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Erin Burnett Outfront

Soon: Letitia James' First Public Speech Since Trump DOJ Indictment; Trump: Gaza Ceasefire "Could Be The Greatest Deal" I've Ever Done; "Take A Stand": Obama Blasts Groups Caving To Trump's Demands; Trump Says He Could Give Ukraine Missiles Capable Of Hitting Moscow. Aired 7-8p ET

Aired October 13, 2025 - 19:00   ET

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

[19:00:23]

ERICA HILL, CNN HOST: OUTFRONT next:

Breaking news, New York Attorney General Letitia James about to speak publicly for the first time since being indicted by Trump's DOJ as Trump's handpicked prosecutor cleans house. Is John Bolton next?

Also breaking, Trump's celebrating what he calls an end to the war in Gaza. Major questions, though, remain. Bidens ambassador to Israel is my guest.

And an OUTFRONT special report, a rare glimpse tonight into one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in America, Skid Row.

Let's go OUTFRONT.

(MUSIC)

HILL: Good evening. I'm Erica Hill, in for Erin Burnett.

OUTFRONT tonight, breaking her silence. New York Attorney General Letitia James speaking out publicly tonight for the first time since she was indicted by Trump's DOJ on charges related to alleged mortgage fraud. There are live pictures we can show you. There you go.

This is the stage where James will soon be speaking. She is slated to introduce another top Trump target, Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic socialist frontrunner in the New York City mayoral race.

Trump's handpicked prosecutor, his former personal attorney, Lindsey Halligan, secured the indictment against Letitia James.

And tonight, further evidence Halligan is making her presence felt within the office after just three weeks on the job. We are learning that Halligan's deputy Maggie Cleary, a senior prosecutor in that office, was removed. She's now one of at least five career prosecutors who have been either removed or resigned from the powerful U.S. attorney's office in the eastern district of Virginia.

And a source telling CNN, Halligan is not done. She wants to clean house, ousting anyone who may oppose her work on highly politicized cases like Letitia James and James Comey, both, of course, recently indicted.

And tonight, new questions about whether John Bolton, Trump's former national security advisor, may be the presidents next enemy to face a similar fate. In a rare move, federal prosecutors meeting over the weekend to finalize the details of a potential indictment against Bolton for mishandling national security information.

Now, this is someone who, of course, has not mince words when it comes to talking about Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN BOLTON, FORMER TRUMP NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR: I don't think he's fit for office. I don't think he has the competence to carry out the job.

Trump doesn't learn much very quickly. I think it's a -- it's an indication his mind is full of mush. I think it is a retribution presidency.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Well, there's no secret that Donald Trump is looking for revenge. Trump continuing to send his justice department a clear message that just who he wants them to target next. Posting online the Ukraine impeachment of me, scam, was a far bigger illegal hoax than Watergate. I sincerely hope the necessary authorities, including Congress, are looking into this. Adam shifty Schiff was so dishonest and corrupt, so many laws and protocols were violated and just plain broken.

Senator Schiff, responding to those threats, writing, the president has made no secret of his enemies list. But we will not be intimidated. We will not be deterred.

Evan Perez is OUTFRONT live in Washington.

So, Evan, walk us through what you're learning about these indictments. And also, what may be coming.

EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE CORRESPNDENT: Well, Erica, we're certainly on guard for a possible indictment against John Bolton in the coming days. Certainly, we are watching the federal prosecutors in the district of Maryland who are overseeing this case. And over the weekend, our Katelyn Polantz reported, based on sources that prosecutors there met on Saturday to try to finalize some of the workings of this indictment, which could come again within the next few days.

And I think one of the things that certainly looking and waiting for what happens in the Bolton case is a reminder of the president's enemies list, but also how not all the cases are the same. And there's certainly going to different categories. In this case, you can see that career prosecutors who have been looking have been working on this investigation now for some time do not feel the same way that you saw prosecutors did in the Comey case or in the Letitia James case. Thats because they believe that there is a possible case here to be brought against John Bolton.

You can look at the federal filings, some of the court filings about the search warrant that the FBI carried out there back in August. They said they found documents that were labeled secret, confidential, classified things related to the weapons of weapons of mass destruction programs.

