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Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Joins Trump On Stage At Arizona Rally After Suspending Campaign; How Trump's Businesses Are Raking In Millions Of Dollars From Republican Political Campaigns-Including His Own. Aired: 8-9p ET
Aired August 23, 2024 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[20:00:00]
ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: Phil, that will give you a point on that. I understand there's questions about the signatures in the state -- you know, but putting that aside, there were sizable number of people who were supportive of this, right? And they ostensibly because of by virtue of getting signatures, do have a lot of data.
PHILIP BUMP, NATIONAL COLUMNIST, THE WASHINGTON POST: Well, yes.
BURNETT: They should but you're saying none of that --
BUMP: I mean, but there's a difference between having data and they're having politically useful data --
BURNETT: Yes.
BUMP: I'm extremely skeptical they can campaign had stuff, but they're going to, you know -- the voter database that they're calling in order to fit the gap here.
BURNETT: Right, anything other than a name.
BUMP: Exactly. There may be an e-mail address, which is not useful, but it isn't much.
BURNETT: It isn't all the data you need.
All right, well, all, thank you very much. We appreciate it on this Friday night following the Democratic National Convention.
Thanks so much to all of you for being with us. Have a wonderful weekend, it's time now for Anderson and AC360.
[20:00:40]
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST, "ANDERSON COOPER: 360": Good evening. Former President Trump is in the key swing state of Arizona this hour receiving a potentially crucial endorsement and trying to take back the spotlight from Democrats who are riding a wave of enthusiasm after their four-day National Convention.
The former president's newest supporter is Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. The namesake of one of Americas best-known Democratic icons, who today suspended his independent presidential bid and did what no one in his famous family has ever done, embrace a Republican nominee for president.
Tonight's joint appearance comes hours after Kennedy announced his decision to suspend his campaign and throw his support behind Trump. Kennedy, once an environmental lawyer, who is primarily known for conspiracy theories about vaccines and more recently for his rather bizarre revelation in 2014 he left a dead bear in New York Central Park, has at times alleged plots more familiar to the former president and his backers, including the unfounded charge of there having been a coup against President Biden and how the "DNC aligned judges" tried to "throw President Trump in jail."
Now, it's unclear what effect Kennedy's announcement will have on an already turbulent race in part because according to Kennedy, he's not completely abandoning his campaign.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERT F. KENNEDY, JR. (I) FORMER 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I want everyone to know that I am not terminating my campaign. I am simply suspending it and not ending it.
My name will remain on the ballot in most states, but in about 10 battleground states, where my presence would be a spoiler, I'm going to remove my name and I've already started that process and urge voters not to vote for me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: Well, also unclear tonight is what role Kennedy will have in the remaining months of the Trump campaign. Whether Trump and Kennedy have agreed on a job for Kennedy in a second Trump administration, should the former president win in November.
What is clear is that there can be supporters in battleground states now, without a standard bearer could potentially swing an election in a close state like Arizona.
In August, "The New York Times" and Siena College poll found Harris with the edge over Trump among registered Arizona voters by three points, 45 percent to 42 percent but that is within the margin of error with no clear leader. Kennedy drew six percent.
Joining me right now is Kristen Holmes, who's at tonight's rally in Arizona. So talk more about how the Trump campaign is feeling about this endorsement and do they think this changes the race?
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: They certainly do, Anderson, they believe that this is a very big win. They started courting Kennedy's orbit right before the RNC. But those talks really escalated in recent weeks after Kamala Harris took the top of the ticket.
Remember there was a lot of talk early on the election cycle about where Kennedy actually drew votes from. Did he take them from Joe Biden? Did he take them from Donald Trump? Now, Donald Trump's team seems to think even then that there were likely some votes coming from their team.
However, as Kamala Harris ascended to the top of the ticket, this became more urgent to get RFK to back Donald Trump because what they were noticing was that in swing states in particular, all the votes or at least most of the votes were being drawn from Donald Trump. And that is something we heard Kennedy say earlier today.
He said, he came to the realization that particularly in battleground states, he was taking from Donald Trump and not from Democrats. And that was something that he didn't want to do. So just moments ago, we saw him take the stage in this kind of almost crazy arrival that had fireworks and music, and the crowd was cheering.
It's clear he is popular among Republicans, but how much is actually moves the needle seems unclear. Here's what he said when he took the stage with Donald Trump.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KENNEDY: The best way to build a safe America is to rebuild our industrial base and rebuild the middle class in this country.
Don't you want a president who's going to get us out of wars and who's going to rebuild the middle class in this country?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Just to be very clear, he did talk about getting us out of endless wars. Donald Trump has said that he would, but we have no indication of how exactly he would do that, but just the last thing I want to point out here is what you said about that polling particularly in Arizona. That is not the only battleground state in which Kennedy was pulling around five percent.
They believe that five percent could make up a razor thin margin and give Donald Trump an advantage in states like Arizona, in states like Michigan and that is what they are hoping with this endorsement.
