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The Situation Room

White House East Wing Set For Demolition; Gambling Bust; New Conservative Pentagon Press Pool. Aired 11:30a-12p ET

Aired October 23, 2025 - 11:30   ET

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

[11:30:03]

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: There are still appeals under way. LindellTV, that's Mike Lindell's channel. He has been in court for years over those 2020 election.

So these are outlets that advance the president's agenda. They do not specialize in investigative reporting or digging, but it is notable that Pentagon trying to bring in these influencers in a kind of a P.R. stunt of sorts to say, hey, we're going to bring in our new voices to the Pentagon.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Good point.

Barbara Starr, you and I are old friends, colleagues. We covered the Pentagon together when I was the Pentagon correspondent and moved over to cover the White House. You replaced me, did an amazing job. How do you see these right-wing outlets who are now part of the press corps at the Pentagon that both of us used to cover on a day-to-day basis, me during the first Gulf War?

What's your reaction when you see what's going on?

BARBARA STARR, FORMER CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, first of all, I just absolutely reject the Pentagon's assertion that there is a new Pentagon press corps that they have announced. That's not how the world works in this country with a free press.

There are dozens, if not hundreds of journalists that continue to cover the Pentagon who did not sign up to the new restrictive rules who are continuing to do their jobs every day. The Pentagon has gone so far as to say the journalists, the traditional journalists, self- deported from the Pentagon.

How ridiculous is that? Deportation is a message point and it indicates criminal behavior. That is not what is going on here. So reporters are continuing to report, and they're breaking scoops every single day from outside the Pentagon.

And Mr. Hegseth may find that he is going to continue to struggle with looking at his morning reading and finding breaking news stories that he has no idea or even coming at him. I think it's a shame, Wolf. There is plenty of room for new media out there, new credible media emerging in this country. There's plenty of room to discuss the question of the lack of public

trust in some media, plenty of room to move ahead into a modern -- a more modern age. And that is what many news organizations are already doing. But to hurl insults and to rely on political influencers, it's not journalism and it's not what the First Amendment and the free press is really all about in this country.

It's about protecting reporters, not political influencers.

BLITZER: Yes, serious journalists who cover the Pentagon refused to sign that document demanded by the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, that they report only, only what the Pentagon publicly releases in press releases and can't do any really serious investigative journalism, which is what we all do.

Brian, let me get back to you. I want to read something from "The New York Times" opinion columnist Maureen Dowd. She writes this. And I'm quoting now: "Hegseth, immature and unconfident, cannot accept that a free press is integral to democracy. Hopefully, the defense secretary who will take over when Hegseth is undone by the press for his ineptitude and un-American diktats will understand that."

What do you think? Is there any way, any going back or are we only going to see more like this? What do you think, Brian?

STELTER: Well, this may well backfire on Hegseth. Journalists continue to report on the military aggressively and gather and gain scoops from outside the Pentagon's walls. So this may backfire.

And yes, I do think there is -- there are ways to see this being repealed in the past -- in the future, that is, and going back to a more normal traditional setup at the Pentagon. What Hegseth is doing is in line with a broader trend we have seen from the Trump administration. It's about punishing independent journalism and promoting propagandists.

We have seen the Trump administration shut down VOA, try to ban the AP from the White House, defund PBS and NPR. At the same time, they're propping up Trumpy Web sites, giving lots of interviews to FOX News and pushing A.I.-generated slop. It's all related. It's all of a piece.

And I think most Americans not only see it; they see through it. They see that it's a P.R. campaign, as opposed to a real effort to better inform the American people.

BLITZER: And, Barbara, as I'm sure you remember and I remember it well, when I covered the Pentagon, I would walk around the Pentagon building, the E-Ring at the White House -- at the Pentagon, and four- star generals and admirals would come up to me and say: "Wolf, I saw you on CNN.Here's some information that the American people need to know."

They would share some sensitive information with me. I would check it out and report it. I'm sure you did the same thing. You can't do that now because it's not an official publicly released

press release. How is this going to affect the very important information that Pentagon reporters have traditionally put forward and delivered to the American people?

STARR: Well, Hegseth doesn't want reporters walking around the building, so he has restricted that very heavily. He seems to labor under the delusion that classified information just leaps out into those hallways. It's not really the way it goes, it happens.

[11:35:09]

You talk to people. You develop sources. Perhaps the most telling thing is, every defense secretary I ever covered walks the hallways themselves. They like to run into reporters. They like to know what the reporters are up to, what they were working on, and to have a relationship with them.

Often, they would talk about the fact, we have nothing to hide. We want to talk to the American public, and often that does go through the news media. That's just a fact in this country. So that's one of the big losses here. That relationship now has to change. It cannot exist the way it has for years.

And it remains to be seen. Are the American people really going to be the losers in getting less news? I don't think so. I think reporters will be able to dig out the stories, get the scoops, and continue to publish them.

BLITZER: Let's hope that happens.

Barbara Starr, thank you. Brian Stelter, thanks to you as well.

