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One World with Zain Asher

Remembering The Jews On Holocaust Day; Negotiators Trying To Iron Out Ceasefire Deal; Stormy Daniels Takes The Stand; A-Listers Ramped At Met Gala Night. Aired 12-1p ET

Aired May 07, 2024 - 12:00   ET

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

[12:00:00]

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Together, we cannot continue to let that happen. We have to remember our basic principles as a

nation. We have an obligation. We have an obligation to learn the lessons of history so we don't surrender our future to the horrors of the past.

We must give hate no safe harbor against anyone, anyone. From the very founding, our very founding Jewish Americans, who represent only about 2

percent of the U.S. population, have helped lead the cause of freedom for everyone in our nation.

From that experience, we know scapegoating and demonizing any minority is a threat to every minority and the very foundation of our democracy. So, in

moments like this, we have to put these principles that we're talking about into action.

I understand people have strong beliefs and deep convictions about the world. In America, we respect and protect the fundamental right to free

speech, to debate and disagree, to protest peacefully, and make our voices heard. I understand that's America, but there is no place on any campus in

America, any place in America, for anti-Semitism or hate speech or threats of violence of any kind.

(APPLAUSE)

BIDEN: Whether against Jews or anyone else. Violence, attacks, destroying property is not peaceful protest. It's against the law. And we are not a

lawless country. We're a civil society. We uphold the rule of law. And no one should have to hide or be brave just to be themselves.

(APPLAUSE)

BIDEN: To the Jewish community, I want you to know I see your fear, your hurt, and your pain. Let me reassure you, as your president, you're not

alone. You belong. You always have and you always will.

And my commitment to the safety of the Jewish people, the security of Israel, and its right to exist as an independent Jewish state is ironclad

even when we disagree.

(APPLAUSE)

BIDEN: My administration is working around the clock to free remaining hostages, just as we have freed hostages already, and will not rest until

we bring them all home.

(APPLAUSE)

BIDEN: My administration, with our second gentleman's leadership, has launched our nation's first national security strategy to counter anti-

Semitism that's mobilizing the full force of the federal government to protect Jewish communities.

But we know this is not the work of government alone or Jews alone. That's why I'm calling on all Americans to stand united against anti-Semitism and

hate in all its forms. My dear friend who became a friend of the late Elie Wiesel said, quote, "one person of integrity can make a difference."

You have to remember that now more than ever. Here in Emancipation Hall, the U.S. Capitol, among the towering statues of history, is a bronze bust

of Raoul Wallenberg. Born in Sweden as a Lutheran, he was a businessman and diplomat. While stationed in Hungary during World War II, he used

diplomatic cover to hide and rescue about 100,000 Jews over a six-month period.

Among them was a 16-year-old Jewish boy who escaped a Nazi labor camp. After the war ended, that boy received a scholarship from the Hillel

Foundation to study in America. He came to New York City penniless, but determined to turn his pain into purpose, along with his wife, also a

Holocaust survivor.

He became a renowned economist and foreign policy thinker, eventually making his way to this very Capitol on the staff of a first-term senator.

That Jewish refugee was Tom Lantos, and that senator was me.

[12:05:00]

Tom and his wife, Annette, and their family became dear friends to me and my family. Tom would go on to become the only Holocaust survivor ever

elected to Congress, where he became a leading voice on civil rights and human rights around the world. Tom never met Raoul, who was taken prisoner

by the Soviets, never to be heard from again.

But through Tom's efforts, Raoul's bust is here in the Capitol. He was also given honorary U.S. citizenship, only the second person ever after Winston

Churchill. The Holocaust Museum here in Washington is located on a road in Raoul's name.

The story of the power of a single person to put aside our differences, to see our common humanity, to stand up to hate, and its ancient story of

resilience from immense pain, persecution, to find hope, purpose, and meaning in life, we try to live and share with one another. That story

endures.

Let me close with this. I know these days of remembrance fall on difficult times. We all do well to remember. These days also fall during the month we

celebrate Jewish American heritage, a heritage that stretches from our earliest days to enrich every single part of American life today.

Great American, great Jewish American, and Tom Lantos used the phrase, the veneer of civilization is paper thin. We are its guardians, and we can

never rest.

My fellow Americans, we must, we must be those guardians. We must never rest. We must rise against hate, meet across the divide, see our common

humanity, and God bless the victims and survivors of the Shoah. May the resilient hearts, the courageous spirit, and the eternal flame of faith of

the Jewish people forever shine their light on America and around the world.

