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Jobs Added in August; Trump Asks to Sever Cases; Trump Proceedings will be Televised; Trump Co-Defendants us Crowdfunding to Pay Legal Bills; Shan Wu is Interviewed about the Trump Case in Georgia; Russian Strongholds Hit. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired September 01, 2023 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:39]

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: A fresh look at the state of the U.S. economy is just in, and it's not just any jobs report, friends, it's a jobs report smack dab in the middle of the presidential election. We have the details for you.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Plus, hours after entering a not guilty plea, Donald Trump filing a motion to sever his case from his accused co-conspirators. The former president wants to delay while others want a speedy trial. So how will the judge respond?

RAHEL SOLOMON, CNN ANCHOR: Plus, a record number of Americans are packing in one last summer trip this labor day weekend.

I'm Rahel Solomon, alongside Kate Bolduan and Boris Sanchez this morning. And CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.

BOLDUAN: The latest jobs report has just crossed and here is what the report shows on the surface, 187,000 jobs were added last month. The unemployment rate ticked up to 3.8 percent, but there is so much more in there than just that.

CNN's Vanessa Yurkevich has the details for us.

Vanessa, what do you see inside these top line numbers?

VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: This is a good report. A little bit above expectations but it's still a comfortable number, both on the jobs added and the unemployment rate ticking up to 3.8 percent, but still at a comfortable range.

When we dig in, here's where jobs were added. You have gains in hospitality.

BOLDUAN: OK.

YURKEVICH: You have gains in leisure and hospitality. And you have gains in construction. So, these are areas that have added jobs in the month of August. Now, losses, places that we saw losses are in areas that maybe you

would expect because of what you're hearing in the news a little bit. Losses in trucking, 37,000 jobs lost. That is because Yellow Trucking Corporation filed for bankruptcy, laid off 30,000 people, you're seeing that reflected right there.

Also, we know that the writers, actors, have been on strike. That's the ripple effect right there, 17,000 in job losses.

And analysts wanted to keep an eye on wages. They wanted to make sure that we didn't see really robust acceleration in wages because that fuels inflation. Analysts wanted to see it hold steady. We actually saw it cool a little bit. So that means, in the eyes of economists, that's actually good. Less in people's pockets, but good for inflation.

BOLDUAN: Right. So then that adds to the overall picture -

YURKEVICH: Right.

BOLDUAN: That the Federal Reserve has to look at when they're going to be meeting later this month. How -- what are all the signals adding up to? What do you see?

YURKEVICH: Yes. In this report they're probably liking a lot of what they're seeing. But we do have several other data points coming out before this September meeting later this month. They're going to have a lot to look at because we know that they want to potentially raise rates in September or November of this year, but this is a report that they probably like to see. It's probably a report that the White House is really encouraged to see.

Also, revisions in the months of July and June.

BOLDUAN: Yes.

YURKEVICH: Nearly over 100,000 jobs revised down over those two months.

BOLDUAN: Oh.

YURKEVICH: So those two months also very encouraging. More encouraging than we initially thought.

BOLDUAN: So, then, add it all together, what does this report and this moment you mentioned, wages especially, what does it all mean for Americans everywhere?

YURKEVICH: Yes. When Americans see fewer jobs added or unemployment goes up, concerning.

BOLDUAN: Yes.

YURKEVICH: But let's take a step back. A lot of Americans still uncomfortable, struggling with inflation. This report signals that inflation could be cooling a bit. So, you have to take both at the same time and realize, you know, for Americans there are still jobs available, still robust, but in this report you're seeing the effects of possibly those interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve playing in and cooling inflation, which so many Americans want to see right now.

BOLDUAN: Absolutely. It's great to see you, Vanessa. Thanks for breaking it down for us.

YURKEVICH: Yes.

BOLDUAN: Boris.

SANCHEZ: Donald Trump's legal team says there is no way the former president will be ready to go to trial in Georgia next month. So, they're asking a judge to sever his election interference case from some co-defendants asking for a speedy trial. Trump has now pleaded not guilty in the case, which includes a racketeering charge over his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia. He also waived his right to appear in-person for his arraignment next week.