[20:05:08]
COOPER: So, what do we know about the behind the scenes campaign to get RFK, Jr. to endorse the former president? I mean, do we know what kind of a deal was done? What promises were made?
HOLMES: So, we don't know what kind of a deal was done? We did hear RFK today essentially say that Donald Trump has said he wants to enlist him in his administration. Donald Trump publicly has not gone that far.
I asked Donald Trump earlier in the week if he would consider RFK for an administration post. He said yes, although he also said he hadn't thought of that yet. It seems, unless that happened in the last couple of days that RFK might have had some kind of conversation or at least it might have been communicated between the two camps.
We also know this came to be, as I said, is there was a sense of urgency around Kamala Harris sending to the top of the ticket. Some of the people who are pushing this the hardest were Tucker Carlson, Don, Jr., and a man named Omeed Malik, who is a donor and friend to both RFK and Donald Trump.
They believe, again, that this was something that would help Donald Trump in the long run in November. So, they began pushing a sort of orbit talking to orbit before it moved to an official stance of RFK suspending his campaign, as you noted and dropping out and endorsing Donald Trump.
It was kind of a strange moment. I agree, when we were sitting in that room with RFK and he said he wasn't ending his campaign. He was just suspending it, but then went on to say that he was taking his name off the ballot, reversing some of the challenges that he had made, particularly in these battleground states.
Some fear what exactly he meant by that not suspending, I mean, not ending his campaign, but just suspending it, but clearly, he has something in his head there and I will tell you, I was told that he is going to be on the campaign trail for Donald Trump and with Donald Trump in the coming weeks.
COOPER: All right, Kristen Holmes, thanks very much after Robert F. Kennedy,, Jr. endorsed Trump, five of his siblings issued this statement, which I'll read in its entirety and I quote, "We want an America filled with hope and bound together by a shared vision of a brighter future, a future defined by individual freedom, economic promise, and national pride. We believe in Harris and Walz. Our brother, Bobby's decision to endorse Trump today is a betrayal of the values that are father and family hold most dear. It is a sad ending to sad story."
That's from Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, Courtney Kennedy, Kerry Kennedy, Chris Kennedy, and Rory Kennedy joined now by another member of the Kennedy family, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s cousin, former Congressman Patrick Kennedy, son of the late Senator Ted Kennedy.
Patrick, it's good to see you. Congressman, thanks for being with us.
PATRICK KENNEDY, FORMER US REPRESENTATIVE: Good to see you, Anderson.
COOPER: What is it like to, I mean, on a personal level, seeing your cousin with the former president and do you agree with the statement of his siblings that this is a betrayal of the values your family holds dear?
P. KENNEDY: So, I love bobby a lot. We got to spend a lot of time this summer together. We all live next to each other and on Cape Cod in the summertime and my kids were playing over at his house and we are on the beach together. I think of him as a cousin.
This case of him supporting President Trump. Obviously, there's nothing about Donald Trump that is anywhere close to reflecting the legacy of Robert Kennedy's father and my uncle, President Kennedy, my dad, anyone in my family.
Our family believes in democracy. We believe in the fact that my uncles, one of whom laid down his life in World War II fighting Hitler over Germany, got shot down. I mean, there were many veterans who were laid to rest in Arlington Cemetery who took on fascism.
And as we know in the Oath to Office, we have to protect our country in its Constitution both foreign and domestic. And I think we fought the foreign wars against fascism,, but now of course, we're waging a war, if you will, against fascism here at home, because this is a campaign by Donald Trump that wants to really terrorize people with the notion that government can easily come after them.
This is so far afield from what we in the United States doomed to be part of our very makeup. You go to other parts of the world, we worry about government coming in and kind of sort of scanning you and arresting you middle of the night, like the idea that we would have a government under Donald Trump that could threaten the very nature of what our democracy is all about is very --
COOPER: Do you talk to, I mean, you're talking about seeing your cousin. I mean, you believe he's joined a ticket, which is promoting fascism and may lead to fascism in America. Do you talk to him about that?
I mean, all families look, have difference of opinions and we've all sat around at dinner tables with relatives who think completely differently than we think, so, everybody can relate to this. But is that something you talked about or is it not worth engaging on?
[20:10:10]
P. KENNEDY: You know, to me, it's not worth engaging on. I did talk to him earlier in the campaign about not competing in those swing states where I felt that he could cost us the election. He chose not to do that and at that point my effort to try to keep him from jeopardizing, in that case, President Biden's re-election was a non-starter.
That said, I think we all are fighting each other in this country, it is one of the major problems that we have and I don't want us to have that all spill into my family. He lives next door to us. As I said, my kids, we have a good time together when we're on the ocean. I really don't want to get into bashing my cousin.
COOPER: Yes, I understand that.
P. KENNEDY: And so, I just --
COOPER: What--
P. KENNEDY: My feeling is, I mean, my big issue as you know, Anderson because you've had me on talking about his mental health and addiction and why I'm so pumped about Harris and Walz is Harris as part of the Biden-Harris, have done more for mental health than any other president in our history. Governor Walz keynoted the Kennedy Forum last year. This is before he
is obviously even in the thought of anybody at being a future vice president.
