Return to Transcripts main page
Isa Soares Tonight
New CNN Polls Shows Harris In A Narrow-Edge Lead Over Trump In Michigan And Wisconsin; Biden Calls Trump Supporters Garbage; Israel Strikes Lebanon's Baalbek; Lebanon Under Evacuation Orders; Israel Strikes Baalbek In Lebanon; Israel, U.S. And Lebanon Working On Short-Term Ceasefire Deal; Former Colombia President Santos On Achieving Peace In The Middle East; Israel Bans UNRWA In Israel; Biles And Chiles On Mental Health; Harris And Trump Courting Latino Voters In Nevada. Aired 2-3p ET
Aired October 30, 2024 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:00:00]
ISA SOARES, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: A very warm welcome to the show, everyone, I'm Isa Soares. Tonight, six days away and the race for the White
House is as close as it can be. New polls show Vice President Harris with a narrow edge in two key swing states. Also ahead, the fallout from racist
remarks at a Trump rally over the weekend are having an impact in crucially important Pennsylvania.
I'll speak to a radio station owner there who says many of his callers are fuming. And Israel begins strikes on a historic Lebanese town as behind-
the-scenes Israeli-American and Lebanese officials are reportedly pursuing a short-term ceasefire deal. We're live from the region this hour for you.
But first tonight, six days from the election, both campaigns are making their last-minute pitches to undecided voters while also doing -- well,
some damage control here. Kamala Harris is campaigning in three battleground states today, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Harris is trying to stay laser-focused on her plan for the economy and a pledge to unifying the nation if she's elected.
But that message is being overshadowed by some of these comments made by President Biden about Donald Trump's New York rally. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And just the other day, a speaker at his rally called Puerto Rico a floating island of garbage. Well,
let me tell you something. I don't -- I don't know the Puerto Rican that I know or Puerto Rico where I'm -- in my home state of Delaware, they're
good, decent, honorable people. The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: And the White House says Biden was only referring to the comic who made the remarks at Trump's rally and not all of President Biden's
supporters. Harris had this to say when asked about it earlier today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAMALA HARRIS (D), VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES & DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I think that first of all, he clarified his comments,
but let me be clear, I strongly disagree with any criticism of people based on who they vote for. You heard my speech last night and continuously
throughout my career, I believe that the work that I do, it's about representing all the people, whether they support me or not.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Well, Donald Trump is seizing on Biden's comments, comparing them to 2016, if you remember when Hillary Clinton called his supporters
deplorable, and saying just moments ago to supporters in North Carolina.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT, U.S. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Joe Biden's comments were the direct results of Kamala's and Tim
Walz, you know. You know who that is, his decision to portray everyone who isn't voting for them as evil or sub-human -- you're not sub-human, I'm
looking at you. You are not sub-human, and we know what they believe because look how they've treated you, they've treated you like garbage,
frankly.
They've treated you like garbage. You know what the truth is, they've treated our whole country like garbage, whether they meant to or not,
because they're grossly incompetent people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Well, just released CNN poll as you can see there, show that the Vice President has a very narrow lead in Michigan and Wisconsin, while the
race remains locked in a dead-heat really in Pennsylvania. For more now on the Harris campaign, I want to bring in CNN senior White House reporter
Kevin Liptak.
And Kevin, I mean, dominating headline that the Harris campaign quite honestly would have liked have been in focus today, would have been the
message that you and I were proving this time yesterday, right? Of seeking common ground or even what she said yesterday, "I will always listen to you
even if you don't vote for me".
Instead, we are seeing the Vice President having to respond to Biden's comments, right? Just --
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes --
SOARES: How is that impacting the campaign?
LIPTAK: Yes, I don't think there's anything that Kamala Harris wants to be doing less six days before the election --
SOARES: Yes --
LIPTAK: Than trying to clean up something that President Biden said. She's not even trying to clean-up something she said herself, she's trying to
clarify what her boss, Joe Biden said last night. And I think you're right, there would be in the Harris campaign's view a better opportunity if they
were able to talk about what she was saying last night, which was this message of unity.
[14:05:00]
And that I think was what was so damaging at least in the interpretation of President Biden's comments, is that they did undercut that message and the
message that she's been trying to send to Republicans, including supporters of Trump, at least, former supporters of Trump, that she could provide a
more steady hand on the tiller that she could be a campaign where they would find themselves at home.
And so, I think that this is something that certainly the Harris campaign wishes they were not doing today. And I think it speaks to why President
Biden has been such a limited presence on the campaign trail up until this point. Of course, there is a political imperative for Harris to put some
distance between herself and Biden.
She doesn't want to necessarily act as a continuation of his administration, but certainly, there are also a lot of Democrats who think
that Biden is a liability on the campaign trail because he does have a record and a pension for saying things that can be misconstrued at best.
