Tariffs, Fed Vote, Jobs & More: Major Week For U.S. Economy

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23:59We're back with the breaking news. This just in, authorities in Montana just released a photo of the man they're looking for after a deadly mass shooting. Four people killed. Let's get straight to CNN's Josh Campbell. Josh, what do we know at this point? Yeah, Phil, another day, another mass shooting, sadly, in the United States. This one occurring just a few hours ago in western Montana in the city of Anaconda. We're hearing from state police in Montana that sadly four people were killed at a bar in this city. A manhunt is now underway for the suspect. Now, the local Deer Lodge County law enforcement agency actually issued a photo of the suspect.

24:35They have identified him. His name, Michael Paul Brown. They're pushing this information out there to the public, warning the public that this individual is to be considered armed and dangerous. We've seen this flood of various different law enforcement agencies now involved, including local police, the state police, as well as the ATF and the FBI. Federal resources now coming in as authorities try to identify where this person is. We did hear from local law enforcement that the last known sighting was just about five miles west of where the shooting took place. This is in a neighborhood called Stumptown.

25:09And authorities are trying to get this information out, that this individual is armed and dangerous, they believe. They want people to provide any information, but they don't want people to make contact with the suspect, Phil. They want people to call 911. Josh, you noted how often things like this happen. It's horrifying on some level, but you've covered so many of these. Walk people through the behind the scenes here. You mentioned federal authorities are coming in. What is the interplay? What's happening right now? Yeah, so many different agencies. And one thing that's notable about this incident is that they know the identity of the suspect.

25:42You and I, Phil, have covered so many of these incidents where there is often a time period in a manhunt where authorities don't know who they're searching for. And so that obviously complicates things here. They determine pretty quickly who they believe the suspect is. And so they're getting that information out. They'd also be wanting to make contact with any relatives, any friends, anyone who may be in contact with this individual. They haven't indicated yet as far as motive why this individual did this. That will obviously be a key part of this investigation. But that front of mind right now for all of these different agencies first is locating this individual.

26:17We know that they've been sending out broadcasts to neighboring law enforcement agencies as well to make them aware of what is actually happening. And we're now in this period that they call mutual aid, where multiple agencies are now assisting, regardless of whether they actually cover this territory. They're coming in in order to provide those additional assets. Again, authorities have an armed and dangerous fugitive now on the loose. they are trying to get him captured, and that's going to require a lot of personnel to do so, Phil. Yeah, no question about it. Keep us posted if you learn more.

26:46Josh Campbell, appreciate it, as always, my friend. Well, today, the teacher in custody in the killing of an Arkansas couple made his first appearance in a courtroom as dramatic arrest in a hair salon. Plus, new details about this horrific murder. That's ahead.

27:05In our National League, the man accused of murdering a mother and father who were on a hike with their two young daughters faced a judge today. Court documents are shedding new light on what exactly happened and how the children managed to survive. CNN's Diane Gallagher has the latest. Elementary school teacher Andrew McGann appearing for the first time before a judge Friday. Police say the 28-year-old admitted to the shocking killings of Clinton and Kristen Brink, stabbed as the couple hiked with their daughters at Devil's Den State Park Saturday afternoon. It appears to be a completely random event.

27:40The Brinks being hailed as heroes. They absolutely protected those girls to their fullest extent, to the point that it cost them their lives. Kristen's last moment spent trying to save her family. The husband was attacked first. The mother did not return all the way to the car with the kids. we believe that the mother took them to safety and then returned to help her husband. New court documents reveal the Brinks' daughters first reported the attack to another hiker, who got them off trail before heading to find the Brinks' bodies and then hiking back out to get cell service. Another witness noticed a man with blood on his face drive off in a black car with tape over the tag.

28:29Police believe the attack was planned, even though the victims were random. And after more than 500 tips from the public, the terrifying four-day manhunt ended mid-haircut at Lupita's beauty salon and barbershop in Springdale Wednesday evening. Something fell off about him. He looked pretty scary. He didn't look like he was okay. McGann had just moved to Springdale after accepting a teaching position at a local elementary school for the upcoming school year, the district confirmed to CNN. McGahn had been hired to work at at least four school districts in three different states in just three years.

29:06In 2023, in Texas, a parent who described him as cold told CNN she reported McGahn after her son described his fourth grade teacher as touchy and inappropriate with certain girls in class. An internal investigation found problems with classroom management and professional judgment, but did not find evidence of inappropriate behavior, according to the Louisville Independent School District. It said McGahn resigned that May. Now, each of the school districts said that McGahn passed a background check before being hired. It was determined this morning he will be represented by a public defender. Police say that they have blood, hair and other materials that connect him to the scene.

29:49He was injured during the attack and they called him a DNA match. But Phil, there is still no motive. Arkansas police say that they fully expect law enforcement in neighboring states to begin reaching out to them about unsolved cases in other jurisdictions. Wow. Diane Gallagher, great reporting. Thanks so much. Well, over to our politics lead. What seems to be proof of that old saying, history is written by the victors, or maybe in this case, rewritten or maybe just taken down altogether. Here in Washington last month, the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History removed a board that referenced President Donald Trump's two impeachments.

30:23In a statement to CNN, the Smithsonian Institution said the decision was made after a review of the museum's, quote, legacy content this year. So let's talk about what's actually happening here with CNN's Tom Foreman. Tom, I think my initial assumption had been this must have something to do with the executive order in March directing the Smithsonian to remove, quote, improper ideology. There's no mention of that in the Smithsonian's statement. What's going on here? Well, there's not, but there often is not in cases like this of political, you know, strong-arming. Now, we don't have proof that it is strong-arming.