He spent five hours with the whole mental health advocacy community talking about mental health. We now know his personal passion having watched all of us with great emotion as his son, Gus, embraced him and Governor Walz, soon to be Vice President Walz will carry our nation forward with mental health and addiction policies. We can count on that. I do like it.
COOPER: I do --
P. KENNEDY: Go ahead.
COOPER: I do want to -- I just want to inform our viewers, I mean, that Jack Schlossberg, President Kennedy's grandson, posted online about this. He says, never been less surprised in my life. Been saying it for over a year, RFK Jr. is for sale, works for Trump bedfellows and loving it. Kamala Harris is for the people -- the easiest decision of all time just got easier.
I don't know if he formally endorsed Harris-Walz.
P. KENNEDY: I am a huge fan. I'm going on the road to campaign for the next president and vice president of the United States.
As I said, I know Governor Walz, I served with them in Congress. As I said, we've been friends over the years and he spent five hours. We had a day-long event and around how to improve our mental health and addiction system, 90 percent American screen for mental health within 10 years, 90 percent treated with evidence-based treatment, 90 percent supported in recovery.
We wouldn't expect any less if there were any other illness. And yet we settled for less than 20 percent of Americans getting any of that today in this country.
COOPER: Yes, so much more needs to be done. Former Congressman Patrick Kennedy, I really appreciate your time. Thank you.
P. KENNEDY: Thanks.
COOPER: Perspective now from David Axelrod, former senior adviser to President Obama; Ashley Etienne, former communications director to vice president Harris; and Scott Jennings, former special assistant to president George W Bush.
David, does it make sense to you that he says he's not ending his campaign, he's just suspending it and he's going to be on the ballots in some states, but not on battleground states because he doesn't want to hurt Donald Trump in those states.
DAVID AXELROD, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, first, Anderson, let me say, I watched some of his press conference today and there were a lot of things he said that didn't necessarily make a lot of sense to me.
But from what I could find, what he was saying is he will continue to compete in states where he doesn't think he'll have an impact on the outcome of the race. So, he'll compete in blue states and red states, but he won't compete in battleground states.
COOPER: I mean, that just seems like a vanity thing. Like, he wants to stay in the game, he wants to have supporters out in the streets waving his name around. It just seems kind of pathetic.
AXELROD: I mean, I don't think you have to be -- I don't think it's a great leap to suggest that it might be a vanity thing. I think this whole exercise has been a vanity thing.
The thing that's concerning, it should be concerning but it does give you a clue as to what impact he might have is the fact that the Trump campaign, he said at the press conference Don, Jr. and others have been soliciting him and he has had a series of conversations, in fact, JD Vance confirmed that.
They believe that he's going out of the race in these battleground states and yield the presidency to Donald Trump. And I think we have this discussion the other night with John King.
I think that it may be a point that that is gained in these states for Trump. But these states may be decided by a point or less than a point. So, the fact that apparently he's talked about taking a position in the administration, something that Harris wouldn't do. The whole thing kind of stinks in a way.
[20:15:25]
COOPER: Scott, I mean, you're not with the Trump campaign, but how concerned -- or what do you think about this? And will it help in some of those swing states? Is this a deciding factor you think? I mean it's going to --
SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, great question. Look, by the way, it was wonderful to be with you both in Chicago all week. We had a great convention together.
AXELROD: How many times, Scott?
JENNINGS: Yes, thanks, Ax. I think there are votes to be had here. That's why Trumps doing it. I looked at some of the polling and the Trump campaign has some analysis to the polling. They think most of the people who are still with RFK are going to come towards Trump if they vote.
So, obviously, the transaction is, I've got to get some votes. That's number one. However, what you can't know, but what I think is probable is the other side of the algebra, which is getting embed with the Looney Tunes, may have consequences.
I mean, there may be people out there who know RFK, Jr.'s history of being a complete liberal provocateur before he became a conservative provocateur and say I'm not sure I want to be in bed with this at all.
So, I see the impulse to do it. I understand the polling equation. He's got some votes you want to try to capture them. But there may be a cost to it because obviously, he says and does things that are kind of weird and has done that for a very long time. And I would just caution the Trump folks don't get so deep in bed you can't get out of it because it can take you down rabbit holes you don't want to go.
COOPER: Yes. Actually, again, I just find it remarkable that he's still going to -- he still wants his name on the ballot in a bunch of states, not in the ones where it's going to hurt Trump. He still wants, you know, I mean --
I drove by a group of RFK, Jr. supporters last night, leaving the convention at 1:00 AM. They had like a van, they were playing music and waving around flags like, I guess he likes that there's people out there who are actually dedicating days of their lives to waiving his name around, but it just seems to what effect at this point other than supporting Donald Trump.
