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Exclusive Video of Truck Attacker as FBI Now Believes He Acted Alone; Police Say, Driver in Cybertruck Explosion Shot Himself Before Blast; DHS, FBI Warned of Potential Vehicle Ramming Attacks Over Holidays. Johnson Racing To Win Over GOP Holdouts Hours Before Speaker Vote; Investigators Enter South Korean President's Residence To Carry Out Arrest Warrant. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired January 02, 2025 - 18:00   ET

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

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now, breaking news, chilling new details about the New Orleans attacker, as we now have exclusive new video from his final hours. Authorities shifting gears in the fast- moving investigation now believing he acted alone inspired by the terror group, ISIS.

Also breaking, officials reveal the final fatal moves of the driver who exploded a Cybertruck right in front of the Trump Hotel. Stand by for new details on the blast and the search for a motive.

Plus, we're learning about a very high level warning to law enforcement officials last month about potential vehicle ramming attacks over the holidays. I'll discuss these breaking stories with the U.S. Homeland Security secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas. He joins us live this hour.

Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in The Situation Room.

We begin this hour with two major breaking stories, the investigations into the deadly truck-ramming attack in New Orleans and the Cybertruck explosion in Las Vegas, authorities so far finding no definitive link, despite some very striking similarities. CNN's Natasha Chen is standing by in Las Vegas, but, first, let's go to CNN's Ryan Young. He has new information on the New Orleans attack.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTOPHER RAIA, FBI DEPUTY ASSISTANT DIRECTOR: This was It was an act of terrorism. It was premeditated and an evil act,

RYAN YOUNG, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A change in theory in a brand new timeline laid out one day after the deadly attack on Bourbon Street.

RAIA: We do not assess at this point that anyone else is involved in this attack except for Shamsud-Din Jabbar.

[18:00:03] YOUNG: The FBI now saying they believe the suspect acted alone after initially saying Wednesday, they believe he was not solely responsible for the deadly attack.

Shamsud-Din Jabbar first rented the white pickup truck in Houston, Texas, on December 30th.

RAIA: He then drove from Houston to New Orleans on the evening of the 31st and he posted several videos to an online platform proclaiming his support for ISIS.

YOUNG: New Ring video obtained exclusively by CNN from a New Orleans resident shows the suspect unloading the white pickup truck at an Airbnb just hours before the attack.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The white truck was parked right in front of our place,

YOUNG: The FBI also revealed dark details about Jabbar's Facebook videos the morning of the attack. His last one posted at 3:02 A.M. just moments before he plowed down crowds on Bourbon Street.

RAIA: Jabbar explains he originally planned to harm his family and friends, but was concerned the news headlines would not focus on the, quote, war between the believers and the disbelievers, end quote.

YOUNG: And the FBI is sending an important message to the public.

RAIA: So far, we have received just over 400 tips from the public. Whether you know Jabbar personally, worked with him, served in the military, or saw him in New Orleans or Texas, we need to talk to you.

YOUNG: Investigators revealed that two laptops and three phones were recovered, linked to the suspect, and are being reviewed for leads. And more evidence was released about the reported explosives found near the site of the attack.

RAIA: FBI bomb technicians also recovered two IEDs in coolers, one from the cross section of Bourbon and Orleans Street, and the second at an intersection approximately two blocks away.

ANNE KIRKPATRICK, POLICE CHIEF, NOPD: New Orleans is a resilient city. We have every resource nationally, locally, statewide. We are a team.

YOUNG: A much needed sentiment for a shattered community.

What message are you trying to send?

KIRKPATRICK: Presence and making sure that people know that we're confident that we can keep them safe.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

YOUNG (on camera): Yes, Wolf, you could hear some of the sounds of Bourbon Street already back going, and you can see the crowds walking down the street trying to enjoy themselves, families, young families walking down the street, even after this tragedy. One thing that you will notice, though, is the extra police presence. That's right here to my side.

But as we walk down this way, Wolf, you can see the barrier that's been erected, that was down the night of the attack. That is up with another truck in front of it to make sure no one could ever make it back on the sidewalk. We're also told by the superintendent, the police chief here, that they'll be adding more improvements to this area, especially before the Super Bowl. Obviously, community and making sure people are safe atop of mind.

