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The Story Is with Elex Michaelson
Trump Discussing How To Acquire Greenland; Trump Says Venezuela To Hand Over Up To 50 Million Barrels Of Oil To U.S.; Los Angles Marks One Year Since Devastating Wildfires; Bipartisan Criticism Over Trump's Greenland Warnings; Los Angeles Marks One Year Since Devastating Wildfires; Death of GOP Lawmaker Shrinks Republican's House Majority; Maduro Being Held in Notorious NY Federal Detention Facility; Interview with Songwriter Diane Warren. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired January 07, 2026 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[01:00:00]
ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: Watching this hour of The Story Is. The next hour starts right now.
The story is U.S. foreign policy after intervention in Venezuela, there's news questions about Greenland.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: We need Greenland.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Democratic Congressman Ted Lieu with us to weigh in on both.
The story is one year after fires devastated Pacific Palisades. The county leader in charge of recovery, Lindsey Horvath is live in our studio.
The story is in search of statue. Will this song performed by pop star Kesha be the one that finally gets Diane Warren her Oscar after 16 nominations? Songwriter here to explain how this one is different than all the rest.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from Los Angeles, The Story Is with Elex Michaelson.
MICHAELSON: Welcome to The Story Is. I'm Alex Michaelson. The White House turning up the pressure on NATO ally Denmark and its territory of Greenland, which President Trump says the U.S. needs for national security.
His administration said is considering a range of options to acquire the island and is once again making it clear that military action is not off the table. Let's take you live to Greenland where it is very cold and 4 o'clock in the morning. Folks there have shown zero appetite for becoming part of the U.S. now
on the heels of the operation in Venezuela and all this ramped up rhetoric, Greenland has requested a meeting with the U.S. Secretary of state.
A live look from Washington, where it's after one o'clock in the morning right now. Some Democrats, some Republicans, staunchly opposed to any possible takeover. Some Republicans like it. House Speaker sidestep questions about efforts to purchase the territory.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Did Secretary Rubio inform lawmakers that President Trump preferred to buy Greenland when he met with you?
REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA) U.S. HOUSE SPEAKER: I don't remember that. He might have said it in jest or something.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Senate Republican Rand Paul, who has not always followed the orthodoxy of the Republican Party when it comes to foreign policy, took a more diplomatic approach to the controversy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. RAND PAUL (R-KY): I'm not against approaching Greenland in a voluntary way to say, hey, the United States would like you to be part of the United States, if you so wish it, and then it would be a possibility. But right now I think it's been going the wrong direction.
Ultimately, the people of Greenland would have to vote and potentially Denmark. I'm not sure who would have to vote, but you won't get there by insulting them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: A historic document from 1916 has come to light in which the U.S. said it would not object to Denmark's rule over Greenland. The Lansing Declaration was part of a larger financial deal that allowed the U.S. to buy what are now the U.S. Virgin Islands from Denmark. Meanwhile, some of Washington's European allies are firmly supporting Denmark and Greenland. CNN's Melissa Bell talked with one of them.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The NATO secretary general someone known to text with Trump.
MARK RUTTE, NATO SECRETARY-GENERAL: Daddy (ph) has to sometimes use strong language.
BELL (voice-over): Is coming to the president's defense, trying to downplay the issue that is tearing NATO apart. Trump's threat to annex Greenland.
BELL: So you believe that the United States can be convinced that cooperation rather than annexation is a way forward?
RUTTE: It's my absolute conviction that when it comes to NATO and the assessment of the situation high north, we are all on the same page. The U.S. is heavily involved. And again, when it comes to Greenland specifically, I know the Danes are totally open to have more U.S. troops in Greenland. They are fine. The agreements are there.
BELL (voice-over): Rutte, of course, has a history of complimenting Trump in texts meant to be kept private. Trump posted them on Truth Social, quoting Rutte as saying that Trump's action in Iran was truly extraordinary and something that no one else had dared to do. With Trump later saying that Rutte had texted him about NATO spending, you will achieve something no American president in decades could get done.
But on Tuesday, the NATO chief found himself once again caught in the middle of a crisis caused by the Trump administration's rhetoric on Greenland. Earlier, European leaders issued a joint response to the president's renewed claims over the Arctic Islands, saying Greenland belongs to its people. It is for Denmark and Greenland and them only to decide on matters concerning Denmark and Greenland.
Denmark's prime minister also hit back, reiterating Greenland does not want to be part of the United States and that the NATO alliance would be dead if Trump seized it by force.
