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Trump Refuses To Commit To Peaceful Transfer Of Power; Democrats Look To Keep Senate Majority In November; Blue Jackets, Panthers Pay Tribute To Gaudreau Brothers. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired October 16, 2024 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[05:30:00]
KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR: All right, 5:29 on the East Coast. A live look at New York City on this Wednesday morning. Good morning, everyone. I'm Kasie Hunt. It's wonderful to have you with us.
We start our half-hour with this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REPORTER: Will you commit to making sure that there is a peaceful transferal of power after the election?
DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, we're going to have to see what happens.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: That was Donald Trump in September 2020 refusing to commit to a peaceful transfer of power. Now, four years later, he is dodging that question once again.
During an event with Bloomberg News in Chicago yesterday Trump was asked that same question: would he commit to "respecting and encouraging a peaceful transfer of power?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Well, you had a peaceful transfer of power.
JOHN MICKLETHWAIT, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, BLOOMBERG NEWS: You had a peace transfer of power. You had a peaceful --
TRUMP: I (INAUDIBLE).
MICKLETHWAIT: Come on, President Trump. You had a peaceful --
TRUMP: You always have --
MICKLETHWAIT: You had a peaceful transfer of power compared to Venezuela, but it was by far the most -- the worst --
TRUMP: No. MICKLETHWAIT: -- transfer of power for a long time.
TRUMP: There was love and peace. And some people went to the Capitol and a lot of strange things happened there. I left -- I left the morning that I was supposed to leave. I went to Florida. And you had a very peaceful transfer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: Of course, after Trump's loss in 2020 he refuted the election results and then a violent mob stormed the Capitol building on January 6, 2021.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAPITAL INSURRECTIONISTS: Hang Mike Pence! Hang Mike Pence! Hang Mike Pence!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: Trump also said that the only person killed was Ashli Babbitt. She was the woman who was shot by Capitol Police. However, she was one of five deaths reported following the insurrection at the Capitol that day.
Kamala Harris continuing to stress her and Trump's contrasting plans for the presidency.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's two very different visions for our nation. One mind that is about taking us forward, and progress, and investing in the American people -- investing in their ambitions. Dealing with their challenges. And the other, Donald Trump, is about taking us backward.
CHARLAMAGNE THA GOD, HOST, YOUTUBE BREAKFAST CLUB: The other is about fascism. Why can't we just say it?
HARRIS: Yes, we can say that.
CHARLAMAGNE THA GOD: Yeah.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: Trump's campaign responded to Harris' remarks on social media. They said this type of rhetoric that "led to the two assassination attempts against President Trump."
Joining us now, CNN national political reporter Daniel Strauss. Daniel, good morning to you.
DANIEL STRAUSS, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER: Good morning.
HUNT: So this is Trump here in the final 20 days of this campaign as we are barreling toward the possibility that this could be an election balanced on a knife's edge and everyone is wondering, OK, if Kamala Harris narrowly edges out Donald Trump what is Trump going to do? That's the question here. And it seems as though he's laying out what he is going to do in the event that happens because he's insisting that what happened on January 6 was peaceful. I think the pictures show you otherwise -- that it was not peaceful.
How do you look at what Trump is doing here in these final days, and what should we be prepared for?
STRAUSS: It's not just Trump, it's the Republican Party at large. You know, Trump and his campaign under -- in the past few months have really changed the Republican National Committee from a "Get Out the Vote" operation to one that is basically a law firm filing legal challenges against voting and preparing for a contested election even as Trump himself amps up his rhetoric and the kind of things that cause Kamala Harris and her allies to say that she should call him out as fascist.
Look, this is going to be a very close election and it's unlikely we're going to know what the results are going to be on election night, and if there's any sort of outcome that Trump doesn't like he's going to argue that it was stolen. That there were questions to be had and that there was foul play.
HUNT: Daniel, the Harris campaign is raising questions about Trump's fitness, especially in the wake of the rally that he held -- or the town hall, I should say, that he held earlier in the week. There were some medical emergencies and then he ended up spending half an hour on stage dancing to his -- to his Spotify playlist.
