when Jeff was going through his donations, right, his donations appear to be about equivalent generally to Scott Bessent's net worth. You know, who is worth a lot of money and disclosed and divested and did all the things that that -- that one should do if you're going to be treasury secretary or in such a position in the U.S. government.
So when Musk was asked today about this conflict of interest, Senator, he responded, all of our actions are fully public. Maybe referring to his X posts. And then he added this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MUSK: All of our actions are maximally transparent. In fact, I don't think there's been -- I don't know of a case where an organization has been more transparent than the DOGE organization.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: And yet they're trying to keep, you know, records their private until 2034, which is a bit confounding, obviously, with that statement. But do you believe him when he says that?
BLUMENTHAL: I don't believe him. You know, he has contracts with all of these agencies that he is now privy to all the data and information about. He controls potentially the contracts in those agencies that are awarding contracts to Tesla or SpaceX, Starlink, Neuralink, all of the companies that he owns that have made him a billionaire.
And I don't believe for a moment they're ever going to make public the relevant facts here. He's giving new meaning to the word corruption, and rather than rooting out fraud, abuse and waste, they're firing the inspectors general who are the watchdogs.
BURNETT: I'm curious, Senator, what you think. And I know this is just, you know, what's -- what's in your head, but Elon Musk is already the world's richest man. So, you know, some people say, oh, well, you know, he wants to get more government contracts. I mean, I suppose maybe, but you could also make the case that no money is what this is about at all for him.
[19:10:02]
This is about something else.
But -- I mean, and that wouldn't excuse no disclosure. I'm not trying to make that argument at all. What I want to ask you, though, is what do you think this is about for Musk? Do you think it's about more contracts and money?
BLUMENTHAL: I think it's about more contracts and money, but it's also about control. If you control the information, you control the lifeblood of many of the companies that Elon Musk controlled, that information then can be shared with some of his billionaire tech friends. He sent this crew of 20-something tech bros into companies they are reaping, harvesting, collecting information.
And if you follow the information, as well as following the money, what you see is that he is enriching himself and the billionaires in this process.
BURNETT: I just want to ask you also, Senator, because you're on the judiciary committee, you know, the number of legal cases against the Trump administration is mounting. As you know, courts have paused temporarily Trump's actions on a number of fronts.
But it's all in process, right? It's temporary. It's got to work its way through the system. An appeals court tonight declined the Trump administration's request to lift an order that blocked Trump's so- called spending freeze.
So, in other words, there was a freeze. They fought it. The court said no, right? So right now, it's going in the system. But they haven't been winning. Are you confident that they will continue to do it the way they've been doing it, which is to file briefs and fight within the system?
BLUMENTHAL: I'm confident that there will be continuing court actions to block these blatantly illegal actions, and I am supporting, as are many of my colleagues, these actions to stop the lawbreaking that occurs when there are hiring freezes, funding freezes, firing of inspectors general holds on funds for Head Start, medical research, lifesaving measures.
But I have no confidence that the Trump administration will follow those court orders. So far, there have been instances of noncompliance, and if there is intentional noncompliance, there should be contempt orders against Trump officials and potentially against Donald Trump himself. He has no immunity against civil contempt orders.
BURNETT: All right. Well, Senator Blumenthal, I appreciate your time, as always. Thank you, sir.
BLUMENTHAL: Thank you.
BURNETT: I want to bring in Brian Barrett now, executive editor at "Wired", of course, works with Katie Drummond.
So, Brian, Musk and Trump had this press conference just over 30 minutes in the Oval Office. Musk's four-year-old son was present for the whole time, and Musk was talking about DOGE and slashing the federal government. As you watched this in its entirety, what stood out most to you?
BRIAN BARRETT, EXECUTIVE EDITOR, WIRED: You know, I think there's some of the things you pointed out already. I think the lack of self- awareness on the part of Elon Musk, not only in terms of transparency, not only saying were the most transparent agency ever, when in fact people who are members of DOGE won't introduce themselves in meetings with people at these agencies when they go in. That's how private they're trying to be about their own identities, railing against the idea that an unelected official would -- would make a lot of moves in a bureaucracy when that is definitionally what he is doing.
