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Annual Rate of Inflation Slowed to 2.7 Percent in November; House GOP Passes Health Package, Doesn't Extend Key Subsidies; Police Lean on Public for Help Finding Brown University Shooter. Aired 10- 10:30a ET

Aired December 18, 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, breaking news, inflation drops to its lowest level in months as President Trump defends his economic efforts in front of the nation, but the numbers may not be telling the whole story.

Plus, Rob and Michele Reiner's, other two children speak out after the shocking murders as their brother remains in jail.

And easing back marijuana rules, the major changes that could come today.

Welcome to our viewers in the United States and around the world. I'm Pamela Brown. Wolf Blitzer is on assignment, and you are in The Situation Room.

And we begin this hour with that breaking news, a new measure of the economy released just a short time ago. The consumer price index shows inflation has slowed to an annual growth of 2.7 percent. That was at a smaller rate than expected, but economists warn this is a deeply flawed report. And it comes as President Trump defends his economy very forcefully and a prime time address. He says, the country is enjoying a record start to his second term, and he blames any economic pain on his predecessor.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: One year ago, our country was dead. We were absolutely dead. Our country was ready to fail, totally failed. Now, we're the hottest country anywhere in the world,

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: CNN's Alayna Treene is at the White House for us. So, let's begin with our coverage, though, with CNN Senior Reporter Matt Egan to better understand this morning's numbers and how they fit into the big picture of the economy, Matt.

MATT EGAN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Well, Pamela, today's report, at least at the surface, it does offer some glimmers of hope on the affordability front, and that's big because that is obviously the number one economic issue. But I do want to stress that economists say we need to read this report with a healthy dose of skepticism because the government shutdown does appear to have distorted some of the numbers, and I'll get into that.

But, first, some of the big takeaways here, so consumer prices up by 2.7 percent year-over-year in November, that's an improvement from 3 percent in September. This is a four-month low. And this beats expectations, which were for inflation has stay at 3 percent. And when you look at the trend here, right, you can see that last year inflation was falling. Then came April, that's when the president rolled out his historically high liberation day tariffs, and inflation started to go back up. Today's report shows that it thankfully ticked down in November.

However, I think the bad news is that virtually every economist I talked to this morning says that we need to really take this with a grain of salt because the government shutdown, it delayed the collection of data. It may have distorted some of the numbers here, in particular some of the improvement that we saw in this report when it comes to shelter. Economists tell me that it really just doesn't pass the smell test. So, they're not putting a terrible amount of weight on this report. They want to see what the next one looks like, the one that comes out in January.

And, look, even though the rate of inflation in this report did go down, I do want to stress that it doesn't mean that prices are falling. They're still going up just at a slower pace.

Now, some things, like gasoline, they only went up a little bit, right, less than 1 percent. And we know gas prices continue to move down this month. Grocery prices also up by less than 2 percent, so that's encouraging.

However, look at some of the numbers on electricity, right, electricity up by 7 percent year-over-year. That's going to cause some sticker shock for people when they open their utility bills. Natural gas as well, that's the number one way to heat homes in America, up by 9 percent year over year. That's not what you want to see. Also, bad news for coffee lovers, roasted coffee up by 18 percent, instant coffee, 24 percent more expensive year-over-year, that's the biggest annual jump since 1995, and it does reflect those tariffs that the president put on imports, including imports of coffee. Now, some of those tariffs have been rolled back, but we're still seeing some big price increases.

So, look, big picture here, Pamela, this is encouraging news, but we really need to see it confirmed in upcoming inflation reports before we can take it at face value. Back to you.

BROWN: All right. Let's go to Alayna Treene at the White House now. Alayna, what feedback are you hearing about the president's speech?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Oh, well, look, I think he gave the speech that many officials wanted him to. Part of it was he stayed on script, he read the teleprompter, very uncharacteristic, Pamela, for the president, different, I should say, than the speech he delivered in Pennsylvania last week.

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I was in the crowd there when he was supposed to be focused on affordability, and he kind of weaved all over the place for over 90 minutes.

