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Fani Willis' Rise to Fulton County District Attorney; Trump has 10 Days to Voluntarily Surrender to Georgia Authorities; Christie Uncomfortable with Unnecessary Indictment; 99 Confirmed Dead in Maui Wildfires, Officials Warn Toll Will Climb. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired August 15, 2023 - 15:30   ET

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

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JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN HOST: And this morning he attacked Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. Calling her, quote, out of control and corrupt. Willis says she's just doing her job. She spearheaded this two-year investigation and Fulton County's first female D.A. is not shy about taking on high profile cases. CNN's Randi Kaye shows us how Willis arrived at this moment.

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FANI WILLIS, FULTON COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: It doesn't matter if you're rich, poor, black, white, Democrat or Republican. If you violated the law, you're going to be charged.

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis talking about her investigation into Donald Trump's alleged attempt to influence Georgia's 2020 election. At the center of it all, a phone call Trump had with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger after the election.

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more that we have because we won the state.

WILLIS: Very thankful that you are here.

KAYE (voice-over): When that call was made, Willis had only been in office for one day ever since she's been leading the charge on the investigation.

WILLIS: Been working for two and a half years. We're ready to go.

KAYE (voice-over): Ready to go. And in the process, ruffling Trump's feathers.

TRUMP: In Georgia, the racist district attorney goes after me for a perfect phone call.

TRUMP: And this woman is not a capable woman.

TRUMP: She's a racist, and this is a person that wants to indict me.

KAYE (voice-over): Those accusations of racism unfounded. Team Trump also included Willis in this ad called the Fraud Squad.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And Biden's newest lackey, Atlanta D.A. Fani Willis.

KAYE (voice-over): Despite it all, Willis hardly seems rattled by Trump's continued attacks.

WILLIS: It's ridiculous in nature, but I support his right to be protected by the First Amendment and say what he likes.

KAYE (voice-over): Since investigating Trump, Willis says she's been subjected to racist taunts.

WILLIS: I've never been called the N word so much in my life.

KAYE (voice-over): Willis, a Democrat, was elected Fulton County's first female district attorney after ousting a six-term incumbent in a primary. She'd built a name for herself as a leading prosecutor in the Atlanta public school cheating scandal, securing convictions for 11 of the 12 defendants.

TRUMP: Fake machines, yes.

KAYE (voice-over): In her first two years in office, Willis has juggled investigating Trump and subpoenaing some of his top allies, while also going after gangs like Drug Rich. She's also handed down Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations indictments to popular rappers, including Young Thug and Gunna.

Willis has cited the rapper's song lyrics as evidence in the indictments against them, something her critics say infringes on First Amendment rights.

WILLIS: I have some legal advice, don't confess to crimes on rap lyrics if you do not want them used, or at least get out of my county.

KAYE: Willis was born in California. Her name, Fani, is Swahili, it means prosperous.

After her parents' divorce, she was raised primarily by her father. He was a criminal defense attorney and member of the Black Panther Party.

KAYE (voice-over): After attending Howard University, she graduated from Emory University School of Law in 1996. She worked in the private sector for a time, then joined the Fulton County Prosecutor's Office in 2001. According to "The New York Times," a spokesperson says that since Willis became D.A., her office's conviction rate has stood at close to 90 percent.

WILLIS: I truly believe God personally selected me here for this moment in time, and I'm going to do the job that I'm blessed to be able to do.

KAYE (voice-over): Randi Kaye, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE) SCHNEIDER: Well now that Donald Trump has been indicted by a grand jury in Georgia, the former president has ten days to surrender and be arraigned in Atlanta's Fulton County. But this court appearance in Georgia is going to look different than his previous three criminal cases. This time, not only will he be fingerprinted, he may have his mugshot taken. Much of that court appearance could be broadcast on live television.

John Miller is CNN's chief law enforcement and intelligence analyst. John, there are some key differences here that we could see. How do you expect this appearance to play out?

JOHN MILLER, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: I think at some point, they're going to make that surrender date. I don't think you're going to see a mass surrender of those defendants. I think Donald Trump will probably have his own day. But the sheriff has been very clear, whatever our process is, we're going to follow that process. So that means fingerprints, that means mugshots, that means going through a booking process.

The wild card here, Jessica, is always the same, which is it's the Secret Service. They don't like to have someone under their protection in handcuffs, because if they have to grab the person and move them out of someplace quickly, that's a security consideration. I doubt we'll see that. They have been accommodated by the federal government and the New York people in the earlier arrests.

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But I think we're going to probably see a Donald Trump mugshot, if the sheriff sticks to his plan.

SCHNEIDER: Yes. And Georgia law does allow for cameras to be inside the courtroom. We saw the indictment play out last night. Do you anticipate any reason why the judge may not -- may decide not to allow this?

