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Key Vote On Ousting McCarthy Set For Later Today; Missing 9- Year-Old Girl Found Safe, Suspect In Custody; U.S. Supreme Court Convenes For New Term. Aired 11:30a-12p ET

Aired October 03, 2023 - 11:30   ET

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

[11:30:00]

SARA SIDNER, CNN HOST: Are they together on this? Are they all going to do the same thing, from what you got from that meeting?

REP. DEBBIE DINGELL (D-MI): I think that I would tell you that there's a lot of soul searching, a lot of reflectiveness, a lot of discussion about what it means for the institution and democracy. And I -- so I don't think -- you know, for some, this is just drama in Washington, DC again and quite frankly, it is very much unnecessary drama.

But I think Democrats are unify not taking any happiness. But the final action of what people do not determine either. A lot of people listening, thinking, reflecting.

SIDNER: All right. You said people are thinking, they're reflecting, but at this point, they are unified. That doesn't guarantee what they're going to do when a vote comes forward, if and when a vote comes forward this afternoon.

I do want to talk to you about what we've been hearing from Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, the most powerful Democrat in the House at this point. He said before going into the meeting, and actually after that Democrats will be expecting concessions from the Republicans. We just heard McCarthy earlier this morning say on camera that he wasn't going to make any concessions and that he did not need Democrats. What is your thought?

DINGELL: So, I think these are very delicate times. I think if that's Kevin McCarthy's position and that's Hakeem Jeffries' position, you can kind of tell where that's going to end up.

SIDNER: What is your position?

DINGELL: So --

SIDNER: What is your position as you -- as you take this into consideration? I know you're a member of the problem solvers caucus and you're trying to solve a problem quite literally today. But can you give me some sense of what your position is? Will you vote to keep McCarthy in his place, there is no other person so far that has been put up for the potential speakership, or not.

DINGELL: I think it depends on how this actually ends up rolling out today. If -- I think the Minority Leader made it clear that there would have to be concessions. I think there have been discussions about potential rule changes.

How do we run this House better? How do we work together better and more effectively? How do we stop these threats?

I do think that a number of people have been very disturbed about the ability of Republicans to keep their word. If they do keep their word, how much does it mean?

So, there's been a lot of discussion. And I think I really have to say this to you. I think anybody who thinks they know how this day is going to play out yet is not in these rooms where a lot of discussion is trying to figure out how this is all going to play out.

SIDNER: I just want to just be clear and ask you again, what are your considerations? Are you considering thing -- all right, let's keep McCarthy in place. Let's not have this be something where we have to keep voting over and over and over again, trying to find a speaker. Are you in that boat right now?

DINGELL: So, I'm going to just --

SIDNER: How are you feeling right now?

DINGELL: You're asking that question in a narrow little cone. I don't -- I think that many are worried and do not want democracy to see this election again over and over and over of who would be the new speaker. But the current situation is unacceptable. I think to people, and a lot of options aren't -- people are thinking.

They're talking. They're throwing things out at the election where -- I do know. I feel very strongly that wherever this lands, that Democrats are going to be united in supporting that.

We'll have to see what the day brings in terms of discussions between people. And I'm not going to say anything that hurts any discussion right now, though I think people should stop making absolute statements if they're trying to find any kind of common ground.

SIDNER: There are five Republicans that we heard from Mike McCarthy earlier who seemed to be going towards they are not going to keep him in the speakership. What do you make of these five people who are creating this chaos, at this point in time, including Representative Matt Gaetz? Is there anything that the Congress can do, 435-some odd people can do to come together and deal with just five members of Congress at this point in time?

DINGELL: I would tell you, it's the Republican caucus's problem. They have created this. It exists within their caucus. They are the ones that change the rules so that one member could call for a motion to vacate. It's disturbing but this is a Republican caucus problem.

[11:35:07]

SIDNER: Congresswoman Debbie Dingell, thank you so much for coming on today and expressing your views. John?

JOHN BERMAN, CNN HOST: Well, anyone who says they know what's going to happen today would be wrong. Quite a statement from her. This is still developing before our eyes. But as of now, Kevin McCarthy not in a good place to survive as Speaker of the House.

We're getting new details about the man police say abducted a 9-year- old girl who was on a camping trip with her family. And new details about how they ended up finding her.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:40:16]

BERMAN: This morning, a 9-year-old girl is back home after she was abducted during a camping trip at a New York State Park. Her disappearance led to a huge search. A ransom note led officials to Charlotte where they were able to arrest 46-year-old Craig Ross Jr. He was arraigned on a felony charge of kidnapping in the first degree. CNN's Jean Casarez has the very latest on this. It's a remarkable story, Jean.

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is remarkable. And, John, we have just received legal documents from that arraignment this morning. And they do say that the defendant abducted 9-year-old Charlotte Sena with the intent to compel monies for the payment of ransom.

