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Early Start with Rahel Solomon

Israel Announces Expansion of Military Operations in Gaza; Actor Val Kilmer Dead at Age of 65; Trump to Reveal Tariffs that will Take Effect Immediately; Liberal Judge Wins in Wisconsin, GOP Sweeps Florida. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired April 02, 2025 - 05:30   ET

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

[05:30:00]

RAHEL SOLOMON, CNN ANCHOR: Land that would be, quote, incorporated into Israel's security zones. The operation would also include -- again, quoting here -- the large scale evacuation of Gaza's population from combat zones.

Let's get to CNN's Salma Abdelaziz, who joins us live this morning from London. Salma, talk to us about what more you know about these operations and where they expected.

SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I think for the diplomats, for the negotiators who are hoping to bring back a ceasefire, Rahel, this is absolutely going to deal a major blow to those diplomatic efforts. Israel's military says it is now going to expand its operation in Gaza and that that's going to include the seizure of large areas of land in Gaza. It also said that this plan would include the large scale evacuation of Gazans out of combat zones.

It did not provide any detail on what those areas are or what the timeline is. But what we do know, Rahel, is that no place in the Gaza Strip is safe. So these evacuations, yet again, are just going to move people, many of them already displaced, multiple times to yet more locations where we are going to see airstrikes carried out, violence carried out.

It's important to remember that this is coming just two weeks after Israel shattered that ceasefire with Hamas. The aerial bombardment on the Gaza Strip has continued in that time. In fact, last night, 17 people killed in airstrikes, 13 of them women and children, again, who were displaced and trying to find safety, trying to find shelter.

Now, Egyptian mediators and Qatari mediators had been trying to revive that ceasefire. There had been an extensive diplomatic push in recent days. And Israel has said that it could maintain a permanent presence in Gaza until some 24 hostages believed to be alive are released from the Gaza Strip.

And on those hostages, we have heard from the hostages forum, the families of those hostages who say they were horrified to wake up to this news. We have a statement from them that I do want to read to you. Instead of securing the release of the hostages through an agreement

and ending the war, the Israeli government is sending more soldiers into Gaza to fight in the same places they have fought time and time again.

And again, for these hostage families, they fear that this will only put those hostages at greater risk. It's also important to note here that all humanitarian aid has been cut off, has been disconnected from the Gaza Strip. So the crisis inside worsens as Israel expands its military offensive.

SOLOMON: Salma Abdelaziz reporting for us live this morning in London. Salma, thank you.

In other news this morning, actor Val Kilmer has died at the age of 65. His daughter released a statement saying that he died of pneumonia. Kilmer was best known for his roles in films like Top Gun, Tombstone and The Doors. CNN's Stephanie Elam takes a look back at his career.

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STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): From a quirky spy in the 1984 cult classic "Top Secret" --

VAN KILMER, ACTOR: You guys really are cowboys.

ELAM (voice-over): -- to the intense fighter pilot in Top Gun.

KILMER: You're everyone's problem. That's because every time you go up in the air, you're unsafe.

ELAM (voice-over): Val Kilmer's film career took flight in the big 80s. But the slick performer trained at Juilliard honed his acting chops on the stage and saw his craft as a serious means of exploration.

LARRY KING, HOST, "LARRY KING LIVE": Have you ever turned down something you regretted?

KILMER: No, I don't really think that way. I just look forward. And also, you know, in a personal way, what I gained from acting was the opportunity to experience things that certainly you'd never do in your own life.

ELAM (voice-over): In the 1990s, Kilmer explored the mind of Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone's "The Doors." Critics praised him for nailing both the look and the sound of the late singer.

KILMER: I'm your huckleberry.

ELAM (voice-over): Two years later, he played the pasty yet poised gunslinger Doc Holliday in "Tombstone." And later, a desperate construction engineer hunting lions in "The Ghost and the Darkness."

Along the way, Kilmer co-starred with some of Hollywood's heavyweights, like Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, in the bank robbery movie "Heat," and played the superhero --

KILMER: That's the car, right? Chicks love the car.

ELAM (voice-over): -- as Batman in 1995. But it was an earlier collaboration on the set of the 1988 movie "Willow," where Kilmer met co-star Joanne Wally. They were married almost eight years and had two children. Later in his career, Kilmer returned to the stage, playing Moses in "The Ten Commandments," the musical.

He also wrote and performed the one-man show "Citizen Twain," taking on the persona of the great American storyteller.

But under the makeup, the actor was dealing with grave health concerns. Kilmer downplayed cancer rumors, but then later said he had beaten the disease, which required a tracheotomy, and left him with a raspy voice.

[05:35:04]

In 2022, he reprised his role as Iceman in the "Top Gun" sequel, "Maverick."

KILMER: Who's the better pilot? You or me?

TOM CRUISE, ACTOR: This is a nice moment. Let's not ruin it.

ELAM (voice-over): Like the actor himself, his once boisterous flyboy character, subdued by illness, still commanded respect and even awe on the silver screen.