CNN's Zachary Cohen has been following this story for us.

So, Zach, bring us up to speed on this latest legal filing.

ZACHARY COHEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY AND JUSTICE REPORTER: Yes, Boris, Donald Trump making clear he doesn't want to be lumped in with the other defendants in this case who are asking for a speedy trial.

[09:05:06]

As you mentioned, some of those trial dates might start as soon as next month. And Trump's lawyers are saying there's no way that's enough time to prepare an adequate defense for the former president.

Now, it remains to be seen what the judge is going to decide here though because the district attorney, Fani Willis, has said she wants to try all 19 defendants, including Trump, together. And she wants that trial to start on October 23rd of this year. So, we're going to see how that shakes out. But the start of a trial, the date that this trial starts, really a point of tension early on in this case. And it was always going to be a challenge for the district attorney, Fani Willis, as these different defendants try to break up the case into different pieces.

Now, you mentioned also that Trump waived his right to a first appearance next week. So, we won't see him in court then. But a ruling yesterday by the judge says we might get to see these court proceedings play out when a trial does ultimately happen. The judge says that the hearing - or the trial can be televised if it stays in Georgia state court. Obviously, there's a few defendants here that are trying to get the case moved to federal court where cameras are not allowed. But an interesting possibility that we could be watching a trial play out in real time and one that has -- deals with the former president.

SANCHEZ: Yes, especially given the backdrop of the 2024 presidential election.

Zach, on the point of several co-defendants trying to break up this case, Ray Smith one of the co-defendants, he has filed a motion for all of these different charges to be divvied up. What can you tell us about that?

COHEN: Yes, like Trump, Ray Smith, who was a lawyer working for Trump's campaign in Georgia, he also wants to break this case up, but he's arguing that they should be broken up into smaller groups. He's saying that basically there's too many complex relationships between these defendants and there's too many defendants in general that there's no way a jury can comprehend what case is being presented to them.

So, it's yet another like kind of a proposal for how to break this case down into maybe smaller parts. Obviously, again, that goes contrary to what Fani Willis has said that she wants. She wants to try all 19 of these defendants together. But we're seeing multiple, different proposals for breaking this case down. And we'll see if Fani Willis continues to stand by her position that they should all be tried together or if she concedes that maybe they can break it up in a certain way.

SANCHEZ: A complicated process.

Zachary Cohen, we appreciate you walking us through that.

Rahel.

As Zach just mentioned, Trump's trial in Georgia could be televised and it could be one of the most watched trials in history. Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee says all courtroom proceedings related to the election subversion case will be televised and live streamed, making this the first and only time in any of Trump's four criminal cases that cameras would be allowed to capture what's happening inside court.

Let's bring in CNN media reporter -- senior media reporter Oliver Darcy, joining me now.

Oliver, this feels like a pretty big deal. I mean how significant is this really?

OLIVER DARCY, CNN SENIOR MEDIA REPORTER: This is a huge deal. Like you said, this is likely to go down as the most watched court trial in history. And it's a huge win for court transparency advocates. There have been a lot of movements to get courts to allow cameras to stream these trials live. And now a judge in Georgia saying, yes, the Trump trial will be televised.

This will allow the public, of course, to see the evidence for themselves against Trump. And it's going to help, I think, stem the flow of misinformation and the conspiracy theories from the trial because in the absence of it being streamed live there will be a vacuum of information. And that, in the vacuum of information, that's usually when misinformation does grow, does thrive. And so allowing the public to see this in real time, allowing news rooms to have video so they can fact check things in real time will be a great service to the public.

SOLOMON: Yes, it's an interesting point. I mean it remains to be seen what this will mean for Trump politically or legally. But in terms of transparency, could potentially be a huge win, as you say.

Oliver Darcy, thank you.

Boris.