And as we look toward the wall there, you can see roses that were left behind to mark all the people who died. This is something that's impactful for the community. They had Second Line through here. A resilient spirit here in New Orleans. People say they want to make sure this street was open and that Sugar Bowl went off without a hitch, but still heavy hearts. Wolf?

BLITZER: Very heavy hearts, indeed. Ryan Young on the scene for us, thank you very much.

Now to some other breaking news we're following right now, authorities revealing new details about the Cybertruck explosion outside the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas.

CNN's Natasha Chen is joining us from the scene of the blast. Natasha, give us the latest.

NATASHA CHEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, we saw a new video released by investigators today showing that Tesla Cybertruck driving around this area, first along Las Vegas Boulevard, the strip, which is just a little bit of ways from us where we are located in front of the Trump Hotel.

And then shortly before the explosion, you can see the Cybertruck driving around, even pulling into the valet drive through area and driving back out, looping back again before the truck goes off in a big explosion.

Now, authorities also said that after combing through all of the evidence in the in the Cybertruck overnight, sifting through those charred elements there, they did find that this driver died of a self- inflicted gunshot wound to the head just seconds before the explosives went off. They repeated that this damage was rather contained because of the construction of the Cybertruck itself.

Because of the body of the vehicle, the explosion really went upwards instead of further out. And so the glass doors of the hotel behind us did not even suffer any damage, though we did see some smoke damage and a hole on the ceiling just there.

[18:05:05]

We were also told that the man connected to the rental of this Tesla Cybertruck is Matthew Alan Livelsberger. He is U.S. Special Forces, that he was serving in Germany and on approved leave at the time that this explosion happened, that he rented this Cybertruck from Colorado and drove it here to Las Vegas, that among the things found in the vehicle were his military I.D., his passport, two semiautomatic handguns that were legally purchased shortly before this explosion happened.

So, Wolf, there are a lot of questions still about why he did this, and one investigator today said it is not lost on me that it is a Tesla vehicle, Tesla made by Elon Musk's company, and that this happened in front of a Trump Hotel, but they do not have enough evidence to say if there was any particular motive, political or otherwise. Wolf?

BLITZER: All right. We'll find out. I know this investigation is only just beginning.

Natasha Chen, thank you very much. Natasha is in Las Vegas.

I want to get some more on these breaking stories right now. Joining us, the U.S. Homeland Security secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas. Mr. Secretary, thanks so much for joining us. I know you have a lot going on. We appreciate it.

So, this investigation in what happened in New Orleans is now, what, in its second day. Where do things go from here? What do you still need to know?

ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: Well, the FBI is leading the investigation, Wolf. As you know, of course, 14 innocent lives were lost in that tragic event. And our hearts break for the families and loved ones. And we pray for those who suffered injuries for their swift recovery.

There's still a great deal of investigation underway. The FBI has, of course, captured videos, as the reporter indicated. We have located phones and laptops. Residences are being searched. There's a great deal of investigation still underway.

The conclusion has been reached. This is an event that was inspired by a foreign terrorist ideology. This individual ascribed to the heinous beliefs of ISIS. With respect to the Las Vegas incident, no motive has yet to be determined. Both investigations are at an early stage.

BLITZER: Yes, that's what I keep hearing about. You know, it's very interesting, you're the secretary of Homeland Security. CNN has obtained a joint bulletin from the Department of Homeland Security warning of lone offender attacks coming up, specifically mentioning the potential use of vehicle ramming. That bulletin came out and was sent around the country to the cities and states warning of this potential danger. Did New Orleans screw up, basically, not pay attention to that warning?

MAYORKAS: I don't think that's fair to say, Wolf. That wouldn't be a fair conclusion to draw. That was not our first bulletin with respect to the threat of the lone offender. The perpetrator of the terrorist attack yesterday in New Orleans was an Army veteran, a U.S.-born citizen. We have spoken now for about ten years about the phenomenon of an individual resident in the United States radicalized to violence by a foreign terrorist ideology or other ideologies. We're speaking of a veteran here.

Local officials do the best they can in securing the well being of their residents. We work very closely with our state and local partners.

BLITZER: The FBI says this New Orleans attacker was, quote, 100 percent inspired by ISIS. What can you say about how his connection to ISIS emerged?

