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One World with Zain Asher
WFP: Israeli Troops Fired On Crowds Approaching Its Aid Convoy; Officials: More Children Starving As hunger Crisis Deepens; Kenyan Human rights Activist Freed On Bail; Sentencing For Former Officer In Breonna Taylor's Death; Impact Of Trump's Second Term So Far. Aired 12-1p ET
Aired July 21, 2025 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[12:00:14]
ZAIN ASHER, CNN ANCHOR: Gaza talks are progressing slowly, but major roadblocks have been resolved, that's according to an Israeli source.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN ANCHOR: The second hour of "One World" starts right now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CINDY MCCAIN EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME: This is one of the worst tragedies we've seen so far in this -- in this particular work.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: They came for life-saving aid and were met with gunfire. Cindy McCain was on the scene in Gaza and tells CNN what she saw.
ASHER: Also ahead, he calls himself the pope's -- the people's, rather, watchman. Kenyan activist, Boniface Mwangi, has just been released on bond
and is walking free.
And later this hour.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GRAHAM KIDNER, MET WIFE IN FLIGHT IN 1982: Something just clicked at that moment.
VICKIE MORETZ KIDNER, MET HUSBAND ON FLIGHT IN 1982: He got off the escalator, giggling and laughing, and he put his arm around me, joking. And
by the end of the night, we were holding hands.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: A good story to tell you. Years ago, she sat next to a stranger on a flight. Now it's been 43 years and she's never left his side. How a
chance encounter -- I'm holding your hand right back at me. How a chance encounter turned into a lifetime romance.
ASHER: Coming to you live from New York, I'm Zain Asher.
GOLODRYGA: And I'm Bianna Golodryga. You're watching the second hour of "One World."
Well, more than 21 months of fighting, Israel is expanding its military operation in Gaza. IDF tanks were seen entering Deir al-Balah for the first
time since the war began. It comes as Israel issued evacuation orders for large areas of the region, the latest in a string of commands that have
sent hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fleeing their homes.
ASHER: The U.N. says any displacements will deal a, quote, devastating blow to an already fragile situation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(EXPLOSION)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: The warning follows a devastating weekend for starving people trying to reach desperate needed aid. Palestinian officials and witnesses say more
than 100 people were killed by Israeli fire over the weekend while they were trying to collect food.
The head of the World Food Programme, Cindy McCain, was in Gaza recently and told my colleague Becky Anderson what she saw.
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MCCAIN: What we saw were thousands of people running towards us and they were hungry, they're starving. And -- and all of a sudden, the Israeli
tanks, Israeli guns, Israeli weapons from all kinds started firing on the crowd.
And it was just -- it's -- it's something that I -- I hope never happens again. But more importantly, our group, WFP, our people that work for us
were there too, and they were put in grave danger as a result of that. No humanitarian aid worker should ever be a target of anything.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: CNN's Jeremy Diamond joins us now from Jerusalem. And, Jeremy, these scenes of chaos and of casualties has become all too familiar,
especially over the last few weeks. What more are we hearing about the incident over the weekend from officials?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, indeed, at least 73 people were killed in Gaza just yesterday as a result of Israeli military
fire directed at people who were trying to reach aid. That's according to a mixture of Palestinian officials as well as U.N. officials and World Food
Programme officials, as you just heard from Cindy McCain.
The majority of them were killed while they were trying to crowd around World Food Programme, trucks that were entering in the northern part of the
Gaza Strip when suddenly Israeli tanks and -- and other machine guns began opening fire on that crowd. Six others were killed in the southern part of
Gaza.
[12:05:01]
And, of course, we have seen that this has become an almost daily occurrence now of Israeli military fire being directed at crowds of hungry
people trying to reach aid. Mostly these incidents have happened against people who have been trying to reach those Gaza humanitarian foundation
sites.
And that is because that is where the majority of -- of aid sites are being run by. They're being run by GHF in the southern part of the Gaza Strip.
And people are walking many kilometers at a time often to reach those sites. And on their way, they are facing many dangers, including the danger
of Israeli gunfire.
In fact, today, the Palestinian Ministry of Health says that now more than 1,000 people have been killed by Israeli military fire while trying to
reach these aid sites since late May when the Gaza humanitarian foundation took over the majority of aid distribution inside the Gaza Strip.
