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Wolf

FOX Host Defends Trump's Attack on Media; Trump Confident GOP Will Win Senate, Possibly House; Pelosi Adamant Democrats Will Win the House; Trump Calls Gillum a "Stone-Cold Thief"; Following Khashoggi Murder, Israel & Gulf States Stepping Up Relations; Bolton: Election of Far-Right Brazilian Candidate Positive Sign for Latin America. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired November 01, 2018 - 13:30   ET

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

[13:30:00] WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: There's no free press and media to go after and criticize people in power. You have to just say whatever the leader wants you to say. This is the United States of America. There's a free press and that's the way it's got to be.

S.E. CUPP, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR & CNN HOST, "S.E. CUPP UNFILTERED": It shouldn't need reminding that, in countries like Russia and countries like Saudi Arabia, we all know that recent example where in Turkey in the Saudi consulate Jamal Khashoggi was murdered. In those kinds of countries, reports are killed for not reporting the way their leader wants them to. They are killed. That should be appalling and not something we want to aim for. Not something we want to puppet here. I really wish my friends and colleagues at FOX would take more care in their words. They have the president's ears. That's clear. What they say matters. And they are journalists or should be. As well-meaning as I think Ainsley is and Brian and Steve and everyone else at FOX, I wish they would be more careful with the way they talk about our jobs.

BLITZER: And the president made it clear in an interview, he will continue going after the news media, branding the news media as the enemy of the people. He said he is going to continue doing so, despite the dangers of those words and all of the people, including very, very close to him appealing to him, Mr. President, don't do it, it's too dangerous. He's not changing his views.

S.E., thanks very much for joining us.

CUPP: Thanks, wolf.

BLITZER: S.E.'s program, "S.E. CUPP UNFILTERED," airs Saturday night at 6:00 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN.

Mapping out the president's final push. What can we learn from where he is stumping the final days? Five days to go.

Plus, Nancy Pelosi is adamant her party will win back the House on Tuesday. Do Democrats want her to take back the gavel as speaker of the House? Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [13:36:32] BLITZER: President Trump is on the campaign trail ahead of the all-important midterms on Tuesday. Take a look. This is every city where President Trump will host a rally over the next four days, 10 stops in all. He is not rallying in either Nevada or Arizona, despite tight races there because Republican campaigns have asked him to stay away.

Despite this mad dash in the home stretch, the president said he is confident the Republicans will keep the Senate and probably the House as well.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The House is a lot of people. There are a lot of people. I think we will do well in the House also. But I know we are doing well in the Senate and it looks like OK in the House. We will have to see.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Phil Mattingly is our congressional correspondent and knows every vulnerable seat, and he's been tracking the president's campaign stops every step of the way.

Phil, the president said things are looking good, but what does his campaign blitz tell us?

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: His campaign blitz is focused on the Senate. That's a reason why they think things are looking good. Look at these next five states. We will narrow it down. He is going to have rally in Montana, Missouri, Indiana, West Virginia and Florida. In 2012, in the Senate, this was a place where Democrats won or held seats. Take a look at what happened to those five states in 2016 in the presidential. All turned red. The president winning many by double-digits. West Virginia by 42 points. Why is he heading to these states? These are states where he is popular. All of these four states here, he has an approval rating above 50 percent.

Down in Florida, not necessarily the case. Where's he going in Florida? He is going to Pensacola, a place where in 2016 he racked up votes to the point where the RNC was stunned. That's where he knows he can help people turn out and why he is doing the traveling now.

Where he is not traveling is also important. That's the House. I want to pull up the House and focus on two states specifically, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The reason why is two-fold. In these areas you are not going to see the president. These are places that at least early in the night could serve as the cornerstone for a potential Democratic majority.

Look at New Jersey. You see a lot of red in this area. Based on CNN's analysis right now, we have four potential red Republican districts that Democrats can pick up. We are being told, on a good night, Democrats could pull up two seats here. Down here a little bit up here as well. On a great night, they could pull up all four. Look at the red and what the blue could be. Only one New Jersey Republican could remain on a great night for Republicans.

Moving over to Pennsylvania, Wolf, Democrats have been happy about where this was going because of the redistricting. Completely changed the maps of where things could be. Where do things stand right now? Look at the red. The gray is from areas Republicans have retired. These are all pick up opportunities. What could be a good night? They could pick up as many as four seats. Tack it on to three from New Jersey and that's eight towards the 23 magic number that Democrats need to pick up. Where could they be on a great night? If they pull up even more? The first district here in Pennsylvania, combined with four in New Jersey, could be nine total seats. That, Wolf, is a cornerstone in a great night to 23 seats and getting that majority. They fall short of that and that could be a very big warning sign for Democrats as they try to get to that magic number -- Wolf?

[13:39:54] BLITZER: Democrats pick up 23 Republican seats and not lose any that they are holding, they will be the majority in the House of Representatives.

