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The Story Is with Elex Michaelson

Catastrophic Ice, Snow, Extreme Cold Threatening Millions; Trump Says FEMA Is Fully Prepared To Respond; Record Number Of Flights Canceled This weekend; FBI Agent Who Initially Investigated I.C.E. Shooting Resigns; Protestors March To Demand I.C.E. Out Of Minnesota; Air France Suspends Flights, Citing Middle East Tension; Russia Strikes Kyiv Ahead of Second Day Of Peace Talks; Allies Outraged Over Trump's Comments On NATO troops; Trump's About-Face On Greenland; The Atlantic Criticizes Newsom's Record Amid 2028 Speculation; Emma Willis Hosts Art Show To Raise Awareness Of Brain Disease; Funeral For Italian Designer Valentino Held In Rome; aired 12-1a ET

Aired January 24, 2026 - 00:00   ET

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

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LAURA COATES, CNN HOST: -- now I'll go home, and I'll go back to my climbing practice. But for the climbing up the big skyscraper, and that's usually my Saturday night.

ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN HOST: You're a big buffet fan.

COATES: I mean big buffet, little buffet. Buffet is a buffet.

MICHAELSON: Can't go wrong with a good sizzler.

COATES: Or an Elex Michaelson show. Have a great one.

MICHAELSON: Have a good weekend. Laura, thank you so much. "The Story Is" starts right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "The Story Is" monster winter storm. It has potentially to be the coldest and deadliest in history. Preparations happening right now coast to coast.

"The Story Is" anti-ice rallies in Minnesota and indications that President Trump thinks that he may be losing control of his immigration narrative.

"The Story Is" rewriting history, Swift backlash to President Trump's inaccurate comments about NATO in Afghanistan.

"The Story Is" a CNN exclusive. I sit down with Emma Henning Willis for an update on Bruce Willis's fight against dementia and how art is making a difference.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from Los Angeles, "The Story Is" with Elex Michaelson.

MICHAELSON: And welcome to "The Story Is", I'm Elex Michaelson. Our clear top story the weather. More than 100 million Americans bracing for a massive winter storm stretching more than 2,000 miles. Forecasters are warning of catastrophic impacts from heavy snow and ice that could lead to days without powers in some areas, at least 15 states and Washington D.C. have already declared a state of emergency. Parts of the South and Midwest are already seeing snow and ice right now, officials are urging people to stay off the roads and stay at home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GREGG ABBOTT, TEXAS GOVERNOR: This is going to be a catastrophic winter storm that's going to cause us to lose power.

BRIAN KEMP, GEORGIA GOVERNOR: Make sure you got the things that you need at your house to stay warm and hunker down.

WES MOORE, MARYLAND GOVERNOR: Our plea to the people of this state is, if you can stay off the roads.

ZOHRAN MAMDANI, NEW YORK MAYOR: Once the snow begins to fall, I want to encourage New Yorkers to do something that we don't often have the luxury of doing, which is to take a breath and stay home.

NED LAMONT, CONNECTICUT GOVERNOR: Within about 48 hours, everybody's talking about Greenland, within about 48 hours Connecticut is going to look like Greenland.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Nobody can get Greenland off their mind. Apparently, President Trump says he has been briefed on the potentially historic storm. He says his administration has been coordinating with local and state officials, a lot of the folks you just saw right there, adding that FEMA is fully prepared to respond. Now video out of Texas shows empty store shelves as people rush to buy enough food and supplies to last through that storm. An official in Dallas says people there should be prepared to hunker down for days.

Let's go live now to Dallas, Texas. We're joined by Wayne Walker. He's the Founder and CEO of OurCalling a non-profit that's opening one of the largest warming shelters in Texas to help some of the most vulnerable people in that state.

Wayne, thanks for being with us. What are you seeing on the ground right now?

WAYNE WALKER, FOUNDER & CEO, OURCALLING: Well, we see a lot of preparations, the largest building at the State Fair of Texas and turned it into the largest inclement weather shelter in in Texas. And so we've got lots of resources piling up, and lots of people coming in. A lot of people are afraid of what this weather could bring.

MICHAELSON: and you especially cater to homeless individuals who would normally be out on the streets. Are they some of the folks who don't like to come inside? Are they kind of eager to come inside, because they're of what they're saying. WALKER: Yeah, at OurCalling, we primarily work with the unsheltered homeless community. You're exactly right, and many of them have not been in a building. All of our shelters are always at capacity, and so we have so many more that are on the streets that desperately need a place to go, and so many of them that normally would stay out are choosing to come in just because they're expecting the weather to get so bad.