METTE FREDERIKSEN, DANISH PRIME MINISTER (through translator): I also want to make it clear that if the United States chooses to attack another NATO country militarily, then everything stops. That is, including our NATO and thus the security that has been provided since the end of the Second World War.
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BELL (voice-over): This after Trump adviser Stephen Miller questioned Denmark's right to sovereignty over Greenland on CNN.
STEPHEN MILLER, WHITE HOUSE DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF: The real question is by what right does Denmark assert control over Greenland? For the United States to secure the Arctic region to protect and defend NATO and NATO interests. Obviously, Greenland should be part of the United States.
BELL (voice-over): Trump has a long held interest in obtaining the vast Arctic territory. Both Vice President Vance and Donald Trump Jr. have visited Greenland in the past year.
DONALD TRUMP JR., DONALD TRUMP' SON: Super cool stuff.
BELL (voice-over): And now the is once again ratcheting the threats.
TRUMP: We need Greenland from the standpoint of national security and Denmark is not going to be able to do it. BELL (voice-over): After the dramatic U.S. operation to remove
President Maduro and take control of Venezuela, many fear that Greenland could be next in Trump's sights. Some Danish lawmakers have called for Europe to take a tougher stance against President Trump.
RASMUS JARLOV, DANISH MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT: I don't think it's strong enough. I'm afraid the Americans are not going to stop. We don't know if they're going to attack Greenland militarily or not. We will defend it and in that case, we would be at war.
BELL (voice-over): Though the possibility of war between two NATO allies still seems unlikely, the Western military alliance is once again being plunged into uncertainty. Melissa Belle, CNN, Paris.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAELSON: Now to Venezuela and President Trump's announcement that Caracas will be turning over what he says his 30 to 50 million barrels of oil to the US. The president says it will be sold at market value as much as $2.75 billion with the proceeds controlled by the US. President Trump says that money will be used to benefit the people of Venezuela and the US. Didn't give much further explanation than that.
A senior member of the Trump administration tells CNN that oil has already been produced and it will be shipped to the U.S. now for refining.
CNN contributor Stefano Pozzebon in Bogota, Colombia, country also facing threats from the Trump administration. Stefano, you've reported so often from Caracas, you have so many sources on the ground there. What are they telling you about what's happening on the ground?
STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, what we understand that is happening on the grounds in Caracas, Elex, is simply that the newly installed interim president, Delcy Rodriguez, who let's remind our audience was the deputy president just behind Nicolas Maduro up until that dramatic raid in the early hours of last Saturday.
Well, Delcy Rodriguez is flexing her muscle and showing that she is the person that can portray this image of strength and stability inside the country when it comes to Venezuela. Strength, sensibility, Alex, is mostly shown by sending out security officers wearing balaclavas, rounding up citizens and asking them questions about their political allegiances.
And that is what we understand has been happening both yesterday and especially today on Tuesday, with also government officials coming out and showing their loyalty and their allegiance, pledging the allegiance to Delcey Rodriguez, clearly the new woman in charge in Caracas.
And as a response, Delcy Rodriguez did declare seven days of mourning for the Venezuelan officers that have been killed in the operation that led to the capture of Nicolas Maduro. We understand that up to 24 military officers have been killed in that operation on top of the 32 Cuban officers that we had already reported in the past. So increasingly a death toll that is growing higher and higher. But
with the president in Venezuela, that is showing no sign of wanting to give in to the American narrative. Elex.
MICHAELSON: Stefano, President Trump posting on Truth Social that the U.S. is going to get between 30 and 50 million barrels of oil from Venezuela. How is that supposed to work?
POZZEBON: Well, that is a remarkable statement if you want me to use to mind my own words. I don't know how that is going to work, frankly. Over the last several years, Venezuela has been struggling to drill up to 1 million barrels of oil per day, let alone export it, let alone export the oil of the quality that the United States need in order to mix it with the oil that the United States actually produce in order to produce gasoline at the refineries in the Gulf Coast.
It's frankly a number that we don't really understand where Donald Trump is coming up with. But it seems like that is the bounty that he's now requesting Rodriguez to come up with to give to him in order to essentially what he is now saving our president. Donald Trump saying that he's the person in charge in Caracas.
Delcy Rodriguez saying that, no, she's the one in charge in Caracas, but at the same time willing to cooperate and find a mediation with the Americans. But clearly it shows that Donald Trump is fixed one single goal and that he is restarting the Venezuelan oil production as quickly and as fast as possible, and that he's showing his trust in Delcy Rodriguez of being the person to lead that transition. Elex.
