'This Week' Transcript 6-8-25: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy & Speaker of the House Rep. Mike Johnson

A rush transcript of "This Week with George Stephanopoulos" airing on Sunday, June 8, 2025 on ABC News is below. This copy may not be in its final form, may be updated and may contain minor transcription errors. For previous show transcripts, visit the "This Week" transcript archive.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: THIS WEEK WITH GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS starts right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARTHA RADDATZ, ABC "THIS WEEK" CO-ANCHOR: Breaking overnight. After a weekend of clashes over immigration raids in L.A., President Trump by-passes California’s governor and sends in National Guard troops. We'll have the very latest.

Public breakup. After Elon Musk lashes out at President Trump’s signature spending bill, the escalating feud exploding into a string of personal attacks and threats.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Elon and I had a great relationship. I don't know if we will anymore.

RADDATZ: This morning, Rachel Scott with new reporting on the fallout, and Jonathan Karl's exclusive interview with House Speaker Mike Johnson.

REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA): I was surprised by Elon's sudden opposition. And, look, I hope they reconcile.

RADDATZ: And --

TRUMP: You have two kids, they fight, fight, fight. Sometimes you let them fight for a little while.

RADDATZ: This morning, we get exclusive reaction to President Trump's assessment of the war from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and astonishing new video of Ukraine's drone attacks on Russian warplanes.

They knew what parts of that airplane to hit --

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE: Yes.

RADDATZ: Because you have airplanes here in museums?

ZELENSKYY: Yes. Yes. They knew exactly where to hit.

RADDATZ: We'll take you inside one of those Ukrainian drone factories as Russia intensifies its attacks.

ZELENSKYY: They don't want to stop the war. This is the problem.

RADDATZ: We're one-on-one with President Zelenskyy. Another THIS WEEK exclusive.

ANNOUNCER: From ABC News, this is a special edition of THIS WEEK, reporting live from Ukraine, Martha Raddatz.

RADDATZ: Good morning and welcome to THIS WEEK.

We are coming to you from Ukraine’s capital of Kyiv today, just days after the Ukrainians pulled off that unprecedented drone attack on Russia’s fleet of bombers. This morning, we have remarkable new video, a drone's eye view from that attack, and we'll have new details about that operation in our exclusive conversation with Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy.

But while the battle between Russia and Ukraine rages on here, in the U.S. at this hour, President Trump has ordered 2,000 National Guard troops to the streets of Los Angeles after major clashes over immigration raids. President Trump taking the extraordinary step of bypassing California’s governor and calling up the guard, the first time a president has bypassed a state governor since 1965.

Trevor Ault is in Los Angeles with the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TREVOR AULT, ABC NEWS NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Overnight, as clashes around Los Angeles intensify, President Trump stepping in, ordering 2,000 National Guardsmen to southern California with angry crowds protesting his administration's aggressive deportation efforts. Those National Guard troops arriving in Los Angeles County this morning. It follows three consecutive days of demonstrations after coordinated ICE operations across the city sparking outrage and devolving into disarray.

Dramatic images capturing the escalating chaos of protests centered around the city of Paramount. Agents swarming this Home Depot there. Some protesters setting fires, breaking glass and vandalizing buildings. Police in riot gear attempting to disperse crowds, pelting them with tear gas, flashbangs and rubber bullets.

Governor Gavin Newsom slamming Trump’s decision to deploy the National Guard, which Newsom did not request, warning the move is “Purposefully inflammatory and will only escalate tensions.” The White House defending the president's action, saying it will address the lawlessness that has been allowed to fester.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to continue doing our job. We're -- we’re going to push back on these people.

AULT (voice over): Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, even threatening to send in active-duty military, posting online, “if violence continues, active duty Marines at Camp Pendleton will also be mobilized. They are on high alert.”

In a phone call with our Los Angeles station KABC, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass refuting the notion that the city needs the National Guard's assistance.

KAREN BASS, LOS ANGELES MAYOR: I do not believe that that is called for because I am confident that LAPD and other law enforcement agencies, like the sheriff, can handle things in Los Angeles.

AULT (voice over): Typically, the federal government sends in the National Guard only at the governor’s request. But Trump is bypassing Newsom, marking the first time a president has bypassed a state governor since the civil rights movement. Trump citing a specific provision of the U.S. Code on Armed Services that allows for the federal government to deploy the National Guard if “there is a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the government of the United States.”

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AULT (on camera): And overnight, President Trump thanked the National Guard for a job well done. But we've actually seen them just arrive here this morning, getting set up with riot gear, all of these armored vehicles. So far, a lot of the response has been local law enforcement with some federal officers, but they are clearly gearing up for what could be another intense day of clashes.

Martha.

MARTHA RADDATZ, ABC "THIS WEEK" CO-ANCHOR: Trevor Ault in Los Angeles.

President Trump's move is just the latest after a momentous week in Washington with the explosive falling out between President Trump and Elon Musk dominating the headlines.

For more on that rapidly changing drama, let's go to my THIS WEEK co-anchor, Jonathan Karl, in Washington.

Good morning, Jon.

JONATHAN KARL, ABC CO-ANCHOR: Good morning, Martha.

We have seen many public breakups between Donald Trump and the men and women who he once considered his closest advisers and supporters. But the scene that played out in front of cameras this week and on social media was unlike any we had ever seen. It was a remarkable break between two of the most powerful men in the world. Their alliance now in tatters after Elon Musk publicly bashed President Trump's top legislative priority and then launched a flurry of personal attacks.