SANCHEZ: This morning we're learning Trump's co-defendants in the Georgia election interference case are struggling to pay their mounting legal bills. Funding their defense could cost them hundreds of thousands of dollars. And we're told the former president has not stepped up to ease their cash crunch.

CNN's Kristen Holmes has been following this for us.

So, Kristen, what are these co-defendants, then, doing to pay their legal bills?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Boris.

Well, before we get into what exactly they're doing, I do want to give a little bit of context here, which is that the former president had been footing the legal bills for his aides, advisers, former and current employees in both the January 6th committee investigation and those federal investigations. That was all coming from the Save America PAC, who has spent more than $41 million on legal fees since 2021. An extraordinary number there.

But when it comes to Georgia, clearly that is not the case. And as you say, these are expected to be huge bills. And, in fact, one of his co- defendants, Harrison Floyd, who runs Black Voices for Trump, actually spent a week in jail because he couldn't afford to hire an attorney.

So, you have some of these defendants turning to more creative means, including Crowdfunding.

[09:10:05]

We know four of them at least have turned to Crowdfunding to try to get the funds to pay these legal bills. That includes Jenna Ellis, John Eastman, Jeffrey Clark, Cathy Latham, who was a fake elector there in Georgia. Obviously, again, trying to get enough money to pay these bills.

Now, I will tell you that I talked to a source close to Trump who said that even though there has been some grumbling among these Florida -- Georgia co-defendants, that none of them have actually formally asked for help. Another source telling me that if they do need help they should request it through the legal defense fund.

And, Boris, I will remind you, we reported on that just a few weeks ago. This was set up in July. And this is a way to pay those bills because Save America PAC is bleeding out so much money. So this legal defense fund, they are trying to raise the money. I am told it is Don Jr., it is Eric Trump who are trying to fund raise for this non-profit to help offset some of those bills of those aides and advisers who have been wrapped up in all of this.

SANCHEZ: Yes, and some of those co-defendants in serious financial trouble. The reporting on Rudy Giuliani specifically really troubling.

Kristen Holmes, thanks for that.

Kate.

BOLDUAN: Thanks, Boris.

Joining us now is defense attorney and former federal prosecutors Shan Wu.

It's good to see you, Shan.

I wanted to ask you about this ruling, this decision that the proceedings in state court, the cameras will be allowed in the courtroom. I wanted to get your take on that because what does the judge weigh here in this consideration? Is there a legal argument for not having cameras in court?

SHAN WU, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: There's a legal argument you can make, which is that it might cause the atmosphere to be more chaotic or disorganized, maybe it would, you know -- if the pre-trial proceedings were televised, maybe there's some prejudice to the jurors. But really it's up to the judge to decide whether or not there's going to be any problem with the administration of justice, meaning any potential chaos, weighed against the public interest in seeing trials. And it's high time for the federal courts, my take on it, to join the 21st century. I mean the Supreme Court sounds like they just discovered radio, allowing the auto broadcasts to happen. And they're - you know, it's public forums. I mean the public's allowed to come in if they can find a seat. And in this day and age, they should have a virtual seat.

BOLDUAN: So, if one -- if any one defendant gets their case moved out of state court into federal court, where as two - to this point no cameras are allowed, of course, does that jeopardize this ruling in Georgia, this decision?

WU: No, it doesn't because -- it shouldn't, no, because if they do go to federal court, they'll have to deal with the federal judiciary's policy on the cameras but it won't jeopardize the ruling about cameras in the Georgia proceedings.

BOLDUAN: So, on -- on that, federal Judge Steve Jones, he could be ruling anytime now on the request from Mark Meadows to have his case moved. The judge's latest question and they -- obviously the responses are in from the DA and Meadows' legal team. The latest question was specifically on, if the court found that any one action described in the racketeering case, if the court found that it had to do with Meadows' conduct by Meadows in the course of doing his job, a federal position, does that mean that the whole case should then be moved to federal court. The DA says obviously, no. Meadows' team says, obviously, yes. What do you think of this?