But most of all, I think it's the impunity with which he acted at the sense of, I'm going to turn it into a bring my kid to work day. When we are talking about really serious stakes that are going to affect the lives of every American at some level, the amount of cuts that he wants to do to the government, the amount of turmoil he's causing within these agencies, and it's really just sort of a day at the park for him. That was really striking to me.
BURNETT: It was -- it was quite jarring given the topics he does often take his son, obviously, you know, whether its to Congress, you know, congressional leaders, Oval Office, he brought him to a meeting with the Turkish president. He sort of, you know, omnipresent.
I mean, what -- what is all that about? Do you know?
BARRETT: I, you know, I don't know, and I don't want to speak to Elon Musk as a parent or a father.
I do think the -- it speaks more to his approach, though, and how he views his role in all of this, which I think is sort of as the grand master of all that's happening right now. I think you don't really invite your kid along to a proceeding if you don't feel like you were in charge of that proceeding. I think that he feels like he is in control of all of this, and that everyone is sort of has to accommodate what he is doing. And I think he's probably used to feeling that way as the world's richest man.
BURNETT: And he also -- we were talking about the transparency questions that he was presented with at this press conference. He said all of DOGE's work is made public, but obviously his details are going to remain private, at least the way they say now, right? We're not going to get those disclosure forms that we get from, you know, elected or appointed or, you know, congressionally approved people.
[19:15:01]
So, you know, he's got these billions of contracts and he's getting a confidential disclosure form. And I talked about that lawsuit that has been filed, you know, trying to get the Trump administration to not win in their efforts to keep DOGE communications private for ten years.
So, you know, that's incredible secrecy, incredible secrecy on something that is going to affect the whole country. Is that typical of how Musk operates?
BARRETT: Yeah, I think so. I think what you could say about Elon Musk is that he is aware of his own advantages, and he seeks them out. I think that, you know, he is a very competitive person. He is someone who plays things close to the vest when he can.
I think, you see that time and again through his business dealings. So it's not surprising, but it is disappointing that he's taking that and applying it to the federal government, where people have a right to know these things people have. And he has an obligation to share them. I don't think it translates easily from his business dealings to government dealings. And we're seeing that play out.
BURNETT: All right. Well, Brian, thank you so much. I really appreciate it.
BARRETT: Thank you.
BURNETT: All right. Brian Barrett from "Wired" there.
And next, President Trump doubling down on Gaza, saying that the U.S. is going to take Gaza and send the 2 million people who live there away.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And I believe we'll have a parcel of land in Jordan.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Well, the king of Jordan was sitting next to him when he said that Jordanians are speaking out here, next. Foreign minister is OUTFRONT.
And an OUTFRONT exclusive tonight, American Marc Fogel suddenly released by Putin on his way home tonight. His sister will be with us. And New York City Mayor Eric Adams speaking out for the first time
since federal prosecutors were told to drop their charges against him. Was it because of the relationship between Trump and Adams? Special report ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:21:15]
BURNETT: Tonight, president Trump doubling down on his plan to take over Gaza as he meets with a key ally in the Middle East, saying this next to the king of Jordan, King Abdullah, who has been opposed to Trump's plan to push Palestinians permanently out of Gaza.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: It's not where I want them to live. It's going to be where we ultimately choose as a group, and I believe well have a parcel of land in Jordan. I believe we'll have a parcel of land in Egypt. We may have someplace else, but I think when we finish our talks, we'll have a place where they're going to live very happily and very safely.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: OUTFRONT now for an exclusive interview the foreign minister and deputy prime minister of Jordan, Ayman Safadi, who is in the room for that crucial meeting between President Trump and King Abdullah of Jordan today.
So I appreciate your time, Mr. Safadi.
So you just hear President Trump there say, and I quote him, there's a parcel of land in Jordan. You say parcel of land in Jordan where the Palestinians from Gaza will go live. Is that the case?
AYMAN SAFADI, JORDANIAN DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER: Well, good evening and thanks for having me.
We did have a very good discussion with the -- with the -- with the -- with the president. Obviously, those the presser took place before the expanded meeting where the ideas were discussed. President -- President Trump presented his ideas. I believe he's driven by, as you said, humanitarian concern for Gaza. He believes that Gaza cannot rebuild without Gazans leaving their -- their land. His majesty was very clear that we have a plan through which well be able to rebuild Gaza without Gazans leaving their -- their Gaza.