You know, I don't think that the White House's explanation is necessarily unreasonable that the President was talking about that single comedian who
referred to Puerto Rico as a floating island of trash.
But the problem is that, the President is on tape saying this, and so, his words essentially speak for themselves. And so, you know, I don't know how
much longer this will be issue on the campaign trail, certainly, President Trump is seizing on it. And I think it also speaks to something of, you
know, the double standard.
President Trump is someone who has called supporters of Harris vermin, he has called them enemy from within and asked for them to be jailed. So,
there's a double-standard here, but at the end of the day, it has allowed an opening for Republicans to criticize Harris and Biden.
SOARES: Yes, very important to add that context. Kevin, appreciate it, thank you very much. And as Kevin was saying there, Donald Trump may be
calling out President Biden for his single clarified garbage remark, but here's a reminder really of the rhetoric from Trump in his campaign, none
of which by the way has led to an apology or even a clarification. Let's play it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We're dumping ground. We're like a -- we're like a garbage can for the world.
We will root out the communists, Marxists, fascists and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country.
I'll tell you what? Any African-American or Hispanic -- and you know how well I'm doing there, that votes for Kamala, you've got to have your head
examined --
Sixty percent Jewish people are going to vote for Kamala or a Democrat --
(BOOING)
TRUMP: And honestly, you ought to have your heads examined.
We've been engaged in an epic struggle to rescue our country from the sinister forces within who hate it. They hate our country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Well, we could have found much more, but we just didn't want to bore you with more clips. I want to turn to CNN's Daniel Strauss now for
the latest on the Trump campaign. And Daniel, I mean, just give us a sense because I know he spoke in the last few minutes, give us a sense of what --
how he's been responding, Donald Trump, to these remarks and what else he's been saying at this rally.
DANIEL STRAUSS, CNN REPORTER: These remarks about the garbage comment really end what seemed like a muted response from Trump himself in the
aftermath of what Biden said yesterday. And look, it's telling that the Trump campaign and their allies were so eager to jump on it, partially just
because of what Biden said, but partially because they have been looking very frantically to turn the page on Trump's rally over the weekend and the
comments by this comedian that really triggered this whole thing.
At this point in the campaign cycle, the Trump campaign and their allies feel that any sort of movement, any sort of gaffe could be expanded into
something with a real ripple effect. And you know, the hope among Trump supporters and Republicans at large is that this is the so-called
deplorables comment moment for Harris herself.
Now, let's be clear here, Biden is not the candidate, Biden is in the Winter of his life and is prone to gaffes, and this has been true for
decades with Biden. So, it's really a different situation, but that's why the Trump campaign is so eager to play this card exactly and as definitely
as they can.
SOARES: Yes, appreciate it, Daniel, thank you very much. And some key economic news just days across before the U.S. election. The U.S. economy
is seeing solid growth, seemingly pulling off a so-called soft landing and avoiding a recession. U.S. GDP, let's show it to you, expanded by annual
rate of 2.8 percent in the third quarter, that's a slightly weaker pace than the previous periods, 3 percent that came in, and this is important
ahead of projections.
Our Julia Chatterley joins me now from New York. Julia, good to see you. And as we have shown viewers in almost every poll, right? On when it comes
to the U.S. election, the economy has been front and center, so talk us through these numbers and how they'll be received by the Harris team and by
U.S. voters here, Julia.
[14:10:00]
JULIA CHATTERLEY, CNN ANCHOR: As always, something for everyone. Yes, the economy is the top focus it seems for voters, and you could argue that for
the White House or for Kamala Harris' campaign, it probably doesn't get much better than this solid growth for the third quarter, obviously, it's
backward looking, but we're not expecting that much different in the fourth quarter.
And the key element of this is consumer-spending. Yes, it was supported by government spending. Yes, it was supported by American business exporting,
but the real driver of the American economy continues to be consumer spending, and that was very much the story today. And why does consumer
spending continue to be strong wolf for the most part?
Because the labor market remains strong, and that was the other piece of data that we got, a far better-than-expected jobs number today too. We were
expecting to see perhaps some concerns due to the hurricane impact over the past month or so to the strikes over that big firm, Boeing, of course, too.
But that's not what we see in this data. So, when you combine the two of those, the U.S. and American economy is on an incredibly solid footing
going into this election. The problem is -- you and I have discussed all the way along is, even when you've contained, the price rises for the
average American consumer that's still struggling with the fact that over the course of this administration, average prices are up around 17
percentage points, and that really hurts --
SOARES: But let's talk --
(CROSSTALK)
CHATTERLEY: Discontent despite --
SOARES: Let's --
CHATTERLEY: The good news.