And we are now hearing as well from a number of Western countries, including the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Australia, and several others
who are squarely placing the blame for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza at Israel's feet.
They say that Israel is quote, drip feeding aid to civilians in Gaza. They -- they talk about the inhumane killing of civilians happening in Gaza and
saying that the suffering there is now, quote, reaching new depths.
They are calling on Israel to open the floodgates to allow aid to flow in and more importantly to also allow for these aid groups to safely
coordinate the delivery of this aid inside of Gaza.
ASHER: And -- and, Jeremy, just in terms of Israel's main goal of eliminating Hamas, that has been its main goal from the start of the war.
Just talk us through the sort of level of control that Hamas still has in the enclave because we know that Hamas has suffered massive sort of
political and military blows given the number of its leaders that have been killed by Israel. Give us a sense of where the militant group stands just
in terms of control over the enclave.
DIAMOND: Well, listen, Hamas has very little territorial control inside of Gaza, but that has not prevented it from continuing to carry out guerrilla-
style tactics against Israeli troops inside of Gaza. In fact, over the last month, we have seen a series of very deadly incidents involving Hamas militants who have gone, in some cases, gone up
to Israeli tanks, dropping anti-tank mines inside of the -- the turrets of those tanks and killing large numbers of Israeli soldiers over the course
of just a few different incidents.
And -- and this, of course, shows that even as the Israeli military now has control of, you know, the majority of the territory in Gaza. And just
today, they launched a new offensive in the central part of the Gaza Strip in Deir al-Balah.
It shows that even as the Israeli military has a lot of territorial control in Gaza, it has yet to actually eliminate Hamas itself, both as an
ideology, as a militant group, and increasingly as a group that is fighting using guerrilla tactics.
And, of course, many experts have pointed to the lack of feasibility of actually being able to achieve that goal of total victory over Hamas, which
we have heard repeatedly from the Israeli prime minister, and that is why we have heard criticism of Israel for not focusing enough on the day after,
for not offering any kind of governance alternative to Hamas inside of the Gaza Strip, instead allowing this -- this vacuum of chaos to be created.
Now, I do want to update you as well on the progress of the ceasefire and hostage release negotiations, because I'm told that while last week the
focus from the United States and the mediators was on pressuring Israel to remove some of its objections to withdrawing troops from the southern
corridor in Gaza, known as the Morag Corridor, which was one of the final sticking points, that issue was resolved.
Is -- you know, a new ceasefire proposal was sent to Hamas nearly a week ago. And the mediators now have yet to receive a response from Hamas.
And so the focus at this moment is very much on Hamas and the fact that it has not yet responded to this latest ceasefire proposal. And if indeed it
accepted the ceasefire proposal, the sources that I've been talking to have said they are very optimistic that a deal could actually be achieved quite
quickly following that.
I'm told as well that Khalil al-Hayya, who is Hamas' leader in Qatar, he has said privately that he would support this latest proposal, but he is
also waiting for a response from Hamas' leaders inside the Gaza Strip. Those, of course, are the leaders who would actually be responsible for
implementing this agreement, both the ceasefire itself, as well as the release of hostages, which would come during the 60-day ceasefire period.
And if a ceasefire goes through, you would see enormous quantities of humanitarian aid going into Gaza. And you would, of course, also see
negotiations to end the war altogether, which the United States has now provided assurances that that will happen during the 60-day ceasefire, if
indeed a deal is reached.
[12:10:06]
GOLODRYGA: Yes. A weakened Hamas, as you described, still has a capability of killing numerous Israeli soldiers and holding 50 Israeli hostages among
them 20 still believe to be alive.
All right. Jeremy Diamond in Jerusalem for us. Thank you so much.
ASHER: Humanitarian officials are warning of new levels of desperation in Gaza. CNN's Paula Hancocks has more on the dire situation there. We want to
warn you, the images you're about to see are disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Four-year-old Razzan Abu Daher was hospitalized with malnutrition more than one month ago.
Malnutrition has caused her to suffer from a mobility disability, her mother says. Her health was good before the war, but there is nothing to
strengthen her. No milk in the hospitals or pharmacies.
Sunday, Razzan became the latest child in Gaza to die of hunger. A skeletal body laid out on a slab of stone, painful proof of the famine the U.N. and
others have long warned about. It is shocking, but should not be surprising.
