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CNN Live Event/Special
Trump Wins Presidency, GOP Takes Senate, House Still Undecided; Trump & Allies Closely Tracking Which World Leaders Reach Out and When. Aired 12:30-1p ET
Aired November 06, 2024 - 12:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[12:30:00]
ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR OF "ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT": So they are coming up with the most important issues. Only a third of Harris voters saw that.
KAREN FINNEY, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yeah.
BURNETT: Did the Harris team just not see the full picture here?
FINNEY: You know, I think they did and I think she actually did a better job than President Biden has done on acknowledging the pain and trying to speak to the pain in terms of, I mean, if you look at the policies that she put out, she was directly trying to address price of groceries, housing costs, I mean, very specific parts of the economy where the biggest pain points, but I think it just wasn't enough.
And look, I will also say that female candidates running for executive office tend to face resistance to the belief that they will handle the economy. For some reason, whether we like it or not, we tend to think men are better on the economy and on security. So --
BURNETT: Right.
FINNEY: I'm not saying that's why she lost on the issue, I'm just saying there's a couple of things that were just baked in because, let's be honest, she also needed to have distanced herself a little more from Biden. And it was -- and I think that might have act -- if she had been able to do that a little more effectively, that might have even opened more ears to her economic message.
BURNETT: Right. And David, we could talk anecdotally, but there were, thinking of just various men who happened to be Hispanic I spoke to over the past year, all Trump voters, all economic, right? And an anecdote is anecdote, but yet here we are, the numbers come in, when you see the exit polls with Hispanic males, it was very overwhelming. And yet, there was a concern -- I'm not just going to say it was a media narrative.
There was a concern in the Trump campaign, a very serious one, that the comment said about garbage by Tony Hinchcliffe at the Madison Square Garden rally was going to cause deep damage to the Hispanic vote. Right? You can't just say it was a mainstream media concern. That was a concern everywhere. And yet, we simply didn't see it. I mean, it was a pretty overwhelming number here for Latino men.
DAVID URBAN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Right. Probably, listen, just to go back to what Karen says, listen, I do agree with what Karen says in that, Kamala Harris kind of got dealt this card with Harry showing you on the (inaudible) wrong track economy.
BURNETT: Yep.
URBAN: So, you have to run as a party candidate, right? That she -- she had to run as a part of the party, but she had to also at the same time try to distance herself --
BURNETT: Yep.
URBAN: -- from that party. Right? She -- she was like, OK, I inherited the Biden -- on the Biden teams, so I inherit that. But at the same time, if I want to charter a different course, I got to really throw all these people under the bus. So it's a really tough spot to start from for her.
BURNETT: Yep.
URBAN: And when she went on "The View" that was kind of the death nail, right? When she was asked the question --
(CROSSTALK)
BURNETT: Right. When Sunny Hostin asked, what would you do differently?
URBAN: She should have said, listen, with all due respect, I could do this, I could do that. I think that would've been a pivot point. That was -- that was a pivotal moment in the campaign because that was obviously clipped and packaged and run hundreds of times over. And that to your point about, what do -- what do Hispanic working-class families, African-American working-class families in general, when they saw that ad and they're thinking like the country's going on the wrong track, she's not going to change anything. Why should we -- we're not going to keep her in power then.
So, by feeling tethered to that, the previous administration --
BURNETT: Yeah.
URBAN: -- and the party there, if she'd had a little more freedom to kind of go differently, I think the --
ASHLEY ALLISON, FORMER OBAMA WHITE HOUSE SENIOR POLICY ADVISER: Yeah.
URBAN: -- the race may have gone a little differently.
ALLISON: And she only had 107 days to do it.
URBAN: Right.
ALLISON: And it's really hard, like if you -- if we had a primary in 2022 or 2023, she would've had a year to slowly start to walk herself away if she got through the -- but doing that in 107 days, I think that there was a risk/reward calculation that the campaign made. And Karen and I have had conversations about this is, if she did it on day one, there would be -- people would call her disloyal. It was a --
FINNEY: Yeah.
ALLISON: It was a double edged sword.
BURNETT: Yeah.
ALLISON: And I think the reason why, and this -- they'll have -- the campaign will have to say this, but I think the reason why they did not distance themselves is because they were looking at 2022 and we were on these panels and some of the same numbers about dissatisfaction on Joe Biden's approval rating.
BURNETT: Right. And there was going to be a red wave, and then there was a blue wave.
(CROSSTALK)
ALLISON: So we were --
JONAH GOLDBERG, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Trump wasn't on the ballot in 2022.