This was very different. This was an 18 minute speech, and it was very clear what the overall message was supposed to be, what he was intending to do with this, which was to try and address the affordability concerns that are really plaguing this administration, particularly as we head into next year, of course, a midterm elections year. He spent a lot of time, Pamela, talking about the economy. And one of the biggest themes that we saw throughout those 18 minutes was he repeatedly tried to lay the blame for any of the economic struggles Americans are feeling right now at the feet of his predecessor, Joe Biden. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Months ago, I inherited a mess and I'm fixing it.

This is what the Biden administration allowed to happen to our country. Do you remember when Joe Biden said that he needed Congress to pass legislation to help close the border? He was always blaming Congress and everyone else.

Under the Biden administration, car prices rose 22 percent, and in many states, 30 percent or more. Under Biden, real wages plummeted by $3,000. Electricity costs surge 30 to 100 percent under Biden. The worst thing that the Biden administration did to our country is the invasion at the border.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: Now, look, to that point, I mean, that was only a couple examples, Pamela, of him actually using Biden's name. There were many others. But I've traveled the country talking to Trump supporters, and last week I did that in Pennsylvania. Many of them argued that they agree that maybe he inherited a struggling economy, but the thing is they are losing patients. And we have a new CNN poll of polls, which shows that exactly. It puts the president's overall job approval at 39 percent with 58 percent disapproving. And some of the latest polls as well included in that average show, rising prices are really causing hits to his popularity.

BROWN: All right. And, Alayna, the president also announced a one- time payment for U.S. service members. What more can you tell us about that?

TREENE: Yes. He is calling it, Pamela, the warrior dividend. So, essentially, the president announced that he's going to be issuing checks to some 1.5 million members of the U.S. military. The number of that is going to be $1,776. That's essentially the president saying it's symbolizes the year of the nation's founding. And he said he is going to pay for this with some tariff revenue, but there's some questions about what that actually will look like. He didn't really explain the legal authority, I should argue, behind the payments there.

But this is something he said. He said checks are on the way. He wants to make sure the military is taken care of. And they're going to be branding this as the warrior dividend to try and kind of boost this idea of them giving more money back to the people, particularly in this case, of course, the military.

BROWN: All right. Alayna Treene, Matt Egan, thank you both so much.

And happening now, health insurance premiums are expected to skyrocket, according to the non-partisan Kaiser Family Foundation, as Congress bolts without addressing them. House Republicans passed a narrow healthcare bill last night without extending the enhanced Obamacare subsidies that are set to expire at the end of the month. That vote came after four moderate Republicans signed on to a Democratic discharge petition to force a vote to extend those subsidies for three years.

CNN's Arlette Saenz is on Capitol Hill. Arlette, House Speaker Mike Johnson says that vote won't take place until after the holidays, until after those subsidies expire. What more can you tell us about that?

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Pamela, millions of Americans are set to see significant spikes in their health insurance premiums at a time when cost of living concerns are a key focus for many heading into the New Year. It is now expected that there could be about 2 million people who lose health insurance coverage, and for those who do maintain it, they could see their premiums spike by over $1,000 in the next year. It all comes as lawmakers have spent months debating the end of these Obamacare subsidies with Democrats shutting down the government over this issue to no avail.

Now, the situation has also laid bare the tensions within the Republican Conference in the House as those four moderate Democrats side -- or Republicans sided with Democrats to support that three-year extension. But here it is some sound highlighting the tensions and the fishers within the Republican Party on this issue.

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REP. MIKE LAWLER (R-NY): I am here to do a job. I'm not here to be a potted plant or a vote just for leadership.

REP. ERIC BURLISON (R-MO): To me, they're stabbing the rest of the party in the back.

REP. KEVIN KILEY (R-CA): So, what are we supposed to tell these folks? Oh, don't worry. It's Obama's fault. Party leaders focus most of their time and energy on trying to blame problems on the other side rather than trying to solve those problems.

REPORTER: Have you lost control of the House?

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REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA): I have not lost control.

REPORTER: Because it's the third time.

JOHNSON: Look, we have the smallest majority in U.S. history, okay? These are not normal times.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAENZ: Now, the House is set to wrap up their work today and Speaker Johnson said there would not be a vote on that three-year extension of these expiring Obamacare subsidies until January. But even if that vote does pass the House, it has a very uncertain future in the Senate.