And that defendant, Craig Ross Jr., is right behind me at the correctional facility. He is innocent until proven guilty. But this case began to break at 4:20 in the morning yesterday because the family, they were staying at the campsite where she had gone missing on Saturday. At the same time, state law enforcement, they were looking at the home and surrounding it just to make sure it was secure.

Somebody drives up. They put a letter in the mailbox. That person, according to law enforcement and prosecutors at this point, was the defendant.

They knew they needed a fingerprint because they realized it was a ransom note. They got that print. That hit at 2:15 in the afternoon yesterday because of a 1999 DWI arrest of the defendant that led them to the name, led them to the home right behind his mother's home.

He lived in a trailer. SWAT teams at 6:30 last night. They swarmed that trailer. They found the defendant. He resisted. Minor injuries. They gained control and got him under arrest, and they found that 9- year-old little girl in a cabinet.

She was reunited with her family. Her family has just issued a statement saying they are thrilled. They thank law enforcement, and they've got their daughter home safe.

BERMAN: Well, she is home safe. That is what's important. But so much more to this. Jean Casarez, thank you so much for being with us. Appreciate your reporting. Kate?

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN HOST: Coming up for us. We are not saving the speaker. Those are some of the words coming from progressive Democrats in the House right now.

But is that just for now as we are watching the chaos unfold among House Republicans at this moment with Kevin McCarthy's speakership in real doubt, which would effectively paralyze the House of Representatives? We'll take you back to Capitol Hill. Next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:47:14]

BERMAN: All right. Moments ago, our Melanie Zanona reported from Capitol Hill that House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries will not ask Democrats to bail out House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. In other words, Democrats aren't going to lift a finger to help him keep his speaker's job. And a vote to determine his fate will be within the next few hours.

BOLDUAN: A lot happening. Still, it's been fluid all throughout the morning. It's going to continue throughout this afternoon.

Let's bring in CNN's Manu Raju and CNN's Political Director David Chalian for more on this. Manu, what is the very latest that you're picking up?

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Kevin McCarthy simply does not have the votes to remain as the speaker of the House unless something dramatically changes here in the next few hours. His speakership is in serious, serious jeopardy.

And this could have huge implications for the Republican Party, for the House, the ability of the House to govern. It could lead to complete paralysis if they cannot find a speaker. The Congress cannot move forward until a new speaker is elected, all playing out in essentially real-time.

Now, the reason for this is McCarthy's narrow majority. There are more than five Republicans in the House who plan to vote against him. He can only afford to lose four if it's a party-line vote.

That means he needs to rely on Democrats. But Democrats are making very clear they have no interest in saving Kevin McCarthy. They just had a closed-door meeting.

One Democrat after another stood up and railed against McCarthy, so they will not save Kevin McCarthy. Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic leader, indicating as much as well in saying his public comments suggesting that there's no reason for them to get behind to end what he's calling a Republican civil war. And I just caught up with Ted Liu who was a member of the Democratic leadership, and he says that he is ready to eject Kevin McCarthy. And he said Democrats will be in line.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP) REP. TED LIEU (D-CA): The leadership put out the facts in a caucus heard from a lot of members. It's pretty clear the caucus knew exactly where it was. We need a functioning government. Speaker McCarthy has shown he cannot govern.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

RAJU: So, the next steps here will be in the 1:00 p.m. Eastern hour. Around 1:30, that's when the House will convene for votes. We expect there to be a vote -- a procedural vote to try to stop Matt Gaetz's effort to oust Kevin McCarthy from the speakership.

That effort to try to block what Matt Gaetz is doing is expected to fail, then there will be expected to be a vote as soon as this afternoon to actually oust McCarthy from the speakership. And at the moment, it appears to be -- likely to be successful, which means for the first time in American history, there will be a vote on the House floor that could eject a sitting speaker.

And at that point, there would be a speaker's race, either today or tomorrow to find a new speaker. Kevin McCarthy, though, is indicating he plans to fight this. Could be up for the speakership again, and we can keep voting and voting and voting until someone gets a majority of the House, guys.

[11:50:03]

SIDNER: These are just really explosive details when you think about what is going to happen today that this could potentially be the last day that Mike McCarthy is the Speaker.

BERMAN: Kevin McCarthy.

BOLDUAN: Kevin McCarthy.

SIDNER: Sorry. Kevin McCarthy is the speaker. Mike McCarthy is --

BERMAN: Mike McCarthy unfortunately, is still the coach of the Dallas Cowboys.

SIDNER: Still the coach. You'd be upset about that. No, you wouldn't. But that Kevin McCarthy is still the speaker. And there is no heir apparent at this point in time that we've heard from the very person who is going forward with this vote, we believe.