WU: The judge's question was very insightful and shows the kind of careful consideration and analysis he was giving out of fairness to Meadows' former position. Honestly, Kate, had a lot of legal analysts scratching their heads a little bit trying to dig down to what the right answer should be.

I think the DA has the better argument here because it's not the actions that are being charged individually as crimes, it's what they all add up to. So, it's the charges that he's facing.

Also, in an indictment that has this many overt acts, those actions, I think about 160 plus, the DA could solve the problem simply by amending and deleting some of those acts. Seems like there's plenty of other overt acts to make the case. So, I think the DA wins on this, but I think it's a very good, probing question by the judge to consider.

BOLDUAN: You have Trump's legal team says he can't be ready for trial by October 23rd, as proposed. His team telling a judge that forcing him to do so would violate his federal and state constitutional rights to a fair trial and due process. How does that line up with other defendants, though, asking - asking for a speedy trial, clearly indicating that they would be ready. And also, Shan, what if the judge just says, no, it's October 23rd, what happens - what's -- what options do they have then?

WU: Yes, The answer, Kate, is it doesn't line up with the speedy trial requests. And, obviously, there is an argument for the judge to consider that some folks facing exactly the same charges feel they can be ready. It's not unreasonable for Trump's people to argue, well, you know, we have a different defendant, it's more complicated, we need more time.

[09:15:07]

And a judge does have to be careful in terms of the ruling of forcing them to go to trial. The judge can certainly do that, just say no, but he has to make - he has to make sure that on the appellate record, if there's a conviction, there isn't some problem looking like there wasn't enough time to prepare. So, that's always a stuff question. The judges want to advance the case quickly but they have to make sure that they respect the rights of the defendant and don't create a problem for the appeal.

BOLDUAN: So interesting. It's good to see you, Shan. Thank you.

WU: Good to see you.

BOLDUAN: Boris.

SANCHEZ: Ukraine ramping up its attacks, targeting Russia on its own soil. And they're making gains in Zaporizhzhia. So, has their counteroffensive entered a new phase? And how is Russia going to respond? Plus, manhunts underway right now on both coasts for two escapees.

Inmates getting out of prison. Both of them described as extremely dangerous. We have details on how they got out and where they could be now.

And a record summer for air travel, expected to stay on pace this Labor Day. What you need to know if you're flying or driving this Labor Day weekend.

CNN NEWS CENTRAL returns in just a moment.

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[09:20:22]

SANCHEZ: Ukraine says its forces are making progress against the first line of Russian defense strongholds in the southeastern region of Zaporizhzhia. It comes as Ukraine intensifies its drone attacks. Today targeting both Moscow and the Kursk region in western Russia. In fact, have a look at this aerial image. It shows the aftermath of a drone attack on a Russian air base earlier in the week. Russia says it will not comment on claims by Ukraine that the attack was launched from inside Russia.

Let's take you now to Ukraine with CNN's Melissa Bell who's live for us in Zaporizhzhia.

So, Melissa, take us there. What's happening on the ground?

MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, these drone attacks on Russian soil, a daily occurrence really, Boris, these last few days, and especially as the counteroffensive has picked up its pace and its successes once again today. But I think you mentioned a moment ago, the Kremlin declining essentially to comment on Ukrainian claims that those drone strikes we saw earlier in week - And bear in mind that Tuesday to Wednesday we saw the largest drone attack on Russian soil since this war began.

By the next morning we understood that Depskov (ph) Airfield had been attacked. It's about 600 miles to the north of Ukraine. The question was where these drones had come from. The Ukrainians so far have been very reluctant, Boris, to say when individual drone attacks are theirs or not. They've spoken overall to a strategy of wanting to bring the war to Russia, but they don't comment. The fact that they should now be claiming that the drones that took on that airfield on Tuesday to Wednesday were actually coming from inside Moscow is much further than they've gone before. An extraordinary claim which speaks to the porosity of the border and to their increasingly determined posture of wanting to be clear about what's happening in this war. It's not just happening in Ukraine, it's now happening in Russia as well.