ASHLEY ETIENNE, FORMER COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR FOR VP HARRIS: Well, I mean, I think you're absolutely right. I've always thought that this was a vanity project, but, you know, also, I thought he was in the race to not just disrupt the race, but to disrupt it in a way that supports his own interests. I mean, now he's been shopping himself around to both campaigns, trying to get a Cabinet position.
But I think Scott is absolutely right. This creates an opportunity for Democrats to further define Republicans as extreme, as conspiracy theories, or as Governor Walz says, just plain weird. I mean, you have someone who says that he believes that there's chemicals in our water that's making kids transgender, that he things broadband is causing cancer.
This is kind of the Democrats like a -- it's like a wish list, it's like a dream for Democrats. It's like continue down this path of defining the new Republican party, the MAGA party, as extremists and conspiracy theorists that are just out of step and out of line and with the American people.
So this, I think to some degree, plays to Harris in her favor if she can take advantage of it. But also, the polls show that there's a sizable number of Kennedy supporters that are Independents and Never Trumpers who she could still play for.
The campaign, put out a statement today saying that they're going to make overtures to those voters.
COOPER: David, do you think that there are RFK, Jr. voters that this may -- that Harris could get?
AXELROD: I think she's gotten most of them. If you see, after she entered the race, his vote really deflated and a lot of those votes were Democrats who were parking themselves over with RFK and they came back to the Democratic Party when there was a switch at the top of the ticket. There may be some that she can get but again, I don't think that Trump
would have made a deal with Bobby Kennedy if he thought that it wasn't going to help him.
Anderson, I just have to say one thing. My political hero -- one of the formative heroes and my life was Bobby Kennedy, his father, who was a guy who was incredibly thoughtful at the end of his career about justice -- economic justice and civil rights and really was a global leader for human rights and as his family said, he you know, it's just antithetical to everything that he stood for.
It's sad to me. I mean, I listened to that press conference today and he is not a well man. I mean, I'm not a professional. I can't make that judgment and after listening to Patrick Kennedy, who is a champion of mental health, I don't want to use that term lightly, but you can't listen to him and say that everything is okay.
And the fact that he was out on display by Donald Trump tonight, I agree with Ashley, it reflects something about that campaign.
But at the end of the day, its still, I think, he's there because they think he's going to help them win.
[20:20:30]
COOPER: Ashley, do you think it was a mistake? I mean, there are reports that the Harris campaign wouldn't even really talk to him, that he made outreach to both Trump and Harris. Was that a mistake for the Harris campaign to not entertain something with him?
ETIENNE: Absolutely not. There was more downside than there was upside to her talking to him. I mean, none of their -- they're not aligned in terms of their vision for the nation, in terms of policy, in terms of the challenge facing the American people today.
I mean, I saw today, when he tried to co-opt a lot of her messaging on freedom and supporting the middle-class, but the reality is that's not where his policies are. That's not where Donald Trump's policies are.
So, I didn't see any upside for her to have that conversation. It just would have done more damage than good.
COOPER: Scott, how do you think he'll be used on the campaign trail?
JENNINGS: Well, it sounds like he's interested in going out there and being part of the public display. You have surrogates in every campaign. And look, let's be honest, with his last name, he's going to be one of the most famous surrogates. I mean, that's ultimately what makes his candidacy interesting.
If his name were Bob Johnson of Idaho, no one would care. I mean, the fact that his last name is Kennedy and he carries with him everywhere he goes. It makes him a draw.
So, my suspicion is they're going to put them out there. But when you put somebody out there as a surrogate, you've got to live with everything they say and everything this guy says could be problematic out on the stump.
So again, I think the polling, Anderson, shows that Ax is exactly right. The Democrats had already fled back to Harris. There's probably a few Trump supporters in here, but the downstream consequences here are hard to quantify and it would worry me a little bit if I were managing the campaign.
COOPER: Yes, interesting. Everybody, thank you, appreciate it. Everybody stay there, we're going to come back more on how critical Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s endorsement could be for the former president putting some sound from the rally that is still going on as we speak.
Plus, how this endorsement fits the way that Harris-Walz campaign has framed the former president and his team, which can be summed up in that word they use a lot "weird".
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:26:31]
COOPER: More now on our breaking news, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. lending the Kennedy aura to the former president. He endorsed the former president earlier today.
Moments ago, we saw him ascend to the stage at a rally in Arizona with Trump accompanied by fireworks and played onto the stage by the song "My Hero" By the Foo Fighters.
Here is Kennedy explaining his endorsement.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
R. KENNEDY: Don't you want healthy children?
(CROWD answer yes.)
R. KENNEDY: And don't you want the chemicals out of our food?
(CROWD answer yes.)
R. KENNEDY: And don't you want the regulatory agencies to be free from corporate corruption?
(CROWD answer yes.)
R. KENNEDY: And that's what President Trump told me that he wanted. He also told me that he wanted to end the grip of the neocons on US foreign policy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: Back now with our panel.
