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Quest Means Business
Trump And Musk Appear At White House Amid Market Turmoil; Ukraine Backs Ceasefire Proposal, Russia Yet To Agree; Tesla, SpaceX, X Experience Setbacks, Uncertainty Takes Hold From Wall Street To Main Street; Interview With Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew; Interview With Myles O'Grady Of Bank Of Ireland; Young People Celebrate "Freedom To Learn." Aired 4-5p ET
Aired March 11, 2025 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:00]
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: They don't have much. They spend very little as you know, the least of almost anybody on military
and we spend the most of anybody on military. We have a great military. I rebuilt the military during my first term. We're going to have to rebuild
it a little bit again, not that much, but we are going to have to rebuild it a little bit again.
But Canada would be great as our cherished 51st state. You wouldn't have to worry about borders. You wouldn't have to worry about anything and by the
way, Canada is very highly taxed and we are very low taxed. We are considered a low tax nation because of me, because I cut the taxes so low,
so the people of Canada would pay much less taxes.
It makes a lot of sense, and by the way, when you take away that artificial line that looks like -- done with a ruler, and that's what it was, some guy
sat there years ago, and they said -- when you take away that and you look at that beautiful formation of Canada and the United States, there is no
place anywhere on -- in the world that like that.
ELON MUSK, DEPARTMENT OF GOVERNMENT EFFICIENCY: Plus Greenland of course.
TRUMP: And then if you add Greenland, that's even.
MUSK: It is going to look beautiful.
TRUMP: Okay.
REPORTER: What are you going to tell the CEOs --
TRUMP: I am going to look at this. I am going to make a decision. Do you want to hear what my decision --?
REPORTER: Let's hear it.
TRUMP: Okay. What's your best of these cars? What do you think?
MUSK: Well, the car that I drive is the Model S 12V.
TRUMP: Which is that one?
MUSK: It's that red one in the middle.
TRUMP: I like that. Yes.
MUSK: Yes.
TRUMP: I like that.
MUSK: It is zero to 60 miles an hour in two seconds. So faster than a Ferrari.
TRUMP: That's pretty fast. I don't know if my people can handle it. They're going to -- Jeff, they're going to be using it more. I am not allowed to
use it.
REPORTER: It looks fast.
TRUMP: That's a fast one.
REPORTER: Just to be clear, sir, the 50 percent, is that going to go into effect on Canada or no?
TRUMP: Which one?
REPORTER: The 50 percent tariffs?
TRUMP: I'll let you know about it. Yes, I'll let you know.
But I appreciated his call. I thought it was nice.
This is beautiful. Whoa. Should I get in?
REPORTER: Get in.
TRUMP: Okay.
REPORTER: Have you ever sat --
TRUMP: Let me get in a second.
REPORTER: -- on a little one of this? On a Tesla?
TRUMP: Do you want my notes?
REPORTER: Yes.
TRUMP: They gave me notes. I said -- I am not Biden, I don't need notes.
REPORTER: I'll take a look.
MUSK: I can take that.
TRUMP: Thank you. Thank you. Let me get into this in a second. I want the Secret Service to go crazy. Thank you.
MUSK: I mean, if you actually drove it around. They'd really be wild.
TRUMP: Whoa. It is beautiful. Wow. That's beautiful. This is a different panel than I'm -- everything is computer. That's beautiful. Wow.
Is this the brake?
MUSK: Yes, this is the brake and that's the accelerator.
TRUMP: I don't want to --
MUSK: You have a Secret Service right there.
TRUMP: That's beautiful.
REPORTER: Can you start it?
TRUMP: Should I? I'll see if the engine -- got to get it wrapped in gold.
MUSK: So do you want to actually drive it or --
TRUMP: You don't -- you don't want me to drive it, do you?
REPORTER: I saw Biden do a test loop here once in the Jeep.
TRUMP: That's -- you're the only one that saw it.
MUSK: It's like driving an golf cart.
TRUMP: It's beautiful. Very simple.
MUSK: It's very simple. So it is really like a golf cart that goes really fast.
There are no gears, so that's --
TRUMP: This is really amazing. Let's take a look at that.
REPORTER: Mr. President, are you going to get wrapped in gold?
TRUMP: I think Biden could get into that car? I don't -- that's beautiful. Yes.
REPORTER: Mr. President talks to us about some of the violence that's been going on around the country at dealerships. Some say they should be labeled
domestic terrorists because --
TRUMP: I will do that. I'll do it. I'm going to stop them.
We catch anybody doing it because they're harming a great American company. You know, I've stuck up for the NFL. I've stuck up for a lot of American
companies and other companies, but American companies, I did a very big favor for the NFL. I do favors for all.
When you hurt an American company, especially a company like this that supplies so many jobs that others are unable to do, when you do that, those
people are going to go through a big problem when we catch them, and we have a lot of -- we've got a lot of cameras up. We already know who some of
them are. We are going to catch them and they are bad guys.
They are the same guys that screw around with our schools and universities, the same garbage, and know we are going to catch them. And let me tell you,
you do it to Tesla and you do it to any company, we are going to catch you and you're going to -- you're going to go through hell.
REPORTER: Mr. President, what do you tell CEOs tonight at the Business Roundtable, especially --
TRUMP: We are going to have a roundtable to make in a little while.. I just consider this much more important because I want to buy one of these. My
whole staff is so excited because I told them they're going to safely use them, and they can't believe it.