In the space of 24 hours, 18 deaths were caused by famine, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza. Yasser Ahmad was waiting at this soup kitchen
since 6:00 A.M., desperate to take something home to his family of 12.
Flower is expensive, he says. Everything is expensive. Where can we get food from? We don't know what we'll do in the end. Eat each other?
When his turn comes, the amount poured into his bowl is minimal. He walks the four kilometers back home when his wife sees how little is in the pot,
she starts crying.
Is this enough for 12 people? She asks. Is it enough for a woman who is seven months pregnant? Even a one-year-old child wouldn't be satisfied by
this.
Pouring the watery soup into one bowl, the family eats together. The father allows himself just one spoonful, leaving the rest for his children and
grandchildren.
After this, he says he will go to another soup kitchen to see if he can keep starvation at day for one more day.
Israel says the military is working to allow and facilitate the transfer of humanitarian aid into Gaza, including food, adding there are trucks yet to
be picked up by aid groups.
The U.N. says Israel often denies permission to move aid or approves routes too dangerous to travel. Thousands across Gaza risk their lives every day
in the search for food.
At least 73 people were killed Sunday by Israeli gunfire, or trying to access aid according to the Palestinian health ministry.
The IDF says it, quote, fired warning shots in order to remove an immediate threat posed to them. It cast out on the death toll. The U.N. says
accessing aid has become a death trap. The U.N. World Food Programme says Gaza's hunger crisis has now reached new levels of desperation.
Hospital officials say they are seeing an unprecedented number of starving citizens arriving at emergency departments, a man-made catastrophe that has
been continuously warned about. No one can say they didn't see this coming.
Paula Hancocks, CNN, Abu Dhabi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GOLODRYGA: All right. Turning now to Bangladesh and what's being called the deadliest air crash in that nation's recent history.
ASHER: Officials say at least 19 people were killed after an air force training jet crashed into a school in the capital of Dhaka. More than 100
others were injured. Crowds gathered at the hospital for any word of their loved ones following the tragedy. The government has announced a national
day of mourning on Tuesday.
GOLODRYGA: Vedika Sud joins us now with the latest developments as we noted one of the worst crashes there in that nation's history. What more are we
learning?
VEDIKA SUD, JOURNALIST: Bianna, what we do know is this that the military training jet took off at about 1:06 P.M. local time Dhaka Monday. And about
12 minutes later, it crashed into a two-story building which turned out to be a school with children from the ages of four to 18.
Now, according to officials in Dhaka, the pilot did try to steer away from the densely populated areas. I would suppose that was to minimize the
casualties. But like you said, the casualty figure now stands at 19 and over 160 injured.
Now, of course, in a situation like this which is still fluid and developing, you could expect the death toll to go up. We can just hope it
doesn't.
Eyewitnesses at the spot, and this is a school that we're talking about parents, teachers, students, all spoke about how shocking the site really
was.
[12:15:03]
As soon as crash took place, they could see, of course, smoke billowing from that building and all around. They could see ashes all around and they
-- they could hear people screaming.
We've been told by officials that the rescue officials reached the ground off the crash site soon enough and they tried to pull out survivors as
quickly as they could.
Now, we do know that the country's interim leader, Muhammad Yunus, has put out a few statements, one of them being that in terms of those victims who
have been identified, their bodies will be handed over to the family shortly. But DNA testing is required for those who have not been identified
as of now.
The black box is going to be extremely important in this case. It's going to tell us what really happened in -- in -- in this incident. But, of
course, at this time, very sketchy details emerging of what could have led to the crash.
This could take days or weeks for the Air Force to determine. Back to you.
GOLODRYGA: All right. Vedika Sud, thank you so much.
ASHER: All right. Three people remain missing after a tourist boat sank in Vietnam over the weekend with 36 people confirmed dead, the vessel capsized
in Ha Long Bay on Saturday during a storm. Most of those were on board were from the nation's capital, Hanoi. According to state media and local
officials, there are 10 survivors so far.
GOLODRYGA: That includes a 10-year-old boy who survived the sinking by sheltering in an air pocket of the overturned boat. He was found to be
relatively unharmed. Recovery efforts are ongoing.
