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Hurricane Milton Takes Aim At Florida Gulf Coast; California Lawmakers Try To Regulate AI In Political Ads; Rep. Debbie Dingell (D- MI) On Harris' Interview And Immigration. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired October 08, 2024 - 05:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL)

[05:32:40]

KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR: It's just after 5:30 a.m. here on the East Coast. A live look at Tampa, Florida as residents there are evacuating as Hurricane Milton bears down. Good morning, everyone. I'm Kasie Hunt. It's wonderful to have you with us.

Florida on high alert as Milton rapidly approaches the Gulf Coast. Mandatory evacuation orders are in place in parts of nine counties, according to Florida's Division of Emergency Management. Those orders now triggering scenes like this across Florida's interstates, bumper- to-bumper traffic.

The storm is expected to make landfall as a major hurricane. Tampa and the surrounding metro area bracing for the worst. The city's fire chief hopeful that people are taking this storm seriously.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARBARA TRIPP, FIRE CHIEF, TAMPA, FLORIDA: People are definitely listening this time. And that was one of the biggest concerns because when we evacuated with Hurricane Helene a lot of the residents did not leave their residence, and then we had to do a lot of rescues of those residents, which put our first responders in danger.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: All right. Joining us now with the latest on the ground in Tampa, CNN Newsource correspondent Ivan Rodriguez. Ivan, good morning to you. What's the latest there?

IVAN RODRIGUEZ, CNN NEWSOURCE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kasie, as we heard there from Tampa's fire chief, officials have been pleading with millions of people to get out and get out now. Today really is that last full day that residents here in the Tampa Bay area have to get out and still be able to do so in a relatively calmly fashion before conditions begin to deteriorate.

The last time we saw a major Category 3 or more hurricane hit the Tampa Bay area was more than 100 years ago. So really, nobody here has seen what we are projecting in terms of that landfall from Hurricane Milton.

We know that there are several shelters -- multiple shelters, in fact, across the area for people to go to. Some, in cases, people are also being provided transportation to make sure they're getting there safely as well.

And for those who are staying in those evacuation zones -- staying in their homes -- officials haven't been mincing words. We actually heard from the Florida attorney general with a stark message. She said, "You probably need to write your name in permanent marker on your arm so that people know who you are when they get to you afterwards," Kasie.

[05:35:00]

These are stark words that we also heard prior to Helene making landfall and that's one reason why people are taking it so seriously as well.

HUNT: All right, Ivan Rodriguez for us. Thank you very much. We will see you in the next hour as we continue to monitor this storm.

Let's turn now to this. There has been no shortage of digitally altered political content this election cycle. You may have seen some of it from Elon Musk posting this fake image of Kamala Harris depicted as a communist -- again, fake -- to these posts of Donald Trump holding cats -- cats holding signs, excuse me, promoting his campaign following the debate. Of course, he had claimed in that debate falsely that migrants were eating pets. Again, these images are fake.

Now, a legal fight brewing over legislation aimed at curbing the use of artificial intelligence in political ads. Last month California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed three bills into law specifically targeting the use of AI and deepfakes in election ads.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM, (D) CALIFORNIA: There are a lot of deepfakes out there. There's not a lot of disclosure. There's not a lot of labeling. And I could care less if it was Harris or Trump. It was just wrong on every level. Malicious intent behind these deepfakes impacting elections.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: But at least one of these laws has already been put on pause by a federal judge. The individual challenging the law, arguing it violates the First Amendment.

Joining me now to discuss, CEO of Hive, Kevin Guo. Kevin, good morning to you.

Talk to me a little bit about what the options are for combating this kind of misinformation in election campaigns. I know that your company does some work trying to help people understand -- tell the difference between what's fake and what's real.

KEVIN GUO, CEO, HIVE (via Skype): Well, thanks for having me.

Yes, I think we're in an unprecedented new era for how this kind of content can be created. I think in previous years you wouldn't very easily see such realistic looking deepfake image video and audio content being massively distributed, and now it's very commonplace. So what really is needed is the availability of tools and methods to be able to indicate to people the nature of the content that they're looking at.

