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The Source with Kaitlan Collins
Two National Guardsmen Shot In D.C.; Sources: FBI Believes They've Identified D.C. Shooting Suspect; Trump Orders 500 More National Guard Troops Sent To D.C. Aired 9-10p ET
Aired November 26, 2025 - 21:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[21:00:00]
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: --Ferreira's attorney says she and Leavitt's brother were once engaged, but live apart and share custody of their child. What's more? Ferreira and the press secretary have not spoken for many years.
And Leavitt is not talking publicly about the situation now, or backing away from her previous comments about other immigrants and their families caught in the crackdown.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOREMAN: Tom Foreman. CNN. Washington.
JOHN BERMAN, CNN HOST, ANDERSON COOPER 360: All right. Thanks so much for being with us. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.
The news continues. "THE SOURCE WITH KAITLAN COLLINS" starts now.
KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, CNN HOST, THE SOURCE WITH KAITLAN COLLINS: As we come on the air tonight, federal investigators are swarming Downtown, Washington, D.C., and two U.S. service members from the West Virginia National Guard remain in critical condition, after they were shot, in what authorities are saying was a targeted attack just a couple of blocks away from the White House.
Law enforcement sources are telling CNN tonight that the suspected gunman is a man, who immigrated to the United States, from Afghanistan, four years ago, and he had been living in Washington state.
My colleague, John Miller, has been working his sources. He's going to join me in just a few moments, as more information is just coming in tonight on this suspect.
We're also told tonight that the suspect right now is not cooperating with law enforcement. CNN has obtained video that captures the chaotic scene, just moments after this shooting, with soldiers and law enforcement frantically tending to the wounded, performing CPR on a critically-wounded Guardsman, while just steps away, their colleagues pile onto the suspected gunman to try to subdue him.
I want to warn you that this may be difficult to watch. But this is the scene, from earlier today, in Washington.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(SIRENS BLARING)
(VIDEO - TWO NATIONAL GUARDSMEN CRITICALLY WOUNDED IN D.C. ATTACK)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: The video you just saw there was recorded by a witness who was on his way home from work, when a sudden burst of gunfire sent people running for their lives. That witness who took that video is going to join me in a couple of moments, to tell me what he saw on the ground.
As we're also hearing from the D.C. Metropolitan Police about the chilling way that this attack got started.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEFFERY CARROLL, EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT CHIEF, METRO POLICE: At approximately 02:15 this afternoon, members of the D.C. National Guard were on high visibility patrols in the area of 17th and I Street Northwest, when a suspect came around the corner, raised his arm with a firearm and discharged at the National Guard members.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: In response to this tonight, President Trump, who I should note, was not at the White House Today, he's spending the Thanksgiving holiday down in Florida, but he responded by ordering more than 500 National Guard troops to Washington, on top of the ones who are already there in the city.
He has not yet appeared before the cameras, as investigators are still learning a lot more tonight about the latest in this investigation. But earlier today, the President did issue this post, calling the gunman an animal, who he says will pay a steep price.
I want to bring in my law enforcement sources who are joining me tonight. They include:
The former FBI Deputy Director, Andrew McCabe.
The former D.C. Police Chief, Charles Ramsey.
The former NYPD Lieutenant, Darrin Porcher.
And CNN's own Chief Law Enforcement and Intelligence Analyst, John Miller.
And John, obviously when it comes to the identity of this shooter, we're just learning information in terms of who this was. He was also shot today, I believe the President said four times in his post earlier. What more do we know so far?
JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT & INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: We know he is somebody who likely worked with the U.S. government in Afghanistan. And I say that because his social media seems to reflect some relief work he was doing in Afghanistan, in the host region, where there's a U.S. footprint there.
But the fact that he comes into the United States, into Dulles airport in the fall of 2021, in the middle of Operation Refuge, which was the original Afghan refugees who were brought out by the United States, very urgently, at the end of the war and at the fall of Kabul.
And then he apparently goes to Quantico, where Fort Lee was, where they held those people for a vetting process, that was administered by the Department of Homeland Security.
And then, this year, after a year on an asylum list of applications, he was approved in April for asylum in the United States. So that--
COLLINS: April 2025.
MILLER: That's right. And that is, you know -- during that time, we have him living in Washington -- not Washington, D.C. The State of Washington in the northwest.
So, the blanks we have to fill in is what made him want to come to America and live here, and what happened in between that apparently turned him into someone who wanted to allegedly shoot two uniformed soldiers in Washington, D.C.
[21:05:00]
COLLINS: Yes, and they say -- the Mayor of Washington, Muriel Bowser, was saying earlier, that this was a targeted attack, that obviously this is -- for people who don't know where this happened, in Downtown, Washington. We walk by this almost every day, going to the White House. There's a bunch of coffee shops over there, restaurants, businesses, obviously.
But as Evan Perez was laying out earlier, it was very clear that this person was going after the National Guardsmen who have been stationed in Washington, and they were there -- by the Metro.
