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Early Start with Rahel Solomon

Former FBI Director Comey Vows To Fight Criminal Charges; Israel's Netanyahu To Address U.N. General Assembly; Trump Says He Won't Allow Israel To Annex West Bank; Crucial Vote Could Tip Moldova Closer To E.U. Or Russia. Aired 5-5:30a ET

Aired September 26, 2025 - 05:00   ET

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

[05:00:21]

DANNY FREEMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning and welcome to our viewers joining us from the United States and all around the world. Thank you so much for being with us.

I'm Danny Freeman, Rahel Solomon is off. It is Friday, September 26th, 5:00 a.m. here in New York.

Straight ahead on EARLY START.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR: FBI Director James Comey is vowing to fight back.

EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: A federal grand jury indicted former FBI Director James Comey on two felony counts.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Comey is a bad person.

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN ANCHOR: The Israeli prime minister is back in the U.S., as he's expected to address the United Nations in the coming hours.

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Netanyahu is expected to blast a number of countries that have recognized a state of Palestine.

SANDOVAL: Former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is weighing in on the state's efforts to redraw congressional districts.

ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER, FORMER CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR: Two wrongs don't make a right. I am for the power of the people, not the parties.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(MUSIC)

FREEMAN: Our top story this morning, former FBI Director James Comey, vowing to fight back as he becomes the latest target of U.S. President Donald Trump's efforts to prosecute his perceived enemies. James Comey was indicted by a federal grand jury on Thursday on two

criminal charges, first giving false statements and obstruction of a congressional proceeding. He is expected to be arraigned on October 9th.

Now, Comey posted his response to the indictment in a video statement on his Instagram account.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES COMEY, FORMER FBI DIRECTOR: My family and I have known for years that there are costs to standing up to Donald Trump. My heart is broken for the Department of Justice, but I have great confidence in the federal judicial system, and I'm innocent. So, let's have a trial.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: Newly appointed U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan was handpicked by Donald Trump to advance the Comey case. Sources familiar with the matter told CNN. Halligan did practice runs to prepare ahead of Thursday because she had never before presented a case to a grand jury.

And as CNN's Evan Perez reports, President Trump celebrated the indictment.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A federal grand jury indicted former FBI Director James Comey on two felony counts of making a false statement to Congress and obstructing a congressional proceeding.

The historic indictment marks an escalation in President Donald Trump's push to use the Justice Department to prosecute his political enemies. The grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia, approved the two felony counts after newly installed U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan made the presentation herself. The grand jury rejected a third count for a separate alleged false statement.

Now, it's unusual for U.S. attorneys to present cases to the grand jury themselves, usually career lawyers in the office do this, but we know that prosecutors in the office had raised concerns about the strength of this case.

Comey is a longtime adversary of the president and is now the first senior government official to face federal charges in one of Trump's largest grievances, which is the investigation surrounding the 2016 presidential election.

Just last weekend, the president posted on social media urging Pam Bondi, the attorney general, to take action against Comey and other political enemies. Trump celebrated the indictment on his social media platform, saying justice in America, one of the worst human beings in this country has ever been -- this country has ever been exposed to is James Comey, the corrupt head of the FBI. Comey could face up to five years in prison if he's convicted. The

Justice Department says both charges relate to his September 30th, 2020 testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee. Comey testified that he did not authorize someone at the FBI to be an anonymous source for news sources, according to the justice department.

Now, according to the indictment, that statement was false. Comey responded to the indictment in a Instagram video, saying, let's have a trial. Keep the faith.

And Attorney General Bondi said in a post on X: No one is above the law. Today's indictment reflects the Justice Department's commitment to holding those who abuse positions of power accountable for misleading the American people.

Evan Perez, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FREEMAN: All right, Evan, thank you for that.

Let's go now to West Palm Beach, Florida, and get some legal analysis from former felony prosecutor and trial attorney, Andrea Lewis.

Andrea, thank you so much for waking up with us this morning to break down this consequential case.

Let's start here. From your perspective, does this case appear to have merit?

ANDREA LEWIS, FORMER FELONY PROSECUTOR AND TRIAL ATTORNEY: You know, and thank you for having me. This is a really interesting case and certainly shocking there already -- I mean, this just happened.