David, I mean, you were working for then candidate Barack Obama and in 2008 when the Kennedy family endorsed him over Hillary Clinton. That was a huge moment for Obama. I'm wondering, just seeing RFK, Jr. on that stage, what goes through your mind that he's trying to defeat Kamala Harris, who has obviously been compared to Barack Obama in many ways?
AXELROD: Look, as I said earlier, you know, when Ted Kennedy stood up in 2008 and Caroline Kennedy with him and Patrick, the three of them. It was a watershed moment in that campaign because they stood for the ideals of the Democratic Party and it was like a torch passing to a new generation of leadership that stood for the ideals of John Kennedy, of Robert Kennedy, of Ted Kennedy.
That's not what this is. This is a guy selling out -- selling himself out to Donald Trump, apparently for a job if he can get one, who has sort of gone around the bend and is a conspiracy theory provocateur, dangerous on some issues like vaccines. But has a following and they think he can help him win.
Last night, Kamala Harris said that Trump was not -- Trump was an unserious man. This is -- but he could have very serious consequences if he's elected. This is an unserious move, but can have very serious consequences in this election.
COOPER: Scott, what's so interesting to me about it is that it's rare in this day and age that you see something so transactional, so obviously transactional just played out publicly. I mean, usually it's like behind the scenes and it's not -- the idea, I think Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s son videotaped his father talking to Trump on the phone and I know his father was allegedly upset by it, he didn't know about it and it was taken down.
But it's interesting, I mean, if this has all played out publicly, the idea that he reached out to the Harris campaign, reached out the Trump campaign. Obviously, Trump smelled a reason to do this and has sort of embraced him for now. Who knows what promises were made? Who knows if a promise will be kept given the folks we're dealing with, but it is just -- it's so interesting, just kind to see it so publicly play out.
JENNINGS: Yes, I mean, I think there's a reason it played out publicly because the person who's in the middle of it, RFK, Jr. wants it to play out publicly because he wants the attention. I mean, some of this is just about ego, attention, the search for relevance in a world of our politics right now that, you know, in a close election, I guess he thought he could find it.
[20:30:24]
You know, it's -- look, I do think this. There are lots of American voters who are very, very anti-institution. They think the institutions have failed. They think they're being lied to by government and corporations and, you know, etcetera, etcetera. And so, obviously, there is an audience for what he is selling, at least on some fronts.
And it's that kind of anti-institutional sentiment that I guess he sees more of himself in Trump than he sees in Harris. So you sort of get the marketing appeal of it. But when you really look deeply into it and you see what's probably motivating him, you know, the personal, you know, search for relevance and the personal search for, you know, influence and an administration, maybe some of his supporters won't see him as pure as they once did.
But I totally agree with you, Anderson, the idea that this whole spectacle is playing out, you know, in front of us and the transactional piece. By the way, I think they're are kind of laws against promising people jobs before you, you know, get into an administration like this. They do have to be careful about that.
COOPER: You know, actually it's so interesting because Michelle Obama spoke and I don't have the direct quote but about the affirmative action, about people like Trump who -- she said had failed forward and she talked about the affirmative action of inherited wealth. I mean, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is the poster child for, I mean, you know, anybody can look up his past at, you know, at Harvard.
There was just an article about alleging he was selling cocaine to the students he's talked -- he's been very open about his own struggles with addiction but, you know, I didn't go much on the brain worm story because I felt, you know, I felt bad for him that he had a worm in his brain as unusual as that may be.
But, I mean, you know, there's the 2014, he said he placed a dead bear cub in New York Central Park after he found it on the side of the road in the Hudson Valley, which -- I'll just play a clip of that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERT F. KENNEDY, POLITICIAN: I was driving up maybe, you know, really early, like 7:00 and a woman in a van in front of me hit a bear and killed it, a young bear. So I pulled over and I picked up the bear and put him in the back of my van because I was going to skin the bear and it was very good condition and I was going to and put the meat in my refrigerator.
And you can do that in New York City. You can get a bear tag for a roadkill bear.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: And yes, that's Roseanne he was talking to too. And then he went on to say he got delayed at Peter Luger's steakhouse with the dead bear in his car, and then he remembered he had to catch a plane, so he drove the dead bear cub to Central Park to dump it there with a bicycle to make it look like the bear was killed by a bike.
I don't even have a question here. I just wanted to say all that because it's just so friggin bizarre.
JENNINGS: -- swandered into Central Park with a bear. I mean, I did it just last night, you know.
COOPER: I mean, I grew up in the city. I didn't even know there was an option.
AXELROD: I raised this before. What did the valet think? (INAUDIBLE) his car.
COOPER: I mean, even Roseanne's face. I mean, even Roseanne seemed to think that was odd. And I got to say, that's saying a lot.
ETIENNE: Right, exactly.
COOPER: Anyway, it's been a long week. Ashley, thank you. David Axelrod, Scott Jennings, thank you very much.