So, Margo, wherever you are, Margo, she is going to use it. They are all going to be using it, and they're going to have a good time using it. And
if I can -- if I can. Oh, there you are, Margo. Look at Margo is right there. What do you? A member of the press now? I think she is become a
member of the press.
[16:05:10]
Takes great pictures. What do you think of it, Margo? Do you like the idea?
MARGO MARTIN, SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT AND COMMUNICATIONS ADVISOR: I love it.
TRUMP: Okay. Good.
MARTIN: I'm going to have fun.
TRUMP: You look very happy.
REPORTER: Mr. President, your comments the other day not ruling out a potential recession seemed to rattle the stock markets. The Commerce
Secretary said there wouldn't be one.
TRUMP: I think this country is going to boom. Just so you.
REPORTER: Just specifically on the recession.
TRUMP: Yes.
REPORTER: Do you think there will be a recession?
TRUMP: I think this country. I don't see it at all. I think this country is going to boom. But as I said, I can do it the easy way or the hard way. The
hard way to do it is exactly what I am doing, but the results are going to be 20 times greater.
REPORTER: Mr. President, you asked --
TRUMP: I remember, Trump is always right, right? The hat.
REPORTER: And what do you say to Americans --
TRUMP: If you look at what I've said over the last ten years, Trump has been right all the time.
MUSK: True.
TRUMP: This is the -- this is the way to do it. We are going to make America great again. You know, to make it great, you have to have jobs. You
have to have factories. You have to have -- I look at -- I look at some of the things that like this last administration, he was the worst president
in the history of our country. Nothing was happening. Nothing.
He had no idea what was going on. Our country went to hell, and then to allow millions of people to come in that are prisoners and mental
institution patients and all of the things -- the gang members, drug lords. We are searching them all down now, trying to get them out of our country,
and we are going to do that.
But on the financial end and the economic end, what we are doing is, to me, it is the most exciting.
Our country will be greater than ever before, and it won't take too long.
REPORTER: And what's your message to Americans right now, sir, who are worried about the stock market? What's your message to them as they watch
it?
MUSK: The cybertruck -- have you been --
TRUMP: Lets go see the cybertruck. I did buy one of these.
MUSK: So this is bulletproof.
TRUMP: I mean, look, in terms of imagination, I think I have a great imagination. Who else but this guy would design this? And everybody on the
road is looking at it. It is amazing, actually. As soon as I saw it, I said, that is the coolest design. Do you agree with that, Brian?
BRIAN: I do. It is very cool.
MUSK: Yes.
TRUMP: You've got to give him credit.
MUSK: We want the future to look like the future, and it is kind of what kind of truck would a blade runner drive? That was the design idea.
TRUMP: It is really amazing.
MUSK: Yes.
REPORTER: Hey, Elon. Are you planning to remain CEO of Tesla while working with President Trump? Is there any thinking on your future at the company
as we are talking about Tesla? I am wondering what your thinking is with leading the company going forward.
MUSK: Yes. Yes, I'm CEO of Tesla and --
TRUMP: He should.
MUSK: Yes.
REPORTER: Any more plans of additional vehicles besides the ones that you have now? New models?
REPORTER: I want to get your thoughts on the market.
MUSK: The cyber cab coming out next year.
TRUMP: The one with no steering wheel. Are you going to buy one of those?
RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST, "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS": All right, that seems like a good moment for us to -- oh, hang on.
REPORTER: Where do you see it going?
TRUMP: I think some people are going to make great deals by buying stocks and bonds and all the things they're buying. I think we are going to have
an economy that's a real economy, not a fake economy. It was a fake economy.
They were putting in all government jobs. You see what happened last week? Last month? We had more real jobs and government jobs are way down. That's
going to continue. Those are real jobs. Those are jobs that keep the country going.
You can't have all government jobs. You have no income to pay the workers.
MUSK: Yes.
TRUMP: And a lot of those workers didn't show up to work, that was the other problem.
REPORTER: And President Trump, there is this protest leader from Columbia University that the administration is moving to deport and you said that
his arrest is going to be the first of many. How many?
TRUMP: I think we ought to get them all out of the country. They're troublemakers. They're agitators. They don't love our country. We ought to
get them the hell out.
I think that guy, we ought to get him. I heard his statements, too. They were plenty bad. And I think we ought to get him the hell out of the
country. I watched him, I watched tapes, specifically. I watched tapes, and you can have them, okay? You can have them, and you can have the rest of
them.
Let them go to school, let them learn. Columbia used to be a good school. Now, it has been overrun because of bad leadership. That's what happens.
It happens to countries and it happens to universities, and it happens to companies. And I don't want it to happen to a guy that did nothing wrong --
he did everything right because he did a great company, but what he did by coming into government to help government from years of abuse, from decades
of abuse, and you see that when you look at Social Security, where you have 200-year-old people on the rolls of -- that's just -- he uses the word
"care." People don't care.
Everyone knows this. But it is also, I believe it is also a large fraud. I think it is that. But I think it is also large fraud.
I am just telling people, this man is a great patriot, and you should cherish him. You should cherish him. You know, I have a little statement.
We have to take care of our high I.Q. people because we don't have too many of them, so we've got to take care of them.