[05:05:02]

And we're seeing circumstance after circumstance of an unusual situations here that are just very, very rare.

So, for one, the -- Comey's being charged with providing misleading testimony. And the important thing to know about that is that does not encompass any testimony that might be a mistake or an error or an oversight. There has to be clear intent there with -- when providing that testimony. So that's a very high burden and can often be hard to prove.

Now -- so that's challenge number one for the Department of Justice. Next on the obstruction charges. I mean, these again, are just very difficult charges. They're not charges that are that are frequently brought in circumstances like this against a person like this, of this magnitude and his high ranking.

So, what we see here is just going to be something that we all need to follow very closely, because this is just really out of the norm. Only time will tell. I think as more evidence comes out. But what we've heard and what you just stated a few moments ago is even people inside the Department of Justice have expressed real concern about whether these charges hold water.

FREEMAN: Well -- and before I move on, Andrea, I just want to be clear to our viewers, this indictment, all two pages of it, it is not about accusing him of wrongdoing for leaking information. It's about whether or not he lied about it to Congress. Is that right?

LEWIS: Yes. Yes, it is.

FREEMAN: Okay. So, let's talk about that because I think what you spoke about in terms of, again, potentially prosecutors inside of this office being skeptical about getting a conviction. From your perspective, is the purpose of this to actually try and convict Comey, get him into jail or just to make his life hard, potentially expensive by having an invasive, sprawling legal case to deal with?

LEWIS: Well, I mean, I think we know that Donald Trump has spoken out on this multiple times. And, I mean, it seems very clear that his intent is to have this aired publicly, to have charges brought against him and then to see him prosecuted and to the fullest extent of the law. And potentially put in jail over this. I mean, these are just very serious charges. And back to what I was saying before about the unusual nature of this.

Here we have the top prosecutor who brought these charges, who's very new to that office, who has no prior prosecutorial experience. I mean, who is in there presenting evidence to a jury without a defense attorney present to counter -- to provide a different perspective or provide contrary evidence to explain or you know, that's evidence that would what would be supportive of the defense.

So, we don't see any of that here. And it's just -- we all need to keep our eyes really glued to this because the ramifications are extremely significant.

FREEMAN: Yeah, I think without a doubt, many of us will have our eyes glued to this entire case as it proceeds forward.

Andrea, Comey is facing, if convicted, up to five years behind bars, potentially. But in an Instagram video posted by him last night, he says, quote, I'm innocent. So, let's have a trial.

What can we expect to play out here? And frankly, how worried should Comey be? I mean, these are -- it's a federal indictment. This is serious stuff.

LEWIS: Well, and you just hit the nail on the head. And -- I mean, we saw Comey's demeanor in that video. I mean, he is pushing back and he is pushing back hard.

And you heard the quote that he started off his message with, and it was a powerful message. I mean, he certainly did not seem shaken in any way, shape or form in that video, but obviously anyone would be nervous in these circumstances considering the -- that he could potentially wind up -- wind up in prison.

One quote that he noted, though, that I think is just -- what he obviously felt was extremely important to express to the American people is that fear is the tool of a tyrant. That was his quote. And so, I think that summarizes James Comey's position as to the reasoning behind him being indicted.

FREEMAN: Andrea, can you give your perspective here? What does this indictment, from your view, signal about the current state of Trump's DOJ?

LEWIS: This indictment, just -- the fact that this -- this sort of thing generally does not happen right there. We have checks and balances in our government. We have prosecutorial offices. They are law enforcement that is a extremely serious job that people with -- generally speaking, many years of experience who are very well-versed in bringing criminal actions would normally be handling.

[05:10:00]

We don't see any of that here. And I think this has been a real shakeup. And frankly, I it seems to me that there's a lot of pushback internally, even within the office, about whether these charges are appropriate, warranted and whether they will stick. So, it certainly is concerning. I think it's something that -- it's a slippery slope when you start prosecuting high ranking officials, in this case, the former FBI director, who's next?

FREEMAN: Yeah. And I think that again, to your point, we're going to be eagle-eyed, paying quite a lot of attention to this case as it proceeds forward.