ALLISON: That's right. But they were looking at that as an indicator that they could move that into 2024 and it just didn't pay off.
BURNETT: Now I know -- again, history's going to be written and there's so many things we don't know. We're talking about the role of COVID. But one thing when you try to say if this was just a realignment or a temporary thing, or one of the greatest, most speedy shifts in political history is going to be the Hispanic vote. So, can I just ask you about Starr County, Texas? I just used this one to make the example. Jonah, I'm sure you have another one.
The most Hispanic county in the United States of America, 97 percent of the people --
GOLDBERG: Right.
BURNETT: OK. That -- it has not voted Republican since 1892 and Trump won it 57 to 41.
GOLDBERG: Yeah. Right.
URBAN: That's, that's kind of a wake-up call there. (LAUGH)
BURNETT: I mean, I just -- I had to get --
(LAUGH)
GOLDBERG: In 2016, he lost it by 60 points. He won it by 16 this time around, which means it's a 76 point swing, which is --
BURNETT: In four -- I mean that's --
GOLDBERG: Yeah, it's -- it's a huge, and so look, I mean, and I think this sort of gets to --
BURNETT: Yeah.
GOLDBERG: -- some of the points we're talking about with the gender stuff. Hispanic vote, the way -- the way Democrats, and to be fair, a lot of Republicans talk about Latinos, they are talking about it is if it's like this monolithic identity, when in fact there are lot of inter-ethnic differences, a lot of Hispanics in this country were not freaked out by the immigration talk or the deportation talk because their families have been here for four generations.
[12:35:00]
BURNETT: Right.
GOLDBERG: And so what has happened with the Hispanic vote is, in many ways, Hispanics used to vote disproportionately Democrat, not because there was some congenital thing about being Hispanic. It was because they were disproportionately poor. And as they move up the socioeconomic ladder, they become indistinguishable from the median voter. So those cultural trends that are grabbing men and working- class men, they're going to grab Hispanics in much the same way they would grab white men and (inaudible) and also a chunk of African- American men.
ALLISON: I will say -- I'm sorry -- I sometimes get nervous about talking about communities when they're not represented on the panel.
GOLDBERG: Yeah.
ALLISON: So I want to -- I want to acknowledge that there is no Latino to my knowledge, maybe I don't know, on this panel. But I -- but we say that about black people, that we're not a monolith and we say that about Latinos. I do think though the origin story of those two communities is distinctly different --
GOLDBERG: For sure.
ALLISON: To your point, and so --
BURNETT: Yeah.
ALLISON: The re -- one of the reasons why I think black voters have remained loyal to the Democratic Party is because of the distinct difference to the origin story, and how they feel like they interact with both parties. And I think when we see, again, I think that folks overestimated what black men were going to support -- how black men were going to support Donald Trump. It did not really manifest like --
FINNEY: She kept Biden's level.
ALLISON: She did.
BURNETT: She didn't increase it though. I mean -- but yeah.
ALLISON: She did.
URBAN: In Pennsylvania.
(LAUGH)
ALLISON: But I think on the national average, she -- but I think when you look at the Latino population, they truly are not a monolith. They speak different dialects in their own --
GOLDBERG: Culture -- California Latinos are very different than Florida.
ALLISON: The Florida Latinos and the messaging, and it wasn't just in this campaign. This has been about an eight-year messaging game that the conservatives have been working in those communities.
BURNETT: Yeah.
ALLISON: Much of the conversation is disinformation about socialism and whatnot.
BURNETT: Yeah.
ALLISON: But some of it is really culturally relevant.
BURNETT: It's interesting, they know Elon Musk saying if they lose, it's a one-party country. And not only did they win, but he certainly did not foresee the coalition that actually accomplished that.
URBAN: And just real quickly on Hispanics, overwhelmingly Catholic, very religious.
BURNETT: Yeah, yep.
URBAN: Right? So those issues --
BURNETT: Those might not have played as well.
URBAN: Those issues, pretty, pretty big in that Hispanic community.
BURNETT: All right. And don't go anywhere because we're going to be back. Stay with us. Our special coverage continues after a brief break.
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[12:41:30]
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR OF "THE SITUATION ROOM": Welcome back to CNN's continuing coverage. Donald Trump returns to power. Voters across the country making their voices heard, handing the new president-elect of the United States a very decisive victory over Vice President Kamala Harris and propelling him back to the White House as the 47th president of the United States.