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SOLOMON: And tributes this morning for Val Kilmer are already coming in from across Hollywood. Friend and fellow actor Josh Brolin posted online, saying in part, quote, You are a smart, challenging, brave, uber creative firecracker. I hope to see you up there in the heavens.

Actor and filmmaker Matthew Modine posting a thanks to Kilmer for apparently helping him secure his part in the Vietnam War film Full Metal Jacket.

And filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola sharing the picture of himself and Kilmer writing in part, quote, He was a wonderful person to work with and a joy to know. I will always remember him.

We'll be right back.

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SOLOMON: Welcome back. I'm Rahel Solomon, and here are some of the stories we are watching for you this morning.

Republicans will hold on to two U.S. House seats in Florida, shoring up their slim majority. But in Wisconsin, CNN projects that liberal judge Susan Crawford will win a spot on the state Supreme Court. Elon Musk spent about $20 million campaigning for her opponent.

The U.S. Justice Department plans to seek the death penalty for accused CEO killer Luigi Mangione if he is convicted on federal capital murder charges. The 26-year-old faces life in prison without parole if he's convicted on state charges for allegedly shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York back in December. Mangione has pleaded not guilty.

Democrat Cory Booker made history by speaking on the Senate floor for more than 25 hours. The New Jersey senator began speaking Monday night at 7 p.m., protesting the actions of President Trump and his administration since returning to the White House. Booker broke the record, previously set by Strom Thurmond, who was protesting the 1957 Civil Rights Act.

In the coming hours, President Trump will reveal new tariffs that the White House says will be effective immediately. Now, some of the plans under consideration are customizing tariff rates for each trading partner, imposing tariffs on certain countries but not others, or placing a 20 percent rate on all imports.

Now, experts believe that this will intensify an already bitter trade war, could wipe out millions of jobs, and also could result in a recession. Some lawmakers, even Republicans, say that they're concerned.

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SEN. THOM TILLIS (R-NC): Anyone who says there may be a little bit of pain before we get things right need to talk about farmers who are one crop away from bankruptcy. They don't have time. So we've got to be crisp on this implementation. Otherwise, we could do damage that's irreparable to farmers.

SEN. RON JOHNSON (R-WI): As the president has admitted, tariffs will create pain for some businesses, and I think Wisconsin will be particularly hard hit with all the manufacturing and agricultural interests. He's used tariffs in the past effectively to get nations to do what they should have done anyway. Right now, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt, but I am concerned.

REP. DON BACON (R-NE): And we've already heard from some of our beef processors and popcorn exporters that they're losing some market share in Europe. So it is concerning. But I'm all for fair trade, reciprocal tariffs. But I think, in the end, a trade war doesn't help anybody.

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SOLOMON: CNN's Jeff Zeleny has more from the White House.

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JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF U.S. NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: He's long talked about it on the campaign trail and here at the White House. But on Wednesday, President Trump is set to put the finishing touches and announce a sweeping tariff plan. It's one of the centerpieces of his American first agenda that really brought him into the White House here.

But the questions are, as he is set to put these sweeping tariffs into effect, is what effect they will have on prices, inflation, the financial markets. The White House is moving forward with this, though. The president is saying short-term pain may come, but it will bring long-term gain, promises of a rebirth of American factories and manufacturing.

But in the final hours leading up to this announcement, foreign leaders and business leaders were really lobbying the White House, trying to get exemptions to their countries or their industries.

It is unclear exactly what the president will decide. One thing is clear. He's made the announcement at 4 p.m. Eastern time on Wednesday, after the markets are scheduled to close in the Rose Garden of the White House. So regardless of what he decides, this could be one of the most sweeping decisions he makes for tariffs, if it's across the board, 20 percent on every country, or if he puts some exemptions in place. There is no doubt this decision will have lingering effects for the rest of his term and beyond.

Jeff Zeleny, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOLOMON: All right. Still to come for us, more on the elections in Florida and Wisconsin, and the message that those results are sending to the White House. We'll be right back.

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SOLOMON: Welcome back. Voters in Wisconsin have delivered a blow to President Trump, electing a Democrat-backed judge, Susan Crawford, to the state's Supreme Court. The race was officially nonpartisan, but the result ensures that the court will maintain a liberal majority.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump's preferred congressional candidates, well, they also won their special elections in Florida. The margins of victory were smaller than President Trump's in 2024. Republican Jimmy Patronis is in the state's first district will replace Matt Gaetz in the House. And Republican Randy Fine won in Florida sixth. And he's claiming divine intervention.

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RANDY FINE, U.S. HOUSE REPUBLICAN-ELECT: Mr. President, this win is yours far more than it is mine.

[05:50:00]

I believe in every fiber of my being that God turned Donald Trump's head in Butler, Pennsylvania, so he could save the world. And it is God's plan that I get to go and help him do that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: OK, let's bring in Mitch Perry, a senior reporter with the Florida Phoenix. He joins me now from Tallahassee. Mitch, great to have you this morning.