Andrea Lewis, thank you again so much for getting up early this morning to talk about such a consequential moment. Really appreciate your time.

LEWIS: Thank you for having me. Thanks.

FREEMAN: All right. To this now, the U.S. president has announced sweeping new tariffs on many household products. Some of the items now facing 50 percent tariffs are imported kitchen cabinets and certain kinds of furniture. Now, the previous tariffs had already caused the cost of furnishings to rise considerably over the past year. Following this announcement, though, stocks for companies like Wayfair and Williams-Sonoma tumbled on Wall Street.

Now, Donald Trump also announced a 25 percent tariff on heavy trucks and some imported pharmaceuticals will be subject to a whopping 100 percent tariff in just a few days.

All right. Trading gets underway in just a few hours on Wall Street. Let's take a look at how the futures markets are doing right now. Dow looking good. S&P 500 looking good as well. Nasdaq futures though looking a little bit in the red at the moment but only by a hair. Again, we'll be looking to that opening bell especially in the wake of some of these tariff news to see how stocks continue to operate as we close out the week.

All right. Moving along, Benjamin Netanyahu will speak to the U.N. General Assembly today. We'll tell you what to expect from the Israeli prime minister. Plus, the Palestinian Authority president talks about a future Palestinian state, what he has to say about the role of Hamas.

And Russia's foreign minister has a theory about who's the real victim of the war in Ukraine. According to him, it is not Ukraine.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:16:32]

FREEMAN: The Israeli prime minister will address the United Nations General Assembly today, but it remains to be seen what kind of reception he'll get. He's expected to be harshly critical of countries recognizing a Palestinian state with Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, Portugal and the U.K. joining those ranks.

Donald Trump says he spoke with Benjamin Ntanyahu after meeting this week with Muslim and Arab leaders. The U.S. president signaled that, quote, some kind of deal in Gaza is, quote, pretty close.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority president says Hamas will not have a role in governing a future Palestinian state. Mahmoud Abbas addressed the U.N. remotely after the White House denied visas for Palestinian diplomats to enter the U.S.

For more on this, let's bring in CNN's international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson in London.

Nic, good to see you this morning.

What are you expecting to hear from the Israeli prime minister today? And who, from your perspective, will his comments be aimed at?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: This is going to be a speech with a twist. Quite often Benjamin Netanyahu always has a piece of sort of theater, some pictures, some evidence of atrocities against Israelis today. And your question is so prescient here about who is he speaking to?

CNN understands from two Israeli official sources that the prime minister will not only be speaking to all those leaders gathered at the UNGA, apart from those, as you mentioned, who might not want to hear him and walk out. The Israeli military has set up loudspeakers around Gaza. So the prime minister's speech will be broadcast directly into Gaza. The idea, we understand, is to speak directly to Palestinians to bypass Hamas.

This is all going to be according to the prime minister's press office, about the prime minister speaking truth, reminding people at the UNGA of the 1,200 Israelis who were killed on October the 7th of the 250 that were taken captive, 48 of them still being held in Gaza. He's going to speak to what Israeli officials describe as the lies and myths about Israel. He's going to give a staunch and strong defense of the Jewish state. He is eager to get on with this.

These are all the words that are being used by the prime minister's press office -- press office to describe Benjamin Netanyahu's attitude, approach, style and content of what he'll deliver at the UNGA. But it is, and it appears to be at least a first by some measure, that this will be broadcast to the people of Gaza. Now, it's not clear whether the 2 million residents of Gaza, who the majority don't speak English, the majority speak Arabic. It's unclear if it'll be -- if his speech will be translated into Arabic, or quite how it'll be done, or who will hear it, or will they care to listen? But we understand that's going to be part of the messaging, too.

FREEMAN: Well, that is fascinating reporting. And to your point, Netanyahu not shy about theatrics.

Nic Robertson in London, thank you so much for your time. Appreciate it.

All right. Coming up in a moment, Russia's top diplomat plays the victim card for his nation in the war with Ukraine. Who he's blaming for what he calls the real war.

Plus, Moldovan authorities say they foiled a Russian plot ahead of a crucial election. We'll have details on that and why the stakes are just so high for Sunday's parliamentary vote.

Stay with us.