MICHAELSON: Are you worried about the power staying on? We know in the past, Texas has had some challenges with that.

WALKER: We have a great partnership with the City of Dallas and the Office of Emergency Management, and they're telling us that they're going to support us no matter what. So even if we had some power issues, I'm sure they have some generators they can bring in. We've -- last year we had 900 people, and that was the largest shelter in Texas. Is what they told us. This year, we have 1,800 shelter cots ready for people, and so it's going to be twice as big and twice as many opportunities to love our neighbors, and we just trust that, our city is going to step beside us, and all the ways that they always have to make sure that we make sure that our neighbors are safe.

MICHAELSON: To that point. What do you need? Because this kind of forecast, if you're sleeping outside, you could die?

WALKER: Absolutely so. We work with 1000s of people every year, and we do see a lot of deaths, a lot of dangers that happen at this time of year. So we need the community come beside us, right? Go to ourcalling.org/cold, and find ways that you can donate and support the activity going on here.

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We're just trying to keep our neighbors safe, trying to focus on life saving so that we can, as Jesus said, to love our neighbors, well, even in this crisis that can be deadly.

MICHAELSON: Well, God bless you in the work that you're doing, and it will save lives this weekend. Wayne Walker, thank you so much. Appreciate you joining us.

WALKER: Thank you.

MICHAELSON: Now the threat of that massive storm already impacting air travel in a big way. Sunday, now the worst day for flight cancelations in the past year. More than 5,000 flights have already been canceled for Sunday. That number could climb. The flight cancelation record was set hours earlier by Saturday's number, which is now more than 3,300 that's according the flight tracking website, FlightAware. Meantime, the Federal Aviation Administration is saying it anticipates that, "Airports will have to close because of the impending storm." Here's what one official at the world's busiest airport in Atlanta had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GUS HUDSON, SENIOR DEPUTY GM, ATLANTA HARTSFIELD-JACKSON INTL. AIRPORT: Continue to monitor your airlines information to ensure that you have the latest on that, and if you are traveling to the airport be careful coming to the airport and know that flights may be canceled. So just be aware of the conditions and be aware of instruction from the airlines.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Joining us now from a very chilly New York City is travel expert Peter Greenberg. Peter, welcome "The Story Is," for the first time.

PETER GREENBERG, TRAVEL EXPERT: Happy to be with you.

MICHAELSON: So if you have a flight booked in the next few days, what's your advice?

GREENBERG: Well, chances are you've already been contacted by the airlines which you have been issuing preemptive waivers offering passengers the opportunity to rebook their flights at a later date without any cancelation or penalties. Of course, that assumes there'll be seats available. Because remember, once you cancel a flight, I'm talking about if the airline cancels the flight and you have a system shut down, which could very well happen during the storm. For every 24 hours you're down, it'll take the airline about 72 hours to get back up because their planes are out of sequence, their crews are out of schedule, and they have to realign the entire schedule. So if you're going to be rebooking, don't think you're going to be rebooking for Monday or Tuesday. If your flight is scheduled for Sunday, it'll be more likely Wednesday.

MICHAELSON: So if you really have to get somewhere, what do you do?

GREENBERG: Bring a book and watch Wheel of Fortune. Because the problem is, trains are shut down. Amtrak is not going to be running, at least along the northeast corridor. Once you have a shutdown on the East Coast, it moves West very, very quickly. And it's not just whether or not the weather is in your area. It's the weather that where the plane is coming from. So you need to go to your websites and your apps, like Flighty, or Flightradar24 or FlightAware, which you just mentioned, because you can track the aircraft by the tail number and by the flight number assigned to that tail number to feet to see if it's even coming into your airport, because if it's not going to get in, you're not going to get out.

MICHAELSON: Are some airlines better at handling this than others?

GREENBERG: Yeah, because they've learned their lessons in the past about what happens to their planes if they're out of sequence. So for example, today in Dallas, you had a large number of cancelations there by American Airlines. But the reason for that wasn't because of there was weather in Dallas today is because they were preemptively canceling to be able to keep the planes where they were supposed to be with their crews, so that when the storm passes, they have a better chance of getting back up and running. MICHAELSON: So bottom line for folks this weekend, I mean, I guess the answer to the question, if you really need to get somewhere, you maybe can't, right?

GREENBERG: You maybe can't, if the storm projections hold, you'll be watching football.

MICHAELSON: Exactly. There's going to be some good games this weekend. I'm sure you're rooting for the Rams like me, right? Peter Greenberg, thank you so much. Appreciate it. Have a good weekend. Hopefully you're able to stay warm inside. That bad weather is also disrupting plans for a daring feat in Taiwan. Climber Alex Honnold was all set to scale one of the tallest buildings in the world without ropes. Look at this video, but rainy weather there put a damper on those plans, forcing him to postpone that attempt.