And just ahead, we're learning more right now about this big morning's -- this morning's big story, I should say, NBA stars arrested in mafia-linked sports rigging and gambling probes. We have more details coming in. We will share them with you when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:40:44]

BLITZER: Back to the breaking news of the massive sports gambling investigation.

Federal officials are saying a ring of rigged poker games and illegal betting on NBA games is allegedly linked to mafia families and current and former NBA players. Dubbed Operation Royal Flush, the investigation spanned multiple years across 11 states with more than 30 defendants and involving tens of millions of dollars.

Back with me right now is CNN senior legal analyst former federal prosecutor Elie Honig.

Elie, once again take us through what happens next, what happens now. ELIE HONIG, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Well, Wolf, this is a shocking moment for the NBA and for people beyond that. So there are two separate indictments here.

There are 30-plus people charged with running these illegal gambling operations, these illegal poker games, including the current NBA head coach Chauncey Billups. Then the second case involved six defendants who allegedly were involved in feeding insider information about what players might play, what players were injured or out to gamblers so that they could place large bets on NBA games and then win them.

So the next step, now that all these defendants have been indicted, is they will make their initial court appearances. They will all enter pleas, presumably of not guilty. And then the judge or judges who get assigned these cases will set a schedule, potentially out towards a trial date.

These are massive cases, Wolf. We have got about three dozen defendants in general. And each one of those defendants is going to have to decide, do I plead guilty? Do I try to cooperate or do I exercise my right to go to trial?

BLITZER: Good point. Do you think it could mushroom into more people being charged?

HONIG: So we heard DOJ and FBI officials saying, our investigation is ongoing. We always say that at the Justice Department.

And that's true. I mean, what you see in a lot of these cases is, there will typically will be some defendants who say, the best way I can help myself here is by cooperating, by coming forward, by pleading guilty, and then by working with prosecutors and the FBI to make other cases.

So that happens all the time in federal cases. It would not at all shock me to see some of these 30-plus defendants make that decision. And so, yes, we could see additional charges and additional defendants.

BLITZER: Yes, if some of these defendants plead guilty and start cooperating with federal authorities in order to get a reduced sentence, this could certainly mushroom into a lot more people potentially getting charged.

All right, Elie Honig, thank you very, very much. We will stay on top of this story, huge development that we have been following this morning.

Also, coming up next: Demolishing history? President Trump now says plans for his White House ballroom will cost $300 million and the entire East Wing of the White House will be destroyed. Much of it already has been destroyed. We have new details.

Stay with us. You will want to see this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [11:47:52]

BLITZER: Happening now: The East Wing of the White House is being reduced to rubble with each passing minute. Hard to believe. These are live images coming in of the demolition, clearing the way for President Trump's new ballroom and its ballooning price tag.

Historic preservationists are calling for an immediate halt to the demolition. But the leveling of the East Wing should be complete, we are now told, within the next couple of days.

CNN's Brian Todd has been closely following all of these developments.

How thorough is the administration with this project?

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, very thorough right now.

And you can see the live pictures of the demonstration going on. As you mentioned, historical preservation groups, architectural preservation groups, they are just apoplectic about this. The National Trust for Historic Preservation has called for an immediate pause on the demolition.

As we show you these before and after pictures, the before pictures are on your left, those images on your left are before the demolition started. And look at the stark difference,the demolition images right now on the right-hand side. It is really stark.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation wrote to the National Park Service and to the administration a letter that said that what you're seeing going on the right-hand side there, all that demolition, is going to -- quote -- "overwhelm the White House itself."

We should point out just this addition is going to be about 90,000 square feet under President Trump's proposal. The White House itself is 55,000 square feet. That's what the National Trust for Historic Preservation is talking about when it talks about overwhelming the White House.

Here is President Trump yesterday talking about the project.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We determined that really knocking it down, trying to use a little section -- the East Wing was not much. It was not much left from the original. It was a very small building.

And rather than allowing that to hurt a very expensive, beautiful building that, frankly, they have been after for years, you have that. I brought these along so people could see, but it's -- there's a relative -- nobody's actually seen anything quite like it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TODD: Now, all of this is not just a recent whim on the part of President Trump. He has been thinking about a project like this since before he took office, for the better part of about 15 years.

[11:50:11]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (voice-over): President Trump has long been fixated on leaving his own personal imprint on the White House grounds. His latest project will cost about $300 million, he says.

TRUMP: They have wanted a ballroom at the White House for more than 150 years.

TODD: Construction has begun on a grand ballroom at the White House, which will resemble the ornate Donald J. Trump Ballroom at Mar-a-Lago. There will be gold and crystal chandeliers, according to the renderings, gilded Corinthian columns, a coffered ceiling with gold inlays, gold floor lamps and a checkered marble floor.

Three walls of arched windows will look out over the White House South Lawn.

LINDSAY CHERVINSKY, PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: It's certainly a departure from the historic elements of the rest of the state floor of the White House.

TODD: The president and his team characterize this as a necessary addition to the White House, which has often hosted major events in a temporary tent that Trump calls a disaster, especially when it rains.