In terms of looking at what went into why this person was targeting these National Guardsmen, and also the travel coming from Washington state to Washington, D.C., what else -- what other questions do you have in terms of the investigation?
DARRIN PORCHER, FORMER NYPD LIEUTENANT: Well, we're going to do something we refer to as a backwards investigation. That backwards investigation starts at the point where the shooter, or the assailant, shot the two National Guardsmen. We're going to want -- we're going to look to come back as far as this person, literally leaving their house and coming to the scene where he embarked upon this vicious campaign against the two service members.
And what's unique about this is, as a National Guardsman, on the day before Thanksgiving, you're not thinking of a high threat. You're thinking about, What am I going to do tomorrow for Thanksgiving? This is in broad daylight, 02:30 in the afternoon. There's no credible threat in your mind. You're thinking, there's going to be a parade tomorrow.
Whereas it's quite different, if you're a police officer that's moving in to arrest someone, or if you're looking to execute a search warrant. You have a very different mindset.
Here, they're literally have -- their mindset is wide open. So, they don't have an expectation of violence. Therefore, they were ambushed the way they were. And this is actually a very tough position to be in, as it relates to omnipresence.
When I worked in the NYPD, oftentimes I had National Guardsmen under my command, and I would place them accordingly. And then I rewind -- I was an executive officer in the army. So, in many instances, we deployed National Guardsmen at posts like this, such as Times Square, Union Station, the same whole show in D.C.
But we're still working on motive. But bear in mind, now we're focusing towards the what's going to happen in the court. We're looking for a conviction, so we're looking to amass as much information or discovery as possible, to convict this individual and put him away in prison.
COLLINS: Yes, and Andrew McCabe, you're here with us as well.
I mean, as everyone knows, I mean, the day before a holiday, especially in Downtown, Washington. This is probably a pretty quiet area. It's a lot of businesses, mostly tourists, who are going in and out, because it's just a few blocks from the White House.
The latest we know is that this suspect, Andrew McCabe, is not cooperating with authorities. How do they respond? What do they do when something like that is happening?
ANDREW MCCABE, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST, FORMER FBI DEPUTY DIRECTOR: Yes, the fact that he's not cooperating is not really surprising. He was -- let's remember, there are reports he was shot several times in the -- in the aftermath of the attack, so he may also not be in a position to cooperate in this point, if he's still receiving medical attention of some sort.
That doesn't mean that the investigators sit around and wait until he decides if and when he wants to talk. There's a lot they can do. As Darrin just mentioned, they are going to build a timeline of every place he was and how he got to those places, transportation, funding, communications that he might have had en route. They're going to trace him back as far as they possibly can, to understand everyone he came across, what sort of plan he had to get himself to D.C., how he thought about targeting National Guardsmen, particularly. So, that can all be done.
Initially, from the -- from the crime scene, you would do that with video capture, right? You can literally string together the private video capture from the businesses along that -- along that quarter that you described there, on 17th Street or I Street around the Farragut Metro Station, and see where he comes from.
You want to take that video as far back as you possibly can, hopefully put him exiting a vehicle. If there's a vehicle in town that he's parked somewhere, that's registered to him? That gives you another trove of leads and investigative opportunities. So, that's the very time-consuming kind of tedious work that the agents and analysts at the FBI are doing tonight.
As soon as they can find locations that they can associate with him, we'll see search warrants being executed, we'll see electronics devices being seized and exploited for whatever intelligence they have to bear.
COLLINS: Well, and Chief Ramsey. I mean, John Miller, just mentioned social media profiles, looking at work that he had done in terms of his profile. And, I mean, I imagine they have a lot of information on him if he was just granted asylum in April of 2025, in terms of what that looks like.
What stands out to you as you're looking at this tonight, in terms of when this shooting happened, and as they're looking for motive here?
[21:10:00]
CHARLES RAMSEY, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST, FORMER WASHINGTON, D.C. POLICE CHIEF: Well, I mean, as they go through all the information they have, and start to background this individual, hopefully they can come up with something that might lead them toward a motive. But right now, it just looks like a targeted shooting.
Now, he's from Washington state. I mean, he emigrated in. He was living in Washington state. So, I'm sure the FBI in Washington state is working now at any residence or anything else that he might have there in Washington state, interview relatives, interview friends, interview anyone, to find out whether or not perhaps he might have -- they might have had knowledge that he was about to do this sort of thing. They're looking to see how he got from Washington state to Washington, D.C. Did he fly? Did he drive?
I mean, so there's a lot of things that are going on right now to try to put this together. This person is still alive. So obviously, at some point there will be a trial. So, the collection of evidence and all the information they can gather to get a conviction is going to be very important.
COLLINS: Yes, I have a lot more questions for you all, in terms of the gun, how he obtained that weapon. But I want you to stand by for a moment, because we're also joined tonight by someone who witnessed what took place today, this witness who took the video.