Pray God. Thank you all.

(APPLAUSE)

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Hello, everyone. I'm Bianna Golodryga.

You've just been watching U.S. President Biden deliver the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum's Day of Remembrance address. This is an address that every

president gives annually, but of course this year the rise in anti- Semitism, the protests that we've seen on college campuses, obviously all stemming from the October 7th Hamas attack, and then the subsequent war

ensuing in Gaza to this very day has really elevated the level of concern and the significance of these words that we heard from the president in his

speech today.

He addressed and once again connected the images playing out around the world that we've seen on college campuses, saying there is no place on any

campus or place in America for anti-Semitism or hate speech of any kind, while once again supporting the freedom of speech and the right to protest.

He also said no one should have to hide or be afraid just to be themselves.

Let's bring in CNN's Kevin Liptak, who has been monitoring the speech from the White House. Also notable from what we heard from the president today

was his commitment to not only protect Jewish Americans, but also his commitment to the Jewish state, which he once again reiterated was

ironclad, even quote, "when we have our disagreements."

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Right, and certainly you have seen those disagreements play out over the last several weeks or so,

but what you saw President Biden doing is really trying to stake out the moral high ground when it comes to Israel and the right of Israel to exist,

but also lay this barrier down when it comes to anti-Semitism and be very forceful in his condemnation of some of the examples of anti-Semitism that

you've been seeing around the country, but in particular on college campuses.

And I thought it was interesting something that he said, which I don't know that we've heard him say specifically, but you do hear very frequently from

White House officials, is that the attacks of October 7th and the atrocities that Hamas committed on that day, they feel as if they're just

slowly being forgotten over time.

As the crisis in Gaza worsens and as the humanitarian situation there worsens, they feel that the Hamas attacks, including the sexual assaults,

including the killings, the burnings, have slowly faded from view. And what you heard President Biden do is really trying to remind people of what

prompted all of this to begin with and trying to link that back as an example of modern-day anti-Semitism.

[12:10:00]

And you know, he started the speech talking about the Holocaust and kind of ticking through a history lesson of how such a horrible event was allowed

to occur. And then he moved it into the present day and warned that unless with extreme vigilance and mindfulness against this kind of hate, it could

happen again.

And I thought it was just interesting because you do hear that from Biden aides, really the topmost aides in the White House, talking about how they

fear that the American people, certainly in the press, has lost sight of the October 7th attacks.

And so it was interesting to hear President talk about that in this speech about anti-Semitism. You know, this is kind of a comfortable place, I

think, for the president speaking directly to the Jewish community, talking about his support for Israel.

This is a president who has that very deeply felt affection for the Jewish state. You know, he has talked in the past about meeting every Israeli

prime minister dating back to Golda Meir.

I think, you know, in this moment of tension between himself and the prime Netanyahu, that was a statement that I think he felt was very important to

deliver as these negotiations continue over hostages. And certainly, President Biden feeling very, it was a very important moment for him to

sort of set down this marker and say exactly where he stands on this issue today.

GOLODRYGA: Yes, the president has many times called himself a Zionist and says you don't have to be Jewish to be a Zionist. And to your point, he

said and began the speech by reiterating that he has not forgotten that it was Hamas that committed these horrific atrocities on October 7th.

And he will not forget some of his most poignant remarks, though, were to the Jewish community. I see your hurt. I see your pain. You belong. You

always have. And you always will in America.

Kevin Liptak, thank you so much.

Well, it doesn't appear to be the all-out ground assault on southern Gaza that Israel had been threatening for months. But Israeli tanks are now

inside Rafah and in full control of the Palestinian side of the Rafah border crossing.

The IDF is calling the military incursion a limited operation aimed at destroying Hamas targets. Egypt is calling it a dangerous escalation that

threatens the lives of millions of Palestinians. Humanitarian agencies are also sounding the alarm.

The Rafah crossing is the main lifeline through which crucial and aid supplies enter Gaza and the only exit point for people who need to be

evacuated for medical treatment. The U.N. says Israeli control of the crossing could be -- could bring all humanitarian aid in Gaza to a

standstill.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JENS LAERKE, SPOKESPERSON, UNITED NATIONS OFFICE FOR THE COORDINATION OF HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS: The two main arteries for getting aid into Gaza is

currently choked off. Indeed, this morning is one of the darkest in this seven-month long nightmare.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: This was the scene in Rafah on Monday after Hamas said that it had accepted a ceasefire proposal mediated by Egypt and Qatar. But Israel

later said the deal did not meet its core demands. And as of now, any ceasefire hangs in the balance. But talks, we are learning, are continuing.

