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Florida Under Hurricane Watch From Subtropical Storm Nicole; UN Chief: World "Losing Fight Of Its Life" Against Climate Change; Study: Don't Bother With Dietary Supplements To Lower Cholesterol. Aired 11:30a-12p ET

Aired November 07, 2022 - 11:30   ET

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


[11:30:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA): He had another debt ceiling. Do you want to continue that same pattern?

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MELANIE ZANONA, CNN CAPITOL HILL REPORTER: Now, the other issue McCarthy is going to have to confront is whether to launch impeachment proceedings into President Joe Biden or members of his cabinet. That is something that his right flank is already pressuring him to do. But so far, McCarthy is saying they will pursue investigations, just leaving the door open a rack to impeachment.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Melanie, McCarthy clearly is hoping for big gains to win him the majority in the midterms, but what kind of projection is he actually making here?

ZANONA: Well, I asked him that very question. He said he's not going to name any numbers for seats, but he did say they will win enough to get the majority. They only need to net five seats. And he also told me he's confident he'll have the votes to become a speaker and that he is going to have the support of the conservative, the hardliners in this conference, as well as president -- former President Donald Trump, Kate.

BOLDUAN: All right. It's great to see you, Melanie, great work.

Joining me now for more on this Republican strategist, former Trump campaign adviser David Urban, and former Pennsylvania governor and former DNC chair Ed Rendell, it's great to see you guys. So, David, McCarthy as Melanie -- as you see throughout Melanie's interview, McCarthy is going to have to put a little more meat on the bones when it comes to what they really want to do and how they want to pull it off when you talk about all of these targets, but what do you think of his confidence and what do you think of his targets when he -- what he -- what he's talking about Republicans if they win the majority they're going to go after.

DAVID URBAN, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: So look, governing is really tough, right? Campaigning is easy, messaging these -- governing is tough. Governor Rendell will tell you that. I think that you know, realistically, they're looking someplace in the 2025 range for pickups. And the higher that number gets, the more flexibility Kevin McCarthy has to govern, right and, and to legislate. He doesn't have to cater to certain parts of his party.

Listen, I love seeing Kevin McCarthy on with Melanie Zanona on CNN making his case to the viewers of CNN, not necessarily Republicans that hey, this is how we're going to govern. We need everybody in America. This is what we're going to do to bring people together. I love seeing him out there. I love Melanie getting that.

But it's -- if the number gets bigger, he's going to have more flexibility. If it's smaller, he's going to have less flexibility, right? So, it's very tough.

BOLDUAN: It's a great point. And, Governor, what Washington is going to look like come January given the two I'll call them most likely scenarios, right? Ds hold the Senate, Rs win the House, or Republicans win the majority in both chambers?

ED RENDELL, FORMER DEMOCRATIC GOVERNOR, PENNSYLVANIA: Well, that'll only have an effect on one area and that's the confirmation of judges. It's the Democrats continue to hold the Senate they will be able to confirm any other judges that the president appoints. A house has no role in that. But other than that, any other policy has to go through both houses. And so, it's -- that split is almost the same as having a divided government because the Republicans will be able to stop anything that the president wants to do that requires legislative approval, even if they just take the House.

BOLDUAN: Yes, absolutely, and Pennsylvania. So, the Pennsylvania Senate right is the most expensive race in the country right now. It is also the race and state that is getting understandably the most attention, I would say and you two know the Commonwealth better than most. So, David, what do you think is going to be the deciding factor if you -- is there one thing you think is the deciding factor on what's going to -- what could tip the scales? Is it an issue? Is it a final message? Is it the mood of voters? Isn't the economy in Pennsylvania? What do you think could tip the scales because it's so tight?

URBAN: I think it's all of the above, Kate, right? That's a good answer, right?

BOLDUAN: Good answer, David.

URBAN: Exactly. Listen, Ed Rendell, I used to work for the guy, I love him right, great governor and knows more about politics in Pennsylvania than I have forgotten. And -- but you know, listen, unfortunately, his team this time is just on the wrong side of the field, right? The Pennsylvania voters and voters across the country were saying it's the economy and its crime and yet, Democratic politicians, the DNC, the president, they didn't hear that, were messaging on abortion all summer. They've measured Democracy is on the ballot. That's their -- that's their message. And that's what voters are buying. They're buying crime, inflation, the economy, kitchen table issues.

BOLDUAN: Yes.

URBAN: Democrats didn't message that correctly.

BOLDUAN: Governor, are you optimistic or pessimistic about what tomorrow is going to mean for Democrats in the Commonwealth?

RENDELL: I'm fairly optimistic because we have a great candidate for governor. The Republicans probably have the worst candidate for governor of any state, and he's going to drag down and close a race like this that could be determinative. But one thing I want to say about the Republican campaign strategy, they criticize the Democrats -- criticized Democrats for being weak on crime, but they don't say how they would do any differently. And in fact, let the record show that the entire Democratic Caucus in the House and Senate voted to cut spending on police that was in the budget last year.