He also got really prickly in an interview yesterday we had played -- there he is dancing. This, again, went on for 30-plus minutes. He was in this town hall -- the comments that he made about January 6. He also was pressed about some of his economic policies by John Micklethwait of Bloomberg News, formerly of The Economist. Micklethwait invoked The Wall Street Journal and Trump got very testy about it.
Let's watch that moment.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICKLETHWAIT: The markets are looking at the fact you are making all these promises. The latest one was car loans. And people like The Wall Street Journal, who is hardly a communist organization --
TRUMP: Yeah, but you don't --
MICKLETHWAIT: -- they have criticized you on this as well. You are running up enormous debt.
[05:35:00]
TRUMP: What does The Wall Street Journal know? I'm meeting with them tomorrow. What does The Wall Street Journal know? They've been wrong about everything. So have you, by the way. You've been wrong about everything.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: With the arms crossed.
STRAUSS: Yeah.
HUNT: What kind of figure is Trump cutting at this point in the campaign?
STRAUSS: Look, one who -- he's very confident in a very, very simple economic proposal, which is a 10 percent across-the-board tariff that, as Micklethwait was saying, would cause a negative impact across the country, according to economists.
And you could see here that -- I can't think of the last time where someone like Micklethwait -- someone really steeped in business and economics called him out in such a way, and it's clear that Trump didn't like that.
HUNT: Clear, indeed.
All right, Daniel Strauss for us this morning. Daniel, very grateful for you. Thank you for being here.
STRAUSS: Thanks.
HUNT: All right, it is not, of course, just the White House up for grabs here in 20 days. Democrats are hanging on to the Senate by a thread. They currently only have a two-seat majority, 51-49, and that includes four Independents who caucus with the Democratic Party.
West Virginia all but certain to flip from blue to red come November because of Joe Manchin's decision to retire from the Senate. And two competitive Senate seats currently held by Democrats in Ohio and Montana are in states that are, let's be real, red states now. And that makes Democrats' path to defending their majority in the upper chamber even more complicated.
There is one race and let's -- they are always hopeful about it because of who holds it currently, but this is pretty interesting in Texas because Congressman Colin Allred trying to unseat longtime Republican Sen. Ted Cruz. A recent poll showed Allred just four points behind Cruz.
Last night the pair took to the stage to debate.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COLIN ALLRED, (D) TEXAS SENATE CANDIDATE: He's never there for us when we need him. When the lights went out in the energy capital of the world he went to Cancun. On January 6, when a mob was storming the Capitol, he was hiding in a supply closet. And when the toughest border security bill in a generation came up in the United States Senate, he took it down. SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX): Do you know what he argued for? Military bases should have drag shows and should be able to fly a transgender flag above it. Look, call me old-fashioned. I think the only flag that should fly above our military --
DEBATE MODERATOR: Senator?
CRUZ: -- base should be the American flag.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: All right. Joining us now, senior congressional reporter for Punchbowl News, Andrew Desiderio. Andrew, good morning to you.
ANDREW DESIDERIO, SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER, PUNCHBOWL NEWS: Good morning.
HUNT: Look, this is a race -- this is not the first time that we've talked about somebody who is challenging Ted Cruz. Democrats are always hopeful about it.
DESIDERIO: Right.
HUNT: It never actually pans out.
I will say this is the time that it's probably the closest, right? Colin Allred as a candidate brings some things to the table that others may not have in the past, and in the right national environment maybe something might happen there.
Why is it so close in Texas right now?
DESIDERIO: Well, it's getting closer and closer each time Ted Cruz has run for re-election, of course. The last time he ran against Beto O'Rourke, you remember, and he only lost by a few points. That was, of course, a midterm year. In midterm years we see a much lower voter turnout usually. We're not in a presidential year. Voter turnout is going to be higher. I think that benefits Ted Cruz here.
But again, Colin Allred is a strong candidate. He is someone that Senate Democrats are very high on. And that is why the DSCC, the Senate Democratic Campaign arm, is pumping tons of money right now into Texas to try to go on offense here.
And look, one of the main reasons they're doing that is because they've got this really slim majority and if they lose just one of those battleground states to Republicans their majority goes poof unless they pick up a seat in Texas or in Florida, which is another state they're trying to compete in which, again, the odds are pretty slim for them there as well.