Video from his test climb shows him as he scales part of the Taipei 101 skyscraper amid an overcast sky. Netflix plan to stream the event live. It's now been pushed back a day, and he will try again tomorrow, so all the folks in the cold can watch him do this in Asia.

Story tonight, also in Minnesota, where two sources familiar with the matter tell CNN that the FBI agent who was originally working with state authorities to investigate the fatal shooting of Renee Good has now resigned from the Bureau. The agent had opened a civil rights investigation, but was ordered to reclassify it to an investigation into an assault on the officer. The FBI blocked Minnesota from participating in the investigation at all.

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The Hennepin County attorney, who oversees Minneapolis, says the agents resignation suggests that the investigation may have been stopped for political reasons. Protesters are calling for I.C.E. to end its operation in Minnesota, thousands braved subzero temperatures to march in Minneapolis on Friday. Hundreds of businesses across the state were encouraged to close for the day to strike over the Trump administration's immigration crackdown, and some residents are taking action to help their neighbors. CNN's, Omar Jimenez is in Minneapolis.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The temperatures around negative 20 degrees right now, even colder with wind chill. Where this food is going is for the most part to people who are too scared to come outside right now because of the increased federal immigration enforcement presence here in Minneapolis.

SERGIO AMEZCUA, SENIOR PASTOR, DHH CHURCH: My assistant, kind of like Pastor, a lot of people register. 2010, 2000 I'm like, why? Wow, 2000 --

JIMENEZ: Sergio Amezcua, Minneapolis church has a predominantly Latino congregation. He says, services don't look like they used to. How many people are we talking?

AMEZCUA: We have around 500 to 600 people in the normal days. Right now we get 100 or 80, if we're lucky.

JIMENEZ: It's a sense of community that's been disrupted, and one, he says, has been part of driving down violent crime in the city after spikes in 2021 and 2020.

AMEZCUA: If you look at the police department right now, it looks way different than 2020 they're really working with the people of Minneapolis, and that that's making the difference.

JIMENEZ: Whatever the exact formula, Minneapolis has seen results. Now even though homicide rates are still up in the city compared to pre pandemic levels, according to a recent study by the Council on Criminal Justice, murders and the number of gunshot wound victims both down more than 15% compared to 2024 and much lower than the 2021 peak, and it's similar to nationwide decreases for what's expected to be the third year in a row, according to FBI data.

The Trump administration is already tying the trends to increased immigration enforcement, despite this Minneapolis operation not starting until December of 2025.

JD VANCE, U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: We're enforcing the immigration laws and getting very violent criminals out of our country. And number two, because we're enforcing our criminal laws --

MARY MORIARTY, HENNEPIN COUNTY ATTORNEY: it has nothing to do with crime going down, because that was already happening.

JIMENEZ: Mary Moriarty is the Chief Prosecutor for Hennepin County, which includes Minneapolis.

Your concern is this dynamic of fear is going to make it harder for you to prosecute cases? Really?

MORIARTY: Yes, that's already happened. We've had witnesses who are immigrants, who are afraid to come to court because I.C.E. is around this building the courthouse. That means that witnesses that we may need to prosecute a violent crime are not going to be available to us and have not been available to us.

JIMENEZ: The at times chaotic dynamic has even been criticized by police chiefs in the area.

CHIEF AXEL HENRY, ST. PAUL POLICE: Can we find a way to make sure that we can do these things without scaring the hell out of our community members?

JIMENEZ: And to start the year as Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara announced drops in crime, he worried about the increased presence of federal agents.

CHIEF BRIAN O'HARA, MINNEAPOLIS POLICE: The greatest risk to me is that there would be unrest or that there would be a tragedy.

JIMENEZ: The next day, Renee Good was shot and killed during a confrontation with I.C.E. agents. It led to even more agents deployed to Minnesota, more anger, more fear.

AMEZCUA: Sometimes when I get an Amazon package at home, my 12-year- old ran to me, Dad, dad, daddy, ice is here, and I'm like, what? So it was just an Amazon package.

JIMENEZ: He sees that fear as he delivers those meals.

AMEZCUA: I mean, most people need that. They're alone all day looking up in the window. So we get food, but we also give them food for their soul, and let them know that we're going to get through this.

JIMENEZ: Omar Jimenez, CNN, Minneapolis.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Still ahead, President Trump facing backlash over his latest comments on the Afghanistan war. What he said that angered NATO allies, plus Russia is talking about peace, but without slowing down its war effort in Ukraine. Up next reports of new Russian strikes.

