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McConnell, Schumer Push For Combined Israel And Ukraine Funding; IDF Confirms Airstrike Hit Gaza's Largest Refugee Camp; Sen. Tuberville To Keep Blocking Military Promotions; FBI Director: Antisemitism Is Reaching Historic Levels In The U.S. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired October 31, 2023 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:08]

SEN. RAND PAUL (R-KY): So I think McConnell position is very, very unpopular, both in Kentucky but also very, very unpopular across the United States. And I think ultimately will fail. I'll bring down the speaker, which I don't think is a good idea.

SEN. MITT ROMNEY (R-UT): Well, you forget, to have a piece of legislation that actually becomes law, it's going to include support for Ukraine as well as Israel. There may be other elements that are attached to it, but it's not acceptable to abandon Ukraine.

There may be an effort on the part of a small local minority to try and wag the dog, if you will, but that's not going to happen, I don't believe.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: But the challenge for senators like Romney and McConnell is the fact that the House Republicans, under its new leadership, Speaker Mike Johnson, pushing forward with an Israel only plan -- $14.3 billion that includes some spending cuts that Democrats don't like. So the future of getting Israel aid, uncertain here at this key moment as Dem -- Republicans on the opposite sides of their strategy, moving ahead and divisions about whether adding Ukraine to this is -- should be part of the equation, all of which leaves its fate highly uncertain at the -- this moment -- Boris.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: It's such a huge gap between Republicans in the Senate and Republicans in the House. And Manu Raju, thanks so much for the reporting -- Brianna.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Funding for Israel and Ukraine are front and center on Capitol Hill today. Secretary of State Blinken and Defense Secretary Austin, making their case before the Senate this morning as demonstrators disrupted the proceedings multiple times. They called for a ceasefire in Gaza. They protested any additional aid for Israel as well.

In the Senate, we are seeing a rare display of bipartisan unity as leaders of both parties agree that Israel aid should be part of a larger package that includes Ukraine aid and also border funding. But divisions remain in the House, where new Speaker Mike Johnson wants a stand-alone bill for Israel that does not include any new funding for Ukraine.

We have Beth Sanner with us. She is a CNN national security analyst. She's also a former deputy director of National Intelligence. All right, Beth, tell us how you see this if it makes sense, as the speaker is demanding that these funding sources be separated. If it makes any sense when you're talking about U.S. National Security interests.

BETH SANNER, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, I think the two things don't make sense. One is just the practical matter of what is needed right now for both Ukraine, Israel and for many people, the border wall. I mean, I think we all agree that there's a crisis there then -- that needs to be dealt with as well. And so I think that that practical aspect is very important.

But there's also just, you know, U.S. leadership and credibility is at stake here. And this is something that I think actually Americans would understand if it was put to them. Whether the United States is seen as a declining power, which is what China and Russia and all of their friends are putting out there to the whole world and they're getting a lot of traction on that because of our dysfunction at home.

And so I think that, you know, showing strength, the Republicans say Biden isn't showing strength. Well, they're actually making it a lot harder for this President to show strength in U.S. leadership, by handling the funding in the way that they are with all these shenanigans.

KEILAR: What happens in Ukraine's war against Russia, defending itself against Russia's invasion if they don't receive this funding?

SANNER: Well, I don't think that in the near term it's not a crisis. You know, there are some signs that there are problems, but you know, we have probably till the end of the year in the practical effects on the battlefield. But that said, there is a psychological effect here, both for the Ukrainians, but also this very joyous psychological effect that's happening with Putin and Russia and China, that is going to gain a momentum of its own.

And we can't also forget that the Europeans and our allies that really depend on U.S. leadership. If we can't come through with this, this is a problem. And as we move closer and closer to the election, it gets harder and harder to pass. The last time this bill came forward in September in the House, 117 Republicans, including Mike Johnson, voted against a -- the bill for Ukraine. And Johnson has voted three times for amendments to limit aid to Ukraine. And so that majority of Republicans in the House it's getting harder and harder to pass these things.

KEILAR: And Beth, while I have you. I want to ask you about this IDF strike, this Israeli military strike that we have seen on this refugee camp in Gaza. We know that it has killed many civilians. We also know that Israel gave civilians notice that they needed to leave.

[15:35:00]

But we know that in effect, many of them did not. What questions is this raising for you?

SANNER: Well, I think this just shows the incredibly complicated nature of this conflict and the dilemmas that this administration and that all of us as human beings face when we're looking at these pictures. This camp is -- has been known for many, many years, for decades as a Hamas stronghold.