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MICHAELSON: Stefano Pozzebon reporting from Bogota, Colombia. Thank you so much.
Joining me now from Capitol Hill is California Congressman Ted Lieu. He is the vice chair of the House Democratic Caucus and sits on the Foreign Affairs Committee. Congressman, welcome to the story is for the first time.
REP. TED LIEU (D-CA): Thank you, Elex.
MICHAELSON: Do you agree with the premise of the Trump administration that the US Controlling Greenland would be good for U.S. national security?
LIEU: So thank you, Elex, for asking that question. Sure, it will be good for U.S. national security, but it would also be illegal. Denmark owns Greenland and we can't just invade a NATO country. That is insane. And the President has no justification for doing so. So that is my answer.
You can't just act as if there is no laws, if there's no treaties. We're part of NATO. We don't threaten other countries.
MICHAELSON: So when it came to Venezuela, the President didn't ask for Congress and hasn't really been held accountable by Congress, at least not yet. If he wants to do this on Greenland, is there anything you all can do to stop him? Because it seems like he's a big fan of asking forgiveness, not permission.
LIEU: So House Democrats are working right now on legislation regarding war powers and to make sure that the American people know that Democrats are fighting to make sure that we remain focused on what the American people want to be focused on, which is the economy and not on these foreign adventures, such as, in Donald Trump's words, quote, running the country of Venezuela.
MICHAELSON: So what does that legislation mean? And what kind of teeth would it have?
LIEU: So under the U.S. Constitution, the President has certain powers for self-defense. Clearly, this action in Venezuela, this military action, had nothing to do with self-defense. And so if he wants to use U.S. military troops to engage in a foreign country, he needs the authorization of Congress. And this legislation is related to that kind of issue, whether the President can use military force. And our view is he cannot do that without prior congressional approval.
MICHAELSON: And you think that's something that House Republicans and Senate Republicans would get behind?
LIEU: I think some Republicans will. Hopefully many will, because there is simply no justification for using the U.S. military against a sovereign nation when they are not an immediate and direct national security threat.
And again, this is not what the American people want. You've got health care costs skyrocketing and food prices continue to increase. We should not be trying to rebuild Venezuela. We should be rebuilding the U.S. economy.
MICHAELSON: We got some really sad news today. Doug LaMalfa, who is a Republican congressman from California, somebody you served with both in Congress and in Sacramento, suddenly died. How do you remember him? What did you learn from him?
LIEU: I'm very saddened to learn of the passing of Douglas LaMalfa. And as you said, I have known him for many years from the California State legislature to now in Congress. He represented his district extremely well. He was nice and respectful to all his colleagues on a bipartisan basis. I pray for his family and his friends and he will be missed.
MICHAELSON: We are hitting a big anniversary here in California, your home state. The one year anniversary of the wildfires in Southern California that just devastated thousands of people in the region.
The governor of California, Gavin Newsom, has asked for $35 billion from Congress to help people with their fire recovery needs. Where are we at that? Typically, something like this would be a bipartisan thing. Are we close to getting this money in a bipartisan way?
LIEU: I was at that meeting when Donald Trump visited and he said he was going to help the people who are affected. He lied. Those funds have not come. And so we keep pushing and pushing, but ultimately we're controlled in Congress by House Republicans and U.S. senators who are Republicans. They control both chambers and Donald Trump is the president.
So we really need Republicans to do what every other administration has done, which is help disaster relief victims.
MICHAELSON: They say that they don't necessarily trust the California government to spend the money well, and they want some -- some of them think that there should be strings attached. What do you say to that?
LIEU: It's fine if you want to put in the law how you want to have this money spent, but you've got to at least get this money out. And there's no evidence that California is different than any other state that's been impacted by disasters, that somehow California would spend this money any different way.
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There's absolutely no evidence of that.
MICHAELSON: Congressman Ted Lieu of California Democrat, thank you so much for joining us. Really appreciate you sharing your perspective.
LIEU: Thank you, Alex.
MICHAELSON: A new White House website is rewriting history on the anniversary of the January 6 Capitol riots. It claims that peaceful protesters were provoked by law enforcement at the U.S. Capitol five years ago, and it depicts President Trump as a hero for pardoning nearly 1,600 rioters, including those who were convicted of crimes against law enforcement.
Democrats held a candlelight vigil on the Capitol steps while members of the House Select Committee staged an unofficial hearing to reinforce their conclusion that President Trump incited the violence.