MAYORKAS: Well, that is still subject to investigation. That is one of the key elements of the investigation. The motive has been identified. Why precisely this individual radicalized, an army veteran, a United States citizen, why he radicalized to a foreign terrorist ideology is still the subject of review, why there was encouragement by the FBI special agent to individuals who know Jabbar, to communicate with the FBI whatever information they might have about that path to radicalization.

BLITZER: Very disturbing, indeed. In Las Vegas, as you all know, Mr. Secretary, a decorated active duty Army Special Forces sergeant is believed to have caused that Cybertruck to explode just in front of the Trump Hotel there. Are you confident this person acted alone? And what can you say about his motive?

MAYORKAS: Again, Wolf, we're at a preliminary stage of the investigation. A motive has not been identified. There is no evidence of any other individuals working in concert with the individual in the Cybertruck, but we cannot rule that out.

[18:10:06]

But there is no evidence of other conspirators.

BLITZER: As you know, there's -- you've suggested there's no evidence of linkage between Las Vegas and New Orleans, these two attacks. But there have been se several very, very significant similarities that occurred during these two attacks, right?

MAYORKAS: Well, both individuals rented their respective vehicles from an app. Both individuals were U.S. citizens who have served in the military. But that doesn't necessarily draw a connection between the two events other than similarities of characteristics.

BLITZER: Are you 100 percent convinced that the individual in Las Vegas had no affiliation with a terrorist organization?

MAYORKAS: I don't think we know enough to draw any conclusion just yet. We're at a preliminary stage.

BLITZER: So, all these similarities that you mentioned, and there are other similarities as well, purely coincidental?

MAYORKAS: Wolf, we're going to refrain from drawing assessments and conclusions until we learn more evidence. We owe that. That's a responsibility of a careful and thorough investigation and, quite frankly, a responsibility we owe the public not to be premature in our conclusions.

BLITZER: I don't know if you know this, but President-elect Trump is falsely linking the New Orleans attack to migrants following an erroneous Fox News report. How dangerous is it to spread this kind of disinformation around the country by the president-elect of the United States?

MAYORKAS: Wolf, it is not a time now to stoke fear. It is a time to calm fear. It is a time to draw conclusions based on evidence adduced in an investigation. This is not the time for politics. This is the time for national unity. This is not a time to inflame individuals. It is a time to grieve for lives lost, to pray for those who are suffering and to come together as a country.

BLITZER: We're grateful to you for coming in and sharing some thoughts with us, very important stories, indeed. I appreciate it, Mr. Secretary.

MAYORKAS: Thank you, Wolf.

BLITZER: Alejandro Mayorkas, the secretary of Homeland Security.

And just ahead, we're going to have much more on the New Orleans attack, including what we're now learning about the 14 people who lost their lives.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:15:00]

BLITZER: Right now, we're getting more reaction to the breaking news that federal authorities issued a warning last month of potential vehicle ramming attacks here in the United States over the holidays.

I want to bring in our national security and law enforcement experts, and, John Miller, I'll start with you. CNN has learned that federal authorities warned only last month of these kinds of threats from loan offenders and the potential use of vehicle ramming. Did New Orleans officials overlook a potential threat here?

JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: I think New Orleans officials have, as we've gotten further away from 9/11 taken Bourbon Street, which is an ideal target for a ramming attack, and not secured it to the point that they could have. There's a bunch of reasons for that. It involves a number of different agencies. But having a police car blocking it would have stopped anybody who was going to make a turn where the officer could say no. It was not going to stop a determined assailant who could go around that car and floor it. He's not going to worry about getting a ticket for ignoring the cop if his intent is to kill as many people as possible.

BLITZER: Donell Harvin is with us. Donell, the FBI says they believe the attacker was, quote, 100 percent inspired by ISIS. Do you think ISIS could try to seize on this attack now?

DONELL HARVIN, FORMER D.C. CHIEF OF HOMELAND SECURITY AND INTELLIGENCE: Absolutely. And it's someone who's consumed ISIS propaganda for the better part of the last decade. I'll tell you that many of their propaganda inspires people from the left and the right, different walks of life. Some of the stuff is very compelling, particularly for individuals who are marginalized, who are down and out or downtrodden.

