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Supreme Court Hears Cast That Could Expand Presidential Powers; More Lawmakers Back Release of Double-Tap Boat Strike Videos; Trump Claims Zelenskyy Hasn't Read Latest U.S. Peace Proposal. Aired 10- 10:30a ET

Aired December 08, 2025 - 10:00   ET

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

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PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now, a major test of presidential power, the Supreme Court case that could reshape the federal government.

And bipartisan pressure, more lawmakers want Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, to release footage of a second strike that killed survivors on an alleged drug boat.

And speaking out, Marjorie Taylor Greene's first interview since she announced her resignation from Congress, she reveals what Republicans say about the president behind closed doors.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Plus, breaking news, a hostile takeover bid. Paramount now going to war after Netflix struck a deal to buy Warner Brothers Discovery.

Disappointed, President Trump criticizes his Ukrainian counterpart as Donald Trump Jr. says his father could abandon peace talks all together.

And the NFL playoff picture gets clearer, the major comeback by my Buffalo Bills in the snow.

Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer with Pamela Brown, and you're in The Situation Room.

Happening now, we begin at the U.S. Supreme Court, where President Trump's executive power faces a major test. Right now, the justices are hearing arguments in a very closely watched case challenging the Trump administration's effort to expand control of independent agencies and reshape the federal government.

CNN's Chief Supreme Court Analyst Joan Biskupic explains what's at stake and how the president could be on the verge of gaining even more power.

JOAN BISKUPIC, CNN CHIEF SUPREME COURT ANALYST: I am about to go inside the Supreme Court for a hearing that's underway over President Trump's ability to fire the heads of independent agencies. This case is going to test more than what happens to Rebecca Slaughter, who's the woman that he fired from the Federal Trade Commission in March.

This case goes to the power and independence of special agencies that Congress has set up with regulatory power over like the financial industries, labor environment, places that are supposed to be independent, and the pressure President Trump wouldn't be able to pressure them through firing. They should only be removed for some sort of misconduct.

Now, this case tests a 1935 precedent of the Supreme Court, in which the Supreme Court held unanimously that then President Roosevelt could not fire a commissioner on the Federal Trade Commission because of the way Congress had established the legislation. That precedent now hangs in the balance. And if the Supreme Court overturns that 1935 precedent, it will give Donald Trump even more authority in this second presidential term.

The Supreme Court has certainly lifted a lot of constraints among President Trump in terms of like the immunity ruling from last year that enhanced his power and he was further unburdened through lower court decisions, injunctions against his initiatives in a ruling earlier this year. So, this could be the final piece that really does embolden President Trump. And this one, as I say, involves his authority to get rid of the heads of independent agencies before their terms have expired and without any kind of showing of misconduct.

And we'll know later today the tenor of the arguments. But for now, we're just minutes away from that hearing starting. Back to you.

BLITZER: All right. Joan Biskupic at the Supreme Court for us, thank you very, very much. Pamela?

BROWN: All right, Wolf. Happening now, more lawmakers are calling for the Trump administration to release the full video of that controversial follow-up strike on an alleged Venezuelan drug boat back in September.

Now, last week, members of Congress emerged from a briefing with the Navy admiral who directed that second attack. Democrats, for the most part, argued the strike was illegal. Republicans defended it as lawful.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was pressed this weekend on the video.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, Mr. Secretary, you will be releasing that full video?

PETE HEGSETH, DEFENSE SECRETARY: We are reviewing it right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is that a yes or no?

HEGSETH: That is for -- the most important thing to me are the ongoing operations in the Caribbean with our folks that use bespoke capabilities, techniques, procedures in the process. I'm way more interested in protecting that than anything else. So, we're reviewing the process and we'll see.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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BROWN: We should note that Hegseth has released videos of other strikes.

CNN's Arlette Saenz is on Capitol Hill. Arlette, what are you hearing from members of Congress about where this goes next?

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Pamela, at least one top Republican and a slew of senior Democrats who received those briefings said that they would support releasing the full video of that follow- up strike that killed survivors on an alleged drug trafficking vessel, even as both size have reached vastly different conclusions after watching the video for themselves.

Now, President Donald Trump has said that he was open to releasing this video, but as you heard from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said there, he was non-committal, simply saying that they are engaging in a review in order to release this video.