And, of course, this happens in the context of those gains you mentioned here in Zaporizhzhia region. This is a storm that's going on around me, I think I should clarify for our viewers. Those gains that have been made quite substantial, insignificant in terms of territory taken, but significant in terms of overall strategy, momentum. And I'd just like to show you some pictures that we were able to get

exclusively from Ukraine's secret services taken just yesterday that shown with a drone what those fortifications look like.

So, beyond the town of Robotyne (ph) and now in Ukrainian hands, we understand they're making advances towards the south. But this is what they're facing. Beyond those extensive minefields, through parts of which they've worked their way, they now face those (INAUDIBLE). And those images, those are 70 kilometers long.

Beyond that, the Russian trenches and the Russian positions waiting for them to the south and to the east of where their positions are now, although they say they are managing to grow their bridge heads, increase their presence, consolidate their positions. It is extremely slow going. We spent much of the night, Boris, with the SBU, Ukraine's secret services, who said, look, these fortifications, they've been building since March 2022. And we've been watching them the whole time.

Boris.

SANCHEZ: Really significant developments. Glad to hear, Melissa Bell, that that is thunder behind you and not explosions.

Melissa Bell, from Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine.

Rahel.

SOLOMON: All right, Boris, thank you.

And let's continue the conversation and bring in Colonel Cedric Leighton. He is a CNN military analyst and a retired Air Force colonel.

Colonel, good morning. Good to have you.

So, let's start where Melissa left off. Those extraordinary claims that she said from Ukraine that some of these drone attacks are originating from within Russian territory. I mean how significant is that and how does that work?

COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Yes, Rahel, that's -- it is extremely significant. And one of the key things to think about here is that, if that's true, then the Russian border, as Melissa said, is completely porous. The Ukrainians have a capability where they can put in various weapon systems, such as drones, that are not being detected by the Russians, or if they are being detected, they're letting them pass, indicating that, you know, perhaps bribery or something like that is going on.

And what they're able to do then is launch very close to Russian air bases, such as the one in Peskov (ph), which, of course, is a pretty significant thing because it's so far away from Ukraine and it allows the Ukrainians to actually make a difference anywhere, almost anywhere in Russia. SOLOMON: And talk to me a bit about the implications, both tactically

but also politically of these drones being within Russian territory in terms of the Russian people seeing this and the type of messaging and narrative that perhaps gives off.

LEIGHTON: Yes, well, as you know, Rahel, the war is also about psychology in addition to moves forces on the ground and in the air.

[09:25:01]

So, what you're dealing with here is the ability of the Ukrainians to attack targets in Russia. And when that happens, the psychological impact of that, whether the target is a military target or a target in the city center of Moscow or something like that, what it ends up doing is it ends up giving the Russian people another view from what they get from the official media. And as a result of that, the fact that what they're seeing with their own eyes is perhaps different from the official narrative that then leads them to question what they're being told and that could then eventually weaken their resolve to fight the Ukrainians. And that would be a significant thing.

SOLOMON: And speaking of drones, Colonel, President Zelenskyy has been touting a new Ukrainian-made long-range weapon that could reach up to 700 kilometers. I mean what's your sense of what that could be? I mean is he talking about some sort of weaponized drone? I mean what's your sense of what he's talking about here?

LEIGHTON: It sounds like it is. So, 700 kilometers, about 435 miles or so in terms of range. That would get them from the Ukrainian border to places like Peskov (ph). So, it is possible that they have a weapons system like that. They have some longer range weapons systems. Their minister of digital transformation talked about a drone that had a 500 kilometer range just a few days ago. So, what President Zelenskyy is talking about is probably a drone that has a range that exceeds what's publicly known so far. And if that's the case, that would allow them to move really with impunity throughout western Russia.

SOLOMON: Fascinating. Colonel Leighton, we appreciate your expertise today. Thank you.

Kate.

BOLDUAN: Coming up for us, Senator Mitch McConnell cleared to keep working after a second freezing episode while speaking to reporters. What the Senate physician has to say about the Republican leader's health.

We'll be right back.

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