HUNT: So, Kevin, does the technology to do that actually exist, and how does it work?

GUO: The technology certainly exists and that's what we have spent the last few years building here at Hive. Our models today can handle all types of content and can predict with fairly high certainty whether or not something is indeed AI-generated or deepfake.

And the models work in ways that are, in many cases, beyond how humans can understand content, which is why this is so important. When a human looks at, say, an image they will generally look for certain disfigurements or visual abnormalities that as the technology gets better those tend to go away. But what a model like ours can do is actually looking more at, say, the pixel level, looking for those invisible signatures that may not be visible to the human eye but are nevertheless always there because of just how this content is made.

HUNT: So if you were a state government, in the case of California, or a federal government trying to regulate something like this -- I mean, how do you see these tools being deployed in the context of an election?

GUO: So, first, I think regulation in this space is very important and it's needed. When it comes to the impact on an election the availability of fake information like this can be truly devastating. If you are the average U.S. citizen and you see a video or audio that sounds realistic you would -- you would probably be inclined to believe it. And depending on what the content in there says that could really change your view on who you vote for.

And so I think regulation that mandates platforms to put these labels on visibly for everyone to see is vitally important. But regulation alone, of course, isn't enough. You need ultimately tools like the models that we've built to really be adopted on a -- on a wide scale, and that's what we're working on.

HUNT: All right, Kevin Guo for us this morning. Kevin, very grateful for your time. Thanks very much.

GUO: Thank you.

HUNT: All right. Still coming up here on CNN THIS MORNING, Caitlin Clark, of course, famous for shooting hoops, but she's going to be switching from the court to the course to play pro golf. We're going to have more on the Bleacher Report.

Plus, Donald Trump's latest remarks on crime and genetics. I'm going to talk one-on-one with Michigan's Democratic Congressman Debbie Dingell.

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[05:43:50]

HUNT: Donald Trump once again focusing on two issues crucial to his campaign, immigration and crime. Here's what he told right-wing radio host Hugh Hewitt.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: She has no clue. How about allowing people to come through an open border, 13,000 of which were murderers -- many of them murdered far more than one person -- and they're now happily living in the United States. You know -- now, a murderer -- I believe this -- it's in their genes, and we've got bad -- a lot of bad genes in our country right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: The White House, asked about those remarks, painted them as part of a pattern from the former president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: This comes from the same vile statements that we've had -- that we've heard about migrants being poisoned -- poison the blood. That's disgusting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Vice President Kamala Harris was challenged on her immigration policies in an interview with "60 MINUTES" that was released last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL WHITAKER, CBS NEWS CORRESPONDENT, "60 MINUTES": Was it a mistake to loosen the immigration policies as much as you did?

KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's a longstanding problem and solutions are at hand. And from day one, literally, we have been offering solutions. But the --

[05:45:03]

WHITAKER: The numbers did quadruple under your -- under your watch.

HARRIS: And the numbers today because of what we have done -- we have cut the flow of illegal immigration by half. We have cut the flow of fentanyl --

WHITAKER: But should you have done that -- should you have done that --

HARRIS: -- by half. But we need Congress to be able to act. (END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: All right, joining us now to discuss, Democratic Congresswoman Debbie Dingell of Michigan. Congresswoman, always wonderful to have you on the program. Thank you very much for being here.

Let's start here with immigration. You heard Trump using the language that he used, saying that we have bad genes coming into the country. But there, of course, for Kamala Harris this is a vulnerability. People do seem to trust Donald Trump more on this issue.

How is it cutting in your home state of Michigan?

REP. DEBBIE DINGELL (D-MI) (VIA WEBEX BY CISCO): Well, good morning, Kasie. It's good to be with you.

Look, immigration is an issue and both candidates have got to talk about it. I think the way that Donald Trump is talking about it right now is vile. And, you know, saying that immigrants are born with bad genes and calling them poison is just -- it's horrific. And as a Catholic woman, I was brought up to believe in the good in all people.

We have an immigration problem in this country. The vice president was correct last night that they reduced it in half. I want to be very clear. We have tried to address it in multiple ways and Republicans will not vote to put more money in the customs and borders so we have more agents at the border.