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(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MICHAELSON: Air France is temporarily suspending flights to Dubai on Friday and Saturday citing concerns over the "current situation" in the Mid East, the airline said in a statement that it monitors geopolitical activities and developments across areas where its planes fly to ensure safety. The move comes after President Trump said a flotilla of U.S. military assets was headed to the region amid heightened tensions with Iran.

Russia is set to resume police talks with Ukraine and the U.S. in the coming hours, just as its war machine unleashed a new onslaught on Kyiv, Friday night. Ukraine says the city was attacked with drones and missiles, with air defenses working to shoot them down. CNN crews on the ground are reporting explosions in the capitol.

Now, all that came after negotiators began the first trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi aimed at ensuring Russia's ending Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Moscow has not sent its top negotiating team, which limits what can be discussed and accomplished. Ahead of day two of the meetings, Ukraine's President said this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (translated): As for the substance of today's discussions, it is still too early to draw conclusions. We will see how the conversation develops tomorrow and what result it produces.

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It is necessary that not only Ukraine has the desire to end this war and achieve full security, but that a similar desire somehow emerges in Russia as well. (END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: There is growing outrage from U.S. allies over President Trump's comments downplaying NATO's role in Afghanistan. The President claimed on Thursday that coalition troops stayed away from the frontlines during the 20-year war. Here's how he put it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: We've never needed them. We have never really asked anything of them, you know, they'll say they sent some troops to Afghanistan, and they did. They stayed a little back, little off the front lines.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Now, while the U.S. had the most casualties of any NATO member, about a 1000 troops from NATO members and other countries also died, including more than 450 from the United Kingdom. Trump's comments did not sit well with the British Prime Minister.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEIR STARMER, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: I will never forget their courage, their bravery, and the sacrifice that they made for their country. There are many also who were injured, some with life changing injuries, and so I consider President Trump's remarks to be insulting and frankly appalling.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Britain's Prince Harry, who served in Afghanistan, issued this statement. "Thousands of lives were changed forever. Mothers and fathers buried, sons and daughters. Children were left without a parent. Families are left carrying the cost those sacrifices deserve to be spoken about truthfully and with respect." White House has shrugged off the criticism, saying the U.S. has done more for NATO than any other country in the alliance.

Joining us now is David Sanger, CNN, National Security Analyst and Author of New Cold War China's rise, Russia's invasion, and America's struggle to defend the West. David, welcome back to "The Story Is."

DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL AND NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Great to be back with you.

MICHAELSON: What do you make of President Trump's comments that NATO didn't play a huge role on the front lines of Afghanistan?

SANGER: You know, if there was a line ever designed to further inflame the Europeans? I can't immediately think about what it would be. It's interesting. He was corrected even by the NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte, who he respects a lot, and who reminded him that in Afghanistan, for every two Americans killed in action was probably about one from an allied country. MICHAELSON: A lot of this week seemed to kind of get to the question of, should NATO still exist? So do you think that the U.S. still needs NATO, and does NATO still need the U.S.?

SANGER: Well, the U.S., if it doesn't need NATO, it would be, I think, probably a strange thing to throw away, because it's a huge force multiplier for the U.S. The fact that NATO troops are operating in different places, whether they're rotating through Estonia or they're operating in Kosovo, or whatever are places where the U.S. does not need to have its own presence. And there are huge intelligence gathering that here we have, you have 32 countries. And they hear a lot of things that Americans and the American intelligence agencies don't. So and they were invented for a reason, and by and large, it's worked. Have they contributed as much financially as they should? No, and I think it's to the President's credit that he got them to contribute more. But certainly they're pretty essential. Do they need the U.S. at the middle? Absolutely, they do not have the capabilities that the U.S. military has.

MICHAELSON: You write in the New York Times about President Trump's "Turnabout on Greenland shows the limits of his coercive powers." That's the headline in your New York Times analysis. What do you mean by that?

SANGER: Well, the President has been escalating his comments for the past few weeks about the need to own Greenland, and when my colleagues and I went in to interview him a little more than two weeks ago in the Oval Office, in an interview that ran just about two hours, I pressed him on the question of why he needed ownership. After all, we have a treaty signed in 1951 that enables the U.S. to open up any military bases that it wants or to reopen them. We had 15 or more in Greenland during the Cold War, and then closed them down. They were expensive. Didn't seem strategically vital. He dismissed that and said, psychologically, ownership is just more important.

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This was a real estate guy who had owned buildings and leased buildings, and knew the difference. And he stuck with that line until Wednesday night, when he suddenly dropped.