SOARES: Let's try to make sense of this because the "FT", "Financial Times" today, Julia, had a great article in the U.S. economy, and it uses the
movie, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" --
CHATTERLEY: Yes --
SOARES: Almost like as a metaphor. And it reads in part -- I find it really interesting. "Movie buffs will remember that the title character played by
Brad Pitt ages in reverse from an old man to a young child. The U.S. economy is on a similar path, reverting to a time of solid sustainable
growth that is going from a late cycle stage characterized by tight monetary policy and rising cost pressures to mid cycle where corporate
profits are growing, credit, demand increases and monetary policy shifts into neutral."
Given this then and the picture that you've just painted, Julia, why is it that Americans have fond memories of the Trump economy?
CHATTERLEY: I think if I can bring it down to a nutshell, because we can do the comparisons, the stock market rises --
SOARES: Yes --
CHATTERLEY: The stock market rises through the Biden administration, what it crystallizes down to, I think is inflation and the fact that what we've
been through it throughout the Biden administration is this dramatic increase in money that was given, the supply shocks of wars, and that
created a situation where people just felt like they couldn't afford to live.
And that's the overriding dominating factor. Moody's have got great stats on this. They say the typical U.S. household is spending $1,120 per month
to buy the same goods and services as January 2021 when Biden became President. That's how much more they're spending. Now, Isa, there's always
half of the other -- the other half of the story.
They're also saying that, that sticker-shock has now been offset by the fact that the typical household is also now making$1,193 per month more
than they were back then. But the problem is people feel like they're paying far more --
SOARES: That's --
CHATTERLEY: Than they were --
SOARES: Yes.
CHATTERLEY: And obviously, for many households, they won't have seen the same wage increases as they've seen the prices go up. And there's a lot of
discontent and you can't fix that by raising interest rates, you fix the rise in prices, you don't fix the jump that they've already been through.
And actually, I think it boils down to that on the economy. It's just been a very painful period.
SOARES: Yes, and when you see the prices of eggs, milk and bread going up - -
CHATTERLEY: Yes --
SOARES: That's how you -- that's what fact people relate to, right? In that -- in that moment.
CHATTERLEY: One little --
(CROSSTALK)
SOARES: Go ahead --
CHATTERLEY: Oh, OK, fine, no, you're done --
SOARES: No, go ahead --
CHATTERLEY: I was going to say Trump talked about this the whole time. And I will say that I think Biden and this White House and even Kamala Harris
has done a relatively poorer job about celebrating the successes versus the weaknesses. And I'm not saying it's easy, but I do think --
SOARES: Yes --
CHATTERLEY: The communication is key and I'm not sure we've had it.
SOARES: Well, you've just stated their case --
CHATTERLEY: Yes, it's right --
SOARES: I appreciate it, Julia, thank you, thanks very much Julia Chatterley there. Well, days after a comedian made pretty much disparaging
comments, racist comments about Puerto Rico, the backlash is still reverberating as you just heard there from our two reporters on the
campaign trail.
Two Puerto Rican communities on Tuesday, protesters gathered in the majority Latina city of Allentown, Pennsylvania, where Donald Trump held a
rally, the battleground state boasts about half a million Puerto Ricans. Allentown's mayor, who is incidentally the city's first Latino mayor says
the comedian's comments had an effect. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR MATT TUERK, ALLENTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA: I think they're moved by this, they're irritated. It was a hateful thing to say and they're mad. I know
that our community, like when we get knocked down, we get up. We're resilient, both Puerto Ricans and Allentownians, we get up and we respond
in kind.
And the response in this case is to go out and vote.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[14:15:00]
SOARES: Well, joining me now from Allentown is Victor Martinez who is the morning show host and CEO of La Mega Radio. Victor, welcome to the show,
good to see you. So, give us a sense for viewers around the world how those racist remarks that we heard over the weekend about Puerto Rico, how have
they been received by your listeners? What have people been telling you?
VICTOR MARTINEZ, MORNING SHOW HOST & CEO, LA MEGA RADIO: Well, listen, we have listeners throughout the state. We are five radio stations with over
250,000 listeners, and the response we have received is of our audience, especially the Puerto Rican community just flat-out mad. They're upset,
they're pissed off, they can't believe that something like this will be said or was said on such a public way.
I mean, you shouldn't say that any country is trash. For us Puerto Ricans, you should definitely not call Puerto Rico a trash. So, the Puerto Rican
community is really upset and mad at those comments, and now that three days have gone by, they continue to be upset because Donald Trump has
refused to distance himself, to apologize, to even acknowledge that something wrong was even said during the rally.
SOARES: So, then, Matt, in your words, they're pissed off, they're clearly very angry. Are any of them that you've spoken to prepared to change their
vote? Many were -- perhaps some of the Republicans, they're not voting, Democrat or undecided now voting for Kamala Harris. Give us a sense of
that?