[16:10:05]
REPORTER: Mr. President, will you talk to President Putin about --
REPORTER: And if you guys look at the Social Security Administration, and you guys are looking for fraud and waste and abuse, can you guarantee
people who are concerned about an interruption to benefits that there will not be?
MUSK: Yes. We are going to be very careful with any interruption to benefits. In fact, only by tackling the waste and fraud in entitlements
like Social Security and Medicare can we actually preserve those programs for the future, because with unchecked fraud and waste, we won't be able to
afford them.
The President is very dedicated to solving the budget deficit, which if we don't solve the budget deficit, we are going to go bankrupt as a country.
If we go bankrupt as a country, there is no Social Security, there is no Medicare, there is no nothing.
And to sort of echo what the President was saying, what really matters is moving people from jobs that are relatively low productivity in government
to high productivity in the private sector, increasing the true output of products and services. That's the real economy. That's what actually
enables Americans to have a higher standard of living, and that's what's happening.
And that's -- I think that you'll see --
QUEST: There we are. There is Elon Musk and Donald Trump. I was just commenting, it is extraordinary. You see the two of them, it is almost a
co-presidency the way they are going backwards and forwards. One wonders where the Vice President is in all of this, but President Trump was
shopping for a Tesla in support of Elon Musk's company.
The shares have been sharply lower, off 15 percent yesterday.
The President also spoke about Ukraine, which has accepted a proposal for a 30-day ceasefire for Russia and the upcoming meeting with major CEOs that
is due to start within the hour.
Kevin is with me. Our daily conversation, Kevin, there is simply way too much in that for us to dissect it point by point.
I mean the thing that -- and I commented which is that, it is bizarre to see it. It is almost co-presidency in a sense, the way in which Elon Musk
is pontificating on every aspect of U.S. government policy next to the President.
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, in one aspect, it is a co-presidency, in another aspect, they seem to be on a car lot selling cars
to the American people from the South Lawn of the White House, which is not something you'd ever seen before.
But clearly Trump, after the events of the last day when Tesla's stock nosedived, when there have been these incidents at Tesla dealerships around
the country of violence and some damage, property damage, he clearly wanted to come out and express his support for this man who is doing so much
within the federal government, who the President has put so much power behind to try and cut what he calls waste, fraud and abuse throughout the
federal government, and it has resulted in what is kind of an extraordinary scene of now the President touring Elon Musk's products, talking about his
cars, and in fact, purchasing one from him there on the South Lawn, all while this economic turmoil continues to rattle the markets.
And you saw as the two men were speaking, the Dow Jones continuing to tank. And it was interesting, the President was asked there the very question
that he was asked over the weekend that caused the markets to tumble initially, which was whether he sees a recession coming for the American
economy. This time he did not demure. He did not sort of dance around it. He said he did not see it at all. In his words, the country will continue
to boom. So clearly taking something of a lesson from that.
But an extraordinary scene, kind of a strange scene, I would say, down there on the South Lawn.
QUEST: Yes. Can I just quickly ask you on Ukraine? We now know that Ukraine has accepted a 30-day ceasefire subject to Russia accepting and Donald
Trump, I agree, look, it is bizarre. I am sitting here talking to you about Ukraine whilst the President and Musk are standing in front of a cybertruck
selling vehicles, but that's the world we live in.
So, button on down, Kevin. Ukraine, please. What did he say?
LIPTAK: Yes, and it was interesting here because he said it takes two to tango, essentially saying that now the ball is in Russia's court to accept
the terms of this ceasefire that the American team negotiated in Jeddah earlier today.
The President did, I think it was later in this event, say that he planned to speak with Vladimir Putin sometime later this week to essentially
pressure him to come to the terms of this agreement. He said that now that this agreement is placed, that Zelenskyy would be invited back to the White
House, potentially after that sort of horrible scene in the Oval Office about a week-and-a-half ago.
But the President very clearly now putting the onus on Putin, which I think is an interesting place for the President to be. So far, he has been very
conciliatory towards Moscow. He has not requested any type of concessions from the Kremlin as part of a ceasefire to end this agreement. But now, he
is saying very explicitly that he hopes Putin will come along, and it does lead to the question of how exactly they will get Putin to do that and that
is an unanswered question at this point-- Richard.
[16:15:15]
QUEST: Well, you and I will talk about it as the days go on and I am grateful, as always. Thank you, Kevin, at the White House.
Now, as President Trump, as we've just seen, comes to Elon Musk's defense, the companies are facing headwinds seemingly everywhere you look. And
bearing in mind that what you saw then at the White House was exactly the reason -- so I have my real pen out -- and it was exactly the reason what
you saw, why they did it, because Tesla's share price has suffered dramatic falls and has now erased the post-election bump as you can see just there,
that staggering fall that took place in just yesterday alone.
If you look at the other companies, let's take SpaceX, for instance. SpaceX, , two of its rockets, Starship rockets have blown up in less than
two months, and Thursday's explosion even caused flight delays. There are some concerns that because of Musk's influence and power in the
administration, that both NASA and the FAA will be as ruthless with SpaceX because obviously they know the difficulties, if he carries favor with the
President.
And then you have Twitter, I still call it twitter. It went down for many users on Monday. Elon Musk says it was as a result of a cyberattack.