And this is a very a key position for Jordan. Beyond that, I think we had a very good discussion. His majesty made it very clear where we stand in terms of we can put up a plan that will rebuild Gaza without moving Gazans out of Gaza.
BURNETT: Okay, so very clear on your plan. Rebuild Gaza without moving, moving Gazans out. And, you know, I don't -- I don't want to put words in your mouth. But just to be clear, parcel of land in Jordan does not fit with that. It sounded like you were very clear that Trump said that before the
meeting with King Abdullah. So do you think he changed his mind on this parcel of land in Jordan, or is it unclear at this time?
SAFADI: I think the president was very clear that he understands the key role Jordan plays, that Jordan's stability is key for the stability of the region. He listened attentively to what his majesty said, and as I said, his majesty was very clear even in the presser, that he'll do what's right for Jordan and the interests of the Jordanian people and the interests of Jordan and the Jordanian people is to solve the Palestinian issue in Palestine without Palestinians having to leave.
And again, this is a conversation the president presented his views, his majesty presented ours, and we believe there's a path forward to rebuild Gaza without moving Palestinians out and there's a path forward to achieve a just and lasting peace which the president says he wants to bring about, and we are partners with him in doing so. And the please -- and the peace that we believe we'll be just and we'll be lasting is one that will be based on the two-state solution.
BURNETT: Two-state solution with Gazans staying in Gaza.
Just to be clear, foreign minister, you know, this -- what Trump has said about parcel of land in Jordan was obviously today, but he has said about Gazans not going back to Gaza, right, he said it day after day now since he had that first stunning press conference was actually in this hour, about a week ago. And in an interview last night, he was asked about it very explicitly, and I wanted to play the question and his answer for you.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRET BAIER, FOX NEWS HOST: Would the Palestinians have the right to return?
TRUMP: No, they wouldn't, because they're going to have much better housing, much better -- in other words, I'm talking about building a permanent place for them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Foreign Minister, I just want to just be clear here. Bret Baier asks, would the Palestinians have the right to return?
[19:25:01]
Trump, no, they wouldn't. How does Jordan respond to such a categorical statement?
SAFADI: Again, we're having a conversation with the president. He presented his views. We presented ours. Our position is very clear in Jordan that we cannot afford any more refugees. We're the largest per capita host of refugees in the region.
We have 35 percent of our population are refugees. So we made that clear. And I think the president understands that, that what we want is to achieve peace. What we want is to rebuild Gaza.
And again, the president says that he has his plan is driven by his humanitarian concern, which we appreciate. Our position is that we can rebuild Gaza without Gazans leaving Gaza, and Gazans leaving Gaza will not be a solution. And for us in Jordan, it is a matter of stability and security, and therefore our position is that we should solve the Palestinian issue in Palestine, on Palestinian land. And this conversation with the -- with the administration will continue.
I think the objective is to bring about peace. The president says he wants to bring about peace. We are partners for him in bringing about that peace and just peace. But our position is very clear. In order for peace to be to be lasting, for everybody to feel secure, we have to have the two state solutions where Palestinians stay in Palestine and do not leave the country.
BURNETT: You know, I've seen the, you know, reporting that there are more Hamas fighters now than there were prior to October 7th. I'm curious in the meeting today, did the -- did the king speak to the president about what President Trump has said, which is that America would essentially occupy for a long period of time, Gaza, while this rebuilding that the president has talked about goes on.
Did the -- did the king talk to him about what an American occupation in Gaza would mean?
SAFADI: I don't think the word "occupation" was -- was ever used. And again, as I said, the president says he has a plan for rebuilding Gaza. His majesty was very clear that we have a plan in the Arab world. Egypt is working on a plan to reconstruct Gaza, to rebuild Gaza without Palestinians having to leave -- having to leave Gaza.
All of us in the Arab world are behind this plan. We can make it happen and we can achieve the objective of solving this humanitarian crisis without displacing Gazans into outside of their country.
And again, for us in Jordan, it's just a matter of stability. Palestinians want to stay in Palestine. Jordanians don't want Palestinians moved out of Palestine into Jordan. We cannot afford that.
And again, our efforts will continue to be on -- working with the president, on producing a plan that will achieve the purpose of rebuilding, addressing this humanitarian catastrophe without Gaza moving. This is a conversation. I believe it was a very good conversation. And we're going to continue with that, and were going to put our plans on the table.