MARTINEZ: Well, I'm glad you asked because yesterday we had a caller, very specific caller, and he's a Republican. He already voted for Trump with
early voting, and so, he was telling us that he was upset because he already voted. And so, I asked, I said, OK, so, now you voted, now what?
And he said that the only thing he can do to make up for the vote he gave Trump is for now to try to convince his family, his friend, to not vote for
Donald Trump, to try to compensate for the vote that he gave Trump. And I want to make sure your audience understands.
I mean, we have about 300,000 Puerto Rican voters in the state of Pennsylvania, which means that if 1, 2, even 3 percent of those 300,000
Puerto Ricans decide to switch their votes or come out and vote for Kamala Harris, that could be the difference for her to win the state of
Pennsylvania, the 19 electoral votes and possibly the presidency of the United States.
SOARES: And like you clearly said, Victor, we haven't -- President -- former President Trump hasn't clarified, hasn't apologized. In fact, he
said to "Fox News", I don't know if it's a big deal or not, but I don't want anybody making nasty jokes or stupid jokes. Probably he talking about
the comedian shouldn't be in there.
I mean, that's certainly not an apology, I don't know how you read it, how your viewers read it. Will they -- do you think you'll even get an apology
first of all, Victor?
MARTINEZ: We don't think by now we're going to get an apology. One of the things that some of our listeners were expressing to us is that ironically,
they might have been even willing to give Trump a pass, understanding that he wasn't the one that said those comments. But the fact that he hasn't --
SOARES: Yes --
MARTINEZ: Even acknowledged the situation, the fact that he hasn't even apologized or distanced himself -- well, now that's why they're mad at him
because now they believe that he agrees with those statement --
SOARES: Yes --
MARTINEZ: With those comments. And also, this all brings back those memories from Maria --
SOARES: Yes --
MARTINEZ: A few years ago, Puerto Rico was devastated by a hurricane, and Donald Trump threw paper towels at people in Puerto Rico, he called Puerto
Rico poor and dirty, he expressed interest on wanting to trade in or sell Puerto Rico like if it was a used card. And even though it happened a few
years ago and we were mad at him back then, you know, time --
SOARES: Yes --
MARTINEZ: Heals all wounds, right? We were willing to --
SOARES: Yes --
MARTINEZ: Forgive, not forget, but forgive. And now with this, is like opening up the wound like oh, we remember, this is the same guy that threw
paper towels, this is the same guy --
SOARES: Yes --
MARTINEZ: Who called us poor and dirty. This is the same guy that wanted to trade us in. And now, this is the guy who is joining forces with this
comedian, expressing that Puerto Rico is trash.
SOARES: And I want to speak of comments, Victor, but comments made by President Biden that you would have heard he was speaking to voter Latino
yesterday, and he said the only garbage I see floating out there, it's his supporters; talking about Trump supporters. "His demonization of Latinos is
unconscionable and it's un-American, it's totally contrary to everything we've done, everything we've been."
[14:20:00]
He as you know, has since clarified those comments. But if you're a Republican voter and you hear that a Latina voted Republican, Latino vote,
you hear that. What do you think? Have you received any calls about those comments from President Biden?
MARTINEZ: Not yet, we haven't discussed that --
SOARES: Yes --
MARTINEZ: On the air yet, but I will tell you, I mean, how ironic that all of a sudden Donald Trump and his supporters are offended, but something
that is very important to distinct here is that the President made those comments and then he immediately put out a statement, put out a
clarification, whether you want to believe him or not, but he reacted immediately and addressed the situation.
Here we are three days later, and we have yet to hear from Donald Trump about what happened in his rally. Here we are three days later and he
hasn't been able to tell the Puerto Rican community, listen, what he --
SOARES: Yes --
MARTINEZ: Said, what that comedian said has nothing to do with me. I don't know who he is, but I will never think of you as trash --
SOARES: Yes --
MARTINEZ: Right? So, the President said something that was wrong, but he immediately acknowledged and tried to clarify it. Here we are three days
later, still waiting --
SOARES: And nothing --
MARTINEZ: For Donald Trump.
SOARES: Important to clarify here that President Biden is not running for office, right? That's the other difference and important to also highlight
to our viewers, Victor, is the fact that President -- former President Trump said yesterday that what he heard was a love fest in his words. So,
just some context. Victor Martinez, really appreciate it, thank you very much, Victor.
MARTINEZ: Thank you.
SOARES: Still to come tonight, one year's worth of rain fell in just eight hours in southern -- in southeastern Spain triggering a flash floods that
killed scores of people. We have a live report from one of the worst affected areas when we come back. Plus, I speak with Colombia's former
President about world leaders' worries over potential Trump re-election.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Many people are very afraid that if Trump wins, then the whole international system will collapse.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: That conversation coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: And dozens of people have died after torrential rains caused devastating flash floods in southeastern Spain in only eight hours. Some
areas near Valencia received more than one year's worth of rain, and meteorologists warn there could be more in the coming days. Spanish Prime
Minister Pedro Sanchez says the government is doing everything it can to help victims and urged residents to stay vigilant.
