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2025 Kicks Off With A Cold Snap Over Parts Of The USA; London's Big Ben Rings In 2025; How Trump's Presidency Likely To Affect United States Foreign Policy; Counting Down The Most Riveting Online Moments Of 2024. Aired 6:30-7a ET
Aired January 01, 2025 - 6:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[06:30:00]
DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You've been tracking it all. Happy New Year, Allison. Good to see you.
ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And happy New Year to you too.
Yes, it is certainly going to get colder, especially as we make our way into the weekend. In the short term, however, we're still dealing with some rain and snow showers across portions of the Great Lakes and the Northeast this morning.
You can see a lot. Most of its kind of focus more interior, but you do still have some heavy rain across portions of coastal Massachusetts as well as Maine.
You've also got very strong winds, and that's not just limited to the Northeast, it stretches down through the mid-Atlantic all the way down into portions of the Southeast Georgia and the Carolinas. Looking at some of those wind gusts up around 40 to 55 mph.
Now that system this morning is going to finally start to wrap up as we go through later on into the day today. But right on the heels, we have our next system. This will be spreading into the Midwest as we go through the day.
Thursday could end up bringing some snow showers to areas just south of Chicago before it spreads into portions of Indiana by later on into the evening. Those temperatures we talked about, they are going to be coming down.
Thirty-one for the high today in Chicago, down to the 20s by the weekend. Washington, D.C., New York, 50 degrees today, but barely above freezing by the time we get to the weekend.
FREEMAN: Oh, man. So only a little bit of time to enjoy this warm weather. Allison Chinchar, thanks so much as always. Appreciate it.
And it is now officially 2025 and CNN teams have been, across the globe, welcoming in the New Year from confetti and concerts to plenty of fireworks. Take a look at some of the best moments from overnight.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) (CHEERING)
(MUSIC)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Seconds. We're now just 10 seconds away from ringing in the New Year here in Paris. Let's listen in to the countdown.
(FIREWORKS)
LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Here we go. It's about to be midnight in Angola. And it is Happy New Year from Luanda, Angola. Feliz Ano Nuevo and the fireworks are up in the sky. It's all going down.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Three, two, one. Happy New Year from. Whoa.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Happy New Year from London.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Wow.
(FIREWORKS)
FREEMAN: It's so much freaking fun. I love it.
All right. To this now, Big Ben striking midnight with its unforgettable chimes was resonating across London, especially as we rang in 2025.
CNN's Isa Soares went behind the scenes of the world's most famous clock to see just what it takes to keep that 165-year machine running on time.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ISA SOARES, CNN HOST: Big Ben.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
SOARES: What does it sound like to you?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You want me to imitate that?
SOARES: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, no, no.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ding dong.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dong.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ding, ding.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bah, bah.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ding dong, ding dong.
SOARES: Yes, that's good. That's very good.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, that's the one.
SOARES: Prepare yourself for this moment.
(BELL DINGING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: London, the old metropolis has been having a lot of fog lately.
SOARES (voice-over): For 165 years, the bongs of Big Ben have kept Londoners on time, consistently ringing in the changes. Big Ben is a favorite spot for social media users. But one night a year, the bell and its bongs get a much bigger audience.
(BELL DINGING)
It's now impossible to imagine a New Year's Eve in London without Big Ben.
[06:35:04]
SOARES: But what makes Big Ben tick, you ask? Let me show you, come with me.
(MUSIC)
Let's go up. Finally.
(BELL DINGING)
How do you feel when you -- when you hear that?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It always sounds like a stern friend reminding you not to be late.
This is the hour bell here, Big Ben, which is 7 foot 6 high, 13.7 tons. It's the weight of a small elephant.
SOARES: How do you keep it regulated on time?
ANDREW STRANGEWAY, CLOCKMASTER, U.K. PARLIAMENT: I have a specific app built on my phone specifically for time in the clock. As soon as the hammer hits the bell, I press the button and check the time. The majority of the time we're then a fifth of a second of the correct time.
So the regulations that we're making are actually very, very small. And especially for something like New Year, it's really important that the clock is on time.
SOARES: Oh, here we go. This is amazing.