The mediators, as well as an Israeli delegation, are back at the negotiating table in Cairo today, trying to bridge what appears to be a

significant gap. A White House spokesperson refused to comment on specifics, but acknowledged that it is a highly sensitive time.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KIRBY, SPOKESMAN, NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL: We are at a critical stage right now. We got a response from Hamas. Now, Director Burns is

working through that, trying to assess it, working with the Israelis. I mean, my goodness, folks, I don't know that it gets any more sensitive than

right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: There is a lot to get to. CNN's Nic Robertson is in London. Jeremy Diamond joins me now live in Jerusalem.

Jeremy, about 24 hours ago, we were just getting indication that Hamas had agreed to a separate form of a deal that appeared to blindside both the

Israelis and the Americans. Now we hear that Israel has sent a low-level mediating group to these negotiations.

What more are we learning as the split-screen image we're seeing are tanks inside of Rafah now?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, we've just heard from a trio of top Israeli officials, the Israeli prime minister, the defense

minister, as well as the former defense minister, Benny Gantz, who is a member of the Israeli war cabinet. And the message from all three of them

really is this notion that Israel, as long as there is no deal on the table to be approved, a deal that meets Israel's demands, the Israeli military

operations in Rafah will indeed continue.

What exactly that means, whether that signals the possibility of an all-out ground offensive in Rafah, in the entire city, remains to be seen.

[12:15:00]

But at this point, what we know is that the Israeli military says that they are in control of that critical Rafah border crossing. We saw the images of

Israeli tanks early this morning rolling into that crossing, firing their weapons, running over signs, like one that said, I love Gaza.

And we also know that this has an impact directly on the flow of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.

Both the Rafah border crossing, as well as the Kerem Shalom crossing, remain closed at this hour. The Kerem Shalom crossing was closed after

Hamas killed four Israeli soldiers near that crossing after it fired mortars and rockets there. The Rafah border crossing at this stage remains

closed, as the Israeli military says it is continuing to operate in that area.

So, the future very much uncertain for Palestinians in Gaza, for those 1.4 million living in that southernmost city of Gaza, as well as for those who

have already fled the city and are now displaced.

The Israeli negotiating team, as you said, is arriving in Cairo today to pursue those negotiations, to see if a deal is possible. But at this stage,

it's clear that one is certainly not imminent. And as long as the gaps have not been closed, Israeli military operations in Gaza will indeed continue.

Bianna.

GOLODRYGA: Nic Robertson, thank you. Jeremy Diamond, thank you so much. Nic, let me get it to you. I'm just reading headlines that Benny Gantz,

while talking about the operation in Rafah, which he says will continue and expand as necessary, also said that the Israeli negotiating team in Cairo,

quote, "does not just have a mandate to listen. It has an obligation to turn over every stone and to act to bring about an outline or a deal. We

work on this until we make it happen every single day."

And this, once again, reiterating his stance all along as an opposition member of this emergency war cabinet, that their top priority is bringing

these hostages home.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, and I think we're hearing that from Yoav Gallant as well, the defense minister, who says

something that's very intriguing. Perhaps we should be careful not to overread it. But he says in our quote here, he says "operations in Gaza

will continue until Hamas is eliminated or the first hostage is returned."

So is he implying that this major operation in Rafah, if it gets underway, if the talks aren't successful in bridging the gap in Cairo and the

operation gets underway, that at some point Hamas will put its hand up and say, yes, we're going to make a deal. This is and we'll release the

hostages. And that will therefore immediately bring an end to this operation.

Is that what he's saying here? It may be what is implying. But I think what we're getting a sense of from what you just were quoting there from Benny

Gantz, what Yoav Gallant is saying as well, really represents the fact that for the Israeli leadership at the moment, the pressure to bring back the

hostages is perhaps higher than it has been.

In Israeli media, there are polls that are showing there is a small majority who are more in favor now of getting a deal at the moment to get

the hostages back than going ahead with an operation inside of Rafah.