30:56What we do know is that President Trump expressed concern over this. He put Vice President J.D. Vance in charge, basically, of saying, go talk to the Smithsonian, straighten them out on a few things here. And then all of a sudden, here's this exhibit, which they were changing. They had this big board in front of everything. You're looking at it right there. And they were changing the exhibit behind. They said they're updating it. Look at the bottom two boxes down there. You can't see that well here. But the bottom two boxes are about Donald Trump being impeached twice. In both cases, he was acquitted.

31:26But that's what happened. And so if you look at it now, you see that that board has been moved away. And this is what you see. So there is still impeachment. And it talks about Bill Clinton and it talks about Zachary Taylor, wasn't it a long time ago? I can't remember right now, but also the process of impeachment that was underway for Richard Nixon before he resigned. All of that's there, but Donald Trump is not. But the Smithsonian says, well, it takes a while to update things. We will get around to updating it. And when we do, that will be included. The question, I mean, to be real cynical about it, the question is, will they get around to that before his term is over?

32:06Or will they say, well, it's just taking a long time? I don't know. I think the cynicism may have some merit to it. We don't know. We're not going to say we don't know. Bigger picture here. The executive order that I mentioned, which in March criticized, quote, exhibits or programs that degrade shared American values, divide Americans based on race or promote programs or ideologies inconsistent with federal law and policy. We're talking in the break that there are just so many different elements culturally, almost, that the president here in Washington has kind of put got involved in, I guess would be the way to say it.

32:39What is what's happening in your sense of things? Well, if you read through that entire executive order from March, one of the things it really talks about there is the idea of these sort of damaging impressions of America and falsehoods about America. Well, bear in mind, Donald Trump has always said these impeachments were invalid. They were nothing but political witch hunts. They had nothing to do with the facts, nothing to do with what he did. Although, you know, the process was followed properly and just like his felony convictions. That's what happened. That's what really happened. But he always says it's invalid.

33:13So in effect, he could be saying, if we want to straighten out the Smithsonian, well, we need to remove the things that are invalid. And I, in my administration, believe this is invalid. So it doesn't belong there. He would argue, I'm not changing history. I'm getting it right. This is an important point to make real quick before we go. This is well within his authority, right? Or is it not? Is it within his authority? You know, honestly, I'm getting to where I don't know if I can answer that question. What I will say, it is not within the normal purview of what presidents have done, just like changing the name at the Kennedy Center or telling the Washington commanders they should go back to the name Redskins or telling law firms they can't come into federal buildings.

33:54That's not a normal thing we have seen, but it's something this administration has embraced. Yeah, and honestly, to your point, I think I've talked to people at these places and say, we don't know if this is supposed to happen or not, but he's doing it and it's happening. When constitutional law scholars don't know, I absolutely don't. Same. Plus one on that. Tom Foreman always appreciates you, my friend. Thanks so much. Well, up ahead, California Dreamin. Imagine avoiding the nightmare of congested roads in Malibu. The new Blue Highway could soon become a reality. We'll explain next.

34:30In our health lead, allergy experts are warning Benadryl might not be the best choice to fight symptoms of food allergies. A review published in February by the World Allergy Organization Journal said diphenhydramine, or Benadryl, is, quote, outdated, dangerous, and eclipsed by safer alternatives. The primary concern? Benadryl's drowsiness. In some cases, people who take the medicine actually miss signs that their symptoms are worsening because of how sleepy they are. Well, in our national lead, the Pacific Coast Highway, also known as the PCH, is a vital part of California's transportation system connecting Los Angeles to the state's coastal cities.

35:07But in recent years, a stretch of PCH in Malibu has seen an increase of accidents and fatalities, leaving residents concerned. Sina and Stephanie Elam reports from Malibu, where residents are hoping to create a new kind of highway. With its stunning rural beauty on the California coast, Malibu is a constant draw. But the Los Angeles wildfires also devastated the enclave, destroying hundreds of homes and businesses along its scenic Pacific Coast Highway. We're going to be inundated with tourists. Malibu resident Michelle Shane, a film producer known for Catch Me If You Can, expects with the World Cup, Super Bowl and Olympics all coming to L.A., scores of tourists will pack Malibu as it rebuilds along the compact PCH.

35:55There's no space to move. It becomes a situation that's untenable. Shane is among those looking to the ocean for a solution in the form of a blue highway, Ferries that can run visitors and locals alike in and out of Malibu, easing the strain on the community, reachable mostly by a single road. And we look out in the ocean, and there's no one on the ocean. Why aren't we using the Blue Highway? It's an idea that's getting some traction, with a ferry service expected to start later this year. Joined by a pod of dolphins, we set sail with Harbor Breeze Cruises. We should be spending more time on the ocean and less time in our cars.

36:35A group called Peer to Peer is organizing the service between Santa Monica and Malibu. We've got 700 homes to build on that highway. It cuts us off not only from tourism, but affects our residents. That is a stretch of coastline that people love to drive in their convertible. Don't you think you'd rather take this ride? I mean, I sit bumper to bumper in that congestion. I've done it for 20 years. You'd much rather be on this side of it. The hope is that the ferries would also be able to jump into action in case of another catastrophic emergency like the L.A. firestorm. So many of these people that live up in these hills can only get out by getting to the PCH, and that is what makes it so dangerous.

37:19During the raging Palisades fire, dozens of cars were abandoned on the roads as residents were forced to flee on foot. Boat operators say they could have helped. Get there to the pier, get tied up along the pier, and then get the people safely during an emergency. It's incredibly doable. On 9-11, I evacuated from Manhattan on a ferry. That's how I was able to get away because everything was shut down. It's a must. We are going to have an earthquake someday as well. We can't leave that out. The whole world's going to have their eyes on us. Michelle Shane has another reason he wants a safer Pacific Coast Highway.