And I just want to really quickly point on something that Commissioner Miller just said. You know, we always hear hindsight is 20-20. Wolf, we've had a decade or more of hindsight. We had the vehicle ramming in 2016 in Nice. We've had 2017 multiple vehicle rammings. How much hindsight do we need before we start protecting these vulnerable places from vehicle rammings?

BLITZER: Good point. Michael Harrison, New Orleans police say they are now hardening the target around Bourbon Street. You know New Orleans well, clearly, as the former police superintendent there. What needs to happen to secure that area, because, still, a lot of folks are in that area, they're trying to enjoy New Orleans?

MICHAEL HARRISON, FORMER SUPERINTENDENT, NEW ORLEANS POLICE: Well, good evening to you all. I was actually there with the superintendent the mayor and a number of faith leaders as we walked down Bourbon Street at 12:00 noon today and prayed for the safety of the people and for the successful conclusion of this investigation.

And it's very different today. There is a large public service vehicle blocking the entire intersection covering some of the sidewalk on each side of the street. So, they have escalated their security measures much like we did during the years when I was there. Before we purchased those bollards, we would have large vehicles blocking the streets at any of the entrances to Bourbon Street. And now that there are bollards, they're under repair, it's even more fortified now because I saw this truck and had to walk around it. And I can tell you that there is no room for a pickup truck or vehicle to turn and go up a sidewalk today.

Could that have been yesterday? Well, now we know hindsight is 20-20. I'm here to tell you that they have escalated it and there are other measures that are in and around the Superdome for the game that were perhaps not there yesterday exactly have increased security made it more difficult for this to happen in and around the Superdome. And so we learned lessons from these.

[18:20:00]

We learned lessons from other places. We learned lessons from yesterday.

BLITZER: And we know the Super Bowl is scheduled early in February to take place at that Superdome in New Orleans, and presumably the security is going to be really tight for that.

Casey Jordan, the FBI is working to fill in the details of Jabbar's movements just ahead of the attack. How will that help investigators determine his motivation?

CASEY JORDAN, CRIMINOLOGIST: Well, we are looking at this as something that was not terribly well-organized. I mean, we know that his improvised explosives did not go off and that he kind of rented the vehicle last minute, stuck that flag on the back and headed to New Orleans telling his neighbors that he was moving there.

What we want to do is kind of piece together what was going on in his life that left that void in his life that opened him up to radicalization. He said just before the summer, so only a few months ago. And they're going to want to talk to his family, because in the five recorded messages he posted to social media just in the hour-and- a-half before the ramming attack, he indicated that he had planned to gather his family together and killed them and then changed his mind and tried to make it into a political, you know, extremist statement associated with ISIS.

But what we want to do is piece together his life, which from initial reports included financial ruin and two divorces and way behind on his bills, failed businesses, and look at how that void in his life left him open to radicalization, what was going on in his life in the last six months. Could it have been avoided? Was there leakage? Were there postings, you know, in his writings on social media that could have indicated it. So, piecing the puzzle together, it takes a long time, but it will help us guide us towards prevention in the future.

BLITZER: And learn the lessons of what happened this time to make sure it doesn't happen again.

John, what are you hearing about the investigation into this attack outside the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas?

MILLER: Well, they've learned a great deal over the last 24 hours. They have positively identified the body in the car as being that of the person who rented it, a U.S. Army active duty Special Forces master sergeant with extensive training in counterterrorism, intelligence, counterinsurgency, not the kind of figure you would see usually behind an anti-American attack on an iconic location on a holiday.

But as they are digging back through that individual's world, trying to learn everything about him, they're getting a sense of some things going on the family level, going on professionally stresses that are brought on by the long deployments, PTSD, and other things. And they're trying to get a richer picture of whether or not that could be a driver here behind this attack, which was ultimately a suicide.

BLITZER: Yes. Donell, do you think the explosion in Las Vegas being contained to the hotel driveway was intentional or was this likely a miscalculation?

HARVIN: You know, everything that John just laid out is something we've been looking at over the last 24 hours. You would think that this individual who has, you know, world class training and how to really execute an operation, not necessarily a terrorist operation, but an operation that would cause mass casualties would do a little bit better.