MICHAELSON: Interesting. Well, your conversation with him was fascinating. People should go back and read that or listen to The Daily where you can listen to the whole thing, which is really fascinating. David Sanger, thank you for your continued excellence reporting, and thank you for your analysis here tonight on "The Story Is."

SANGER: Thanks. Great to be with you.

MICHAELSON: Still ahead, President Trump is growing increasingly frustrated, apparently, with some of these chaotic scenes coming out of Minnesota, of I.C.E. agents clashing with protesters, as he's losing the narrative? Our political panel here to discuss that and more, look at him standing by live near a tandem, Jon Fleischman. Plus a story about Gavin Newsom that's getting a lot of buzz, and it's not what you would think. Stay with us.

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MICHAELSON: Returning now to one of our top stories. Millions of people in the U.S. are bracing for a monster winter storm and frigid temperatures. Look at that map, the rain, snow and ice will cover more than 2,000 miles, moving eastward from Texas to New England throughout the weekend, more than half of all Americans will experience subzero wind chills in the days ahead. Think about that over 150 million people subzero wind chills. The ice storm could knock down trees and power lines and cause power outages in parts of the south. Some areas could get more than three feet of snow.

To Minnesota now, a place that knows a thing or two about cold weather, where protesters are calling for I.C.E. agents to leave the state. Crowds marched through Minneapolis despite extremely cold winter weather and packed into the Target Center arena for the ice out rally. 20,000 people had signed up to attend the protests against the Trump administration and hear from community leaders. Usually, this is the home of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Now it's the home of an ice protest. Hundreds of businesses were expected to close on Friday as part of an economic blackout against the immigration crackdown.

Meanwhile, this is interesting. Sources tell CNN that President Trump has privately expressed frustration over the ongoing protests and images coming out of Minnesota against the immigration crackdown. Sources say the President, at times sounding exasperated, is unhappy and concerned that his messaging on immigration is getting lost in the chaotic scenes of federal agents clashing with protesters. As a result, White House officials have been plotting how to move the narrative away from the unrest and instead focus on what they view as ISIS achievements.

Let's talk about this and more with our panel. Neera Tanden is the President, CEO of the Center for American Progress and Domestic Policy Adviser to President Joe Biden. And Jon Fleischman, California Political Strategist and former executive of the California Republican Party. Welcome to you both. Neera, welcome to the show for the first time. Nice to have you out west.

Yeah, thanks for having me.

MICHAELSON: As a UCLA graduate. Welcome back home.

If I'm going to be out in California, I'll be at a time where it's going to really snow in D.C.

MICHAELSON: Yes, yeah it's going to be 70 degrees here this weekend. Jon, what do you make of this, this sort of idea that President Trump is frustrated by sort of losing the narrative here?

JON FLEISCHMAN, CALIFORNIA POLITICAL STRATEGIST: Well, I mean, President Trump gets frustrated anytime he loses the narrative, right? Because he's very focused on narrative and what that is. But I mean, again, the country is divided. You got half the country who thinks that illegal immigration is a problem and you should do something about it, and you got half the country who thinks somebody who's committed illegal entry, it's like a parking ticket, and therefore it's all overblown.

So if you've got under the Biden administration, you had 11 million interactions at the border, and Trump shut down the border, and so you had protests there. And now you've got, I mean, you're going to have protests on these kinds of --

MICHAELSON: Do you think the President Trump has lost the narrative?

FLEISCHMAN: I President Trump changes the narrative around all the time. So he's a very bombastic character.

MICHAELSON: What do you think Neera?

NEERA TANDEN, DOMESTIC POLICY ADVISER TO PRESIDENT BIDEN: I mean, I actually think that a lot of the country wants to have a secure border. I don't think it's 50% say open the border, 50% to close the border. There's actually a strong majority in the country for securing the border, but also treating people with dignity and respect and not violently assaulting U.S. citizens, or separating five-year-olds from their parents, or using -- the fact that we even have allegations that the government is using a five-year-old as bait against their parents --

MICHAELSON: Which they deny.

TANDEN: Which they deny, they deny, but the school system says that's what it looks like.

MICHAELSON: Yeah.

TANDEN: I think the fact that this is happening is actually enraging a majority of Americans, which you see and polls are people who want secure borders, and I think they are right to want that. But actually, what's happening in Minnesota has nothing to do with securing our borders.

MICHAELSON: It seems like there's kind of two potential things that are competing with each other. One some of these scenes of chaos may be good for immigration hardliners in the administration who really want people to self deport and this idea of chaos says to them, you're not welcome here. Get out before this happens to you.