When I asked President Trump about Musk's harsh words on Friday, he brushed them off, asking me, you mean the man who has lost his mind? Musk seems to be walking back some of his most savage attacks on Trump, deleting posts that endorsed Trump's impeachment and that accused him, without providing any evidence, of being in the Jeffrey Epstein files. But Trump has made it clear he has no interest in making up with Musk or even talking to him, at least not now.

ABC News senior political correspondent Rachel Scott is traveling with the president this weekend in Bedminster, New Jersey, and has the very latest.

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RACHEL SCOTT, SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): In a matter of hours, the relationship between the world's most powerful man and the world's richest went up in flames.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Elon and I had a great relationship. I don't know if we will anymore.

SCOTT (voice over): A public meltdown of an alliance that helped Donald Trump win the White House.

TRUMP: Come on up here, Elon.

SCOTT (voice over): And defined the first four months of the Trump presidency.

ELON MUSK, TESLA & SPACEX CEO: This is what victory feels like.

SCOTT (voice over): Crumbling in spectacular fashion.

TRUMP: I'm very disappointed in Elon. I've helped Elon a lot.

SCOTT (voice over): The president telling me this weekend he has no plans to talk to Elon Musk.

SCOTT: Do you have any plans to speak with Mr. Musk? This was one of your closest advisers for months.

TRUMP: Yes. No, I don’t have any plans.

No, I don’t -- I'm not even thinking about it.

SCOTT (voice over): The public fight began over the president's signature spending bill. Musk calling it a “disgusting abomination.” But it turned deeply personal when Musk called for the president to be impeached and said he wouldn't have won the election without him.

Trump said Musk was wearing thin, and threatened to cancel his estimated $20 billion in government contracts.

And then Musk posting this explosive accusation on X, linking Trump to convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, without any evidence. “Time to drop the really big bomb,” Musk wrote. “Donald Trump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT!”

Top officials were caught off guard. FBI Director Kash Patel was in the middle of an interview with podcaster Joe Rogan.

JOE ROGAN, HOST, “THE JOE ROGAN EXPERIENCE”: Jesus Christ, that’s a crazy thing to say. How does he know? Does he know that Donald Trump is in the Epstein files? Does he have access to the Epstein files?

KASH PATEL, FBI DIRECTOR: I'm just -- I don't know how he would. But I'm just staying out of the Trump-Elon thing. I know my lane, and that ain’t it.

SCOTT (voice over): Behind closed doors, the president tried to make sense of it all. According to sources, he was aware Musk was frustrated that tax credits for electric vehicles had been cut from the bill and that his friend’s nomination for a top role at NASA had been pulled. But sources also told ABC News, Trump told allies the outburst happened because of Musk's alleged drug use. And by Friday night, Trump was trying to turn the page.

TRUMP: Honestly, I've been so busy working on China, working on Russia, working on Iran, working on so many things, I'm not thinking about Elon. You know, I just wish him well.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SCOTT (on camera): So, Elon Musk has since deleted many of those social media posts, including the one about Jeffrey Epstein. The president dismissing those claims.

As for that Tesla that the president once bought to support Elon Musk that was sitting on the White House complex, I am told by a senior administration official the president is now either considering selling it or giving it away, Jon.

KARL: And, Rachel, we saw the news overnight that the president has sent 2,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles. This comes as we have seen increasing pressure from the White House on ICE to increase those deportations.

SCOTT: Jon, we are learning that the administration is putting immense pressure on ICE to ramp up their deportation efforts. So much so that sources tell us that during a -- a private meeting between Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller and senior ICE leaders, Miller pushed and encouraged ICE officials to triple the number of daily arrests up to 3,000. This administration moving forward with those sweeping ICE raids, Jon.

KARL: All right. Thank you, Rachel.

And I’m joined now in the studio here by Speaker of the House Mike Johnson.

Welcome to "This Week".

REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: So glad to be with you. Thanks for having me.

KARL: Let me start with the news overnight in Los Angeles. The president sends the National Guard troops in. Gavin Newsom, the governor of California, said that this was purposefully inflammatory and will only escalate tensions, that they're not needed, that they have the situation under control.

Do you have any problem or any concerns about the president sending in the National Guard to a place where local authorities say that they're not needed and could be harmful?

JOHNSON: I have no concern about that at all. I think the president did exactly what he needed to do. These are federal laws. We have to maintain the rule of law, and that is not what is happening.

And Gavin Newsom has shown an inability or an unwillingness to do what is necessary there. So, the president stepped in. That's real leadership. And he has the authority and the responsibility to do it.

KARL: Secretary Hegseth said that active duty Marines there at Camp Pendleton, there by San Diego, are on high alert and could be mobilized. Could we really see active duty Marines on the streets of Los Angeles?

JOHNSON: You know, one of our core principles is maintaining peace through strength. We do that on foreign affairs and domestic affairs as well. I don't think that's heavy-handed. I think that’s an important signal --

(CROSSTALK)

KARL: You don't think sending Marines into the streets of an American city is heavy-handed?

JOHNSON: We have to be prepared to do what is necessary, and I think the notice that that might happen might have the deterring effect.

KARL: Okay. Let's turn to the big story this week, the Elon Musk blowup. I know you had been texting him, trying to get hold of him.

Had you actually had a phone conversation with him since this happened yet?

JOHNSON: Not since Monday of last week.

The president used the word “disappointing”, and I think that's right. We were disappointed and surprised.