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[05:24:25]

FREEMAN: We're just a few hours away from the start of today's U.N. General Assembly session. The first speaker will be Benjamin Netanyahu. The Israeli prime minister met with Argentine President Javier Milei in New York on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump says he will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank. The U.S. president says he spoke with Mr. Netanyahu ahead of a planned meeting at the White House coming up on Monday.

Let's go live now to CNN's Paula Hancocks in Abu Dhabi for more on this.

Paula, let's break it down. How crucial is this meeting on Monday and what's at stake there?

[05:25:01]

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Danny, it's certainly a crucial meeting. And interesting that the U.S. president has taken an opportunity now to draw a red line saying that annexation of the occupied West Bank by Israel will not be acceptable.

Now, what it does is it aligns the U.S. president more in the way of thinking of European, of Arab nations, rather than what Israel potentially wants. First of all, let's listen to exactly what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank. No, I will not allow it. It's not going to happen.

REPORTER: Did you speak with Netanyahu about this?

TRUMP: Yeah, but I'm not going to allow it. Whether I spoke to him or not, I did, but I'm not allowing Israel to annex the West Bank. There's been enough. It's time to stop now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANCOCKS: Now, earlier this week, there was that 21-point plan that the U.S. president presented to Arab and Muslim leaders and in that meeting, there was pushback. There were provisions that were given by the Arab nations, where they said that there should be no annexation of the West Bank, that this was really a red line for them.

We've also heard from the French prime minister, Emmanuel Macron, saying the similar -- similar thing this week in New York. And he also pointed out that if that were to happen, then it could signal the end of the Abraham Accords. This was one of the crowning moments, really, of the first Trump presidency, when there was a normalization signed between the UAE and other Arab nations and Israel.

Now, the president has made it very clear that he would like to expand the Abraham Accords to Saudi Arabia and to others in the region.

Now, we did hear from the Saudi foreign minister. He has been speaking to reporters and says that he believes that President Trump understands the dangers of allowing Israel to annex the occupied West Bank and that many in the room with him were very clear about those dangers, saying that it would seriously jeopardize sustainable peace in the region.

Now, we have heard from the Israeli government that they have been discussing partial annexation, or if you listen to the far-right element of Benjamin Netanyahu's government, then they want full annexation of the occupied West Bank. There has been an intensification of military operations in the West Bank. Hundreds have been killed. Israel says it is going after Hamas and other militant groups. But we've also been seeing more checkpoints, more iron gates being put up throughout the West Bank, which is making movement very difficult for those within the area itself.

So, it is an interesting moment for the U.S. president to be quite so clear about this. It would not be something that the Israeli prime minister would have wanted to hear. But clearly, that meeting between the two of them would be key. We've heard from the Israeli prime minister that following a flurry of countries, including G7 countries, recognizing the state of Palestine, that he would have some kind of response. But he's going to wait until after that meeting with President Trump to decide exactly what that response should be -- Danny.

FREEMAN: Yeah. Meanwhile, all eyes on what Netanyahu says at the U.N. General Assembly in just a few hours.

Paula Hancocks in Abu Dhabi, thanks so much for your time this morning. Appreciate it.

And to this now, Russia's foreign minister is suggesting that his country, not Ukraine, is the real victim of the conflict with Kyiv. Sergey Lavrov accused NATO and the European Union of declaring what he called a real war on Moscow, and that they are conducting it by supporting Ukraine. Lavrov spoke on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly on Thursday. He's made similar comments before, but contrary to what Lavrov said, it was Russia that launched that full scale invasion of Ukraine back in February 2022 after massing troops on their border for months.

Among other things, the kremlin said its goal was to de-Nazify Ukraine, which actually has a president who is Jewish, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

And to this now, Moldova faces a critical election on Sunday. It could decide whether the country keeps moving toward integration with the E.U., or whether the former Soviet republic leans closer to Russia. But the Moldovan government says the Kremlin is already trying to influence the outcome.

CNN's Clare Sebastian explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Moldovan police apparently moving in on a Russian state backed network to organize mass riots around upcoming parliamentary elections. Dozens arrested.

The fear of violence spilling onto these politically charged streets. A new twist ahead of a crucial vote. The government here has already warned Russia is trying to rig.