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That's one thing. The other thing though, you've got Donald Trump, the TV producer who for so many years knows sees images based off of how they look on TV, and knows that's not good TV.

FLEISCHMAN: I think, as a practical matter, one of the challenges you have in states like Minnesota, cities like Minneapolis, these sanctuary city states, the reality is, local law enforcement should be working with I.C.E. to go after these hard core criminals, and they don't. And then there's complaints. I mean, I.C.E. is not the best people to go after these hard core criminals, but the reality is, the local law enforcement will not use somebody's immigration status to target them and deport them, even if they've committed further crimes, they just won't do it.

And so literally, I kind of roll my eyes, because the same people that are complaining about these tactics will not allow local law enforcement to get out there work with I.C.E. and figure out a better way to do this, because nobody thinks that these hardened criminals should be on the street.

TANDEN: I mean, but look, look at what's happening here. Just to be honest, there's not -- they aren't going after hardened criminals. They're really -- they're targeting people that have no record. They're basically going after? What is the point of going after a person who's 80-years-old, the child that they're targeting? I think the real challenge. I think the challenge is that this has moved way beyond criminals, and it seems like I think your point is actually right. What they're trying to do is scare people and want them to leave, but what they're ending up doing is victimizing a lot of people, including you have a militarized force that shot a white woman, Renee Good. So obviously, this is out of control.

MICHAELSON: Could you both be right though? I mean, isn't Jon's point though, that that if you were to go behind bars and cooperate, that maybe you wouldn't have to be out there in the streets doing some of this stuff.

TANDEN: My point is that the reality is you can use much less force to go after criminals. The idea that there are more I.C.E. enforcement officers than police in the city of Minneapolis tonight terrorizing people, I'm sorry for what -- when they have half the number of illegal immigrants in Minneapolis than they have in other communities. That is not about law enforcement. And I'm sorry, most people don't think it is law enforcement. And reason why the President is losing the narrative, and he understands that he is, is because these images are making Americans oppose I.C.E. overall.

FLEISCHMAN: I think the reality is, you've got 1000s of I.C.E. operations going on, and yes, a few of them have gone screwy. And I agree it is not okay, but the reality is, this is when you should be deploying local law enforcement. A lot of people feel that someone who is in the country, who has broken into the country, came here when they knew it was wrong, shouldn't even be here. And so you get this big challenge, and it's a divisive issue. But I mean, the reality is, if you're going after a hardened criminal, and he's got his five-year- old kid with him, does that mean, oh, you know what? You're wanted for a terrible crime, we're not going to bring you in. No, they bring in the five-year-old child.

MICHAELSON: You know that this person was a hardened criminal?

FLEISCHMAN: I don't know the details, but I'm saying --

TANDEN: Well, it matters if he was just undocumented versus a hardened criminal.

MICHAELSON: Well, do you know the answer to that question, I don't know the answer to that question.

TANDEN: I think, actually, I think they would have told us by now, given all their spinning that he was a hardened criminal.

FLEISCHMAN: -- the reality is a lot of this would be --

MICHAELSON: I think that's true too, but, but let's talk about another issue now, as we sort of look back on this week. President Trump on the world stage. We talked about that a lot. It was interesting also to see Governor Gavin Newsom on the World State. President Trump gives this big speech in Davos Gavin Newsom, the Governor of California is in the back, sort of watching it. And then some reports that the two of them actually exchange pleasantries backstage. It was the first time that they had talked in several months.

And then this Atlantic article came out. It's getting a lot of buzz. Put this up on the screen, talking about, sort of making the argument that Gavin Newsom's record is a problem. That's the Atlantic argument suggesting that his California leadership is going to be a problem for him. What do you make of this article? It's kind of unusual to see the Atlantic go so hard against a Democratic leader?

TANDEN: Well, I actually thought the biggest news of this week was really Gavin Newsom's trolling the President of United States really responding in real time. And I think a lot of Democrats are looking for leaders who are willing to take the fight to Donald Trump, and Gavin Newsom is being willing to do that, not just in the United States, but in Davos, when so many European leaders are cowering, he was really demonstrating how you -- how you showed that leadership.

Now, to the Atlantic piece, I think there's a lot of people who are interested in making the presidential election today. A lot of Democrats are anxious about the current President want to zoom forward. So that's why I think there's a lot of shadow boxing or how --

MICHAELSON: And one them might be Gavin Newsom based out of the way he acted this week.