I've had a lot of great interaction and discussion with him about the One Big, Beautiful Bill to make sure he had accurate information because I was concerned that the people were telling him things that just simply weren't true.

And, look, I -- Elon's number one responsibility is to save his company. The president and I have the responsibility of saving the country.

And that's what this bill does. And we're really excited and proud of this product, and we're going to get it delivered.

KARL: What do you make of not even calling you, though? I mean, this is -- I mean --

JOHNSON: He’s got a lot going on, all right? And I do as well. But we exchange text messages back and forth. He was concerned.

KARL: What did he say in those text messages?

JOHNSON: Well, one of his chief concerns is about spending. And I said, Elon, the spending categories in this bill are in two limited areas. It’s border, which we promised the American people that we would do, and it's defense. And he knows very well how important those investments are right now.

Everything else in the bill is about historic savings and tax cuts for the people and ensuring American energy dominance by regulatory reform and maintaining peace through strength. Shoring up these safety net programs that people rely upon.

So, this is really --

(CROSSTALK)

KARL: So, he's not buying it. He's not buying it.

And he's gone on X and he's urged -- and these are texts -- these are posts that he has not deleted saying, "Kill the bill."

Have you seen a reaction -- he's actually asked people to call their Congress members. Is that happening?

JOHNSON: It's not happening, and we checked with colleagues.

KARL: He’s got 220 million followers.

JOHNSON: Yeah, and I don't think people are taking that directive. We’ve got almost no calls to the offices, any Republican member of Congress.

And I think that indicates people are taking a wait-and-see attitude, some who may be convinced by some of his arguments. But the rest understand this is a very exciting piece of legislation.

I'm going to say this -- look, I didn't go out to craft a piece of legislation to please the richest man in the world. What we're trying to do is help hard-working Americans who are trying to provide for their families and make ends meet. Those are the people that are going to be excited about what this legislation produces.

This is going to jet fuel the U.S. economy. And I tell you what, all wages are going to rise. There’s going to be more jobs and economic opportunity for more people. We cannot wait to deliver that, and the sooner the better.

KARL: Well, he -- the president suggested he could cut Musk's contracts. Obviously, Musk's companies rely heavily on government contracts. Can he do that? Is that something he should consider?

JOHNSON: Look, I'm not going to get into the strategy of what happens with all of that. I mean, I -- what I'm trying to do is make sure that all of this gets resolved quickly. That we get the One Big, Beautiful Bill done, and that hopefully, these two titans can reconcile.

I think the president's head is in the right place, and he said a couple days ago he's moving on because he must. He has a huge number of responsibilities on his plate, and he can't get caught up in a Twitter war.

KARL: Yeah.

JOHNSON: The tweets are something that people get --

KARL: Whatever we call them now, X --

(CROSSTALK)

JOHNSON: I know, I get lost on all that.

KARL: Yeah. But he -- you know, these were incredibly personal, I mean -- and suggesting that Trump should be impeached and replaced, removed from office, replaced by J.D. Vance. I mean, he crossed a line here, didn't he? I mean, this is not just being disappointed.

JOHNSON: Well, look, my way, and what I encourage my colleagues on Capitol Hill all the time to remember is that policy disputes are not personal. It shouldn't be. It can't be. I mean, if we took everything personal, we’d never get anything done.

So, I think all of this would resolve. I think there's a lot of emotion involved in it. But it's in the interests of the country for everybody to work together, and I'm going to continue to try to be a peacemaker in all of this.

KARL: By the way, what -- do you know what he's talking about with the Epstein files? I mean what -- what -- what is -- and -- and -- and -- and why haven't those files been released? Have you --

JOHNSON: I don’t know.

KARL: I mean, some of your members have said they -- they’ve got to be released.

JOHNSON: As -- as Kash said in the vignette (ph) earlier, he’s FBI. I'm --

KARL: You’ll stay out of it?

JOHNSON: That’s not my lane. I don't know. I can tell you that -- I don't think -- we have no concern about President Trump or his involvement or any of that. That stuff’s nonsense.

KARL: And -- and -- and in terms of the threat to -- to go after Republicans that vote for the bill, I mean, are you worried about that? Musk does have a lot of money. If he starts getting involved in Republican primaries. How -- will that be a problem for you?

JOHNSON: Well, I think it would be a big mistake. I think Elon knows, at the end of the day, the reason he got involved to help President Trump win and to help Republicans win the majority in the House and the Senate is because he understands that our policies are better for human flourishing, they’re better for the U.S. economy, they’re better for everything that he's involved in with his innovation and job creation and -- and entrepreneurship.

The other team's policies are not good for those things. And -- and he knows that at the end of the day. And I think when the emotion settles down, I think he'll recognize we have no choice. We have to hold the House majority in the 2026 mid-term election, and we will because we’ve got to allow President Trump four full years, not just two.

If -- if the Democrats took over control of the House, I guarantee you that they would try to impeach President Trump in the first week of that new Congress in January ’27, and that would be a disaster for the country, for our public policy, for the economy, and everything else.

So, we have to keep this leadership team in place, and we will. And we’re going to deliver for the people and they’re going to reward him.

KARL: So, on the bill, there -- there's this provision that limits the ability of states to regulate artificial intelligence for ten years. Marjorie Taylor Greene said that she didn't even know that was in the bill when she voted for it. It’s a long bill and there wasn't a long time to go over it. And that if it stays in, she would vote against it. Do you see that provision coming out?