[14:25:00]
Journalist Atika Shubert joins us now live from one of the affected areas. Atika, just give us a sense of what you have seen and what the government
is doing here, but still so many people missing.
ATIKA SHUBERT, JOURNALIST: Yes, they stayed up all night trying to do search and rescue, find people, find ways to clear the debris, and they'll
be spending another long night at the government headquarters behind me, trying to do the same. Fortunately, not as much rain fell today, but the
biggest problem has simply been clearing out debris and unfortunately, doing search and rescue operations. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SHUBERT (voice-over): Muddy waters dashed through the streets of Spain, ripping through homes, leaving a trail of destruction behind. Rescue
services are working tirelessly, trying to save residents from flash floods that have struck parts of southern and eastern Spain since Tuesday. The
severity of the weather has killed dozens of people according to authorities with torrential rain in many cities and the death toll is only
expected to rise.
(on camera): Now, this is the Turia riverbed in Valencia, normally it's a dry riverbed with hardly any water in it, but as of this morning, the water
was nearly to the top and that's because according to meteorologist, a year's worth of rain, about 20 inches or 500 millimeters was dropped here
in an eight-hour period that ended on Tuesday.
(voice-over): In Valencia, Spain's emergency military unit were deployed to help save locals, wading through the destruction to reach them and bringing
them to safety. One local resident witnessed the severity of the water destroying his neighborhood.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We saw everything going down. The floods took cars, took down half the house of one of our neighbors, and we
had to come in, look how we have our torn clothes because we were saving dogs.
SHUBERT: In other areas of southern Spain, a different kind of catastrophe took place with locals being hit by a severe hailstorm. "Look at the size
of this ball", this person says, "it's completely round". Leaving drivers to battle through extreme weather. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez
said the storms were the worst the country has experienced in the last century And advised citizens to proceed with caution.
PEDRO SANCHEZ, PRIME MINISTER, SPAIN (through translator): Our absolute priority is to help you. We're going to provide all the necessary means
today and tomorrow and for as long as it takes so that we can recover from this tragedy. We are not going to leave you alone.
SHUBERT: Scientists say a human-caused climate crisis is making extreme weather more frequent and more severe. And as the world warms, more intense
and more frequent catastrophes around the horizon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SHUBERT: Now, those search and rescue teams did warn that the death toll would rise and the emergency services have just confirmed that the death
toll has gone up to 92 unfortunately. So, the search will still continue through the night and the clearing of the debris, but this is very grim
news indeed for the --
SOARES: Yes --
SHUBERT: Valencian community. Isa?
SOARES: Yes, horrific news for so many there. Atika Shubert in Valencia, thank you very much, Atika. And still to come tonight, Israel strikes
historic city in northern Lebanon even as it pursues a new ceasefire deal with Hezbollah. We'll break it all down for you next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:30:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOARES: Welcome back everyone. For the first time in the Israel-Hezbollah war, an entire city in Northern Lebanon is under evacuation orders as
Israel carries out powerful strikes. This is the scene in Baalbek, a historic city that is home to ancient Roman ruins. A regional governor says
intense raids are underway. Roads out of the city were jammed with cars, as you can see there, as residents fled in panic.
Israel's army said it's targeting Hezbollah interests. Hezbollah's new leader, Naim Qassem, gave a televised address today, saying Hezbollah is
capable of fighting for months, but would accept a ceasefire under certain conditions.
Meantime, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with his security officials on Tuesday to discuss ceasefire efforts. An Israeli official
telling CNN, Israel, the U.S., and Lebanon are pursuing a deal that would stop the fighting in Lebanon for at least a month.
And just days after the U.N. warned that Israel was separating families in northern Gaza and taking men and boys away by the truckload, a disturbing
image has surfaced. Let me show it to you. Here you see more than 200 Palestinians, some elderly, some wounded, crouched, as you can see, in the
ruins of Jabalya. Most, as you can see, are men. Many are also almost naked.
Witnesses tell CNN Israeli forces detained them as they were fleeing their homes under evacuation orders and forced them to strip. Israel's military
won't comment on this photo but acknowledges routinely detaining and strip- searching people as part of combat operations.
I want to bring our Jeremy Diamond who's live for us in Jerusalem. And, Jeremy, let me focus first on what is happening in the north of Lebanon.
And I'm hoping that you can help us make sense of what is happening. We are seeing strikes, intense rates, as the governor said. This as Israel pursues
a ceasefire kind of behind the scenes. Help us make sense of this.
