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Russia: Many Ukraine Issues Are Not Negotiable; Trump Administration's Purge Of Federal Workforce Escalates; Trump Orders Reciprocal Tariffs Despite Inflation Concerns; Hamas Releases Three More Hostages, Including An Israeli-American; Pope Francis On "Absolute Rest," Won't Lead Sunday Prayers; Anonymous Tip Helps Thwart Indiana School Shooting Plot; Parent Stars In Play About Losing His Son In School Massacre; Parkland Parents Use Viral Moments To Fight Gun Violence; NBA's Biggest Stars Gear Up For Big Games; Curry Appreciating His All-Star Moment As He Nears Retirement; Stephon Castle Kicks Off Packed Weekend, Earns Rising Stars MVP. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired February 15, 2025 - 18:00   ET

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

[18:00:00]

PAULA REID, CNN HOST: You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Paula Reid in Washington. Jessica Dean has the day off.

Tonight, new details on President Trump's push to end the conflict in Ukraine. Multiple sources telling CNN three top administration officials will be traveling to Saudi Arabia to begin talks with senior Russian officials. That meeting, set to take place within the coming days.

But as the White House moves forward with those negotiations, it is also moving away from its decades' long alliance with European leaders.

Trump's Special Envoy to Russia and Ukraine, General Keith Kellogg says Europe Will not be part of those talks. Ukrainian President Zelenskyy telling European leaders, it is time to look away from the US for support.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: -- in Europe may not fully understand what is happening in Washington right now, but let's focus on understanding ourselves right here in Europe. We must give strength to Europe first.

Does America need Europe as a market? Yes. But as an ally, I don't know.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

REID: As Trump officials prepare for meetings in Saudi Arabia, Secretary of State Marco Rubio is already in talks with Russian Defense officials.

CNN's Fred Pleitgen has the details from Moscow.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Both the US State Department and the Russian Foreign Ministry confirming that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov have spoken.

Now, the readout from the State Department is pretty short and pretty crisp. It says that Marco Rubio reiterated President Trump's desire to end the conflict in Ukraine and that other issues and possible areas of cooperation were also discussed in the international sphere.

The Russian readout goes a lot further than that and has actually a lot more detail than that and it seems to indicate that the Russians believe that nearly a full reset of relations could be on the table. The Russians, of course, are not only looking to end the war in Ukraine on terms favorable for themselves, but they also want sanctions relief.

So part of the Russian readout reads: "The heads of the foreign ministries agreed to maintain a communication channel to address the accumulated issues in Russian American relations, with the aim of removing one sided barriers inherited from the previous administration that hinder mutual beneficial trade, economic, and investment cooperation."

So the Russians clearly believe that in time, possible sanctions relief and a normalization of relations could be in the cards. The other thing that the Russians also say is that the diplomatic missions in the two countries were also discussed.

We know, of course, that the US diplomatic mission here in Russia is essentially operating with an emergency staff, because so many diplomats have been expelled. The same is pretty much true for the Russian side in the United States. The Russians, of course, also had to close several consulates in the US as well.

The Russians are saying that a mechanism has now been put in place to try and get those diplomatic relations and those missions back up to speed. So the Russians certainly appear hopeful that not only could there soon be a meeting between US President Trump and the Russian President Vladimir Putin, but also that relations between the two countries could normalize in the not too distant future.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Moscow.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

REID: Joining me now, CNN national security analyst and former Deputy Director of National Intelligence, Beth Sanner.

Beth, Trump's Special Envoy to Russia and Ukraine, General Keith Kellogg, says Russia will have to make concessions to end the war in Ukraine. What could those concessions be? BETH SANNER, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well. we don't know,

right? I mean, so far, we see most of the demands for the concessions being on the Ukrainian side, but I suppose it is going to have to be around some kind of security guarantee that the Europeans maybe would provide boots on the ground from Europe. and maybe some territorial like, they will not get the territory that they are demanding because, you know, they've annexed or they've declared those four areas, those four regions in Ukraine as Russian territory in their Constitution and they don't even control all of that.

So there will probably be some territorial issues there as well, but, you know, the balance right now is we don't really know what is on the table for Russia.