So again, this is all about saving their majority. There's obviously only a few weeks left here so there's only so much you can do and only so much money you could pump into the state. But the DSCC and Senate Democrats writ large are feeling a little bit more optimistic about Texas this year than they have in recent years. HUNT: Yeah, it's interesting.
So Montana and Ohio, the two other kind of red state seats. Jon Tester out in Montana honestly having the fight of his life.
DESIDERIO: Yeah.
HUNT: There are a lot of people that have kind of written him off. Ohio may be a little bit different though. And I know you just traveled there.
DESIDERIO: Um-hum.
HUNT: How do you see these two races at this point?
DESIDERIO: Look, these are the two best pick-up opportunities for Republicans right now. They need to just -- again, they just need to flip one of those two to get the Senate majority. They would like both, obviously. They would like more. They would like some other Rust Belt states. They would like Arizona and Nevada, for example. But Montana and Ohio are obviously the biggest pickup opportunities right now.
What they have to contend with is a group of really thousands of voters who are going to be ticket-splitters. In other words, people that vote for Donald Trump at the top of the ticket but also vote to re-elect their incumbent Democratic senator, which might sound very weird to us.
But there are a lot of voters, especially in these states who are doing that because Jon Tester and Sherrod Brown, the incumbents in those states, are running based on their own personal brands trying to distinguish themselves from the national Democratic Party brand. They've had some success in doing that. They've been able to outrun Kamala Harris in that respect.
[05:40:10]
In Montana, like you mentioned, it might not be enough to close the gap. In Ohio, it's much more doable for Democrats and Sherrod Brown is a uniquely strong candidate in that respect.
But again, Senate Democrats -- the fate of Senate Democrats -- the majority ironically will come down to a group of people who will vote for Donald Trump in these red states.
HUNT: Um-hum.
Andrew, when you were on the ground in Ohio did you get the sense the Brown campaign thinks they're going to win?
DESIDERIO: I did, honestly, because Bernie Morena, who is the Republican running against him -- Republicans view him as a strong candidate. He's saying all the right things and doing all the right things right now, capitalizing on all these national issues to try to bludgeon Sherrod Brown and really tie him to, again, the National Democratic Party.
But Sherrod Brown is focusing on a lot of local issues. He is running against, really, everyone. He's running against Democrats. He's running against Republicans.
He talks about how presidents of both parties have sold out our state when it comes to trade policies. When it comes to the bottoming out of the -- of the auto manufacturing industry in Ohio, for example.
HUNT: Um-hum.
DESIDERIO: He talks about the fentanyl crisis in the context of the border, right? That's how he's trying to blunt some of those attacks from Republicans over border security.
And again, Republicans obviously trying to tie him to the Biden administration record and trying to --
HUNT: Right.
DESIDERIO: -- tie him to Kamala Harris. He's pushing back and saying no -- presidents of both parties have failed in that respect. And that was a phrase, by the way, that he used many times when I was with him last week was "presidents of both parties" at least half a dozen times, and that's deliberate.
HUNT: Right. Fair enough.
All right, Andrew Desiderio. Thank you very much for being here this morning. I really appreciate it.
All right. Still ahead on CNN THIS MORNING rambling or weaving.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: It's called the weave. It's all these different things happen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: Two candidates, two very different approaches to messaging. We'll take a look at those.
Plus, World Series or bust for the New York Yankees. The Bleacher Report, next.
(COMMERCIAL)
[05:46:20]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: She's totally scripted, owned and controlled by the donors.
PETE BUTTIGIEG, TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: Donald Trump seems literally almost physically incapable of talking about it. Every time he gets a question about it you get a strange ramble. SEN. J.D. VANCE (R-OH), U.S. VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: She only speaks to voters behind a teleprompter. Everything is scripted.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Donald Trump, we know, is just going to ramble on and say a number of incoherent things. Maybe say some really crazy and outlandish things.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: To anyone who has watched both a Kamala Harris or a Donald Trump rally it's very clear that these two candidates have very different styles on stage and when interviewed. And while both, as you saw there, have been criticized by their opponents for the respected style -- these respective styles -- Harris is scripted, Trump is rambling -- they both defend their rhetorical approaches as they're making media rounds in the final weeks of the election.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHARLAMAGNE THA GOD: Folks say you come off as very scripted. They say you like to stick to your talking points. And some media says you have --
HARRIS: That would be called discipline.