MILLER: I mean, the judge has the ability to do that. But in a case where there is wide interest in Georgia, because it was their votes. Massive national interest because he's a former president. And frankly global interest, because democracies around the world are watching to see how ours is handling this. I think it would be highly doubtful to overcome the public interest factor here for another consideration. I think we're going to see cameras in that courtroom.

SCHNEIDER: Yes, that will certainly be different. And just before I let you go, you mentioned the Secret Service. That is of course a big X factor in all of this. What role are they going to play? How much say will they ultimately get do you think -- I know you touched on this -- but how much say do you think that they'll get?

MILLER: The Secret Service has a very clearly cut role here, and their thing is, we are here for the personal protection of this person. But once we safely deliver them to the arrest process, he's in your custody. He is literally your prisoner until a judge says he's free to go. We will be there to ensure his safety and that's all. SCHNEIDER: Yes. All right, John Miller for us. Thanks so much for your

insight. It will certainly be interesting. We do appreciate it -- Jim.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN HOST: Next on CNN NEWS CENTRAL, he has taken every opportunity to criticize Trump. So why does 2024 challenger Chris Christie have issues with the latest indictment?

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SCIUTTO: Most of Donald Trump's 2024 GOP rivals have been defending him after his fourth criminal indictment, even outspoken critic Chris Christie. He's been calling it an ego-decision by the Fulton County D.A. Fani Willis. Have a listen.

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CHRIS CHRISTIE, REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is why I'm uncomfortable with what I read last night. I think that this conflict is essentially covered by the federal indictment. Not with the level of detail that they cover in this, but that's just a stylistic thing. Election interference is election interference. It's been charged by Jack Smith. And most of the time what you'd see here would be a state court deferring to a federal prosecution, especially if that federal indictment had already been issued. So I think this was unnecessary.

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SANCHEZ: Chris Christie, I believe, will be on "THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper next hour. Jake joins me now. Jake, of course you're going to be pressing him on this. But do you have any idea -- because deference we were discussing all camera, does not necessarily mean you don't charge.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR, THE LEAD: No, I mean, as we just saw with that horrible case of the police officers in Mississippi -- the goon squad, as they call themselves -- the federal charges came first. And once that was over then the state charged. Governor Chris Christie is right about that. There are some differences here, obviously. They're using racketeering charges in the Georgia case, which is not what Jack Smith is doing. And they're going after an entire group of people, 19 defendants total. 30 unindicted co-conspirators, alleging a big mob- like conspiracy.

There's also the issue of the practicality of what might happen. Donald Trump, were he to get the nomination, were he be elected president in 2024, he could then appoint an Attorney General that could just toss away or flit away Jack Smith's charges and indictments and everything else. You can't do that for a state charge, whether Georgia or New York. So we'll get into all of this when we have him on in a couple of minutes.

SCIUTTO: A remarkable reality if he were to be reelected. Jake Tapper, certainly an interview to watch. Thanks so much.

TAPPER: Thanks so much.

SCIUTTO: Jessica.

SCHNEIDER: President Biden says he will travel to Maui soon to see the wildfire devastation on the Hawaiian island for himself. We're going to take you there next for the latest on the aftermath.

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SCHNEIDER: We have an update for you on the truly horrific wildfires in Hawaii. Officials today saying with only 25 percent of Maui searched, the death toll is expected to rise significantly. Most of the 99 confirmed dead so far have been found in the open, in cars or in the water near the hard-hit Lahaina area. Crews and cadaver dogs are searching the decimated area. They're picking through the rubble of what used to be homes. CNN's Gloria Pazmino is on Maui. Gloria, we see that devastation behind you. Tell us what the latest is there.

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Jessica, it's going to be a long road to recovery here in Maui. Much of the devastation is in Lahaina. We are about 40 miles from there.

We are in Kula, a small community that has also experienced an incredible amount of devastation. You talk about the rubble that they're sifting through right now in Lahaina. It looks similar to what we're seeing behind me. This used to be someone's home. You can see that all that is left are just these piles of mangled metal, people's belongings. Their lives used to be right here. And we are in an area here in this neighborhood where there is about a 200-foot radius, and four homes have been completely burned to the ground.

Now I want to walk with you just across the street here, just to show you the devastation. There is another home directly in front of us that is also completely gone. Now, you mentioned the amount of coverage that officials have been able to complete so far in Lahaina. They are in search and recovery mode. So far, only about 25 percent of the area has been covered. And they're looking through rubble that looks a lot like this. It's a pile of ashes.

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And what they're trying to do is they're trying to find any potential victims, anyone whose remains they can possibly salvage. They hope to cover about 85 percent to 90 percent of the area by the weekend, according to the officials we been speaking to.