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, it is no mistake that we are seeing these strikes in Lebanon intensifying this week as these
ceasefire negotiations are getting more serious. The military pressure has always been central to Israel's negotiating strategy, whether in Gaza or in
Lebanon. And indeed, today the City of Baalbek, in Northeastern Lebanon, saw one of the most some of the most intense strikes that it has seen since
the beginning of this conflict hours after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders for the entire city, a city that had some 80,000
residents, at least before this conflict began. And then, hours later, we saw a series of intense airstrikes in that city.
And this is happening at the same time as we are now learning that Israeli, American, and Lebanese officials are indeed intensifying their negotiations
in pursuit of a ceasefire agreement between these two sides. Tomorrow, we will see two of President Biden's top advisers on Middle East issues
arriving in Jerusalem tomorrow to meet with top Israeli officials, including Amos Hochstein, the special envoy who has been negotiating with
the Lebanese government directly as well in pursuit of an agreement between Israel and Hezbollah.
One of the ideas under consideration is a short-term ceasefire proposal during for perhaps a month at least. During which time, Israeli and
Lebanese officials could iron out the details of an ultimate end of the war between Israel and Hezbollah. A ceasefire agreement that would also involve
enforcement of Resolution 1701, which resolved the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, and which would see Hezbollah withdraw its forces some 30
kilometers north of the Israel-Lebanon border.
[14:35:00]
But it is clear that this is still early-stage discussions, but there is some optimism that perhaps a deal can be reached in a matter of weeks,
particularly as Hezbollah has indicated its willingness to engage in these negotiations to open to a potential ceasefire. And also, as the Israeli
government believes it has achieved significant military gains in Hezbollah in Lebanon, nd now, is perhaps the time to reach such an agreement.
SOARES: Jeremy Diamond for us there in Jerusalem this hour. Thanks, Jeremy. While as attempts at diplomacy, as Jeremy was hinting there, and plans for
a ceasefire in the Middle East have pretty much until now failed at every turn, which you'll see what happens with this turn. Ireland's former
president, Mary Robinson, and Colombia's former president, Juan Manuel Santos, have written a powerful piece for Time magazine entitled, "A
Ceasefire is Just the Star. Here's How to End the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Once and For All."
Well, a short time ago I spoke with Former President Santos about how it's possible to achieve a lasting peace.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: President Santos, great to have you on the show. Welcome back. Good to see you.
JUAN MANUEL SANTOS, FORMER COLOMBIAN PRESIDENT AND NOBEL PEACE PRIZE WINNER: Thank you.
SOARES: Let me start where really our conversation on numerous occasions has started, and that is in Gaza. And in particular I want to start in
Northern Gaza, where the situation's gone from bad to worse, quite honestly, with Israel now in this month-long campaign in Northern Gaza.
Just your reaction to the scenes that we have been seeing just the last few days. So, many civilians killed.
I mean the last -- what was it, in the last -- we had a mass casualty strike. I mean, yesterday was a multi-story building. Just your reaction to
the scenes in Northern Gaza in particular.
SANTOS: Well, we are horrified. Horrified to see how the international system is failing to stop this type of situations. And what we're -- with
the Elders are claiming for is for the world leaders to take a long-term view and start talking among themselves and stop what is happening in Gaza,
but it's also happening in many other parts of the world.
If you go, of course, to Ukraine, but you go to Sudan, you go to the Congo, you go so many places where violence is exacerbated and the International
Community and the international system does nothing.
SOARES: And in the last few weeks following the death of the Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar, the killing of Yahya Sinwar, we heard from the United States
and many leaders around the world saying that this was an opportunity, right? An opportunity to seek peace. Yet, you know, Netanyahu said the task
before us is not yet complete.
We are seeing now a renewed push for diplomacy, but it doesn't seem that -- like you were hinting that the Netanyahu wants, that he's seeking that. So,
where does that leave that diplomatic push? Because there's also -- we're also hearing from sources that he's not going to move on Gaza or make any
decisions until after the U.S. election. What does that suggest to you?
SANTOS: That suggests, first, that he's playing with his own political interest. He's calculating if X wins or Y wins and I'll be better off. So,
I will do nothing before. And with complete disregard for human lives for what should be done for the respect of international law and that is very,
very worrisome because once you start breaking international law everybody starts breaking it and the system crumbles.
SOARES: What are the hopes of this war continuing, both in Lebanon, both in Gaza, if Trump is in power? Have you heard anything in terms of his policy
that brings you any sort of peace or hope that a solution is possible here?
SANTOS: What we need is a leader who is courageous enough to take bold decisions, and that is also lacking. Remember what happened many, many
years ago when President Kennedy called Khrushchev in the middle of a crisis, saying, let's get together and solve this problem. Something of
that sort.
If the new president takes a bold and courageous attitude, I think that the war can end. We have the elements. We know what the day after should look
like.
SOARES: Yes.