JOHNSON: Well, the Senate’s in the process of modifying that provision somewhat. But I can tell you, I've talked to Marjorie about it. She’s a dear friend. The -- the -- the rationale behind this is that you can't have a patchwork of 50 different states hyper-regulating or smothering it with red tape because, frankly, we would lose our edge. AI is a very important thing for the future and for national defense. And we're in a race with China and other countries on this. If we smother this thing with regulation and stop the innovation, it could do real harm for the national security interests of the country. And that's the -- the -- the thought behind this.

KARL: But -- but a larger question is that, she's not the only member who said that they didn't know that something was in the bill when they voted on it.

JOHNSON: Well, look, I'll -- I'll just say this. This bill was developed over 14 months of work, endless hours of conversation -- debate and conversation. Every single member of the House Republican Conference was involved in it at some level. The legislation was -- was passed in phases. So, we had 11 different committees push their products out over a series of weeks. And there was plenty of time to review the bill.

I mean the -- to the -- to the extent that --

KARL: The final version, there wasn't that much time (INAUDIBLE).

JOHNSON: Well, no, but the final version --

KARL: Right.

JOHNSON: Was literally taking the 11 components --

KARL: The pieces.

JOHNSON: And -- and stitching them together.

KARL: Yes.

JOHNSON: There was a manager's amendment at the end that had minor modifications. But everyone was well aware of what was in the bill.

KARL: So, let me ask you about a couple of other specific provisions that -- that caught my eye. One, there’s a provision that eliminates attacks on gun silencers. Now this is a tax that has been on the books for about 100 years. Why -- why are you cutting a tax on silencers?

JOHNSON: Well, there was a -- there’s a lot of thought and deliberation that went into that as well. The Second Amendment is a critical freedom in the Constitution. And there's no real rationale for -- for adding taxes on -- on these pieces of equipment.

And we had the votes to do it. I think it was a long time overdue. I think we have to protect the fundamental freedoms of the American people. And there's -- there’s no rationale. The government should not be making money on something that you have a fundamental, inalienable right to.

KARL: What -- what about tanning beds? It eliminates a 10 percent tax on tanning beds. I mean, how did -- how did that become a priority for --

JOHNSON: Well, that -- look, I think that was an unfair thing that the Biden administration put on an industry because they decided to target --

KARL: It was actually -- it goes back to 2010. It’s been around for 15 years.

JOHNSON: Yes, but the Biden administration enhanced it. And I -- I -- there will be modifications probably to that in the final package as well. But -- but we’ll see how it comes out.

KARL: OK, let me -- let me ask you finally about this question of the debt ceiling. This bill adds another $4 trillion to the debt ceiling. Donald Trump came out this week, I'm sure you saw, again, it's not the first time you said this, to just eliminate the debt -- debt ceiling.

JOHNSON: Yes.

KARL: Agreeing with Elizabeth Warren on this question. What do you think of that?

JOHNSON: Well, he regards this as an arbitrary kind of thing that puts pressure on Congress and the White House. It comes up every few years where we have to extend the debt ceiling.

What's really important about President Trump and his difference in this with Elizabeth Warren and everybody else is, he has no intention whatsoever of spending higher levels of money. In fact, we’re in the process of cutting. The one big, beautiful bill --

KARL: Well, this is adding a lot to the debt -- to the national debt.

JOHNSON: No, it's not. No, it’s not. No. No, it’s not.

KARL: I mean, it is. I mean, it's --

JOHNSON: No, it's not. The CBO is arguing that if we extend and make permanent existing tax cuts --

KARL: Yes.

JOHNSON: -- that's going to add to the deficit. What we're doing in this bill is cutting $1.6 trillion of spending, that is government spending that creates the deficits. We're going to reduce the deficit.

KARL: Debt is going to be higher at the end of this even at this price.

JOHNSON: Not with our pro-growth policies. We can argue that on another day.

KARL: All right. Thank you very much, Speaker Johnson.

JOHNSON: You got it.

KARL: Appreciate your time.

Up next, we'll head back to Ukraine for Martha's exclusive interview with President Zelenskyy. We're back in two minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

RADDATZ: Welcome back.

This has been an extraordinary week here for us in Ukraine, from taking shelter in bunkers while Russia pounded this country with unrelenting missile attacks, to an exclusive and sometimes emotional interview with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

We talked to him about his relationship with President Trump and his reaction to Trump's controversial comments comparing this war that Russia started to a child's fight in the park. Zelenskyy, sometimes in English, sometimes Ukrainian, also gave us fascinating new details about Ukraine's audacious attacks deep inside Russia.

And look at this remarkable new video from one of the more than 100 relatively cheap Ukrainian drones that spread out across Russia, aiming for military airfields and eventually taking out billions of dollars of Russia's nuclear-capable strategic bombers, an operation right out of a spy novel. And that is where we begin.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RADDATZ: Let's talk about Operation Spiderweb.

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE: Please.

RADDATZ: So you believe you did destroy maybe 40 aircraft? Others say maybe 10 to 20. How many did you destroy?

ZELENSKYY: We think and we have analytics that we destroyed 40 percent of the strategic jets.

RADDATZ (voice-over): President Zelenskyy describing the operation as complicated and clandestine. 18 months in the making, so secretive not even the U.S. was informed.

ZELENSKYY: We have to prepare such plans, and we are not stopping. We have to prepare such plans because Russia -- because we don't know, we don't really know if they will stop this war. They don't want. They don't want to stop the war. This is the problem.

RADDATZ: The key to the plan, Ukrainian drones, just like these, which the president's office arranged for us to see this weekend. Simple yet deadly, packed with an explosive unit.

