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Early Start with Rahel Solomon

Trump On Tariff Halt: People "Were Getting Yippy" & "Queasy"; Rubio: Ksenia Karelina Freed From Russia, En Route To U.S.; Trump Pauses For 90 Days But Hits China Harder; E.U. Members Approve Retaliatory Tariffs Against U.S.; Nightclub Roof Collapse Kills At Least 184. Aired 5-5:30a ET

Aired April 10, 2025 - 05:00   ET

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

[05:00:11]

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you and welcome to all of our viewers joining us from -- in the United States and all around the world. I'm Polo Sandoval, sitting in today for Rahel Solomon.

It is Thursday, April 10th , 5:00 a.m. here in New York City.

Straight ahead here on EARLY START.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, I thought that people were jumping a little bit out of line. They were getting yippy. They were getting a little bit afraid.

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Many of you clearly missed the art of the deal. You clearly failed to see what President Trump is doing here.

TRUMP: China wants to make a deal. They just don't know how quite to go about it. President Xi is a proud man. I know him very well.

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): This is chaos. This is government by chaos.

SEN. KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND (D-NY): It's a manufactured crisis. It's something that didn't need to happen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: President Donald Trump and his cabinet will likely meet today to survey the damage and also look ahead after a week of economic chaos. And it's entirely of his own making.

The U.S. president backed down, at least for 90 days, on the punishing tariffs that his administration had insisted were going to be put in place.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Well, I thought that people were jumping a little bit out of line. They were getting yippy, you know, they were getting a little bit yippy, a little bit afraid. Unlike these champions, because we have a big job to do. No other president would have done what I did.

SCOTT BESSENT, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: This was driven by the president's strategy. He and I had a long talk on Sunday. And this was his strategy all along. And that, you know, you might even say that he goaded China into a bad position. They -- they responded. They have shown themselves to the world to be the bad actors.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: An important reminder that there are other tariffs that still remain in effect. And with inflation yet to ease.

Look at this new survey that's showing that most Americans are convinced that their costs are certain to rise over the next six months or so. The tariff suspension sent stocks soaring on Wall Street, which saw its best day in 16 years.

Businesses, governments and also a lack of support from within President Donald Trump's own party, likely adding to the decision to retreat.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. RON JOHNSON (R-WI): I still don't know exactly what his total strategy is. We know what his goal was to a certain. He wants reciprocity. I'm relieved, like the markets are relieved. At some point in time, I think it will stabilize. And I don't know what the end game is here yet.

SEN. JOHN CURTIS (R-UT): The complexity of tariffs and prices is deep. We all know that. There's conflicting opinions. We'll see. I'm worried about anything that increases prices. And -- obviously, everybody's very sensitive to that right now.

SCHUMER: This is chaos. This is government by chaos. He keeps changing things from day to day. His advisers are fighting among themselves, calling each other names. And you cannot run a country with such chaos.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: And not long ago, China responded to the latest swipe from the U.S. in the growing trade war, saying that it is willing to negotiate if there's mutual respect and equality.

Now, the Chinese, though, the commerce secretary, they're vowing to keep up the fight if President Trump keeps escalating this showdown. The Trump administration has now hiked tariffs on Chinese imports up to an astonishing 125 percent. China imposed retaliatory tariffs of its own of 84 percent.

The main Asian markets, or at least the main Asia-pacific markets, ending the day in positive territory. So, it could be a good sign of things to come in the U.S. and Nikkei picking up about 9 percent. Markets in Seoul, nearly 7 percent there.

But look at futures here in the U.S. in the red right now. Obviously, some concern that we may not see a repeat of yesterday. But again, we are yet to see exactly what happens when trading begins in just a matter of hours. So, we'll keep you posted on that as we continue to follow a breaking news story right now that's just in to CNN.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

SANDOVAL: To that breaking news now, where U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio says an American woman is headed back to the United States after being released from Moscow.

Let's go for the very latest now to CNN's international diplomatic editor, Nic Robertson, who joins us now live from London.

Who is this and what do we expect to happen, Nic?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Russian American woman, Ksenia Karelina been detained since early last year, early 2024, sentenced in Russia in August last year to 12 months -- for 12 years, rather for donating when she was in the United States around about $50 to a Ukrainian support charity.