Some of the pardoned rioters marched to honor Ashley Babbitt, a protester who was shot and killed when she tried to breach the House chamber. Wednesday night, by the way, marks the first anniversary of the wildfires that devastated Los Angeles.
Just ahead, I'll be speaking with L.A. County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, who oversees the Palisades region, for latest on the city's efforts to rebuild and return. You see her there live. We talk to her next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:20:11]
MICHAELSON: Wednesday marks the first anniversary of two of the worst wildfires in California history. The Palisades fire broke out on January 7th last year, ended up exploding to nearly 24,000 acres. 12 people died. Thousands of structures were destroyed. Meanwhile, in Altadena, the Eaton Fire killed 19 people and destroyed
more than 9,000 structures. Both fires among the most destructive fires in the history of California. Flames wiped out much of the Palisades and much of the Altadena community.
Large scale evacuation orders were issued. It took weeks for the fires to be contained while residents wondered if they had a home to go back to. And so many did not. So many still do not.
From tragedy, though, remains the hope of the return and rebuild. For many, that may be a luxury they can't afford. Here with me in studio live is Lindsey Horvath. She is the L.A. County Supervisor who represents Pacific Palisades and Malibu. Supervisor, welcome to The Story Is for the first time.
LINDSEY HORVATH, LOS ANGELES COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS: Thank you for having me.
MICHAELSON: That was such a traumatic day and a traumatic night. What is sort of the main image that sticks in your mind from January 7th?
HORVATH: I think just looking at residents who were sort of in the area trying to figure out what exactly to do as were convening to, you know, make the message clear that it was time to evacuate, it was time to move, there was no time to waste. And you know, some of the residents in my district have lived through fires before, so they wanted to know very clearly what, you know, was this the time to get moving?
And some people, you know, didn't want to hesitate. And we saw with the confusion that then sort of unfolded, the clarity and communication was so critical.
And so I know that there were people who were calling me personally, letting me know that, you know, their dog was at home, they were out of town, could somebody go rescue their dog from their home?
People who were traveling, who had special belongings behind and, you know, how do you make a split second decision about what you're willing to keep for the rest of your life and what you're willing to sacrifice. It's just horrible.
MICHAELSON: And some people had to abandon their cars by the side of the road --
HORVATH: I know.
MICHAELSON: -- because there were roads that were jammed up and people didn't know where to go. There was so much confusion.
HORVATH: Yes.
MICHAELSON: So many problem, so many mistakes as well. And then we see this from in the L.A. Times. This was a report from the L.A. Fire chief. We want to put the headline up on the screen. It says, LAFD Chief admits palisade's fire report was watered down. Says it won't happen again. So some background here.
During the fire, Christine Crowley was the chief, and afterwards she was removed from the job by Mayor Bass. The interim chief ordered this sort of fair action report, and then the language of that was changed to make the fire department look better.
There's now a new chief, Jaime Moore, who's admitting to that after being caught. I know what goes through your mind with that.
HORVATH: We did our own after action because people have a lot of questions and they deserve answers. And answers shouldn't be watered down because you're afraid of what they might be. We need to know what the truth is so we can learn from it.
And we even asked the city to participate in our after action report and they declined participating. And now we know why. Because they wanted to cover up and tell their own story however they wanted to tell it.
We need to tell the story of what actually happened because it's not only important for us to learn from a government perspective on how we improve and what we could have or should have done better, it's also important for people to heal because they feel gaslit.
I was with people in one of those very early town halls who were saying, you know, could it have been the fire from New Year's Eve? And those concerns were sort of dismissed out of hand. And now that they're seeing, you know, they're sort of intuition around it was right. That's where trust gets broken.
MICHAELSON: So you think the city is trying to cover up?
HORVATH: Well, I think the fire chief said that.
MICHAELSON: Yes. Do you think that this fire was preventable?
HORVATH: Well, based on what we now know, you know, this fire traveled not -- it was not only in the city of Los Angeles, it traveled through three jurisdictions from my perspective, the city of Los Angeles, the unincorporated area of Los Angeles county, where I'm responsible in Sunset Mesa and Topanga. And Topanga is an area we're always concerned about. And then of course, to Malibu, which you've mentioned.
And so for a fire to travel that far, that quickly, you know, we go to great measures in Los Angeles County to prepare it. It would be unthinkable for a fire to not be put out on New Year's Eve, especially with the conditions that were risking that. It's absolutely unthinkable that's what happened.
MICHAELSON: You said the county went through an after action report. You say trust is important. You say admitting when you were wrong is important.
HORVATH: Yes.
