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Early Start with Rahel Solomon

Jimmy Kimmel Defends Free Speech In Return To TV; Powerful Storm Slams Into Hong Kong And Southern China; Trump Cancels Meeting With Democrats As Government Shutdown Looms. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired September 24, 2025 - 05:30   ET

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

[05:30:00]

ERICA HILL CNN ANCHOR: ABC, too, in this case, when we're talking about Disney, a little bit different than what we saw, right, with ABC New and George Stephanopoulos --

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Yeah.

HILL: -- and that $16 million.

When we look at this there's the business part, obviously, for Disney, but this widespread backlash that also brought together people in this country who rarely agree on anything. You had Jimmy Kimmel essentially thanking --

BROWNSTEIN: Yeah.

HILL: -- Ted Cruz for his stance, as well as Ben Shapiro.

To bring together these people who would never agree on anything, is that in your view potentially the start of a moment?

BROWNSTEIN: Well, I think, clearly, the backlash here is going to make it harder for other media organizations to give in to similar threats.

But, you know, we thought the -- many people thought that the Harvard lawsuit -- when they said no to --

HILL: Um-hum.

BROWNSTEIN: -- the demands from Trump -- that was the beginning of the backlash.

And then ABC conceded here. And then even as ABC reversed direction under pressure from all the various forces that were converging on it from the open letter from other entertainment figures to boycotts and so forth.

You have Nexstar and Sinclair, two enormous and local affiliate chains that own hundreds of TV stations between them, basically continuing to recede to Trump's pressure and refusing to air this.

So I am not sure there is a turning point in what we are watching. I think it is just more of a day-by-day trench warfare struggle that is going on, on many fronts. I mean, it's not only what's happening at the FCC with TV networks or TV stations. As I said, there are many other dimensions of this larger struggle and dynamic playing out and there is no -- there is no turning of the tide. It's more like World War I and -- it's trench warfare I think for quite a while here.

HILL: Well, the debate over free speech has certainly captured national attention for nearly a week now. Here's a look at the numbers with Harry Enten.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HARRY ENTEN, CNN CHIEF DATA ANALYST: Jimmy Kimmel is back on the air after getting suspended last week and let me tell you that Democrats are praising the good Lord that he's back. Republicans not so much.

I want you to take a look at the net likability scores. These were taken before Jimmy Kimmel's suspension. I would, if anything, expect the partisan gap to be even wider now.

Democrats really love Jimmy Kimmel. Look at that -- a +78 net likability score compared to amongst Republicans. Look at that. Jimmy Kimmel was already 18 points underwater -- my goodness gracious. That gap is nearly 100 points. Again, I expect that gap to be even wider now after Kimmel's comments last weekend and then, of course, the aftermath of all of it.

Now, Democrats are not the only ones who are happy that Jimmy Kimmel is back. I think Disney is happy as well. Why do I say that? Well, take a look here. There were so many people on the left who were arguing that you should boycott Disney, that you should cancel Disney+.

And Google searches last week's peak -- look at this. For boycotting Disney, down about 75 percent from the peak last week. How about canceling Disney+, down. Again, down about 75 percent. So fewer people on the left are interested in either boycotting Disney or canceling their Disney+ which, of course, is good for Disney's bottom line.

Now the big question is how many people actually are going to or did tune in to this episode -- the new Jimmy Kimmel episode that aired starting, of course, on Tuesday night at 11:35 Eastern time?

Well, I think that there are going to be some really high ratings for this. Why? Because get this -- leading into the episode, record high Google searches tonight for a simple question: What time is Jimmy Kimmel on? Get this versus the baseline. About 10,000 percent. Of course, if you're a regular viewer of Jimmy Kimmel you know what time he's on. But if you are a unique viewer -- someone who usually doesn't tune in -- you would Google to find out what time Jimmy Kimmel is on.

Now, what is the baseline? How big could that audience possibly grow? Well, take a look at this average viewership -- the average "JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE!" viewership. In 2015, it was 2.4 million. In quarter two of this year, 1.8 million. How much higher than this 1.8 million are we going to go? Are we going

to exceed 2015? I would bet on it. Could we even double it potentially, triple it? I don't know. I leave that up to the audiences themselves to determine that number because they are the ones who are going to decide just how high Jimmy Kimmel goes.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: Donald Trump pushing his fossil fuel agenda, warning U.N. members of a "global warming hoax." We'll fact-check the contents of his speech just ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: But this is a very powerful typhoon -- the most powerful to hit the city this year. Wow -- whew!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[05:35:00]

HILL: That typhoon sending wind and waves crashing into Hong Kong and into our colleague Hanako Montgomery. We're going to check in with her next.

(COMMERCIAL)

HILL: Hong Kong just now beginning to clean up the damage from Typhoon Ragasa as it moves away from the city. That powerful storm sending hurricane-force winds barreling through Hong Kong whipping up waves that just inundated waterfront areas. You get a sense of the force of the storm right there.

