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Harris Will Not Do Anything Different than Biden; Biden and Netanyahu Set to Speak; Bob Woodward Reveals Private Conversations with Trump and Biden in his New Book; Tornadoes in Florida; Floridians Race to Flee Hurricane Milton; Officials Urge Floridians to Evacuate. Aired 10:30-11a ET
Aired October 09, 2024 - 10:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:30:00]
JIM ACOSTA, CNN ANCHOR: All right. With less than a month ago, until the election, Vice President Kamala Harris was asked about the differences between her administration and President Biden should she win the race for the White House?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Would you have done something differently than President Biden? During the past four years?
KAMALA HARRIS, U.S. VICE PRESIDENT AND U.S. PRESIDENTIAL DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE: There is not a thing that comes to mind in terms of -- and I've been a part of most of the decisions that have had impact.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: All right. Let's discuss worn out with Democratic Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona. He's member of the Harris campaign's National Advisory Board. Senator, good to see you lots to talk about. Just curious what you thought of that answer there from the vice president. She did go on to say she's probably going to put a Republican in her cabinet. And so, she is trying to say that there will be some differences. But what did you make of that answer there?
MARK KELLY (D-AZ) AND HARRIS-WALZ CAMPAIGN NATIONAL ADVISORY BOARD: Well, Jim, also, when you consider her plan going forward to take this country into the future, building an opportunity economy where, you know, everybody has a chance to succeed, you know, middle class, every day Americans, things on housing and child care and continuing to bring down the cost of health care and prescription drugs, you combine that with what this administration has accomplished on things like semiconductor chips and infrastructure and a big down payment on dealing with the climate crisis, which you see some of the effects of in Florida with Hurricane Milton today.
You know, there clearly is a plan and then the contrast between her plan and Donald Trump could not be more clear. Here's a guy that just wants to drag us back into the past and give more big tax cuts to billionaires, take away women's reproductive rights, and do other things that do not help the American people. ACOSTA: And, Senator, I do want to talk about the former president and the campaign in just a moment, but at this hour President Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are set to speak. Apparently, Vice President Kamala Harris will be on that call as well. What's your reaction to that? And it sounds as though the Iranians are previewing, according to some of our reporting this morning, that they, if provoked, may strike targets beyond Israeli military sites. An Iranian official told CNN that this morning. Your response to all that?
KELLY: Well, Jim, it's good that we're continuing to have these discussions with the Israelis. We need to come to an agreement, especially with the situation in Gaza. There's 101 hostages that need to be released, and that needs to be resolved.
[10:35:00]
I think the Iranians should have received the message over the last two attempts they've had at striking at Israel that not only is it not well received, it's not very effective. That the combination of the Israeli Defense Forces and the United States and our allies can defeat incoming ballistic and cruise missiles.
My hope is that the Iranians realize that they're not being effective here and their influence in the region through Hezbollah and Hamas is not in the best interest of the Iranian people. When they finally come to that conclusion, I think we could see some lasting change.
ACOSTA: And I mean, does the president need to urge caution to Prime Minister Netanyahu? I mean, their relationship has been frayed. That's been reported about in recent days and even in the Bob Woodward book, which I'll ask you about in just a moment, but what does the president need to say to the prime minister?
KELLY: Well, I think the prime minister, you know, in his role leading Israel, you know, has a responsibility to protect the Israeli people. And when the Iranians strike at Israel, they certainly have a right to respond to that. I think the way you do that does matter. It's ultimately going to be their decision. I imagine that's something that's going to be discussed on this call.
ACOSTA: And I did want to ask you about that book that I just referenced from journalist Bob Woodward. He claims that Former President Donald Trump secretly sent Russians -- President Vladimir Putin COVID tests back in 2020. He also writes that Trump has talked to Putin as many as seven times since leaving office in 2021. Trump is saying that this is false, but listen to what he said about Putin over the years.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Yesterday, reporters asked me if I thought President Putin was smart. I said, of course he's smart.
One of the presidents of a big country has stood up and said, well, sir, if we don't pay, and we're attacked by Russia, will you protect us? No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want.
I'd like to congratulate Vladimir Putin for having made yet another great deal.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: Senator, Trump's running mate, Senator J. D. Vance says there's nothing wrong with engaging in diplomacy. What's your view on this?