37:55His daughter, Emily, is among 61 people killed on the high-speed, razor-thin PCH since 2010. He welcomes visitors. He just wants everyone to leave this paradise alive. If somebody doesn't do something, the time it takes to do stuff will be forever, and the time it takes to kill someone will be instant.

38:24now peer-to-peer says they could have this service up and running in 45 days after they take care of some minor adjustments at the santa monica pier i'm standing in front of the malibu pier so this is where the folks here would hop on the boats and get on down south and get to the airport get to where they need to go but the whole plan is to have the system go wider to other cities here in southern california in time for the 2028 olympics but phil i can promise you sitting on the PCH, which is right over there, you were never going to have a host of dolphins to lead the way for you, like we did on the boat.

38:56You know, Elam, it was a great piece. No question about that. My sympathy for your traffic, my sympathy for your traffic, given where you're standing right now, is waning a little bit. It's going to take a long time for me to get home. It's really going to take a long time. Okay. Stephanie, Elam, I appreciate you, my friend. Thanks so much. Well, the breaking news today. In the Epstein scandal, his longtime associate, Ghislaine Maxwell, was moved from a federal prison in Florida to a lower security facility in Texas. Why? Well, we're asking the same. What we're hearing next.

39:38Welcome to The Lead. I'm Phil Mattingly. In for Jake Tapper. This hour, major questions about Ghislaine Maxwell, the longtime associate of Jeffrey Epstein, who's serving a 20-year sentence for sex trafficking. So why was she moved from a prison in Florida to another in Texas? What CNN is learning about that transfer? Plus, President Trump announcing a slew of new terrorists. Remains of every country in the world, how some of those countries are responding to the sweeping changes. Also, President Trump deploying two nuclear submarines after what he calls provocative statements by Russia's former leader, Dmitry Medvedev.

40:12And mystery buyer revealed. Hear from a person who spent$10 million at an auction for that original Birkin bag. It was not me. You might be surprised at who it is, though, and the reasoning.

40:28The lead tonight, the person convicted of sex trafficking underage girls for Jeffrey Epstein. Ghislaine Maxwell has been transferred to a lower security prison in Texas. The family of Virginia Dufresne, a victim of Maxwell and Epstein's sex trafficking, says the move is a, quote, horror and outrage and sounds like a cover up. We start things off with CNN's Caitlin Collins, who broke the news of the transfer. Caitlin, the president just weighed in on this. What did he say? Yeah, the president sidestepped a question on this just now as he was leaving the White House about why Ghislaine Maxwell has been moved and if the president had knowledge about this as this was going to happen.

41:02Obviously, it was rather unexpected. We found out today that she had been moved. Of course, she had been held in a federal correction facility in Tallahassee, Florida. That is where she was when she went and spoke with the deputy attorney general, Todd Blanche. She left and went over to the federal courthouse for those two days of about 10 hours of conversation with him. And then she returned to this facility until today. We learned that she was transferred from that federal facility in Florida to a minimum security prison camp style place basically in Texas. And so this has raised a lot of questions about the timing of why this happened.

41:34And, of course, the decision making behind this and whether or not it was tied to those conversations that she had with the deputy attorney general Todd Blanche. We reached out to her legal team. They did not comment on why she was moved. Obviously, this has also been a moment where she has been under high scrutiny and very much in the press, obviously, over the last few weeks. And, Phil, I can tell you, as we're still trying to ascertain more details about why exactly she was moved and what this means for Ghislaine Maxwell's future, several members of one of the Epstein accusers, Virginia Jufri, and other accusers themselves are furious about this move.

42:08And they put out a very lengthy statement condemning it earlier. And I just want to read in part because they believe that basically she's getting preferential treatment is what they say in the statement. And they say this is the justice system failing victims right before our eyes. They say the American public should be enraged by the preferential treatment given to a pedophile and a criminally charged child sex offender. And so just in that lengthy statement, you can see how angry these families are and what they are reading into this move. Caitlin, before this all happened, you spoke to members of Virginia DeFreeze's family last night.

42:41What stood out to you in the conversation? It was a really raw and personal and emotional conversation. And one thing that I had talked to him about was, you know, what made them want to speak out now? And essentially, it was a lot of what's been happening with the president invoking Virginia's name the other day when he was asked about her on Air Force One and acknowledged that, yes, she used to work at Mar-a-Lago when he said that she had been stolen from Mar-a-Lago, and also just because their sister, who died by suicide earlier this year, was such an advocate for survivors later in her life, and they felt the need to continue speaking out for survivors who are watching what's happening and how they feel being unfairly treated.

43:19I just want you to listen to what one of her brothers had to say to me. Skye, when you hear the word stolen used to describe what happened to your sister when she was recruited away and sex trafficked, I wonder what goes through your mind.

43:44She wasn't stolen. she was preyed upon at his property, at President Trump's property. And I think it's very important that we don't treat it like stolen seems very impersonal. It feels very much like an object. And these survivors are not objects. Women are not objects. And Phil, I think the biggest thing that they drove home in that conversation, her two brothers and their wives, was there are people at the heart of this. You know, we talk about whether she's getting immunity or where she's being held and, you know, what the president knew or whether he had suspicions. They wanted to remind everyone that there are survivors at the heart of this, a lot of them who are still alive, who are watching all of this play out, and just to remember, you know, what they had to endure, what their sister had to endure.

44:36And they also called for the release of all the documents related to Jeffrey Epstein because they said that they believe there should be transparency and all that information should be out there. It was a very powerful interview. Kaitlin Collins, thank you as always. Kaitlin has much more tonight on her show, The Source with Kaitlin Collins. Look for that at 9 o 'clock Eastern here on CNN. Well, trial lawyer Andrea Lewis joins us now from West Palm Beach, Florida. She has vast experience prosecuting sexual abuse crimes and her firm has brought cases on behalf of Epstein's victims. Andrea, just to start, what do you make of this transfer, the news that Kaitlin broke here to a minimum security prison camp in Texas.

