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Election Day In America As Voters Across The States Decide On Hot-Button Issues; Netanyahu Hints At Indefinite Security Control For Israel In Gaza Post-War; Five Candidates Prepare For The Republican Presidential Debate - Trump To Hold A Rally. Aired 2-2:30p ET

Aired November 07, 2023 - 14:00   ET

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

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[14:01:47]

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: It's election day in America. Voters across several states are heading to the polls with dozens of key offices on hot-button issues on the line. And the outcomes today could reveal the mood of the nation less than a year before the presidential election. Actually, 363 days before November of 2024, to be exact. The ballot issues include abortion rights, marijuana, legalization, taxes, and foreign spending in elections. Meantime, Kentucky's Democratic Governor Andy Beshear is seeking a second term in that red state. Virginia's Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin is hoping to take full control of the legislature in Richmond. And a cousin of Elvis Presley is trying to shake things up in Mississippi and become the first Democratic governor there in nearly 2 decades. We've got CNN Political Director David Chalian here to break it all down. David let's start with the key issues of abortion.

DAVID CHALIAN, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Yes, we're going to see abortion rights sort of through several of these states today, Boris. In Ohio, it's actually on the ballot, as you noted. There's an amendment to enshrine abortion rights into the state's constitution. Since the Dobbs decision came down a year and a half ago, 6 states have had abortion measures on the ballot. All of them, the abortion rights, pro-abortion rights side of the equation, won those contests. We'll see if Ohio keeps that up.

And also in Virginia, the battle for control of the state legislature. You've seen Governor Youngkin out there. Abortion rights has been central to that as well in a lot of these key state Senate districts that have a lot of suburban populations, where Democrats have seen success on an issue like abortion rights. Governor Youngkin's trying to have a different path.

SANCHEZ: We've also got governor's races in some ruby red states, Kentucky and Mississippi.

CHALIAN: Yeah, ruby red, to say the least. Donald Trump won Kentucky by 26 points over Joe Biden in 2020. You've got Andy Beshear, probably the most popular Democratic governor in the country, even though he's a governor of a very deep red state. And rising star in the Republican Party, the attorney general in the Commonwealth, Daniel Cameron, in a close battle. And I think, you know, a key question here is, can Beshear, even with his popularity, overcome the political DNA of Kentucky, especially with Biden races, where Biden is right now, publicly?

And then down in Mississippi, you noted the Presley-cousin connection in the intro. Tate Reeves, the Republican incumbent governor, dealing with a corruption scandal. That could have an impact on the outcome here. This would be the shock of the night. It may be close, but if the Democrat Presley actually defeats the incumbent Republican governor of Mississippi, that would be a shock.

SANCHEZ: And obviously, -- go ahead.

CHALIAN: No, no, no, go ahead.

SANCHEZ: I was just going to say, obviously, we noted 363 days before the election next year. Very early. But if you were reading the tea leaves, what would you be looking for tonight that could be an indicator of how things may wind up?

CHALIAN: So as we think through it, I think these are the factors to look for tonight. The abortion impact is the potency of the issue still there for Democrats or pro-abortion rights supporters. The Biden factor, he's dismally unpopular with the American public right now. Is that a wet blanket on all Democratic efforts that we see at the ballot today? And Glenn Youngkin, the governor of Virginia, big test. He's put it all on the line to win unified Republican control of the legislature, enact a 15-week ban, but also his conservative agenda. If he wins, he'll be a big winner tonight. And if he loses, I don't know what the, the path forward is for Glenn Youngkin.

[14:05:09]

SANCHEZ: And potential presidential aspirations there on the line.

(CROSSTALK)

CHALIAN: That's what I mean. Those may get complicated if he loses this big bet tonight.