ASHER: All right. A prominent Kenyan human rights activist is out of jail at this hour.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(CHANTING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Police arrested Boniface Mwangi on Saturday after they found a tear gas canister and a single rifle round in his office. Mwangi played high-
profile role in recent anti-government protests.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. He's one of several government critics arrested after the protest -- after protesting the death of a political blogger while in
custody. Dozens were killed in those demonstrations.
Larry Madowo joins us live now from Nairobi.
So, Larry, members of our international audience who might not be familiar with Boniface Mwangi, just walk us through what sort of a role he has
played in an anti-government protests and what we know at this hour.
Boniface Mwangi's Kenya's most prominent activist, he's a war-winning photographer who has dedicated the last 17 years of his life to calling out
the government for what he sees as anti-democratic principles for repression.
He is the latest activist and protester in Kenya to be charged with terror- related offenses even though when he finally showed up in court on Monday that had been downgraded to the possession of an unlicensed ammunition
because of some spent tear gas canisters and -- and rounds that were found at his office. It's called Mageuzi Hub. Mageuzi means revolution in
Swahili.
And he told CNN this evening, he will not be intimidated. He will not be stopped. He will keep organizing for regime change because the government
of President William Ruto is not working for the people.
And many in the civil society and legal community in Kenya see these charges of terrorism, arson, and money laundering used against protesters.
More than 70 have been charged with some of those offenses as a weaponization of the criminal justice system to silence dissent to make
sure that people find it too expensive to go out and protest.
And this is what Boniface Mwangi said after he was released.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BONIFACE MWANGI, HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVIST: If you look at the actuality that this -- they -- they have information that I use Mageuzi to distribute
money to goons. I have never offered goons my entire life.
The people that I have worked with in my entire life were actually present here. The guys were singing in court. And every single one of them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MADOWO: A lot of these protesters are going through this legal process where they are having to deal with very hefty bail charges that they can't
afford being charged with terrorism, which is a reasonable offense.
And Boniface Mwangi telling CNN that President Ruto and his government have decided that protesting is treason, even though that's unconstitutional.
The legal, the low society of Kenya, a group of civil society activists, also this weaponization of the criminal justice system is an authoritarian
direction that takes Kenya back to a repression that many Kenyans have fought against. That's why they have a new constitution from 2010.
I have covered terrorism here in Kenya over the last maybe 15, 20 years. Massive terror attacks where dozens of people died, the Westgate Mall
attack, the Dusit attack, the Garissa University attack. These were carried out by terrorists affiliated to Al-Qaeda from Al-Shabaab.
And using terrorism charges against protesters, trivializes what terrorism means, and its rubbishes the sacrifices and the losses of so many Kenyan
families that have actually suffered from terrorism.
[12:20:00]
But something Boniface Mwangi mentioned there that is important. In recent protests in Kenya, you've seen what some are calling government-sponsored
militia, goons who are armed, who are assaulting and beating people and looting property to try and discredit the peaceful protests that have
largely been taking place. And that's why this recent concern about the use of these very strong charges to make sure that whenever people go out to
protest, it's a very expensive price to pay. Zain, Bianna.
ASHER: Yes. The issue of dissent and freedom of speech is really an important one there in Kenya.
Larry Madowo, live for us there. Thank you so much.
GOLODRYGA: Still to come for us on "One World," six months, and taking office, what Donald Trump says about how he has remade America and the
world?
ASHER: Plus, the ex-police officer convicted in the fatal shooting of African-American faces sentencing today. What the victim's family is saying
next?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ASHER: All right. Turning now to the sentencing of a former police officer in the U.S. who was convicted of violating the civil rights of Breonna
Taylor. His sentencing will take place in about an hour.
Taylor was shot and killed in her Louisville, Kentucky home during a botched police raid in March of 2020.
GOLODRYGA: Brett Hankison was found guilty firing multiple shots into her apartment and nearby homes. But it's not the one who killed Breonna Taylor.
He faces life in prison for his conduct. But the Department of Justice is recommending only one day in prison.
Taylor's death was one of several that spawned nationwide protests against police brutality in 2020.
ASHER: Joining us live now is CNN's U.S. national correspondent Jason Carroll. So, this idea of the Justice Department is recommending just one
day in prison. What's been the reaction from Taylor's family?
JASON CARROLL, CNN US NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Zain, Bianna, certainly extreme disappointment coming from the attorney that represents Breonna
Taylor's family.