CHARLAMAGNE THA GOD: But what do you say to people who say you stay on the talking points?
HARRIS: I would say you're welcome.
There are certain things that must be repeated to ensure that I have everyone know what I stand for.
TRUMP: You know, I call it the weave. You can -- it's got a -- you have the weave as long as you end up in the right location at the end. I'm just telling you basic -- it's called the weave. It's all these different things happen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: All right. Joining us now to discuss, CNN chief media analyst Brian Stelter. Brian, good morning. It's wonderful to have you on the program. Thank you for being up so early --
BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST (via Webex by Cisco): Thank you.
HUNT: -- with us.
Let's talk about what we're seeing from these two in the final weeks. I mean, Harris -- I thought that was fascinating that she says look, what I'm doing, it's called discipline. And as someone who has covered a lot of these candidates this is certainly something that historically is considered to be an asset for anyone trying to become President of the United States. Trump obviously takes a different approach. STELTER: And I'm going to try not to do the weave with you.
But here's the thing. When Trump says that he's very self-aware. And when his critics hit him for rambling or dancing on stage, I think they're missing the connection that he has with his fans. He creates a loving, adoring connection even when he rambles. Even when he goes off script.
And he complains that Harris is scripted and always on a teleprompter which, of course, is not true. When she was on yesterday with Charlamagne tha God that was a long and unscripted challenging interview. I was glad to see CNN simulcast it. You know, millions of people were able to see Harris in a very tough interview yesterday.
It seems to me Harris is doing a leave no stone unturned strategy. She is going everywhere doing interviews. She's going to Fox News today. She's acting like the underdog, whereas Trump thinks he's sitting on a lead and he's being more careful. Well, by Trump's standards careful. We can never really say Trump is actually careful in his events or in his rhetoric.
HUNT: Yeah. Well, I mean, because you saw him say on stage yesterday that he thought about not doing that interview that he sat for. And the folks over at CNBC say he pulled the plug on a planned interview --
STELTER: Yeah.
HUNT: -- with them for later this week, which I think --
STELTER: Yeah.
HUNT: -- speaks to your -- you know, when you -- when you think you're winning you tend to take fewer risks, right? Whereas Harris does seem to be in a position where her team feels like she needs to take some.
STELTER: I think that's exactly what's going on here. Again, you can't ever use the word careful when you're talking about Donald Trump. But pulling out of CNBC, refusing to go on "60 MINUTES," refusing to have another debate, he seems to think he's winning and he's acting accordingly.
It actually gels with the general political environment where Republicans are feeling more confident. Democrats are more anxious about the election. All of this is of a piece.
[05:50:03]
When it comes to Harris, I'm really intrigued by the interviews that she is doing. You know, some of them are with journalists, some of them are with influencers and podcasters.
I think her strategy right now is to try to reach out to news avoiders and people who are cynical about the news. People who don't really want to hear about politics necessarily. That's why she's going on the radio for that town hall yesterday. That's why she's doing YouTube streaming shows.
You know, it's an attempt to reach the persuadable base of voters who have not yet made up their minds yet. And frankly, you're not going to find them by going on Fox.
The Fox interview though -- that's why the Fox interview I think is the unusual one here. Maybe she just -- she has to do it. She has to check the box so she can't be accused of ignoring Fox in the election. But there are some persuadable voters who might still be watching Fox and maybe that's the strategy there today.
HUNT: Yeah. I mean, I think if you dig into that data there are some Independent voters who watch Fox News -- who get their news there -- that are potentially persuadable for her. I agree. It's interesting.
I think the question about whether she may or may not do Joe Rogan's podcast as well is one that -- I mean --
STELTER: Yes.
HUNT: -- I'm really interested in the risk-reward calculus on that, but I guess we'll find out.
Brian Stelter, I'm so grateful for you. Thank you. I hope you'll come back.
STELTER: I'll be here any time. Good morning.
HUNT: All right, sounds good.