We have a key race alert for you right now. Let's take a look at some important states that are -- we're getting new numbers in right now and let's put them up on the screen over here. Here we go. In Michigan right now, which has 15 electoral votes, Donald Trump is ahead by some almost 83,000 votes. 99 percent of the vote is in. He has 49.8 percent to 48 percent, 0.3 percent for Kamala Harris. He's up by more than 82,000 votes in Michigan.
In Arizona and its 11 electoral votes, 63 percent of the estimated vote is in, Trump is ahead 51.9 percent to 47.2 percent. Trump has a lead of more than 106,000 votes over Kamala Harris in Arizona, another key battleground state.
In Nevada right now, which has six electoral votes, 88 percent of the estimated vote is in. Trump maintains a lead of 51.5 percent to Kamala Harris 46.8 percent. His lead is about 59,000 votes -- a little bit more than 59,000 votes over Kamala Harris. We're watching that very, very closely.
Let's turn now to the balance of power in the U.S. Congress. Republicans, as you probably know by now, have flipped the U.S. Senate while control of the House of Representatives is still pretty much up for grabs. CNN's Chief Congressional Correspondent, Manu Raju is following all these developments for us. Tell us the latest, Manu.
MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, look, if we are looking at the margin, the how big of a Republican majority that they'll have in the United States Senate, because each seat is so significant. An additional seat makes it harder for the minority party to get back in the majority in future election cycles, also makes it easier to pass an agenda, easier to confirm nominees including to the Supreme Court. So each race is so significant.
Right now, Republicans have a 52/42 majority in the Senate. They picked up three last night in red states, in West Virginia, in Ohio, in Montana. And right now, they are currently leading in two seats that were Democratic seats. Right now, there are three other Democratic seats in purple states in Michigan, Wisconsin, Arizona. Democrats have the lead in those, but in two Democratic seats in other purple states, the Republicans are now leading. Let's look at those states that are -- that we can drill down a little further.
Nevada, this is a big surprise. Coming into this race, the Democratic incumbent, Jacky Rosen was viewed pretty (ph), that she had a comfortable lead according to the public polling. But right now, Sam Brown, an Army veteran, is ahead by 1,190 votes, the narrowest of margins in this race. And I've been talking to both sides this morning. They expect this to come down to the wire. There's 88 percent that are reporting in this race. So Republicans could potentially pick that up. Maybe the Democrats can as well. We'll see how that -- what happens there.
And in Pennsylvania, a three-time term incumbent Democratic Senator Bob Casey, a long-time fixture of Pennsylvania politics is losing by 48,469 votes to the Republican businessman, David McCormick. And with 97 percent of the vote in, Republicans are feeling very confident that they can have at least a 53/47 majority in the United States Senate. So, do Democrats have any opportunity to have any lever of power in Washington? Let's look at the United States House right now.
[12:45:00]
The Democrats have to pick up four seats, a net of four seats to be back in power in the U.S. house. Right now though, Republicans have picked up five seats. Democrats have picked up just two seats. They need to get 218 to be in the majority. There are still 49 seats that we have not called yet. However, the battleground is so narrow in the U.S. House. There are not that many that are truly at play. And at the moment, Democrats are leading in five Republican districts. Perhaps they're confident about some of those seats, but this is a problem for Democrats because Republicans are leading in three Democratic districts, which makes the path to get to the net of four seats even more difficult.
But Wolf, we are going to be looking very closely in those House districts in New York, in the suburbs of New York, and as well as California, some in Arizona as well, some that have not been called yet. But at the moment, Democrats will acknowledge their path to the majority, they got to really have run the table to get back into the majority in the House. Republicans are growing very confident that they have the majority.
The Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, putting out a statement this morning saying just that. But even if they do have the majority, Wolf, it is going to be a razor-thin majority once again for the GOP if they manage to hold on to power.
BLITZER: Yeah, lot is at stake in that balance of power in the House of Representatives. Manu Raju, thank you very, very much.
Still to come, global leaders are now jockeying for meetings with Donald Trump. Stay with CNN. Our special coverage continues right after the short break.
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[12:50:20]
BLITZER: Donald Trump's sweeping victory over Kamala Harris carries massive implications both domestically and around the world. The major questions now, how will his win impact the wars in Ukraine and in the Middle East, and how are leaders in those regions reacting to Trump's re-election? I'm joined now by CNN's Chief International Security Correspondent, Nick Paton Walsh and CNN's Chief Global Affairs Correspondent, Matthew Chance.
Matthew, let me start with you. The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as we now know, is quick to congratulate his friend Donald Trump on the victory. You have some new reporting though, that the two have now actually spoken on the phone. What can you tell us about that? MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, you're right. In the minutes after Donald Trump made his sort of declaration of victory speech, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, sort of posted a message on X, formerly known as Twitter, basically saying this is history's greatest comeback, really congratulating in a gushing way Donald Trump on this election victory. That's been followed up with a phone call. There's been a readout of that over the course of the past few minutes.