But Senator Tom Cotton, the chair, the Republican chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said that he is open to having this video released, and that is something that many Democrats are also pushing for. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TOM COTTON (R-AR): I personally don't -- I don't have any problem with it. It's not gruesome. I didn't find it distressing or disturbing. It looks like any number of a dozens of strikes we've seen on jeeps and pickup trucks in the Middle East over the years.

REP. JIM HIMES (D-CT): I've spent years looking at videos of lethal action taken often in the terrorism context. And this video was profoundly shaking shaken, and I think it's important for Americans to see it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAENZ: Now, Senator Cotton said he supports releasing this video, but what's unclear is whether he or other Republicans on Capitol Hill will push the Pentagon and President Trump to do so.

There's a lot of questions also about where the Congressional oversight heads next. We're still waiting to hear from Senator Roger Wicker, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee and was one of the two leaders of that committee who said that there would be thorough oversight of this follow-up strike at a time when many Democrats are pushing for more answers and transparency from the administration about this action.

BROWN: All right. Arlette Saenz, thank you so much. Wolf? BLITZER: Also happening now, President Trump is once again venting about Ukraine's president. He claims Volodymyr Zelenskyy has not even read the latest version of the U.S.-backed peace plan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: So, we've been speaking to President Putin and we've been speaking to Ukrainian leaders, including Zelenskyy, President Zelenskyy. And I have to say that I'm a little bit disappointed that President Zelenskyy hasn't yet read the proposal. That was as of a few hours ago. His people love it, but he hasn't.

Russia's fine with it. Russia's -- you know, Russia. Russia I guess would rather have the whole country when you think of it, but Russia is, I believe, fine with it, but I'm not sure that Zelenskyy is fine with it. His people love it. But he hasn't read it.

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BLITZER: Zelenskyy is meeting with European leaders today. He says, issues over territory and security guarantees remain major sticking points in these negotiations.

I want to go to CNN White House Reporter Alayna Treene right now. Alayna, Donald Trump Jr. is also weighing in right now. Tell our viewers what he's saying.

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, that's right, Wolf. I think this is just adding to a lot of the concerns that Ukraine, but also the United States, European allies have about the state of play with these talks and really the fragility of these negotiations, which I should note kind of stalled on Thursday after a marathon session between some of the president's top advisers, people like Steve Witkoff, as well as his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, meeting with the Ukrainian officials on Thursday. Those talks really not getting into the place where I think both sides felt like they could move forward.

And some of the sticking points I just want to mention that remain. And this is what I'm hearing in our conversations with people here at the White House, is this idea of Ukraine surrendering key territories to the Donbas region, of course, that a part of Eastern Ukraine. Security guarantees, that is a big one that I know that they're discussing in London as Zelenskyy meets with some of those leaders of France, Germany and England. And then this idea of Ukraine's permanent exclusion from NATO, that continues to be a sticking point that, of course, Russia's asking for. Ukraine really does not want to commit to that, and also this idea of Ukraine limiting this size of its military. There's been a lot of concerns, we've heard, from European leaders and Ukrainian officials that they believe this is too friendly toward Russia.

Now, as for your point about what we heard from Donald Trump Jr., the president's son, he was speaking at a conference in the Middle East and he was asked if he thought the president would walk away from these talks if they continue to stall. Listen to what he said. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: is your hunch that President Trump is going to walk away?

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DONALD TRUMP JR., DONALD TRUMP'S SON: I think he may. What's good about my father and what's unique about my father is you don't know what he's going to do.

You don't know. And so that forces everyone to actually deal in an intellectually honest capacity.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: It is not really reassuring language there from Donald Trump Jr. saying that, yes, he, the president's unpredictable, my father is unpredictable, he could walk away. And so all of that really playing a role here.

And one other thing I think is worth pointing out, Wolf, is that another topic likely to be just. Discussed with Zelenskyy and the European leaders he's meeting with is the Trump administration released last week a new national security strategy, one that really is unprecedented in its posture toward Europe and taking that hard line approach. It's also one the Kremlin we've heard from has said that they welcome and that it more aligns with their own vision of the world. So, all of that kind of adding to the uneasiness, we know some European officials and Ukrainians are feeling today.

BLITZER: All right. Alayna Treene over at the White House for us, thank you very, very much. Pamela?