MICHAELSON: Is there anything the county could have done better? HORVATH: Of course, I think, like what we've seen that the
communications was confusing for everyone. And that's why the very first motion I brought forward as part of the after action that we're doing as a county is to strengthen our Office of Emergency Management.
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Similar departments for other cities like this, like New York, for example, are, you know, exponentially bigger. And given that these climate impacts are nothing new to our district, we need an office that communicates clearly. People shouldn't have to go to 17 different places to piece together all of the information, speak with one voice, with clarity and with reliability. And that's -- so I think that's one of the things that we need to strengthen for sure.
MICHAELSON: We have seen that there's been a very fast debris removal, and the Trump administration has gotten credit from that, from a lot of Democrats for that. But we have seen that there's not been a very fast pace in terms of permits. A lot of that is city stuff.
But in terms of rebuilding, what's a realistic timeline for rebuilding?
HORVATH: Well, I think part of the delay also has to do with the fact that the federal government hasn't funded recovery like they should for, and they have for every other disaster that's happened in history in this country and the holdout of those billions of dollars that should be coming to region delays, how we are able to respond for our residents.
So I just that -- we saw that governments aligning during the debris removal process allowed us to move quickly. Community members got together, we moved at scale. Having those resources makes a big difference as a result of not having the federal government partner with us. We now at the county level are hiring. We're turning to our state partners to try and help us. But, you know, we're hiring up. We are using new technology to try and move things faster.
We are moving three times faster than were before the fires in terms of processing those permits. But it's still not fast enough for people who just want to get home. And I understand that.
MICHAELSON: I want to ask you about your future for a moment and a video that you posted a couple weeks ago that a lot of people had questions about. So here's that video.
HORVATH: OK.
We clearly see the face of the mayor of Los Angeles, Karen Bass. We know at the beginning of the Bass administration, there was a lot of conversation about locking arms and everybody working together. The way I see that video is that you are testing the waters at running for mayor of Los Angeles and attacking her track record. Am I reading it wrong?
HORVATH: Well, what we're responding to is the fact that the mayor herself is now saying that her counsel, who is working with the county as we are standing up a new department on the issue of homelessness to bring the accountability that is long overdue she's telling them now not to lock arms with us, not to work together and to abandon this new department and to instead focus on what has been a long failed institution locally that has not delivered the results.
So that's what we're responding to. But, you know, there are a lot of people who are asking me about running for mayor, and I think it's because they see that we are setting up in the county a different structure of accountability, and that's long overdue for the region.
MICHAELSON: So you're considering running for mayor?
HORVATH: I'm considering, and I'm listening to a lot of the people who are encouraging me to get into this race, people who are looking for a different kind of leadership. And I appreciate that people see that in me. But, you know, I also know that one of the things that has been important to me and my work is doing what I say.
And we've kicked off a lot of good work in this new department on homelessness. But more importantly, the governance reform that we're doing for L.A. County overall writ large there's a lot of opportunity there.
MICHAELSON: So the filing deadline is in a couple of weeks, so I guess we'll have a decision.
HORVATH: Yeah, decisions will be coming. I don't think that mayor race is full yet, so.
MICHAELSON: There you go. All right. There's some news from Lindsey Horvath, county supervisor and potentially candidate for mayor of Los Angeles. We'll find out soon.
Thanks so much for being here. We'll have more news and break that down when we come.
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[01:32:50]
ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to THE STORY IS. I'm Elex Michaelson.
Let's take a look at today's top stories.
The Justice Department says that it has released less than 1 percent -- less than 1 percent the document it has on Jeffrey Epsteins investigation. That's despite Congress ordering that all of the files be released by December 19th of last year.
So far, over 12,000 documents have been made public. The Department now says they have more than 2 million still being reviewed.
The Trump administration is sending some 2,000 more federal immigration agents to Minnesota as part of the continued crackdown on the state's Somali population, and allegations of both child care and welfare fraud. Governor Tim Walz says the deployment is proof that the White House is waging war against Minnesota.
And the eldest son of former U.S. President Ronald Reagan has died. Michael Reagan was adopted just after his birth in 1945 by Reagan and his first wife, actress Jane Wyman.
He spent his adult life raising money for charities including Alzheimer's research. Michael Reagan hosted a talk show program, was contributor to the right-wing Newsmax TV network. He was a frequent guest with me on my old show, "The Issue Is".
A great guy who was so much fun, affable, kind to everybody around him. Sending love to the Reagan family tonight.