STRANGEWAY: They're just fabulous, aren't they? The dial is about 23 foot across.
SOARES: Yes.
STRANGEWAY: And they are -- have 324 individual panes of glass.
The minute hand is about 14 foot long and it weighs about 240 pounds, including its counterweight. And the hour hands weigh about 672 pounds.
SOARES: From both of us here in the south face of Big Ben, a Happy New Year.
STRANGEWAY: Happy New Year.
(BELL DINGING)
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FREEMAN: Magnificent. Love that report.
And actor, Jon Hamm, rang in the New Year by celebrating a big win for his Saint Louis Blues in the NHL's winter classic. Defenseman Cam Fowler scored two goals in his 1000th career game. Can you believe that? To lead the Blues over the Chicago Blackhawks at Wrigley Field.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JON HAMM, AMERICAN ACTOR: Six-two, we won. We scored early and often. And we thoroughly dominated. It was excellent.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FREEMAN: The Blackhawks have played in five winter classics, their record, 0 and 5.
And we're continuing to follow that breaking news out of New Orleans. CNN has just learned that 10 people are dead, and at least 30 others injured in a mass casualty incident in the French Quarter overnight. We're going to bring you more information coming up on this special edition of CNN NEWS CENTRAL on New Year's Day. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:40:43]
JOHN BERMAN, CNN HOST: All right. President-elect Trump will soon be sworn in for a second term in office. And as president as, obviously, we will have major implications around the world, from the conflict in the Middle East, to Russia's war in Ukraine, relations with China, Mexico.
With us now to discuss CNN global affairs analyst Kim Dozier. And senior fellow for the Council on Foreign Relations and "Washington Post" columnist, Max Boot.
One quick question. What do you think the first big foreign policy challenge that President Trump will face will be, Kim?
KIM DOZIER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Middle East because that's still a hot war. And the Netanyahu government has shown no signs of backing down on several fronts.
The past defense minister, Gallant, said that there's nothing left to bomb in Gaza, but the operation there continues. And there has been a continuing mop-up operation against Iranian targets inside Syria.
Now, Netanyahu, by the time Trump gets sworn into office, may have mopped up all of the Israeli Defense Force wish list targets and deliver to Trump the gift of what looks like a quiet battlefield.
But that's left a lot of revenge stored up and a lot of actors who are ready to strike back the moment the Israelis stop hitting.
BERMAN: Yes. Max, do you think Netanyahu's or how do you think Netanyahu's behavior and actions would change or will change in this new Trump presidency?
MAX BOOT, SENIOR FELLOW, COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: Very hard to say. I mean, I think that Netanyahu will feel more compelled to listen to Trump than he listened to Biden because he relies so much on the Republican Party and the right-wing in America for his political base of support in the United States.
But remember Netanyahu also has pressing domestic imperatives. And that the right-wing members of his cabinet have made clear that if he makes a hostage deal, which results in the release of Palestinian prisoners, or if he involves the Palestinian Authority in any way in governing the Gaza Strip, they could very well leave the government and topple Netanyahu.
So I expect that Trump will continue to press, as Biden pressed, into the war in Gaza, because obviously, it doesn't look good and Trump wants to claim to be a great peacekeeper -- peacemaker.
But, you know, I think Netanyahu will be pressed from the other side, and he may very well listen to his domestic constituency more than he listens to anything that any president of the United States says.
BERMAN: All right. A two-part question to each of you here.
Max, one year from now, what do you think the best-case scenario for Ukraine is? And where do you think the realistic scenario for Ukraine is?
BOOT: Well, I think the best-case scenario is that Trump convinces Russia to stop attacking and convinces Ukraine to temporarily accept Russian occupation of about 20 percent of its territory without Ukraine accepting any limitations on its armaments or its ability to defend itself. And with European forces coming into Ukraine as peacekeepers to guarantee the ceasefire lines. I think that's the best case.
[06:45:16] I think the worst case is that, you know, Trump forces Ukraine into a very one-sided deal where Ukrainian sovereignty is fundamentally compromised, where the Ukrainians have to agree not to have a large standing army, have to agree not to accept foreign weapons, not to accept foreign support.
