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Footage of Nancy Mace Airport Incident Revealed; Ukraine Peace Talks; Interview With Kentucky Senatorial Candidate Lt. Col. Amy McGrath; Demand Grows For Boat Strike Video. Aired 11-11:30a ET

Aired December 10, 2025 - 11:00   ET

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

[11:00:03]

PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST: Happening now: Three separate strikes on alleged drug boats have left behind survivors. New CNN reporting about what happened to them after the strike.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: And police say she turned a minor miscommunication into a spectacle. Now Congresswoman Nancy Mace is reacting to the report of her airport rant that went viral.

BROWN: And newly released video shows the moment police found murder suspect Luigi Mangione after a weeklong manhunt.

BLITZER: And critical concerns about teens and A.I. chatbots, the alarming new research about how much time they spend with artificial intelligence.

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.

And we begin this hour with escalating frustration up on Capitol Hill. More lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are now demanding the Trump administration release the full video of that very controversial follow-up strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. THOM TILLIS (R-NC): We got to get any videos that do not in any way compromise mission integrity down there. Just get the stuff out there.

SEN. MARK WARNER (D-VA): I believe the American people deserve to see. And even if you would argue, well, there are sources and methods -- I'm not sure except that argument -- but sure as hell at least members of Congress ought to see.

SEN. JOSH HAWLEY (R-MO): If there's a way to release the video, which I have not seen, but if there's a way to release that does not compromise our intelligence gathering, I would urge him to do it.

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): It was a very unsatisfying briefing. I asked Secretary Hegseth, Secretary of Defense Hegseth, would he let every member of Congress see the unedited videos of the September 2 strike? His answer: "We have to study it." Well, in my view, they have studied it long enough.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: President Trump, for his part, doesn't appear concerned by the congressional exasperation. Watch what he told a Pennsylvania crowd last night in an event that was supposed to be focused on his economic agenda.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: But they don't go after our ships. You know why? Because that same missile that knocks the crap out of them that -- where the drug dealers come from, Venezuela and others.

(CHEERING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: All right, so let's bring CNN's national security correspondent, Kylie Atwood.

So, Kylie, these strikes, as we know, they have been going on for a while. A lot of questions were raised, though, when we found out about this second strike, right, back in September, but then we knew that some survivors had actually been released, right? And now you're learning more about what has happened to survivors on other boats that were struck.

KYLIE ATWOOD, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, Pam.

So there have been more than 20 drug boats that have been struck over the course of the last few months. In total, there have been five survivors after the initial strike, and that is on three separate incidents that we know of.

So, as you said, it's this first drug boat strike that has been most controversial. And that's because there were those two survivors that, according to briefings that the Congress has now received from the Pentagon, were believed to be holding onto pieces of the boat after the first strike that were floating.

So they believed that there was still cocaine in that boat, and that is why the second strike happened. But, of course, there's been a lot of controversy over that second strike and the legality of it. But there are those two other instances in October where there were also survivors, but they were treated very differently.

So, on October 16, there was an incident where there was another strike. There were two survivors, and the U.S. actually took in those survivors, and then they released them to the countries that they were from. That was Ecuador and Colombia.

Now, according to "The New York Times," there was some back-and-forth between the State Department and the Pentagon during this period of time, with the Pentagon suggesting that maybe they send these survivors to a mega-prison in El Salvador.

State Department lawyers, according to "The New York Times," were pretty stunned by that proposal, but they were eventually released to both Ecuador and Colombia. And then there's a third instance, and that is later in October. This was on the Pacific Ocean, and there was one survivor after 14 were initially killed in the initial strike.

And the U.S. went to the Mexican navy, told them that there was one survivor. The Mexican Navy carried out a search-and-rescue mission. They weren't able to find that survivor. That person is presumed dead.

So, if you look at all of these instances, the way that the U.S., the way that the Pentagon dealt with how to deal with these survivors is very different. We heard over the weekend from the secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, saying that there are different circumstances in each of these. There wasn't actually different protocol that was followed.

But there are still many questions. You heard from lawmakers yesterday after they were briefed by top members of President Trump's national security team still having questions, particularly about this September 2 strike. And one of the things that they want are the legal opinions at the time.

[11:05:05]

BROWN: So, just to follow up, and I don't know if you know the answer to this, but -- so, in that first strike, some of the justification from DOD has been, well, there was still cocaine in the boat and they could have posed an ongoing threat, right?

ATWOOD: Yes.

BROWN: In the case where the two survivors were captured and then released...

ATWOOD: Yes.

BROWN: ... do we know if there was cocaine in the boat still on that one, or any drugs?

