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Day 2 of Testimony in Sean Combs Trial; Refugee Status for a Group of White South Africans; Trump in Saudi Arabia; House Republicans Unveil Details of Trump Tax Plans; Zelenskyy on Possible Meeting with Russia. Aired 10:30-11a ET

Aired May 13, 2025 - 10:30   ET

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

[10:30:00]

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: It's day two of testimony in the federal criminal trial of Sean Diddy Combs. We're expecting to hear from the prosecution's key witness today, Combs' former girlfriend Cassie Ventura. Her attorney saying this morning that she's ready and confident. Combs has pleaded not guilty to all charges, including sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution. If convicted, he faces the possibility of life in prison.

And a quick note to our viewer, CNN's coverage of this trial, you'll see on the left side of your screen, you'll see information from our reporters who are inside the courtroom. That's because there's no video or audio recording allowed in federal court. Pamela.

PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: We are joined now by CNN Legal Analyst and former federal prosecutor Elliot Williams. So, right now, Daniel Philip is being questioned and redirect examination by prosecution. He is this male escort who says he was paid thousands of dollars by Combs to have sex with people like his ex-girlfriend, Cassie Ventura. Why is his testimony so significant here be?

ELLIOT WILLIAMS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST, FORMER DEPUTY ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL AND FORMER FEDERAL PROSECUTOR: Absolutely. It's very significant because they have to set a predicate for Cassie Ventura's testimony. If you notice, the way the prosecutors structured the case so far is, number one, you heard it from a law enforcement official, a security guard who sort of intercepted them or was there shortly after the violence that we saw on camera.

And then number two, this escort who had firsthand knowledge or testified to firsthand knowledge of having been in the room. They are setting up Cassie Ventura's testimony. The prosecutors could not just come -- have come out of the gate and put her on. You have to really lay a predicate for why she's there in the first place.

BLITZER: Hotel surveillance videos, you know, showing Cassie Ventura being physically assaulted by Combs back in 2016 in a hotel lobby, if you will. That was central to the hotel security guard's testimony that we heard yesterday. What was the key takeaways from that?

[10:35:00] WILLIAMS: All of this is to establish not just that this was an act of abuse, but it was an act of abuse for the purpose of coercing, forcing, or threatening someone into complying with sexual conduct against their will. So, really what they're doing here, what prosecutors are doing is establishing not just that it happened, but that it happened for a purpose.

And if you notice all of these things are putting the pieces around these, quote/unquote "freak offs" that happened that, you know, weren't just -- prosecutors are alleging that they're not just people engaging in sex acts but sex acts that are forced.

BROWN: And it's interesting to hear what the defense had to say about that video, for example, you know, kind of owning this and showing some self-awareness that, look, this is dehumanizing, this is really disturbing. Admitting that Combs did engage in domestic abuse, but could that also work in the prosecution's favor? Because so much of this comes down to coercion versus consent. And couldn't the prosecution argue, well, he was using these kinds of tactics as part of coercion?

WILLIAMS: Right. The hardest thing that attorneys attempt to have jurors do is separate what they see and hear from reality, right? And what prosecute -- what jurors are being told is that this individual, the defendant, is beating his ex-girlfriend or an ex-partner, regardless of racketeering and establishing a predicate. And was this a sign of a -- I mean, those are high level intellectual questions when -- what people hear and feel when they hear it is, wait a second, this guy's beating his wife or his girlfriend. How am I going to find this guy not guilty?

And I do think it can absolutely backfire for a defense team to admit or acknowledge that a defendant has engaged in such horrible acts. So --

BLITZER: But they did admit that.

WILLIAMS: They did. Right. And it's risky for them to do so.

BROWN: But do you think they kind of had to do it after that video. It's so damning. I mean, how do you --

WILLIAMS: Laura Coates earlier in the program said exactly how lawyers think, which is that you got to admit what you can't deny and don't deny what you have to admit. And it's there, it's on video. They have to have a theory for how to deal with the violence. But absolutely, it's dangerous to do so because it plants and the jury's going to see it, and they're going to draw conclusions from it because they're human beings.

BLITZER: Absolutely true. Cassie Ventura, the prosecution's key witness, Elliot, is set to take the stand today. What is the goal with her testimony?

WILLIAMS: The goal from prosecutors is to established that, yes, this was a consensual relationship, but she was forced, threatened, or coerced into sexual activity as charged in the indictment. It -- they have -- prosecutors have to establish that it was just bigger than two people fighting with each other.