So, for me, personally and professionally, it speaks to someone that wasn't quite in the right mental mind when this happened. It looks like it was hastily done, particularly when you look at the evidence in the back of the truck. And so I don't think this individual planned this out very well. And, really, thank goodness, because of that, that could have been a more deadly attack had they planned that out better.

BLITZER: Yes. In New Orleans, Michael, one official there is predicting big changes in the way large scale events like next month's Super Bowl in New Orleans are handled. Do New Orleans and other cities need to change how secure these events are supposed to be?

HARRISON: Well, absolutely. We plan for these things all the time. Many Super Bowls have been here. Sugar Bowl is here every year. Every year, there's millions of people from Mardi Gras almost every Sunday, 39 Sundays of the year. There is a cultural thing called a Second Line where thousands and sometimes tens of thousands of people are walking in the street.

So, we have to really think about how we fortify streets where people congregate in large numbers very frequently, and how do we protect that. I think other cities should be thinking about the very same thing. How do you limit the floor vehicular traffic, secure the flow of pedestrian traffic, so that the vehicles and the people are not in the same place and that this can't happen. All of us should be learning from yesterday to make things different today, tomorrow and going forward so there is not a repeat. But every city should be paying attention.

[18:25:01]

BLITZER: Absolutely. It's not just New Orleans or Las Vegas, cities all across the country need to pay attention. Guys, thank you very, very much.

Just ahead, CNN obtaining internal government documents that are prompting new questions over whether terror warnings were taken seriously and if potential warning signs were missed. We'll talk with a former two-term mayor of New Orleans.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Bourbon Street in New Orleans has reopened under tightened security as authorities are revealing new details about the New Orleans truck ramming attack.

CNN Anchor Anderson Cooper is joining us live from New Orleans right now. Anderson, what are you hearing, first of all, from people as you travel throughout the city?

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Right now I'm hearing a lot of noise on Bourbon Street, and maybe you can hear some of it behind me because, as you said, it has reopened. It reopened earlier this afternoon, several hours ago. It was important for people in this city, for city officials to get this place, which was the scene of such horror on New Year's Eve, three hours after the strike after the beginning of the New Year, to get it back up and running, not so much for business reasons but as a symbol of the city and of the resilience of this city.

[18:30:05]

And that's what you hear a lot from people wherever you go in New Orleans today. There is shock, obviously, there is great sadness for the loss of lives and for those who remain injured, but there is a determination that this will not define this city and this city, which has suffered so much and seen so much over the decades, coming up on the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina next September, that they are determined to show that they are back and moving forward.

I just want to show you -- I want you to hear some of the sounds that we heard when Bourbon Street first reopened. City officials and preachers laid flowers. And before it was opened to the public, they allowed religious leaders to come to say prayers. And also Glen David Andrews and a Second Line walked down the length of Bourbon Street singing about the resilience of New Orleans.

I want you to hear some of that.

That's Glen David Andrews singing.

It's a very New Orleans scene to see a Second Line like that, and it was very moving for a lot of people, a sign of hope on this street earlier today, Wolf.

BLITZER: Anderson, I know you also went to a hospital, where some of the victims are being treated right now. Tell us about that.

COOPER: That's right, we did. We went to a hospital, which is just a couple of minutes from here. It's a trauma one hospital. They're able to deal with traumatic situations like we saw. So, a lot of the people who were badly injured were brought there as quickly as possible. They still have more than a dozen people who are there with a whole range. Most of them are blunt force injuries they've received from being hit by the vehicle. Some of them also have gunshot wounds.

I talked to Jeremy Ossenski (ph), who was one of the people who was hit directly by the vehicle. He was actually in a wheelchair. He was knocked out of his wheelchair. His legs were broken in multiple places. He's undergone surgery, but he is doing okay and hopes to get out of the hospital in a few days, Wolf.

BLITZER: All right. Anderson Cooper on the scene for us, as he always is, thank you very, very much.

And Anderson, of course, will have much more later tonight from New Orleans on his excellent program, 8:00 P.M. Eastern. We'll be watching, Anderson. Thanks very much.

And joining us now, someone who knows New Orleans very well, the current president of the National Urban League and the former two-term New Orleans mayor, Marc Morial. Mayor, thanks so much for joining us.

You heard Anderson's report, and you were moved clearly because you know the city, you know the people, and it's very disturbing.