This is one of many drone production facilities across Ukraine, spread out across the country. We can't tell you exactly where we are because obviously these facilities are Russian targets.

RADDATZ (Voice-over): The 100 drones used in Operation Spiderweb were smuggled into Russia, hidden in containers with remotely controlled retractable roofs.

Watch this video circulating online showing one explosive drone lifting off and heading to its target.

And now, the new video from a drone itself lifting out of the truck, traveling toward one of the Russian airfields. Smoke already billowing from the ongoing drone attacks the drone flying over fields and houses, surveilling the airfield where pilots can see some of the bombers already in flames.

One after another, the video ending when this drone takes out another one.

The drones had all been concealed on trucks with Russian drivers unknowingly delivering the payload.

ZELENSKYY: They didn't know anything, that they didn't know what will be in the roofs. They didn't know just when it will -- because they didn't know what will be, that's why they didn't know when it will be, and where.

So this is -- I think this is important, very important.

RADDATZ: And those drones and the Ukrainian pilots guiding them, knowing the Russian aircraft's most vulnerable spot where the fuel is held, after examining old Soviet aircraft still in Ukraine and on display.

And we have heard that they knew what parts of that airplane to hit --

ZELENSKYY: Yes.

RADDATZ: -- because you have airplanes here in museums.

ZELENSKYY: Yes. They knew exactly where to hit, and they did it exactly what was in their idea, step by step. They did very clear, this operation.

RADDATZ: Zelenskyy tracking the operation in real time, minute by minute, watching billions of dollars' worth of Russian aircraft go up in flames.

ZELENSKYY: I mean, this for Russians, more than $7 billion.

RADDATZ: And the drones not very expensive?

ZELENSKYY: Yes, not, yeah. They -- we use cheap drones.

RADDATZ: Zelenskyy had held off the operation in hopes a ceasefire would be reached, but with no progress on talks and what he sees as an emboldened President Putin, he said it was time to pull the trigger.

“I feel strongly Putin does not want to end the war without total defeat of Ukraine,” he told us.

President Trump told our Terry Moran in an interview -- a recent interview, that he does believe Putin wants peace. You think he's wrong?

“With all due respect to President Trump,” Zelenskyy says, “I think it's just his personal opinion. Trust me, we understand the Russians much better, the mentality of the Russians, than the Americans understand the Russians. I know for sure Putin doesn't want to stop the war.”

President Trump long claimed he could end Russia's bloody war in Ukraine within 24 hours of taking office, a deadly conflict that since Russia's invasion in 2022 is estimated to have killed or wounded nearly 400,000 Ukrainian men, women, and children, and killed or wounded a million Russians fighting for Putin.

Trump this week comparing it to two children fighting in a park.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Sometimes you see two young children fighting like crazy. They hate each other, and they're fighting in a park. And you try and pull them apart. They don't want to be pulled.

Sometimes you're better off letting them fight for a while and then pulling them apart.

RADDATZ: President Zelenskyy strongly refuting that notion.

“We are not playing in the park with the Russians like two boys, two kids. Putin is not a kid,” Zelenskyy said, describing him as a maniac. “So we can't compare and we cannot say okay, let them fight for a while”.

Zelenskyy adding, “And it's not about President Trump. Anyone living thousands of miles away can't fully understand the pain, even parents who live in Ukraine cannot feel the pain of those who lost their children.”

The president telling the story of a man who lost his wife and three children in a missile strike who told Zelenskyy "Every morning, I'm looking, I'm just looking for my family. I am looking everywhere in the flat. I still feel that it was a nightmare. I go outside, I see a father who holds his little girl's hand, and the girl is just like my dead daughter. I feel physical pain. I can't do anything about it. It is limitless.”

“That's why we are not kids at the playground,” Zelenskyy says, adding, “Putin is a murderer who came to the park to kill kids.”

It is something Zelenskyy says he has tried to convey to President Trump, but the relationship between the two has been tumultuous.

In February, that Oval Office visit spiraling out of control.

TRUMP: You're right now not in a very good position. You've allowed yourself to be in a very bad position, and it happens to be right about --

(CROSSTALK)

ZELENSKYY: From the very beginning of the war --

TRUMP: You're not in a good --

ZELENSKYY: I was --

TRUMP: You are right now not in a very good position. You don't have the cards right now. With us, you start having the cards.

ZELENSKYY: I'm not playing cards.

TRUMP: Right now, you don't -- you are playing cards. You're playing cards.

(CROSSTALK)

ZELENSKYY: I'm very serious.

TRUMP: You are gambling with the lives of millions of people.

ZELENSKYY: You think --

TRUMP: You're gambling with World War III.

RADDATZ: We all saw that Oval Office, chaotic, disastrous meeting. I know after that meeting, you tried to repair that relationship. Tell us what it was like in the aftermath.

ZELENSKYY (through translator): It's quite complicated, Zelenskyy said. You could watch it live and it was very clear and very straightforward. I used to remind everyone, cameras don't lie. Everybody could see on their television screens. I think the result of that meeting, I was very honest and open when I said that a small country is fighting for its life against the giant with all that evil that they brought with their army and their weapons to our land.

631 children lost their lives, he said. For some, those are numbers, but for me, he said, it's important that I defend my position and I was trying to do that in the Oval Office.

RADDATZ (voice-over): It would be months before the two leaders spoke again in person when they sat down together for that hastily planned meeting at the Vatican after the death of Pope Francis.