Clare Duffy is with me, joins me.
Pulling it together, one always has to be careful about suggesting whither the companies because there is so much value within them. They can
certainly withstand all of this. Interestingly, I just noticed him saying he intends to remain CEO of Tesla.
CLARE DUFFY, CNN BUSINESS WRITER: Yes, it is an interesting comment from Elon Musk there sort of reassuring investors, perhaps, although I don't
know if they are going to be reassured because many of them are clearly concerned that he is spending so much time within the government, and all
of this is really striking because it is the opposite of what many people, many investors expected when Trump was elected given Musk's connections to
the president. Many investors expected that this would benefit Musk's companies, that he perhaps could make it easier for him to get government
contracts, or that it would, you know, benefit his companies in a number of other ways.
And now we are seeing the reverse starting to happen. As you see there, Tesla shares down 15 percent yesterday, 40 percent since the start of this
year. We are seeing these protests at Tesla dealerships, indications that the company could start to lose sales because people are upset by Musk's
political involvements.
As you said there, X was down much of yesterday. That is the platform where Musk goes to talk about a lot of what he is doing within the government.
And then we saw these SpaceX, you know, these Starship explosions, two since January. This is all not looking great for Musk and it is not clear
that you know, he and trump holding an essentially a car commercial in front of the White House, Trump agreeing to buy a Tesla to help out his
buddy, Elon Musk. It is not clear that any of that is going to fix these fundamental issues that Musk is having.
The fact that he is having to balance, you know, doing so much within the government and running his companies, which he admitted on Fox yesterday,
he is doing with great difficulty.
QUEST: I was also surprised. Listen, I have difficulty doing laundry and the grocery shopping whilst also doing my full time job, let alone doing
all of that.
Clare, one thought, one question. Maybe people like me get outraged at so- called conflict of interest when we see this, and you think about the President doing basically a commercial for this or conflict of interest
with SpaceX and NASA, but do other people care? Or am I just a dinosaur?
DUFFY: It is a good question. You know, I think what people might care about more like we are talking say about Tesla consumers, perhaps they're
not so worried about conflict of interest per se, but they might say, hey, look, this guy seems to be standing for something that I don't necessarily
agree with, and I think that is probably the bigger concern for the company at this point.
QUEST: Right. Good to see you. Thank you. We will talk more, plenty more as we continue.
Now, Ukraine has agreed to a U.S. ceasefire proposal aimed at starting the process of ending Russia's war. It is a 30-day truce. It will only take
effect if Russia, of course, also agrees. The plan is the result of talks between American and Ukrainian delegations in Jeddah, in Saudi.
In the wake of that meeting, the U.S. now says it will lift a pause on military aid and intelligence sharing. The Secretary of State Marco Rubio,
says the ball is now in Russia's court.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We will take this offer now to the Russians, and we hope that they'll say yes. That they'll say yes to peace.
The ball is now in their court. And -- but again, the President's objective here is number one, above everything else, he wants the war to end. And I
think today, Ukraine has taken a concrete step in that regard. We hope the Russians will reciprocate.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Alex is with me. Alex in Jeddah in Saudi.
[16:20:10]
Alex, I suppose the Ukrainians had no choice. They had the U.S. foot on their neck. But if -- if, as I suspect, is the case, Donald Trump really
wants peace in Ukraine and he has already threatened sanctions and tariffs on Russia, then that's the next step, isn't it?
You know, evenhanded, he will go after Russia if they don't come along on this.
ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that is certainly a possibility and we have talked about the difference in the
approaches by President Trump to both Ukraine and Russia. Much more harsh with the Ukrainians, if you will, essentially forcing them to this table to
try to make some concessions. We heard Secretary Rubio coming to Jeddah saying, I expect to hear concessions from the Ukrainians. Meanwhile, Trump
has been accused of making concessions to the Russians.
Now it seems like things are evolving, and the Ukrainians did what they needed to do here in terms of telling the Americans what they wanted to
hear, so much so that we now have the Americans immediately lifting that pause on military assistance, and on intelligence sharing.
So now the spotlight is shifting very quickly, Richard, in a very bright way towards Moscow to see whether they will agree to this.
We knew that the Ukrainians were going to show up in Jeddah with this idea of a partial ceasefire, to stop the long range missile attacks between the
two countries, to stop the fighting in the Black Sea. The U.S., rather surprisingly, took that one step farther, saying, actually, our proposal is
a complete cessation of hostilities all along the front line in the cities for 30 days.
And now this is going to be communicated to the Russians on a number of different levels, and we will have to see how they respond -- Richard.
QUEST: Can I suggest that merely getting to this point, I agree it has been ugly. It has been painful, and not been pleasant, but there will be a very
valid argument that says Donald Trump's policy has worked. He has made more progress in getting both parties towards a ceasefire, which can then be
worked upon and I will caveat it with the Russians, granted, than anybody had so far.
MARQUARDT: Yes. But what is then the second step? So you get to a ceasefire and the fighting stops, at least temporarily. And that's a wonderful thing
after three years of fighting, but what does a more permanent peace plan look like? And that's where things get very painful and that's where things
get very difficult.
What we did not hear from Secretary Rubio or National Security Adviser Waltz today was about the territorial concessions that Ukraine will have to
make, the concessions that they may have to make when it comes to NATO. We haven't gotten close to the Russians admitting that they are going -- that
they might back up and give land back to the Ukrainians, some of the other concessions that they might have to make. That's where it is going to get
very difficult.