[05:05:16]

So when she was sentenced, the Russian sentencing her for, essentially, you know, supporting the enemy, if you will. And that was why she got the 12-year term, wrongfully detained is how Marco Rubio has framed it. She's on a plane on the way home now.

This appears to be in the context of those talks that are expected and are underway right now in Istanbul between Russian and U.S. officials about improving the operations and -- of embassies and diplomatic relations. It appears to be part of a confidence-building measure, if you will. We don't know at the moment precisely if or who was released from the U.S. side in exchange for Ksenia Karelina.

But that's the usual way that these -- that these exchanges or these releases happen. If we go back to February, U.S. teacher Marc Fogel wrongfully detained in Russia for several years, was released in exchange for a Russian in U.S. captivity.

Fogel when he came back, and I think this will give us an insight what to expect later today. Fogel was -- was filmed by the Russians being taken to the airport, being put on a plane. And of course, when he arrived in the United States, he went to see President Trump at the White House.

So, for President Trump, this will be very likely characterized as a positive step in the improving relations with President Putin and Russia. But of course, it comes against a backdrop where President Trump wants Putin to agree to an unconditional ceasefire in Ukraine, as the Ukrainians have.

But Putin is yet to do that. In fact, the evidence has been of sort of a doubling down, if you will, and an increase in civilian casualties in Ukraine over the past month. But this is a significant development. It appears to be a confidence building measure between Russia and the United States that this American, Russian woman who lived in California was -- has been described as an amateur ballerina is now on her way home to the United States, getting her -- getting her freedom in the sort of panoply, if you will, of the U.S. citizens wrongfully detained in Russia.

This is someone who doesn't appear to be a real huge threat to the Russians and therefore will perhaps be viewed by them as a low value. Certainly, the Russians sent a very strong signal to all of the Russians that even though she only contributed apparently around about $50 to this pro-Ukrainian support group while she was in the United States, the tariff she got, the jail term she got for that, 12 years, was in probably in many people's eyes disproportionate.

She had gone back to Russia at new year, end of 2023, beginning of 2024 to visit her grandparents in Yekaterinburg, which is about 900 miles from Moscow. But the long arm of the Russian state reached out, grabbed her, detained her, charged her, imprisoned her and she would still be there. Apart from what we suspect is an exchange deal, we just don't have the details of the other part of the deal yet, Polo.

SANDOVAL: But as you point out, incredibly significant here, Nic. So, it's significant, but is it surprising, as you point out, she had been sentenced to well over ten years. So did her family expect this sort of development that you know?

ROBERTSON: We don't know because we don't know the conversations that are being had behind the scenes. Look, President Trump has set a very high bar on bringing U.S. citizens wrongfully detained around the world, bringing them back home. He not only sets a high bar wanting to achieve that, but it's something that he trumpets when -- when it's been achieved.

President Biden did the same sort of thing. You can look back to last year where -- where the Wall Street journal reporter was brought back in again, a prisoner exchange deal after lengthy negotiations, something that was sort of indicative of an improving relationship between or -- or a mending of an incredibly fractured relationship between the White House and -- and the kremlin.

That relationship under Trump is improving, and this appears to be another step there. Look, President Putin is putting significant preconditions and coming up with new preconditions almost by the week on accepting any type of ceasefire in Ukraine.

[05:10:03]

What he wants to achieve is the lifting of economic sanctions, the normalization of relations on the international stage, specifically with the United States, which would -- which would include you know, access to embassy, consulate facilities, et cetera., in the way that Russia had had them in the past. The relationship at a diplomatic level with -- with the Kremlin -- between the White House and the Kremlin has -- has seen a pick up since President Trump came into office.

This would be perhaps another indication of that. The outcome of the meetings in Istanbul today could also give us an insight to where that relationship is going, but it is still a very fraught relationship. Just a couple of days ago, at the beginning of the week, President Trump was criticizing Russia for its uptick in targeting and killing Ukrainian civilians in missile strikes. So there's still tension disagreement in that relationship.