BURNETT: So, Minister Safadi, I want to ask you, because one of the reasons that the president gave in his stunning comments about Gaza was that, you know, it's a hell hole that it was even before this happened. This is how he described it. And he's talking about, as jarring as the words are, the images that people see of complete and utter destruction and devastation in Gaza.
So, can I ask you about the plan itself that you're referring to, that you say Jordan and other countries in the Middle East all support? How do you rebuild Gaza while people are living in Gaza?
SAFADI: Well, I mean, we did it before in the previous war in Gaza, almost 50 percent of the current destruction that we see now took place, and we were able to rebuild it. Egypt put a plan forward. Qatar helped. Everybody helped.
We can do the same. Gaza is a -- is a big territory in that sense. There are a lot of empty lots. Not most -- you know, a lot of the houses are not fully destroyed. They can be rebuilt.
So -- and now, I mean, most of Gazans have been pushed out of the north of Gaza. So the north is empty, so we can rebuild it. Now we need to get tents. We need to get caravans. We need to get aid, make sure that we stabilize people where they are.
And again, we can rebuild Gaza in relatively a short period three years or so. And that can be done without Gazans leaving because if you get Gazans out of Gaza and what's next? What about the West Bank?
So I think we're looking at this comprehensively. I think the president wants peace. The president wants to address the humanitarian concern, and we're going to offer ideas, and that's what we do.
But I think, again, for us in Jordan, it's just we cannot afford any more refugees. We cannot have Palestinians come to Jordan. And I believe the president strongly supports the stability of Jordan. And he understands that this could be destabilizing for Jordan.
And if you destabilize Jordan, you destabilize the whole region. So I think this is a conversation as partners, as friends, we talk. The president has his ideas. His majesty presented his ideas.
And I think there's a path forward, as I said, to rebuilding Gaza without getting Gazans out. And there's a path forward to achieving the peace that is in the interest of Palestinians, Israelis, America, all of us in the region. And the two-state solution is the path to that peace. And we're going to put ideas, practical ideas on the table that will help us all move towards that ultimate end which can produce peace and security for all.
[19:30:08]
BURNETT: Mr. Safadi, I appreciate your time. Thank you very much.
SAFADI: Thank you. Appreciate it.
BURNETT: All right. And next, an OUTFRONT exclusive American Marc Fogel suddenly released by P now on his way home as we speak, expected to arrive tonight. His sister joins me next.
Plus, Canada's prime minister threatening to retaliate if Trump follows through in his order to target steel and aluminum. Canada's former deputy prime minister is my guest.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BURNETT: Breaking news: American teacher Marc Fogel wrongfully jailed in a Russian prison for nearly four years.
[19:35:03]
In a shocking, unexpected -- come up with any synonym you want -- turn of events is free tonight. In fact, he is right now about two hours from touching down on American soil, again, after four years in Russian prison.
Steve Witkoff, Trump -- Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, personally flew to Russia to get Fogel. And he is going to be meeting with President Trump as soon as he lands in Washington. And we do anticipate that's going to be very soon.
So this is a photo of Fogel celebrating on that plane. This was taken right after his release this morning. Trump giving no clear details about what the U.S. did or gave to Putin in terms of prisoner exchange. We just don't know when it comes to Fogel's release.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REPORTER: Did you guys give anything in return?
TRUMP: Not much. No, they were very nice. We were treated very nicely by Russia, actually.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: I want to go straight to Marc's sister, Anne Fogel.
If you watched the show, you know her well because she has been on this show countless times, tirelessly and never looking like this, never with a smile like this. Because you -- you spoke about your brother and made sure that nobody was able to forget in the U.S. government.
And now here you are. Your brother is, I mean, you know, under two hours away from landing on U.S. soil. Well, out of Russian airspace, right over the Atlantic now. Does this feel real?
ANNE FOGEL, SISTER OF MARC FOGEL, RELEASED FROM RUSSIA TODAY: No, not exactly. It kind of does. Like I've gotten I've gotten some texts from him, and --
BURNETT: Wow.
FOGEL: He sent me some photographs. And so it's -- it's feeling better. I'll get my phone has absolutely exploded. So I guess its sort of it's -- it's -- it's a little bit of both. I'm really, really excited and happy.