And these polls are just local polls. We don't know how scientific they are. But this is the kind of pressure that the leadership in Israel is

under at the moment. And one of the reasons it's come under that extreme pressure at this specific moment is the negotiating tactics, if you will,

of Hamas by yesterday saying that they'd agreed this deal, which isn't the deal that Israel is sort of on track looking at. It's something else that

was proposed by Egypt and Qatar.

But what Hamas went ahead and did then was outline some very specific details about the release of hostages, about timings, about who would be

released, which we had a sense of before, about exact numbers and about the value of each Israeli hostage for the number of prisoners, Palestinian

prisoners that would be released.

This, therefore, in the public forum, put that tantalizing prospect for families who've got hostages held in Gaza right now of just how close this

deal could be, which raises the political profile and the temperature of that issue, as we saw on the streets of Tel Aviv last night.

So I think when we hear from Yoav Gallant, when we hear from Benny Gantz on this issue, they get it. They get how the public feels. They get how Hamas

is manipulating the situation and the context and the contours around the negotiations. So, yes. But I do think that this is a very interesting point

that the defense minister has raised. One hostage release, and are we going to put the operation on hold? The implication is potentially yes.

[12:20:00]

GOLODRYGA: Yes, and I believe that poll that you just referenced is one from the Israel Democracy Institute, where it says 56 percent of Israeli

Jews say Israel should prioritize a hostage deal. Eighty-eight percent of Israeli Arabs, interestingly, also say that Israel should prioritize a

hostage deal over continued operations in Rafah, increased pressure on this government, no doubt.

Nic Robertson, thank you so much.

I'm going to hand it over to my colleague Omar Jimenez, who has our other big story of the day in lower Manhattan. Omar?

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Bianna, we've been following testimony over the course of this morning at the Manhattan Criminal

Courthouse, where the woman at the center of Trump's hush money trial is sharing details about what she says happened behind closed doors.

I'm going to be right back with those details right after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JIMENEZ: It was about 10.30 a.m. Eastern time when the prosecution at Donald Trump's hush money trial spoke these words. The people call Stormy

Daniels. With that, the porn star at the center of this trial took the stand.

And while this is a case about accounting rules and election interference, Daniel's story of both her relationship with Trump and how Michael Cohen

paid her to keep quiet about it is absolutely essential to the case against Donald Trump.

Now, prosecutors have been taking her through a detailed history of her connection to Trump, including descriptions of the night she went to

Trump's hotel room. It appears to be an effort to remove any doubt about Daniel's credibility and her claim that she and Trump engaged in a sexual

relationship.

Now, over the course of our discussion here, you're going to notice right there on the left side of your screen, you can see key updates from the

trial. We've got reporters inside the courtroom keeping us up to the minute on what's going on. So, you'll see those updates essentially as quickly as

I do.

I also, though, want to bring in CNN's Kristen Holmes, who's been tracking all that's happening inside the courtroom as well and things happening

outside the courtroom. She joins us live.

Kristen, thank you for being here.

Just catch us up a little bit here. What have we heard so far from Stormy Daniels since she's been on the stand?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Omar, one thing I just want to tell you that I am going to be looking down at my phone while I'm

speaking to you because they're getting real time updates.

JIMENEZ: Yes.

HOLMES: And a lot of this is like very, very interesting.

JIMENEZ: Sure.

[12:25:00]

HOLMES: I want to make sure I flag it to you in real time. So what we've heard so far is basically Stormy Daniels, one, outlining who she is as a

person, how she became part of a community that does adult films, how she became an exotic dancer, what her childhood looked like, and then some

details around this interaction that she had with Donald Trump or the sexual encounter that she had with Donald Trump in 2006.

Of course, we will note that Donald Trump has said that that never happened. He's denied any allegations around that. But now we're getting

into a part about after their relationship sort of fizzled out. You hear her describe what it looked like. They were talking on the phone still,

even though she said she was ashamed and embarrassed of that sexual interaction. At times, she said she was trying to get onto The Apprentice.

And then at a certain point, she said she stopped picking up his calls when it became clear she wasn't going to get onto The Apprentice. Now we're in a

time period after all of this had unfolded. She's talking about 2011.

There was an article that she sat down for that she said she was supposed to be paid $15,000 for, but it never aired. And I think we're walking up to

when she came out publicly with these remarks.