45:12What's it supposed to accomplish? Well, that's anyone's guess. And I think you just hit the nail on the head, Phil. The fact that we are questioning this, the fact that the public doesn't know what the purpose of the transfer was for, the fact that the victims' families aren't clear about what the purpose of this transfer was, that all goes back to the root of the problem since day one in this whole saga. which is a complete lack of transparency. And it is that lack of transparency that has been the problem, and it will continue to be the problem. What we need to do here is just we know something very bad happened.

45:53Bring it to light. Let's hold the bad actors accountable, and let's just be honest with the general public. To that point, I want to play, Caitlin mentioned her interview last night with Virginia Jeffries' family. I want to play some sound from that. Take a listen. Do you think your sister would have wanted this information out there? I think one of the last months that she was with us, we had a conversation about that. And still to the day that we lost her, she was still fighting for those documents to be released. They are sitting in our court system right now. She wanted the world to know what they've done to her and so many other survivors.

46:40And she had been fighting that to her very last day. Andrea, your points about transparency certainly understood, I think, embraced by a lot of people. You've worked with sexual abuse survivors. Do you think that most victims would also rather have all that information out there right now? Absolutely. And so here's the thing, and this is well documented. When sexual abuse survivors, when their trauma is not acknowledged, when their trauma is in any way covered up or not acknowledged as being as significant that it is, that actually re-traumatizes them. So the fact that everybody has brushed this under the rug intentionally at their expense and in some circumstances actually said, you're lying.

47:27We don't believe you. We're not going to prosecute on your behalf. That in and of itself is traumatizing. And so for a moment, right, the world knew what all of the wrong that Jeffrey Epstein and his cohorts had done for so long. and everything looked like we were finally going to get some sunshine on this darkness. And then now circumstances like this come around and it doesn't seem like much has changed at all. That's a really great point. The House Oversight Committee subpoenaed Maxwell to sit for a deposition, which Maxwell's attorney said was a non-starter if they don't get immunity. Now, the committee rejected that request today, but did agree to delay the deposition until after the Supreme Court weighs in on her pending appeal.

48:10What do you make of kind of the back and forth, this new development here? Well, you know, what are they hoping to gain out of this? And why would anyone be negotiating with her after what we know that she's done? One of the other things that she asked for, Phil, which is just unheard of, is a list of the questions that she's going to be asked ahead of time. Why would anyone ever afford a convicted felon that in these circumstances, it's completely absurd. What they should be doing is going and getting these records, releasing the records that have been kept quiet or kept, you know, behind lock and seal for so long.

48:54And so everybody knows what happened, not only for the victims, but also to hold the other perpetrators accountable. Just real quick before I let you go, do you have hope that that will actually happen? Do you believe that's a possibility here? You know, there's been so many promises made by various politicians. And so we've seen the outcry from everyone across the country that really wants that to happen. So for a moment, it seemed like there was a possibility. And I think most people would agree that that has quickly slipped away. And I think the likelihood is very slim. Yeah, still a lot more questions and answers.

49:34Andrea Louis, thanks so much for your time. Appreciate it. Thank you for having me. Well, we're going around the world next for the reaction pouring into President Trump's brand new round of tariff rates set to go into effect in less than one week. Plus, a Republican congressman pressed by his constituents about the humanitarian crisis playing out in Gaza. Join me with his reaction after last night's heated town hall. Stay with us.

50:00Breaking news in the money lead. Today, President Trump fired the woman who oversees the jobs reports. Dr. Erica McIntyre, nominated by President Biden, overwhelmingly confirmed by the U.S. Senate last year. More on that in a moment. But first, the massive week for the American economy, all leading up to today's deadline for Trump to set his new tariff rates for countries across the globe. The blanket 10 % rate holding steady for countries the U.S. has a trade surplus with. That number popped up to 15 % for countries with a trade deficit with the U.S. That's about 40 countries, unless you had your rates set because more than a dozen with even higher tariff rates based on the existing trade frameworks or letters President Trump sent to their leaders.

50:44A little confusing, but let's go around the globe and get some international reaction to the tariff news. We start with China, where the tariff pause is set to expire on August 12th. CNN's Mark Stewart is there. Mark, what's the latest? And Phil, as the world grapples with these announcements here in Beijing, the fate of a U.S.-China trade truce remains uncertain. It's set to expire on August 12th. Earlier this week in Stockholm, we saw diplomats from both China and the United States. The issues here are many, involving everything from economics to natural resources and technology. there are also issues of ego, as both President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping want to appear strong.

51:30Phil? Mark Stewart, thanks so much. Let's head over to Europe, where the EU narrowly dodged a 30 percent tariff after negotiating a 15 percent deal on most imports last week. CNN's Anna Kubin is in London. Anna? Well, Phil, the news won't be a shock to the European Union. They struck a deal with Trump on Sunday to set a 15 percent tariff on their goods, and that is still in place. But the real surprise in all this is Switzerland. That's not part of the EU, but it now faces a 39 percent levy on its goods. And that's despite what the Swiss government has come out to say recently, in that there was a lot of progress in trade negotiations.

52:09So there's a lot of confusion over there. Phil? Anna Kubin, thanks so much. Mexico is getting a 90-day reprieve from higher tariffs. President Trump announced that on Thursday. CNN's Valeria Leon is in Mexico City. Valeria. Phil, President Claudia Sheinbaum said today that Mexico scored a win by reaching the best possible agreement in the new global commercial order launched by the Trump administration, managing to avoid a 30 percent tariff for 90 days. And while the latest tariff extension has provided some breathing space for continued dialogue, the current focus over this period is on negotiating a longer-term trade deal between the two nations.