BURNETT: Well --
FOGEL: Especially for my mom. My moms going to be 96 in a couple of weeks, and, and I just didn't think -- she didn't think that she was going to make it to this day. So we are really jubilant and we are celebrating. BURNETT: Jubilant is a just a beautiful word and a word we don't get
to hear very often in this business. Marc -- so he's going to be reunited. You talk about your mom and you, his wife, one of his two boys tonight because they're driving to D.C. now, and I know there's a storm there and everything that they're dealing with there.
FOGEL: So everybody is headed to Texas tomorrow. My sister in law and my nephews are both headed to Texas tomorrow, and they will see him there because of the storms in Washington, D.C.
BURNETT: So they're -- okay, so, yeah.
FOGEL: So that's -- yes.
BURNETT: Are they ready? I mean, how does -- it's been almost four years.
FOGEL: It's -- it's -- it's -- they're ready. Of course, they're ready and -- and nervous and excited. And there's just like, the full range of emotions, as you can imagine. It's going to be -- it's going to be really powerful for Marc. He has -- it's hard to explain how much he's missed them.
BURNETT: I'm sure none of us can understand that. I mean, how did you find out? How did they find out? I mean, this was -- I mean, again. And you have talked about him. You have never given up. You had had so much frustration over time about, you know, how he was categorized by the State Department.
And, you know, then there were those big, highly public, you know, exchanges. And then he wasn't part of them, right? And you never gave up. But then this -- this seems to have just come out of the blue. I mean, did you have any warning?
FOGEL: Well, you know, things started to turn around last fall when he was designated as wrongfully detained. And we knew that the State Department was taking -- taking more of an interest in. But prior to that, my mother went to the Trump rally and saw President Trump shortly before he was shot.
BURNETT: At Butler, right? In Butler.
(CROSSTALK)
FOGEL: It's just a crazy turn of events. And he told her then that if he was -- if he was elected, he was going to get him out. And the man was true to his word.
So, that's where we are, late last week on February 5th. We heard that Marc was moved from Rybinsk, and we were told that he received new clothes and a shower, and they trimmed his hair and shaved him. So we knew that something was happening.
But these things can go sideways. And we were -- just we've been on the edge of our seat for the entire week. And so this morning when Mark called my mother and my sister in law to let -- to let us know that he was getting on the plane, and then to hear that he was out of Russian airspace, it was just the best, the best.
[19:40:00]
BURNETT: So did he say anything about his health? I mean, I know you and I had talked about that. You were worried. I mean, it wasn't just nearly four years in such horrible conditions, right? He had spent more than 100 days in, you know, prison hospitals, right? He has -- he has had -- has not been well, has he been able to talk about give or to get a sense right now about his health?
FOGEL: He fell a couple of weeks ago, and I think that he was having some issues with some back spasms and I know that he did not want to go back to the penal colony hospital. So, I -- they heard that perhaps they heard that and, and knew that he needed to get home. He really needs medical care. He looks great in the photographs. I think that he is out of his body as of right now, just not even believing.
So, I'm sure that, you know, he's going to go to San Antonio and have a full medical evaluation and a psychological evaluation, and, but he's a very resilient person. And we're looking forward to him going back to Pittsburgh and settling down and resuming -- picking the pieces up.
BURNETT: It is -- it is the pieces. Anne, is there anything, as he is about to land that you're able to share with us about just the text conversations that you've had with him, you know, throughout the day and these first conversations since he was free?
FOGEL: Just -- he's -- he -- when you saw the photograph of him on the plane, having a -- I'm sure it was a scotch, which I'm joining him in as well.
I think that -- we -- he's just said pictures and just a few things. It's come from, it's come through other others phones as of right now.
BURNETT: All right.
FOGEL: So I don't have exact words for you.
BURNETT: All right. Well, I appreciate your time. And you use the word jubilant as we began this conversation. It is wonderful to hear a story that can bring jubilation and just pure joy.
FOGEL: Hallelujah!
BURNETT: Yes. All right. Well, thank you so much. Anne.
FOGEL: Thank you. Thank you for all your support. We really, really appreciate it.
BURNETT: Well --
FOGEL: Take care.
BURNETT: We are very glad. Thank you.