So, it gives you a sense that this is a case that at least prosecutors, the career prosecutors in the Justice Department view as legitimate. Now, separate from that, of course, is the president -- some of the words that you have played there of Bolton and the president talking about each other, some of the president's commentary, Erica, could have an impact on cases like this one that are viewed more legitimately by prosecutors inside the Justice Department.

[19:05:14]

One of the things that I should note is you might notice that the president, in all of his recent commentary on Comey and Adam Schiff, he almost never mentions the Bolton case. And it's perhaps an indicator that he has been told that this is an actual serious case, that the Justice Department is trying to pursue -- Erica.

HILL: It's -- it is certainly an important point and an important observation. Evan, Appreciate it. Thank you.

PEREZ: Sure.

HILL: OUTFRONT now, Rebecca Roiphe, former prosecutor in the New York district attorney's office, Tim Pawlenty, the Republican former governor of Minnesota, and Xochitl Hinojosa, former director of public affairs at the Department of Justice.

It's good to have all of you with us tonight. So, Rebecca, five prosecutors now from the eastern district of Virginia have been fired or resigned under pressure seemingly related to disagreements over prosecuting Trump's enemies. What does this do to this key office? In the midst of all these high-profile prosecutions?

REBECCA ROIPHE, FORMER PROSECUTOR, NY DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE: You know, it's extremely hard for morale, I assume. Prosecutors, career prosecutors have an obligation on behalf of the public to do justice. And if they feel that they are being instructed to do something inconsistent with that duty, they often resign or they're forced out.

And under those circumstances, the line prosecutors who are doing their job must feel a lot of pressure if they decide to do something that is inconsistent with what the political appointees or the political officials want to do, they have to worry that their jobs are on the line.

HILL: Governor, when we look at this, according to our reporting, Cleary sided with other career prosecutors who had opposed bringing the Comey case due to a lack of evidence. But she was then removed.

How much does that concern you, if at all?

TIM PAWLENTY (R), FORMER MINNESOTA GOVERNOR: Anytime you see career prosecutors leaving when there's an atmosphere of political pressure or allegations of political pressure that is deeply concerning, Erica. But this may also be an example of two things being true at the same time. One being, yes, there is political pressure being applied, and some or all of these cases. But at the same time, if you really dig into each of these cases, a credible or at least plausible argument can be made that there may have been some misbehavior in each case.

HILL: So, as we look at all that and look to see how those cases play out, the fact that so many career prosecutors are now gone, Xochitl, what does that mean for the functioning of this office?

XOCHITL HINOJOSA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yeah, that's right. It's a big blow to the office. Just a reminder that the eastern district of Virginia is a critical office in order to bring national security cases. This is the office that handles some of the biggest cases outside of SDNY. And one of the things is, without some of these key prosecutors, you are you are losing the knowledge and the breadth and depth of the office. And so, with someone like Lindsey Halligan needs to think about who is going to prosecute these cases moving forward.

Yes, there are these two prosecutions that Donald Trump put her there for in order to go to go ahead and bring charges about because there was no one else that would do it. But there's all sorts of other work that the EDVA they proceed with.

And so I think it is critical to understand that not only the loss of these prosecutors, but also if you have FBI officials, which my understanding that the FBI officials that work with those investigations, those prosecutors in EDVA are out there working on violent crime cases in Washington, D.C. So not only do you have the brains and EDVA who have now left, but you also have the agents not working on those cases.

The critical national security cases that you want them to work on.

HILL: So, we'll be watching to see how that unfolds. I did also want to go back to we should do some live pictures at the top of the show. We are waiting to hear from Letitia James, the New York attorney general. These would be her first major public appearance since being indicted.

You know, Governor, you said when you look at some of these cases, when you look at the case, based on what we know about Letitia James, do you see any merit to that case?

PAWLENTY: I did read through the particulars there, at least as reported by credible sources today, Erica. And it does come down to the legal and technical point about whether this property really was a second home or whether it was a rental property or it was a little bit of both. And again, there's no question that this is politically charged. But at the same time, she may have skated close to the line as to whether she was properly disclosing what type of information she had with respect to this house. And we could go through the same with Comey and the same with Bolton

again, politically charged atmosphere. But they may have misstepped in the case of Comey, for example, an inspector general before Trump ever weighed in on it, found that Comey probably painted outside the lines when it came to leaking. And that was the Department of Justice own internal, nonpartisan inspector general.