Now, one of the things that you have seen time and time again during this testimony is Donald Trump's team objecting to things that Stormy Daniels is

saying. One, before they even started the testimony, Trump's lawyers asked the judge if they could leave out some of the details, not getting into the

real salacious matter, salacious details of the sexual encounter.

The judge said yes. Any reference that Stormy Daniels has made to potentially feeling safer being in public with him, at one point she said

she blacked out, but she had to clarify after multiple objections. She did not mean in any way that she had drugs or alcohol or any indication of

that.

She was just saying that she kind of forgot what happened, but they're very clearly trying to object to anything that might say that Stormy Daniels was

forced into this sexual encounter.

But I do want to kind of take a step back as to what we are seeing right now, because really this is a pretty embarrassing time in Donald Trump's

life to now have this relitigated. Remember when reports of this first came out while he was in office, Donald Trump was embarrassed. He was humiliated

by what was coming out. And it really put a tension on his relationship with then First Lady Melania Trump.

This is not something that he wants to be reliving right now. And you can really see that, at least we're hearing it from our reporters in the

courtroom, who say that he's very animated when talking to his attorneys during this. He is constantly writing them notes. He seems to be getting

agitated at various times.

So not all that surprising, given the fact of this really salacious and explosive testimony that we are hearing here, and I will say quite

interesting, given the case of most of this being, as you said, business- related, fraud-related-that's what the actual charges are-but now kind of entered into a new realm of testimony here.

JIMENEZ: Yes, I mean, definitely following the details so far, because I was listening to you, but I also was looking down in the same way,

following a lot of what's come out.

A lot of it does seem to be personal in nature at this point, sort of establishing the relationship that the two have had over the course of

years, and sort of the nature of the conversations that they had.

Kristen Holmes, I really appreciate you bringing that to us.

I want to go to a former federal and state prosecutor, David Weinstein, who's also been following along with us here.

Now, David, look, to this point, again, as I mentioned, things have sort of, so far, been seen to establish the relationship that Stormy Daniels had

with Donald Trump over years in various forms, it appears, as we've seen.

But what is the material significance of having someone like Stormy Daniels testify? What does she add to the prosecution's case?

DAVID WEINSTEIN, FORMER FEDERAL PROSECUTOR: So, she doesn't add the type of facts that we heard yesterday from the accountants and the paperwork. But

what she does add is context. And they're walking her through her testimony to show that she is a credible witness, that this encounter did, in fact,

occur back in 2006, that she had a continuing relationship with the former president, and that, ultimately, what they're trying to get across to the

jury is why her silence was so important.

The defense is going to use her testimony to show that her silence was important because the former president was embarrassed for his family, for

his wife, about what he had done, and he was shamed by that. But they're going to try to use her testimony to show that it had nothing to do with

the election, which is what the prosecution wants to do.

On the other hand, the prosecution is setting this up the way they are to show when it happened, how long the relationship was, when she first came

out with it. And then they're going to go to the details about how she was paid to keep quiet, who told her to keep quiet, why she was told to keep

quiet.

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Tying it all back in to Michael Cohen, the payments that were made, who made them, where they came from, and that it was, in fact, tied into the

election that was taking place in 2016.

So, she's an important witness for both sides here, and her testimony certainly is a lot more riveting than what we heard from the people who

testified yesterday.

JIMENEZ: Now, I mean, look, we're on day 13 of this trial here, if my math lines up. And one of the things that we have seen is we have seen,

obviously, the minute details of how the finances were going back and forth, and the nature of sort of who signed off on what and how much money

would go, again, over the course of this time period.

We've essentially heard elements of different aspects of the prosecution's case here. But have you seen anything to this point that directly links

what we've talked about to Donald Trump? Or are we just not there yet?

WEINSTEIN: No, we're getting there. I mean, look, we even heard things today that linked what happened to Donald Trump. The excerpts they read

from the novels, excuse me, from the books that were published by him with the assistance of a ghostwriter that talked about the importance of being

in control of your business, knowing what's going on, being the one who sets up and knocks down things, making people show loyalty.

That goes to the prosecution's argument that the former president was, in fact, in charge, despite how many layers he had in between him and the

checks that were being written. The testimony yesterday showed where the money came from, what accounts it came from. We heard earlier testimony

about motivation for all of this.

And so the prosecution has, in fact, been attacking and putting evidence on about the elements of the charges that have been lodged against the former

president and sort of clicking off boxes as they get through their laundry list in the presentation of the case.