And next, the woman who could be Canada's next prime minister tonight with a trade war warning for Trump.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRYSTIA FREELAND, CANADIAN POLITICIAN: If you force our hand, we will inflict the biggest trade blow.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: She's my guest.
Plus, it appears the case is closed against New York City's embattled mayor. And that is thanks to Trump. So just how close are the two?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:47:02]
BURNETT: New tonight, Trudeau threatening Trump. The outgoing Canadian prime minister warning President Trump of immediate retaliation to Trump's executive order late yesterday. That order slapped a 25 percent tariff on Canadian steel and aluminum.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUSTIN TRUDEAU, PRIME MINISTER OF CANADA: Tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum would be entirely unjustified. If it comes to that, our response, of course, will be firm and clear.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Now, keep in mind the United States buys more steel and aluminum from Canada than anywhere else in the world. A quarter of all U.S. steel imports come from Canada.
And Trump's tariff, which again, he's already signed an executive order, is set to take effect on March 12th.
OUTFRONT now, Chrystia Freeland. She was Canada's deputy prime minister and finance minister under Trudeau until she resigned in December. And she is now one of the frontrunners to replace him in this next election.
So, Chrystia, I so much appreciate your time.
When you hear that warning from Prime Minister Trudeau, who, of course, is on his way out, and then all of this has blown up after -- after that was announced. Will it make President Trump think twice about these new tariffs that are in the executive order?
FREELAND: Well, it should. The prime minister is absolutely right. These tariffs are illegal. They are unjustified. And crucially, Erin, they are self-mutilating for the United States. They're going to hurt the U.S. really badly.
And we know that because it's not the first time this has happened. In 2018, the United States imposed tariffs of 25 percent on Canadian steel, 10 percent on Canadian aluminum. And in 2019, the U.S. dropped those tariffs, mostly because those tariffs hurt the U.S. and also because we did, as the prime minister said we would do. We retaliated dollar for dollar retaliation. And it hurt.
You know, I think you guys sometimes think Canada -- well, actually, I don't think Americans think about Canada all that often, which is fine with us. But what you should remember is we are actually your largest market. We are larger than China, Japan, the U.K. and France combined.
And that means we have economic leverage. Our country is really united behind this. We will use that leverage. And you guys are the people who invented the saying the customer is always right.
BURNETT: So I do point out when you're saying the last time around when those tariffs were imposed and the tit for tat, that was also in a Trump presidency. So it's an important analogy that you're drawing here. You posted a very direct warning. You're saying this here, but on social media yesterday you spoke directly to Trump. Let me just play it for anyone who hasn't seen it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FREELAND: I have a message today for President Trump. If you force our hand, we will inflict the biggest trade blow that the United States has ever endured.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[19:50:08]
BURNETT: What does that trade blow look like? If you're the next prime minister.
FREELAND: Dollar for dollar retaliation, any tariff imposed on Canada, Canada will respond to. And our response is going to be smart and targeted. The tariffs the U.S. is threatening Canada with are across the board and they're going to hurt you take aluminum. Aluminum is basically electricity in solid form.
And in imposing a 25 percent tariff on Canadian aluminum. You're hurting yourselves. You're putting a 25 percent tax on electricity, and you actually need more electricity today in this A.I. race with China.
BURNETT: Yeah.
FREELAND: Our retaliation is going to be a lot more surgical than that. We are going to go after American stakeholders who matter to the White House. I have proposed a 100 percent tariff on all Teslas. I am calling on all the countries that are affected by this tariff to join us and our retaliation will target specific Trump constituencies, another group that we're going to go after is Wisconsin dairy farmers. We know how important they are for the president, and were not going to let them sell their products in Canada anymore.
But I also want to say to you, Erin, we don't have to do this. We have a balanced, mutually beneficial relationship with the United States. We think the best path is to continue with that relationship. I was Canada's lead negotiator the last time Trump was president, and we had a lot of fighting and a lot of insults.
But at the end of the day, the tariffs were lifted by the United States. We got a trade agreement that Trump said was the best deal ever. And today, the president campaigned on saying he was going to go after China. He campaigned on saying China is an unfair participant in the global economy and has overcapacity in steel and aluminum.