HILL: As we watch this play out and again, as we wait to hear from Letitia James tonight. Xochitl, I know you've been speaking with people, you know, who are close to the New York A.G.

[19:10:02]

What is she expected to say tonight? Is this a simple introduction of Zohran Mamdani, or we are expecting more from her.

HINOJOSA: Well, I don't think that she is going to bring up the charges directly. Or the case in in this matter, but I do expect her to come out and talk about the moment that we are in. And addressing how Donald Trump is going after his enemies, and he is treating his enemies differently than he is treating his friends, and he is going after and trying to silence those who are most vocal against him.

And so, I think that is the case that she will be making. She won't be talking directly about her, situation in the case. And that is before us that we're discussing right now. But I think she will talk about the overall environment, you know, and the overall targeting of Donald Trump's enemies.

HILL: In terms of the targeting. Rebecca, how -- how strong of an argument could she potentially have that this is political persecution, especially given as much has been made of the fact that she did run on a promise to prosecute Donald Trump? How does that impact her argument in this case?

ROIPHE: You know, I mean, it really shouldn't two wrongs don't make a right. It is a fundamental principle of prosecution that we do not go after individuals. We go after conduct. And in both of those cases, it's wrong to single somebody out for who they are.

And of course, it's true that you might be able to find criminal conduct where you go, but that's not how prosecutors do things. They first determine whether or not they have the facts, and then they determine whether or not its in the public interest to pursue this case. And that part of that evaluation is, would you treat another person like this, or are you singling this person out for some impermissible reason, like their political views?

And so, you know, if she did that, she certainly campaigned on it. That was inappropriate. I think commentators made that point at the time, but that doesn't mean that she, in turn needs to be prosecuted for that conduct or for something else, or because she is disliked for having done that. She did something wrong in public office. She should be voted out, not prosecuted for that.

HILL: I also want to play an exchange -- an exchange that Trump ally Steve Bannon had over the weekend about Trump's future.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Let me ask you about Trump 2028. We have a 22nd Amendment which bars anybody from running for a third term. Do you think that there's -- that's not a barrier for him, or how do you see that?

STEVE BANNON, TRUMP ALLY: I think that there are many different alternatives that at the appropriate time after the midterms, in '26, we will roll out. But I think there are many different alternatives to make sure that President Trump is on the ballot. And if he's on the ballot, he'll win.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: So important to note, he was asked the question, but Steve Bannon has brought this up multiple times, Governor. Do you take him seriously in this moment?

PAWLENTY: Well, I do take him seriously in terms of I believe that's what his intent is. But when you look at the legal framework, that would have to be overcome unless you had a very cooperative Supreme Court, it would be difficult for President Trump to run again in 2028. In terms of the legal and technical issues involved.

But are they serious in their intention to try to find a way? I think they are.

HILL: And how seriously, Xochitl, are Democrats taking this in terms of having that response ready?

HINOJOSA: Well, I think that they -- it should be -- they should be taking it seriously. This is clearly unconstitutional. And I would like to see Republicans have more of a forceful response than just saying it is unconstitutional. It is unacceptable.

And the fact that you are you have one potential rule for Democrats and one potential rule for Republicans -- Republicans should be speaking out loud and clear that Donald Trump should not be doing this. This would be unprecedented. And I think that Republicans need to look in the mirror and ask themselves whether they would be okay with a Democrat doing this.

So, yes, I think Democrats should be prepared. But I also think Republicans should be as angered as Democrats.

HILL: We will be watching. Good to see all of you. Appreciate your insight tonight. Thank you.

OUTFRONT next, the breaking news, all living hostages released from Gaza as Trump declares an end to the war. Is the hard part, though, just beginning?