JIMENEZ: Yes. And you mentioned when we heard from the executive at the publishing house reading some quotes from the book saying, you know, I

received a check for 50 cents and we at the Trump Organization deposited it. I called it watching the bottom line. Also saying that he wanted to

know where his money's going. Clearly, the prosecution trying to paint a picture of someone who was very interested in even knowing some of the

minor transactions that were happening with his finances.

All interesting stuff. David Weinstein, I really appreciate the time and perspective. Thanks for being here.

WEINSTEIN: You're welcome.

JIMENEZ: Of course. Now, I want to bring it back to Bianna, who's got more news from what's going on around the world. Bianna.

GOLODRYGA: All right, Omar, thank you. Coming up for us, U.S. President Biden addressing the surge in anti-Semitism in a keynote speech for the

U.S. Holocaust Museum's Day of Remembrance.

We'll have a live report and analysis ahead. And later this hour, one of fashion's biggest nights. We'll tell you who made a statement at the Met

Gala last night.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:36:52]

GOLODRYGA: Never again means never forget. U.S. President Joe Biden talked about the perils of indifference at a keynote address on Capitol Hill. He

was speaking for the Holocaust Memorial Museum's Day of Remembrance ceremony.

The president talked about the six million Jews who were systematically targeted and murdered by the Nazis during World War II. And he warned that

the country and the world are at risk of forgetting the lessons of the Holocaust.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: This ancient hatred of Jews didn't begin with the Holocaust and didn't end with the Holocaust either or after even after our victory in

World War II. This hatred continues to lie deep in the hearts of too many people in the world and requires our continued vigilance and outspokenness.

That hatred was brought to life on October 7th in 2023 on a sacred Jewish holiday. The terrorist group Hamas unleashed the deadliest day of the

Jewish people since the Holocaust.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: Time now for The Exchange where we want to take a closer look at anti-Semitism and the major divides in the U.S. over the war in Gaza.

Joining me now is Arno Rosenfeld, an enterprise reporter at The Forward, one of the largest Jewish newspapers in the United States.

Arno, thank you so much for joining us.

It was an impassioned speech, no doubt, from the president, one that every U.S. president delivers annually. But of course, this one bared a lot more

significance given the atrocities of October 7th, the war in Gaza, that has ensued since and the huge spike in anti-Semitic incidents and anti-Semitism

that we've seen subsequently.

I want to get you specifically to respond to a point the president made by speaking specifically on October 7th and saying that that is a day and the

atrocities committed that day is something that he will not forget and won't forget.

He says we're hearing far too much about concerns that people are not speaking enough about the atrocities and that perhaps there's room to speak

about both what happened on that day and the suffering that we're seeing in Gaza, too.

ARNO ROSENFELD, ENTERPRISE REPORTER, THE FORWARD: Yes, I think it was really interesting to see the parallels that both President Biden and also

House Speaker Mike Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries all connected October 7th to the Holocaust.

I think what you say is interesting, though, because it varies when people bring that up. Some are saying, yes, we can talk about the atrocities of

October 7th and we can talk about concerns about Israel's actions in the war in Gaza.

Other people, and I think we heard this more from Speaker Johnson, for example, are suggesting that, you know, if October 7th was akin to the

Holocaust, you really can't compare anything to that. So, I think that it is used both as a reminder that we need to also be talking about it and

sometimes as an attempt to get people to only talk about the atrocities of October 7th and nothing that followed.

GOLODRYGA: I was struck by something that David Frum wrote in The Atlantic about the right note that he had hoped the president would hit today.

[12:40:00]

And he said that the speech, this was written four days ago, he said the speech that he needs to give is not a speech from the heart, which is

obviously something we know that this president often does and is capable of, but rather, excuse me, a speech about his guts.

The message wanted is more that I care. The message wanted is, sorry, the message wanted is more than I care. The message wanted is I dare. Do you

think that was delivered?

ROSENFELD: You know, I think this speech is really in line with a number of other comments that the president has made in recent days and weeks, at

least when it comes to, I think what David Frum was probably getting at, which was around taking controversial action in the moment around what

we're seeing on college campuses.

So, I don't know that it's going to make folks who wanted to see the president go further happy, but it's certainly going to leave a lot of

people who have been unhappy with his other recent remarks quite frustrated.