ATWOOD: So, what a U.S. official told my colleague Haley Britzky about this, who writes at length about these three incidents, is that they were the only two survivors of that instance, which means that they were not perceived as still posing a threat because the submersible that was carrying the drugs had been fully downed in the strike.

So, because they didn't pose a threat, that is the reason that they were then taken in by the U.S. and then released to the countries where they were from.

BROWN: So, in the first one, the part of the boat remained or -- and they were trying to flip it back over.

(CROSSTALK) ATWOOD: ... holding on to those drugs.

BROWN: OK.

ATWOOD: There's questions about that rationale. But that's what they told lawmakers last week.

BROWN: All right, Kylie Atwood, thank you so much. Excellent reporting.

BLITZER: Also new this morning, the Republican chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Mike Rogers, is prepared to end his panel's investigation into that very controversial follow-up strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean.

The committee aide tells CNN -- and I'm quoting now -- "The video and classified briefings from the Pentagon were sufficient to convince him this was a legal action."

For more analysis, I want to bring in retired Lieutenant Colonel Amy McGrath. She's a former us Marine combat fighter pilot. And we should note she's also running for the U.S. Senate in Kentucky as a Democrat.

Thanks so much, Colonel, for joining us. I know there's a lot going on right now.

As someone who has risked her life in your particular case fighting for this country, why are you so concerned by everything we're learning right now about the so-called follow-up strike in the Caribbean?

LT. COL. AMY MCGRATH (RET.), KENTUCKY SENATORIAL CANDIDATE: I think it's really concerning because, first of all, if the Pentagon had no problems releasing the first video, and they didn't -- they tweeted about it. They're very proud of these videos.

And then, when there is a controversy with the second -- with the second boat strike -- and there is. These guys, as you just were mentioning, were clinging to the boat. And to justify and say, well, there's cocaine there and we have to go and destroy the boat, when we have laws of war -- right now, we don't even know if we're at war because Congress hasn't authorized anything.

But our military, when you see people who are a shipwrecked, you can't just execute them. And so there is controversy here. And if the Pentagon says they're the most transparent Pentagon, which is what they have said, they ought to release this second video.

It doesn't pass the smell test when you're like, hey, there's secret stuff in the second video, but not the first. Come on. We all know this.

PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST: What do you say to perhaps the layperson who's watching this unfold and say, well, I mean, they were -- and you can have questions about whether the first strike is legal, right? And a lot of Democrats have come out and said they believe that they're not legal, right?

But if -- what do you say to the American out there who's like, well, if they're trying to strike and kill the bad guys, why not just finish the mission?

MCGRATH: Yes. Yes.

BROWN: And, again, I know that there's a legal aspect, but I think that -- it's a political messaging aspect too.

MCGRATH: Yes.

Well, I certainly hear that a lot because, in Kentucky, we have a real problem with opioid crisis.

BROWN: Yes.

MCGRATH: We -- people want to go after and I want to go after drug dealers.

But it doesn't pass the smell test when the president and these Republicans then turn around and pardon the -- one of the biggest narco-terrorists on the planet in this ex-president of Honduras, who not only trafficked 300 tons of cocaine, tons, not pounds, but also was sentenced to 45 years in prison.

So you can't say, OK, I really want to do this, I really want to strike these boats and go after these guys, but at the same time turn around and pardon the actual drug kingpins. I mean, that doesn't pass the smell test for Americans or for Kentuckians.

And, also, if you really care about this issue, you really care about the people who are hurt by addiction and drugs, why would you then turn around and cut programs for treatment and prevention? And that's exactly what these Republicans did last summer when they passed this big bill.

So it doesn't jibe. It doesn't connect.

BROWN: We should note also, Senate Republican leader John Thune, a member of the Gang of Eight, he told reporters yesterday that he hasn't even seen the video of the second strike.

I mean, you have worked on Capitol Hill and the Pentagon. What do you think members of Congress and the American people need to see to be assured that follow-up attack was legal, as DOD is claiming?

MCGRATH: Well, it's about accountability.

And, first of all, we're putting our military in a hugely bad spot because Congress is not doing their job. They're not authorizing the use of force. That is what their job is to do. And so if you want to take out all of this and you want to find out if -- is this legal or not, Congress needs to authorize the use of force.

[11:10:14] But this second boat strike, I mean, it doesn't make sense to release the first boat strikes and then turn around and say, well, there's something secret in the second one. Why...

BROWN: They have been reviewing it for a while. How long do you have to study it?

MCGRATH: Right. And we know why they're not releasing it, because they know what happened was wrong. They know it. And they don't want accountability, accountability for it. That's why they're not releasing it.