We -- Republican Sen. Lankford, one of the most conservative senators in the Senate, led bipartisan negotiations for months. They actually reached an agreement, and one person stopped it -- one -- and that was Donald Trump because he didn't want her to win.

And quite frankly, became the closest we've had in decades between Republican presidents and Democratic presidents in passing comprehensive immigration reform. We need it. There's a need in this country for workers that are met by -- could be met by immigrants coming in here. We've always been a country when someone is escaping violence, especially women and others, to have a place. But people, we need a legal immigration system that is working.

Instead of Republicans getting up and just spilling vile we need to actually do something and act. We came the closest to it -- we did this year. One person stopped it. And since that person stopped it, I don't have a great deal of faith that were he president that he'd really do something to solve it.

HUNT: Congresswoman, let me ask you. We just marked the anniversary of October 7 -- the attacks against Israel by Hamas. And we heard from President Trump yesterday talking about what he would do if president. He says he would "remove Jew haters from the country." Let's watch that and I'll ask you about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We will remove the Jihadist sympathizers and Jew haters. We're going to remove the Jew haters who do nothing to help our country. They only want to destroy our country.

And we will never let the horrors of October 7 be repeated here on American soil. We will not let that happen. And we will solve the problem that we have.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: What do you hear when he says that?

DINGELL: You know, Kasie, yesterday was one of the hardest days that I have experienced in recent years. The Jewish community is hurting. They're just -- they're hurting. There's no other way to say it.

We saw vile acts of antisemitism in several different places in Michigan yesterday. We have seen signs posted in Ann Arbor, in the city I live, that are not repeatable. I can say one of them says (INAUDIBLE) but that's nothing compared to some of the other antisemitism comments I get.

You know, when I feel empathy or understand that the Palestinian community has lost more than 40,000 innocent people -- I lost someone I've known for 40 years who was killed in Lebanon last week. These communities are hurting. I want peace.

And, I mean, this antisemitism -- I don't think the president fully understands where it's all coming from. We have good Americans of all faiths, and we have people that are spreading hate and vitriolic. And by the way -- I'll say it point blank -- I think some of them are coming from foreign countries and they are trying to interfere right now and procure seeing these fires of hate we see.

So I'm trying to stand up to hate wherever and whenever I see it. And I'm very worried and, quite frankly, almost scared some days when I'm watching what I'm witnessing in my own communities.

[05:50:05]

HUNT: All right, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. A very emotional time, obviously. Thank you very much for being with us this morning. I really appreciate your time.

DINGELL: Thank you.

HUNT: All right, time now for sports. Monday, an incredible night if you're from Kansas City. The Royals leveling their playoff series with the Yankees. The Chiefs improving to get a perfect 5-0 on "MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL."

Andy Scholes has this morning's Bleacher Report. Andy, good morning.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yeah, good morning, Kasie.

So, you know, two TVs were a must last night or at the very least you had to have that split screen going if you live in Kansas City. The Chiefs and Royals both big games at the same time. We'll start in Kansas City where Taylor Swift was in the house watching her boyfriend Travis Kelce take on the Saints. In the fourth quarter, Kelce getting the snap here and he hands it off to Xavier Worthy who gets in for the score. Worthy then hands the ball to his mom who was sitting in the first row and gives her nice hug. That was a good moment.

The Chiefs go up 23-13 at that point. The Saints trying to rally on the fourth down here. Derek Carr's pass incomplete. He would actually injure his oblique on that play. Carr would have to leave the game. He's set to have an MRI today to see how bad that injury is.

But the Chiefs would go on to win 26-13. Patrick Mahomes had 331 yards passing is now 5-0 for the first time since 2018.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PATRICK MAHOMES, QUARTERBACK, KANSAS CITY CHIEFS: Yeah, it felt good. I mean, obviously, we were able to move the football and that's a really good defense. We've got to keep working on that red zone to get some of those and make them touchdowns. But I felt like we played a good football game today and got the win.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: All right, and the nice night for Kansas City continuing in the Bronx. The Royals a big fourth inning. Salvador Perez gets it going with a solo home run right there. The Royals would then get three more runs on four hits in that inning. And Kansas City would hold on from there to take game two 4-2 to even their series with the Yankees.