So this first phase could very well happen. We could see President Putin say, okay, let's give this a shot. I am going to tell my Army to stop
fighting and yes, that would be a win for the Trump administration. But that next step is going to be a lot more complicated.
One note, Richard, we did hear Mike Waltz talking about security guarantees for Ukraine. That is something that the U.S. has been very reluctant to
commit to. We didn't hear him offer very many details, but the mere fact that he raised it right is another coup, if you will, for the Ukrainians
out of this meeting in Jeddah today.
QUEST: Alex, good to see you, sir. Travel safely home when you get there. Thank you very much.
Now, Donald Trump says he is open to inviting Volodymyr Zelenskyy back to the White House, a sign of the warming relations, arguably. It is following
two weeks of the dramatic Oval Office clash and Zelenskyy -- the President Zelenskyy has released a message of support for the ceasefire plan, saying
his country is ready to take that step.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Ukraine accepts this proposal. We consider it positive. We are ready to take such a
step and the United States of America must convince Russia to do so. That is, we agree.
And if the Russians agree, the silence will work at that very moment.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Now, Oleksandr Merezhko is the member of the Ukrainian Parliament and chairs its Foreign Affairs Committee, he joins me now from Kyiv.
Good evening. I am grateful you've taken the time to join us.
Look, let's assume, just for the purposes of this question, that Russia goes along with this ceasefire plan and there is a 30-day pause. That's a
major advancement. But of course, as Alex Marquardt was saying, it doesn't answer the longer term security questions.
[16:25:10]
What do you now want to know about?
OLEKSANDR MEREZHKO, MEMBER OF THE UKRAINIAN PARLIAMENT AND CHAIRMAN, FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE: Well, honestly, I am rather skeptical and
cautious about this idea because based on the experience which we had before under the Minsk Accords, under the Minsk Agreements, we had around
30 such ceasefires and each time, these ceasefires had been violated by Putin, and this is something which makes me skeptical.
On the other hand, I view it as a kind of experiment, to see maybe President Trump needs sort of his own experience to realize that Putin
cannot be trusted.
QUEST: Listening to President Trump over the last few weeks, there is a genuine horror at the fighting. Again and again, he talks about the
flatlands and the bullets going until they hit a body and the meat grinder.
So, you know, giving him the benefit of the doubt that he actually just wants to stop the fighting, that might actually be the easy bit compared to
the longer term solution.
MEREZHKO: Well, we respect the desire of President Trump to stop the Russian aggression. It is extremely important. And for us, it is very
difficult to defend ourselves. But again, the key, the solution and the basic hurdle, the major hurdle is Putin himself. Because to stop the war is
very easy. Putin should just withdraw Russian troops from the territory of Ukraine, but I doubt that he will do it without pressure and without
security guarantees for Ukraine.
QUEST: So what are you prepared as the Parliamentary side of it on the Foreign Affairs Committee, what are you prepared to accept? And I don't
mean territorial because that's really about drawing lines and things like that. I am talking about the whether or not NATO membership is taken off
the table, E.U. membership, the ability to do your own trade and/or military deals? What is the committee -- what is Parliament prepared to
accept, do you think?
MEREZHKO: The thing is that with regard to NATO and E.U. membership, this is in our Constitution already. We cannot change our Constitution and this
is our sovereign right to decide for ourselves whether or not to join any international organization.
And again, what is really important is how Putin views the deterrent, what can deter him in his mind. And so far, we understand that the only reliable
deterrent in the eyes of Putin is NATO membership for Ukraine.
As for other security guarantees, I am not so sure.
QUEST: I am grateful. We will talk more. Thank you for joining us tonight to put it into perspective. Thank you.
Donald Trump said a few moments ago he is not worried about the selloff on Wall Street. Look at the way the day went. It went very sharply lower, 700
or 800 points and then it rallied back up again, and then it fell down again in the last hour of trade, a 900-point loss around midday.
In an hour or so, the President is hosting the Business Roundtable for some of the CEOs of the largest American companies. The trade policies have kept
everybody on their toes. Donald Trump rattled off tariff threats, hasn't fully followed through on them. It is the uncertainty that people are
worried about and that rings true from Wall Street to Main Street.
This is the Small Business Uncertainty Index, it comes from the NFIB, the National Federation of Independent Businesses. It spiked to its second
highest level on record. We've got to go back to 1973, which, yes, I sort of remember.
There has also been a drop in Small Business Optimism, that sense that says it is time to expand fell sharply after a wave of optimism when Trump won
the election.
So we've been asking, of course, business leaders about their outlook.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LINDA SCHLESINGER-WAGNER, FOUNDER AND CEO, SKINNYTEES: It is going to definitely affect our business. It is going to affect our bottom line if we
are paying more. And I am not passing it on to my consumer, that's going to affect my bottom line.
AARON LEHMAN, PRESIDENT, IOWA FARMERS UNION: For the products we buy, especially potash fertilizer, but others, it means higher prices for the
inputs that we have to purchase to grow our crops. So we are getting hurt on both sides of our bottom line.