And basically that would turn Ukraine potentially into a country like Belarus, which is, you know, basically the satellite state of Moscow. So I think that's the worst-case scenario.
BERMAN: Kim?
DOZIER: To pick up on Max's point in the worst-case scenario category, I can see a total breakdown coming between Zelenskyy, Europe and Trump, where Trump tries to get Zelenskyy to accept something that the Ukrainian people simply cannot stomach as tired as they are of war, some sort of collapse of sovereignty that makes them say, you know what, even without U.S. military aid, we've got to keep fighting.
That could also create a big cleaving in Europe between those European countries that see Russian aggression as a threat. And they want to keep supporting Ukraine and those who are either tired of war or their populations are divided and some are pro-Russian. So you could see real diplomatic chaos breaking down from that.
I got to say on the positive side, what Max outlined, where you've got a cessation of violence and European NATO forces on the ground in NATO to keep the peace that would be a pipe dream of most Ukrainian officials.
BERMAN: Yes. Think about that compared to what they were thinking or hoping maybe two years ago.
All right. Kim, I'm going to give you a quick last word on China, like 30 seconds or less. Where do you think this relationship's going?
DOZIER: You know, Trump is doing it -- this olive branch thing where he has invited Xi to his inauguration, but he's bringing in a lot of hawks and there's also a lot of bad blood, bipartisan bad blood between the U.S. and China.
Now that we found out that China has the ability currently through hacking to listen to any American phone call, read any American text message that hasn't gone through an encrypted app. So download those encrypted apps folks. That's a bad stage on which to start the relationship and the New Year.
BERMAN: Yes. That's a good New Year's resolution. Download those encrypted apps. Happy New Year to both of you. Kim Dozier, Max Boot, great to see you. Thank you very much.
We're going to have much more ahead on this special New Year's Day version of CNN NEWS CENTRAL.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:50:09]
SARA SIDNER, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This morning, we're reflecting on some of the top videos and stories that captivated us in 2024. Everything from a sweet lab that loves to swim and refuses to listen to the stunning news from the princes of Wales. Here are some of the most watched videos of 2024.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Buster, come here. Come here. Come here you little (BLEEP).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Coming in at number 10 on the list of the viral videos on CNN that everyone was talking about in 2024. A lovable but very disobedient dog.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hey, are you ready to come in?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Over and over again, his owner tries to get him to leave the pool.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Be a good boy for once in your life.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But this Florida dog just won't listen. It's only when dad uses his I mean business voice that Buster does listen.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let's go. Come on. No, sir. Buster, get over here now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Number nine.
CATHERINE, PRINCESS OF WALES, MEMBER OF THE BRITISH ROYAL FAMILY: It has been an incredibly tough couple of months for me to have.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A stunning announcement from Catherine, the Princess of Wales.
CATHERINE, PRINCESS OF WALES: In January, I underwent major abdominal surgery in London.
However, tests after the operation and cancer had been present.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In September, Kate released a video saying she had completed her chemotherapy treatment. Her startling cancer diagnosis announcement came weeks after we learned King Charles was also battling an unspecified cancer, following a procedure for an enlarged prostate in January.
At number eight, dramatic footage of a passenger plane in Brazil falling from the sky in August. The shocking video showing the twin engine turboprop plane spiraling out of the sky into the city of Vinhedo before hitting the ground, killing all 62 people on board. No one on the ground was hurt.
Number seven.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is really kicked up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hurricane Milton making landfall on Florida's West Coast.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look at that huge tree limb just blowing through the intersection.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was a dangerous category three storm.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This fence came down earlier right here behind me here. And now it seems to be breaking apart.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The wind and the storm surge associated with this hurricane that is right now pushing its way inland.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Milton dropped about 18 inches of rain on St. Petersburg, representing a more than one in 1,000 year rainfall for that area.
Number six. In September, explosive attacks in Lebanon targeting pagers used by Hezbollah members.
The blasts killed 12 and injured more than 2,300. CNN learned Israel was behind the attack, which was a joint operation between Israel's intelligence service, the Mossad, and the Israeli military.
[06:55:00]
The Lebanese government condemned the attack as criminal Israeli aggression.