I should note, if you're watching this for the first time, you're going to find this disturbing, just given it is the scene of what happened today, something that is so horrific, especially for these two Guardsmen who are right now in critical condition, in a local hospital, in D.C., we're told.
This video shows police administering CPR to a National Guardsman, and the second Guardsman is on the ground surrounded by officers as well.
And Patrick is the witness who took this video.
And Patrick, I just want to say thank you for joining me. I really do appreciate it tonight. And I'm sorry for what you had to witness today.
But can you just walk us through what happened and what you saw?
VOICE OF: PATRICK, WITNESSED SHOOTING IN WASHINGTON, D.C.: Yes, thank you for having me on, Kaitlan.
So, I was walking east on I Street, just about to go to the metro, and I heard probably, like, four or five shots. I didn't know they were shots at the time. I thought it was just construction where they were, you know, might have been dropping plates on the street or something, something not uncommon in that part of D.C.
And then I saw a couple of people running from that street corner from I and 17th, and basically they said, Someone's shooting. And so, I kind of ducked in the side a little bit. And then I heard another exchange. So probably four shots to start off with, probably another four or five after that.
And then we heard the sirens come in. We saw the police kind of converge a little bit. Once I realized that -- I mean, I don't know if it was totally safe, but once I realized that the shooting kind of stopped, I popped out and just saw -- just saw shattered glass everywhere from the bus stops. Saw one person lying around my -- my attention was fixed to the National Guard who was laying down in the ground, bleeding from his head, unfortunately. Very, very traumatic to see. He seemed conscious, and he's moving his arm around and talking to the MPD officer who was there, assisting him, but.
And then what caught my eye next was to the right of him, there was another, I assume, National Guard. I saw the boots and the pants, and they were administering CPR to him. So that's when I knew, like this was serious. I mean, it really scared me when I saw the National Guard emblem on the back of -- on his -- on the back of him, when he was hunched over to the side.
But then I saw to the -- to the right of that there is another -- there's another, what, I assumed, civilian, because he didn't have any pants on. So, I don't know what necessarily was going on there. Most of my attention was fixed on the young National Guardsman who was bleeding from the head. But it was all -- it was that -- I mean, people were just in shock. So, it's kind of -- it was kind of surreal to see.
COLLINS: So you could see one of the Guardsmen who had been shot today, speaking to the officers and those who were -- who were immediately there in the vicinity when you were taking this video.
VOICE OF: PATRICK: Yes, the one that I was closest to -- I'm not exactly sure what the video -- I haven't really looked at it--
COLLINS: Yes.
VOICE OF: PATRICK: --that much. But the one that was closest to me, who was -- you know, I mean, I don't want to make too many assumptions, but he was bleeding from the head, and the MPD officer was applying pressure to his head. He was conscious. He was moving his arms around. They were talking to him. I don't know if he's responding back, necessarily. I was -- I was just across the street. But he was definitely conscious.
The other one, I mean, they were administering CPR, the one to the right of him. I couldn't tell if it was a man or a woman, but they had their jet -- their vest, open, administering CPR, and they seemed unconscious.
[21:15:00]
As to the civilian? I don't know. I couldn't really figure out what's going on there.
COLLINS: Yes, Patrick, could you see the witness when you were -- I'm sorry. Could you see the suspect when you were down there? Did you notice him at all?
VOICE OF: PATRICK: I didn't see, really, the melee, where they, apparently they got the suspect. But I saw the -- so to the -- to the right of the -- where they were administering CPR, they had somebody on the ground, and they had no pants on. That's what I remember. And I don't know any more than that.
But they were attending to them. There was probably seven or eight, mixed with Secret Service police, National Guard, MPD, kind of either attending to him or just above him. So, I mean, in retrospect, I guess that's -- that was the suspect.
But I was more focused on the poor young man who was shot in the head that was closest to me.
But yes, it was just -- it was just all -- it was all kind of a blur, now that I'm kind of recanting it.
COLLINS: Yes, I can't even imagine. I mean, I know that area so well, as we walk back to go to the White House. It's a very quiet area.
Patrick, I'm sorry that you had to witness this. But I do want to say I'm grateful that you joined us to tell us what you saw on the ground. And so, thank you, and please take care of yourself.
VOICE OF: PATRICK: Thank you.
COLLINS: And of course, God bless these National Guardsmen who are in the hospital right now. We're going to continue to keep you updated on what we know about the latest with their condition.
I mentioned earlier that President Trump has not been seen on cameras since this happened. We had seen him post statements, in response to this shooting of these two National Guardsmen, in Washington, just a couple of blocks from the White House.
The President has now just released a video statement tonight. They just posted it. Let's take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: --as President of the United States, I am determined to ensure that the animal who perpetrated this atrocity pays the steepest possible price.