ROD LITTLE, CEO, EDGEWELL PERSONAL CARE: Well, it is not helpful certainly to have tariffs go up from here. As you rightly point out, we already
operate in an environment where we are subject to tariffs, and primarily China as the source of the tariffs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: So Holly is with me. Holly Wade, the executive director of the NFIB Research Center, and you know, this idea of nobody likes uncertainty and
they have had more than a barrel load of it. What sort of certainty are you looking for.
HOLLY WADE, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NATIONAL FEDERATION OF INDEPENDENT BUSINESSES RESEARCH CENTER: So yes, as you mentioned, Small Business
Uncertainty Index did spike over the last two months. A lot of that had to do with capital spending plans being uncertain on whether to invest in
their business in these economic conditions.
So having some clarity of where these policy developments land and how long the duration, to what extent they're going to impact the broad scope of
small businesses will go a long way in helping them move forward with their business.
[16:30:40]
QUEST: You see, if these tariffs are both negotiating strategies and tactics, you're not going to get that. And if the shifting change on tax
cuts and then this policy and that policy, you're not going to get that either. So what are your members doing? Are they not investing? Are they
sitting on their hands? I mean, what is it that they're telling you they want to do?
WADE: So they're certainly pausing as far as the number of small business owners that are planning to invest in their business. We've seen a, you
know, decline in the number that say they're planning a capital expenditure in the last -- in the next three to six months, but they are actively
trying to recruit to fill those open positions. So the labor market is still very tight for the small business sector.
They're increasing compensation to be competitive on that front. And so for that side of the equation, you know, they're really bullish about what they
can do to, you know, continue operating their business at the highest level they can.
QUEST: Do they feel a bit whipsawed in a sense, go one minute it's this. And we're really optimistic and it's going to be great. And there's A.I.
Next minute, oh, hell no. It's all terrible. We've got problems. And in any given day it's not just it's uncertainty. It is a deep seated inability to
know which way to go.
WADE: Well, certainly in this environment it's very difficult.
QUEST: Right.
WADE: I mean, Congress could go a long ways to help the certainty factor in preserving those tax cuts that are set to expire at the end of the year.
That would help a lot of small or the vast majority of small businesses that are not structured as C Corp or, as we say, pass through businesses
that have the small business deduction scheduled to expire. So Congress can go a long ways to help deal with the uncertainty element on their end. And
then as far as small business owners, you know, they've been through a lot over the last four years related to COVID, supply chain disruptions, you
know, so they haven't been really in an environment that's been terribly stable for them.
So this is just one other area of, you know, a bit of discomfort, not feeling certain about how to move forward. But hopefully we'll get some
clarity soon.
QUEST: Thank you for joining us. I'm grateful. Clarity is one thing we look forward to.
QUEST MEANS BUSINESS tonight. Coming up, Donald Trump is threatening to escalate that trade war with Canada. And yet at the same time, he
appreciated various measures helping to bridge it. The premier of Manitoba is with me, joining me, there you can see him, after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:36:30]
QUEST: Hello, I'm Richard Quest. Together we have a lot more QUEST MEANS BUSINESS. I'll be talking to the premier of Manitoba who's fighting back
against U.S. tariffs. And major U.S. airlines say their customers are putting off travel to the bleakening picture. All only after the news
because this is CNN and here, the news comes first, as you better believe it.
Ukraine is backing a U.S. proposal for an immediate 30-day ceasefire with Russia. It follows hours of negotiations in Saudi Arabia between U.S. and
Ukrainian delegations. The U.S. says the ball is now in Moscow's court to also agree to the truce. The United States also announced it will lift the
pause on intelligence sharing and the supplying of military aid to Ukraine.
The former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte has been arrested by the International Criminal Court. His family says he was forcibly put onto a
plane and is now headed to The Hague. Duterte has been charged with crimes against humanity for his brutal crackdown on illegal drugs. Police say more
than 6,000 suspects were killed. A prosecutor for the ICC estimates the death number could be far higher.
Greenland is holding an election with potentially international consequences. Voting is said to be brisk as parliament -- as voters choose
parliamentary lawmakers who will shape the island's future, including possible independence from Denmark. The vote is taking place amongst
threats of annexation by the United States by President Trump.
Tariffs on, tariffs off. The premier of Ontario in Canada has suspended an electricity surcharge on three U.S. states. Premier Doug Ford says he was
instead agreeing to meet the U.S. Commerce secretary in Washington, where they'll discuss cross-border trade. And other provinces are also putting
pressure on the United States. Manitoba's premier pulled American alcohol from government liquor stores.
Wab Kinew is the premier of Manitoba. He joins me now.
That was a largely symbolic measure since the alcohol had been paid for as more than one person pointed out on Twitter. But it sent the message and
that message was that Canada is not going to be messed around with.
WAB KINEW, MANITOBA PREMIER: Well, pulling the alcohol off the shelves was also accompanied with canceling all the orders for the rest of the year,
which, if you add up all the provinces across Canada, means we're pulling a few billion dollars out of the American economy. So symbolism? Yes, when we
stop ordering Kentucky bourbon and start drinking Crown Royal from right here in Manitoba instead. But it's also a multi-billion dollar way that we
can stick up for ourselves in the midst of these tariffs that keep getting threatened by Donald Trump.
QUEST: Right. Where can you in Manitoba put the most pressure do you think?