KELLY: Well, ex-presidents shouldn't be calling foreign leaders, especially when they're our adversaries. I have family members I haven't spoken to in four years. I mean, the fact that he's calling Putin, and when you consider the things he has said about the Russian president makes me question that relationship.
I mean, Putin is a guy who illegally attacked our ally, Ukraine, who's intentionally committing war crimes within Ukraine, and the former president has some sort of special relationship. I think it highlights the risk involved in putting Donald Trump back into the White House as commander in chief.
We've got elections starting here in Arizona. I mean, today is the first day of early voting. So, I encourage folks to get their ballots in. Polling places are now open. That's true in other states across the country. So, it's important that we exercise our democratic right to vote and make a decision about who the next president is going to be. Because things like that, it's incredibly concerning to me. Donald Trump in the White House results in Americans being less safe.
ACOSTA: I mean, I -- just a quick follow up, I mean, when Trump was in office, he called for prosecuting former Secretary of State John Kerry, who he claimed was violating the Logan Act that criminalizes negotiations for unauthorized persons with foreign governments. I mean, is this an issue for the former president here? What do you think?
KELLY: Well, I think the former president doesn't think the rules apply to him. I mean, that's been pretty clear. And the damage that he continues to do to our country, when you consider the folks in North Carolina who are suffering under the effects of Hurricane Helene and his lies about FEMA and then encouraging other people, with his words, to lie about what's going on in FEMA, just, you know, day after day, it's just one thing after a next -- after the next that puts more Americans at risk.
ACOSTA: All right. Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona, lots to talk about this morning. Wish we had time for it, but we'll get you back as soon as we can. Thanks a lot, Senator.
KELLY: All right. Thank you, Jim.
ACOSTA: Appreciate it. We'll be right back.
KELLY: Thank you.
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[10:40:00]
ACOSTA: All right. Let's get back to the Weather Center. Derek Van Dam is there. Derek, we're hearing about tornadoes. What can you tell us?
DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, Jim. So, we are focusing in on this tornado threat that is ongoing across Southern Florida. We've seen these spin up tornadoes that are so all too common with land falling and approaching hurricanes. And here is one example of that. We have seen here in Alligator Alley, this is in Collier County. So, we're talking about southwestern portions of Florida. And again, this is I-75. And this is actually the picture of the tornado crossing I-75 captured just moments ago. So, we're starting to see these tornado spin ups occur as Hurricane Milton approaches Southwestern Florida.
So, just to get into a little bit more detail that tornado warning is in effect until 11:00 a.m. for Hendry as well as Collier County. These storms move quickly. These are part of the outer bands, the outer rain bands of Hurricane Milton. And they cause friction with the ground and it causes them to spin and create these tornadoes. They have warned of wedge tornadoes that could be destructive, strong tornadoes as well. So, that is a threat that we are monitoring very closely amongst the whole host of other threats with hurricane.
[10:45:00]
ACOSTA: Derek, if you're trying to cross over the Everglades, be very careful at this moment, it sounds like, based on what you're picking up on.
VAN DAM: Jim, I apologize I can't hear you at the moment, but assuming you're talking about the risk through the course of the day today, this is the area that we're going to focus on, central portions of Florida all the way down to Key West, whereas our greatest risk of strong tornadoes, one or two of them are possible. We've already seen the larger tornadoes crossing some of the highway's interstates there as Milton makes his final approach into Southwest Florida.
ACOSTA: All right. Derek, thank you very much. Let's go to Florida's Anna Maria Island. That was hit by Hurricane Helene. The massive amount of debris. You can see it all over the place, on the sides of these roadways. CNN took a tour of the island's littered streets with police chief William Tokajer. He had a dire message for those choosing to stay in the path of Hurricane Milton.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHIEF WILLIAM TOKAJER, HOLMES BEACH POLICE: And if you have not evacuated, bug out. If you don't take heed, you're on your own. You might as well take a sharpie and write your name and Social Security number on your leg so that when we find you, we have a contact because it is not going to be good for you. (END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: And Chief William Tokajer joins us now. Chief, how are things going? Are people heeding those warnings? I mean, you can't put it any -- you know, any tougher than that.
TOKAJER: It was a ghost town when we just left the island. The island has been secured. Nobody's allowed back out there until after the storm passes. We did a final pass through and I didn't see anybody that was still there.