[05:40:00]

A number of businesses understandably closed ahead of that storm.

The water though, of course, not stopping at anything. Look at this -- this gentleman being swept through the lobby of a hotel in Hong Kong.

Typhoon Ragasa is expected to ultimately make landfall in China's Guangdong province. That's expected to happen shortly. Nearly two million people have been relocated from cities in the region.

CNN's Hanako Montgomery is covering the storm from Hong Kong. Now it is time to survey that damage, although as we can see the rain is still coming down for you.

MONTGOMERY: Yeah, Erica. As you can see, the rain is still coming down. The wind is still fairly strong. And as you can see, I'm standing in some floodwater here and this is just one of the many examples of flooding that we've seen across Hong Kong. This water is fairly deep. It's nearly up to my knees. This actually used to be a running path and a bicycle path but clearly, it will be very difficult for someone to even get down this road here because of just how much water has come up. Now, we are in one of the hardest hit areas in Hong Kong, Erica. And right now we're by a waterfront where there was a concrete seawall that was meant to protect a lot of restaurants and establishments that are facing the ocean from ocean swells and sea surges. But as you can see from videos and photos that we've taken earlier, some of those sea storms and just those surges came over that concrete wall and inundated restaurants.

We spoke to one of the restaurant owners earlier today and he said that when the water was gushing towards his establishment -- I mean, it looked like a tsunami. And a lot of debris came through his restaurant and took down a few walls and also just strewn about furniture.

In fact, here's what he said about just the extent of damage that he's seeing now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VIVIANO ROMITO, RESTAURANT OWNER: Across the group we're pretty upset. We'll get -- but like I said, we'll get through it. We've had damage before in other venues and we've gotten together and made sure that we get up and running as fast as possible. But, you know, everyone's devastated. It's hard to comment when you see something that you build getting destroyed overnight pretty quickly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MONTGOMERY: And Erica, the typhoon has moved on from Hong Kong but as -- again, you can see the rain is still coming down. The weather is pretty bad. And the Hong Kong government has warned residents to stay inside because we are expecting more flooding in the coming hours that could devastate other parts of the city.

So Erica, residents are taking that advice to heart, hunkering down, staying indoors, and trying to weather out this storm as it continues to just impact the continent of Asia -- Erica.

HILL: Yeah, absolutely -- and it is truly massive.

Hanako, appreciate it. Thank you.

Well, for years now scientists have warned the warming effects of climate change are making storms like Typhoon Ragasa more powerful and the effects of the storm itself more devastating. It's an idea though that holds no sway with President Trump despite the very clear science.

At the U.N. General Assembly, Trump launched into a familiar tirade against global warming.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world, in my opinion. Climate change -- no matter what happens you're involved in that. No more global warming. No more global cooling. All of these predictions made by the United Nations and many others, often for bad reasons, were wrong. They were made by stupid people that have cost their countries fortunes and given those same countries no chance for success.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Daniel Dale fact-checks now the climate change portions of President Trump's speech on Tuesday.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANIEL DALE, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: President Trump made a whole bunch of false claims about a whole bunch of topics in that address to the U.N. General Assembly. Many of them were on the subject of climate.

He claimed, as he has many times before, that global warming is a hoax. It simply is not. The world's warming is a well-documented, scientific fact.

He also claimed that scientists have stopped using the phrase "global warming" instead merely referring to "climate change" because they don't want to be accused of getting things wrong if and when the world cools down. In fact, both phrases, "global warming" and "climate change" are in widespread scientific use. Global warming referring to the long-term warming trend and climate change referring to the broader impacts of that warming.

Now, President Trump claimed, as he has before, that China merely exports wind power equipment but barely uses wind power itself, instead using conventional energy. That is a reversal of reality. In fact, China is by far the world's leading user of wind power, and it is also installing additional wind power capacity faster than any other country.

Now, President Trump additionally claimed that renewable energy simply doesn't work -- that's baseless. And as supposed evidence he cited the fact that the wind sometimes does not blow. Well, that doesn't mean that wind can't be used. Batteries exist to store the energy generated when the wind is blowing. Other infrastructure for storage also exists. And wind, of course, if being regularly used as part of a mix of power sources -- not on its own.

[05:45:07]

In addition, President Trump continued to wrongly describe the Paris climate accord in a number of ways. He claimed, as he has on many previous occasions, that it would have required the U.S. to contribute about $1 trillion. There is no basis for that figure. The U.S. has never committed anywhere close to $1 trillion in international climate finance.

Daniel Dale, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: President Trump is voicing his frustration with Jimmy Kimmel's return to late-night television. Just ahead, the latest on the potential clash between the administration and ABC.

(COMMERCIAL)

[05:50:05]

HILL: Welcome back. I'm Erica Hill. Here are some of the stories we're watching today.

Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy set to address the U.N. General Assembly in the coming hours. His speech, of course, coming just one day after his address to the U.N. Security Council where he criticized the organization's waning influence and also Russia's efforts to, in his words, "prolong the largest war in Europe since World War II."