REID: Now we don't know when President Trump plans to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Earlier this week, he just said it will likely happen in Saudi Arabia, but how critical is it for Ukraine to stay top of mind at the White House as Trump prepares for this meeting?

SANNER: Well, you know, it does look, by all accounts, now that Ukraine will be part of those discussions in Saudi Arabia. I mean, you know, there is a little bit back and forth, but I think that the balance of the commentary suggests that they will be there.

So I think that, you know, look, two things have to happen for these negotiations to work. One is that, you know, Ukraine has to have some kind of security guarantee, but in order for this war not to restart again, right. But Russia also has to be at the table.

[18:05:12]

And so, you know, what we are seeing is kind of, you know, the Trump part of this effort is to try to get Russia to negotiate in good faith, and one thing I will say is there was a G7 statement today that Marco Rubio signed that did say that sanctions in the future on Russia would be contingent on whether they go to the table in good faith and are negotiating in good faith toward a negotiated settlement.

And so, you know, we are seeing kind of this back and forth here and I think that we have to kind of take a deep breath and see -- look at each step as it goes. Hopefully, it is not as quite as bad as it looks.

REID: What do you make of President Zelenskyy's comments to European leaders at the Munich Security Conference this morning, saying they are effectively on their own now?

SANNER: Well, you know, Vance and Hegseth went to Europe and basically on every level really gave Europe a slap in the face, I think. And, you know, the United States has been quite bipartisan, schizophrenic on European security.

We have said, every administration, Democratic and Republican that basically Europe shouldn't have an independent defense capability and they should buy only US Defense equipment and we really discourage them from building up their own capabilities.

Well, now the chicken has come home to roost, but it is coming home to roost in a quite a dramatic way. And so, you know, they are saying, yes, Europe has to stand up and I think everybody has agreed on that, but the idea that Europe is going to be the sole security guarantor for Ukraine and provide the only bulwark against Russia, which remains a key threat to the United States, particularly in collaboration with China, that is going to be pretty hard when at the same time, you're tariffing them, you're meddling in their internal politics, and you're kind of speaking very publicly in a negative way.

REID: I want to play an interesting moment from my colleague, Christiane Amanpour's interview with President Zelenskyy this morning, where he actually revealed one of the things he told Trump during their call. Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Did you tell, as was reported, President Trump, that Putin is only doing this and agreeing to talks because he is afraid of Trump? Did you tell him that?

ZELENSKYY: Yes. I told Trump that Putin afraid of him. Yes and he heard me and now Putin knows.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

REID: The comedic timing in that answer, but what do you make of that? Is he hoping this will influence Trump's relationship with the Kremlin?

SANNER: He is, but it is also true, you know, what does Putin want here? Putin is -- you know, he is globally isolated. He wants that to be lifted. Well, you know, he is on a path to that by having a likely meeting with Trump down the road. he wants sanctions to be lifted and that's certainly going to be on the table with President Trump in a way that in the past, it wouldn't have been either with a negotiated settlement and he wants the United States completely out of Ukraine.

He wants the United States, he wants Trump to throw up his hands and say, I am out on Ukraine, because that means that Russia's maximalist demands will happen.

And so, you know, if Trump gets frustrated and blames Russia, the hammer is going to go the other way, and all of those dreams and efforts could be squandered.

So, yes, the United States' role in this is absolutely pivotal and Russia is worried about that.

REID: Beth Sanner, thank you for joining us.

SANNER: Thank you.

REID: And we are following numerous developments from the White House as President Trump continues to test the limits of executive power. Just today, a source tells CNN the administration is forcing out

senior leadership at the National Archives. Trump has been critical of the agency over its role in the classified documents case against him. This is, as the administration zeroes in on probationary workers attempting to terminate thousands of workers across several agencies.

Now, we are joined by CNN correspondent, Rafael Romo. Rafael, you have been following the latest, including some growing concern at the CDC. What are you learning?

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Paula, At the CDC alone, about 1,300 employees could lose their jobs. According to a CNN source, one of those departments is a unit that has investigated public health threats here in the US and abroad, including COVID-19.

[18:10:10]

Another source told us that at CDC, a key departure includes Dr. Nirav Shah, acting principal deputy director, who told CDC staff this week that his last day would be February 28th. We have also learned that at least one member of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency visited the Internal Revenue Service offices in Washington on Thursday as part of its mission to downsize government agencies.