BLITZER: And on that point, in other attacks against alleged drug boats in the Caribbean, there have been survivors of initial strikes, including in one instance where the U.S. Navy detained two people and actually returned them to their home countries.

MCGRATH: Right.

BLITZER: So why would the September 2 incident at question be any different if those survivors didn't pose a real threat?

MCGRATH: Well, and this just goes to the total chaos and recklessness of the entire policy. It's not well thought through, OK?

And I hear this a lot from Kentuckians. Well, we want -- we want the president -- we want to go after drug runners and that sort of thing. But this is a reckless policy that people don't know what we're doing there. And now we're talking about going to war in Venezuela?

That's not what Kentuckians, that's not what Americans are focused on. That's not what we voted -- people voted for this president to do. I know no one in Kentucky said, I really voted for President Trump because I want to go to war against Venezuela.

This isn't even where the drugs are coming from. So it doesn't -- the policies don't make sense. They are not connected. And it's bigger than that, right? It's not just this drug war that he's taking on that these Republicans want to do. It's also the tariff policy. It doesn't make sense.

And Congress isn't stepping up and doing its job in authorizing any of this, because it's Congress' job -- the most fundamental thing is matters of war and peace. And Congress needs to step up and do this.

BROWN: What do you think about the Republican leadership with the Armed Services Committee saying that no more investigation needs to be done about this?

MCGRATH: It's crazy. This is their job. Of course, there needs to be an investigation on this.

We know that the second boat strike, there's major controversies here. And you're putting our military in a hugely bad position. Now, think about the fact that our allies have said, we're not with you. Why is no one saying, why is our allies not with us anymore?

They're not with us because they know that some of the things that we're doing down there are wrong.

BROWN: You're talking about the U.K.

(CROSSTALK)

MCGRATH: Yes. They're not sharing intelligence with us anymore. And so somebody's got to sit back in Congress and be, why are our closest allies not with us anymore?

These are really important matters. And Congress is asleep right now. They're not willing to stand up to this president. And that's what it comes down to. They need to do their jobs.

BROWN: All right, Amy McGrath, thank you so much for sharing your perspective here in THE SITUATION ROOM.

BLITZER: Thanks for your service, Colonel, as well.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: Appreciate it very, very much.

BROWN: Thank you, also from my home state of Kentucky.

BLITZER: A great state, one that you love and one that you love.

BROWN: That's true.

BLITZER: All right, still ahead: as pressure mounts from President Trump on an agreement, Ukraine preparing to hand over a new refined, so-called refined peace plan. What we know just ahead of today's announcement.

BROWN: Plus, soon, some visitors to the U.S. may have to reveal their social media history to get an entry visa. Details of the new proposal and which countries will be impacted.

You're in THE SITUATION ROOM, and we will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:18:23]

BLITZER: New this morning, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy now says he thinks his country will give the United States an updated peace proposal as soon as today.

This comes after President Zelenskyy's discussions in London this week with the leaders of Britain, France and Germany. And it follows President Trump's efforts to step up pressure on Zelenskyy, claiming Ukraine is -- quote -- "losing" the war with Russia.

Joining us now, retired U.S. Air Force colonel and CNN military analyst Cedric Leighton.

Colonel, despite that claim from Trump, multiple sources are now telling CNN that there are no new U.S. or European assessments suggesting we're at a turning point in this conflict. What's your view?

COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: So that, I think, is true. There are no official intelligence assessments that say that Ukraine is losing this war.

There is, however, some movement on the ground that indicates that Russia is advancing incrementally. And that is not really in contradiction with any of the assessments that are out there, because they do take into account that the Russians have, for example, taken territory in and around the city of Pokrovsk in the east.

And then they're also moving forward in the region of Zaporizhzhia. So these areas are critical for the Ukrainians. And it does point that they do have some potential vulnerabilities in the future. But, right now, the front line is not collapsing. The Ukrainians are holding their own, more or less, and they're digging in for the winter.

BLITZER: President Trump says Ukraine's President Zelenskyy -- and I'm quoting Trump now -- "is going to have to get on the ball and start accepting things" -- end quote.

Is Ukraine ultimately going to have to surrender land to Russia?

LEIGHTON: Well, I think, in a de facto sense, that is probably going to happen, just being realistic about this.

[11:20:02]

But, in a legal sense, they really don't have to do that. If they look at the model that ended the Korean War, for example, the South Koreans never recognized the territory that the North Koreans took from them. And the North Koreans conversely did not recognize the territory the South took from them.

So there are ways to do this, where you recognize the fact of what's on the ground, but, legally, you don't recognize it. That might be the kind of compromise that exists. But the Ukrainians should not ever give up territory that the Russians have not won militarily. And I don't think they will.