BROWN: Well, breaking news, a tsunami warning has just been issued for Japan's east coast after a powerful 7.6 magnitude earthquake hit about 44 miles off the coast just in the last hour. Here you see in this video is chandelier swinging because of the powerful shaking. Officials say, tsunami waves could reach up to ten feet tall in some areas. No word yet on significant damage or injuries, but, of course, we will continue to track this.

And still ahead here in The Situation Room, I'll ask Democratic Congressman Joaquin Castro about that controversial follow-up strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean.

BLITZER: And major changes coming for visitors to America's national parks.

Stay with us. Information you need to know. You're in The Situation Room.

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[10:15:00] BROWN: Happening now, more members of Congress are calling on the Trump administration to release the full video of that controversial follow-up strike on an alleged Venezuelan drug boat in September. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth isn't committing to it even though the Pentagon has released videos of other strikes in the past.

Joining us now is Democratic Congressman Joaquin Castro of Texas. He is on the House Intelligence and Foreign Affairs Committee. So, Congressman, thank you for coming on. We should note you have not seen the video of that second strike. What can Democrats do if the secretary of defense declines to release the video of it?

REP. JOAQUIN CASTRO (D-TX ): Well, that's a great question. And you know, this administration has been the most secretive, least transparent, certainly that I've dealt with in my dozen years in Congress, but I also think in a generation. And I'm glad you asked that question because yesterday, the NDAA came out the Defense Authorization Act and there's a provision in there that two of my colleagues put in that would affect funding for the Department of Defense and Secretary Hegseth if he doesn't do things, like release this video to Congress.

We are having a real problem that this administration will not allow for oversight. So, the video should be seen by Congress and I think, Pamela, it should be seen by the whole country.

BROWN: But it's Democrats in the minority right now. Is there any way to enforce that provision?

CASTRO: Well, I'm hoping that -- you know, so we have the NDAA. I believe the language is in there. I hope that there will be bipartisan support to make sure that the video is seen, but also that, you know, we see the other strikes and that if this continues, that we see those ones. That should be basically the minimum of what the administration should provide to Congress.

BROWN: Based on what you know about the strike, where do you stand on it? Because we've had other Democrats say that it was very disturbing, that they believe it was a war crime. Where do you stand?

CASTRO: I think that it was a war crime, and I think that it was murder. Think about it this way. If somebody was charged in the United States with carrying drugs or even trafficking drugs. There would be due process. We would follow the rule of law. And most of all, the penalty would not be execution. You would not get the death penalty for doing what those men are allegedly doing or allegedly doing in the Caribbean.

And so you have the secretary of defense playing judge, jury, and executioner here, and it's undermining the rule of law and due process and really making it dangerous for service members from the United States and making the world more dangerous.

BROWN: And based on our reporting, the admiral who briefed members of Congress said that, you know, he made that decision, that he had consulted with DOD lawyers on this. But, you know, it's striking just the different reactions we've been hearing over this video from Congress. You know, you have the Senate Intelligence Committee chairman, Tom Cotton, saying that after he saw the video, that it was, quote, entirely appropriate to strike the boat again, and that he had no problem with the being a public, arguing it would justify the military's follow-up strike. How do you explain this partisan divide where Democrats who saw the video of this say it was illegal, Republicans who view it, believed it, the military acted lawfully?

CASTRO: Well, I think that it's a sad commentary on our politics today that we can't look at something, and based on our law, on our laws and our principles, come to the same conclusion. And I thought, I think I saw a clip of that interview, and I believe it was John Berman that asked him the question, if there was somebody trafficking drugs in a boat, in a lake in the United States, would it be okay to basically blow them up? And the answer is obviously no.

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You would arrest that person, you would charge them, they would go to court. A jury might find them guilty and then they'd go to prison. But you wouldn't just blow them up without knowing who they are, without charging them with anything. In some cases it looks like without trying to recover any evidence or any bodies without explaining anything to Congress or to the American people. This represents a new kind of lawlessness by a president of the United States.

BROWN: I just have to ask, you know, I mean, how much do you think though the opposition from Democrats is also about just opposing the Trump administration at large?