In at least one instance, terminations were rescinded after Trump administration officials realized how significant their impact could have been. That happened at the National Nuclear Security Administration, where more than 300 staffers had been originally targeted for termination. We have contacted multiple federal employees who have been impacted by the layoffs.

Understandably, Paula, most have chosen not to speak publicly about this, but one of them described the e-mails workers are receiving from the Trump administration as not a choice but a threat, adding that this feels like a hostile takeover of the federal government.

In spite of all this, she told us, she is not going to be bullied into submitting a two-week notice. Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MT SNYDER, FEDERAL EMPLOYEE: I won't be resigning. My coworkers aren't resigning. Other federal servants aren't resigning. We are fighting back. We are standing up against these attacks on our livelihoods and on the services that we provide by speaking out against what DOGE and Elon Musk are doing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: And, Paula, this federal employee told us she is not speaking for an agency or a union, but in her personal capacity. Congressman Hank Johnson, who represents Georgia's fourth congressional district, also blasted the layoffs, saying in part that "These reckless decisions not only harm the federal workers who have dedicated their careers to protecting us and serving our communities in Georgia 4 in Metro Atlanta, but it also endangers the American public during a time of increased health concerns and looming dangers."

Altogether, more than 200,000 employees who have worked within the federal government for less than a year are apparently being targeted as part of the effort to downsize the federal workforce -- Paula.

REID: Rafael Romo, thank you.

And still ahead, President Trump is doubling down on his quest to level the playing field in trade when new tariffs could take effect and how it could impact you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:17:10]

REID: President Trump is doubling down on his push for more tariffs, ordering agencies to come up with plans to impose reciprocal tariffs across the board. Now, some fear this could potentially ignite a global trade war and with inflation ticking up to three percent for the first time since June, there are questions over what it will mean for consumers and whether he can keep one of his core campaign promises to lower prices.

Joining me now to discuss the impacts of tariffs, inflation and much more is CNN global economic analyst and global business columnist and associate editor for "The Financial Times," Rana Foroohar.

Thank you so much for joining us.

Let's start out by asking what will be the impact of these tariffs specifically on inflation?

RANA FOROOHAR, CNN GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: Well, it is hard to think of tariffs as anything but inflationary. When you increase prices coming through the border then that definitely has a trickle on effect.

The one thing that I would say is if the president is able to use these threats of Reciprocal tariffs as a way to get other countries to reduce their tariffs on US goods, then you might actually start to see a flattening of the playing field.

The bottom line is that Trump is really going for broke here and he is essentially trying to overturn half a century of trade policy. So this is really a big deal. This is a sea change.

REID: Now the tariffs of course, they don't go into effect until April 2nd at the earliest, so that effectively opens the door for other nations to start negotiating to prevent these tariffs. Right?

FOROOHAR: That's right, and this is where you get into what I have always thought the fundamental Trump approach to trade would be, which is to look at the US consumer market as a big chip on a sort of a giant poker table that is the global economy, and Trump is saying, you know what? For half a century, other countries have been able to charge the US higher rates than we have been able to charge for a variety of reasons, geopolitical, economic.

He is changing that. He is saying if you want access to this market, to this, to this very, very rich and affluent group of consumers, then you're going to have to give US products, an equal playing field and it is a bold move. It certainly could be inflationary, but it is also interesting because I think it follows on from really where the Biden administration was as well, which is saying, look, the global trading system as it has been for the last couple of decades, has not been working.

REID: Now, "The Wall Street Journal" editorial Board lashed out at Trump due to rising inflation, saying, "Does President Trump understand money? Not money as in cash, but the supply of money, the price of money as measured by interest rates and their impact on inflation? The answer would appear to be no after Mr. Trump called for lower interest rates on Wednesday, the same day the Labor Department reported an increase in inflation for the third straight month."

[18:20:09]

What do you make of this assessment?

FOROOHAR: Well, I think "The Journal" Editorial Board has a real point there. Generally when you lower interest rates, that adds juice to the economy. We have plenty of juice in the economy right now. You don't want it running too much hotter because then you will get inflation, particularly in things that are very sensitive to interest rates -- housing, stock prices.