SANDOVAL: Yeah. It's incredible how this all comes together. Nick, thank you so much for bringing that together, and certainly some very positive news for an American family with their daughter on her way home, according to the U.S. government.

So, thank you for getting us started. A lot more to learn. We'll check back with you.

Meanwhile, let's now get back to that massive hike on tariffs to China. The U.S. secretary of commerce says that he will not be discussing the matter with Beijing. That job, he says, will fall to President Trump -- Trump himself.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HOWARD LUTNICK, U.S. COMMERCE SECRETARY: I am not engaging with them. Scott has not engaged with them. And the president, you know, he -- he does expect to have conversations with President Xi, but that is between them. If we get a contact, we will just pass it to the president.

And this is really about him. He has said publicly that maybe they don't really know the best way to go through, but the answer really is it's a phone call between the two leaders of these giant countries that they can work it out together.

TRUMP: But we have a tremendous amount of spirit from other countries, including China. China wants to make a deal. They just don't know how quite to go about it, you know? It's one of those things they don't know quite. They're proud people. And President Xi is a proud man. I know him very well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: All right. Let's bring in now, CNN's Steven Jiang, live from Beijing with more.

Stephen, Donald Trump says that the President of China wants to negotiate. You're on the ground. Do you get that sense?

STEVEN JIANG, CNN BEIJING BUREAU CHIEF: Well, you also heard his commerce secretary say that's the only way to go about it. But the problem is Donald Trump may want to be his own trade negotiator. Xi Jinping doesn't by all accounts. Thats not how that's not how this political system works. Thats not his personality.

He has an army of underlings, officials to do the actual negotiations. Then, of course, he will just come in and put a bow on it. So, here's the problem, right? Even though Donald Trump claims China is panicking, they're desperate to talk to him.

A lot of analysts actually point to the opposite. That seems to be happening here. That is the Chinese response to all the U.S. terror so far seem to be very deliberate and very calibrated, and they have been studying Trump for a long time.

They've been watching very closely how he deals with other trading partners and the consensus -- the conclusion here seems to be concessions only invite more pressure. The only language Trump speaks and understands is leverage. And now that Trump has singled out China in this tariff war, it's really, in a way, reinforcing this notion here that the ultimate goal of all the tariffs is, is to contain and suppress China.

So, at this juncture, it's just very difficult to see how Xi Jinping is going to back down from all of his countermeasures. And, of course, Chinese officials, as you mentioned, have left the door open saying they will talk if it's based on equality and mutual respect. But what we have seen so far is they're 84 percent additional tariff on American imports kicking in as part of their broader retaliation package.

But perhaps more importantly, they've been focusing on trying to rewire their own economy and trade ties, saying they have a lot more tools in their toolbox to deploy, really trying to project this image, resolve and confidence.

And here's the thing: a lot of -- a lot of times they also say there's no winners in a trade war. But experts agree if they have to convince their people to endure economic pain, either short term or medium term, their authoritarian political system is much better equipped to do so compared to the U.S. system. President Xi himself has told young people here to learn to, quote, unquote, eat bitterness -- Polo.

SANDOVAL: All right. Steven Jiang, thank you so much for the very latest there on Beijing. A lot to watch as U.S. markets begin to trade there.

All right. Still on the way, from fine cheeses to fine wine, luxury vehicles, a taste of the finer things in life, shall we say, it's going to get a little bit more expensive.

[05:15:00]

We're going to take you live to Paris after the break.

And also, from "Amen Corner" to Magnolia Lane to even those famous pimento sandwiches, there is no golf tournament like the Masters. We'll look at the champion's chances for a three-peat as the tournament tees off.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANDOVAL: Welcome back. You're watching early start. The European Union is responding to the

Trump administration's tariffs. Member states have voted to approve extra duties on about $23 billion worth of U.S. imports. The E.U. plan comes in three phases, with the first one set to start next Tuesday.

[05:20:05]

The 27-nation bloc is still considering exactly how to respond to broader reciprocal tariffs.

Let's go live now to Paris and CNN's senior international correspondent Melissa Bell.

Melissa, good morning to you. Soon to be afternoon where you are.

Where do things stand in Europe. And from cheese to wine, how soon could American consumers expect to pay a little bit more for some of that?

MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, look, it was looking at -- it was looking pretty likely at this time yesterday. And hence all these troubled markets.

But today, this morning here in Europe, clearly, the markets rallying on that 90-day pause, given the breadth and the scope of those so- called reciprocal tariffs. Europeans, by the way, Polo, had stopped calling them reciprocal. They called them horizontal because they disputed the way the Washington had set them out and fixed the calculation on how to oppose them.

Europeans had been looking at some pretty tough responses, not just on goods. And those luxury items, of course, that Americans have become so fond of champagne, wine, European cars, cheeses, but also looking at how they might take on services as well in order to counter those tariffs.

Now, now that that 90-day pause is on, they have a bit more breathing room and a bit more time to consider their response should they come back in the same form, that was a 20 percent across the board import tariff on all European imports.

Still, it is now their response to steel and aluminum tariffs that is about to come in. They voted on them and agreed upon them yesterday their retaliation. That is the next series of decisions, they're going to have to make is going to be with regard to cars and auto parts, in response to that second round of tariffs imposed on Europeans by the Trump administration. But clearly a great deal of relief that there is at least some breathing space when it comes to the much broader and what would have been much more damaging to consumers on both sides of the Atlantic reciprocal tariffs.

Have a listen to what the Spanish prime minister had to say in response to that pause.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) PEDRO SANCHEZ, SPANISH PRIME MINISTER: Nobody wins a trade war. Everybody loses. For this, the measure announced by the U.S. administration, pending review of the exact details, seems like an open door for negotiation and as such, to an agreement between countries.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BELL: And that is what Europeans have been saying throughout this and ever since those so-called reciprocal -- those -- that latest round of tariffs was announced that what they really want is negotiations. Still their answer in the meantime, and until negotiations can happen in any meaningful way, is twofold. First of all, to prepare what they believe are very tough responses targeting goods, but also potentially services which could impact American, big tech and American banking revenues, but also to look at trade with the rest of the world.

Ursula von der Leyen, in her latest response to the pause in this round of tariffs, said look, we are going to continue to focus our efforts on developing the global trade that exists without the United States, which is 83 percent of it. And I think you're going to see a lot more parts of the world seek further trade with each other, if only because of the uncertainty that continues to emanate from Washington on this, Polo.

SANDOVAL: Yeah, making up for 83 percent. That certainly would not be easy. But nonetheless, we always appreciate all of this.

Melissa Bell, thank you so much. Live from Paris.

So, the death toll is still climbing in the Dominican Republic as the country mourns the victims of that deadly nightclub roof collapse tragedy. We're going to have the details of the Dominican Republic.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:28:01]

SANDOVAL: And we want to thank you for being with us this morning.

The death toll in one of the deadliest tragedies in the Dominican Republic has risen yet again, with at least 185 people there confirmed dead. Authorities say many victims in Tuesday's nightclub roof collapse are yet to be identified.

CNN's contributor Stefano Pozzebon with the latest from Santo Domingo this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fernandez Reyes Reyes, Joel Manuel Santana --

STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR (voice-over): The names read out loud by forensic doctors. Each of them a life cut short.

More than 100 bodies have been recovered, but dozens yet to be identified in the rooftop collapse of a nightclub in Santo Domingo.

A growing death toll cutting through the soul of this nation.

The Jet Set was an iconic venue. Monday night, many local celebrities had come here to celebrate its 50th anniversary. Several are now being mourned, including two former major league baseball players, a Latin music star and the governor of a local province.

Dominican President Luis Abinader declared three days of national mourning to commemorate the victims.

Outside the venue, relatives search for the names of their loved ones in lists hanging on a field hospital. I've lost two brothers. This is a national tragedy. We are just heartbroken, says these men.

The rescue operations continue in the dark. There are still people to be found. A race against time. Even when hope is fading fast. A small group of faithful singing their pain and refusing to let go.

Stefano Pozzebon, CNN, Santo Domingo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: Yeah, New Yorkers here, especially of Dominican descent, certainly standing in solidarity with so many people there, going through so much.

So, our thanks to Stefano.

Well, meanwhile, U.S. officials telling CNN that the Trump administration is preparing to send more migrants with criminal records.