Phil Mattingly, good report. Thanks very much.

Millions of people have already voted in the upcoming midterm elections, but for those of you who haven't voted yet, please do go ahead and vote either way. The stakes are enormously high as we get closer and closer to Tuesday.

There's one Democratic leader who is brimming with confidence about the outcome.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI, (D-CA), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: We will win.

(CHEERING)

We will win.

STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST, THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT: Please don't say that.

PELOSI: We will win.

COLBERT: You want to say that on Hillary's fireworks barge that she canceled?

(LAUGHTER)

Please don't say that.

PELOSI: We will win. We own the ground. We're not yielding one grain of sand.

COLBER: And how long are the curtains that you're measuring right now?

(END VIDEO CLIP) BLITZER: Joining us now is Terry McAuliffe, the former Virginia governor and former chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

Governor, thanks for joining us.

You agree with the Democratic leader?

TERRY MCAULIFFE, (D), FORMER VIRGINIA GOVERNOR & FORMER CHAIRMAN, DEMOCARTIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE: I do. I think we win the House and will have a huge pick up in governorships, anywhere from six to 10 governorships. We are winning in Maine, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Nevada, New Mexico, Iowa, Florida. What means for us, Wolf, is 2021 redistricting. This election is so important. People need to vote. We can't count on anything yet. I remind everybody that 92 million people did not vote in 2016 and they woke up the next day and wondered, how did Donald Trump become president. Because people didn't vote. People have to get out and exercise their right to vote. Last year, in Virginia, out of 25,000 votes cast in the House of Delegates election, dead even. The winner was picked out of a bowl. Don't think for one second every vote doesn't count.

BLITZER: There's debate among Democrats about how tough the Democratic candidates should be in going after the president and other Republicans. The former attorney general, Eric Holder, said Democrats have to get tough and fight back. You heard what he said. Do you agree with that notion? Some say that plays into the president's hands.

MCAULIFFE: Listen, I think we ought to be tough on the issues. The issues are on our side. Why is Trump doing what he's doing? The fear and division and attacking folks? He can't run on issues. They can't run on the tax cut or the health care. And they can't --

BLITZER: They can run on the state of the economy, which is pretty good, the unemployment numbers, good jobs numbers are good, and the stock market is pretty good.

MCAULIFFE: They are not even talking about that. These are not the issues they're running on. He is back on fear and division and attacking people. And the way he is attacking our candidates and the way he goes after folks, like Andrew Gillum, is disgraceful. He's scared. He knows he is going to lose the House. And he knows the Democrats are going to get subpoena power, not putting up with his stuff anymore. So he's really scared. He has himself in a corner. We ought to continue on health care and education. And those are the issues people need to be tough on.

BLITZER: The Democratic candidate in Florida, for governor, Andrew Gillum, he's the mayor of Tallahassee. The president said the other day, he's a "stone-cold thief." I don't think he has been arrested or convicted of anything. He calls him a stone-cold thief. What do you say about that?

MCAULIFFE: It's disgraceful. As Andrew said, why is the leader of the free world even involved in this conversation. Andrew is back. He's doing something on health care. You don't pay a pension to Donald Trump. He so marginalized himself in this country. Nobody pays attention to him. We will have a win because people have had it with his policies. Sending our military to the border. Our Border and Customs Patrol do a great job down there. This is all politicized and our military, I think it's a disgrace. He's talking about sending these troops down there before the midterms. By the time they get here -- we're a couple of weeks away, they are going three miles an hour. By the time the folks get here, it will be a small crowd. This is all about politicizing for the midterms. It's division, hate, fear. That is Donald Trump.

BLITZER: Who do you see as the strongest best advocates for Democratic candidate on a national level?

MCAULIFFE: I have always been big. I think the governor is the most important because actually --

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: Which potential presidential candidates? Who do you see as having the strongest and most positive voice?

MCAULIFFE: I don't know if there's one. I think there's 10 or 15 folks who will probably run for president. If you talk about it before November 6, the next five days, you ought to disqualify yourself. We have to got to win this. Who sits in the governorships will determine the redistricting in 2021. We have our clocks cleaned in 2011. Why are so many of the districts tough for Democrats? Because they gerrymandered them in 2011. We get the governors and that will happen in '21. We get fair maps. Democrats will rule. We'll control. Then we will get health care for everybody. We'll take care of things that people want us to actually do.

BLITZER: What do you think will happen in you state or commonwealth of Virginia?

MCAULIFFE: Tim Kaine is going to win. I feel confident in that. He has been a great Senator. We're lucky. We are running against Cory Stewart. They can't even run a coordinated campaign in Virginia today. No one would put their name on the Senate nominee on the Republican side.

BLITZER: Tim Kaine, the incumbent Democratic Senator.