GOLODRYGA: But it speaks to something that we saw last week from the Department of Education too. And perhaps this leads to what David Frum was

saying in the I dare, I dare to take this on, I dare to tackle this. And that is the Department of Education announcing new action plans to be

delivered to university campuses, also to secondary schools across the United States, where we have seen a spike in anti-Semitic incidents and

clearly a lack of resources to address them.

ROSENFELD: Yes, you know, I think something that's important to note here, especially with Holocaust Remembrance Day, which is a very somber occasion,

recalling a historic atrocity. You know, when we're trying to take those lessons and apply them today, it's interesting to see how they're applied.

Because one thing that we know is that Muslim students on college campuses have faced the same or higher levels of, very similar within the margin of

error, levels of discrimination as Jewish students. But what we're talking about today is solely about anti-Semitism. What we see in the headlines is

solely about anti-Semitism.

So, I think that's an important point to note. And President Biden did give a nod to the way that talking about anti-Semitism, confronting anti-

Semitism, requires confronting all different forms of hatred. But it's interesting, we don't hear as much about these other types of

discrimination that are taking place at the moment.

GOLODRYGA: What did you make of his comments when he said to, speaking directly to American Jews, I see your hurt, and I want you to know as your

president, you belong, you always have, and you always will. And no one should have to hide or be afraid just to be themselves.

And I ask in the context of what I hear anecdotally from others that live in Israel, or family that have people in Israel as well, that it's since

October 7th, ironically, their family members in Israel are calling them in the United States, asking, are you safe? Do you feel OK? How are you doing?

Do you think the president hit the right notes by addressing that?

ROSENFELD: You know, I think that's very reassuring language to a lot of American Jews. But there's a funny phenomenon that I've witnessed in my

reporting on college campuses in recent weeks. I've been in encampments. I've talked to Jewish students on college campuses. I've talked to experts

and folks around the country.

And Jews who are not on college campuses, for example, are more concerned about campus anti-Semitism than the Jews on campuses. I talked to Jewish

students who say something will happen on campus, they'll be like, whatever, not that big a deal. And then three days later, when it hits the

national news, they'll start fielding calls from their aunts and uncles, maybe from family in Israel.

Of course, Israel is where we saw Jews murdered on October 7th, not in the United States. So there's often this funny gap between the Jews who are

supposedly experiencing the anti-Semitism and other Jews who are worried about it.

So, I think Biden's language will be reassuring to a lot of folks. But I think some other folks may look at that and say, you know what, I'm

actually doing fine.

GOLODRYGA: Interesting to hear from your perspective, talking to Jewish college students. Arno Rosenfeld, thank you so much for your time. We

appreciate it.

ROSENFELD: Thank you.

GOLODRYGA: We'll be right back.

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[12:46:33]

GOLODRYGA: One of New York City's most exclusive events took place Monday night. The Metropolitan Museum of Art hosted A-list celebrities for the

2024 Met Gala. The stars brought their own unique style to this year's theme, the Garden of Time.

Zendaya showed up with this dramatic look, a black taffeta 1996 Givenchy gown sourced from an exclusive Beverly Hills vintage clothing store. And

rapper Cardi B, who is known for her show-stopping Met Gala couture, wore this billowing black gown. I think you can actually spot Cardi B herself if

you look long enough.

CNN's Elizabeth Wagmeister is following this story from Los Angeles.

First Monday of May, obviously, it's an event all of us who love looking at fashion and celebrities together look forward to each year. Last night did

not disappoint. I had some of my favorites. I should say J-Lo and Zendaya were at the top of my list. What more did you see, Elizabeth?

ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: You know, I love that you brought up Cardi B. You really could barely see her in that dress,

and you wonder, how did she even get there? And how does she even move? The answer is, is a lot of these stars, Bianna, they arrive in a sprinter van

because it's the only thing that can fit these dresses.

And they can't walk. They have handlers who are helping them. Some of these stars quite literally being picked up to take them up the grand staircase

at the Met Gala.

But I agree with you, both Jennifer Lopez and Zendaya, they were some of the first to arrive. The reason why is because they were two of the co-

chairs for the gala this year. Anna Wintour always selects co-chairs, and this year it was Zendaya, Jennifer Lopez, Bad Bunny, and Chris Hemsworth.

Now you mentioned Zendaya's black gown, but what we're seeing here is her first look. This was a Mason Margiela look, and it was adorned with grapes

and feathers. And now what we are seeing is that vintage Givenchy.