TRUMP: People are schlopping down to the tent. It's not a pretty sight. The women with their lovely evening gowns, all of their hair all done, and they're a mess by the time they get in.

TODD: This is certainly not the first ambitious addition or renovation to the White House. In 1902, Theodore Roosevelt undertook an extensive remodeling, which relocated the president's offices to the West Wing. In the late 1940s, Harry Truman basically had to gut the entire infrastructure of the White House.

TIM NAFTALI, CNN PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: What Truman did was he oversaw the restoration of a White House that was falling apart. It was so weak that one of the legs of Margaret Truman's piano broke through the floor in the residence of the White House.

TODD: First lady Jacqueline Kennedy brought in historic furniture and fine art.

CHERVINSKY: Jackie Kennedy wanted the White House to be of museum quality when people came to visit. She wanted them to see the finest American art, furniture, but also to capture the history of the White House.

TODD: President Trump says the $300 million project will be funded by him and other private donors. Trump's already replacing the White House Rose Garden with a patio, but still keeping the roses. He also added a flagpole and a massive flag, and he's added his taste for gold to the Oval Office. Here's a comparison from just after last year's election to more recently.

CHERVINSKY: Most usually change out the carpet and the draperies and some art, but he definitely changed out more than is, I think, standard for presidents, and it reveals his preferences.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD: And we have another image here that will illustrate just how large this construction project and the demolition is.

There's the East Wing there over on the right-hand side and the rest of the White House complex. Look at the ballroom part of it there in yellow, again, 90,000 square feet. The rest of the White House, I mean, the entire White House itself, we're told 55,000 square feet.

That just gives you an idea of the scale, the overwhelming scale of this construction and demolition project. Now, as for those donors, President Trump said he would pay for part of it, but a lot of it is going to come from private donors. Here are those donors.

And it's really a who's-who of corporate titans in America, Amazon, Apple, Google, Microsoft, Meta, Lockheed Martin, Palantir. That's the software Giant that builds platforms for A.I. And we have other private donors that are very prominent in the United States, including the Adelson Family Foundation, Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss.

They are the founders of the Gemini cryptocurrency exchange. They're also known for their legal dispute with Mark Zuckerberg over Facebook. Kelly Loeffler, who's also part of the Trump administration, and the Lutnick family. Howard Lutnick is part of the administration, as is Kelly Loeffler.

Howard Lutnick, Wolf, is the commerce secretary. Those are some big- name donors, and a lot of questions being raised about the ethics of some of these donations.

BLITZER: I'm trying to figure out if these donations by these really rich people will be considered charitable contributions, and they will be tax-deductible, reducing their tax.

TODD: It's really not clear at this point, and I think a lot has to be looked into regarding that.

BLITZER: Yes, I was just curious on that.

TODD: Yes.

BLITZER: The president also has construction plans beyond the grounds of the White House. What can you tell us about that?

TODD: Well, there is an arch in the president's plans and the renderings and drawings. There you see them. He is involved in planning for an arch to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

That's going to be next July. The renderings and models, as you see, are very similar to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. Now, this would be situated across the Potomac River on the Virginia side of the river, across the Arlington Memorial Bridge. You see kind of the perspective there. It's across the Arlington Memorial Bridge from the Lincoln Memorial, between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery.

It's on a grassy circle there on the Virginia side of the bridge. Timing for the construction is yet to be determined and it is not clear how this is going to be paid for, Wolf.

BLITZER: The Arc de Trump, as some are already calling it.

TODD: Yes.

BLITZER: You also have some new reporting this morning, Brian. You're doing excellent reporting on a plea from hundreds of National Guard employees. What can you tell us?

[11:55:03]

TODD: National Park Service employees.

Wolf, these are former National Park Service employees, more than 450 of them, imploring the interior secretary, Doug Burgum, to close the national parks until the shutdown ends. They cite damage and dangerous behavior at some parks since the shutdown began, including a wildfire at Joshua Tree National Park in an unmonitored campground area, and reports of illegal base jumping and park goers flying drones in Yosemite National Park.

Those are illegal. Here's what the letter says -- quote -- "Our parks don't run by themselves. The dedicated staff of the National Park Service keep them clean, safe, and functioning. And as these latest and, sadly, predictable incidents clearly demonstrate, our parks cannot operate without them."

The Interior Department, we have gotten a response from them. It said -- quote -- "We are committed to protecting park resources, ensuring public safety, and maintaining visitor access to the greatest extent practical."

Wolf, the Interior Department also pointing out that a lot of businesses and communities depend on these parks remaining open. That's a big factor in keeping them at least partially open.

BLITZER: All right. I spent years as a White House correspondent. It makes me sick to see what's going on in the East Wing. I spent a lot of time in the East Wing.

TODD: Yes.

BLITZER: It's just awful what's going on.

All right, thanks very much, Brian Todd, reporting for us.

And, to our viewers, thanks very much for joining us this morning. "INSIDE POLITICS WITH DANA BASH" is coming up next after a quick

break.