SANCHEZ: Absolutely. A lot to look out for. Dave Chalian, thank you so --

(CROSSTALK)

CHALIAN: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: -- much for walking us through that, of course. So, we just heard a lot of talk about Virginia and Glenn Youngkin. CNN's John King spoke to voters in that state. Here's his report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN KING, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A change of seasons in Loudoun County, and a choice that will echo well beyond Virginia. NANNETTE MEES, VIRGINIA VOTER: Abortion is tough. I have 2 girls. I feel personally that every woman has the right to do what she feels right for her with her body.

KING: Nanette Meese is a registered Republican, but one of the suburban voters who changed Virginia from red to blue.

MEES: Abortion and guns, those are two big things.

KING: Mees voted early for the Democrat in a critical state Senate race here.

MEES: Five flyers in the mail every day for the last month. It's a lot of, of money wasted.

KING: Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin is among those spending millions.

GLENN YOUNGKIN, GOVERNER OF VIRGINIA (R): Hold in the House, flip in the Senate. Hold in the House, flip in the Senate.

KING: Youngkin is not on this year's ballot, but his presidential ambitions are. Youngkin thinks he can reverse the Republican collapse in the suburbs, even while backing new abortion restrictions. If voters give him a full Republican legislature, Youngkin says Virginia will ban abortions after 15 weeks, with exceptions for rape, incest, and the life of the mother.

YOUNGKIN: No more are we going to allow bureaucrats to tell folks that parents don't belong in the classroom.

KING: Yet no abortion mentioned in his rally speech.

UNKNOWN: You said you're for tax cuts, you're for parental rights, you're for more funding for police. Isn't it strong leadership to say, I'm for this too?

UNKNOWN: It's very clear where I stand on this. We're running a big advertising campaign.

UNKNOWN: Here's the truth. There is no ban. Virginia Republicans support a reasonable 15-week limit.

UNKNOWN: Mega-Republicans like Juan Pablo Segura want to ban abortions in Virginia. Criminalizing abortions is wrong.

KING: It is a giant test of whether Republicans can end a streak of punishing election losses since the Supreme Court tossed out Roe v. Wade.

UNKNOWN: Discussion around abortion is one between an extreme position from the left and a reasonable position from all Republicans.

KING: The Youngkin events look like a presidential test run. This is in Henrico County, the fast-growing Richmond suburbs. Democrats hope to unseat a big Youngkin ally and prove the abortion debate still cuts their way.

UNKNOWN: There's nothing reasonable about banning abortion, but that's exactly what Republican Siobhan Dunnavant wants to do.

RACHEL KULAK, VIRGINIA VOTER: During the COVID lockdowns, it was Siobhan Dunnavant that really worked to get our kids back in the classrooms, and I'm deeply appreciative for that.

KING: Rachel Kulak calls herself a conservative independent, supports Donald Trump, prefers a six-week abortion ban, but is open to compromise.

KULAK: I don't support abortion, but if he can get it to 15 weeks, I think perhaps that's a fair middle ground.

KING: Loudoun County is 40 miles west of Washington, D.C. It still leaned red when Xi. Van Fleet moved here 18 years ago. Loudoun was home to just shy of 100,000 people then. It is more than four times that now, and 20% of the county's voters are Asian.

XI VAN FLEET, VIRGINIA VOTER: My neighbors are Indians, Vietnamese, Korean, and Chinese, and if you talk about diversity, this is a very diverse area.

KING: It's also become more democratic out here. Does that bother you?

FLEET: It bothers me, yes.

KING: South Carolina-born Gladys Burke is part of Loudoun's evolution. She is an independent who leans blue, owns a promotional products business, and takes issue with Youngkin's education agenda.

GLADYS BURKE, VIRGINIA VOTER: This thing about not teaching black history in the schools, not recognizing our black history, because I lived it.

KING: But still undecided on the state senate race that could tip the balance of power.

BURKE: I've never been this torn before.

KING: But you're open to some restriction.

(CROSSTALK)

BURKE: Absolutely. Oh, yeah

KING: -- on abortion?

BURKE: Oh, yeah, absolutely.

KING: Even if she votes Republican this time, Burke says Youngkin is wrong to think Virginia will return to red next year.