Now this headpiece, Bianna, is a vintage Alexander McQueen, and she obviously took the garden theme to heart with a floral bouquet headdress.

But Zendaya, she always knocks it out of the park, doesn't she? She's the one that you're always looking for on the Met Gala red carpet, so the fact

that she was a co-chair really made all the sense in the world.

Now another person, Bianna, that people are talking about for some good and some bad reasons is Kim Kardashian. She showed up in a metallic gown with a

cardigan. So some people are curious about that cardigan and the choice to wear that, but what's really getting a lot of people talking is this

impossibly cinched waist. People are wondering how could Kim Kardashian breathe? Her waist was so tiny corseted up in this dress.

So, all the Kardashians were there. No, I shouldn't say all, but many of the Kardashian family were there. We had Kris Jenner as well as Kylie

Jenner and also Kendall. And you know they always get people talking, so last night was no exception.

GOLODRYGA: Yes, many wondering how she could breathe. I always wonder how do they walk up those stairs. Some of them actually need handlers to help

carry them up those stairs given some of the dresses that they're wearing, but always so fun to watch.

Elizabeth Wagmeister, thank you as always.

WAGMEISTER: Thank you.

GOLODRYGA: And we'll be right back.

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[12:52:35]

GOLODRYGA: Well, Omar, we've been talking about a lot of events in Washington and around the world this hour, but clearly so much focus has

been on what's been going on in that courtroom behind you there in lower Manhattan, the hush money trial of former President Donald Trump.

The witnesses went from someone, somewhat, rather, mundane this morning with an employee at a book publisher to obviously the star of the show

today, and we'll see for a few more days I would imagine, and that is adult film star Stormy Daniels.

What more did we learn? What stood out to you from her testimony?

JIMENEZ: Yes, look, we've been listening or following testimony from her over the course of the morning. The jury just got out on a lunch break

right now, and really this has been an introductory set of testimony for Stormy Daniels.

They started going through how she started her career, the years following of how she first met Donald Trump, but then of course some of the more

details that have been some salacious in some senses, but really goes to the first sexual encounter she had allegedly with Donald Trump.

She testified that after that happened, she began speaking with Donald Trump often, to quote here saying that at times once a week is when the

pace of how they started speaking. I should also mention Trump has denied the affair here.

But then later on, you fast forward to, sort of, the relevant portion of what her testimony covers, that's around the 2016 election, and she says in

the time from when that encounter happened up until that election, she tried to sell her story multiple times with no real success.

That said, she testified that Donald Trump and Michael Cohen offered her $130,000, as -- that really there was no interest in buying her story, she

said, until October 2016, after the Access Hollywood tape broke. That's been her testimony up to this point.

And it likely goes to the prosecution trying to point out that there was added value on her story around the election, and with Daniels saying that

she wasn't able to get interest until essentially this time period, that is likely a thread they are going to pursue as well.

[12:55:00]

And then you mentioned the book publishing executive that we heard from earlier to start the day. What she talked about really was introducing

excerpts from Trump's previous books. And the reason why that was significant was that, for example, one of the quotes is that, "I received a

check," I, being Trump, "received a check for 50 cents, and we at the Trump Organization deposited it. They may call that cheap. I called it watching

the bottom line."

Another one, I always sign my checks so I know where my money is going. The prosecution is clearly trying to paint a picture of Donald Trump as someone

who knows exactly what he is signing checks for, exactly the purpose of any money that is leaving his side of things and going towards someone else, so

that later on, likely the defense won't be able to say that Trump did not have any idea of what these hush payments were actually for.

So, we're getting little developmental pieces of the prosecution's case, the prosecution that says they expect their arguments to go for about

another two weeks or so. But a lot to watch for, Bianna, a lot that's happened over the past hour alone.

GOLODRYGA: Yes, and we'll continue to follow with the left sidebar on your screen is where you'll get all of the details and developments inside that

courtroom from our reporters who are inside that will bring us any notable developments.

Obviously, cameras are not allowed inside New York state regulations, but don't worry, you won't miss a thing and we'll keep following this trial for

you and the testimony of Stormy Daniels.

As you noted, the prosecution says at least two more weeks is what they expect and how long this trial to continue.

It's been a busy hour. That does it for us today on One World. I'm Bianna Golodryga. Our thanks to Omar. Stay right there. Amanpour is up next.

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