Well, last hour I spoke with L.A. businessman and philanthropist Rick Caruso on the city's failure in handling the devastating wildfires and their aftermath. We're at the one-year anniversary of those fires that caused thousands of properties to be destroyed.
Here's what Caruso had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICK CARUSO, L.A. BUSINESSMAN AND PHILANTHROPIST: -- to cover up. It's so sad. There is a culture of corruption in the city and in city hall that leads to this. this fire. We know now was completely preventable.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[01:34:43]
MICHAELSON: Now Caruso's comments come in the wake of a "L.A. Times" report that claims the city's fire department review of the Palisades fire was watered down to protect city leadership. The fire chief admitting on the record that it was watered down and saying that's not going to happen again.
I'm joined now by Jon Regardie, an L.A. based journalist who's been covering local politics for decades. Jon, welcome back to THE STORY IS.
JON REGARDIE, L.A. BASED JOURNALIST: Thank you, Elex.
MICHAELSON: So the fires impacting city politics here in a big, big way. And the more that comes out, the more it looks like a cover up, right?
REGARDIE: Absolutely. I mean, the reporting by the "Los Angeles Times" has really been heroic, really damning. It has just really, you know, the comments about the cover up, I mean, what else can you say that is, you know, that blows my mind that the Los Angeles Fire Department would not give the full, honest approach in terms of what was happening.
MICHAELSON: And so that makes everybody associated look bad. Mayor Bass said she has nothing to do with this cover up, has been her comment. But you think about Rick Caruso, who is thinking about running for mayor. And then interesting comments just a few minutes ago, right here on THE STORY IS from Lindsey Horvath, who's the L.A. County supervisor who just told us, made some news saying that the mayor race is not full and that she's considering running. What did you make of that?
REGARDIE: I was very surprised. I mean, you know, although I will say that's been on brand with Lindsey Horvath for a little bit. I had asked her just about a month ago or so, sort of the same question, and she gave a non-answer answer, leaving the door open.
She did not go though, to "I do not think the card is full". so that is really interesting. But will it be Lindsey? Will it be Rick Caruso? We already have the former L.A. USD superintendent, Austin Beutner in there, who's also very well known, got a big civic track record.
So it's a really interesting race, Elex.
MICHAELSON: Well, because we think about Karen Bass started off as mayor with the whole concept of locking arms with everybody, including Lindsey Horvath, literally locking arms.
And then the fire happens and her poll numbers go like this. She was in Ghana. She was kind of a -- very bad from a political perspective.
Then we had the immigration raids in L.A. We saw her get her footing. We saw her poll numbers go back up. We saw a more confident Bass. We saw Bass interacting with the community more.
But this fire anniversary is kind of a reminder of the worst moment of her time as mayor.
REGARDIE: Absolutely. And it does remind again, you know, of Ghana, which was a really low moment. And she does not again seemed decisive. You know, she was criticized so early on for a lack of leadership.
And again, when she's asked about this and she says, well, the fire department was responsible for the report. You know, people want clarity, they want firm statements from their leaders. So it has been bad news at a bad time for her.
Certainly still time to recover. But it's not, again, her best moment.
MICHAELSON: A sad day in Washington and here in California politics. Doug LaMalfa, who was one of the guests for this show on the first week, dying suddenly. And creating a terrible situation not only for his family, but the crass politics of this. The House majority is down to like 1 or 2 votes, depending on what happens.
Let's talk about how LaMalfa is replaced in this state. The mechanics of a special election to replace him.
REGARDIE: Well, as I understand it, Governor Gavin Newsom has between 140 -- has and 140 days to call a special election, but that can be pushed to 200 days if there is a regularly scheduled election, which there is June 2nd, the California primary.
The initial speculation that I've been hearing is that either we will see a special election in March, with the runoff time to that June 2nd primary, or the -- or the primary election would be on June 2nd with the runoff in August. Even though in that same election there would be another election for the reconfigured district Prop 50.
MICHAELSON: And that's what makes this so confusing, even for political junkies, because Prop 50 changed the district lines for LaMalfa's thing, which is to help Democrats. But the old district lines, which is what the special election is going to be on, are the lines to help Republicans. So we'll see what happens and who ends up running.
But we are sending love to Doug LaMalfa family tonight and thinking of him and all who loved him.
Jon Regardie, thank you so much. Nice to see you.
Coming up, Ukraine's allies are rallying around the war-torn country, offering a range of security guarantees. The latest on the meeting in Paris between the so-called coalition of the willing. Up next.