You know, on the one hand, yes, that could sort of juice asset prices, but on the other hand, it makes things like housing more expensive. It can cause inflation. It can really push up the cost of living.

And so, I have to say, I think that the president is probably arguing for more easy money because it could potentially make equities look good. It could make the stock market look good. That is something he puts a lot of value in, but it is the right move for the economy right now when you have inflation coming in hot already.

REID: Well, these tariffs will also be applied to US allies. So does that risk hindering relationships with friendly countries?

FOROOHAR: Yes, for sure, and I think the EU in particular is going to take the possibility of a trade war pretty hard. You know, you are going to see if you do get reciprocal tariffs coming into play, you're going to see things like EU pharmaceutical imports being more expensive, EU cars being more expensive, luxury goods. That's something I would be concerned about, particularly something like pharmaceuticals.

And interestingly, how that affects consumers is going to depend state to state. So you might get a state like Indiana for example, that has a lot of pharmaceutical business being hit much harder than a state like Iowa or Wisconsin. It is going to be interesting to see where the pain is felt, if indeed these tariffs go through.

REID: Rana Foroohar, thank you so much for your time.

FOROOHAR: Thank you.

REID: And still ahead, Hamas releasing three more hostages as part of the ceasefire deal. What we are learning about who was released, including one Israeli-American. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:26:35]

REID: Today, Hamas released three more hostages as part of the fragile ceasefire deal with Israel. Soon after, Israel released 369 Palestinian prisoners and detainees. This was the largest number yet to be freed under the truce as CNN's Nic Robertson explains, just a few days ago, this exchange looked to be on shaky ground.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice over): The moment that almost never happened, 29-year-old Russian Israeli, Sasha Troufanov; 36-year-old Sagui Dekel-Chen, an American Israeli; and Iair Horn, a 46-year-old Argentinian Israeli in their final moments of captivity.

(UNIDENTIFIED MALES shouting "Allahu Akbar.")

ROBERTSON (voice over): Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, some toting Israeli weapons staging the choreographed handover that only days ago threatened to block, blaming Israel for falling short on the agreement.

A banner apparently messaging President Donald Trump, who threatened hell if they don't release the hostages, and with expulsion from Gaza, even if they do reading "No migration except to Jerusalem."

A cheer in Tel Aviv's Hostages Square as the three men ending 498 agonizing days of captivity led to waiting Red Cross vehicles. Minutes later, handed to the IDF and reentry to their former lives, not as emaciated as the three hostages handed over last week.

Family and friends watching their travels from gatherings erupting, emotions overflowing, and this moment so many had been holding their breath for, 36-year-old American Israeli Sagui reunited with his wife, Avital. And in the embrace asked the name of his third daughter, born soon after he was captured.

A soft ripple of applause rising in Hostages Square, a poignant moment for those whose loved ones are still held.

Viki Cohen's son, Nimrod, a soldier expected in phase two of releases.

VICKI COHEN, MOTHER OF HOSTAGE HELD IN GAZA: And I am worried, and I am afraid. for him. We see how the -- the deal is very fragile and it can collapse any minute, and we hear that part of the government, our government doesn't want to go to the second phase because it means that it is an end to the war.

ROBERTSON (on camera): And already four weeks, that's two-thirds of phase one of the hostage release deal have passed and less than two- thirds of the agreed 33 hostages have been released. Phase two is barely getting traction. And meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government, there are members in it who are telling him to go back to war.

In Gaza, thousands gathered to greet the 333 Gazans released from Israeli custody, some old and sick, taken directly to doctors for assessment.

Others shedding and burning prison clothing. Many of the released complaining of abuse.

[18:30:19]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Foreign language).

ROBERTSON: "The prison was the worst three months of my life," he says, "full of humiliation, beating, torture and abuse."

Israeli officials have rejected similar claims following recent releases. Thirty-six life-sentenced Palestinian prisoners convicted of murder also released from Israeli jails, 25 of them expelled, mostly to Egypt. On both sides, bitter sweet reunions.

Iair, already in his favorite local soccer team strip, hugging his mother and brother. His younger brother, Eitan, still a hostage.

And Sasha, embracing his family, until today, unaware his father was killed October 7th.