Plus, Obama speaking out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're not going to be bullied into saying that we can only you know, hire people or promote people based on some criteria that's been cooked up by Steve Miller.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: And is President Trump about to give Ukraine weapons that can strike Moscow?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:18:55]

HILL: Breaking news, President Trump landing soon back in Washington after a historic day in the Middle East, Trump and world leaders signing a ceasefire deal to end the fighting in Gaza. As the 20 living Israeli hostages were released this morning after spending 738 days in captivity. Trump, reflecting on how this happened in the war-torn region.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: It just came together. It's -- the greatest deal has happened that way. If you do you do anything about deals, it's all I've done all my life is deals. The greatest deals just sort of happen. And that's what happened right here. And maybe this is going to be the greatest deal of them all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Jeremy Diamond is OUTFRONT.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Two years of pent-up anguish unleashed in an instant. One after another, 20 newly freed hostages and their families hug, cry, kiss, scream and pray, reveling in their new almost unbelievable reality, their nightmare is finally over.

[19:20:04]

These moments were never guaranteed. When Bar Kupershtein was kidnapped from the Nova Music Festival, his father was still paralyzed. He vowed he would embrace his son again on his own two feet.

For Einav Zangauker, who became an icon in the hostage family's protest movement, this is the culmination of a relentless fight.

Israel's national nightmare is also now finally over. After 738 days, every single living hostage is now free. The open wounds that has been October 7th can now finally begin to heal.

For the hostages, the journey to freedom began in Red Cross vehicles flanked by masked Hamas militants. An Israeli convoy completed the trip to a military base near Gaza, where hundreds of Israelis lined the route.

DIAMOND: This liftoff is a moment more than two years in the making. Some of the last living Israeli hostages getting their own taste of freedom.

DIAMOND (voice-over): Newfound freedom filled with moments that seemed frighteningly out of reach just weeks ago. Like two former hostages embracing for the first time in years.

It was an emotional day in Gaza, too, where more than 1,700 Palestinians detained without charge were finally freed. Tears of joy and questions answered after months in the dark about their loved ones' fate.

Thank God for this blessing, this woman says. Reuniting with her husband. It's my birthday today, he says, tearing up. It's an indescribable feeling being here next to my wife. The Israelis may have destroyed Gaza, but they can't destroy us.

In the occupied West Bank, dozens of Palestinian prisoners serving long term sentences also received a hero's welcome. They are among 250 high security prisoners released as part of the deal, most of them tied to deadly attacks on Israelis.

For the Miron family and most Israelis, a price well worth paying to make families whole again and give two little girls their father back after two long years.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DIAMOND: And, Erica, Hamas on Monday also returned the bodies of four deceased Israeli hostages, perhaps offering some final closure for those families pending DNA testing results by Israel's forensic institute. But that still leaves the bodies of 24 other hostages still being held in Gaza. And it's not clear when they will be returned.

Israel has assessed now that Hamas does not know the location of all of the bodies. Some of them may also still be under the rubble -- Erica.

HILL: Jeremy, thank you.

OUTFRONT now, Jack Lew, the U.S. ambassador to Israel for President Biden, also, the former treasury secretary under President Obama.

Ambassador, it's good to have you with us tonight.

So, a momentous day. President Trump hailing this as a quote, "historic dawn of a new Middle East". Would you agree with him at this moment? Is it, in fact, a new dawn here?

JACK LEW, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO ISRAEL UNDER PRES. BIDEN: Look, it is a historic day. Twenty living hostages, the remaining hostages coming home to their families, is enormous. It means that Israel, as a country, can start to breathe again and start to emerge from the trauma of October 7th.

It comes with the return of prisoners and an agreement for Israel to pull back certain ways from the places in Gaza that people are living in.

And now the question is, what happens next? Theres still a part of the phase one agreement that's not yet fully implemented. The remains of all of the hostages who were murdered need to come home. It's going to be challenging to find some of them, given the conditions in Gaza. But there needs to be a better effort for today was a bit disappointing.

Moving on from there, today's meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh is the beginning of a long, difficult process. It took the United States and the president being fully engaged to get there. It's going to take the president and the United States staying fully engaged to continue and reach an agreement on phase two and beyond.

HILL: I've heard similar things from multiple people today. When you say the United States and President Trump, what I have heard is it has to be the sustained involvement of President Trump because he is the one that actually got everybody over the line. Would you agree that it's not just the United States, but it really has to have that element of President Trump staying in it?

LEW: Yeah. Look, I do think that it does take President Trump staying engaged. Personally, I wouldn't say only because the details are very important up until this point, they've been working on details that we spent a year hammering through many of the provisions. They've made changes, but they're now going to have to hammer out new details.