I can report tonight that, based on the best available information, the Department of Homeland Security is confident that the suspect in custody is a foreigner, who entered our country from Afghanistan, a hellhole on Earth. He was flown in by the Biden administration, in September 2021, on those infamous flights that everybody was talking about. Nobody knew who was coming in. Nobody knew anything about it. His status was extended under legislation signed by President Biden, a disastrous president, the worst in the history of our country.
This attack underscores the single greatest national security threat facing our nation.
The last administration let in 20 million unknown and unvetted foreigners from all over the world, from places that you don't want to even know about. No country can tolerate such a risk to our very survival.
An example is Minnesota, where hundreds of thousands of Somalians are ripping off our country and ripping apart that once-great state. Billions of dollars are lost, and gangs of Somalians come from a country that doesn't even have a government, no laws, no water, no military, no nothing. As their representatives in our country preach to us about our Constitution and how our country is no good.
We're not going to put up with these kind of assaults on law and order by people who shouldn't even be in our country.
We must now reexamine every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan under Biden, and we must take all necessary measures to ensure the removal of any alien from any country who does not belong here or add benefit to our country. If they can't love our country, we don't want them.
America will never bend and never yield in the face of terror, and at the same time, we will not be deterred from the mission, these service members were so nobly fulfilling. That is why tonight I can announce that I have directed the Department of War to mobilize an additional 500 troops to help protect our capital city. We will make America totally safe again, and we will bring the perpetrator of this barbaric attack to swift and certain justice, if the bullets going in the opposite direction haven't already done that.
During this time of the year, when we gather at home with loved ones, these two patriots were wearing the uniform of our country, patrolling the streets of our capital. They had taken a selfless oath to defend our nation against all enemies, foreign and domestic, and that is exactly what they were doing when they were gunned down in a savage attack.
[21:20:00]
I want to express my extraordinary gratitude to every member of the United States military who is deployed tonight, at home and abroad. I also want to thank the Secret Service and the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department for their work today.
This Thanksgiving, I ask every family to say a prayer for the two great heroes who were so horribly shot, and for their loved ones. Please say a prayer. May God bless them, and comfort them, and may God bless and protect the United States of America. Thank you. And good night.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: That is the first statement that we have heard from President Trump, since this shooting, earlier today, just a couple of blocks from the White House, of two National Guardsmen.
The President confirmed there, what CNN reported earlier tonight, regarding the identity of this person who is believed to be an Afghan national, the suspect in this case, who was also shot on the scene today and has been hospitalized since.
And John Miller, you heard the President there as he was, one, noting that these Guardsmen were in Washington. Obviously, this is the result of President Trump ordering them to the streets there. They have been regularly posted at places like where this shooting took place, the entrance to the metro system in Washington.
The President said there that they plan to review all of the refugees who were admitted to the United States, under the Biden administration, in that area, when the Afghanistan withdrawal, as chaotic as it was, was happening. That's actually something the AP reported it was in motion before this shooting happened, I should note, this afternoon.
But I wonder what that says to you, in terms of what you just heard there from the President, as far as what we know of how this person got into the United States?
MILLER: Well, I mean, it's pretty well documented how he got in. We're not a 100 percent sure about why he was chosen to be part of Operation Refuge or Operation Welcome Allies. But there had to be some process for him to get on that plane that got him to Dulles.
But remember, this is a program that as of 2022, had moved 88,500 refugees seeking asylum from Afghanistan. Now, some of these people were people who worked for the military. Some of these people had worked for the CIA. Some of these people had worked for USAID. Most of them, or their families associated with them, were coming on the idea that if we stay behind, the Taliban will make us pay the price.
The vetting process that they went through with these people was chaotic. I had detectives from the Joint Terrorism Task Force assigned to that vetting process who reported back. It was being run by the Department of Homeland Security.
But the Afghan records were spotty, as you would imagine. The names were sometimes hard to document. People didn't exactly know their particular dates of birth, which made -- on the other hand, what they did is they collected biometrics. It's how this suspect who had no ID was identified, when they ran his fingerprints. The biometrics that they collected from this process--
COLLINS: That's how they confirmed his identity.
MILLER: Right. But, I mean, I would also say, just to round out the perspective here, 88,000 people came in. We haven't seen a spate of terrorist attacks on their part.
But if you go back to Chairman Mark Green, raising these questions in 2024, about wanting to do this review because of ISIS threats, lone- wolf risks. That happened after somebody who came in, in the same September of 2021, an individual named Tawhedi, in Oklahoma City, along with his brother-in-law, decided to do an ISIS-inspired attack, shooting up locations on Election Day in 2024.
So, this has been something that there's been a lot of gnashing of teeth about. Statistically, it hasn't been a great risk. But when you look at two attacks from people, one of whom had been a security guard at a CIA facility in Afghanistan, another of whom apparently assisted the United States in some way? You can start to ask the question, Well then if they wanted to come here, what changed?
COLLINS: Yes, it's raised only more questions tonight. And obviously, last we know, he's still not cooperating. So that also raises questions as well.