RADDATZ: Those images from that meeting at the Vatican were very powerful. You looked very intense, like you were getting along, like you were getting your message through. Did your relationship with President Trump change that day, and does it remain changed?

ZELENSKYY (through translator): Zelenskyy saying he would like to believe that the relationship has changed for the better, but adding, I don't know for sure. I can't give you 100 percent guarantee. The Ukrainian president also telling me, he would like more communications with President Trump, saying, there are people who communicate with the President more than me and they deliver different messages to him.

RADDATZ: Does President Trump believe that Russia is winning this war, do you think?

ZELENSKYY: Yes.

RADDATZ: Has he told you that?

ZELENSKYY: I think he's publicly said about it, and I know that he shared this information with some people around him, and I think the separation -- and I said it a lot of times, it's not true. It's not a victory when you spent, really spent one million people.

RADDATZ (voice-over): What Zelenskyy wants is more pressure on Putin, much stronger sanctions, which Trump has threatened but hasn't put in place.

ZELENSKYY (through translator): I am convinced that the President of the United States has all the powers and enough leverage, he said, to unite European leaders, adding, they are all looking at President Trump as a leader for the free world, a free democratic world and they are waiting for him, so he has to do it. He must.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RADDATZ: We also asked President Zelenskyy about military aid from the U.S. which could be ending. He said, without it, there is a greater chance Russia will win and Ukraine will suffer much more loss of life, much more. And yet, he has not given up hope. Ceasefire talks which have gotten nowhere so far are scheduled to resume Monday.

Coming up, we'll head back to Washington. Jon Karl and the Roundtable breakdown Elon Musk and Donald Trump's very public breakup. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELON MUSK, TESLA & SPACEX CEO: Thank you.

TRUMP: A very special that I give to very special people. I have given it to some, but it goes to very special people. And I thought I'd -- I’d give it to Elon on --

MUSK: Thank you.

TRUMP: As a presentation from our country.

MUSK: Thank you.

TRUMP: Thank you, Elon.

MUSK: Thank you. Thank you.

TURMP: Take care of yourself.

MUSK: And I'll continue to -- to -- to be visiting here and be a friend and adviser to the president, and I look forward to, you know, at times being back in this amazing room.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KARL: Well, I don't think he'll be back in that room anytime soon.

When we come back, Chris Christie, Donna Brazile and Reince Priebus on all the fallout from Musk v. Trump.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KARL: All right, let's bring in the roundtable, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, former DNC chair Donna Brazile, and former RNC chair and Trump White House chief of staff, Reince Priebus.

Okay. Elon Musk, Chris, I got to ask you about this, but first, if you don't mind, I'm going to play something you said to us earlier this year. Let me play.

CHRIS CHRISTIE, (R), FORMER NEW JERSEY GOVERNOR & ABC NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Oh.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTIE: When you initially begin in that role, you have enormous influence, and he loves having you around and he loves listening to you. And you're the best thing in the world.

It will always decline, and that's what happens, and you'll see it. It will happen with Elon Musk, too.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KARL: Nostradamus.

(LAUGHTER)

CHRISTIE: You know, I wish I could take that title, Jon, but it's happened so many damn times that it didn't --

(CROSSTALK)

CHRISTIE: -- you don’t need to be a soothsayer to come up with that.

Look, Donald Trump uses people. That's what he does.

He needed Musk during the campaign. He needed hundreds of millions of dollars to counter what was a Democratic fundraising advantage. He needed someone to do that, and he went to the richest man in the world.

And look, when Donald Trump's pursuing you, he is one of the greatest seducers you'll ever see in your life.

KARL: He makes you think you are the biggest thing on the planet.

CHRISTIE: The most important person in the world, and he can even do it to the richest man in the world.

And I think what's going on with Musk, more than anything else, is that he's upset that the great treatment has stopped. You know, you heard Trump say it himself. He was wearing thin.

Well, when you're wearing thin, Trump lets you know you're wearing thin, and he treats you differently. And I think -- I really believe there were two things that caused this, the EV mandates in the bill, and just as importantly, pulling the head of NASA.

And I think those two things mattered to Musk greatly. He figured, I gave $275 million. It might be that I might get a little deference on this, and he didn't. And then he didn't expect Trump to come out and say, I'm going to cancel all your contracts, too.

But that's Donald Trump. And if Elon had done any looking at history, Jon, of what he's done to everybody from General John Kelly to Jim Mattis to Rex Tillerson --

KARL: To Chris Christie.

CHRISTIE: -- to Chris Christie, sure, to any of these people, is -- it was inevitable what was going to happen to him.

So, call me Nostradamus for the week if you want, but all I am is someone who's lived the history.

DONNA BRAZILE, FORMER DNC CHAIR & ABC NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Well, love is normally a two-way street. With Donald Trump, it's all one way. It's his way or no way.

And look, I was saying to Chris in the green room, I said, everyone has an expiration date with Donald Trump.

So, Elon Musk should not be shocked that he's not going to be invited back to the Fourth of July parade or even a parade this coming week.

What Elon Musk did was basically, he got up one morning and said, you know what? I got my freedom back and I'm going back to being a deficit hawk, I'm going back to focusing on my company, and I'm going to criticize this bill because no one passed it by me, and I don't like what I see in it.

KARL: Now, Ro Khanna texted him. Ro Khanna, Democratic congressman of California --

BRAZILE: Yeah.

KARL: -- texted him, Elon --

BRAZILE: Yes.