Now, the defense is going to say, wait a second, you -- number one, we're in this we're a relationship with the defendant for a decade. Number two, you hit him too. And number three, this was consensual. So, there's going to be a clash here, and I think we'll just see how it plays out.

BLITZER: We'll see how that unfolds.

BROWN: All right. Elliot Williams, as always, stay with us. Thank you so much.

BLITZER: And just ahead, granted refugee status in the middle of massive immigration reform. Up next, we'll ask Democratic Congressman Ritchie Torres about the Trump administration's decision to grant refugee status for a group of white South Africans. Stay with us. We'll be right back

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:40:00]

BLITZER: New this morning, the Senate minority leader, Chuck Schumer, is set to place what's called a blanket hold on all U.S. Justice Department political nominees until he gets direct answers from the Trump administration on the president's plans to accept a luxury jet from Qatar for use as Air Force One.

Let's discuss this and more with Democratic Congressman Ritchie Torres of New York. Congressman, thanks so much for joining us. I know you've called this move a flying grift, your words, a flying grift and have noted that the regime's ties to terrorist organizations like Hamas. President Trump himself has called Qatar a, quote, "funder," a funder of terrorism. So, what do you think is really behind this move?

REP. RITCHIE TORRES (D-NY), FINANCIAL SERVICES COMMITTEE: It is influenced pedaling at its most outrageous and egregious. I mean, Donald Trump's $400 million presidential palace in the sky represents the largest gift that's ever been conferred on any president by any foreign government in the history of the United States, and it's outrageous and unacceptable.

And just as troubling as the gift itself is the source of the gift, Qatar. As you noted, Qatar is a state sponsor of terrorism. It has a long and ugly history of financing of barbaric terrorist organization, Hamas, which has on its hands, the blood of Americans, and it's a cruel irony that both Air Force One and Hamas are going to have something in common paid for by Qatar.

BLITZER: The U.S. attorney general, as you know, Congressman, Pam Bondi, has given the move, her stamp of approval. We should point out that Bondi previously worked as a foreign lobbyist for the Nation of Qatar, earning about $115,000 a month. Do you believe it would be legal for Trump to accept this $400 million plane as a gift and can Congress realistically do anything to stop Trump from accepting it?

TORRES: There's no doubt in my mind that the president's influence pedaling is not only unethical, but it's also unconstitutional, and he's violating the Constitution with impunity. I have no faith in the independence of the DOJ. The DOJ's independence has all but collapsed. Instead of enforcing ethics and upholding the law, the DOJ is putting its stamp on approval on a dubious transaction that's violating the Constitution.

The Emoluments Clause prohibits any elected official from accepting any foreign gift from any foreign government, and we should send a crystal-clear message that no one, not even President Trump, is above the law, let alone the United States Constitution.

[10:45:00]

BLITZER: Yes. That Emoluments Clause says a president can accept -- cannot accept a gift like this without approval from Congress. And clearly, Congress is not likely to approve such a gift.

I want to quickly talk about the president's current visit to the Middle East. Despite the ongoing conflict in Gaza, the president is not visiting Israel on this trip. He's going to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar. What does it signal to you that Trump is skipping over a key U.S. ally like Israel in the region and not dropping by and visiting the government and the people of Israel in Jerusalem and elsewhere?

TORRES: I mean, I feel it sends the wrong message. I mean, the United States has no greater ally in the Middle East than the State of Israel. The U.S.'s relationship is not merely a transactional or strategic alliance. It's a friendship built on common values. And I'm cautiously optimistic that the future of the Middle East does not belong to Iran and its empire of terrorism, it belongs to Israel and the Abraham Accord.

And so, we should be building on the momentum of Israeli, our peace in the Middle East. That to me, is the best hope for moving forward.

BLITZER: On another sensitive issue while I have you, Congressman. The Trump administration, as you know, is granting what's called refugee status and potentially a quick path to U.S. citizenship to dozens of white South Africans, even as it clamps down on refugee resettlement for people fleeing war and famine elsewhere in the region, in Africa and elsewhere around the world. What does that say to you about the president's immigration policies?

TORRES: It -- for me, it reveals that Donald Trump and J. D. Vance have an ethnonationalist view of America. An America defined not by creed, but by color. The administration is hostile to every kind of immigrant except white South Africans. And I find that exception to the rule to be quite revealing about the true character of the Trump administration.