This day, not the end of their suffering, but the beginning of the rest of their lives. On both sides, many more wondering if they'll get that chance.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Tel Aviv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

REID: The Vatican is saying it's not clear how long Pope Francis will stay in the hospital after being hospitalized with bronchitis. It's the latest in a string of ailments raising concerns about his health. CNN's Christopher Lamb reports from Rome.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTOPHER LAMB, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Paula, we have received an update from the Vatican on the Pope's condition. They're saying that the good thing is that the Pope is no longer showing symptoms of fever, that some of the tests point to an improvement in his condition. However, the Pope will not be leading the Angelus prayer that he does each Sunday. The doctors say he must rest. They use the phrase absolute rest because Francis, despite being 88 years old and having the problems of a severe bout of bronchitis, has been keeping up a hectic schedule of events.

And before he was hospitalized, he was meeting people, and I was one of those who saw the Pope before he was hospitalized on Friday, and it was clear that the Pope was struggling to speak for long periods of time due to the breathing difficulties. I saw the Pope as he received the CEO of CNN, Mark Thompson, a private audience.

So, Francis is behind me here in the Gemelli Hospital on the 10th floor, where there's a special suite of rooms for him. And in the past, he has led the Angelus prayer on Sunday from the balcony of the Gemelli, but he won't be doing that tomorrow, and the Vatican will instead issue the text of his remarks.

Now, The Holy See spokesman gave some extra details this morning on Saturday, saying that the Pope had had breakfast, he'd read some newspapers and saying his condition is fair. This is obviously a severe bout of bronchitis that the Pope is experiencing. He has been vulnerable to these respiratory infections. As a young man, he had part of his right lung removed, but the message that we're getting from the Vatican is the doctors are telling the Pope, you've got to slow down, you've got to rest and this is the best way to overcome this respiratory infection. Paula?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

REID: And still ahead, an 18-year-old is behind bars, accused of plotting a Valentine's Day school shooting in Indiana. How officials say they stopped it. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:38:27]

REID: Police have arrested a teenager for allegedly plotting a school shooting at an Indiana high school. Trinity Shockley, who's 18 years old, is facing charges of terrorism and conspiracy to commit murder. Authorities saying they learned about Shockley's plans from an anonymous caller who contacted the tip line created after the Sandy Hook shooting in 2012. CNN's Whitney Wild reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WHITNEY WILD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is a very good example of the importance of see something, say something. Police say that February 11th they learned through a tip that went to the FBI's Sandy Hook tip line that this teenager, Trinity Shockley, 18 years old, was planning a Valentine's Day shooting at their high school. Trinity Shockley is transgender, often went by the name Jamie.

It is not clear which pronouns they used, but police say what they learned through the course of this investigation was that, according to a tipster, Trinity Shockley had access to an AR-15. The tipster told police that they had recently bought a bulletproof vest and that they had a real obsession with the shooter who killed 17 people and wounded 17 people at the - at Parkland at the high school in Parkland, Florida, seven years ago on Valentine's Day. Here's more from the Mooresville Police Chief.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF KERRY BUCKNER, MOORESVILLE, INDIANA POLICE: Nothing ever happens in Mooresville. It's a small town, but to think that somebody was plotting to hurt a lot of individuals of kids. I mean, future leaders of this country or whoever is pretty disturbing.

[18:40:01]

The pictures in her room were - they look like family photographs, like you would put of your kids, but they were all of people that had committed mass shootings.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILD: There are so many questions here. A chief among them is why this happened and the affidavit has quite a bit of detail. But the affidavit points out is that Shockley was grieving the recent death of their mother, had been bullied at school after being hit by a drunk driver and felt guilt after learning that that drunk driver later took their own life.

And further, the really big theme here is that what police have learned is that Shockley had a real fixation on mass shooters. In fact, in Shockley's bedroom, they found a collage of photos of other mass shooters. And what became very clear through the course of this investigation was that Shockley was particularly obsessed with again that shooter who carried out that massacre in Parkland, Florida, seven years ago.

Trinity Shockley is in custody without bond. But again, the big message here is if there is concerning behavior, if people are talking about plotting a mass shooting, if there's any indication, police say bring it to them immediately because they can act quickly. And in this case, they say they can use that information to avoid tragedy.