MARC MORIAL, PRESIDENT, NATIONAL URBAN LEAGUE: I give the city leaders great credit for reopening Bourbon Street for doing it in a dignified fashion with prayer, which is part of the tradition of New Orleans, with the Second Line Parade, which is part of the tradition of New Orleans, and also for taking that one day break before hosting the Sugar Bowl.

We cannot let terrorism, terrorists, haters, and dividers divide us and stop us. So, it was an important statement made today to get Bourbon Street back.

BLITZER: Very important, indeed. Only moments ago, and this is important information, the FBI released some new photos, Mayor, of the attacker placing the cooler around New Orleans just hours before the attack. They are asking anyone who saw him on the street to come forward What are they hoping to learn? And these are some of the pictures. That's the picture of that cooler right there. You can see it on the screen.

MORIAL: So, you know, I think, Wolf, one of the interesting things is how extensive the planning, the preparation, the premeditation to this terrorist act was. And I think it's still, even though now the FBI has clarified that, quote, he was acting alone, did other people help him plan? Where did he get all of the materials and the devices from? What went into taking someone, a military veteran, a graduate of Georgia State, a person that worked for a big four accounting firm, and his anger, his rage, his hatred became so empowering that he kills 15 people on a night and on a day that is a day of festivities and a day of celebration? This is a heinous, despicable act. I'm hurt. I'm angered.

And when I saw the photos of those young people who were out there partying, young professionals, young people in the early stages of their life now stuffed out, I am just so hopeful that all Americans will understand that, for us, this should be a moment like 9/11, when we should push back against politicians or leaders who want to exploit with rhetoric, this awful event, and instead say, let us unify to continue this fight for a safer America and safer communities.

[18:35:34]

BLITZER: As a former mayor of New Orleans, and you know the city well, you know the people well, what do you think the city could have done, potentially looking back, to prevent this terror attack?

MORIAL: Well, one thing I think could have been done is when they took the barricades down, they could have come up with a plan B. A dump truck could have been put there. A temporary barricade could have been put there. That may have saved some lives, but it would not have stopped him from maybe identifying another target or a different target. One thing I'm interested in is whether he cased this location out, whether he planned in advance the exact location that he would use this truck to ram into a crowd of people. So, they could have done that, which is why I've said on a number of occasions, what's important is for city leaders to evaluate the security plan around the corner, evaluate the security plan around downtown New Orleans, to determine very quickly what enhancements and fortifications are needed.

BLITZER: Mayor Marc Morial, thank you very much for coming in.

MORIAL: Thanks, Wolf.

BLITZER: Thanks for the important work you do in the National Urban League as well. I appreciate it very, very much.

And just ahead, new information coming in on the victims of the New Orleans terror attack, including a student and former college football player.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:40:00]

BLITZER: We're now learning the names and seeing the faces of some of the victims killed in the New Orleans terror attack. CNN's Danny Freeman shares their stories.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTINA BOUNDS, COUSIN OF MATT TENEDORIO: My grandma, grandpa, everybody's just crying, wailing together. And yesterday, my grandma cried nonstop for eight hours, like we just can't believe it.

DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): 25-year-old Matt Tenedorio was from Slidell, Louisiana, the youngest brother of three loved working with his dad at the Superdome. Matt had dinner with his family earlier on New Year's Eve, and his cousin said Matt was not hit by the truck that night but died from a gunshot.

Matt's mother devastated.

BOUNDS: She wanted people to know that he was so lovable and kind and that he liked skateboarding, you know, and he loved his niece and nephews and, yes, and that they're heartbroken.

FREEMAN: Matt is just one of 14 who were killed in the New Year's Day morning horror on Bourbon Street.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They mattered. The families matter and matter to the city of New Orleans.

FREEMAN: 37-year-old Reggie Hunter was a father of two, an 11-year- old and a 1-year-old. He was from Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

TRAVIS HUNTER, COUSIN OF REGGIE HUNTER: Reggie was a beautiful person inside and out. To know Reggie was to love Reggie.

FREEMAN: Reggie survived the initial attack but passed away at the hospital from internal injuries.

HUNTER: He can change the environment in the room, always smiling, just pure person, good, pure hearted person.