52:49So this tariff extension is a window of opportunity, Phil. Valeria Leone, thanks so much. I want to bring in Gene Sperling, the former director of the National Economic Council under the Obama and Clinton administrations, senior advisor in the Biden administration. Ton of experience in government, which is what I want to ask you about the breaking news we got just a couple of hours ago. The jobs report, obviously, this morning raised some flags, I guess just 73 ,000 jobs added last month. The revised numbers, revised down in May and June, about 258 ,000. President Trump reacted this afternoon on Truth Social, posting about the commissioner of labor statistics, quote, we need accurate jobs numbers.

53:26I have directed my team to fire this Biden political appointee immediately and alleging the numbers have been manipulated. You tweeted about this possibility hours before it happened because you posed this scenario back in June in an op-ed you wrote about Trump's criticism of the BLS. How many negative economic releases would Trump swallow before bulldozing career economists and statisticians in the integrity of U.S. data? What's your reaction today? Yeah, I guess what I'd like to say is that regardless of what your politics are, one should really recognize that this firing is both completely baseless and completely harmful, not just right now, but to our economic standing in the world.

54:13Why is it baseless? Yes, it is the case that the Bureau of Labor Statistics, who gives us our job numbers, they get better information with time and they revise them. Now, the president tried to say this person was suspect because there'd been a large revision in November after the election. Well, first of all, when they do what's called a benchmark revision, where they kind of relook what the baseline they're adjusting numbers from, it's often somewhat large. But this turned out to be 550 ,000 eventually. That was actually smaller than the revision downward that happened under President Obama.

54:58So it wasn't particularly large. And secondly, it got announced in August. If there was some political manipulation going on, which there wasn't, it would have been to hurt Vice President Harris in her election. So the accusation is completely baseless, both on the facts and the lack of any evidence that these dedicated career objectives, detitians would ever do something like this. But then, I'm like, why is it so harmful? Because there's something that President Trump should like. It's called American exceptionalism. And it is the belief that the United States is the place you can trust economically, that our dollar is the reserve currency, that our bonds are the safe haven in the storm, that our commitment to the rule of law and the integrity of our institutions mean you can trust investing long term in the United States.

55:56When you start having a president who starts threatening companies, private law firms, university, then starts impugning and compromising the independence of the Federal Reserve. And then more than anything in the history of our country, it looks like they're politicizing the numbers that Americans but investors all over the world rely on. That's not just a harm for the next few months. That is putting at doubt the integrity of the United States, the exceptionalism that started with Alexander Hamilton paying all of our war debts and showing that the word of the U.S. meant was golden. It meant everything.

56:41When that's threatened, it could hurt for generations. And I should note that you guys had a Trump appointee in that role for the first two and a half years of the Biden administration. Didn't really hear anything. That is absolutely right. Real quick before I let you go, which we could probably spend about three hours talking about this next subject. But in terms of the tariff announcements today, it's real. Right. I think there's a lot of perception that Trump would walk it back or didn't mean it or he was going to kind of vacillate about where it landed. It landed now. What do you see happening in the next month or two?

57:10Yeah, I mean, you have to say that President Trump has been somewhat successful in his goal of using kind of bilateral threats to get higher tariffs than anybody imagined. The question really now is, is that a win for American families? And I don't think it is. And I don't think most economists. And it's not just the weaker job numbers today. It is that we know that people have been buying to get ahead of the tariffs, but eventually the tariffs are going to raise prices. We're already seeing that and not in obscure things. We're seeing Procter & Gamble, Black & Decker, Walmart, Nike, a Ford Motor Company.

57:57They're all talking about raising prices. We're seeing the president put a 50 percent tariff on Brazil where we get coffee and beef from. And guess what, folks? We're not going to be producing our own coffee. I think those things are going to hurt at the grocery store. They're going to hurt prices. And oddly enough, the president is going to be moving the country towards higher prices, maybe the thing that helped elect him in the first place. So I think it's puzzling, but the test is going to be in what we see happen with prices and with higher prices and lower growth going forward. And I have to say, I think most people are maybe not super dark, but do not see our country's economy moving in the right direction now.

58:44Gene, I want to ask you before I let you go, the president just posting about Jerome Powell on Truth Social saying, quote, too late, Powell should resign, just like Adriana Kugler, a Biden appointee, resigned. She knew he was doing the wrong thing on interest rates. He should resign also. I'm careful on this kind of stuff because there's a reason he hasn't taken the action with Jerome Powell that he did today, say, with the BLS commissioner. When he can, he does. His team has been very clear to him, both on legal grounds, this is tenuous at best if he pursued this without cause. It's not even continuous, it's not a thing.

59:21And on market grounds, it would be potentially catastrophic. When he posts something like this, particularly after the action he took at BLS Today, what do you think about? Well, again, I think it is a great threat to our integrity. And let me put it in as simple terms I can. The United States was that guy that if you lent money to or invested in, they were always honest. They were always straightforward. They were independent in monetary policy, nonpolitical in the numbers that you put out. When you threaten that, you become more risky and people are going to be less likely to invest or lend.

1:00:02And that means higher interest rates, higher mortgage rates, higher car loan rates, all the things that the president doesn't want to have. I mean, look, the fact is this tariff policy has moved growth down and inflation up. And if you're the Fed, you have a dual mandate, full employment and low inflation. So when you both move, when you move in what they call a stagflationary direction, when prices go up and growth goes down, then it puts the Fed in a difficult place. And so this is really a self-inflicted wound. Jerome Powell might be the most straight down the middle, moderate Republican there is.