KARL: -- to basically try to like say, hey, you know, come back. Because Elon, of course, for most of his time in -- in so much as he was involved in politics, supported Democrats.

BRAZILE: Yes, he did, 2020.

KARL: Is there (INAUDIBLE) for Democrats to go back to the guy that's become so toxic?

BRAZILE: Oh, no, I don't think he's looking to come back to the Democratic Party. I think he --

KARL: But are Democrats looking to maybe --

BRAZILE: No, I don't -- I don't think --

CHRISTIE: Sure, they are.

BRAZILE: Oh, come on.

CHRISTIE: They take that money, too. Come on, Donna. They’d take that money. Come on.

BRAZILE: But we're not taking his money. We are going to --

CHRISTIE: You would in a second.

BRAZILE: We're going to use what he has done to the federal government and to the United States of America, we're going to use that against the Republicans.

CHRISTIE: Uh-huh?

KARL: All right. Reince, so what was really going on here?

REINCE PRIEBUS, FORMER RNC CHAIR, FORMER TRUMP WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF & ABC NEWS POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, I think --

KARL: You were at the White House on Thursday.

PRIEBUS: I was there on Thursday, and obviously, people were a little stunned that things melted down as quickly as they were. I don't think anyone was surprised though that the relationship broke off.

I think that Elon was wearing thin. I think cabinet secretaries are getting sick and tired of it. Obviously, there's a reported story about a physical altercation with Scott Bessent.

KARL: Bessent, yeah.

PRIEBUS: I think DOGE was -- you know, the concept is great, but I think people -- like I said before -- would prefer it to be -- for them to be acting more like ninjas and not like Vikings.

But I think that ultimately, this is the kind of detente that we have as we are today. We have a detente between the two. They're sort of like, you know, divorced or separated couples that get together for vacations and dinners for the sake of the kids.

But the last thing I'd say about this -- and I think even Chris would agree with me – actually, no relationship in Trump world is dead until it's buried.

KARL: Yeah, yeah.

PRIEBUS: Because people come and go all the time, and, you know, I didn't get a key to the White House when I left. I should have, because I turned out to be very loyal and a good supporter of the president. But I didn't get one when I left.

And so, sometimes, you don't know where these relationships are going to end, in reality.

CHRISTIE: And I would just say this that -- two things. One, let's remember who's to blame for why the cabinet secretaries are so ticked off about DOGE being able to run roughshod through the departments. The president empowered him to do it.

BRAZILE: Right.

CHRISTIE: The president gave him the authority.

(CROSSTALK)

PRIEBUS: I think the president got sick and tired of it all, too.

(CROSSTALK)

CHRISTIE: He liked it. Of course, because he gets sick and tired of everything.

But, look, Reince is right. I do agree with him that no relationship is dead and buried. But what is required for a relationship to be resurrected in Trump world is one of two things. Either he really, really needs you.

PRIEBUS: Right.

CHRISTIE: Or you come down on both knees and publicly apologize.

PRIEBUS: Is that the Marco Rubio?

CHRISTIE: Look, I'm not going to cite any particular examples, but that's the requirement. It's got to be one of two things. Either he really needs you for something, or you get down on both knees and publicly apologize to him because then, once again, he's in a superior position.

PRIEBUS: In this case though -- in this particular relationship, though, Elon Musk needs Donald Trump more than Donald Trump needs Elon Musk. He's not getting re-elected. Elon Musk got the DOD, the DOT, environmental --

BRAZILE: I mean, he can really hurt. I mean, he could really hurt.

PRIEBUS: I mean --

CHRISTIE: Come on, guys.

PRIEBUS: He absolutely needs --

CHRISTIE: Who's going to replace SpaceX? Who's going to replace SpaceX? How are we going to get astronauts back from the International Space Station? There is no one to do it. Here's the problem. Musk has been made indispensable.

BRAZILE: Right.

CHRISTIE: Indispensable. Who's doing Starlink if it's not Musk? Who's doing SpaceX if it's not Musk?PRIEBUS: Yeah.

CHRISTIE: Who's been successful in electric vehicles in this world?

(CROSSTALK)

BRAZILE: Elon Musk (inaudible) outside of government.

PRIEBUS: He is not going to care.

BRAZILE: It's not within the government, although DOGE continues to exist and wreak havoc on our country.

KARL: OK, let me -- let me ask you the -- another big story, Friday, was Abrego Garcia is suddenly back in the United States. This was Pam Bondi announcing the news.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAM BONDI, (R) UNITED STATES ATTORNEY GENERAL: We want to thank President Bukele for agreeing to return Abrego Garcia to the United States. Our government presented El Salvador with an arrest warrant, and they agreed to return him to our country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KARL: OK. So, help me understand what's going on here. Because they were saying they couldn't get him back, and now, he's back. And now, of course, he's charged with very serious crimes. But what's going on here? What's the motive?

PRIEBUS: Well, I don't know what motivated the move back, because I think people have sort of forgotten about this issue. And the Democrats were bleeding on this idea of trying to protect the felonious illegal immigrant. But now, the best case the Democrats have is that they were fighting for the due process rights of a person who was beating his wife, who was here illegally for 14 years, who was trafficking humans across the country by the hundreds or thousands. And it didn't turn out well for the Democrats.

KARL: But they were saying they couldn't get him back, and now they got him back.

PRIEBUS: I don't know why they got him back.

(CROSSTALK)

BRAZILE: It's not about defending the individuals, it's about defending the rule of law. And giving --

PRIEBUS: That's a (ph) loser.