BURKE: Absolutely Biden, Biden, Biden, Biden.

KING: You like him?

BURKE: Absolutely. I think he's done a great job.

KING: Nanette Meese is the face of Virginia's suburban shift. Her last Republican vote for president? George W. Bush back in 2004. That is the last time the Republican nominee carried Loudoun County and Virginia. Still a registered Republican, but ready to cast a fifth consecutive Democratic vote for president next year, but with hesitation.

MEES: I don't think he's the perfect one, but if I have to pick between him and Trump, who I would never, ever, ever vote for, it'd be Biden, and just pray.

KING: That's for next November. First, this year's big test. John King, CNN, Leesburg, Virginia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: Our thanks to John King for that snapshot. Look, all of this is happening as five Republican presidential candidates gear up for their next debate tomorrow. And once again, the front runner is skipping it.

[14:10:09]

Instead, Donald Trump is going to be counterprogramming, holding a rally a short drive away in Hialeah, Florida. CNN's Jeff Zeleny is live for us in Miami ahead of the debate. So, Jeff, what should we watch for tomorrow?

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Boris, this debate may be the most important one yet, and here is why. We are just about 2 months before the voting begins in the 2024 Republican primary. And quite frankly, time is running out for some of these candidates to make their moves in this race.

So, what we are looking for, first and foremost, there are 5 candidates on stage at the debate tomorrow evening, the smallest we have seen so far. It started in August with 8 candidates. It's slowly been whittling down, and we are seeing a consolidation here. But the 2 candidates at the centre of the stage, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor and former U.N. ambassador, have been on a collision course for several weeks, if not months, and look for that to continue tomorrow.

There is no doubt that these candidates are trying to win the race, if you will, for 2 place. Of course, the former governor of New Jersey, Chris Christie, has been going after Donald Trump. Vivek Ramaswamy, the Ohio entrepreneur, still trying to show some life in his campaign. And Tim Scott, the South Carolina senator, also on stage. So, it really is a key opportunity for Nikki Haley to continue her momentum and for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in his home state here to try and show that he can be the leading alternative to Donald Trump.

But Boris, as we said, time is running out on all this. But as we watch the election results today, when voters are going to give us some indication of what they're thinking on abortion, on crime, on education, other matters, this is all part of a piece of what the candidates are trying to do tomorrow night here, of course, as we are now 1 year away from the general election next year. So even though it seems like separate pieces of the puzzle here, it's all part of the, the ongoing campaign. But tomorrow night, there is no doubt, Boris, I will say the Florida governor in his home state knows that he needs to make a move here to stay very active and alive. We'll see if he does it. Boris.

SANCHEZ: A make-or-break moment potentially for Ron DeSantis. Jeff Zeleny, thank you so much for that report. Still to come on CNN, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu giving new details about a potential postwar plan for Gaza, saying Israel will have overall security control for Gaza for an indefinite period. What exactly does that mean? Plus, Donald Trump's legal and political schedules colliding. The former president hitting the campaign trail tomorrow as court resumes with his daughter, Ivanka Trump, taking the witness stand.

And later, the Department of Education warning that federal funds are at stake if schools fail to combat anti-Semitism and Islamophobia on campus. You're watching CNN News Central. We're back in just a few minutes.

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[14:15:09]

SANCHEZ: It's now been one month since the Hamas terror attack that ignited war with Israel. Today, Israel's Defense Minister said Israeli ground troops are now at the heart of Gaza City, targeting Hamas commanders and infrastructure. Our colleague, CNN journalist Ibrahim Dagman, has been trapped in the enclave for 28 days, and he's been showing parts of his family saga throughout the month. Now, his family has fortunately escaped to Egypt, but they can't get away from the ongoing tragedy of war, including leaving family behind. Here's more from Ibrahim.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IBRAHIM DAGMAN, CNN JOURNALIST IN GAZA: My home is a graveyard. In Rafah, I saw many families trying to escape. My heart raced as our documents were checked.