1:00:43And I think it's just, you know, very unfortunate that he's taking this approach instead of just arguing the benefits of his economic policies. Gene Sperling, despite your Michigan fandom as an Ohio State alum, I do miss our battles back and forth about that. I always appreciate your time, my friend. What's happened the last four years in the Michigan-Ohio State game? Ohio State won a national title. Ohio State won a national title. Gene Sperling, thanks so much, my friend. Talk soon. All right, up next, Trump's dramatic power move today, deploying two nuclear submarines to be strategically positioned near Russia over statements the president deemed provocative by Russia's former president.

1:01:24That's ahead.

1:01:30In our world lead, President Trump playing some battleship this Friday, not really in the fun way. Today, he ordered two nuclear submarines to reposition near Russia in response to what he said were aggressive remarks by Dmitry Medvedev, the country's former president, its current deputy chairman of its Security Council. This afternoon, Trump said the sub move is just to be, quote, totally prepared. Well, also in our world need today, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee got a rather sanitized tour of an aid site in Gaza run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

1:02:01It's a controversial group backed by the U.S. and Israel. Palestinians there today say the Israeli military shot at them while waiting for food. A nearby hospital says three were killed and several injured, while Israel's military says it fired warning shots and wasn't aware of any casualties. As President Trump tells Axios he's working on a plan to, quote, get people fed, Americans, they want answers on the humanitarian crisis. One Wisconsin Republican heard directly from his constituents were frustrated last night. Two million people in jobs are starving. Will you ever say something?

1:02:41I'm in the view that Israel has a right to defend itself, and the easy and simplest way to end this horrific war is for Hamas to surrender and release their hostages. I appreciate everybody coming out tonight. Doesn't mean that everyone fully agreed with me. Wisconsin Republican Congressman Brian Stile joins me now. And Congressman, as I told you, I appreciate the lawmakers that actually do town halls. I understand that people who make a lot of noise aren't necessarily representative of everybody who was there. But the question I have right now is the president makes clear he is concerned about this issue as well.

1:03:17The humanitarian issue on the ground is this group, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, has raised some questions. Some of your colleagues on the Democratic side have raised questions about that as well. Do you have a sense of what exactly they're doing and whether or not there is any sign that it's been effective up to this point? Well, I think it's positive that our envoy and Ambassador Huckabee were in Israel on a fact-finding mission. I don't think it's easy for anyone to look at the images coming out of Gaza as it relates to children and not recognize that something needs to change. As I said last night in the town hall, there's an easy solution to this, of course, and that is for Hamas to surrender and for them to release the hostages.

1:03:57While that is not yet satisfied, making sure that we're in a fact-finding mission, to provide relief, in particular to the children of Gaza, I think is absolutely appropriate. I commend the president for taking this action. What's your sense when you go back home? You were facing questions and frustration over the legislative cornerstone of the Trump agenda that you guys enacted, including this. Take a listen. I was always under the impression that Congress was responsible for issuing a term.

1:04:37I really feel that this is a terrible tax that's going to be placed upon the citizens of the United States. This really, at its core, needs to be an opportunity to make sure that other countries are treating the United States fairly. The United States...

1:04:56That, obviously, about the president's terror proposal, which I did want to ask you about, because trade is a very significant issue in your home state. The dairy issues with Canada in and of itself, I feel like I've probably spent about six years of my life covering when I used to cover Capitol Hill. What is your sense of the ag community, of your constituents at the state writ large, with the trade war as it stands right now? Our agriculture community in particular, as we come up on the harvest this fall, wants to know that we can export our goods around the globe. And for a long time, a lot of countries have not traded fairly with the United States.

1:05:32The president recognizes that. I would like to see us with our ultimate goal is striking these deals with our allies, opening up markets across the globe so our farmers in Wisconsin can export corn and soybean and other products from around the country across the globe. Then working with our allies and addressing the real culprit on the trade front, which is China. And so the biggest challenge that we face is the abuses of trade agreements from China. And that's occurred over multiple administrations. The sooner we strike these deals with our allies, and again, I'd like to see us continue to work to lower the barriers with our allies so that we can work to address the true culprit in the room, which is China.

1:06:10I think there's real support amongst American people in recognizing that China has abused U.S. trade to China's benefit. And it's time that we stand up and are working on behalf of American workers and American farmers. Yeah, the market access key component with the president's negotiating, definitely something constituents, I have no doubt in your district, care deeply about. We'll see how that continues to play out. One last one before I let you go, just because it started happening right before the show. Do you think the jobs data and the Bureau of Labor Statistics is rigged and political? The president has the right to make sure that he is a man or a woman in that position that he has full faith and confidence in.

1:06:48The data collection process across the board has gotten very difficult, in particular in the labor side, as more and more people enter the gig economy. And so making sure that we have the right team in place to get the data out to the American people is essential. The president has the right to choose a man or woman with Senate confirmation that he has full faith and confidence in. and making sure that we get this data right going forward is going to be essential. You know, the way you answered that is 100 percent accurate and totally fair. It is very different than saying the entire thing is rigged and political, which is what the president said today.

1:07:23Congressman Brian Stile, I really appreciate your time on Friday. Thanks so much. Thank you. Well, let's get a reaction to what we just heard from our political experts. Brian, I want to start with where we ended, which is. like that's a way to do this but like come on like that's what the congressman just raised is accurate there are issues with collection right now because of technology because of the way markets have worked because of how things have changed over time um that is very different than this is rigged and i hate this and oh by the way the last four months i loved it when they were positive yeah listen i listen i think what he sees is is the first thing is it's it's sheer NEGLIGENCE THAT A BIDEN PERSON HAS BEEN ALLOWED TO STAY ON THIS LONG.