They had a conversation that was described as warm and cordial. The Prime Minister of Israel congratulated Trump on his election victory, and the two agreed to work together for Israel's security. Now, that's key because in the course of the past year or so, there's been a great deal of tension between the Israeli government and the Biden Administration, figures in Israel thinking that Biden and his vice president of course, Kamala Harris, has been seeking to sort of hold back Israel's military response to the October 7th attacks.
In contrast, the presidency of Donald Trump, the first term is remembered fondly here as a time when there were several pro-Israel moves. Trump of course, moved the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem. He acknowledged or accepted sovereignty of Israel over the Golan Heights, which was captured from Syria back in 1967, and sort of paved the way for a normalization of diplomatic relations between Israel and several Arab states, as well as taking a much harder line against Iran.
Israel is anticipating and hoping and expecting there to be much more of that, at least early on in a Trump presidency. And so that's why there's so much enthusiasm here from Benjamin Netanyahu, from other Israeli officials, and indeed from many Israelis as well. Recent opinion polls before the votes suggested overwhelming support in Israel for a Trump presidency. And that is what, Wolf, they have now got.
BLITZER: Yeah, a lot of the Israelis were also very pleased that Trump was so very much involved in what's called the " Abraham Accords". Israel's developing relations, permanent relations with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, other countries in the Middle East, that was seen as a huge development for Israel to be sure.
I want to go to Nick right now. Nick, what's the impression about how this very decisive win by Trump will impact potentially the war on Ukraine? And it's getting a little bit more serious right now as thousands of North Korean troops, we understand, have actually joined the Russian fight against Ukraine?
NICK PATON WALSH, CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, look, I mean, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken last week suggested the potentially some of the 8,000 North Korean troops in the Kursk region might get into combat in the days ahead. And there are suggestions that may be occurring right now, but it's one element of bad news for Ukraine across the frontlines. Some analysis suggests they've lost the most amount of ground in October than they have pretty much since the start of the war, according to some assessments. And across the east, certainly Russia advancing in strategic ways that
frankly, were very bad news for Kyiv, even before Donald Trump swept into victory like we saw last night. Now, Trump has been very clear that he thinks he could end the war in 24 hours. He hasn't said how. He's referred to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as an extraordinary salesman who seems to get $100 billion each time he goes essentially to Congress -- I paraphrased there -- and expressed, I think it's fair to say, skepticism amongst the ranks of those around him too, of the need to continue funding Ukraine's defense from Russian invasion with the same extent, the same $60 billion, the same $100 million we hear frankly every week that's come from the Biden Administration.
Now, I think we've seen today from Zelenskyy's team a definite bid to try and reach out to the strong man part of Donald Trump. Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying in a tweet on X.com that the Trump policy of peace through strength is something that could potentially bring a just peace closer towards Ukraine.
[12:55:00]
I think trying to hope that Trump's desire to be seen as an authoritative leader, somebody who can set U.S. policy is not at the same time going to want to appear to push Ukraine towards ceding territory in negotiated settlements at the table. But bear in mind, Wolf, Donald Trump has been a pains in his first term to not upset, for reasons no one's really been able to understand, Vladimir Putin.
And so, I think it's pretty clear too that his relationship with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, a man in his first term, whose telephone transcripts suggested he tried to pressure to investigate the Biden family. Their relationship has been fraught in the past. It may well continue to be fraught. Zelenskyy today in his tweet suggested that they'd had a very good meeting in September, and that the "Victory Plan" had been something they discussed. But we're into a very perilous time here for Ukraine, even before Trump's victory.
Russia ascendant on the march strategically gaining with North Korean troops now to potentially play with, and now somebody in the White House in a matter of months, who is likely to slow down, if not entirely, stop the aid that has been so vital for Ukraine even being able to defend itself. So I think we're looking for an extraordinary few months ahead of stark change in that long running conflict. Wolf.
BLITZER: Yeah, I think you make a good point and we're all waiting to see who Trump names as Secretary of State, Secretary of Defense, National Security Advisor, CIA Director. These are all critically important national security positions. We'll see who Trump picks for these important positions. Nick Payton Walsh, thank you. Matthew Chance, thank you to you as well.
And stay with CNN, aides in the Harris campaign say they're in a state of shock right now as Donald Trump is now the president-elect of the United States. Our special coverage, "Election Day in America Continued" is back after the short break.
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