Whitney Wild, CNN, Chicago.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

REID: And as Whitney mentioned, yesterday marks seven years since a gunman killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. For seven years, the parents of Joaquin Oliver have channeled their grief into advocacy, creating viral moments that keep the focus on their son and other victims of gun violence. The latest backdrop for their efforts? The stage of a theater between the Capitol and the White House. CNN's Brianna Keilar has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MANNY OLIVER, FATHER OF JOAQUIN OLIVER, KILLED IN THE PARKLAND MASSACRE: Before, I'm like, super hyper. I wear my headphones and then I'm just listening to music with Joaquin, and then I leave everything on stage.

When you lose a son, what do you do?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST (voice over): On this seventh anniversary of the Parkland, Florida, shooting, you'll find Manny Oliver here at the Woolly Mammoth Theatre in Washington, D.C., starring in a one-man play about his son, Joaquin Oliver, Guac to his friends, forever 17-years- old.

We know how Joaquin died. Manny wants the world to know how he loved a boy who loved laughing, pepperoni pizza, bacon, "The Godfather," his mother, Patricia, who called Mi Pooh (ph) and playing air guitar with his dad.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

M OLIVER: We are really good at playing the air guitar. We're the best.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR (voice over): A life-size cutout of Joaquin is on stage for almost the entire show. Manny painting a mural around his son throughout the 100-minute performance. Manny takes the audience through Valentine's Day 2018, dropping his son off at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in the morning, Joaquin, proudly carrying sunflowers for his girlfriend, Tori.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

M OLIVER: And I decided to pull down the window and shouted at him, "Hey. Hey, call me. Call me when you give those flowers to Tori. I want to know the whole story behind it."

"What? An active shooter situation in Joaquin's school?"

So, I called him again, and again, and again and again. Where the (expletive) is my son? Where the (expletive) is my son? Where are the (expletive) is my son.

I was hoping that he'd drop his phone. Then, I was hoping that he was on the other side of the school. I was even hoping that he was injured but not bad. And now I'm hoping that it was fast.

My beautiful son, Joaquin, was shot four times with an AR-15.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR (voice over): This is the artistic disruption that has been Manny and Patricia's defining approach to advocating for gun violence prevention.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

M OLIVER: You can try something, and it's not working for decades, maybe you should try something different and give it a chance.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR (voice over): On the fourth anniversary of Joaquin's death, Manny unfurled a sign on a crane near the White House and was arrested for it. But he succeeded in getting then-President Biden's attention and an invitation to the Oval Office.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

M OLIVER: You have to do more than that --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR (voice over): A few months later, Manny interrupted Biden's Rose Garden event honoring the passage of gun legislation that was, for Manny, not ambitious enough.

In 2023, Manny was arrested at the Capitol after he and Patricia interrupted a Republican-led gun hearing.

[18:45:04]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PATRICIA OLIVER, MOTHER OF JUAQUIN OLIVER: You took my son away from me and I'm not going anywhere.

This has to be very important because you need to know him before knowing everything else.

It was a hundred percent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR (voice over): At the theater, Patricia walks through an exhibit of viral advertising campaigns the couple has helped produce through their nonprofit called Change the Ref.

Putting a bulletproof vest on the famous statue of The Fearless Girl on Wall Street not long after the shooting, asking on social media, how can she be fearless if she's afraid to go to school?

Patricia, accepting Joaquin's diploma in a shirt reading "This should be my son."

In 2021, duping a former head of the NRA into giving a graduation speech to empty chairs, symbolizing the estimated 3,044 victims of gun violence who are not alive to graduate that year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID KEENE, FORMER PRESIDENT, NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION: So, my advice to you is simple enough, follow your dream and make it a reality.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR (voice over): And last year, making an AI deepfake message of Joaquin's voice and those of other gun violence victims, including from the Uvalde shooting, to send to members of Congress.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AI VOICE: I was murdered at school by a shooter with an AR-15 assault rifle. My voice has been recreated using powerful AI technology.

P OLIVER: This is called The Final Exam.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR (voice over): They marketed a video game showing what it's like to try to escape a school shooting, and "thoughts and prayers" toilet paper.