[13:45:00] MCAULIFFE: Great Senator. We have four competitive congressional races in play. Four right now today. We can pick up all four.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: These are Republican districts that you think the Democrats can win?

MCAULIFFE: Absolutely. In Virginia, where I live, and McLean, Virginia. Our nominee is, Jennifer Wexton, is up about 10 points, consistently has been up. Abigail Stanberger is dead even against Brat. She is a former CIVA covert operative. Huge opportunity for us. We have a Navy commander running on the second. Great opportunities. And none of this matter, Wolf, if people don't get out and vote. We can't let what happened to us in 2016. Hillary lost three states by 77,000 votes. Yet, 92 million people did not vote. They didn't think their vote mattered.

BLITZER: When are you going to announce if you are interested in running for president?

MCAULIFFE: Everybody should get through November 6th, really put the emphasis, and all the folks who are thinking about it will spend three or four months. By the first quarter, you will have everyone in who is going to run.

BLITZER: Maybe you, too?

MCAULIFFE: Let's focus on November 6th and go from there.

BLITZER: Very diplomatic.

MCAULIFFE: Thank you.

BLITZER: Let's talk about it on November 7th.

(CROSSTALK)

MCAULIFFE: You going to knockout a booth tonight?

BLITZER: I have to work. There's a lot of news going on.

MCAULIFFE Great event going on.

BLITZER: Thanks very much for coming in. Governor Terry McAuliffe, of Virginia.

As controversy continues to swirl around Saudi Arabia following the murder of the journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, Israel and gulf states are stepping up relations. Stand by. We have new information.

Plus, stunning new details on how the notorious mobster, "Whitey Bulger" was killed in prison, including a possible link to the mafia and efforts to cut off his tongue.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:51:46] BLITZER: In international news, relations featuring Israel and some of the Arab countries are clearly improving. Israel has stepped up high-level contacts with some of the gulf Arab states in recent days, weeks and months. The Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made an unannounced visit to Oman last week, the highest- level such meeting between the two countries in more than two decades.

Our CNN political and national security analyst, David Sanger, is joining us from New York. David writes for the "New York Times."

David, for decades, Israel has had full diplomatic relations with Egypt and Jordan but, all of a sudden, things are improving for the Israelis with several other Arab states. What's behind this?

DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL & NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: The main thing behind it, Wolf, is Iran. The next few days, you'll see the United States announce the next phase of the sanctions against Iran, meant to bring their oil revenues to zero. It won't succeed at that. But you're seeing the sort of big pincher effect that Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Trump have worked out to try to squeeze the Iranians after the U.S. left the nuclear deal.

Iran has been the one issue that has unified all the Sunnis with the Arab states with the Israelis. He's capitalizing on that with those remarkable pictures you saw from Oman. But there's also a deep intelligent sharing going on between the Mossad, the Israel intelligence agency, and the intelligence agencies of the Sunni states. The one thing that binds them together is their opposition to the Iranian regime. And now their unification with the United States on the rejection of the nuclear deal.

BLITZER: And the United Arab Emirates allowed Israeli athletes to come in for a judo competition, but when a couple of them won the gold medals, they actually played the Israeli national anthem, saw the Israeli flag go up. Symbolically, that was pretty significant, right?

SANGER: It was. What's interesting is you're not hearing much rejection in the Arab states, the Sunni Arab states to this. It tells you there's a younger generation that may not be as reflexively anti- Israel. That doesn't mean they like Israel. But it does you that they see where this is headed.

And the other really fascinating element of it is that, over time, I think they have come to realize that the Iranian -- the Israeli- Palestinian issue cannot dominate the relationship between these ambitious Sunni Arab states and Israel. So it's what they're not discussing, which is the Palestinians, that I find the most fascinating out of this.

BLITZER: Very interesting.

Let me shift gears while I have you. The president's national security adviser, John Bolton, called the election of the far-right Brazilian candidate, Bolsonaro, a positive sign for Latin America. He said, "The troika of tyranny in the hemisphere" -- he was referring to Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua -- he said, "has finally met its match." What's your reaction to that?

[13:54:53] SANGER: You know, it is pretty remarkable. This is an administration that has yet to meet a right-leaning or far-right government that it didn't like. I mean, the embrace, first of all, of Vladimir Putin by the president. Certainly, the embrace of right-wing populists in the Philippines, an American ally. Now, in this case. In eastern Europe, you've heard them be complementary of these populists. What's really remarkable, in the Brazil case, you're seeing a moment now where a good part of the world population, if you include China and Russia in this, and now Brazil, is under the rule of these right or far-right populist regimes. The administration keeps saying bring it on. BLITZER: David Sanger, thanks so much for joining us.

SANGER: Great to be with you, Wolf.

BLITZER: Questions are swirling right now. Officials are saying two sisters found dead in the Hudson River, tied together, were alive when they entered the water. We'll have details.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)