1:08:05A TRUMP PERSON WAS IN BIDEN FOR TWO AND A HALF YEARS. SURE, BUT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THIS MOMENT NOW AND WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THINGS THAT MATTER. THE ADMINISTRATION, THEIR TEAM KNOWS WELL THAT THE ECONOMIC DATA IS GOING TO BE SCRUTINIZED. SO IF YOU'RE GOING TO COME FORWARD AND PROVIDE SOMETHING, YOU GOT TO MAKE SURE IT'S YOUR TEAM DOING IT. BECAUSE THAT GIVES THE PRESIDENT CONFIDENCE IN THE NUMBERS THAT ARE THERE. CLEARLY AT THIS PARTICULAR JUNCTURE, HE DOESN'T FEEL HE HAS CONFIDENCE IN A BIDEN ADMINISTRATION PERSON because this is very much a partisan town. We've learned that over the years. We've learned that the weaponization of the Justice Department, I'm not saying there's weaponization in data, but I'm always going to be suspicious when a political partisan at the top of that is the opposite party of this administration.

1:08:39That's just the reality of the game. Look, I disagree wholeheartedly with that. I don't like the number on my scales at home, but I ain't going to throw it out the window. Let me be clear about this, that this particular person has had good numbers and bad numbers for lots of folks. And I don't think it's the one thing. And I think they have the right to change folks out when they want to change folks out. But I think it's another thing in a line of things as we lead into the midterms of folks saying, look, this is kind of BS. I don't agree with the way that this is being handled. It may or may not hurt because I will agree that this is very Donald Trump being Donald Trump.

1:09:07And folks like Brian, my friend here, would tell me that's what they voted for. We will see in the midterms. Yeah. I mean, on that, it'll be interesting. I don't think you're going to be cutting ads on BLS commissioners. Please do. On tariffs, and I've written a lot about the administration's perspective, a lot of the people who made a lot of calls that got it wrong, and I think the administration's economic advisors have felt very validated, maybe until the jobs report today, politically. How long do you think that's durable? I think we all know, we have an experienced political operative here, the voters are going to make the decision on the economy in July of next year.

1:09:41They're not going to make the decision right now. So you have a window, but you have to make sure that the trend's moving in your right direction. So right now, some of the data before today looked very good, and they were bullish about it. They have to analyze what the data really means that came out today. They have to determine whether it's accurate or inaccurate data. We all have, I guess some people now have their suspicions. But I think to make the decision that what's happening today in the next three months is going to matter in July, I don't think it is. I mean, it's a completely different economic world, what it looks like in July.

1:10:09And that's when voters make their choices of, is this president working for me, and is the economy working for me? It's not going to be today. It's going to be July of next year. A year ago, I would sit at this panel with whoever's here and say, Joe Biden's economy is doing great. Stock market is doing great. We're creating jobs. Inflation is coming down. And Brian and other folks would say, yeah, but the real people, I think, feeling none of this. To Brian's point is that as we get closer to the election, what you're feeling every day, no matter what the stock market is doing, no matter what the GDP is doing, it's what real people are feeling at home as they get closer to next summer.

1:10:41But Brian's right about that will really determine where we're at. But it's the things that lead up to that every day when you're buying gasoline and groceries. Is the price up or is the price down? Last question. Which leads to your trade question. We have like 15 seconds. What do you think is going to be in July? You think it's going to be beneficial to Democrats or not? I think so. I'm worried. About? For Republicans. It's just it's always a bad history. It's history. It's where history is. But if you look, is a year enough? Is a year going to be long enough for Trump's policies to have the impact?

1:11:07If you look at the first term, a year wasn't enough. You sort of need that third year into it. And we're just going to miss the window. Real quick. Yeah, no, no. He's got it. It's a big thing coming up. We'll see. Yeah, they made a real gamble and a real bet. They believe it. We'll see how it plays out. Thanks to you both. Really appreciate it. Well, coming up in our regular series, Business Leaders, we meet a small business in Wisconsin trying to source its botanical products here in the U.S., but it's not as natural as it sounds. We'll explain. Coming up.

1:11:37Time now for our Business Leader series, where we talk to small business owners here on The Lead about President Trump's tariffs. Bear Botanics is a skincare company based in Madison, Wisconsin. Launched five years ago, and they focus on all natural ingredients and avoiding synthetic fragrances in their products. Founder and owner Jason Juneau is joining me now. Jason, really appreciate your time. Just to start, can you break down kind of how you source your products and how tariffs have affected the business so far? Yes, of course. I'm happy to be here. Thanks for having me. I would say there's primarily two sides of the business that we can break down here.

1:12:13One is the primary part of the business, the manufacturing side, where we make about 85 percent of our products right here in Madison, Wisconsin, primarily by hand. And we have tried as much as possible over the years, I would say, even going so far to fortify our domestic supply chain and get as much as we possibly can from the United States. We use salt from Morton. We use silicon jars made right here in the U.S. We use Green Bay packaging for our boxes. And so tariffs haven't really affected us in terms of our raw materials and our ingredients. Sure, in this globalized economy, we're using skincare ingredients from all around the world, like our coconut oil is from Indonesia, our jojoba oil is from Argentina.

1:12:56It's really a small impact, and for the most part, business as usual. On the other side of the business, we have 15 % of our revenue is from what I call our accessories. These are body brushes, body gloves, things that complement our main products that we make here in Madison, Wisconsin really well. And we're importing those from China. And of course, tariffs are having a huge impact on those. When you talk about the impact, do you pass that through to consumers? In your process, as you're trying to plan out kind of each quarter, your forecast ahead, where do you see those increased costs coming out of?