KINEW: Well, I think you've seen through Premier Ford's actions with electricity that that is a significant tool that we have in the toolbox to
stand up for Canada and to stand up for our subnational jurisdictions as well.
Here in Manitoba, just to give you and your viewers a bit of context, we export, depending on the time of year, hundreds of megawatts, at very
least, potentially thousands of megawatts to the midwestern United States. We're talking about billions of dollars' worth of electricity exports. So
that's big business.
[16:40:02]
So of course we want to be judicious and very careful with decisions here. But when we're looking at a potentially huge threat to our nationwide
economy, it is important for us to look at these tools and to send a message to the American administration.
QUEST: So the new prime minister or will be prime minister, Mark Carney, there's going to be an election. He won't be in office -- I mean, before
the election he's not going to be there in office for that long. The liberals think they can win this time.
KINEW: Yes, I think there's tons of great talking heads on all the panel shows that we get to watch on your network and others who can break down
all the ins and outs of the politics. What I'll say is that we'll work with whoever the good people across Canada to elect. But if you were wondering
what the ballot question is going to be in the Canadian election this year, it's all going to be about who is best positioned to take on Donald Trump.
And while that federal election is taking place, the premiers such as myself, Doug Ford and all of our colleagues from coast to coast to coast
will be stepping up to provide that reassurance to Canadians that we're putting your jobs first, our economy first.
QUEST: At the end of the day, and this is more of a, I suppose, a touchy feely question than a hard economic one per se, I tweeted after I saw Mark
Carney's very strong speech that, you know, I believe it will take a generation at least before the resentment levels in Canada, where I've been
many times, as you know, the resentment levels about the way you've been treated by your southern neighbor. How long -- how do you view the long
term damage to the fabric of that relationship?
KINEW: Well, Richard, you're quite right that when Canadians hear that talk about 51st state, it's a visceral, emotional, negative reaction. And
Canadians push back. We're a nation of hockey players, so we know how to handle ourselves if there's a good scrap if you will. But I would also say
this about us being a nation of hockey players. We can have it out on the ice and we know how to have a beer with each other once the game is over.
So again, when we're thinking about the situation with tariffs and all the back and forth over the past few days and few weeks, what I would say is
this. It's often said in politics you relate before you negotiate. And I would hope that for the Trump administration, now that they've seen that
Canada will push back and Canada is somebody that they should view as a peer to respect, that now that they can relate to us, we can get back to
that table and have them negotiate with us.
QUEST: You know, Premier, I'm just looking at behind you, there's the two flags. There's obviously the Canadian flag and there's your state flag, but
in your state flag, you have the union jack, you have the union flag, because of course Canada is a realm of His Majesty King Charles III.
KINEW: Sure do.
QUEST: And I just wonder, I mean, it's all -- we've been talking about it quite a bit. It's a very strange business, isn't it, when the U.S.
president wants to oust the king as the head of state, of your country?
KINEW: Well, the other thing that we got on our beautiful Manitoba flag is the bison. And one of the things that, you know, colloquially, the buffalo
that I always say is that the bison in the midst of a winter blizzard will face into the storm. And I think that's exactly what we've been showing in
Manitoba and across Canada right now is even when this trade tariff talk escalates in the Trump administration to sometimes these comments about the
51st state, we're still greeting those challenges head on, where that bison, that herd of bison, if you will, sticking together and facing this
winter storm head on.
QUEST: I shall invite myself to your state when we shall present QUEST MEANS BUSINESS. And I invite you to join us, sir. I look forward to being
in your state.
KINEW: Anytime.
QUEST: Thank you, sir, for joining us, Premier.
KINEW: Promise.
QUEST: Well, we made many promises of where we're going to visit, and we keep most of them. There's somebody that's actually dear old Winston is
keeping a list of all the promises we make. So we do actually know what promises we've made. And they've still got to keep.
As we continue, the Irish taoiseach is meeting President Trump tomorrow. Ireland's economy, particularly vulnerable to tariffs. Myles O'Grady is the
CEO of the Bank of Ireland. There he is, sir. We'll discuss the taoiseach's St. Patrick's Day visit and the bank and how you're going to deal with it
all, because it's QUEST MEANS BUSINESS and that's what you'd expect.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:47:46]
QUEST: So let's watch and wait as Donald Trump meets the taoiseach of Ireland for their meeting. The Prime Minister Micheal Martin was invited to
the White House. It's a long standing tradition to be in Washington on St. Patrick's Day. I always think it's a bit strange, actually, that the leader
of Ireland goes to Washington on the most important day in a sense. But anyway, while he's there, he's likely to face questions about the country's
trade imbalance with the United States, along with, of course, E.U. sanctions against U.S. companies because of benefits they've gained in
Ireland. Apple is being the example.
Donald Trump has threatened to address the problem. A 25 percent tariff on E.U. products, a tariff on pharmaceuticals which would help Ireland as the
world's top drugmakers have major plants there.
Myles O'Grady is the Bank of Ireland's chief executive.
I ought to -- it's the Commercial Bank of Ireland, not the central bank, just so that the -- I mean maybe you'd like to be the central banker but
you're not. So we'll stick with the commercial world.
How worried are you that Irish business is ready for and indeed your own bank is ready for a slowdown as a result of tariffs?