I can tell you that, you know, I remember doing an interview with Tamika Palmer, which is Breonna Taylor's mother. This was months after, you know,
the -- you know, this death, this terrible shooting.
And the one thing that she had said is she said that she wanted some sort of accountability here. But I remember her saying even at that time, you
know, she was just unsure if she would ever see some sort of justice. And now, justice in the eyes of the family, very much in question.
Now, the legal team representing Taylor's family calling this one day recommendation, quote, an insult to the life of Breonna Taylor and a
blatant betrayal of the jury's decision.
[12:25:05]
Now you remember a federal jury did find Brett Hankison, the officer involved in this shooting guilty of violating Taylor's civil rights. On
that day, back in March of 2020, on that night, he fired 10 shots that went into Taylor's apartment. Some of the shots from his gun, some of those
bullets also entering a neighbor's apartment, but none of the bullets from Brett Hankison's gun actually struck Breonna Taylor. He was not charged
with her death.
And that's part of the reason why the Justice Department here, and remember this is a Justice Department with an appointed civil rights division, which
is under President Trump, that's part of the reason why the Justice Department is saying, look, you know, he has basically suffered enough, and
there is no reason why there should be a harsh sentence here.
Of course, the attorney's representing Taylor's family calling this recommendation an outrage saying in part, recommending just one day in
prison sends the unmistakable message that white officers can violate the civil rights of black Americans with near total impunity.
Now, the judge in this case, the federal judge in this case, has a wide range of latitude here. Hankison is facing a maximum sentence of life in
prison after being found guilty of violating her civil rights.
The federal judge, Rebecca Grady Jennings, will be issuing her decision in a little bit more from an hour from now. But again, ahead of this decision,
the attorney representing the family here saying that this is just an outrageous recommendation.
ASHER: All right. Jason Carroll live for us there. Thank you so much.
GOLODRYGA: Coming up for us, public opinion is turning on the president. What a brand-new CNN poll tells us about Donald Trump's migrant crackdown
and much more.
ASHER: Plus, love happens in some of the most unique -- I love this story - - unique places usually when a couple who met by chance more than 40 years ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
G. KIDNER: She can be a little bit bossy at times.
V. MORETZ: He comes off as knowing it all. Sometimes he's incorrect.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[12:30:00]
ASHER: All right. This past weekend marks six months in office for Donald Trump. That makes this a good time to look at some of his most significant
milestones and accomplishments.
He has kept his promise to slash the federal government working with Elon Musk to dramatically cut jobs and spending, though the whole DOGE effort
eventually blew up as Musk and Trump, of course, had a falling out.
He has appended world markets and international relations with sweeping tariff threats and strained relations with longtime allies, both in North
America and in Europe.
GOLODRYGA: Needless to say, he has accomplished quite a lot, and obviously to mixed reviews. The Oval Office has become a risky place for world
leaders to visit as Trump had contentious encounters, not one, not two, maybe even more on camera with both the leaders of Ukraine and South
Africa, as examples.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You're gambling with World War III. You're gambling with World War III. And what you're doing is very
disrespectful to the country, this country.
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: I'm with all respect to you.
TRUMP: That's back to you far more than a lot of people said they should have.
Turn the lights down and just put this on. It's right behind you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: All right. Despite his promises to bring peace to international conflicts, he's not ended fighting in both Ukraine and the Middle East. And
then there's the issue, of course, of immigration.
A brand-new CNN poll finds that Trump's harsh crackdowns aren't growing less and less popular with the American public.
GOLODRYGA: Fifty-five percent of Americans now say Trump has gone too far with his deportations and threats to throw migrants into prisons. The poll
found Americans are especially upset about the treatment of migrants who have not committed serious crimes while living in the United States.
All right. Time now for "The Exchange." Joining us to help reflect on Donald Trump's first six months in office is CNN senior White House
reporter Kevin Liptak.
Kevin, every day you never know what's going to be thrown your way in covering presidential meetings there at the White House in the Oval Office,
as we noted, a few got quite contentious.
And also some of the new policies that are being introduced. It seems by the week, by this administration, you could get whiplash. The American
public overall is not supportive. Let's stick to one of those issues, the issue of how this president has dealt with migrants.