Manu Raju, thank you so much. Let's go to CNN Political Director David Chalian now. David, all jokes aside. When you look at this, some people see this as dysfunction at its absolute worst in Congress. What does this mean to the American people where they're watching this unfold? Will this completely cripple Congress as they try to figure out who the speaker is?

DAVID CHALIAN, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: It's interesting, Sara, because you actually hear the dysfunction critique, forget from the American people, which have been talking about the dysfunction in Congress for quite some time. But you hear from both sides of the aisle, right? The vast majority of the Republican Conference is supportive of Kevin McCarthy. And they are claiming that Matt Gaetz is causing total dysfunction in the Congress by moving ahead with this motion to vacate.

Democrats, as you just heard from Ted Lieu, are portraying the Republican Party at large as dysfunctional and Kevin McCarthy as unable to oversee and lead a functioning Congress, which, of course, serves their political benefit. I think there are a couple of things important to note here. First of all, as Manu said, you know, barring a dramatic change.

Now, we're only four days away from the last dramatic change in Congress when all of a sudden, the shutdown was averted. I'm not suggesting that that will happen here. But we have to remain aware that this is a live-moving situation as Kevin McCarthy's fate gets decided here.

On the Democratic side. You know, you heard Ted Lieu refer to the caucus leadership, putting out the fact pattern to the Democratic caucus and how they talk through things. Democrats I've spoken to, can't get past.

A few things. One, Kevin McCarthy in the aftermath of January 6, as you all recall, initially questioning whether or not Donald Trump should remain in office and his culpability in the -- in the January 6 insurrection in the lead up to it, and his telling of the lie about the 2020 election. And then, you know, within days heading down to Mar-a-Lago, turning on a dime, committing to stay loyal to Trump meaning his conference, to stay loyal to Trump as well.

That's a defining moment in American history. And it's certainly a defining moment in Kevin McCarthy's leadership of the Republican conference, and in the House more broadly. That is not going to be lost on Democrats from what I'm hearing. That was a key moment as well.

And then, obviously, he also just launched an impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden just a few weeks ago, which has yet to produce any evidence of a direct connection of Joe Biden to Hunter Biden's business dealings or some kind of corruption as alleged, by Republicans. Even from their own witnesses, they say that that hasn't been proven yet. And yet, it's hard to imagine when you talk to Democrats saying how they could possibly get to a place where they could support Kevin McCarthy staying in his role in some way, even though they see him calling for what they perceive to be a totally illegitimate impeachment inquiry.

So, it's not hard to understand. Democrats would just be at total odds with their voters. If they were to move ahead here and save Kevin McCarthy. I don't think we should be too surprised what came out of that caucus meeting today.

BERMAN: Yes. And let me just say, when we all take a step back, I think one of the first reactions to this should simply be wow. I mean, wow. Because as we stand here right now, if the vote we're taking right now for the first time ever, a House speaker would be ousted -- would be kicked out of that speaker's chair. Things could change but right now, we're on a course for that historic moment.

It's not Democrats sinking McCarthy, as we say on your screen right there. It says Democrats deciding they're not going to step in and save him. It is a vote within the House Republican caucus that will technically sink him.

Manu Raju and David Chalian, our thanks to both of you. So much is going on. We're going to take a quick break and bring you the very latest developments right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:58:54]

SIDNER: The Supreme Court is back for a new term and the growing list of cases could transform the scope of the federal government, voting rights, public safety, and free speech. CNN's Jessica Schneider is tracking all of the major cases this court is expected to take up. Jessica, what should we be watching for?

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Sara. It really seeing the court this term revisit a lot of consequential issues like gun rights like the power of federal agencies. In fact, the court just wrapped up hearing arguments about the funding structure of the consumer watchdog agency, the CFPB, that actually if the court strikes down the funding structure, it could have a ripple effect on the power of other agencies.

So, this will be a term where we'll see just how much further the conservative court is willing to go. We're going to see big cases like a gun rights case, that that'll be argued next month. It's a federal law that says people subjected to domestic violence restraining orders can't own guns.

A lower court has said that the law is unconstitutional. They struck it down. We'll see if the Supreme Court agrees. We're also looking at cases about social media whether states can step in and tell platforms that they can't restrict certain content, more cases on the power of federal agencies.

[12:00:05]

And then, Sara, we're looking to see if the court is going to take up this case about the abortion pill, whether the FDA properly approved it more than 20 years ago. That will have big ramifications because more than half of the abortions in this country are done without abortion pills. So, a lot of consequential cases we're watching in the weeks ahead, Sara.

SIDNER: Those are cases that touched many, many Americans. Jessica Schneider, thank you so much for your reporting. BERMAN: And thank you all for joining us. This has been CNN NEWS CENTRAL. What could be the final "INSIDE POLITICS" of Kevin McCarthy's tenure as speaker of the House starts now.