CASTRO: I mean, look, no doubt in Washington there's a lot of back and forth between the parties and we're on different sides of many important issues. But I really think that this one, the reason that this issue endures, that we've been talking about it for weeks now, is because it strikes at the very core of American morality. We are trying to uphold high standards and principles. We're trying to uphold the rule of law and due process in the United States, but also encourage it around the world. And this clearly doesn't do that. It leads us to towards a more dangerous world, more lawless world.

And so I hope that even though politicians in Washington may argue about it, I think you look at the surveys and it's clear about where the American people stand. They know that it's wrong.

BROWN: I want to ask you about another topic. This is about your Texas colleague, Congressman Henry Cuellar, who the president criticized yesterday for a lack of loyalty after Cuellar announced that he would be running for reelection as a Democrat despite the president pardoning him.

You've worked closely with Congressman Cuellar for years. Did you expect him to become a Republican in exchange for a pardon?

CASTRO: I didn't. And Henry was always clear with me that no matter what happened, that he was going to be a Democrat. In fact, I remember years ago him saying I was born a Democrat and I'm going to die a Democrat.

But this really speaks to the corruption of the pardon power of President Trump that he expected a kind of quid pro quo, I'm going to pardon you and now you're going to switch parties because of that. I mean, there's no other way to say it. That's just pure corruption. And it's inconsistent with who we strive to be as a country.

BROWN: But as you know, the president does have, you know, the pardoning powers. It's in the Constitution, but, clearly, he was not happy to see Cuellar run for rear election as a Democrat.

Tonight is the deadline for candidates in Texas to file for the midterms. Do you want to see Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett pursue a Senate bid in the Lone Star State now that Colin Allred is not running? Have you spoken with Crockett recently?

CASTRO: Yes, I've spoken. You know, the thing is these are all my friends. You know, I'm good friends with Jasmine. I'm good friends with James Talarico and with Colin. And so I think we have an incredible slate of candidates who are going to be running for U.S. Senate, for governor, for lieutenant governor. And, of course, Colin now, I think, announced he's going to run for a house seat in Dallas.

And so, you know, I think Democrats have a good chance in 2026 and we're going to field candidates up and down that ballot.

BROWN: But what about Jasmine Crockett? Do you want her to make a run for Senate?

CASTRO: Yes. She should. She absolutely should, if that's what she -- if that's where her heart is and that's where her mind is. Jasmine is a fighter. She's an incredibly dynamic person. She's got a message that's resonating not only with the Democratic base but I think with Americans across the country. And so, yes, you know, and I've never told anyone that they shouldn't enter a primary, if that's what they want to do, that they shouldn't jump into a race if that's what they want to do. You know, if that's where her heart and mind are. She absolutely should run.

BROWN: Are you definitively pursuing reelection in the house, Congressman or higher office in Texas and has the redistricting in Texas impacted your decision-making at all?

CASTRO: I am going to run for reelection to represent San Antonio. You know, I was looking at different statewide possibilities but I finally decided, you know, as I thought about it, one of the reasons that somebody will usually run for office that people were inspired to run for office is to get into the arena and to be able to fight in the arena.

And I'm already there. On foreign affairs, I'm one of the main Democrats. On all these issues going on in Latin America and the Caribbean as the president is talking about invading Venezuela. I'm on the Intelligence Committee, so, obviously, all the issues that we just talked about are front and center on the Intelligence Committee. And I also want to make sure that for San Antonio, you know, I'm very proud to represent my hometown that people can afford things. I go to the grocery store and people tell me about the high prices and the prices going up and how they can't afford it. And so I want to keep fighting there.

And so I feel like I'm already in a place for the next year where I can fight and be useful to folks.

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And that's what I want to do for the next year, and then hopefully get reelected and do it for two more years.

BROWN: All right, a bit of news there that you are running for reelection. Congressman Joaquin Castro, thank you so much. I appreciate it.

CASTRO: Good to be with you.

BLITZER: And coming up could Paramount actually blow up the multi- billion dollar Netflix deal to buy Warner Brothers Discovery? We have new details on the hostile takeover bid it just launched.

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BLITZER: Breaking News, Paramount has just announced the hostile takeover bid for CNN's parent company, Warner Brothers Discovery.

[10:30:02]

This news coming just days after the company announced a deal with Netflix.

BROWN: CNN Chief Media Analyst Brian Stelter is gathering the details.