[00:40:00]

TANDEN: Exactly. But I also think, look, he defended his record in Davos. He said California is the place that has the most fortune 500 businesses. The innovations in America are happening there and happening here in AI everything else. It's a state where you have a high minimum wage, you have high and still a strong robust middle class. So I think the truth is, he's going to have to defend his record. But he -- I think a lot of Democrats look at California and say it's a Republican talking point to attack it.

MICHAELSON: Well, I think you're about to make that talking point because you wrote an article today suggesting that he doesn't go far enough. FLEISCHMAN: Well, I mean --

MICHAELSON: He didn't go far enough.

FLEISCHMAN: So the point --

MICHAELSON: This is your animation, right?

FLEISCHMAN: Yeah, exactly.

MICHAELSON: Tell people where they can watch your -- get your stuff right way.

FLEISCHMAN: Yeah. You go to www.sodoesitmatter.com.

MICHAELSON: Yeah.

FLEISCHMAN: So that's where you can go. But the reality is, we're talking about a state with a magic, massive budget deficit. We're talking about a state that's had tremendous fraud, huge waste on a high speed rail that has not laid any track. And so the whole point is that with all of the problems that California is having, that this Governor is so interested in being President that instead of being present here in this state, working to solve problems. He's flying across the country using your words, trolling Donald Trump. He's not running against Donald Trump. By the time he runs for President, someone else is going to be running.

MICHAELSON: You don't know that.

FLEISCHMAN: I do know.

MICHAELSON: Trump 2028, he hands out in the overall.

FLEISCHMAN: My biggest, my biggest problem with the Atlantic is that they don't really point out that to any great extent. The fact that Gavin Newsom is now going out there trying to pretend he's Mr. Moderate, like he says, hey, I think it's unfair when, when, when biological men play in women's sports, but then he actually supports the legislation to do that. And so I think it's awkward.

MICHAELSON: Neera, you spend so much time with the most powerful people in D.C. and the party work for three presidents yourself. What's sort of the inside buzz? What are people saying behind the scenes in that circle about Gavin Newsom?

TANDEN: Look, I think Gavin Newsom has shot up to the top of the presidential discourse or discussion because he's moving up in the polls, in these polls that are way out early. He's number one or number two. And as a person who's never run before, that's pretty impressive. And I think, honestly, the reason why that is happening is because people in the Democratic Party see CEOs that cower, universities that cower, Republicans who refuse to defend the constitution, and they want, and are really desperate for a leader who will take the argument to Trump, who will recognize some of these things that are happening in the country are not normal. And he speaks to that every day, and he is strong on his feet. He matches with, he will have to defend his record. But I also will say just the idea that we're all going to attack California, I think again, that will sound a lot like Republican talking points to people.

MICHAELSON: And he's very good at getting attention, which is a big part of winning in politics.

TANDEN: Yes, I have learned, I have learned.

MICHAELSON: Real quickly.

FLEISCHMAN: I just think if you look at his record in California, it's not going to sell to centrist and center America voters.

MICHAELSON: We will see. There's been one Democratic nominee from California, Kamala Harris, and we saw what happen there.

TANDEN: And a Republican. And a Republican President for California.

MICHAELSON: A couple --

FLEISCHMAN: Two.

MICHAELSON: Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan.

TANDEN: Yes. Yes. Yeah.

MICHAELSON: All right, Neera and Jon. Thank you so much. You might visit the Reagan and Nixon libraries, while you're here during your California trip. Thank you so much.

We've got quite a story up next. I really hope you'll stay tuned for this. Since his diagnosis with FTD, actor Bruce Willis has rarely been seen in public, but his wife is working to raise awareness of the brain disease that's impacted so many. My exclusive conversation with Emma Willis from a very special art show that happened this week. It's an inspiring conversation, and stay with us for that next.

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[00:45:00]

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MICHAELSON: Now to a CNN exclusive an update on legendary actor Bruce Willis and his battle with a form of dementia that's made it hard for him to speak. His wife has become his spokesperson, and a voice that's changed the worldwide conversation about his disease. This week, I caught up with her at a very special art event.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EMMA HEMING WILLIS, BRITISH MODEL AND ACTRESS: A colorful perspective.

ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN HOST: And so you think they got some of their art gene from dad. WILLIS: Oh, definitely, yes. Can't you see.

MICHAELSON: Emma Heming Willis is showing us art pieces her daughters created inspired by their dad, Bruce Willis. One of the most beloved actors in Hollywood, with unforgettable roles from Die Hard to Pulp Fiction to the Sixth Sense. What is it about Bruce Willis that makes him so lovable?

WILLIS: He's like the everyday guy. Through his movies, you see this guy that I think so many people relate to, and he's funny and he's likable and he's extremely handsome. I mean, he is really quite iconic, and I love him very much.