Now, there are various groups of bipartisan lawmakers who are talking, trying to figure out if they could maybe hammer out some type of deal to have a shorter extension with some reforms. But for millions of Americans, they are set to see these premiums spike as Congress has been unable to reach a solution on this issue.

BROWN: Yes. And many of those Americans have said they just simply can't afford it and won't be able to keep going with it.

Arlette Saenz, thank you very much for the latest there from Capitol Hill.

And still ahead here in The Situation Room, armed and dangerous, the search for the Brown University shooter now in its sixth day, the key evidence that could help investigators.

And sentencing day for Brian Walshe, the emotional moments in court.

You're in The Situation Room and we'll be right back.

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BROWN: Happening now, the search for a killer in Providence, Rhode Island, is now day six with no suspect in custody. Police are leaning on the community for a break in the Brown University shooting that left two students dead and nine wounded. Investigators are looking for anyone who crossed paths with this person of interest in the case.

A friend of one victim shared this message he received from him before the shooting. Mukhammad Aziz Umurzukov said he got dragged into an econ review class by another friend, even though he wasn't taking the course. The shooting happened in that classroom just a short time later.

CNN's Michael Yoshida's in Providence. Michael, the police want more help from the public. What are they saying?

MICHAEL YOSHIDA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Pamela. The memorials continue to grow here at Brown University as the police message remains one of patience and asks and pleas from the public for help as this investigation moves into its sixth day, as you mentioned. The efforts really pushing out beyond the campus area, police putting out this map showing just how expansive this work is. It shows the areas where this person of interest was in the hours before the shooting as well as right after, and also the areas within broader Providence that they're now asking homeowners, other individuals to check surveillance cameras on their homes, on their buildings, also maybe on their vehicles, they may have caught something inadvertently showing this person of interest.

They also have learned from investigators that they have physical and DNA evidence from the crime scene. They've had no hits or matches yet, but that could obviously be crucial in tying any person of interest or someone else to the crime scene. Police all ask also putting out an image and asking for the help identifying someone who may have crossed paths with this person of interest, may have noticed something, seen something.

And also curiously enough, we were learning that school officials say it's taking a little longer than you might expect to figure out who all was in that classroom where this shooting happened. Saying it was a voluntary study session. There was no registry or check-in of who needed to be there. So, they're still working to figure out who all was at that scene when this shooting happened.

Still many questions remain in this community as this investigation moves forward, questions about the amount of surveillance cameras in the area where this shooting happened, and also, of course, the pace of this investigation and tracking down the person responsible, many wondering just how close police are or are not to finding this individual. Pamela?

BROWN: Yes. And as this manhunt continues, everyone there is on edge.

Michael Yoshida, thank you so much.

For more now on the manhunt, I want to bring in Mary Ellen O'Toole. She's a former FBI special agent and profiler.

So, what do you think, I mean, you heard Michael just bring up, no one really knows how close police are or not to actually finding a suspect. What are the chances after six days?

MARY ELLEN O'TOOLE, FORMER FBI SPECIAL AGENT: Well, I think the chances of identifying him and then ultimately arresting him are really quite good. And I say that because investigators have made it pretty clear that they do have forensic evidence and more specifically they likely have DNA, and I think that is like the gold standard for forensic science. So, with that, ultimately they can identify this offender.

BROWN: But what about if this offender wasn't already in the system for a prior crime? How does the DNA help in this investigation?

O'TOOLE: It's a great question because we rely on a system called CODIS, an acronym for the DNA system used by the FBI and all of law enforcement. If that person is not in CODIS, then what they'll do is probably default to forensic genetic genealogy so they can go back and take a look at what they have right now, unknown to them, but they have DNA, and then go back and forensically through, again, genetic genealogy and identify a relative or prospective relative. So, that's another way that they could do it.

BROWN: Well, police released that map of the suspect's movements before and after the shooting.

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I think we have the map to show. What's the purpose of that?

O'TOOLE: Well, they really want to get the public to go back on the day of the shooting and think about where they were in regards to that map and the locations on that map. A lot of people will listen to the news reports and dismiss them, and that's just common. So, they want to get people to think about, could you possibly have crossed paths and not thought about it. And that's important because now this person stands out to us.