[19:25:00]

And that's not all done at the presidential level. It's going to take senior people who have the president's confidence and are seen as representing the president and then the president himself. The thing that the president uniquely can do is create a force field where other principals feel that they're compelled to act. He did that with so many leaders in the region. He did it with Prime Minister Netanyahu, and he does have, through his disruptive manner, a unique ability to create a sense of urgency and to avoid the wrath that comes from not doing as he wants.

Right now, that served a useful purpose. It's gotten us to this historic day.

HILL: To that point, what we heard definitively from President Trump, even just on the plane on his way to Israel overnight, was his belief that this war is, in fact, over. And I just want to play a little bit of what he had to say throughout the day.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: The war is over, okay? Do you understand that?

The war in Gaza is over.

Israel, with our help, has won all that they can by force of arms. You've won.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: There is saying the war is over. And then that specific piece that we heard earlier today at the Knesset. How much pressure, continued pressure, perhaps in some ways does that put on Netanyahu and on the Palestinians to some extent to make sure that the fighting does not restart?

LEW: Look, I think its a lot of pressure. And in this case, I think it's very useful pressure because were beyond the point where there's very much left to be gained by ongoing fighting. And both sides have to understand Israel, because of its relationship with the United States, and Hamas, because of its relationship with the Arab countries that were in that room today, that the whole world is saying the war should end, needs to be over.

I think it's a bit premature to conclude it is over. I certainly hope it is. I think that that is the best outcome. If it's over and the rebuilding process can begin, but it's going to take a lot of hard work.

HILL: Before I let you go, I also do want to ask you, President Clinton credited Trump when praising the ceasefire, as did Secretary of State Clinton. Your former boss, President Obama, hailed the ceasefire, did not offer praise for President Trump. Does he deserve that in this moment?

LEW: You know, I'm trying to be very, very fair in giving praise where praise is due. I think without President Trump, this wouldn't have happened. It may be through a style that is uncomfortable to many of us, but nonetheless, it's due to his personal involvement and I hope he continues to remain involved in a way that keeps this process moving forward because I think it's necessary.

HILL: Former Ambassador Jack Lew, really appreciate your time tonight. Thank you.

LEW: Good to be with you.

HILL: OUTFRONT next, former President Obama not holding back tonight, calling out businesses who are caving to President Trump and his administration.

Plus, breaking news, live pictures of SpaceX's most powerful rocket. It just took off from Texas and is now in space for what is a crucial test flight.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:32:49]

HILL: New tonight, take a stand. Former President Obama urging businesses who were threatened by President Trump to stand up to him. Here's more of what the former president told comedian Marc Maron on his podcast. That podcast posted today. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: If you're a law firm, you know, you saying to, you know, we're going to represent who we want and we're going to stand up for what we think is our core mission of upholding the law. And maybe we'll lose some business for that, but that's what we believe. Thats what's needed.

If you're a business, you say, you know what? You know, we're not -- we're going to -- we think it's important because of what this country is to hire people from different backgrounds. And we're not going to be bullied into saying that we can only, you know, hire people or promote people based on some criteria that's been cooked up by Steve Miller.

MARC MARON, HOST: Yeah./

OBAMA: You know, we all have this capacity, I think, to -- to take a stand.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: OUTFRONT now, David Axelrod.

So, David, this is some of the strongest criticism that we've heard from former President Obama. Why do you think it's coming in this moment?

DAVID AXELROD, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, first of all, he has said some of these things. He had an event with I think Heather Cox Richardson in June or July, in which he said some of these things.

But look, first of all, he, he was on Marc Maron's last podcast. So that was a scheduled event. And once you're on the podcast, then you're going to talk about the things that are that are topical. And he got asked questions about this, and he answered very forthrightly.

But it's also true that, the pace of kind of, trespasses on the rules and laws and norms of democracy have quickened over the last few months. I mean, look what you're reporting just on this on this show about some of the prosecutions that are coming out of the Department of Justice going down the president's enemies list is something that President Obama also addressed in this -- in this conversation with Marc Maron.

[19:35:17]

So I think events also have caused him to speak out more perhaps, than he had at the beginning of the year. He's always -- he's always, Erica, had this sense that he's searching and he talked about in the podcast for the appropriate role of a former president. He's not really the leader of the party. He doesn't have formal powers, and he really does believe that others need to stand up. And there are a lot of young leaders in the party who need to stand up.