MYLES O'GRADY, CEO, BANK OF IRELAND: Good evening, Richard. And it's good to be here. I mean, I'm in New York this week to meet our shareholders and
meet our corporate clients and to talk about the very strong financial performance of Bank of Ireland. Indeed, a very positive outlook out to
2027. And I say that to you because the Irish economy is in a strong position. We expect, GDP growth over the next three years of about 12
percent. That's supported by government spending, by positive business sentiment, by consumer spending.
So that positions the economy well. And of course, there is going to be a sense of a risk here from trade tariffs. But we entered those discussions.
We entered that situation from a position of strength. Ireland exports about 18 percent to the U.S.
QUEST: Right.
O'GRADY: So it's a strong position.
QUEST: Do you fear that you're going to get or there's a potential for getting clobbered, in a sense being blamed? I think of the Apple and the
tax and the fines that were put on as a result of benefits that were given in Ireland.
[16:50:08]
And, you know, there's a lot to be discussed and debated about that.
O'GRADY: Well, Richard, I mean, I think about what do we export to the U.S. So what goods do we do. Pharma, life sciences, really important as part of
that in terms of exports grew 18 percent last year. And that's an export business that's been developed over the last four decades in time. So it's
a very well established business.
This is about producing medicines for the world, less about Apple phones. I think that points to the resilience generally of the export sector. Should
say as well, of course, that it is true Ireland does export more goods to the U.S., but of course we import more services and overall we have a net
deficit of about $90 billion. Foreign direct investment is really important to the Irish economy and we value it very much indeed.
QUEST: Do you -- on an even wider scale, do you see potential for Ireland to take advantage of this enormous increase of expenditure that's going to
happen within the E.U. on defense, on security and all the NATO related expenditure to -- for European security. Can Ireland somehow take part in
that?
O'GRADY: Well, I think firstly, it's good to see the European Union coming together as it should do given the events that are occurring across the
globe. And certainly Ireland as an economy, you know, Europe is our biggest trading partner. So for sure, growth in Europe can only be good for growth
in Ireland. But again, we look after all of our trading partners, whether that's Europe, the U.K. indeed and indeed the U.S.
QUEST: Are you even a little bit anxious with the taoiseach sitting in the Oval Office, bearing in mind what happened when other leaders have been
there? Are you sort of thinking?
O'GRADY: Well, you know, Richard, our taoiseach Micheal Martin is an accomplished, very experienced senior leader, and I have no doubt he'll
point out the very strong relationship that Ireland has with the U.S. and we certainly want that to continue both for trade, for investment, but of
course much more than that as well.
QUEST: Right. Well done, sir. You are the consummate diplomat as ever I might expect. Good to have you, sir. Have a good St. Patrick's Day
tomorrow.
O'GRADY: Thank you very much, Richard.
QUEST: Thank you.
O'GRADY: You too. Indeed, thank you very much.
QUEST: Quest MEANS BUSINESS. The global celebration of freedom is here. It's "My Freedom Day". Students from around the world talking about what
freedom means to them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just have so much empathy for all the kids around the world who are facing this on a daily basis. And I don't think that
we're ever going to truly be able to solve the problem without working together.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:55:49]
QUEST: One of the things I love this time of the year, "My Freedom Day". This time it's about my freedom to learn.
Lynda Kinkade has been speaking to students of the International School of Art about their freedoms.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Lynda Kinkade at the Atlanta International School, where students from kindergarten to grade 12 are staging a mass
walkout for freedom.
Macy is one of the organizers. Explain why you're doing this.
MACY, STUDENT: So we're doing a 12-minute walkout to represent the 12- minute million children worldwide who are denied an education due to the fact that they were asked to work in challenging work conditions or are
forced to work in some sort of trafficking situation.
KINKADE: You're the youngest student here. Can you tell us what "My Freedom Day" means to you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "My Freedom Day" means to celebrate and to choose what - - choose what you can do in the world.
KINKADE: And what does freedom mean to you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's what -- it means to me is having a right to have a home and go to school and have a job.
KINKADE: Throughout the day, students and teachers have been holding a bake sale competition to determine who can make the tastiest treat using fair
trade products.
For those at home, Nadia, just explain what fair trade means.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So fair trade just basically means it's ethically sourced, that there's no labor trafficking or exploitation of the workers
involved.
KINKADE: And you've gotten a variety of treats. You've got carrot cake, cookies, meringues, all sorts of yummy things. What's been the most
popular, Alice?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I would for sure say the cookies. A lot of kids have been coming to get them in between classes, so.
KINKADE: So should I try cookie?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
KINKADE: All right, let's -- the taste of freedom is good.
I'm Lynda Kinkade in Atlanta for CNN. Happy --
STUDENTS: "My Freedom Day".
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: The freedom to eat cookies. "Profitable Moment" next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Tonight's "Profitable Moment." I can keep this really simple. "My Freedom Day", the freedom to speak. What does that mean? It means the
freedom to call it the Gulf of Mexico if you're the AP. What does it mean? It means the freedom to represent lawyers if you're a law firm. What does
it mean? It means the freedom to say you don't agree with a policy on Gaza however strongly you put that position if you are an activist at Columbia
University. That's what "My Freedom Day" means.
And that's QUEST MEANS BUSINESS for tonight. I'm Richard Quest in London. Whatever you're up to in the hours ahead, I hope it's profitable.
END