[14:40:00]
SANTOS: So, how do we get there by courageous and bold leadership?
SOARES: Do -- have we seen bold leadership from President Biden?
SANTOS: No, no.
SOARES: Because the levers were there but they weren't employed.
SANTOS: No, we're not seeing bold leadership from any leader right now. All of them are thinking in their own interest and are thinking short-term.
SOARES: I've heard nervousness from foreign ministers in Europe, in Eastern Europe, about this upcoming U.S. election. Aspects of isolationism and --
with so many crises, as you said, President Santos, around the world, that scares them. And I wonder, whether you feel this nervousness in what
relates to the U.S. election? Have you been hearing -- have you been feeling, hearing that concern?
SANTOS: Yes, of course. Many people are very afraid that if Trump wins, then the whole international system will collapse, that he will withdraw
from NATO, that all the countries that are surrounding Ukraine will be in Jeopardy.
SOARES: Yes, at risk. Yes.
SANTOS: I mean, there's, there is a lot of scary perception of what is good -- what might happen.
SOARES: And you, of course, represent the Elders and with so many crisis, you have plenty of challenges in your hand, especially as you're taking up
a new position with the Elders. Tell us about this.
SANTOS: Yes, I. I'll be elected tomorrow as Chair of the Elders.
SOARES: Congratulations.
SANTOS: Replacing a marvelous woman. She will be an Elder anyway, Mary Robinson, the former president of Ireland.
SOARES: That's fantastic.
SANTOS: The -- she replaced Kofi Annan, who replaced Desmond Tutu. So, I'm very honored that now I'm going to be chairing the Elders in a moment where
the Elders can play a very important role. Because the vacuum that the United Nations is leaving and the lack of dialogue gives us an opportunity
to do what we think we're good at, private diplomacy, identifying the conditions for different parties to get together, to explore common ground,
and this is what is needed.
SOARES: President Santos, congratulations on your position. Great to have you on the show. We welcome you to discuss further the crises, hopefully,
there won't -- that mean that many to discuss, but appreciate it. Thank you very much, President Santos.
SANTOS: Thank you. Thank you for having me.
SOARES: Thank you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: President Santos there, the former president of Colombia, and soon to be chair of the Elders.
And some news just coming in to us from the United Nations. The United Nations Security Council members expressing, quote, "grave concern" over an
Israeli law banning UNRWA. That's the U.N. agency that provides aid in the Palestinian territories. The Security Council calls it the backbone of
relief efforts in Gaza.
Israeli lawmakers approved the law on Monday, which prohibits the U.N. Relief and works agency from operating inside of Israel. That is the spike
pressure from the west and aid agencies, which warm the move would cripple humanitarian efforts in Gaza.
We're going to take a short break. We'll see you on the other side.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:45:00]
SOARES: When it comes to sports, there are few athletes who can compete with gymnast Simone Biles. Fresh off a record-breaking Olympic performance,
our Coy Wire spent time with Biles and her teammate Jordan Chiles. They discussed the importance of mental health and how being vulnerable can
inspire others. All part of the series called Visionaries.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR (voice-over): In 2021 at the delayed Tokyo Olympic Games, all eyes were on Simone Biles. The expectations were through
the roof. The pressure, immense. It seemed a done deal. Simone would go home with the gold and no one would even come close. And then, this
happened.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It is Wednesday, July 28th. The breaking news this morning, Simone Biles, perhaps the greatest gymnast of all time, and maybe
the best athlete on Earth right now, announced moments ago that she will not compete in tomorrow's all-around gymnastics competition for Team USA at
the Olympics. USA Gymnastics says she's withdrawing to focus on her mental health. And she has their support.
WIRE (voice-over): It was a stunning moment on the world's biggest stage. Simone stepped away from her sport, but not from the spotlight. She used
her platform to speak openly about mental health, putting it squarely at the forefront in real-time.
WIRE: I think people love sports more than just the physical feats that they witness. It's the story.
SIMONE BILES, SEVEN-TIME OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST: It's the stories to be told as well.
WIRE: Yes, it's the underdog story. It's the comeback story. And, Simone, you've been such a champion for mental health.
BILES: Yes.
WIRE: What's been the result of that, of everything you've been through and how you've become a champion for your own wellbeing, but representing all
those out there who might be struggling?
BILES: It's the people that I can help along the way. And just know I'm not the poster child for it, but I'll support your mental health journey. And
everybody's mental health journey is unique. So, I want you to just take your time and be patient with that, and be patient with yourself. And there
is beauty in being vulnerable.
And yes, I think it's really nice because now people come up to me and they're like, I've been in therapy for the first time in my life and thank
you so much. Like there's power in that. And so, I really -- I just know I'm helping people out there.
JORDAN CHILES, 2024 OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST: She's helped me. Yes. Yes. She's like, come on now, get it together.