John Miller. Darrin. Everyone else. Chief Ramsey. And Andrew McCabe. Stand by. I have a lot more questions in terms of what we are learning tonight. Those first comments from the President. But also we're getting new information on this shooting coming in here to CNN.
We'll have a live report from the scene, in Washington, right after this.
[21:25:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: We are back with our breaking news this hour, as two National Guardsmen remain in critical condition tonight, after what officials say was a targeted attack in Washington, earlier today, just a couple of blocks away from the White House.
Our law enforcement officials tell us that CNN -- that investigators have recovered a handgun that was believed to have been used in the attack. They're now working to determine when and how the suspect obtained it.
Our CNN Correspondent, Brian Todd is at the scene.
Brian, what's the latest that you've been hearing, I mean, now that you've been there for several hours, as they have been kind of assessing this scene, and also trying to figure out what else happened before it unfolded?
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kaitlan, law enforcement's still out in force right by the scene here. We're very close to where the scene unfolded. This is the Farragut West Metro Station, just beyond the foreground where these officers are.
The shooting occurred right over there at 17th and I streets, less than a block away from where we are. They are still processing the crime scene right now. They brought a tow truck in here, a short time ago, to provide some more lighting for that area, and they are still processing the crime scene. Law enforcement from several agencies still out in force, here tonight.
We spoke to two eyewitnesses who saw the immediate aftermath of the shooting. One of them, a young man named Ryan Akeed (ph), who's a student from Cornell University, here for Thanksgiving to see his family.
[21:30:00]
He was in a Potbelly Sandwich Shop, shortly before the shooting occurred. He said, about 30 seconds after he left the shop, he heard the gunshots. He hid behind chairs, because he knew what was going on. He did get a glimpse of the scene in the immediate aftermath. He said he saw a man on the ground on his stomach with his hands behind his back--
COLLINS: Yes.
TODD: --being held down by at least one person, and he assumed that was the shooter. He also said he saw people administering CPR to one of the victims.
Another lady, who said she also heard the gunshots and saw the same scene, said the same thing to us.
Some consistent eyewitness accounts of these two witnesses saying they saw people administering CPR to the victims. And a pretty harrowing timeline of the attack, given to us by Jeff Carroll, the Assistant D.C. Police Chief, as well as law enforcement officials who talked to CNN's Evan Perez, they kind of laid out pretty -- a pretty harrowing scene, saying that the gunman came upon three National Guardsmen who did not see him until he started shooting. He struck one of them, who was very close by. Then another. And then appeared to be standing over one of the victims and trying to shoot again at a victim, when another National Guardsman shot the suspect. That's according to law enforcement officials who spoke to our Evan Perez.
Jeff Carroll said that the gunman came around a corner, near the scene right here where the Metro Station is, raised his gun and then engaged with the National Guardsmen. The two National Guardsmen, according to FBI Director Kash Patel, in critical condition tonight at local hospitals.
Kaitlan.
COLLINS: Brian Todd, if you learn any more from those officials on the ground, or we expect to hear from them, let us know. We'll check back in with you on the ground, in Washington, where this shooting happened.
My law enforcement sources are back with us tonight.
We're also joined now by Donell Harvin, who's the former Chief of Homeland Security and Intelligence for Washington, D.C., and also a faculty member from Georgetown University's Emergency & Disaster Management Master's Program.
And Donell, just as you're looking at this tonight, with what we've just heard from the President confirming reporting that, yes, this individual who is a suspect here, who was also shot at the scene today and is hospitalized and not cooperating, did enter the United States in September 2021, amid that chaotic Afghanistan withdrawal.
A lot of questions, with what happened between then, and when John Miller is told his asylum was approved in April of this year, of 2025.
What are your immediate questions, just as we're looking at this new information tonight?
DONELL HARVIN, FORMER D.C. CHIEF OF HOMELAND SECURITY & INTELLIGENCE: Yes, I mean, the question is, have these individuals been tracked? Have they been having follow-up meetings and discussions with DHS? What's the threat profile that's create -- been created around these individuals?
As John mentioned, statistically speaking, we haven't seen really much out of these individuals. They were -- they were -- they were helping our troops, back in Afghanistan. And we don't know if the integration process has been successful. I've seen reports, over the last few years, about poor integration, or opportunities, in fact, for their employment. So those are the questions. Well, I do want to mention one thing that concerned me what the President said in his brief speech, in mentioning Somali immigrants. I don't think there's any place for that here. This clearly has nothing to do with the Somali community. I think, on this day and this occasion, he could have probably put that aside.
Because what I'm concerned about is those individuals who are far right on the extreme, who are already anti-Muslim, taking that into account, and maybe taking this out on the Somali community, that has nothing to do, apparently, with this incident.
COLLINS: Well, and Andrew McCabe, the other thing we've been learning tonight, in terms of, we know this person was living in Washington state. Obviously traveled to Washington, D.C. We don't really know when or how. We do know they've recovered a handgun, and that they are looking at that, working on tracking that.