BLITZER: I'm sure they won't.

Another big issue is security guarantees. Russia, of course, is against NATO membership for Ukraine. What kind of role will Europe play in shielding Ukraine from future Russian attacks?

LEIGHTON: So it's going to be an indispensable role, especially if you look at America's national security strategy that the Pentagon just unveiled this past week.

So the key thing here, Wolf, is that that strategy is basically talking about a retrenchment of the U.S. from Europe. If that comes to pass, the way they talk about it in that strategy, then the Europeans are going to have to step up. And they're going to have to be the ones that are the guarantors of Ukrainian security.

And that might mean that they have to do some things like include Ukraine in an air defense identification zone, which means basically that they would be responsible for the air defense of Ukraine, or at least a portion of Ukraine.

It also could mean that they eventually may even station troops there. So they have to be prepared to do those things. They're not really saying that they're going to do that last part yet, but they need to be prepared to do that. And they need to, in essence, step up and fill the void left by the United States.

BLITZER: And, as you know, it's not a secret. There are plenty of fears out there, especially among European officials that President Trump is losing patience with this entire process.

One senior U.S. official tells him -- and I'm quoting now -- "It's becoming more of a political liability for him as an endless war" -- end quote.

What kind of pressure is President Zelenskyy feeling from the Trump administration right now?

LEIGHTON: So I think he's feeling a very distinct pressure to get to some kind of an agreement. And it's really strange, because the U.S. should really be in lockstep with the Ukrainians. The rival should be Russia in this particular case.

But the United States, in the form of the Trump administration, is really trying to move in a direction that is very much in line with Russia's objectives, which are, in essence, to subjugate Ukraine, either directly or indirectly.

So if President Zelenskyy moves ahead with a plan, as is reported, that he would allow elections in the next 60 to 90 days, that would be a major change for the Ukrainians. But basically what they're looking at is a legal loophole that would allow them to basically undeclare martial law, which, under the Ukrainian Constitution, they're not allowed to have elections under martial law.

So, in the next 60 to 90 days, if the Europeans or others can guarantee Ukrainian security, they may have elections. And if Zelenskyy runs and he gets a mandate from the people of Ukraine again, then that will strengthen Zelenskyy's hand in this particular case.

BLITZER: Colonel Cedric Leighton, as usual, thank you very, very much.

LEIGHTON: You bet, Wolf.

BLITZER: Pamela.

BROWN: All right, up next here in THE SITUATION ROOM, Wolf, police say she caused a spectacle over a minor miscommunication. Well, CNN has obtained new video and the police report on Congresswoman Nancy Mace's airport confrontation.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:27:51]

BROWN: For the first time, we are getting a look at security camera footage of an incident between Republican Congresswoman Nancy Mace and airport officials in South Carolina.

So this right here is at Charleston International Airport. This was back in October. And it was reported at the time that Mace lost her temper after a misunderstanding about her drop-off.

BLITZER: And CNN has now obtained a copy of the internal investigation by the airport.

Our correspondent Tom Foreman has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): "I'm sick of your shit. I'm tired of having to wait. You guys are always effing late. This is effing ridiculous."

The newly obtained Charleston Airport investigation report says Republican Congressmember Nancy Mace repeatedly insulted security officers when her car was not met and she was not immediately escorted to her plane in late October.

REP. NANCY MACE (R-SC): Did I drop an F-bomb? I hope I did. Did I call them incompetent? If I didn't, they absolutely earned it.

FOREMAN: Mace's office called the report a full exoneration, even though it says she blew a minor miscommunication into a spectacle.

MACE: You're giving other cops a bad name and I'm coming for you.

FOREMAN: So you need to know that. But Mace is grabbing headlines for more than that. In a "New York Times" opinion piece this week, she ripped her own party for avoiding votes on popular ideas, such as term limits and banning stock trades by lawmakers.

She insisted Democrat Nancy Pelosi was a more effective House speaker than any Republican this century, including current Speaker Mike Johnson, and she added a warning to her party: "If we fail to pass legislation that permanently secures the border, addresses the affordability crisis, improves health care and restores law and order, we will lose this majority, and we will deserve it."

MACE: How many more decades are going to go on when we elect people to do a job and they become corrupt?

FOREMAN (on camera): Mace, who is running for governor of South Carolina, is among a small cadre of Republican congresswomen who have strongly supported the MAGA movement.

MACE: I support President Trump.

FOREMAN (voice-over): But who have also pushed back on some of Trump's apparent wishes, for example, calling for full release of the files around sexual predator and one-time Trump friend the late Jeffrey Epstein.

(END VIDEOTAPE)