Now, in the other ALDS series, the Tigers -- they were looking to pull even with the Guardians. And short ace (PH) Tarik Skubal just pitching another masterpiece. He threw seven shutout innings, striking out eight.

That set the stage for the ninth inning. The game tied at zero. Kerry Carpenter with two on, two outs, two strikes, and he gets ahold of that one -- the hardest-hit ball of his career -- a three-run home run. Guardians' closer Emmanuel Clase hadn't given up a run since August 30. A bad time for that streak to end.

The Tigers get the win 3-0. They were all pumped up. Game three of that series is tomorrow in the Motor City.

And it's actually the first time ever all four division series are tied at a game apiece. You've got two games today. The Phillies and Mets going to square off in game three of their series. That's just after 5:00 Eastern. And then the Padres host the division rival Dodgers after a contentious game two in L.A. where some fans were throwing objects on the field delaying that game. That one's the late one tonight.

All right. And finally, fresh off her near unanimous selection as the WNBA Rookie of the Year, Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark -- well, she's going to take a swing at golf. She's set to play in a Wednesday Pro-Am before Annika Sorenstam's LPGA tournament next month in Florida. Clark is also going to be a part of the Women's Leadership summit set for the day before, so we'll see how she does there.

A big game five in the WNBA tonight, Kasie. The Lynx hosting the Sun. The winner moves on to face the Liberty in the finals, so it should be a good one.

HUNT: Good one. And then I'm very excited for a night of baseball tonight. That's amazing. I had no idea that this is the first time they've all been tied 1-1 in a series.

SCHOLES: Right, and both of those series in the National League. Man, those are good.

HUNT: Yeah, they really are. They really are.

All right, Andy, thank you.

SCHOLES: All right.

HUNT: See you tomorrow, I hope.

Straight ahead here on CNN THIS MORNING mass evacuations underway with Florida readying itself for another powerful hurricane less than two weeks out from Helene.

Plus, Vice President Harris sits down with "60 MINUTES" pressed over the administration's response at the border.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WHITAKER: Was it a mistake to loosen the immigration policies as much as you did?

HARRIS: It's a longstanding problem and solutions are at hand.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL)

[05:58:07]

HUNT: It's Tuesday, October 8. Right now on CNN THIS MORNING --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR JANE CASTOR, (D) TAMPA, FLORIDA: If you choose to stay in one of those evacuation areas you're doing to die.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: A dire warning. Tampa's major urging people -- mayor urging people to take Hurricane Milton seriously as they brace for a potentially catastrophic storm.

Plus, four weeks and counting. Where the race stands just a month from Election Day.

And this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We've got a lot of bad genes in our country right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Bad genes. Donald Trump once again turning to dark rhetoric as he hammers Kamala Harris on immigration and crime.

And later --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: I have a Glock, and I've had it for quite some time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Kamala Harris, the gunowner. What her campaign might be hoping to accomplish by highlighting her use of firearms.

All right, 6:00 a.m. on the East Coast. A live look at Tampa, Florida. Mass evacuations underway as Hurricane Milton, an incredibly dangerous hurricane, is closing in there. Thankfully, that traffic is moving.

Good morning, everyone. I'm Kasie Hunt. It's wonderful to have you with us.

We're following breaking news this morning. The new update on Hurricane Milton out just a short time ago. Right now Milton a Category 4 hurricane but that could change. It's expected to regain strength this morning after slowing down some overnight. The storm expected to make landfall tomorrow evening near Tampa -- the second major hurricane for Florida's coast in just two weeks.

And now Florida officials are bracing for impact while still clearing debris from Hurricane Helene, distributing sandbags and encouraging people to evacuate.

Tampa's mayor issuing this blunt warning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CASTOR: Helene was a wake-up call. This is literally catastrophic. And I can say without any dramatization whatsoever if you choose to stay in one of those evacuation areas you're going to die.

(END VIDEO CLIP)