We think the president is right about that. We do not want to have a fight with you. We would prefer to be your partner and we can be a great partner. But if you hit us, were going to have to hit you back.
BURNETT: Well, it's interesting when you talk about you were a lead negotiator. I mean, you know, when this all started and you resigned, he lashed out. He called you totally toxic, not at all conducive to making deals. I'm sure you saw the post.
She will not be missed. And of course, she could be coming back as prime minister.
Can I just ask you, though, Chrystia? Elon Musk, you're choosing -- obviously, you talk about constituents core to the White House. And you mentioned that 100 percent tariff on Teslas that you would go ahead with if Trump imposes these tariffs.
I mean, that's basically an acknowledgment that Elon Musk is -- is -- I mean, he's really in a class of his own. He's the single most important person. I mean, it's literally just economic acknowledgment of that fact.
FREELAND: Yeah. Look, you're American and you guys will have the best judgments about your political system and who's influential and who isn't. But we listen to you. We listen to your reporting, and we will design our retaliation to target the people who we think are the most influential, the people who, if they are feeling pain from our retaliation, will say to the president, let's not do this anymore.
That's the outcome that we want. And by the way, we think that's going to be the best outcome for the U.S. too.
BURNETT: Right. Of course, though, when you point out choose the government, the American people elected Donald Trump, not Elon Musk, but they -- they have them both now, at least the way that it is playing out thus far.
Well, Chrystia Freeland, thank you so much. I appreciate your time.
FREELAND: I appreciate yours. Thanks a lot.
BURNETT: And next, the New York City Mayor Eric Adams, speaking out after Trump's DOJ ordered prosecutors to drop their case against him.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:57:27]
BURNETT: Tonight, quote, its time to move forward. That is the message from New York City Mayor Eric Adams today, facing backlash after Trump's DOJ moved to dismiss the corruption case against the mayor, saying this wasn't based on the merits of the case or anything. They just moved to do it.
Brynn Gingras is OUTFRONT with more on the months long courting of Trump that may have saved Adams.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Donald Trump and Eric Adams an unlikely friendship that's now seemingly having major payoff for the embattled New York City mayor.
MAYOR ERIC ADAMS (D), NEW YORK CITY: And this case will no longer continue.
GINGRAS: Quoting the Bible and not taking questions, Adams thanking the Justice Department for ordering New York prosecutors to drop federal charges against him.
ADAMS: I never broke the law and I never would.
GINGRAS: The signals that this would happen were there, ever since last fall when the five-count federal indictment accused Adams of accepting travel perks and campaign contributions in exchange for political favors.
ADAMS: I always knew that if I stood my ground for all of you, that I would be a target and a target I became.
GINGRAS: Adams took a page out of Trump's playbook, insinuating the charges against him were political persecution for publicly criticizing Biden's immigration policies, which Trump echoed.
TRUMP: It's a -- it's a shame. He did the right thing, but he got indicted and they play weaponization.
GINGRAS: Also, Adams, once a Republican, became reluctant to endorse Kamala Harris while also shying away from publicly criticizing Trump. But the two men's relationship really seemed to flourish when Trump won the White House.
ADAMS: We have a new president coming in, and when that president comes in, he has a mayor in this city that is not going to be warring with him.
GINGRAS: Adams traveled to Florida, where he had lunch with Trump near Mar-a-Lago. He insists his criminal case wasn't a topic of conversation. And then on Inauguration Day, Adams abruptly canceled his schedule and went to Washington. He publicly lauded members of Trump's inner circle, like Elon Musk.
ADAMS: It's time for a change, and I've said this for years, and I'm happy that Elon is going to be part of those who are moving that change forward.
GINGRAS: While also recently instructing his senior staff to not speak ill of the new administration for fear of losing federal funding, according to "The New York Times", all a shift from the man who once called himself --
ADAMS: I'm the Biden of Brooklyn.
GINGRAS: And who now may have also been spared jail time.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GINGRAS (on camera): And the order states that the decision was made without actually looking into the facts of the case, and that those charges could be reviewed after the New York City mayoral election later this year. Perhaps a signal that Mayor Adams better stay in line, though the DOJ says this was not a quid pro quo situation -- Erin.
BURNETT: All right, Brynn, thank you very much, live in New York.
And thanks so much, as always to all of you for being with us.
"AC360" with Anderson begins now.