Nearly two million people have now been evacuated as a powerful storm sets to slam into southern China. Earlier, Typhoon Ragasa sent hurricane-force winds through Hong Kong. A number of waterfront areas there damaged as the storm surge sent waves crashing ashore and into buildings. The typhoon is the most powerful storm in the world so far this year.

Camp Mystic, the all-girls camp in Texas where floods killed 27 people in July, is planning to partially reopen next summer. The owners telling victims' families, some of whom have criticized the camp's safety measures, that the area destroyed by flooding will not reopen next year.

Well, Jimmy Kimmel officially returning to late-night television on Tuesday after that nearly weeklong suspension from ABC. And in doing so he addressed the controversy that got his show pulled and also using that moment to defend free speech.

As Amy Kiley explains, though, the larger clash between ABC and the Trump administration still looms.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIMMY KIMMEL, HOST, "JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE!": Anyway, as I was saying before I was interrupted --

AMY KILEY, CNN PRODUCER (voiceover): "JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE!" is back after a nearly weeklong suspension. Disney says it objected to the host's comments after Charlie Kirk's murder. Kimmel addresses that in his return monologue.

KIMMEL: I don't the murderer who shot Charlie Kirk represents anyone. This was a sick person who believed violence was a solution -- and it isn't -- ever.

KILEY (voiceover): Kimmel's also defending free speech with humor.

KIMMEL: The guy in Germany offering me a job. Can you imagine? This country has become so authoritarian the Germans are like come here.

KILEY (voiceover): Some repeat audience members say this taping felt different. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There was a gravity but also happiness of just being back.

KILEY (voiceover): Disney says it lifted the suspension after "thoughtful conversations with Jimmy." Critics claim it originally caved to President Donald Trump. He says Kimmel's return on ABC "puts the network in jeopardy." He adds, "We're going to test ABC out on this."

Sinclair and Nexstar media are continuing to preempt the show on their stations. The FCC chair applauds them for what he calls standing "up to a national programmer." The preemptions are a financial hit for Disney. Some analysts say a boycott from Kimmel fans would have been worse.

S.E. CUPP, HOST, "OFF THE CUPP": Money was the impetus for the first decision and pulling Jimmy Kimmel off the air, and money is the impetus for returning him.

KILEY (voiceover): I'm Amy Kiley reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL: Well, as the threat of a federal government shutdown hangs over Washinton, President Trump has canceled a plan meeting with top congressional Democrats. It was set for later this week. Trump says he would decide -- he had decided, rather, it would not be productive because Democrats, in his words, are making "ridiculous demands."

House Speaker Mike Johnson, for his part, says the bill to fund the government through November 20 is a so-called clean continuing resolution. Democratic leaders, however, wanted to discuss it with the president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): By refusing to even sit down with Democrats, Donald Trump is causing the shutdown. This is a Trump shutdown. Mr. President, if you're watching television, shut it off and come sit down and negotiate with us.

REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY): Republicans control the House, the Senate, and the presidency. It's clear they have decided to shut the government down, which is why they've entered into no good-faith conversations with Democrats to try to reach a resolution.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: The IRS is phasing out paper checks for tax refunds for individual taxpayers beginning September 30. The change itself is the result of an executive order which mandates all federal payments must be handled electronically. Officials say it's designed to protect taxpayers as well as to expedite the refund process. The IRS confirms taxpayers though should continue to file their returns as they normally would until further notice. Ahead, shocked and stuck. Why French President Emmanuel Macron was forced to phone a friend -- and quite the friend at that -- from a New York City sidewalk.

(COMMERCIAL)

[05:58:55]

HILL: America has new top-selling beer. Michelob ULTRA overtaking Bud Light and even beating out its rival Modelo Especial in retail sales, according to a market research firm. Officials at Anheuser-Busch say the successful launch of their non-alcoholic Michelob ULTRA Zero helped to add some momentum.

Singer Zayn Malik is the latest star to announce a Las Vegas residency. He's set to play a limited series of shows at the MGM for one week in January. That's after finishing his solo tour earlier this year.

He, of course, is also best known as perhaps one of the members of the former U.K. boy band One Direction, which shot to fame on Britain's "X FACTOR" talent show. But he's gone on to release four albums of his own, becoming the first British male solo artist to hit number one on both the U.K. and U.S. charts in the first week of release.

Well, traffic in New York City is, frankly, never great, but during the U.N. General Assembly week it's pretty miserable -- and it turns out even the world leaders can't escape it. France's president found himself stuck in gridlock on a Monday. The streets were blocked by Donald Trump's motorcade. So what's a French president to do? Phone a friend.

[06:00:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT: How are you? Guess what? I'm waiting in the street because every street is frozen for you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: So President Macron there taking the incident in stride, literally, as he continued his trip on foot.

Thanks so much for joining me here on EARLY START. I'm Erica Hill. Stay tuned. "CNN THIS MORNING" starts right now.