MICHAELSON: In February 2023 the Willis family announced that Bruce was diagnosed with Frontotemporal dementia known as FTD, disease that's made it difficult for him to communicate.

WILLIS: He's doing really well with a very unkind disease.

[00:50:00]

MICHAELSON: FTD is the most common form of dementia for people under 60s. It's not Alzheimer's, which is often characterized by memory loss from the outset, FTD can affect the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain, potentially impacting personality, behavior, speech and language.

WILLIS: There is no cure. There is no treatment, which is why awareness is so important.

MICHAELSON: To raise awareness. Emma recently welcomed a big crowd.

WILLIS: I'm so glad you're here --

MICHAELSON: To Christie's in Beverly Hills for a limited run art show featuring pieces by those impacted by FTD.

WILLIS: By looking at the art, you see that people with FTD are whole. They are people that need our respect and dignity.

MICHAELSON: Doctors say some folks with FTD lose some of their inhibitions, which actually makes them more comfortable painting art.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Creativity became my outlet.

MICHAELSON: Sandy Howe leaned into art after an FTD diagnosis at 55 forced her to retire as an engineer.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I still have me inside, and so this still shows me inside.

MICHAELSON: The disease's progression has been tough.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have things locked in my head right now that I want to say, but it's just sitting there.

MICHAELSON: Her art showcasing a sunrise, represents her optimism.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A big key is each morning being a fresh start, because when I've screwed up all day long, the prior one, but it is a new start each day.

MICHAELSON: Artist Tori Tinsley says the sense of community here is overwhelming.

TORI TINSLEY, ARTIST: It's magical.

MICHAELSON: She lost her mom, Barbara to FTD five years ago.

TINSLEY: She was brilliant. She was so kind, so loving, so warm. I'm going to get emotional.

MICHAELSON: Her paintings highlight two people hugging.

TINSLEY: The figures represent me and my mom. So sometimes I felt like I was this figure, sometimes I felt like I was this figure. And as a caregiver, those roles get reversed back and forth from mother to child.

MICHAELSON: Emma wrote a book about her care giving experience called the unexpected journey. She's met with leaders across the country, partnering with the foundation, AFTD, to raise awareness and support care givers. How are you holding up?

WILLIS: Okay, I'm doing, I'm doing as well as I can. I think that this has been, really the best medicine has been for me to be able to connect with the community.

MICHAELSON: Bruce's daughter with Demi Moore and Tallulah Willis contributed pieces to the show with a message to her dad, don't worry. I can still feel you, and a drawing of his brain with the words, I wish it was coming back. Emma, Demi and their girls going through this journey together.

WILLIS: We've always been a very close knit family, and we all unite for him.

MICHAELSON: What has this journey taught you about love?

WILLIS: Love can change. It's like if you have a child and you think that you couldn't love your child anymore, and then you have a second child, and your heart, just opens up more. I think that that is what it feels like when you're a caregiver. Your love shifts. It expands and is different, but very meaningful. And I feel very, very blessed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Our thanks to Emma for all of her hard work on this front. You can find out more about the disease itself at the aftd.org.

Coming up in our next hour, we go on tour with a priest who is spreading the Word of God with electronic music. This is a real thing, not an SNL sketch, and he's a big hit. You're not going to want to miss this.

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[00:55:00]

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MICHAELSON: Police in Oklahoma decided to have a little fun ahead of the major winter storm making way across the country. The Moore Police Department posted a photo of an officer arresting the Snow Queen from Disney's Frozen franchise, saying that they, "Successfully apprehended Elsa for bringing this arctic blast to Oklahoma." Playful post helped deliver the department's warning to be prepared and stay safe during the storm.

A star studded final goodbye for the legendary Italian fashion designer Valentino, his funeral held Friday in Rome with guests including fellow designers, friends, and admirers such as Elizabeth Hurley, Donatella Versace and Tom Ford. Real name Valentino Garavani, he was known for sophisticated and flattering gowns, a favorite of such stars as Anne Hathaway, Cate Blanchett, Sophia Loren, of course, so much red Valentino died at home at 93. Life well lived.

A public family dispute has done what decades of pop and fashion fame could not. For it Victoria Beckham now has a number one single Spice Girls fans have rallied behind Posh Spice after Brooklyn Peltz Beckham accused his famous parents of being controlling an explosive Instagram post. Her fans launched a tongue in cheek social media campaign that pushed her 2001 track, not such an innocent girl, to number one on iTunes in the U.K. and in Ireland. An unexpected twist in the very public family controversy, bringing the Beckham brand back into the cultural spotlight. Thanks for watching.