If this person was here on an asylum basis, and came in through that program in 2021. I mean, what kind of questions would the FBI be looking at, in terms of this tonight?
MCCABE: Yes, well, Kaitlan, obviously, there's going to be a lot of focus on the vetting process and what sort of scrutiny this person received or didn't receive on the way in, and were there red flags in this file that should have -- you know, should have caused people to look a little bit deeper. My guess is that that process will not reveal much about why this guy did this thing today.
[21:35:00]
There are so many different factors that maybe may have contributed to his radicalization, his decision to go down this path, likely motivated by grievance, possibly motivated by ideology, to strike out against U.S. military members. He likely had experience with military people in Afghanistan. He may have, in fact, worked for the United States military in Afghanistan. Who knows whether that was a part of this.
But what we know just from the few facts we have, to go -- to travel from Washington state, to Washington, D.C., for the purpose, acquiring a firearm, likely illegally -- you can't have a firearm legally in this country if you're not a citizen, and someone in the asylum process would certainly not qualify to have a firearm.
So, to go through all these steps, to take that extensive travel, to get here to D.C., on the night before -- or the afternoon before a holiday, and then to strike out so brazenly and lethally against military members, in broad daylight, in circumstances in which he was inevitably going to be arrested, possibly killed or taken into custody? Like, that shows an extraordinary degree of planning, of dedication to this horrible mission. So, there's a --
COLLINS: Yes.
MCCABE: --there's a lot to unlock here, and investigators have a lot to look for. COLLINS: Yes, and John and Darrin, I mean, these were obviously what they were describing is high visibility patrols, earlier. We knew where these National Guardsmen were going to be. I see them every afternoon on the way to the White House. They're in pretty regular areas in Washington.
And in terms of looking at that, know -- how this person knew where they would be when this clearly -- this targeted attack.
The other question was, I heard Kash Patel, the FBI Director say, Perpetrators, at the press conference earlier. But our understanding right now is it's just this person. They don't believe that he acted in concert with anyone. Is that right?
MILLER: That's right.
So, for the first question. That video canvas, that McCabe was talking about, that can go back days. And what you may see there is that those National Guard people are on those posts, and you may see this person on video actually conducting pre-operational surveillance. This may not have been a spontaneous act. This may have been something that was planned.
On the second question. When Kash Patel was talking about, We're going to get to the bottom of this, no resource will be spared, we will get the perpetrators. He's projecting the idea that we have one person in custody. We have no indication anyone else is involved.
But that doesn't mean that. We've got to go backwards through this guy's whole life and existence and find out, was he working for somebody, communicating with somebody? Was he part of an ISIS plot, since they called on December 7th for more attacks against the homeland's by lone offenders, a lot of questions left to answers.
COLLINS: They just did that this last year, in December.
MILLER: They reran an old ISIS video, on December 7th, calling for attacks against the United States and Europe by lone-wolf offenders as kind of one of their greatest hits, because they felt it was an inspirational video.
COLLINS: Yes.
What do you think?
PORCHER: Well, I think that this was an individual that was on a suicide mission. There was no exit strategy. Him committing this atrocity in broad daylight at 02:30 in the afternoon, coolly, shows me that he intended to die. He didn't intend to be captured. If he did intend to be captured, he didn't have identification on him to verify who he was.
COLLINS: That's key. I thought that too.
PORCHER: Right. I thought that was huge. In addition to that, we're going to look to the firearm. We want to trace that. We're going to have to collaborate with ATF to find out where he purchased this weapon from, because he may have purchased it legally in the State of Washington. However, it was in illegal possession in the City of Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C. has some of the toughest handgun laws in the country. So, it was clearly something that he possessed that was illegal.
This is a massive investigation, but we're going to drive towards a conviction. We want to get the conviction of beyond a reasonable doubt, and that's what they're focused on at this stage.
So, I understand what Kash Patel is saying in terms of, he wants to bring all of these resources to the table. But ultimately, this is something that's going to land in the hands of the U.S. attorney that's going to prosecute this case.
COLLINS: Yes, which would be Judge Jeanine Pirro in Washington, who is now serving as the U.S. attorney there.
Donell Harvin, thank you for joining us, as well.
All of my other experts are going to stay here with me, as we're continuing to get more information, this hour, including hearing from President Trump, who is down in Florida. He was not at home at the White House, when this shooting, a few blocks away, happened.
Of course, we'll continue to monitor this, and the latest developments, right after a quick break.
[21:40:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: We're back tonight with our breaking news. As the FBI believes they have identified the suspect in today's shooting of two National Guardsmen, just a few blocks away from the White House.
My CNN colleague, and Senior Justice Correspondent, Evan Perez, is here with that reporting.
Evan, tell us what you've heard from sources, at the FBI tonight, in terms of as they've been sorting through all of this.
EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kaitlan, this is a big undertaking now for the FBI, because not only are they trying to put together a picture of this suspect everywhere he's been. When did he arrive in Washington? Where did he stay? Who has he been in touch -- has he been in touch with? Going through his social media, any other electronics, to see whether he notified anybody about what he was about to do.
Ad also, the firearm. How did he obtain this firearm? Again, because he is a recent immigrant, it's not clear whether he would have been able to obtain this legally. That's one of the things that the ATF is handling as part of this investigation. But think about this. You and John were just talking about this, a little while ago. But the President also alluded to the fact that they're going to reexamine the histories of recent -- of some of these recent immigrants.
[21:45:00]
I can tell you, the FBI has spent already, a lot of time, going over the histories of some of those immigrants, including people who came in from Central Asia. There was a lot of concern, during the Biden administration, that there were a number of these folks who came in, who were not properly vetted. So, the FBI went down and reinterviewed many, many of them, to try to make sure that there wasn't a threat.
Now, as John points out, you've got 80,000 or so, who have entered this -- into this country, and the number who have actually posed a threat has been infinitesimal, if you consider that number, right? However, you just have to have one event, such as what happened today, for everything to go awry.
And so, that's one of the things that the FBI is doing now, tonight. Certainly, the counterterrorism agents are going back to look at what possible threats there might be, anything that they may have missed.
COLLINS: Yes.
PEREZ: Because events like this sometimes trigger other people to take action, and that's one of the concerns that they have tonight.
COLLINS: Well, and Evan, I was just checking myself, while you were reporting on, in terms of -- and I think this is a key distinction here. The reporting from before this shooting happened today was that they were going to move to rereview certain refugees who came in under the Biden administration.
What the President said tonight is that he wants this to review -- trigger a review of every -- he said, We must now reexamine every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan under the Biden administration.
So that seems to be a much larger, much more sweeping effort than what we had understood before this shooting happened.
PEREZ: Yes, that would be a massive, massive undertaking.
And look, it can be done. And they've, again, gone through some of this. Some of those folks, they did go back and review, during the Biden administration, because there were those concerns. As John has laid out already. There was certainly a lot of angst that they may have missed something, because they kept seeing some of these threats, and things would pop up with some of these people who they were investigating. And so, that's always been the concern.
And today certainly drives home that concern even deeper, because it was -- it's clear from how this event went down today, this attack went down today, that this attacker came to Washington, D.C. He targeted these National Guard's soldier who -- soldiers, who were uniformed soldiers.
And again, there's a reason why he did that. There was a reason that a message, perhaps, that he was trying to send, and that's one of the things that the FBI is trying to make sure they get a handle on, and whether there are other people who could also carry attacks -- carry out attacks, such as this one.
COLLINS: Yes, it's a big development and big change announced by the President there.
Evan Perez, thank you for that reporting.
PEREZ: Thanks.
COLLINS: And also joining me is retired Brigadier General David McGinnis, who served in the Army and is a National Guardsman for nearly 30 years.
So first off, let me say thank you for your service, but also thank you for being here.
Because one thing that's important to note tonight, in terms of, as we were talking about these high visibility patrols that have been happening, the President confirmed he is asking for 500 more National Guard troops to be sent to Washington.
I wonder what you make of that announcement tonight, sir.
BRIG. GEN. DAVID MCGINNIS (RET.), FORMER DEFENSE DEPT. OFFICIAL: It's a perception that the numbers -- numbers matter, and the more numbers we have, the safer we are. But I don't think that's -- I don't think that's very accurate conclusion.
There's plenty of Guardsmen on the streets of Washington, right now, as we saw. I mean, the response was very quick, just by the Guardsmen alone, from the video I saw. And I think there're sufficient people there to deal with anything that comes up.
COLLINS: Do you have a concern that, if there's 500 people, that there are more targets in Washington, in terms of what this looks like?
MCGINNIS: Absolutely. You put the -- when you put the military out, or the Guard out? And there's a perception, you know, the Guard is the military, and it is.
The Guard has multiple roles in this country. It is the organized militia of the United States and the Constitution. It's part of the Army by an act of Congress, but it's part of the organized militia by the Constitution. And one of its roles is to enact the laws of the Union. So law enforcement, or supporting law enforcement, is in line with their purpose in life, for what the Founders created them for, or kept them in the Constitution for.
But when you put somebody out in a uniform, that's difficult to discern between an active soldier and someone else? Yes, they become a target. And I think that that's something that needs to be considered. COLLINS: And when the National Guard was sent to Washington, it triggered this huge debate, about what they were trained on doing.
Obviously, in this area, just for people who've never been to Downtown, D.C., it's a ton of law enforcement in this area. I mean, the Secret Service is all right there, because it's in that radius of what is their area by the White House. When you look at this map, there's Lafayette Park right there in front of the White House.
Obviously the MPD is down there as well. And now the National Guard, in addition to that, in this area. I mean, you see them all the time if you're in Downtown, Washington.
[21:50:00]
When they say that they're performing high visibility patrols, what exactly does that mean in terms of what their responsibilities are?