But they told us this is very difficult work. They have cadaver dogs that are out there, looking through the rubble, sifting through what's left behind. And it's pain staking, difficult work.

There are some good news. The power is starting to come back on. Hawaii Electric has recovered about 80 to 90 percent of customers here on the island. But it's going to be a long road ahead. And people here are not just devastated but they're also trying to put the pieces back together. Trying to see how they're going to be able to move forward -- Jessica.

SCHNEIDER: So many people have lost truly everything they own. It is unimaginable. I do want to ask you too about the alarm system -- the alert system. There's been so much talk that people were not properly told and alerted to the fact that this was going on, that they didn't really get any warning. What have you learned about that?

PAZMINO: Well the people who I've spoken to in this neighborhood and the last several days that we have been here, have told me that not only did they not hear the sirens, they were not notified on their phones. And those who did receive messages received them when it was simply already too late. They had no time to pack up their stuff and leave. That is creating a lot of frustration. We know that the Attorney General here in Hawaii is conducting a review of those actions to understand exactly what happened and why the system did not function properly.

But it is one of the outstanding questions that officials here have not been able to answer. Had people been notified? Had they gotten an alarm? Could they have gotten out sooner? Maybe these people behind in this house would have had a better opportunity to gather their belongings, gather everything that was important to them, and make it out in time.

You can see there is a car over there that is just completely burned out. And we've been trying to be mindful of the situation here, you know, stay away from people's homes, their property. They've lost it all. And it's a really surreal scene here, as people come back, they survey the damage and you can see that a lot of them are still grappling with what's happened. They're trying to come to terms with the incredible amount of loss.

SCHNEIDER: Yes, it's so much trauma. And before we let you go, I do want to ask about people who are now homeless because of these fires. There's been so much talk about nowhere for them to go. It was already -- it's an island, obviously, and it's already -- it already had limited housing. And now there are people who are homeless in just moments they became homeless. What are -- what's happening with them?

PAZMINO: The governor has told us that they are making some progress in terms of emptying out the shelters, so that people can be set up with temporary housing. And the governor has put into effect several rules that would allow people to stay in place in temporary shelter for 30 days at a time. They're also looking to secure hotel rooms.

And they've also put out a public call to Hawaiians, to the people of the island, who maybe have a spare room in their homes to open up their doors and take people in. And we know that people are doing that, because that's one thing I can tell you, Jessica, talking to people here over and over, they say we help each other out. We take care of our people. Even if the government hasn't showed up yet. Even if we're still waiting for them. We're going to take care of our own. That's part of the Hawaiian spirit. And it's probably what is ultimately going to help the people of the island move forward and make a full recovery, even if it takes a long time -- Jessica. SCHNEIDER: That's right. People helping their neighbors and their

loved ones. Gloria Pazmino on Maui for us, thanks so much for that update from the site where all this happened.

I do want to bring in CNN White House reporter Kevin Liptak now. He's in Milwaukee, where President Biden announced today, he and his wife, the first lady, Jill Biden will travel to Maui soon. And Kevin, the president has been criticized for not saying more about this yet. These were really the most robust comments we've heard from him. And this is days after these devastating fires. Walk us through what he said today and how he addressed it.

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, this is the first time that we've heard directly from the president sense last Thursday. But in the speech here in Milwaukee, he did vow a robust federal response to those devastating wildfires. He said that anything Hawaii needs from the federal government it would be able to get. Now he was here in Wisconsin to sell his economic message, but he did add a little bit about Hawaii at the very beginning of his speech. Listen to some of what he had to say.

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JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My wife Jill and I are going to travel to Hawaii as soon as we can.

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That's what I've been talking to the governor about. I don't want to get in the way. I've been to too many disaster areas, but I want to go to make sure they get everything they need. I wanted to be sure we don't disrupt the ongoing recovery efforts. The FEMA administrator agrees. While he's the best we ever I think, was on the ground this weekend. I just talked to her. She's back in the states. I have directed her to streamline the process as quickly as possible.

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LIPTAK: Now Republicans had seized on that period of silence from the president over the weekend. The White House was also contending was something of an unfortunate split screen of the president at his beach home while the death toll was rising in Hawaii. Of course, any natural disaster is a test of a president's executive skills, of his leadership, and the White House is emphasizing that the president was in constant touch with FEMA leadership, with the Congressional delegation from Hawaii. They note there are 500 FEMA workers on the ground there. Now the president planning to visit as soon as he can -- Jessica.

SCHNEIDER: All right, Kevin Liptak for us in Milwaukee with President Biden. Thanks so much for that update, Kevin.

And "THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper starts right after this short break.

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