But obviously, he feels the need to as well. I'd add, he put out a conversation this week that he had with civil society leaders in Hungary and Poland earlier this earlier this week on the challenges to democracy in their countries. And what he said was, this is -- we are all part of the same struggle. And I think he feels that.

HILL: He, you know, in talking about the struggles, he also in this particular podcast, he talked about what he sees as the policies of President Trump that are really testing America in this moment. Here's a little bit more of that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: We're being tested right now. I think people -- and that includes young people, right? Like I understand there are consequences to the choices that we're making. If you decide not to vote, that's a consequence. If you are a Hispanic man and you're frustrated about inflation, and so you decided, eh, you know what? All that rhetoric about Trump doesn't matter. I'm just mad about inflation.

And now, you know, your sons are being stopped in L.A. because they look Latino --

MARON: Maybe incarcerated for a few days.

OBAMA: And maybe, yeah, and without the ability to call anybody might just be locked up. Well, that's your -- that's a test. It'd be great if we weren't tested this way, but you know what? It's a -- we probably need to be shaken out of our complacency anyway.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Is that shaking working, you think? Does this break through in 2025?

AXELROD: Well, look, I think that we're well beyond complacency. But the deal -- the challenge really is that and this has been the struggle from the beginning of the republic, Erica, you know, democracy is a constant struggle between hope and cynicism, a cynicism that says you really can't influence events. Maybe it's dangerous to try. And so, you just go about your business.

I mean, this is what we've seen in authoritarian states. And so, the danger and he spoke to it elsewhere in the podcast, is that people get just so discouraged and fearful that they just turn away, and they don't lift their voices and they don't resist.

Some of these really egregious, moves by the president and the administration. And I think that's the most important takeaway from the whole conversation, which is the greatest threat to democracy isn't Donald Trump or his actions. The greatest threat to democracy is that people are complacent in response to it and feel they don't have any agency or ability to influence those events. And I really think that's what he was speaking to in this podcast.

HILL: He -- there was a moment when he touched on -- he touched on the deep divisions, I should say, in this country, and talked about how he saw a lot of that taking hold during his time in office. And some of that goes back to the birther movement. We know that Donald Trump really fueled that.

Do you agree in terms of those origins? Is that when it started, do you think, with that moment?

AXELROD: Yeah, I mean, he also talked about the economic -- the really dramatic economic changes that have conspired against large numbers of people in our country. Even as others are doing, beyond -- well beyond anyone's wildest expectations. So that's -- that's part of it. He talked about social media and the profit motive of social media to turn us against each other and drive us into our silos. All of that is part of it.

But certainly, you know, when you look back at the movement that grew up in reaction to his election in 2008 that you will see the sort of the seeds of what we see today. And so, I'm sure that that -- I'm sure that's true.

[19:40:03]

But there are, you know, if that were the only element of this, then you wouldn't see it happening in Britain and France and, Italy and Hungary and Poland. This is a global as he -- as he pointed out, this is a global struggle and democracy has to up its game here because they're -- these are serious challenges.

HILL: David, always good to talk to you. Thank you.

AXELROD: Good to see you, Erica.

HILL: OUTFRONT next, breaking news, President Trump threatening to give Ukraine long range weapons that can strike Moscow, plus a special report, a rare glimpse into what it's like to live in one of Americas most dangerous neighborhoods, Skid Row.

(BGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're telling me about work?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Get a job, a real job.

NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: OK, tensions are a little -- tensions are a little high.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I got a job.

WATT: Tensions are a little high.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:45:36]

HILL: Breaking news, President Trump threatening to send Ukraine long range Tomahawk missiles once capable of striking Moscow. Ukrainian President Zelensky also announcing he will meet face to face with Trump this Friday at the White House.

Matthew Chance is OUTFRONT in Moscow with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tomahawk cruise missile even the threat of sending these U.S. weapons to Ukraine with a range of over 1,500 miles may be enough to bring Russia to the negotiating table. At least that's what President Trump seems to think.

TRUMP: We had a very good conversation.