ACOSTA: So, you don't think there's anybody foolish enough to try to ride it out? I suppose there might be one or two, but that's good news, it sounds like from what you're saying.
TOKAJER: Yes, it's great news because we will not be there to rescue them. We're going to -- we're off island until it the storm passes. So, there'll be no fire, no police, no EMS, no first responders, nobody to answer the 911 calls for service that come out there. We've locked down the island and we'll return after the storm passes and check for safety before we let people out.
ACOSTA: And, Chief, I mean, paint the picture for us, when we're looking at these piles of debris along the sides of the roadways that crisscross that area, I mean, it sounds as though this storm surge is comes in as predicted by the forecasters. It's just going to turn everything into a washing machine and you're going to have all that debris just sloshing around, slamming into houses and cars. I mean, it's just going to be -- it's going to be pretty horrific over there.
TOKAJER: That's correct. Our island was devastated by Hurricane Helene. And now, we're getting a gut punch with Milton. It's not going to be good. We do have a lot of debris. We worked the last, you know, three, four days to get as much debris up as we could, especially on our major roadways. So, that when we try to get back out, our major roadways are at least passable. But depending on how much surge we get and the wind, those debris piles could definitely become, you know, dangerous.
ACOSTA: And just very -- just finally, very quickly, Chief. I mean, did you hear from anybody who did write their names on their arms and legs and that kind of thing, or do you think your warning was enough there?
TOKAJER: No, we did not. I think the warning was clear and we did not hear from anybody. And I'm very happy to see that.
ACOSTA: Good. All right. Good. Good deal. All right. Chief William Tokajer, thanks very much. Best of luck in all your recovery efforts and response efforts. Really appreciate the time.
TOKAJER: Thank you.
ACOSTA: All right. Much more breaking news on Hurricane Milton when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ACOSTA: All right. Happening right now, Florida is already feeling the impacts of Hurricane Milton as it closes in on the state. And while its wind speed has decreased slightly, I mean, keep in mind it is still a dangerous Category 4 storm. The size of the storm has continued to grow and officials are urging people to get out while they can.
Let's bring in the former FEMA administrator, Craig Fugate. Craig, good to see you as always. I guess one of the reasons why we wanted to have you on, Craig, is all of this misinformation and disinformation that has just been swirling around in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. Have you ever seen anything like this before? I mean, you were the administrator of FEMA. I mean, I remember covering you when you were the administrator. I don't remember it being like this.
CRAIG FUGATE, FORMER FEMA ADMINISTRATOR: Well, we started seeing some of this during Superstorm Sandy and had to do rumor control. But with the advent of influencers and the amount of social media, that's really just creating a lot of noise that's hard for people to get accurate information. So, it is increasing. And it's something that emergency managers are having to factor in trying to get the message out.
ACOSTA: And, Craig, I mean, what does that do in terms of disaster response? I mean, we saw what FEMA has been doing in recent days. They've set up a website to sort of fight these rumors off. Is there anything more that government officials can do? I mean, at a certain point, you know, people at home just have to trust when they're getting emergency information that it is legitimate.
FUGATE: Yes. Again, it's a challenge. I think we just need to continue to reinforce. You need to get your information from your official sources, your local officials, the National Weather Service, National Hurricane Center.
[10:55:00]
But I think the most critical thing, and I think that's one of the roles that broadcasters play, is getting that information from the local officials in the area that are telling people what is happening, what they need to prepare. This is not something that we can depend upon social media. We really need to hear from those local officials.
ACOSTA: I mean, and one of the things I -- and I -- it's almost crazy to ask about this, we have a sitting member of commerce -- Congress, excuse me, claiming that people can actually control the weather. Marjorie Taylor Greene has been I tweeting. I mean, how do you respond to that kind of thing when you have members of Congress putting that stuff out there?
FUGATE: We just need to keep teaching science in high school.
ACOSTA: That would certainly help. All right. Craig Fugate, we're out of time. We got to hand it off to the next show, but we'll bring you back talk about this storm response as it's unfolding in the coming days. Thanks, Craig, so much. Good to talk to you as always.
And thanks for joining us this morning. I'm Jim Acosta. My next hour -- or our next hour of CNN Newsroom with Pamela Brown -- my colleague, Pamela Brown, that all starts after a short break. Stay with us.
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[11:00:00]