FREEMAN: Tiger Bech was 27 years old, the former Princeton football player from Lafayette, Louisiana. According to his sister, Virginia, Tiger was walking back to his hotel with his best friend on New Year's Eve when they were both struck. His friend survived but Tiger passed away at the hospital.

Tiger's sister, Virginia, telling CNN, she's heartbroken, but evil will not prevail.

21 year old Hubert Gauthreaux was killed in the attack as well. His high school in Marrero, Louisiana asking the community to pray for the repose of Hubert's soul, his family, and friends during this difficult time.

Drew Dauphin graduated from Auburn University in 2023. Words cannot convey the sorrow the Auburn family feels for Drew's family and friends during this unimaginably difficult time, wrote the university's president, Christopher Roberts.

The University of Alabama confirmed student Kareem Badawi was also one of the victims. The president of that school writing, I grieve alongside family and friends of Kareem in their heartbreaking loss.

We're still learning more about the 14 people lost and the dozens injured on New Year's Day. Parents, siblings, students, locals, and tourists, loved and not forgotten.

Danny Freeman, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Our thanks to CNN's Danny Freeman and our deepest, deepest condolences to these families. May their loved ones rest in peace, and may their memories be a blessing.

And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:48:07]

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Tonight, House Speaker Mike Johnson is sounding confident about his prospects where the new Congress convenes tomorrow when lawmakers vote for speaker. He's been working feverishly to secure the nearly unanimous Republican support he needs to hold on to the gavel. The protracted floor flight could still be possible despite Johnson's endorsement by President-elect Trump.

We're joined now by CNN political commentators Scott Jennings and Kate Bedingfield.

To both of you, thanks for coming in.

Scott, there are questions whether Congress could convene, to even count the Electoral College vote if there's no speaker. What's your assessment right now about the prospects of Mike Johnson being reelected?

SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, first, I think you're exactly right. They can't do anything until we have a speaker. Count the votes and act Donald Trump's agenda. So that's number one.

And number two, it helps answer the second question, which is I ultimately think Republicans will reelect Mike Johnson because they don't want to delay in getting on with the business of maybe even passing some legislation that Trump can pass or sign into law.

On January 20th, Johnson and his people feel pretty good. They've been meeting with some of the holdouts. I think they're getting positive vibes. And what I would just say to the people who are iffy on Johnson is you can't beat something with nothing. Produce an alternative. And the reality is there is none that could get the same number of votes as Mike Johnson.

BLITZER: Interesting.

What does it say to you, Kate, that this speaker fight, is it potentially, given what's going on right now, is going to pretend its going to be very hard for anybody in Congress to really get important issues resolved?

KATE BEDINGFIELD, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Oh, it is. I mean, it is its herding cats doesn't seem like a sufficient enough phrase. It's like herding cats if the cats are on steroids and hitting the gym every day. I mean, it's going to be a mess for -- for anybody who is in charge of this Congress.

I think, you know, this should be -- this should be one of the easiest votes. And even this, it looks like its probably going to be a knife fight. What I hope this means is that the moderate influences in Congress recognize that they have as much impact, they have as much leverage as the extreme ends.

[18:50:03]

And I hope that that means that there will be some of these more moderate members, certainly on the Republican side, who will use their leverage to, you know, to try to bring what I would argue are some of Trump's worst impulses into line. And I also hope that the Democrats in Congress see that they have enormous power here when they're, you know, for a minority party, when the margin is this narrow, anybody who -- who stands up and says and objects can potentially throw a wrench into things. So it is -- it is going to be messy.

BLITZER: Let me play a little clip of Mike Johnson, the current speaker, of course, running for reelection tomorrow. What he said earlier on Fox Business. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: I think it's going to be okay, Larry. We'll have maybe one no vote, I think -- I think we get it done on the first round.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Are you with him?

JENNINGS: Well, I hope he's right. The no votes, probably my congressman, Thomas Massie of Kentucky's fourth congressional district, that's where I live.

But I hope they do get it done quickly because just speaking for Republican voters, Republicans went and voted for Trump. They voted for the Republicans to control both chambers of Congress, not because they wanted to produce a bunch of infighting, because they wanted to produce a bunch of progress and fast.

And if they don't get it done, or if this is protracted the way it was with McCarthy, I think you're going to see a lot of Republicans out there saying, what are we doing here? You know, we didn't elect you all to fight amongst yourselves. We elected you to fight the Democrats and help Donald Trump.