Zaid, why do you want to go?

ZAID DAGMAN: I want a safe place.

DAGMAN: There are no safe places here.

ZAID DAGMAN: That's true

DAGMAN: The names of a luck few were called to board the bus to Egypt. Finally, it was our turn. My wife put on a brave face. We both worry we will never see our relatives again. The feeling of being in Egypt is indescribable.

DAGMAN: Are you happy Khalil? What do you want to say?

KHALIL DAGMAN: It was difficult, but at the same time it was good.

DAGMAN: In Cairo, we no longer hear airstrikes.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: Our thanks to Ibrahim for sharing that story with us. For the latest on the ground in Israel, let's go now to CNN's Nic Robertson, who's in Sderot for us. Nic, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has talked about what he expects to happen after Hamas is eradicated. But what he's saying, there's a lot to read into there.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: There is. There's an assumption that the IDF is going to succeed on the ground and eradicate Hamas. And I think that is still certainly open to a lot of concern that that may not be the case. But the implication of what the Prime Minister is saying is that Israel would take over again the security and some sort of leadership function in Gaza once Hamas is gone. And that would be sort of stepping back to 2005 when Israel pulled out of Gaza and gave it back to the Palestinians under Palestinian full control back then.

But what we're hearing at the moment and what we're seeing at the moment is that while the IDF is making gains, they're in the heart of Gaza right now. We understand fighting in those very densely populated streets in urban combat. And they're supported by airstrikes that are using precision, lower. lower explosive yield weapons to secure the troops' safety, but also to avoid civilian casualties. While they're in that environment, it's clear that Hamas is not being entirely defeated. In the past hour here, we've seen 3 different salvos of missiles, 2 to the centre of Israel and 1 sort of coming over our heads here perhaps a little bit, going a little bit further south.

[14:20:00]

And there is an assessment here that perhaps the Prime Minister is actually running out of time to deliver on that, and I think we got a hint of that in his address this evening when he said we're working on the diplomatic front around the clock to give our military the leeway to finish their operations. And I think that's an indication that the Prime Minister recognises that there's huge pressure from his ally, the United States, and from his Arab neighbours to avoid civilian casualties, have a humanitarian pause, and that would have a knock-on effect on the, on the IDF's ability to defeat Hamas.

So, to say that Israel will have a security role going forward in establishing a new dispensation of security and political leadership in Gaza, at the moment, as I say, that is, that is an open question and one many well-informed journalists here, a lot of experienced Israeli journalists, are questioning.

SANCHEZ: Nic Robertson, thank you so much for the update. Let's dig deeper now with David Sanger. He's a White House and national security correspondent for The New York Times. David, great to be with you. Let's dig into the question that Nic posed, an overall security responsibility in Gaza for an indefinite period.

DAVID SANGER, WHITE HOUSE AND NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, Boris, it's really fascinating because, as Nic said, they gave that up in 2005 for a reason, and the reason was that they determined they didn't want to be running Gaza. They didn't want to go deal with a constant guerrilla war there. So, what shape that would take is truly sort of hard to imagine right now. I've heard a number of different proposals from American officials. One is that you basically build a several miles deep DMZ between Gaza and the rest of Israel so that they would see anybody coming over the border and stop presumably the kind of attack that you saw on October 7th.

I've heard proposals under which they let the Palestinian Authority run the civilian operation, but the Israelis hold on to the security side. And then, of course, that exposes Israeli soldiers who are inside Gaza, which is why they left. So, a really hard set of choices, but we're not there yet. They would have to first get to whatever the end state's going to be of this invasion.

SANCHEZ: To that point, it seems like the U.S. and Israel don't see eye to eye on a number of things, not just potentially what happens if and when Hamas is eradicated, but also even the potential for pauses for humanitarian reasons, to get aid in, to get civilians out. What does it say to you that these sides aren't seeing eye to eye?