Secondly, almost no Republicans voted to ban assault weapons and high- capacity magazines, almost every Democrat did. And we're talking about the increase in homicides fueled by the availability of guns. So who's weak on crime? I would suggest it's the Republicans.

[11:35:03]

URBAN: Well, the governor's right it's just a little late on the messaging, right? Governor, I agree with you, but they should have been out there early on selling that and talking about it not the day before the election. It's a little, little late. You'd have done a much better job if you were still running DNC.

RENDELL: I agree.

BOLDUAN: Governor Rendell, it's good to see you as always. Thank you, David. It's good to see you. I really appreciate it.

URBAN: Thanks for having me, Kate.

RENDELL: Great to see you, guys.

BOLDUAN: Thank you very much. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, we will see along with everyone else when the votes start coming in. And again, another warning in Pennsylvania because of the rules it could be a minute, so there's this. A blistering report from the United Nations as world leaders gather with a goal of landing on a unified response to climate change, what former Vice President Al Gore is now saying needs to happen before it's too late.

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[11:40:41]

BOLDUAN: So, it seems the Atlantic hurricane season is not going to end quietly. A new storm in the Atlantic is now expected to become a hurricane when it makes landfall in Florida this week. Hurricane watch is now in effect because of Subtropical Storm Nicole. Jennifer Gray is tracking this for us. Jennifer, what does this new forecast tells you?

JENNIFER GRAY, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, Kate, this could become a tropical storm within the next day, a day and a half, and as you mentioned, a hurricane before making landfall in Florida. This could actually become a hurricane while it's over the Bahamas. Right now, it has winds of 45 miles per hour, gusts of 60, it's a very disorganized system right now but it's broad. Tropical storm force winds extend 275 miles from the center. Now a lot of that is on the eastern side but as it becomes more organized, the storm will become more symmetrical.

So here are the latest watches and warnings. These have just come out in the last couple of hours. We have hurricane watches along the coast of Florida as well as the Bahamas and we also have those Tropical Storm watches in effect. So, here's the latest forecast track and you can see becoming a Category One storm Wednesday evening and then making landfall Wednesday night into Thursday morning.

This storm crosses the state and then heads back to the east. So, this is one that we're going to be talking about for several days, as it brings torrential rain across Florida, the southeast coast, as well as those gusty winds and potential storm surge. We have above-average sea surface temperatures all across the Atlantic, the Gulf of Mexico that's going to fuel this storm. We have the potential for three to five feet of storm surge, Kate, not only for the Bahamas but across much of the Florida coastline. So, we'll be nailing down these forecast specifics in the next couple of days.

BOLDUAN: Absolutely. I mean, that one model showing it's really going to impact -- could impact the entire state of Florida. It's good to see you, Jennifer, thank you.

GRAY: The entire state.

BOLDUAN: Thank you so much for tracking it. So, let's go to Egypt now. The UN Secretary-General is declaring the world is losing the fight against climate change with potentially catastrophic results as for being honest, we were already seeing. Delegates are gathering this week for the COP27 Climate Conference, the UN chief is not the only one offering a truly bleak assessment of progress on this issue. David McKenzie is in Egypt for us at this hour. David, what are you hearing from the leaders gathering there?

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kate, what we're hearing from leaders, activists, and those pushing for change, is action, action, action, a lot of people telling me talk is not enough, there needs to be changed, and it needs to come fast. If you look at these emissions targets, we are just blowing past what we need to do in terms of keeping the temperatures at a livable level. The world needs to cut its emissions by 45 percent to get to the Paris Agreement targets that would really mitigate some of the worst impacts of the climate change.

Earlier, Vice President Al Gore gave a impassioned speech said there was a trust deficit between the global population and the leaders who are trying to make this happen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AL GORE, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We have a credibility problem, all of us. We're talking and we're starting to act but we're not doing enough. It is a choice to continue this pattern of destructive behavior. We have other choices.

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MCKENZIE: One of the biggest areas of contention, I think, Kate, is the discussion between developing countries and countries like the U.S. and regions like Europe. Developing countries say that they are getting the worst impacts of climate change, and they don't have the finances to deal with those impacts. You've seen the terrible droughts in the Horn of Africa and East Africa and the flooding in Pakistan earlier this year.

Unlike with Hurricane Ian, where billions of dollars might be used -- as you hear the planes coming into this conference, where billions of dollars might be used by the U.S. government to help people get past these catastrophes. The poorer countries don't have that money and they say they need it from the rich ones, Kate.

BOLDUAN: David, thank you so much for that.

So the new study out suggesting all of those or at least many of those supplements promoting they improve your heart health, they may not be doing that at all. Details next.