CHANCE (voice-over): Telling reporters en route to the Middle East. He may tell the Kremlin to end the Ukraine war or face these formidable weapons easily capable of reaching Moscow.

TRUMP: I might say, look, if this war is not going to get settled, I'm going to send them Tomahawks. I may send that. Tomahawk is an incredible weapon. Very offensive weapon.

And honestly, Russia does not need that. They don't need that. Yeah, I might tell them that if the war is not settled, that we may very well do. We may not, but we may do it.

CHANCE (voice-over): That uncertain threat hasn't come out of nowhere for months now. Russia has been stepping up its own missile and drone attacks across Ukraine, stretching air defenses, fueling Ukrainian calls for a powerful long-range weapon to strike back potentially deep inside Russia.

"We see and hear that Russia is afraid that the Americans may give us Tomahawks," Ukrainian president declared at the weekend. "It's a signal that exactly such pressure may work for peace," he added.

But in public, the kremlin has been defiant, insisting the deployment of Tomahawks would have little impact on the battlefield. But seriously ratcheted up tensions between Moscow and Washington.

VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Using Tomahawks without the direct participation of American military personnel is impossible. This would mark a completely new, qualitatively new stage of escalation, including in relations between Russia and the United States.

CHANCE (voice-over): And the missiles can potentially deliver a nuclear payload, leading to warnings yet again of a catastrophic scenario.

It's impossible to tell whether a Tomahawk carries a nuclear or conventional warhead while it's in flight.

The hawkish former Russian President Dmitry Dedvedev posted, "How is Russia supposed to respond?" he asked.

(END VIDEOTAPE) CHANCE: Well, Erica, while President Trump is basking in the glory of his diplomatic success in the Middle East, he has not given up clearly on ending the Russian war in Ukraine. But the hope that just one more powerful U.S. weapon, in this case the Tomahawk missile, will be the key to ending that conflict, may well prove a little misplaced. Back to you, Erica.

HILL: Matthew, appreciate it. Thank you.

OUTFRONT next, breaking news. The SpaceX starship mega rocket just taking off right now, making its way through space.

Plus, an OUTFRONT special report on the ground for a rare glimpse into what it's like to live on Skid Row.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stay dangerous. If you can't stay safe, stay dangerous.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:53:38]

HILL: Breaking news, the SpaceX Starship mega rocket just successfully taking off.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Five, four, three, two, one.

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HILL: So that is the most powerful rocket ever constructed. The Starship is carrying a number of dummy satellites that were released once it entered space. The spacecraft itself should splash down in the Indian Ocean in just about 20 minutes. It's also a sigh of relief for SpaceX, which has had a rocky year when it comes to test flights.

In January and March, the rocket exploded shortly after liftoff. In May, the Starship spacecraft spun out of control as it tried to land. This was an important test for SpaceX, which, of course, is racing to develop the vehicle for a new space race and to land on the moon in 2027.

Also tonight, we have a rare eye-opening look at Skid Row. It is one of Americas most notorious neighborhoods. Everyone has heard of it, but few really know what it's like on the ground.

Nick Watt is OUTFRONT with this special report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're telling me about work? UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Get a job, a real job.

NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: OK, tensions are a little -- tensions are a little high.

SYLVIA, SKID ROW RESIDENT: I got a job.

WATT: Tensions are a little high.

What's going on?

SYLVIA: I just moved here two days ago.

WATT: You just moved where? To? To just down here?

SYLVIA: Yeah. It's my second day here.

WATT (voice-over): On Skid Row, 50 or so. Squalid blocks in the shadow of downtown Los Angeles, one of the richest cities on earth.

[19:55:04]

WATT: What's it like living on the streets here?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It feels like a failure. I failed, I fell hard in some areas of my life.

WATT (voice-over): We came for a day to find out what it's like to live here and why Skid Row even exists.

When the Transcontinental Railroad reached L.A. in the 1870s, this was the end of the line.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This place has been like this for over 100 years, right?

KEVIN CALL, UNOFFICIAL "MAYOR" OF SKID ROW: Right, right, right. But every mayor that come in, Garcetti, all of them say, oh, we're going to fix it. We're going to work on it. They start off trying to fix it, but something is wrong. If you can put a man on the moon, you can clean these streets up.

WATT: What's your plan for today?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Pretty much I read. I like to do puzzles. Sometimes I get on the bus and I ride out, and I think.