Manny says they're just doing what they know, using art, advertising and Joaquin's rebellious spirit to make a difference.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

M OLIVER: Come on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR (voice over): Manny ends the show with an air guitar tribute to his son, urging the audience to join him and calling them to action.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

M OLIVER: It's not that I want you to agree with me. I want you to know the reality and prevent it to ruin your life. That's the point here and that's the call to action. Get involved.

When you lose a son, what do you do? What do you do? What do I do? I say we do what we do best.

My name is Manuel Oliver and I am Joaquin Oliver's dad. And that's what I do best.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR (voiceover): Brianna Keilar, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:52:18]

REID: The 2025 NBA All-Star Weekend is underway in the Bay Area. Fans will get a little something new this year with a more competitive tournament format, as well as a series of other challenges to test the players' skills. CNN's Andy Scholes is joining us now from San Francisco.

Andy, it looks like you're having a good time there. What's the latest?

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yes. Well, Paula, the other fans are filing in for what should be a very exciting night here at the Chase Center. We've got the skills competition, the dunk and three-point contest. That'll get started at 8 PM Eastern on TNT. And then, tomorrow you've got the first ever mini tournament All-Star Game.

The team - the all-stars were drafted under three different teams. And you've got a team from the Rising Stars, the winners from that competition last night. They're going to play a little mini tournament. Hopefully it brings a little more competitive nature to the All-Star Game.

Steph Curry, he's going to be playing on Shaq's OGs team. He's going to be playing alongside LeBron, Kevin Durant. Shaq told me he put those guys together because the fans, you know, they don't have many more opportunities to see them play together. And I actually got the chance to catch up with Steph Curry earlier in the week and he told me he's certainly relishing these all-star weekends late in his career.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: You turn 37 a month from today. Happy early birthday.

STEPH CURRY, GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS GUARD: (INAUDIBLE) ...

SCHOLES: (INAUDIBLE) by the way. But, yes, you're almost 37. LeBron's 40. You're on Shaq's OGs. And, you know, Shaq told me, you know, he drafted you guys together because, you know, the fans don't have that many more opportunities to see you guys play together. As you get later in your career, are you appreciating these moments more?

CURRY: Absolutely. You know, there's - every next opportunity is one that you should stay in the moment and just appreciate it. Kind of like it was this summer at the Olympics. You know, me, KD and LeBron playing together for the first time. So, All-Star Game is not the Olympics, but it's another opportunity to celebrate again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Now, Shaq's team of Steph Curry, LeBron, KD, they're going to be taking on Candace Parker's team, which was the winning team from the Rising Stars. And then, you have Charles Barkley's team playing Kenny Smith. They're going to - those two games are going to happen and the winners are going to play each other for the championship.

And no time in these games. They're playing to a target score of 40, so it should make for some exciting endings to each of those matchups.

Now, the team that got into the All-Star Game by winning the Rising Stars' competition last night was Stephon Castle's team. And Castle had himself a great game. He was the Rising Stars' MVP, and he's having to jump quite the busy weekend because he was in the Rising Stars Friday. He's going to be in the dunk contest here tonight. And then he's also going to now get to compete in the All-Star Game Sunday.

[18:55:00]

You know, those rookies and sophomores on his team are going to be going all out to try to win that game.

Now, as for tonight's competitions, we could see some history. Matt McCollum trying to be the first ever dunker to win three straight dunk competitions.

And then, Damian Lillard, he's also trying to go for the three-peat in the three-point contest. It's only been done twice in NBA history, and he said it certainly would be special to do it here at home in the Bay Area.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAMIAN LILLARD, MILWAUKEE BUCKS GUARD: I'm excited to have the opportunity to do it, period, just to join that company. But to be able to do it here, I feel like that's a storybook opportunity, you know, to be able to be on that list of people to three-peat in such a great competition and to do it at home is perfect.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: All right. So, we'll see if we see a couple of three peats tonight here, Paula. It should be exciting. Actually, get started at 8 Eastern on TNT.

REID: It all does sound so exciting, Andy, thank you.

And still ahead, not only is Elon Musk the wealthiest man on the planet, but he could also be the most powerful bureaucrat in American history. How he's consolidated power as he drastically reshapes the federal government. You're in the CNN Newsroom.

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