Number five. Police in Illinois releasing body camera footage of the deadly police shooting of Sonya Massey in July. The 36-year-old black woman had called 911 for help to report a possible prowler at her home in Springfield.
SONYA MASSEY, KILLED BY A POLICE OFFICER: I heard somebody outside.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We didn't see nobody, so.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nobody's out here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The body camera footage shows the deputy continuing to interact with Massey, but things take a turn when she goes back to check on a pot on the stove.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Away from your hot steaming water.
MASSEY: Away from my hot steaming water?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
MASSEY: Oh. I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Huh?
MASSEY: I'll rebuke you in the name of Jesus.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You better (BLEEP) not. I swear to God I'll (BLEEP) shoot you at your (BLEEP) face.
MASSEY: OK. I'm sorry.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Drop the (BLEEP) pot.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Drop the (BLEEP) pot.
(GUNSHOTS)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Three shots were fired, killing Massey. No intruder was found. The deputy was fired from his job and charged with first- degree murder. He's pleaded not guilty.
At number four on the list, the presidential historian who's correctly predicted nine of the last 10 presidential races makes his pick for the 2024 winner, Vice President Kamala Harris.
LAURA COATES, CNN ANCHOR: Have you ever changed your prediction?
ALLAN LICHTMAN, AMERICAN HISTORIAN: I have never changed my prediction once I've made a final call.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Unfortunately for Allan Lichtman, this year's pick did not pan out for him.
Number three on the list, Baltimore's Key Bridge collapse. Video shows the moment a cargo ship crashed into the bridge in March. Six members of a road crew who were working on the bridge at the time were killed. A preliminary report by the NTSB found the ship had a pair of catastrophic electrical failures minutes before the crash and experienced two blackouts a day before. The preliminary report does not conclude a probable cause.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: If you want to really see something that's sad, take a look at what happened --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At number two, the failed assassination attempt of Donald Trump.
In July, Trump was speaking at his rally in Butler, Pennsylvania when shots rang out. Trump grabbed his ear, dropped to the ground, and was quickly surrounded by Secret Service agents.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I got you, sir. I got you, sir.
TRUMP: Let me get my shoes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Trump was seen with blood on his ear and cheek as he was rushed off the stage. The shooting left one person dead and two others critically injured.
Another video from that day shows the moment people attending the rally spotted the shooter on top of a nearby building. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Someone's on top of the roof. Look.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There he is right there.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Where?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right there. You see him? He's laying down. You see him?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, he's laying down.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Moments after the 20-year old gunman opened fire, he was killed by a Secret Service sniper.
And the number one viral video of 2024. Disturbing hotel surveillance video of Sean "Diddy" Combs. In May, CNN published exclusively obtained video from 2016. In it, you see the hip-hop mogul physically assaulting his then-girlfriend, Cassie Ventura, in the hallway of a hotel.
Combs previously denied Ventura's allegations of assault, which were the basis of a now settled federal lawsuit filed by Ventura in 2023.
Soon after the video was published, Combs apologized for his behavior in a video statement posted to Instagram.
Now, in federal custody, Combs was arrested in September after a sprawling federal investigation. He's awaiting trial on numerous charges, including sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy. He's pleaded not guilty.
Combs is also facing dozens of civil lawsuits accusing him of a range of sexual misconduct and other illegal activity. Attorneys for combs deny the claims.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SIDNER: All right. President Biden is preparing to hand the reins to Donald Trump in just a matter of weeks. Our panel is grading his first term, next.
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.
FREEMAN: Good morning. I'm Danny Freeman in New York City. It is Wednesday, January 1st. We begin with this really tragic breaking news out of New Orleans this morning. Ten people are dead and at least 30 others are injured after a vehicle drove into a crowd in the French Quarter.
Emergency officials say it happened overnight near Canal and Bourbon Street. You can see the scene right there. A lot of police activity overnight. We've been seeing ambulances. You see on your screen right there.
Truly a frightening scene. As you can imagine a number of New Year's revelers out and about on this New Year's Day early morning and then waking up to this news.
The latest that we have from the New Orleans ready their emergency alert system, is that their eighth district, they're working on a mass casualty event. That is how they have described it so far.
[07:00:00]