BLITZER: As all of this is unfolding up in the House of Representatives. Kate, President Biden today awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal to January 6th Committee leaders Bennie Thompson and Liz Cheney. What is this message that President Biden is sending right now?

BEDINGFIELD: I think he's trying to send the message that democracy and the protection of democracy is more important than any one person's political career. I think he's honoring Liz Cheney in particular, for effectively sacrificing her political career in the name of preserving our democracy. Pursuing what? Getting to the bottom of what happened on January 6th, and the role that Trump and others around Trump may have played in aiding and abetting what happened that day.

So I think the message Biden is trying to send is that the politics of our -- of the moment are heated and ugly. But at the end of the day, protecting democracy is more important than any one political cycle. And I think that's the message that he's trying to send by awarding these medals today.

BLITZER: Trump, as you know, has said that Cheney and Thompson should wind up in jail for what they did. Do you want to react to that?

JENNINGS: Look, I mean, the president can speak for himself on that. I will say this about Thompson -- a lot of Republicans like me who work for President George W. Bush are still holding something of a grudge over his attempts to derail President Bush in the Electoral College back in 2004 and find these kinds of accolades for him to be a little hypocritical, given his role in trying to maybe destabilize the results of an election some years ago.

BLITZER: Do you think the president, President Biden, should give these pardons to both of these individuals whom he just honored today?

BEDINGFIELD: Look, I'm a little hesitant about the idea of a proactive pardon. I think, first of all, it suggests some element of criminal behavior, which I don't think either of them have conducted.

So I'm also not sure that if Trump decides he wants to pursue, you know, persecuting them for, for lack of a better term, I'm not sure that a proactive pardon that the limits of that have been tested by the courts and that it would do much. I think it sends the wrong signal. So I'm not -- I'm not personally a fan of that idea.

BLITZER: All right, guys, thanks very much. Kate Bedingfield, Scott Jennings, appreciate both of you very, very much.

And we'll be right back with more news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:57:30]

BLITZER: Live pictures in South Korea right now where we're following major breaking news. Investigators have now entered the presidential palace to carry out an arrest warrant for the country's embattled president.

CNN's Mike Valerio is joining us live from Seoul.

So what happened since we last spoke last hour, Mike?

MIKE VALERIO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we have this coming in within the last minute, Wolf. The security team, akin to the Secret Service that protects South Korea's elected president, is now huddling, trying to figure out what to do here. And that's critical, because for everybody watching this back home in the United States, the stakes here, this has never happened before to a key American ally where the person voted in as president is being detained by law enforcement facing potential criminal charges.

That's why this is so big and so new. And there is the possibility of conflict, of a fight or something happening between the corruption investigation office that wants to bring in South Koreas elected president for questioning about what happened a month ago, the declaration of martial law and a potential conflict between the people who protect him.

There is no plan, Wolf. No understanding between how these two entities interact and the elected president of South Korea, albeit suspended because he's going through impeachment. Yoon Suk Yeol said to his supporters, hey, I'm not going down without a fight. I want thousands of all of you supporters to come in front of my house and prevent law enforcement from arresting me and bringing me in for questioning. So the pictures that were looking at, were waiting to see. Its

somewhat of a quiescent scene at the moment, but were waiting to see whether or not the suspended president of South Korea comes out with handcuffs, comes out, perhaps flanked by corruption investigators, and eventually goes willing for questioning about why he declared martial law a month ago tonight.

BLITZER: So who potentially, Mike, could be a good unifier for South Korea as they deal with this and the recent plane crash that killed dozens of people?

VALERIO: So we have an acting president here in South Korea. Choi Sang Mok, he is the third person this month, Wolf, to hold the powers of the presidency. We had President Yoon, who was impeached, then an acting president who's also been impeached, and now were on person number three, Choi Sang Mok.

And he's only been acting with the powers of the president since Friday, a week ago today. And then two days later, he has this plane crash and he has been seen as somebody who isn't a typical politician. He's kind of a technocrat. He was finance minister and now is rising to the occasion, seen by many of potentially unifying the country, Wolf.

BLITZER: Mike Valerio in Seoul, South Korea -- thank you very much.

And "ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT" starts right now.