[01:39:29]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MICHAELSON: U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff says security protocols for Ukraine are, quote, "largely finished". That announcement follows a meeting of Ukraine's allies in Paris, where officials from 35 countries vowed to provide security guarantees.
The U.K. and France signed an agreement that would deploy forces on the ground and build military hubs in Ukraine should a ceasefire with Russia take effect. Security guarantees for Ukraine would include a continuous ceasefire monitoring system led by the U.S.
There was no immediate reaction from Moscow over these developments, but the Kremlin has repeatedly rejected the idea of a foreign peacekeeping force operating inside of Ukraine.
Skiers formed a giant heart in the snow in Switzerland to honor the 40 people killed in a fire on New Year's Eve. Local officials now say that bar where they were celebrating had not had a mandatory fire and safety inspection since 2019. Look at how beautiful that heart is.
Teenagers as young as 14 and 15 were among the victims, and more than 100 people were injured. Prosecutors believe sparklers in champagne bottles ignited foam soundproofing material in that ceiling.
[01:44:44]
MICHAELSON: The bar's managers are under criminal investigation on suspicion of three crimes -- negligent manslaughter, bodily harm and arson. Deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife are now being
held in New Yorks notorious metropolitan detention center as they await their federal trial. The MDC, as it's known, has a reputation for some really rough conditions. CNN's Brynn Gingras reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: From palace luxury to prison hell.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Venezuelans in New York are ecstatic about this.
GINGRAS: Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention Center, or MDC, is where nearly 1,300 inmates, now including ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, bide their time as they await federal trial in New York.
Epstein co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell, crypto king Sam Bankman- Fried, music stars Sean Diddy Combs and R. Kelly are former MDC detainees. Accused murderer Luigi Mangione is there right now.
Maduro isn't even the first president of a country to be held there. Former leader of Honduras Juan Orlando Hernandez also stayed at MDC while on trial for drug trafficking charges.
Inside MDC, conditions have been described as barbaric.
SAM MANGEL, FEDERAL PRISON CONSULTANT: It truly is hell. There's very little HVAC. There's very little heating. Every inmate gets one wool blanket, which means they're probably wearing the prison jumpsuit that you saw him in yesterday to sleep as well.
GINGRAS: The Bureau of Prisons doesn't comment on current inmates, but Maduro and his wife are likely housed in a segregated area of the prison, not with the general population, in separate cells and alone.
MANGEL: His case, he is a security risk in general population. No one knows what other inmates might think of him, other gang members, other drug cartel members. So putting him in general population at any time, I think, would be a tremendous security risk for the facility.
GINGRAS: Now, instead of being catered to according to a Bureau of Prisons handbook, their life likely includes a 6:00 a.m. wake up, with time scheduled to meet with their attorneys daily, outdoor exercise five hours a week, and daily visits by health personnel.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you good?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
GINGRAS: In recent years, judges, attorneys and activists have sounded the alarm about the horrific state of MDC, including staff shortages, stabbings and killings.
ELIE HONIG, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: The Bureau of Prisons has an obligation to take care of prisoner health and safety and is really historically quite poor at it. But again, in this case, they better be on top of it.
GINGRAS: Brynn Gingras, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAELSON: Up next, she has written some of the biggest songs you know, but she's never won an Academy Award despite being nominated 16 times.
Legendary singer-songwriter Diane Warren sits down with me to talk about her latest hit, which just might break that curse. And maybe, just maybe, is going to help her get that Oscar finally.
We go to break though, a live look at Paris, where the sun's about to come up. Got some clouds in the sky, but it always looks beautiful -- the Eiffel Tower.
You're watching "The Issue Is" (SIC) here in America and around the world.
[01:48:05]
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MICHAELSON: Songwriter Diane Warren has been nominated for an Oscar 16 times. She has nominations in five different decades. Somehow, I don't know how, she's come up short every time.
This year, though, might be different. She's trying for nomination number 17 and hoping her most personal song yet is the one to bring home that award. Take a listen.
(MUSIC)
MICHAELSON: That is Kesha singing Diane's "Dear Me", which is the title song of the documentary out now, "Diane Warren Relentless", about Diane's life.
Diane, with us here now on THE STORY IS. Welcome to the show for the first time.
DIANE WARREN, SINGER-SONGWRITER: Great to be here.
MICHAELSON: Yes, and congratulations on a great song. We want to put up some of the songs you've written over the years, just so people have some familiarity with your work, because they know all these songs.