Coming up, the Democratic Party's strategy to make the former president seem small. There were plenty of zingers at the DNC. Is that a smart move? Former U.S. Senator Al Franken, who knows a thing or two about satire from his years on Saturday Night Live, joins me next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:38:07]
COOPER: Again, our breaking news, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has announced he's suspending his independent presidential campaign and endorsing former President Donald Trump, but he's staying on the ballot in the states. He wants to stay on the ballot in, so his name can still be there, but he's taking his name off the ballot in states where Trump is in key swing states, so he doesn't in any way hurt Donald Trump there.
All of this happening, of course, as Democrats honing their efforts to paint the former president as small and serious and weird. Here's what Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz said this week at the DNC.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAMALA HARRIS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: In many ways, Donald Trump is an unserious man. But the consequences, but the consequences of putting Donald Trump back in the White House are extremely serious.
GOV. TIM WALZ (D), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You know, when I was teaching every year, we'd elect a student body president. And you know what? Those teenagers could teach Donald Trump a hell of a lot about what a leader is.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: Joining me now someone who served as U.S. Senator from Governor Walz's state of Minnesota, Comedian Al Franken, and former Senator Al Franken. I want to talk about the convention in a second. Just in terms of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., what do you make of him, this choice that he's made?
AL FRANKEN (D), FORMER U.S. SENATOR-MINNESOTA: Well, I think the bear cub was -- was it. I think about --
COOPER: You think that was the breaking point?
FRANKEN: I think that was the breaking point. Well, I don't know. What was he at before? Like 9 percent or 10 percent and then --
COOPER: Yes.
FRANKEN: -- suddenly down to 5 percent and 6 percent.
COOPER: Yes. Maybe Harris's entry might' have been something like that.
FRANKEN: I missed your last segment. I didn't hear it, but you were talking about it?
COOPER: Yes, I was. I just was going to the details because he went to Peter Luger's steakhouse with the bear in the trunk.
FRANKEN: Yes, well, that was the thing. He found this bear cub on the side of the road --
COOPER: Yes.
FRANKEN: -- and decided he might want to eat it for dinner.
COOPER: Right.
FRANKEN: Right?
COOPER: As one does who has not thought had that far.
[20:40:01]
FRANKEN: After you've been falconing. That was the other --
COOPER: Yes.
FRANKEN: -- nice detail. So he goes into the city and then he realizes he has dinner -- he's got dinner at --
COOPER: Peter Luger's steakhouse.
FRANKEN: -- Peter Luger's steakhouse.
COOPER: Yes, yes.
FRANKEN: This guy likes meat.
COOPER: Classic steakhouse.
FRANKEN: Yes.
COOPER: He likes his meats.
FRANKEN: He likes his meat and then he also realizes he's got a plane to catch after dinner. So he really doesn't have time. First of all, he is got to have dinner. He's having dinner anyway, so --
COOPER: By the way, there is the bear. The bear is -- that's the bear. That's him in the back -- FRANKEN: Oh that's right.
COOPER: The bear in the back.
FRANKEN: Well there he is. Got a sense of humor. You see.
COOPER: He -- right, so he's posing with the dead bear, pretending the dead bear is biting his hand.
FRANKEN: Biting him. Yes.
COOPER: He's not quite as jacked up there, I will say as he is now, but --
FRANKEN: So he takes the bear and he dumps it in the park, right?
COOPER: Yes, yes.
FRANKEN: Next to a bike.
COOPER: So that -- because, so that people would think the bike collided with the bear.
FRANKEN: Think that the bike hit the bear.
COOPER: Yes. I'm not sure where the bike came from.
FRANKEN: I think he must have been Bobby's bike, but --
COOPER: I don't know, he just had the bike in his car for those purposes. To like, stage things.
FRANKEN: When you're falconing, you have a bike to move --
COOPER: Yes.
FRANKEN: -- quickly. I don't know.
COOPER: Yes, it's -- yes, I can't make it up. Do you think it will help Trump in the swing states?
FRANKEN: I don't know. I think it's hard to tell. I mean, who are the 5 percent who are people who are left?
COOPER: Yes.
FRANKEN: Are they people who are maybe they're going to stay home?
COOPER: Right. Yes.
FRANKEN: Or maybe they're going to equally divide between Harris. I mean, does his endorsement mean a lot to these people?
COOPER: Right. You know Governor Walz. You were --
FRANKEN: Yes. COOPER: Like you -- for his first race, he talked about running for Congress. He was a high school teacher --
FRANKEN: Yes.
COOPER: -- you know, coach, everybody knows that -- most people know that story by now. But when he chose to run, he said he had no money, no real connections, but he just decided to go for it.
FRANKEN: Yes, I went to somebody's house for a fundraiser. My wife and I went, there was nobody else there, and they had two mortgages on their house.
COOPER: This is when he was running for his first campaign.
FRANKEN: For his first -- in the 6th district. You have to understand, this is the southern tier of Minnesota. It's a rural district.
COOPER: Yes.
FRANKEN: It has a couple cities in it. It has Rochester, where the Mayo Clinic is. And it has Mankato, where he's --
COOPER: So you show up, nobody's there, except you.