Was it divine intervention? I mean, you said heading into this, that this was the race to watch. So what are the results and the margins here tell us?

MITCH PERRY, SENIOR REPORTER, FLORIDA PHOENIX: You know, interesting, right? The margins, OK, in the case of Randy Fine, he won by 14 points over Democrat Josh Weil. I think that, you know, if that margin had been within under 10 points, the Democrats could really come firing out this morning and saying that it was more than, you know, it was a moral victory, but also it really was something that happened from 2026.

It's in between right now. As you mentioned, these are big Trump districts. The Republicans back in the fall, Matt Gaetz, respectively, in District 1, and Mike Waltz in District 6 went by over 30 points in both districts.

So the margins were cut in half. So both parties can take something out of that. The bottom line is Donald Trump gets two more foot soldiers to return to Washington, D.C. Democrats, I think, were hoping for a little bit better in the Josh Weil District 6 race than what he got. He outspent Randy Fine by about 5 to 1 in the race. The same thing happened up in District 1. Democrats were fired up for this.

These are really super tough districts for Democrats to break through.

SOLOMON: Yes, I mean, to that point, I was reading some of your recent reporting and a quote from an election data analyst who you spoke with said, the likelihood of flipping it, these districts, is like virtually non-existent. But the Democrats spent a lot of money here. Why?

PERRY: Well, I think one of the things is, other than the Wisconsin Supreme Court race last night, this is the only game in town, right? Democrats have been disconsolate for months now after the November loss. And we've been seeing some resurgence here in these town hall meetings the last few weeks.

And these are the only races going on nationally, even. And so I know both these Democratic candidates got a lot of money from out of state. And they've had volunteers come from out of the state, because in many cases, they were told maybe these were competitive districts.

Again, they really weren't. But I think, again, there's a lot of pent- up energy there. Democrats wanted to get involved.

I should say, it was kind of controversial. Some Democratic strategists here in Florida were a little unhappy. They thought that, in many respects, this money was being misdirected to two races that were almost impossible to win, and that should have been built more towards infrastructure and building up more, you know, registration for Democrats, who, of course, are far outnumbered by Republicans now in the registration rolls in the history of Florida in terms of Republican dominance here in Florida.

SOLOMON: Yes, Mitch, it's interesting because, I mean, you speak to Florida voters a lot. In your reporting sort of leading up to these special elections, what have you heard from voters about how they're feeling about both these candidates, but also the issues and the president?

PERRY: Well, I can tell you that what I've heard -- I talked to both Wheel and Gay Valimont the last couple of weeks, and what they were hearing from the constituents in these red districts was unhappiness about some of the things that have been going on with DOGE, with Elon Musk. In District 1, there's a lot of veterans up there. There's a lot of federal workers up there.

In District 6, Wheel was telling me that these concerns about Social Security being cut, Medicaid hasn't happened, of course, but there are threats to that, that those are really playing strongly with the voters and getting them to listen to them. And so that is something, again, that -- whether that can be a message a year from now, a year and a half from now, I think it's way too early to say. But I think that, again, you saw some glimmers for the Democrats of some excitement here through the fundraising numbers.

Again, Republicans will kind of laugh at that. They'll say, OK, look, we had them study all this money, and look how far, you know, we won by. I mean, in any other election, you know, 14, 15 points is a pretty darn good win.

SOLOMON: Yes. Yes, although Democrats might look at Wisconsin and say the same thing about how much money was raised for that race there and what we ultimately saw. Mitch Perry, great to have you this morning. Thank you.

When it comes to a quick meal you don't just want it fast. You want it right. Come up we'll take a look at which fast food chains score the best for accuracy when we come back.

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SOLOMON: Welcome back. And when it comes to fast food, you don't just want your order done quickly. You want it done right.

And apparently, Chick-fil-A is the clear winner in terms of accuracy. That's according to InTouch Insight, a company that's been tracking the efficiency of fast food drive-thrus for 25 years. And it found that Chick-fil-A got orders right 92 percent of the time. Burger King and McDonald's were a close second, tied at 88 percent. KFC struggled with just an 81 percent average.

So how does Chick-fil-A do it? Well, the chain says that it uses analytics collected from drones to assess each restaurant. The downside is Chick-fil-A does have also the longest drive-thru lines. On average, there will be five cars ahead of you before you can place your order.

All right, there's a new member of the Philadelphia Eagles family, Jason and Kylie Kelce just welcomed their fourth daughter, Finnley 'Finn' Anne Kelce, was born March 30th. The former star center and his wife announced the birth by sharing these pictures online. So sweet. Jason's brother, Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce replying to the post with a series of heart eye emojis.

Beautiful. Congratulations, guys.

All right, thanks for being with us this hour. Here on EARLY START, I'm Rahel Solomon live in New York. Stick with CNN. CNN "THIS MORNING" starts right now.