BLITZER: On Capitol Hill today, as you know, Congressman, House lawmakers are beginning votes on a package of spending cuts. As you know, Medicaid spending has been a target for some Republicans. Are there any changes to Medicaid you would support?

TORRES: Why I strongly oppose the Republican party's more than $700 billion cut on Medicaid. You know, there's no congressional district in America that depends more heavily on Medicaid than mine. 67 percent of my district is enrolled in Medicaid.

And people should know that Medicaid is not only healthcare for the lowest income, it is increasingly long-term care for the disabled and the elderly and the chronically ill. So, make no mistake, these Republican cuts are an attack on the most vulnerable people in our society, the elderly and the vulnerable.

I'm in favor of reforms that would make the program more efficient, but I'm not in favor of what the Republicans are doing, which is taking a machete to the most important safety net for the most vulnerable Americans.

BLITZER: Congressman Ritchie Torres of New York, as usual, thanks so much for joining us.

TORRES: Absolutely.

BLITZER: All right. Pamela.

BROWN: Coming up, Wolf, President Zelenskyy weighs in on a possible meeting with Russia and Turkey on Thursday. He wants to meet with Putin directly. We're live in Kyiv with more, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:50:00]

BLITZER: New this morning, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, says the main goal of potential talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin is a ceasefire agreement. I want to go live right now to our Chief International Security Correspondent Nick Paton Walsh. He's joining us live from Kyiv. Nick you just had a chance to speak to Zelenskyy. What did he tell you?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, all eyes really focused on Turkey. On Thursday, he said he will fly to Ankara, Turkey's capital, to meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. And indeed, if Putin says, I'm coming to Istanbul, they, both men will fly together to meet Putin there.

Obviously, Zelenskyy keen to see Trump potentially there as well, who's also pressured what he said was expectation two leaders would attend. But when I spoke to him earlier, Zelenskyy set some minimal goals or minimalist goals for what that meeting could potentially bring about if it indeed it happens.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WALSH: If this meeting does go ahead and does not result in an immediate 30-day ceasefire, will you consider that to have been a failure?

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: No, of course. It's meant that Russia is not ready for diplomacy. It's meant only one side. It's only about Russia. What has been, if they will not come -- if Putin will not come, or if ceasefire will not be supported by Russians, by Putin, exactly by him. So, it's been only one thing that Russia is not ready for any kind of negotiation.

No time for playing games on the technical level and et cetera. It's meant -- it means that they -- also -- I mean, this supportive, all of these things, and it's meant only one thing, that we need to be more strong, unite, and tough on them.

And today, I see only one thing, sanctions. Of course. Of course. If I will have connection with the President Trump, of course not only sanctions and I will tell him, so you, you see that we need that sanctions have to be powerful and we need a little bit time for this. When sanctions be -- will have influence.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALSH: Now, it is that issue of sanctions, which really, if you listen to the European leaders on Saturday, should have been kicked in at a tough level because Russia ignored the ceasefire demand for Monday, but now appear to be the consequence if Vladimir Putin doesn't attend this meeting in Turkey. Likely a Russian delegation will go. There seem to be U.S. officials from a reasonably senior level in country at that time.

[10:55:00]

The big question is, will Putin attend? No clue on that at this time. And indeed, if Putin attends, well, we may see U.S. President Donald Trump attends. This is really, I think, a make-or-break moment for diplomacy. You heard Zelenskyy say it there, he believes if Putin doesn't attend it shows he's not serious in negotiations. Will Trump share the same view? Wolf.

BLITZER: We'll see what happens in those meetings in Turkey. Nick Paton Walsh in Kyiv for us. Thanks for the update. Pamela.

BROWN: All right. Coming up right here in the Situation Room, inside the Biden White House. Aids privately discussed the prospect of putting President Biden in a wheelchair if he was elected for a second term. What else a new book by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson is revealing. That's next.

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[11:00:00]

Today: Cassie Ventura expected to testify in Sean "Diddy" Combs trial; Schumer to play hold on DOJ political nominees over Qatari plane; Trump in Saudi Arabia for first stop in major Middle East trip; Trump grants refugee status to white South Africans facing "race-based discrimination" despite lack of evidence; Whtie South Africans granted refugee status by the Trump administration arrive in U.S.; Today: Key committee votes on House spending cuts package; House Republicans unveil details of Trump tax plans; Trump budget plan includes changes to Medicaid and food stamps; Zelenskyy: Goal of potential talks with Putin is ceasefire agreement>