But back on Saturday, if you were driving around, you probably looked at this individual and were thinking about your Christmas list. I mean, he didn't draw that much attention. So, they really have to get people to think about yes, maybe I did see him in the coffee shop, or, yes, maybe I did see him walking down the street. He did have that kind of fanny pack around his neck. So, that's what they're trying to do.

But I think there's one more reason that's really important, and I think they're really doing a good job on this. We used to recommend it in the FBI all the time, keep the pressure on this offender. Keep the pressure on him so he doesn't know how close they're getting or what they've discovered next, as much pressure as you can keep on the offender. And he is following this case in the media. He could be watching this.

BROWN: I was going to ask about that.

O'TOOLE: Yes, he could be watching it right now because he wants to know not only how close are they to me but, frankly, a lot of these offenders enjoy hearing about how they got away with it and how good they are, at least in their own mind, and so keeping the pressure on him this way with these reports going out constantly.

So, basically you've got not only law enforcement, but you've got the whole community in his mind looking for him. So, that's important.

BROWN: What do you make of the video? We're showing some screen grabs from the video, but he's pacing back and forth in front of the camera. And I wonder what you thought about that and what the thinking could have been.

O'TOOLE: Yes, I saw that video and something made him a little nervous, something concerned him, and the video shows him, I believe, without the fanny pack on. And if that is, in fact, true, he may have been worried about getting access going to wherever it was and getting access to his firearm, but something made him nervous. Was it somebody might have seen him that he recognized or there was a possibility that there was some interference between and he couldn't have accessed the gun at the point where he wanted to access it? But whatever that is, hopefully, we'll learn later once he's arrested. But, yes, it does look like something made him nervous.

BROWN: And I'm wondering, you know, as someone who profiles all kinds of people who have committed crimes, he must presumably know there are cameras around that could be capturing him even in that moment where he is pacing back and forth. How often is it that a suspect would change maybe the way they walk or do things knowing that law enforcement would rely on video footage like this to try to track them down?

O'TOOLE: Well, again, great questions. I don't think this person is particularly camera savvy. But to your point about can someone change their gait or can they change something about them, they can temporarily. But it is really difficult when you think about it. Just go out on the sidewalk right now and try to change everything about yourself, the way you walk, the way you hold yourself, the way your arms swing. I mean, it would become so disruptive. You probably couldn't move forward. So, to be able to do that over an extended period of time so you look like somebody that you're not is probably pretty difficult and it looks like his movements were more natural than they were unnatural.

I'm not sure. He didn't have a ballistic vest under his sweatshirt simply because of the way he was walking in such an erect fashion. And those vests can make you walk in a very erect way because they're -- because of all the hard padding in them.

But I think other than that, I think he seemed to be walking fairly naturally until he ran something provoked that until he turned around and looked around and something provoked that. But I think he seemed to be pretty natural. And I think sometimes we watch these movies too often because we think that these offenders are a lot more thoughtful and deliberate than what they really are.

So, I think that after a period of time, even though they may go into an event and try to disguise who they are, they're not as savvy as what we give them credit for.

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BROWN: Like was it The Usual Suspect with Kevin Spacey, the one where at the end, you know, he changes something like that. You know, people, you're right they may give more credit. They see the actors in movies playing the role. But as a profiler, you know, firsthand that perhaps sees people who actually commit crimes in the real world are not so sophisticated.

Mary Ellen O'Toole, thank you so much. I appreciate your time, always fascinating to talk to you.

O'TOOLE: Thank you.

BROWN: Well, new this morning, the medical examiner in Los Angeles says, Rob and Michele Reiner died from multiple sharp force injuries, concluding that their deaths were homicides. The L.A. district attorneys has a knife was used in the killings.

Their son, Nick, is now charged with two counts of first-degree murder. He appeared briefly in court yesterday, but did not enter a plea. The judge scheduled his arraignment for January 7th.

The Reiners' other children, Jake and Romy Reiner, said in a statement that Rob and Michele, quote, weren't just our parents. They were our best friends.

Well, coming up here in The Situation Room, huge changes could be coming as early as today regarding marijuana. What this could mean for the medical community. We're going to ask Dr. Sanjay Gupta up next.

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