All right, time now for sports. The Yankees take a commanding league in the -- lead in the American League Championship Series after beating the Guardians last night. It's my least favorite sentence in the newscast today.
Carolyn Manno has this morning's Bleacher Report. Good morning.
CAROLYN MANNO, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
The Yankees and the Mets really have New Yorkers excited, Kasie.
And while game one featured Juan Soto and Giancarlo Stanton hitting home runs, now Aaron Judge getting into the act. The Yankees captain had 58 home runs in the regular season but none in the postseason until the seventh inning of this game driving a fast ball way over the center field wall. He knew it right away. That right there marked the 14th home run of his playoff career and broke the game wide open as well.
So the Yankees win 6-3 taking the first two games in the Bronx.
By the way, teams up 2-0 in a best of seven series have gone on to win 84 percent of the time. So the Guardians are going to have their work cut out for them in game three tomorrow night on TBS and Max. Tonight, the Mets host the Dodgers here in New York. That series is tied at one. And a pretty big Tuesday in the NFL beginning with a pair of receivers
heading to new homes. The Browns sending Amari Cooper to the Bills for a third-round pick. And some late pick swaps. The Raiders are sending Davante Adams to the Jets for a conditional third-round pick.
Adams reunited with his Packers teammate Aaron Rodgers in New York surprising everybody when he showed up on Aaron's weekly appearance on "THE PAT MCAFEE SHOW" on ESPN.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVANTE ADAMS, 6-TIME PRO BOWLER: I'm sure there's a few new -- you know, little nuances. But for the most part a lot of the same verbiage. Still the same O.G. right here. So we should be able to pick up where we left off. You know, that's the idea.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MANNO: NFL owners met in Atlanta on Tuesday awarding the city the Super Bowl in 2028. This is the second Super Bowl at Mercedes Benz Stadium. The other in 2019, which was the last of Tom Brady's titles in New England.
And speaking of Tom Brady, his purchase of a minority stake in the Raiders got approved by the league. So that's a five percent stake in the club, according to the Associated Press. The superstar saying he is humbled by the move and wants to help the team any way that he can.
Elsewhere this morning, the U.S. men's soccer team playing in Mexico last night, the second game for new manager Mauricio Pochettino. A number of U.S. stars were out of action. Mexico taking advantage of that fact. Raul Jimenez with a stunning free kick goal rising over the wall into the corner. Two-nil the final there as the U.S. losing to Mexico for the first time since 2019.
And lastly for you this morning, Kasie, this was an emotional night in Columbus as the Blue Jackets honored former teammate Johnny Gaudreau. The Jackets and the Florida Panthers lining up while many of the Gaudreau family members came onto the ice receiving huge applause.
Gaudreau and his brother Matthew were killed back in August after being hit by a suspected drunk driver.
Johnny's widow Meredith wiping away tears as she watched a banner with his number 13 raised to the rafters.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just standing here and --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MANNO: When the puck was dropped, the Blue Jackets left Gaudreau's wing position empty, and the game stopped at the 13-second mark to a huge ovation. This was such an emotional moment, Kasie. Not a dry eye in the house. So many people loved the Gaudreau brothers. They loved the family. And
the tragedy impacted so many people. Some raw emotion still present from everybody -- fans, teammates. It was just incredibly powerful to watch last night as the family was there and these two were honored.
[05:55:05]
HUNT: Yeah, really very, very emotional there and a touching moment to honor them.
Carolyn, thanks very much for that report. I appreciate it.
All right. Coming up in our next hour on CNN THIS MORNING the final push. Just 20 days until Election Day. I'm going to speak exclusively to the founder of the Faith and Freedom Coalition as Donald Trump's allies try to mobilize evangelical voters.
Plus, Georgia voters turn out in record numbers for the first day of early voting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I want my voice to be heard. I want us to be united, not divided.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So I just wanted to represent all of the immigrants and all of the migrants.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL)
HUNT: It's Wednesday, October 16. Right now on CNN THIS MORNING --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: It's tight. I'm gonna win. I'm gonna win.
TRUMP: Vote. We have to win, win, win -- we've got to win, win, win.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: Crunch time -- just 20 days to go. New polls out this morning show a race that is still virtually tied.