FRANKEN: He show up, no one's there, except me and my wife, and he's incredibly great. And so --
COOPER: He was giving his pitch to you, basically, in the living room.
FRANKEN: Yes, and the host. And so I just -- my wife and I fell in love with him, and I said, well, and then we maxed to him. And I had a PAC at the time, Political Action Committee, and so it maxed to him and then I hosted some kind of big fundraiser for him.
COOPER: What was it about him? Because, I mean, he -- you know, the guy we saw on the stage, was he like that already? He was clearly not as polished.
FRANKEN: No.
COOPER: But what was it about him that --
FRANKEN: But his essence was.
COOPER: Yes.
FRANKEN: His essence was not polished, but his essence was there.
COOPER: Right.
FRANKEN: And I immediately liked him, and we -- I did a fundraiser where we got him enough money so he could keep going. And I started campaigning with him around the 6th, and Rahm Emanuel was head of the DCCC at the time.
COOPER: Right.
FRANKEN: And I called him up and I go, this guy is incredibly talented. And he goes, he can't win.
COOPER: Wow.
FRANKEN: He can't win. No --
COOPER: Because it was a red district.
FRANKEN: It's a completely red district. I don't think no one had won -- a Democrat had not won since the 1800s or something like that. Yes. And so I just kept kind of going around the 6th district with him and introducing him. And he -- and I kept calling Rahm up or his guy, Rahm's guy and say, you got to support this guy.
And then one day finally, got a call from Rahm's guy. He said, we're going to put $50,000 in the Mankato. And I said, Mankato. He said, oh, I'm sorry. I go, no, no, no, no. Call it Mankato, give $50,000. And so they did.
COOPER: Yes.
FRANKEN: And then he ended up winning. And --
COOPER: How was he able to do that in a red district?
FRANKEN: He's a great campaigner. And it was also -- that was '06. And '06 was the year that Democrats took over the Congress --
COOPER: So even though --
FRANKEN: -- because of the war, the war in Iraq.
COOPER: Even though this was his first campaign, I mean, you were out on the trail with him, he was --
FRANKEN: He was connecting with people.
COOPER: That's what -- that was the bottom line.
FRANKEN: Yes. And he'd go to college campuses and connect with the college kids and they'd volunteer. I mean, he did it all the right way, but it took -- it just took a while to build.
COOPER: What did you make of his speech at -- I mean, seeing his son --
FRANKEN: The convention was amazing.
COOPER: Seeing his son there --
FRANKEN: Oh yes.
COOPER: -- crying and saying, that's my dad, I mean, as somebody who has two little kids -- FRANKEN: That's my dad.
[20:45:08]
COOPER: Like, I dreamed that my kids will one day say that about me.
FRANKEN: They won't. I kind of doubt that. But he -- I mean, no, no, I was very moved by it. And of course, there are some people who -- which is crazy.
COOPER: Yes.
FRANKEN: And but, no, what a beautiful moment.
COOPER: Yes.
FRANKEN: That's my dad.
COOPER: Yes. It's the best. We're out of time, but I would love to talk to you longer.
FRANKEN: Oh, OK.
COOPER: You know what? Let's go to Peter Luger's steakhouse.
FRANKEN: Yes, let's go there.
COOPER: Find a bear.
FRANKEN: Yes. Well, no, not on a day I find a bear.
COOPER: OK.
FRANKEN: You know, he roasted a dog. Did you hear this?
COOPER: I heard, I saw some sort of a picture. Was it an actual dog?
FRANKEN: According to Jonathan Alter who said he checked up on it --
COOPER: Yes. Sure.
FRANKEN: -- that, yes, he roasted, where the worm from the brain worm could have come from, I would think.
COOPER: Senator Franken, thank you for your time.
FRANKEN: You bet.
COOPER: I appreciate it.
Up next, a CNN investigation on how Donald Trump's businesses are making millions of dollars from Republican political campaigns, including his own.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[20:50:18]
COOPER: ?For the former president, politics and business go hand in hand. A new CNN investigation shows that Donald Trump has turned enthusiasm from his base into personal profit. Some Republican campaigns, including his own, along with allied political groups, have spent millions at Trump owned businesses.
Here's Kyung Lah.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: My new book, "Save America," published by Winning Team Publishing, is now available for order.
KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In all the ways you already know, former President Trump publicly makes money selling books and Bibles.
TRUMP: God bless the USA Bible.
LAH (voice-over): Gold Sneakers.
TRUMP: That's the real deal.
LAH (voice-over): And trading cards.
TRUMP: It's called the America First Collection.
LAH (voice-over): It's at Trump properties like Mar-a-Lago, Trump's opulent Florida home, where Republican campaign dollars are pouring into Trump's own pocket. More than 150 congressional candidates and political groups have spent millions at Trump properties and associated businesses, according to a CNN analysis of federal campaign finance data, with 2024 on track to be the biggest year of spending since 2016. The vast majority of the candidates are Republican and most endorsed by Trump.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A vote for Trump and Moreno is a vote to put America first.