I guess another question to ask is, how is his base? How are Republicans responding to the first six months?
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes. I mean, I think by and large Republicans, despite, you know, some differences with the president
that we've seen flare up over the last few weeks regarding the Jeffrey Epstein matter, by and large, support the president.
You know, 88 percent in the last CNN poll, which just came out last week, said that they were supportive of how he's doing in office. But I think
overall, you do see the American public really starting to sour on some of the issues that have been so central to the president's time in office,
whether it's immigration, whether it's the economy, whether it's tariffs, whether it's foreign affairs.
He is mostly underwater on all of those issues. More Americans disapprove of how he's handling them than approve, which I think sort of gives you a
sense of how the president has approached all of this.
You know, the one thing that can be said, for the first half year of the president's term is that it's been eventful. And, you know, you played that
clip of the Zelenskyy meeting, which was just in February, but it might as well have been, you know, a million years ago, just given everything that
the president has tried to accomplish in the very early days of his presidency, and that has been by design.
You know, I remember talking to someone in the White House in the first couple of weeks of this term. And they said that the president had learned
one thing from his first go-around in the White House, which was not to wait for the right moment to do something, to just do it if he wanted to
accomplish something.
The president clearly uninterested in kind of feeling things out, trying to pace all of his announcements, trying to find, you know, the moment to
message it and to socialize it with Congress.
[12:35:05]
He's very intent on kind of just going in and doing what he wants. And I think that has been one effective for him in some ways when you think
about, you know, the tariff policy, the president putting in those tariffs, pulling them back, trying to strike trade deals. He has kind of gone ahead
with them in a way that he wasn't able to do or willing to do during his first term in office.
But I think you also see the public sort of reeling from some of the president's moves here, particularly on immigration. He did say as a
candidate that he would conduct some of these mass deportations. He previewed a very hard line on immigration as he was running for office.
But clearly this polling that suggests, you know, 55 percent of Americans saying that he's gone too far say that maybe he's going too fast and maybe
the promises he made as a candidate didn't necessarily resonate with voters as something that he would actually try and do as president.
And so you see kind of the dichotomy between how the president has approached this but also in how the American public is taking in some of
what he's trying to do.
I think it's also clear that a lot of unfinished business is before the president. And you mentioned those two issues of Gaza and the Ukraine war,
which have been, I think, constant frustrations for the president.
You know, just last week, the president was signaling that he was close to a deal to end the war in Gaza as he was hosting the Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu at the White House. That has clearly not materialized.
The president now, I think, quite frustrated with both sides of that conflict including with Netanyahu that a resolution is not closer at hand.
And then on Ukraine, he's obviously set that 50-day timeline for Putin to come to the negotiating table. But, obviously, no movement there yet as
that clock ticks down.
So, clearly, it's been an eventful six months for the president, but I think he recognizes and his advisors recognize that there's a lot more to
be accomplished in the 42 months that he has left in his term.
ASHER: Kevin, you have been a White House reporter. You've covered the White House for CNN since at least 2013. So that is about 12 years. And,
you know, the two moments that stand out to me from this year and a lot of people was, of course, that infamous meeting with Zelenskyy in the Oval
Office back in February and then a few months later with the president of South Africa.
And a lot of people were talking about the fact that it almost seemed as though the president and the vice president, at least Zelenskyy, had it
almost seemed as though he'd sort of set a trap for Zelenskyy.
And then with President Ramaphosa, the famous line that Bianna and I which referenced, where he says, dim the lights and cue the video, which
obviously indicates to some extent it was planned.
So just give us your take as a reporter who's covered the White House for so long on those two really key moments. I mean, this president surprises
us time and time again, but those moments really stood out to me.
LIPTAK: Yes. And I think with the Zelenskyy meeting what I'm most struck by is how, not only Trump sort of approached that, but how Zelenskyy
afterwards has changed his entire approach to the White House.
You know, there was something of an intervention by the French president, by the British Prime Minister to try and get him to change how he was
approaching the president when it comes to the conflict in Ukraine.
And ever since then, he has been much more, one, thankful, which was the point that JD Vance was trying to make in the meeting, which is that he
wasn't grateful enough for that American assistance, but also to kind of recognize that President Trump does, in a lot of ways, hold the cards to
use a phrase that he used in that meeting.