[11:45:05]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BOLDUAN: Developing story out of Iowa that we're following, police are searching for an 18-year-old woman who had -- who was convicted of killing her alleged rapist. Pieper Lewis escaped custody on Friday after cutting off her tracking device. Adrienne Broaddus is following this search and she joins me right now. Adrienne, what is the very latest here?

ADRIENNE BROADDUS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kate, good afternoon to you. Authorities still don't have a location for that teen who was on probation. She pled guilty, keep in mind, to killing the man she says raped her over and over.

[11:50:01]

She was 15 when that happened. Let's bring you up to speed for those of you who have not followed this story. Right now, the Department of Corrections in that district is requesting that her probation be revoked and the original sentence imposed. She received what's called a deferred judgment from the Polk County District, Judge David Porter after she pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter and willful injury. Initially, the teen was charged with first-degree murder.

You may remember this is a story that captured the attention of people across the country when that teen was ordered to pay her alleged rapist's family $150,000 in restitution fees. It's a part of Iowa's law. Whenever someone is convicted of killing someone, those fines are imposed no matter the circumstance.

But according to a spokesperson with the Department of Corrections in that district, this 18-year-old cut her ankle monitor Friday morning and walked away from the facility where she was being held. Now there's a warrant out for her arrest, Kate.

BOLDUAN: Adrienne, thank you very much for that. We'll continue to follow those developments.

There's also this. If you take dietary supplements to lower your cholesterol, a new study suggests they may be a waste of your money, and they may also have no impact on actual heart health. Elizabeth Cohen has been looking into this. She's joining us right now. Elizabeth, what exactly did you find in this study?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Kate, this is really interesting. They put statins versus supplements to the test to see which did better and they threw in a placebo, a pill that does nothing. They follow people for four weeks. Let's take a look at exactly what they did.

It was 190 participants. That's not a huge study, but it's not terrible either. And they divided them. Some of them took a statin for four weeks. Some of them were given a placebo, which is a sugar pill that does nothing. Some of them took fish oil, and you can see the whole list here. They were divided up. At the end of those four weeks, only the statin group saw a decrease in cholesterol.

Now, a couple of sort of take-home messages from this, one, if you have high cholesterol and your doctor wants you on a statin, I wouldn't go monkeying around with that. High cholesterol can be very dangerous. Statins are tried and true and safe drugs. You probably shouldn't say no I want to take -- you know whatever this you know vitamin or this whatever. Statins really have been shown to work.

Another take-home message here is that actually supplements have been shown sometimes to work for other things. There was a story we did a few months ago about a study that showed that multivitamins might be good for the cognitive function for elderly people. Now the supplement industry has chimed in on this story. They say dietary supplements are not intended to be quick fixes and their effects may not be revealed during the course of a study that only spans four weeks.

Again, remember statins really do lower cholesterol. Don't be disappointed by this study. Sometimes supplements can be good for other things, Kate.

BOLDUAN: That's a great point. Elizabeth, thank you so much for that.

So even before Election Day, there will be another result, maybe, tonight that a lot of people will be watching for. That is Powerball. The jackpot now, historic, now at a record-breaking $1.9 billion making it the largest lotto prize ever offered. The odds are the same every time regardless of the jackpot, one in 292 million. So just let that one sink in on you. A lump sum payment which is one of the options of course of this jackpot would be something over $929 million. There's just a lot of dollars going on here and not a lot of chance to win it. The drawing tonight is at 10:59 Eastern.

So, in entertainment news, a familiar face is returning to host the biggest night in Hollywood. ABC announced this morning that Jimmy Kimmel will host next year's Academy Awards. Kimmel is no stranger to the Oscars. Of course, he has already hosted the show two times previously, and you may remember the ceremony has gone without a host in recent years. The Oscars will take place on Sunday, March 12.

Finally, a touchdown dance to end all touchdown dances. The Minnesota Vikings continued their winning streak yesterday, defeating the Washington Commanders in a comeback win 20 to 17. But who cares? All it matters is not the highlight of the game, it's not the fourth- quarter interception that set up the win, it's that. Instead, it's the Viking's celebration that followed a bowling party allowing Viking safety to roll a strike. You know, with a week like we have ahead of us, you might as well have some fun to get it all started.

Thank you so much for watching, I'm Kate Bolduan. "INSIDE POLITICS" with John King starts after this break.

[11:55:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JOHN KING, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to INSIDE POLITICS, I'm John King in Washington. Thank you for sharing your day with us and welcome to election week. Tomorrow, we color in the midterm map. Control of Congress is at stake, plus critical races for governor and more. Today, the final appeals.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. MEHMET OZ, REPUBLICAN SENATE CANDIDATE, PENNSYLVANIA: Kitchen Table issues everyone in Pennsylvania is worried about.

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