1:13:34Yeah, I mean, margins are slim. We're a big time seller on Amazon and there's only so much margin to go around when we're shipping products across the country. And I'm very fortunate to say we have not had to raise prices yet for those accessories that we're importing. But, I mean, the tariffs are changing every day. And I can't say what the next couple of months or the next couple of years will hold. As a business owner, it's fascinating to hear about kind of your focus on trying to shore up the domestic supply chain, your ability to do so on one side of your business, the prominent side of your business.

1:14:05What's your message to the Trump administration about tariffs in this moment? Yeah, if I ever could deliver a message directly to the administration, I would say that I'm doing my best as a small business owner. I'm dealing with the cards that I'm dealt with, and the cards are constantly changing at the moment. And if there's anything I could ask, it's to carve these tariffs into stone. Give me the confidence as a small business owner to react and plan on how to run my business. And it just doesn't seem like this administration currently is a planning one. And they are changing things up as they go, and we're reacting the best that we can.

1:14:45But to grow the business further and to really have confidence in what we're doing, I ask that the tariffs are what they are, and we keep them that way. You can shop for Bear Botanics products on their website. Obviously, Jason also mentioned Amazon as well. Jason Juno, I really appreciate your time. Thanks so much for doing this. Thanks, Bill. Appreciate it. Well, the president says the dream ballroom he wants built at the White House will have some fancy features, but who's going to pick up the tab? We'll have details next.

1:15:21The White House famously has the Lincoln bedroom, the Truman balcony, and soon, well, it's going to have the Trump ballroom. At least that's what it looks like. CNN's Brian Todd has a look at the president's plans for big changes at the executive mansion. President Trump has long been fixated on leaving his own personal imprint on the White House grounds. His latest project will cost about$200 million, he says. They've wanted a ballroom at the White House for more than 150 years. Construction begins next month on a grand ballroom at the White House, which will resemble the ornate Donald J. Trump ballroom at Mar-a-Lago.

1:15:56There will be gold and crystal chandeliers, according to the renderings, gilded Corinthian columns, a coffered ceiling with gold inlays, gold floor lamps, and a checkered marble floor. Three walls of arched windows will look out over the White House South Lawn. It's certainly a departure from the historic elements of the rest of the state floor of the White House. The president and his team characterize this as a necessary addition to the White House, which has often hosted major events in a temporary tent that Trump calls a disaster, especially when it rains. People are schlopping down to the tent.

1:16:29It's not a pretty sight. The women with their lovely evening gowns, all of their hair all done and they're a mess by the time they get in. This is certainly not the first ambitious addition or renovation to the White House. In 1902, Theodore Roosevelt undertook an extensive remodeling, which relocated the president's offices to the West Wing. In the late 1940s, Harry Truman basically had to gut the entire infrastructure of the White House. What Truman did was he oversaw the restoration of a White House that was falling apart. It was so weak that one of the legs of Margaret Truman's piano broke through the floor in the residence of the White House.

1:17:10First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy brought in historic furniture and fine art. Jackie Kennedy wanted the White House to be of museum quality when people came to visit. She wanted them to see the finest American art, furniture, but also to capture the history of the White House. President Trump says the$200 million project will be funded by him and other private donors. Trump's already replacing the White House rose garden with a patio, but still keeping the roses. He also added a flagpole and a massive flag, and he's added his taste for gold to the Oval Office. Here's a comparison from just after last year's election to more recently.

1:17:45Most usually change out the carpet and the draperies and some art, But he definitely changed out more than is, I think, standard for presidents, and it reveals his preferences. White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt says the ballroom project is expected to be completed long before the end of President Trump's term. Trump himself offered to build a new White House ballroom when Barack Obama was president, and Trump says it would have been about half the cost of the current project, but Trump says he never heard back from Obama's team on the idea. Phil? Brian, real quick before I let you go.

1:18:17Is this it? Do we think there's going to be more projects in the years ahead? Well, you know, you never say this is it when Donald Trump is involved. He could have more ambitious projects for the White House. Some of these kind of took people by surprise. The ballroom didn't necessarily come as a surprise, but the flagpoles kind of did. And some of the other features, I think people are also kind of surprised at what he's done with the Rose Garden. So, hey, never say never in the years he's got left here. It's going to be very interesting to see how different this place looks after he leaves. That is the best possible answer.

1:18:48CNN's Brian Todd, thanks so much, my friend. Well, up next, Mystery Revealed, meet the man who spent$10 million at an auction for that original Birkin handbag. And what he told CNN about why he bought it.

1:19:06We now know the mysterious buyer who paid$10 million for Jane Birkin's original Hermes handbag. Turns out the buyer was nowhere near Paris for last month's auction. Turns out it also wasn't Jake Tapper. It was Shinsuke Sakamoto, a businessman and collector based in Tokyo. Here's the video of him placing the winning bid. Six million. At six million euros. Are there many enemies? It's a one-on-one match. They gave up. Here it comes. You are ready, it's good. 7 million euros. Wow, amazing. For real?

1:19:52Sakamoto also told CNN why he placed the bid. I think it's a truly artistic piece. We would like to exhibit this at museums and venues to convey this value and background to the next generation and to inspire people. Sakamoto is a former professional soccer player in Japan. He opened his first luxury resale store in Osaka in 2004. Well, coming up on Sunday on State of the Union, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and Democratic Governor Jared Polis of Colorado. That's Sunday morning at 9 Eastern and again, of course, at noon here on CNN. Aaron Bernat out front starts now. Have a good weekend.

1:20:36Go inside the sports moments that brought us together and made history. From the underdogs to the rivalries and the miracles. It sends chills down your spine. It's what sport was all about. The new CNN original series, Decades in Sports. Now streaming on the CNN app.