BRAZILE: -- him due process. It's not just about him, it's about our system of government. And if we lose focus on that, then who are we?

PRIEBUS: It is --

BRAZILE: Look, he is going to have to face these trumped up charges. I think some of these charges are trumped up and he's going to have, hopefully --

PRIEBUS: Wait a minute.

BRAZILE: Good legal defense in court (ph).

(CROSSTALK)

PRIEBUS: Wait a minute. You're protecting this guy already?

BRAZILE: No, I don't even know this guy.

PRIEBUS: How do you know -- how do you know it's trumped up? Who did you do that for?

(CROSSTALK)

BRAZILE: I just believe -- because they look like they just wanted to throw something at him to get him back into the country.

PRIEBUS: How do you know that?

BRAZILE: And to say, well, you're going to --

(CROSSTALK)

KARL: I mean, I mean, the point is not only due (ph) process.

(CROSSTALK)

BRAZILE: But at least he has due process. That's the point now. He has due process. He will have to -- he will have an opportunity to defense himself.

KARL: I've got one more thing before we go. We don't have much time. I want to show some pictures here of what was coming into Washington over the weekend. We saw a whole line of tanks. Those are tanks. Those are Abrams Tanks coming into Washington for the big, beautiful parade, is it? Donna?

BRAZILE: Coming into Washington, hopefully, to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Army. My daddy was a Korean vet, served in and with valor (ph). So, I hope that's why they're coming. I understand that the president is making it about himself, but also remember, this is the 250th anniversary also of the Navy and the Marine. So maybe, we'll figure out a way to celebrate those branches our military as well.

KARL: But, is there something about it -- the Army says $40 million will be their cost for this. That doesn't include the security costs and everything else.

BRAZILE: And tearing up our streets in Washington, D.C. I hope they will --

KARL: What --

PRIEBUS: Pay for (ph) it?

CHRISTIE: Well, look, with all the conversation we've had about spending over the past week or two, $40 million is a lot of money. But on the other hand, if we're using it truly to celebrate the men and women who have fought and died for this country over the last 250 years, I'm all for it. They deserve that type of praise. They deserve that type of attention.

And I hope that what the American people take out of this is that we are pretty lucky, Jon, pretty lucky to have the men and women who've been willing to fight and sacrifice for us.

KARL: All right. Coming up, Martha has a remarkable story of resilience and recovery in Ukraine. You won't want to miss it. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

RADDATZ: And finally this morning, a story of hope from this country that has suffered so profoundly since Russia invaded more than three years ago. A race supporting those wounded in the Ukraine war and the young man running in it who has fought so hard just to be able to walk again, able to do so because of an American company now working here to help Ukrainians heal.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RADDATZ (voice-over): This morning in Ukraine, a milestone for one young Ukrainian soldier, his first race on a long road to recovery.

Artem was 17 when the war began and had moved to Canada with his family but returned soon after to defend the country he loves.

ARTEM IVANKOV, UKRAINE WAR VETERAN: I was born here and wanted to live all my life in Ukraine because I like it here. I love it. I love my country.

RADDATZ: But that love of country would come with a very steep price. Artem lost his leg when a land mine exploded on the front lines in Kharkiv. Until a week ago, he hadn't walked in more than a year.

IVANKOV: I just want to show them that you can do basically whatever you want and get back to previous life on a prosthetic one.

RADDATZ: Artem now able to not just walk but run. His training and new prosthetic limb on full display at this brand new American run state-of-the-art facility.

CEO Mike Corcoran co-founded the privately-funded prosthetics company after helping amputees recover at Walter Reed for more than 18 years. Corcoran felt an urgent need to expand his work to Kyiv after learning about the staggering number of amputees here.

MIKE CORCORAN, CEO AND CO-FOUNDER, MEDICAL CENTER ORTHOTICS & PROSTHETICS: We are hearing over a hundred thousand, which compared to 20 years of war for the United States was 2,500. It's just off the charts numbers.

RADDATZ (voice-over): Now, the staff of this facility manufactures and fits custom prosthetics and provides rehabilitation services for the wounded, opening their doors just six weeks ago. Some Ukrainian veterans working with Corcoran are not only building the prosthetics, but are also using them like Anatoly, who lost his leg after a drone strike on the battlefield.

ANATOLY, UKRAINE WAR VETERAN: Mike gave me first chance to return to life when he gave me this prosthetic. And then he gave me next chance, invite me to his company, to MCOP, work here.

CORCORAN: We've committed to hiring and training veterans. We like to say that, you lose your limb, you're still the same person, right? They can be functional people and have productive lives.

RADDATZ (voice-over): For Mike and his team, this is more than just a business. It is a mission, providing new beginnings to those who have sacrificed so much.

CORCORAN: We take living life for granted, but when you've lost two or three limbs, and you don't have like ADA or you don't have support network behind you, it's tremendously difficult.

RADDATZ: You've seen a lot of suffering though, Mike.

CORCORAN: Yeah. Right.

RADDATZ: It means more than just a job to you?

CORCORAN: Yeah. It's more than work.

RADDATZ: You help in the future of Ukraine.

CORCORAN: Yeah. I mean, they're great people. Really, the people are fantastic. Their resilience here is something to be proud of, you know?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RADDATZ: Remarkable people. A remarkable team. Remarkable work. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

RADDATZ: That's all for us today. Reporting from Kyiv and from Washington with Jon Karl. Thanks for sharing part of your Sunday with us. Check out "World News Tonight" and have a great day.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)