SANGER: Well, it's pretty remarkable. I mean, President Biden started off by saying we want to help eradicate Hamas and has provided Israel with the aid, proposals for more aid and the arms to go do that. But that conversation has shifted in the past couple of weeks. We have a remarkable scene at the end of last week of Secretary of State Tony Blinken showing up in Israel, calling for these humanitarian pauses.

And the prime minister, Prime Minister Netanyahu, basically saying no and moving ahead with more bombing, including bombing that has got civilian, significant civilian casualties. I'm told that the conversation between President Netanyahu and President Biden yesterday was equally stiff. So, there's clearly not a good conversation underway here. And it tells you something about the limits of American power. The United States provides three $3.8 billion a year in security assistance.

The president has proposed 3 times that given the current situation. But Prime Minister Netanyahu nonetheless has said, I'm going to do this my way. And that's the core of the dispute, which is what's an acceptable level of casualties.

SANCHEZ: And when it comes to Biden, there's a complicated picture domestically, politically for him that he has to deal with as well. Division within his own party.

SANGER: There is, you know, it's really remarkable. If you think about the 2 big defining international conflicts of the Biden presidency, Ukraine and Israel. In Israel, the criticism from Biden is almost all from the left, from progressives who say you're not thinking enough about the Palestinians. You're being complicit in this bombing. And we don't know what, what the level of casualties have been, but clearly, they've been in the thousands.

In Ukraine, the criticism is all from the right there. There, it's really the Republican Party and those who subscribe to President Trump's, former President Trump's view that don't want to give continued funding, which seems somewhat remarkable since the opponent here is Russia having invaded a sovereign nation. But their basic view is not our fight.

And the president's trying to navigate these 2 simultaneously. That's not easy. And, of course, they could end up being combined in 1 bill as the president has proposed in an effort to put together enough votes in the middle to get funding for both Israel and Ukraine.

[14:25:00]

SANCHEZ: And with the presidential election looming some 363 days away, as we were just discussing a moment ago, I want to focus on the domestic political situation in Israel, because there have been protests in the streets against Prime Minister Netanyahu. He also faces a difficult political situation, even at a moment where you would think that his country would be galvanized behind him.

SANGER: Well, Boris, he was in trouble before this happened, right? Clearly, there was a huge intelligence failure and a huge response failure. Just the amount of time it took the IDF, the Israeli military to make it down to the areas where the, where the terror attack was underway. At some point when the war ends, there's going to be a big investigation of this. And that's going to, I think, reflect pretty poorly on the government he was running.

So, it's hard to imagine how he survives this when the war is over. People don't want to sort of take that in. His other problem is that he has not talked very much about the hostages, the Israeli hostages. And that's what the protests have all been about. The other day, he met some of the hostage families, but I think it was for the first time.

SANCHEZ: Well, they apparently, according to the reporting, demanded that he consider this everyone for everyone proposal from Hamas, the 240 hostages in exchange for some 6,600 Palestinian prisoners that are being held in Israel. Is that a tenable solution to the hostage crisis?

SANGER: Hard to know. We have seen very lopsided swaps before. I mean, a number of years ago, for 1 Israeli soldier, there were hundreds released. I'm sure that the Prime Minister thinks, though, that some of those released the last time were involved in the terror attack and including the commander of it or inspirer of it. So, I'm sure he's worried about that along the way.

These humanitarian pauses they're talking about seem to be related to whether or not they can negotiate some hostage releases. Some American officials I talked to, though, can't imagine why Hamas would release many of these hostages because it's their last leverage over Israel. Once they're gone, then the Israeli forces would be free to do whatever they, they feel they need to. And maybe they feel that way now.

SANCHEZ: A significant point. David Sanger, we have to leave the conversation there. Appreciate your perspective as always.

SANGER: Great to be with you.

SANCHEZ: For us. Thanks. So, from the courtroom to the campaign trail, we have new details on former President Trump's plans to upstage tomorrow's Republican debate in Florida. And meta adding new restrictions on artificial intelligence for political ads. What that means when you log on to Facebook and Instagram when we come back.