And it has worked. You know, President Trump has become much more receptive to Ukraine's asks for assistance. He's become much more negative about the
war in Ukraine and about the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, which I think gives you a sense of how generally the world is changing and adopting
to the American president.
You know, this is someone that they thought they were familiar with. And now as this term proceeds, it's clear that they're sort of adopting how
they approach everything to this new term in office.
GOLODRYGA: Something else that's changed over the last six months are those massive American flags that the president has upgraded behind you there in
front of the White House.
LIPTAK: Yes.
GOLODRYGA: Still, I'm struck by that every time I see them from this shot.
Kevin Liptak, thank you so much. Good to see you.
ASHER: That line is, I'm never going to forget, like, dim the lights.
GOLODRYGA: The man knows television. The man knows television.
ASHER: All right. We're going to end this out of "One World" with a transatlantic love story. Vicki and Graham Kidner met by chance over 40
years ago on a commercial flight from Washington to London.
GOLODRYGA: This should be an advertisement for that airline. Vickie, who is American, was able to snag the last available seat on a flight next to the
Englishman. Listen, as they tell their unique love story of beating the odds.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
[12:40:07]
V. KIDNER: We met on the airplane.
G. KIDNER: We were both on standby.
V. KIDNER: My girlfriend and I boarded the plane to go to London.
G. KIDNER: I don't know who said something first probably me because I was already seated and then they came and sat next to me.
V. KIDNER: And had the whole flight over and really got to know each other. We asked that Graham please get a come visit us and show us around London.
That's when the magic happened.
We were going up the escalator at Portobello Road and a woman was in front of us.
G. KIDNER: And she turned around to us and said, you're both scorpions. And Vickie said, I am. And I said, well, yes, me too.
V. KIDNER: She said great love. You're always going to be together.
G. KIDNER: Something just clicked at that moment.
V. KIDNER: We got off the escalator giggling and laughing and put his arm around me joking. And by the end of the night, we were holding hands.
We were married in the same year.
Do you know where you're going?
G. KIDNER: No. Downtown.
V. KIDNER: I'm chatty. He's the British quiet. They've learned not to get into each other's business. Whereas being a Southern girl, we're writing
into people's business. They're not saying that.
G. KIDNER: We point out the differences sometimes.
V. KIDNER: The one thing I hate the worst is schedule.
G. KIDNER: It's English. It's all language. I'm going to say the correct way.
V. KIDNER: That is a lesson for everyone. Don't leery somebody's changing because they're not going to change.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The bachelor of the old (INAUDIBLE) during this process, the easier it is to move the (INAUDIBLE).
V. KIDNER: It's really so much.
All marriages come with sacrifices.
G. KIDNER: When we first moved over here in '83 --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think -- I think you're good for now.
G. KIDNER: -- yes, it was pretty isolating. I left all my family behind, friends. I had to learn a new way of living. Start law school over again.
V. KIDNER: We didn't live near my family. So we had to fend for ourselves. And I think it helps to make a stronger marriage.
G. KIDNER: It's good enough for eight ounces of coffee.
I think the more we travel and see other parts of the world, the more that reinforces that, I think, open-mindedness.
V. KIDNER: Coming from two different cultures, we encourage our children to go out into the world.
You miss them a lot.
You can call it loneliness or you can also call it. You know, we had to become a couple.
G. KIDNER: You build a life and you learn things about each other. Yes, you become more reliant on each other, whereas when you're younger, you're
perhaps more self-reliant, and so that changes over time.
V. KIDNER: It's going to be the person that says, let me go do the dishes. Here, let me bring you that cup of coffee. When you're sick, the person
that you depend on.
G. KIDNER: We're straight. She can be a little bit bossy at times.
V. KIDNER: He comes off as knowing it all. Sometimes he's incorrect.
G. KIDNER: Her best traits, she's very thoughtful.
V. KIDNER: His happiness, his optimism, much better than mine.
Love is finding your best friend.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GOLODRYGA: A best friend that would move across the (INAUDIBLE).
ASHER: The Atlantic for you. That is the love.
GOLODRYGA: Alright. That's a great story.
That does it for "One World." I'm Bianna Golodryga.
ASHER: I'm Zain Asher. "African Voices Changemakers" is up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(AFRICAN VOICES CHANGEMAKERS)
[13:00:00]
END