LAH (voice-over): A clear example is Ohio businessman Bernie Moreno, a political novice who made his fortune selling luxury cars. The same month Moreno announced his run for the U.S. Senate last year, he spent $13,000 on event catering at Trump's Mar-a-Lago.
The same day one of the payments was made, Trump posted on Truth Social, "Moreno is a highly respected businessman who was thinking of running for the Senate." Trump endorsed Moreno months later, calling him a MAGA fighter. Two days after the endorsement, Moreno spent $17,000 at Mar-a-Lago. And a month later, $80,000 more on a fundraiser at the private club attended by some in Trump's inner circle.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We asked him to come here to Florida, so we could bring him here to the President's home. So we could share him with you.
LAH (voice-over): Moreno is now locked in a competitive battle for Ohio's Senate seat with Trump by his side.
TRUMP: He's a hero. He's a winner.
KATHLEEN CLARK, LAW PROFESSOR, WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY IN ST. LOUIS: That coincidence of this significant spending nearly coinciding with a Trump endorsement doesn't prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that there's been a bribe. That pattern does and should raise questions in the minds of voters about what's really going on here?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The incredible Kari Lake.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'll do everything in my power to make sure this man gets back in the White House. We need him now more than ever.
LAH (voice-over): Another Republican endorsed by Trump is also one of Mar-a-Lago's top political spenders. This year alone, Arizona Senate candidate Kari Lake's campaign spent more than $100,000 on lodging, catering and facility rentals.
Other top spenders at Trump properties include retired football star and former Georgia Republican Senate candidate, Herschel Walker. His campaign spent the most of any congressional candidate in the last decade, nearly $215,000 at Mar-a-Lago. Trump's golf club in West Palm Beach and his Las Vegas hotel.
TRUMP: You know, Herschel's not only a Georgia hero, he is an American legend.
LAH (voice-over): Trump endorsed Walker, who would go on to lose his race. Political groups also drop big money at Trump's businesses. The RNC spending more than $2 million since 2016. But at the top spot by far is Donald Trump himself, whose campaigns and associated political committees have funneled more than $28 million in political contributions to his businesses. From renting his ballroom to his campaign, to using election donations to pay for his private jet, Trump Force One.
Trump, the candidate, has been paying Trump the businessman.
DAN WEINER, BRENNAN CENTER FOR JUSTICE: It's not illegal. The law is that candidates can spend money at their own businesses, provided that the businesses provide real goods or services at a fair market rate. But it certainly raises at least an appearance of self-dealing that is very concerning from a corruption standpoint.
LAH (voice-over): In a statement, the Trump campaign told CNN, "These allegations are false," adding, "Committees are paying the fair market rate for all venues and services."
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: And Kyung Lah joins me now. What do the candidates who Trump has endorsed have to say about all this?
LAH (on-camera): Well, Anderson, as you can imagine, they think it's just fine. Spokespersons for both Bernie Moreno and Herschel Walker say that their Mar-a-Lago fundraisers were wildly successful.
[20:55:02]
And Herschel Walker added that he's known Trump for 40 years and that his events had nothing to do with the endorsements. We did reach out to the Kari Lake campaign, but did not hear back. Anderson?
COOPER: Kyung Lah, thanks.
Coming up next, dangerous wild animal encounters inside Yellowstone, America's oldest national parks. CNN's Ed Lavandera investigates.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: One of the biggest problems for Yellowstone, America's oldest national park, is not the large population of bison, grizzly bears, wolves, or hydrothermal geysers and hot springs, it's people. For this weekend's new episode of The Whole Story, CNN's Ed Lavandera took a four-day trip to Yellowstone and discovered that the park's popularity it's becoming a problem. Here's a preview.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Our first day in Yellowstone was more than we could have ever hoped for, and it wasn't over.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you see him?
LAVANDERA: Oh, yes, there.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just see a blob there.
LAVANDERA: Yes, yes, yes.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): We spot another grizzly bear near the road.
LAVANDERA: This is as close as we've gotten so far today. How far away do you think we are? More than 100 yards we're supposed to be.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're on the safe distance. Yes.
LAVANDERA: We're on the safe distance side.
As soon as word spreads that there's a bear here.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Look at this, right?
LAVANDERA: Yes, look at the traffic jam. And people start getting antsy, they start moving around real quick, and that's exactly what you're not supposed to do.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: People parked in the middle of the street.
LAVANDERA: You temporarily lose your mind.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
LAVANDERA: It's like if you're walking down the street in New York City and some incredible celebrity, like Taylor Swift is walking down the street, the entire block goes crazy, right?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
LAVANDERA: This is like the Taylor Swift of Yellowstone.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: To see more of Ed's report in a new episode of The Whole Story, "Close Encounters: Tourists in the Wild" airing this Sunday night at 8:00 here on CNN.
That's it for us. The news continues. The Source with Kaitlan Collins starts now. Have a great weekend.