"If I Could Turn Back Time" from Cher; "Because You Love Me", Celine Dion; "How Do I Live" Leann Rimes; "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing", Aerosmith; "Unbreak my Heart", Toni Braxton; "Have You Ever" Brandi.
Those are just some of the hits that you wrote, and all of those songs were basically about other people or made-up people, right? Yes, and this song is about you.
WARREN: A non-made-up person. Me, believe it or not. Yes, yes.
MICHAELSON: And so this documentary is about your life and this is a letter to a younger version of yourself. What was the thought process behind this?
WARREN: You know, so I've written songs for a lot of movies and what was different about this? A big difference was this was a movie about me. And so I always try to find what's the heart of that movie. You know what? What ties it together emotionally.
And I wanted to write a song to that young girl, that young, you know, lonely, bullied, you know, I didn't have an easy time growing up. Not that a lot of us do, but, you know, like, I kind of felt like the world was against me, you know?
And I wanted to write a song to that girl, that young girl that, you know what? It's going to be ok.
MICHAELSON: You grew up.
WARREN: You don't know it now.
MICHAELSON: You grew up in southern California, in Van Nuys.
WARREN: Yes. Yes.
MICHAELSON: And talk to us about your childhood, what you were going through.
WARREN: Yes. I think anybody that's a little weird or a lot weird, like I -- like I was and still am, you know, you stand out and, you know, kids aren't nice to other kids that stand out.
And, you know, and I didn't feel understood, you know, by my parents really either. And, you know, I don't know, I just but music was like just a saving -- saving grace to me, you know?
[01:54:47]
MICHAELSON: How so? How is it your salvation?
WARREN: It always was. And it's by the way, to this day, it is. It just -- it's something I could do and something I could lose myself in, you know, and, you know --
MICHAELSON: And so many of us, by the way, have been bullied. I remember being bullied as a kid and having people make fun of me.
WARREN: You are so perfect.
MICHAELSON: No, no, no, no, no. But, you know, people make fun of me. People try to beat me up. People -- all the rest of it. And it leaves a lasting imprint on you to this day. I still talk about it in therapy to this day. WARREN: Right. Because that's -- that kid is still in you. That's what
-- like that's why the song is really connecting with a lot of people. I mean, I'm hearing from people I'm so surprised at.
(CROSSTALKING)
MICHAELSON: Yes. Because you've said that this is one of the most universal songs you've ever written, even though it was a song about you.
WARREN: Yes, it's a song to myself. But what we all have that wounded child in us, we all have -- have that person in us. Like what you were saying?
Like, no matter how successful you are or no matter what you achieve, that kid is still there. And so if you could actually just say to them, if you could say to your younger self, you know, I mean, look at you now, you know.
MICHAELSON: And so what is your message to the younger version of you?
WARREN: That it's going to be ok. You know, you know, it will all get better. That's the -- that's the -- there it is right there. No matter -- no matter what, you know.
I know you feel the, you know, nobody understands, you know.
MICHAELSON: And when people hear that message, including Kesha, when she heard it for the first time, they often cry.
(CROSSTALKING)
WARREN: Yes. Kesha was crying.
MICHAELSON: Because they think of that younger version of themselves --
WARREN: Yes.
MICHAELSON: -- and how much they need to hear --
WARREN: Exactly.
MICHAELSON: -- that message.
WARREN: And that's why I chose her too, because I knew she had a difficult time growing up, and so I needed someone authentic. Like -- so when I do a song for a movie, I cast it.
MICHAELSON: You cast -- you cast the singer?
WARREN: Yes, I cast the singer to fit that movie and fit, you know, that emotion. And it has to be authentic. And it's like, oh, well, who's that for me? And there was nobody else but Kesha.
MICHAELSON: So let's talk for a moment about where you work, because this documentary -- we go inside of your house and inside --
WARREN: Also my office.
MICHAELSON: -- your office, right?
WARREN: Yes.
MICHAELSON: And this is let's show --
WARREN: It's disgusting.
MICHAELSON: -- what it looks like.
WARREN: Oh, God.
MICHAELSON: So we go in and it's -- it's a unique space. It's not a traditional setup.
WARREN: That's not even the bad part. The bad part is somewhere. Oh, it's getting there.
MICHAELSON: Yes. So we open up the door and we see -- why this setup? And why do you feel so at home and so comfortable in that -- the way that that is.
WARREN: Oh, there we go.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
Warren: There it is. I'm just really -- I guess I think I'm at home in chaos. and I've just been in there forever. And I -- I'm comfortable there.
I mean it's disgusting. I'm probably like immune to every disease.
[01:57:17]
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