MCGINNIS: High visibility patrols basically are performing the role of a beat -- of a beat cop, a beat policeman. As you know, in D.C., most of the officers patrol in cars, and they're not on the street. And this high visibility, extra -- more people at each street corner, especially at the Metro stations, brings that additional presence. It also brings the ability to identify more potential threats, so.
But as you've mentioned, and other people have alluded, especially in that area you -- I've been there a long time, myself, many years off and on. Yes, it's a big -- it's a -- there's a high -- there's a high volume of protection in that whole area, so.
COLLINS: Yes.
MCGINNIS: But I think that the real issue is that they -- there's a perception they're needed. They're capable of doing the job.
COLLINS: Yes.
MCGINNIS: But I think that when you -- you know, you got to do it in the context of what -- what the threat -- what the threat is, and also, are you going to make them a target?
COLLINS: Retired General David McGinnis, thank you for joining us with your expertise tonight.
And of course, our hearts go out to the families of these two National Guardsmen from West Virginia, who are in Washington tonight, and we're praying that they recover as they're in the hospital this hour.
We have many more updates coming in, in terms of what we are learning about the suspect here. We'll bring that to you, right after a quick break.
[21:55:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COLLINS: We're covering the breaking news out of Washington, D.C., where two National Guardsmen were shot in Downtown, Washington, tonight.
The former FBI Deputy Director, John Pistole, joins me now.
And John, I'm glad you're joining us.
Because we heard from the FBI Director as well, during this press conference, earlier today, with the Metropolitan Police, with the D.C. Mayor. He said that this will be treated as an assault on federal law enforcement. How does that shape what this investigation looks like tonight?
JOHN PISTOLE, FORMER FBI DEPUTY DIRECTOR, FORMER TSA ADMINISTRATOR: Well, of course, there's several issues at play. And of course, looking at the suspect's means, motive and opportunity. Clearly, he had the means and the opportunity. What was his motive, and how does that inform the charge of the assault of the federal officer, which, of course, is a federal offense.
And so, I think those factors go into play, along with the point you raised, great question with your prior guest, and what Evan had mentioned, in terms of, does adding more National Guard troops to D.C. create more targets, instead of just protecting citizens, do they become targets of people like this individual today? And how does that affect innocent bystanders? Everybody's innocent here, except the shooter.
And so, I think that raises a number of questions, in terms of person being charged federally, will they be charged in the district, which, of course, is a federal district. And so, those issues are all coming to play as to what he should be charged with, how and, again, trying to look at all those issues about, yes, he apparently operated solely by himself. But are there other people who may be inspired by, or encouraged by this act?
COLLINS: Yes, and obviously, in terms of what he said there. Means, motive and opportunity here. That is obviously the key things that they are looking at, as we're getting more information about his background, at least, and how he was in the United States.
PORCHER: True. Although we want to know what happened, you don't have to prove motive in a court of law.
As we move forward in the investigation, we're going to look to extract as much video as possible. That's -- that area, in D.C.--
COLLINS: And there's got to be a ton of cameras there.
PORCHER: 100 to 200 cameras that have eyes on the assailant, in this case. So, the FBI is going to pull all of that data from the cameras. You're also going to have cellphone video from common bystanders that you want to extract as well. But you also want to leapfrog from camera to camera to see where this person entered the scene and committed this horrific act. Coupled with we're going to have that -- that working with ATF, in tandem, to find out where he got the weapon, was this sold to him illegally. It just doesn't make sense to me, this being an immigrant, having the ability to purchase a handgun.
And so, the witnesses, the camera -- the cameras is going to be very essential, in providing it to the U.S. attorney, who's going to prosecute this case, which would be Jeanine Pirro.
COLLINS: So, he might have had the gun illegally. Obviously, we're waiting to hear more on that, now that they've recovered it.
And John Pistole, in terms of what this area does look like. There's two banks I know down right by this area of 17th and I Street, in northwestern Washington. Obviously, I imagine there's cameras at the Metro entrance, which is where these National Guard troops were stationed. I mean, that's got to be a trove of stuff for these investigators to be going through right now.
PISTOLE: Oh, absolutely. And obviously, there is what would be considered overwhelming evidence of the suspect's -- subject's guilt has been picked up on all types of video and other just still pictures.
[22:00:00]
So really, I think it gets back to the question, Does this inspire or encourage somebody else to do a similar act, either in D.C., or someplace else, either at the National Guard or local police or, heaven forbid, but at a church, or a school, or a temple, or whatever it may be, that where there'd be innocent people and there're not law enforcement around to protect. And, again, what type of target does that create with the District Guardsmen in the city.
COLLINS: Yes.
John Pistole. Darrin Porcher. Thank you for hanging out with us tonight and bringing all your expertise to the table.
We'll continue following all the breaking news here.
Thank you for joining me tonight.
"CNN NEWSNIGHT" starts now.