It is where -- it is the birth place of the First Intifada that first Palestinian uprising. And so, you know, Hamas is in that camp. They live in that camp. They are part of the culture of that camp. But not everyone, of course, right. And I'm sure that the civilians there who don't like Hamas were prevented by Hamas from leaving.

And so this is just so hard, but I think that the administration, you know, in grappling this, we just have to be so much more forward leaning and protecting civilians because we are losing the global narrative on this war by not being able to say at the same time. Hamas is a terrorist group, did horrible things and we must protect civilians.

KEILAR: Beth, it is great to have your perspective. Thank you for being with us.

SANNER: Thank you.

KEILAR: And still to come, the FBI says anti-Semitism is reaching historic levels. How the Israel Hamas war is fueling hate in the U.S.?

[15:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: This weekend, the Commandant of the Marine Corps, General Eric Smith, suffered an apparent heart attack, according to reporting from the "New York Times." The Senate only confirmed Smith for that job late last month -- or last month, I should say, but he's actually been doing two jobs for months. His new one and the old one because his would be deputy hasn't been confirmed.

And that is because Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville of Alabama is blocking the Senate from what are usually perfunctory votes of grouped nominations of hundreds of general and flag officers across the military. He says he's doing it because he opposes the Pentagon's abortion travel policy. A policy, by the way, that these Generals and Admirals had nothing to do with adopting, because that's the purview of civilian leaders of the military.

Now to be clear, we have no way of knowing that the stress of these demands contributed to General Smith's health emergency, but safe to say it did not help.

Smith himself, telling the "Marine Corps Times" last month, quote: It is not a sustainable thing when the last thing you do is flip your

computer off at 11:30 at night and you're getting up at 5:00 in the morning.

General Smith is now receiving care, according to the Marine Corps, as they scramble to fill the void. Because, as I mentioned, Smith does not have a confirmed deputy. The Senate hasn't confirmed an assistant commandant of the Marine Corps -- hat tip, Tommy Tuberville.

The senior most general at Marine Corps HQ Lieutenant General Karsten Heckle is now filling in for Smith. And Heckel was already doing two jobs because yet again, Tommy Tuberville holds, according to military.com. So now general Heckle is responsible for what, four jobs. The whole affair actually so confusing that the Marine Corps announced that Heckle would be acting commandant and then had to correct itself and say that Heckel would just be performing the duties of the Commandant.

That is not a flex of military strength, at a time when the U.S. is trying to stop the war between Israel and Hamas from ballooning into a broader conflict in the Middle East. When the Pentagon just announced today that the U.S. is sending 300 more service members to the Middle East, as the Marines, the Navy and the Air Force are mobilizing thousands more troops, as well as ships and planes in the region.

When you have the proxies of Iran, the country that funds Hamas and Hezbollah and rebels in Yemen attacking American interests, including bases where American troops are stationed in Iraq and Syria 27 times in the last two weeks. In fact, in that time period, the U.S. Carney alone spent nine hours intercepting four missiles. And 15 drones in the Red Sea near Yemen.

And there is no commander of the Fifth Fleet responsible for the Middle East. No deputy commander of U.S. Central Command, which overseas the entire region. No deputy commanding general of joint Special Operations Command as U.S. Special Operations Forces are on alert in the region. Some of them involved in advising hostage rescues. And there is no head, we should say, of the Navy or the Air Force as fighter jets deployed to the region. But don't worry, Tuberville says his holds are no big deal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TOMMY TUBERVILLE (R-AL): There's no threat to readiness. The people that we need to be really worried about are her colonels and majors and sergeants and privates, they're the people who get ready to fight wars. The people up here in the Pentagon, I don't know what they do every day, but they're more of giving advice.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Actually, these people do stuff. They do important stuff and they don't just give advice, though let's not diminish the value of informed advice. They make decisions.

[15:45:00] They are necessary, especially right now. Even Tuberville's fellow Republicans know this, and some have criticized him publicly.

But Tuberville insists, quote:

It's not holding up any readiness. I mean, we're not at war number one. And all these jobs that we're holding, they're all being done.

But the Marine Corps commandant that it appears might be a bridge too far, even for the Senator from Alabama. Because just moments ago, he told reporters he's taken the rare procedural step to bypass his own hold, but only on one nominee, assistant commandant of the Marine Corps. Sending a clear message to military leaders, you may be doing two jobs, maybe even four, but you're only a heart attack away from Senator Tuberville doing his. And we'll be right back.

[15:50:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: FBI Director Christopher Wray told Senate lawmakers today that the rise in anti-Semitism in the United States is reaching historic levels. Wray says there's been a steady uptick in threats and violent acts since the war erupted between Israel and Hamas. Wray, saying, quote: The Jewish community is targeted by terrorists across the spectrum.

Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTOPHER WRAY, FBI DIRECTOR: The Jewish community is targeted by terrorists really across the spectrum, homegrown violent extremists, foreign terrorist organizations, both Sunni and Shia, domestic violent extremists. And in fact, our statistics would indicate that for a group that represents only about 2.4 percent of the American public, they account for something like 60 percent of all religious based hate crimes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Since Nick Watt has been tracking this story. So Nick, what did you find?

NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Boris, you know I've been speaking to a lot of Jewish Americans, many of them who are my age. So they've lived a little. And they say for the first time in their lives, they actually feel under physical threat. They actually feel scared they're going to be attacked.

And here's just one reason why. There was a man arraigned in Nevada yesterday, for leaving threatening messages for Senator Jackie Rosen -- who Rosen, who happens to be Jewish. One of those messages included the words that this guy wanted to finish what Hitler started. Senator Rosen says she feels like many Jews in this country and around the world -- she feels under attack, under threat. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WATT (voice-over): A scuffle at Tulane after a pro-Palestinian demonstrator tried to burn an Israeli flag. At Cornell, Jews were threatened with death and called pigs in an online forum Saturday, according to the "Cornell Daily Sun."

GOV. KATHY HOCHUL (D) NEW YORK: No one should be afraid to walk from their dorm or their dining hall, to a classroom.

WATT (voice-over): But that's the reality. Another post read: Going to shoot up 104 West.

That's the address of the College Center for Jewish Living and the Kosher Dining Hall.

MARTHA POLLACK, PRESIDENT, CORNELL UNIVERSITY: We will not tolerate anti-Semitism on this campus.

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: There's no place for hate in America and we condemn any anti-Semitic threat or incident in the strongest -- in the strongest terms. To the students at Cornell and on campuses across the country, we're tracking these threats closely.

WATT (voice-over): At George Washington University, glory to our martyrs, among the messages projected on a library wall.

JONATHAN GREENBLATT: CEO, ANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUE: Celebrating the individuals who murdered and massacred Israeli civilians.

WATT (voice-over): And it's not just college campuses. Slurs painted on a building in Beverly Hills where a Holocaust survivor and her daughter live.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Anytime someone hates you, it hurts.

WATT (voice-over): A Florida Congressman posted Saturday, the temple I belonged to was targeted by five people wearing ski masks and shouting, "Kill the Jews" as congregants left.

REP. JARED MOSKOWITZ (D-FL): This has gone into a horrible place that reminds the Jewish community, quite frankly, of the reason why Israel was created in the first place.

WATT (voice-over): Anti-Semitic incidents in the U.S. are up nearly 400 percent since the Hamas terror attacks of October 7th, according to preliminary data just released from the ADL.

GREENBLATT: And let's keep in mind that prior to October 7th, we had already seen the highest number of anti-Jewish acts in America that the ADL had ever tracked in the last, you know, 45 years.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Quite frankly, there is -- there are very few corners of the world right now in which you won't see that sort of craziness. Different levels, of course, but it's everywhere. WATT (voice-over): Today in Paris, four Jewish educational institutes

received bomb threats. In China, normally strict state censors appear to be allowing extremist anti-Semitic posts online. And in southern Russia, a mob, some carrying anti-Semitic signs, broke into an airport Sunday, apparently to meet a flight from Tel Aviv.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That was an angry mob that broke through security at an airport looking for Jews. And I'm pretty sure that we're not looking to have a robust foreign policy conversation.

WATT (voice-over): At least ten people were injured, say local officials. The airport had to close. Flights from Israel are now being diverted elsewhere.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[15:55:00]

WATT (on camera): Now I mentioned in that piece those threats at Cornell, one threat to shoot up the kosher dining hall. Well we hear that there is now a person in custody in relation to those threats. And you know, here at CNN we are basically struggling to keep on top of this. There are so many incidents. Swastikas here, chants, slurs. It is difficult to keep up.

And the other thing that we wrestle with is how much do we say? Are we amplifying this hate speech by recounting it? But it's also very important to make it clear that this is not just name calling. These are threats. And I have spoken to Jewish Americans who've said that now they've said to their children, if anyone asks you if you're Jewish, say no -- Boris.

SANCHEZ: It is a frightening time. Nick Watt, thank you so much for that.

KEILAR: That is incredibly scary that that is what people are dealing with, that they're actually denying their identity in order to stay safe. It is -- it is just awful.

And that is it for us. "THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper starts after this short break.