BILES: Yes.
WIRE: The strongest deals burned in the hottest coals, right? And, Jordan, you --
CHILES: Which is very -- I'm very thankful actually, like for her to be able, one being in that position that she was in during that time frame and
her being vulnerable just made it even better for not just me, but everybody around, not just in our sport, but just people in general.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: Two formidable ladies there. And still to come tonight, as Donald Trump and Kamala Harris prepare to rally in Nevada hoping, of course, win
the vote of the Latino community, our John King traveled to the battleground state. Hear what voters had to say in the race for the White
House. That is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:50:00]
SOARES: In the coming days, Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are both making campaign stops in Nevada as they try to secure the Latino vote. On
Thursday, actress and singer Jennifer Lopez will deliver remarks at a Harris rally in Las Vegas to help with those efforts. And it comes days
after comedian Tony Hinchcliffe drew widespread condemnation for calling Puerto Rico a floating island of garbage. This happened, of course, at a
Trump rally.
A new CNN poll shows Harris, with a slight lead over Trump among likely Latino voters, as you can see there, in Nevada and Arizona. Our John King
traveled to Vegas to find out what voters are saying and what they're worried about.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dawn in battleground Nevada, the Vegas morning rush, one week to election day.
ANTONIO MUNOZ, NEVADA RESIDENT: So, it's very, very tense. You know, it's nerve-wracking because you just don't know what's going to happen.
KING (voice-over): Antonio Munoz owns the 911 Tacobar. He's a veteran and a retired Las Vegas police officer. Undecided and unhappy with his choices
when we first visited 11 months ago. Meeting Kamala Harris when we returned six weeks ago. Now, definitely Harris. Trump's weekend rally in New York
removed any doubt.
MUNOZ: And that was very, very upsetting, you know. They spoke about Mexicans and having kids like nothing is like, you know, where do you come
up with this stuff? Why would you say something like that in an atmosphere like that? And that's very troubling.
KING (voice-over): Munoz is betting on a narrow Harris win here, but says the Latino community is more evenly split than in past campaigns because of
housing and grocery costs.
MUNOZ: Inflation, it's affected a lot of people here in our community and they don't see their dollar going the way it used to go, you know. I think
they really think Trump's going to make it better, which, you know, one person can't come in and just inflation is going down. It's a process.
KING (voice-over): Early voting here runs through Friday, and more than seven in 10 Nevada voters live here in Clark County, that's Las Vegas, and
its fast-growing suburbs.
One big difference this cycle is the Republican embrace of early voting. Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton on hand in Vegas for a Veterans for Trump event
to kick off the final week.
One in five Nevada voters is Latino, and a big election year focus at Fiesta 98.1 is urging listeners to flex their political muscle. Rafael
Cerros Jr. is one of the owners. Six weeks ago, he told us he was undecided. And that Trump was running strong among Latinos here.
KING: Anything different from the last time we were here?
RAFAEL CERROS JR., NEVADA RESIDENT: A lot. A lot.
KING (voice-over): Cerros is now voting Harris, and he says the racist insults at the weekend Trump event exploded on social media, triggered
listener calls, texts, e-mails.
CERROS JR.: That alone fluked a lot of people that were going to go for Trump. Now, saying, hey, maybe I'm not too sure. And maybe I'm going, you
know, with Harris, you know, the rhetoric, whether directly from, you know, the candidate or not it's kind of scary, especially, you know, for Latinos
here in Vegas specifically, you know, my Mexican people.
KING: He says, oh, he don't know -- he doesn't know who allowed those speakers to speak at his rally.
CERROS JR.: Oh, that's BS.
KING: That's BS.
CERROS JR.: That's BS.
John King, CNN, Las Vegas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[14:55:00]
SOARES: Latino saying it plainly right there. Now, it's all over for Starbucks Oleato coffees. Their iconic coffee chain is scrapping its olive
oil infused drinks in the U.S. and Canada from early next month. The part coffee, part olive oil drinks divided even the most committed coffee
lovers, including me, and were on the menu for less than a year.
I actually never tasted it. And it comes as part of a bigger menu shake up at Starbucks, with the new CEO pushing to rein the chains famously varied
menu. Olive oil with my salads not with my coffee, please. And finally, this hour, the Vatican has launched an anime character in bid -- in a bit
to reach the younger generation.
I want you to meet Luce, which I think translates as light, unveiled to celebrate the catholic church's holy year. She's dressed as a typical
traveler representing the pilgrims who will visit Rome for the religious event. Organizer says she was designed to reflect pop culture popular
among, of course, young people and to promote what they call intergenerational dialogue. I love Luce.
And that does it for us. Thanks very much for your company. Do stay right here. Newsroom with Jim Sciutto is up next. Have a wonderful day.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:00:00]
END