HOWARD FERGUSON, SKID ROW RESIDENT: I've been here two weeks. The first time ever being homeless, first time being evicted.

WATT: Is there like a pathway for you to get back into, like a permanent house?

FERGUSON: Oh, that's what they do here. They told -- they told me three to six months.

WATT: How long have you been here?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've been here about 22, 23 years.

WATT: Ricky won't move into a shelter.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I wouldn't want to be in an area with some of the people that's in it, because a lot of them are mental.

WATT: What do you think should happen? I mean, these people need somewhere to live, right?

SYLVIA: No, they need to (EXPLETIVE DELETED) get them off the drugs.

WATT (voice-over): But we're told by several people that there's a nonprofit giving out free crack pipes.

CALL: They're giving away the stuff to keep the people getting high.

PAUL READ, SKID ROW ACTIVIST AND VOLUNTEER: There's a large percentage that said, Paul, I never did drugs. I never stole anything until I got down here. I do things to kill the pain or to try to survive. So many people come here or get dumped here.

WATT: Who's dumping people here?

READ: I mean, sometimes it might be friends or family, but other times it's hospital.

You're going to see a lot of things we didn't see before. So many more kids, school buses come here now.

WATT (voice-over): Dropped off at school on wheels, which runs an after school program here.

WATT: Where do you guys live?

VICTORIA MALONE, SKID ROW RESIDENT: I live at a shelter.

WATT: You live at a shelter? How is that?

MALONE: Nasty.

WATT: Nasty?

MALONE: Because sometimes the restrooms are dirty and I didn't think so. It's sometimes -- it's sometimes people are crazy and steal other stuff.

WATT: Right.

MALONE: And they -- and they, yeah, they say customers to the security guards and barging.

WATT: And where do you want to live?

MALONE: At a big house. There's a lot of people smoking, and there's a lot of crazy people outside.

WATT: Does that make you scared? Yeah? Yeah.

WATT (voice-over): In the mid-1970s, planners suggested constructing restrooms and benches in Skid Row to serve as a magnet to hold undesirable population elements in Skid Row. Some say that containment policy persists.

READ: At least it's a place where people can go, because I know the shelters are there to help. The thing is, when they get here, then what happens?

WATT: Someone was killed here yesterday?

CALL: Yesterday on the streets here. They stabbed him.

WATT: What happened that led you to be on the street?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've been. I've battled, like, mental health issues from a young age. I expended so much energy trying to maintain and keep afloat. And then. Right. Yeah. The wheels kind of just fell off and. Right.

WATT: Yu seem like too gentle a soul to be surviving here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's Hollywood, you know? I could turn the corner and come back in 10 or 15 minutes. Having psyched myself out in the mirror and splashed a little water on my face. And all of a sudden, you're looking at a brand new character.

Stay dangerous. If you can't stay safe, stay dangerous.

CALL: Anybody who don't want to go live inside, it's got to be something here. Until we can address the mental health part of this thing, it's an uphill battle.

WATT: Do you ever see this place going away?

READ: Can it happen? Yes, but it just. It seems like it's so far away.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: And Nick joins us now live from Los Angeles.

So that was -- it's such an interesting and heart-wrenching report all at once. You talked about -- there was also a mention someone talked about giving out free crack pipes. And this consistent issue of the mental health, the drug addiction, the epidemic on Skid Row.

Is the focus working? Is it starting to make a difference from what you saw?

WATT: Well, listen, there are so many organizations, Erica, trying to help, spending so much money. Are they making any progress? Well, it really depends on who you speak to. Now, I spoke to the beleaguered department that oversees all this, and

they tell me progress solving homelessness is slow, and it's absolutely frustrating. But there is progress. The county count -- they suggest that homelessness is falling across L.A. and falling here on Skid Row.

The mayor of Skid Row, who you just heard from, he doesn't believe that. And the Rand Corporation, they do their own count. And they say, yeah, its falling in Venice, in Hollywood, but homelessness is still rising here on Skid Row -- Erica.

HILL: And still, as the mayor points out, an issue that needs addressing.

Nick, appreciate it. Thank you.

Thanks to all of you for joining us here on OUTFRONT.

"AC360" starts right now.