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Pakistan, Iran Trade Strikes In Unprecedented Escalation; Trump, Haley Escalate Attacks Five Days Before New Hampshire Primary; House Debating Stopgap Spending Bill To Avoid Shutdown; Mortgage Rates, Jobless Claims Fall. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired January 18, 2024 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:00]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: All right, we're looking at new video from inside Iran today. It shows a village heavily damaged after Pakistan launched airstrikes overnight. This comes just one day after Pakistan says an Iranian missile strike killed two children in its territory.

We have CNN chief national security analyst Jim Sciutto here to break down all of what is happening between these two neighboring countries and beyond. Talk to us a little bit about how it came to this tit-for- tat between Iran and Pakistan and Iran.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Listen, think about it. The last thing you need in the region right now is another cross- border attack or conflict on any scale.

Here's where it's taking place down here. Iran and Pakistan shooting in opposite directions here. It started with first strikes from Pakistan hitting separatist fighters inside Iran. It has been contending with these. They are Balochistani. It's a region of Pakistan, an independence group, a separatist group. They've been dealing with this for some number of years, and they've been striking for some number of years. Iran responding to some degree by striking an ISIS-tied group inside Pakistani territory, perhaps connected to that ISIS strike we saw a number of weeks ago inside Iran.

Notably, the Iranian foreign minister said today that its strike was against -- that Pakistan's strike inside Iran was not against Iranians, seeming to say this is not really a strike on us, perhaps a path to tamping things down a little bit.

But here's the problem. When you look at the region right now, you have a hotspot right here. You, of course, have a hotspot here we're going to talk about, which are the Houthi attacks on shipping.

You have the ongoing open war between Israel and Hamas. You have increasing attacks between Hezbollah and Israel on the northern border. You have Iranian-backed groups in Syria and Iraq striking U.S. forces there.

So you have all these flashpoints already heating up, and the concern, of course, is that one of them expands into something bigger. KEILAR: Yes, if it sort of explodes there. And as you mentioned, there

have been all of these attacks by the Houthis on this key shipping lane. The U.S. struck for the fifth time taking on the Houthis.

SCIUTTO: They did, and it seems what's happening now, that the first strikes we saw last Thursday were more significant, some 30 targets, the U.S. and the U.K., striking them in a number of places around Yemen in that first attack. Since then, we've had four, and it seems what they're doing now is when they see Houthis preparing to launch a missile.

[15:35:00]

The U.S. has enormous surveillance assets there, satellites, they have a number of ships here, ability to see it as it's happening, they strike before they're able to shoot. Trouble is, this is still a very dangerous area, and the U.S. is warning U.S. flag ships, stay away, you know, because you've had multiple times now where the Houthis appear to be striking U.S. ships in particular. And when you think of all the trade that goes through here on up through the Suez Canal, and the danger not just to U.S. ships, but countries with multiple flags, that has real economic consequences.

To date, these U.S. strikes, U.K. strikes have not solved the problem. U.S. and U.K. officials hope that over time it will.

KEILAR: Yes, it's staggering. I mean, do you really want to take your chances if you're shipping through this area, or just go around Africa? Jim, thank you so much for taking us through that, we appreciate it -- Boris.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Happening today at the White House, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan is going to be meeting with families of Americans believed taken hostage by Hamas. The U.S. believes that six Americans are still in captivity in Gaza. Four others have been released.

Sharon Cunio and her twin three-year-old daughters were among the Israelis set free by Hamas. She says that she and her little girls are still haunted by the horrific ordeal, and she fears for her husband, who is still being held. Here's some of what she shared with Anderson Cooper.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHARON CUNIO, FORMER HOSTAGE: I usually cry all day. I try to be strong for the girls because I know they look up to me currently because I'm both mother and a father right now.

But when they don't see me, I cry. I watch videos of him. I hear sound voices from him just to kind of feel connected to him.

I want people to understand that every minute counts and every minute in captivity lasts like a lifetime.

And tomorrow would be the double amount of time that I was in captivity, that my husband and the other 135 people are in, against their will. And everything needs to be done in order to make a deal and bring him home now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Sharon is vowing to fight for her husband's freedom until he is released. We'll, of course, keep you updated on how that meeting goes at the White House.

So Nikki Haley is now ramping up her rhetoric on Donald Trump, who's targeted her in recent days as she's looking to build momentum heading into New Hampshire's primary next week.

Plus, the economy always shaping up to be a major voting issue. What new numbers out today on jobless claims and mortgage rates can tell us about the state of the economy headed into 2024's presidential election.

[15:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Tonight, Nikki Haley is making her pitch to voters in New Hampshire at CNN's Town Hall, just five days from the Granite State's critical primary.

In the final push, she is directly attacking the frontrunner for the nomination, calling out former President Trump by name in a new attack ad, and arguing that the majority of Americans want a, quote, new generational leader.

CNN's Omar Jimenez is live for us in Henniker, New Hampshire, where preparations for the Town Hall are underway for tonight. So, Omar, this sharpened criticism, and she really does seem to be amping it up. Is this sort of a new phase for her?

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It really does seem like it, because a lot of the criticisms we've seen at this point have either focused on policy or lumping together former President Trump and current President Joe Biden.

But today was really a shift in tone targeting specifically Donald Trump and even saying at one point, the reason we Republicans lost the House, the Senate, and the White House was because of Donald Trump, Donald Trump, Donald Trump. And that was in response to being asked about some of the many issues and the many attacks that Trump has waged against Haley, even more so over this past week, clearly indicating he sees her as a real threat here.

Take a listen to some of how Haley responded when asked about some of the attacks that Trump has lobbed her way.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NIKKI HALEY, REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Trump says things. Americans aren't stupid to just believe what he says. The reality is, who lost the House for us? Who lost the Senate? Who lost the White House? Donald Trump, Donald Trump, Donald Trump. Nikki Haley will win every single one of those back for us.

The second he says he's going to get on the stage, I'm ready. He hasn't done anything. He threw a temper tantrum last night.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JIMENEZ: Now, look, she was the only one out on the campaign trail today, essentially trying to capitalize on what has been a more toned- down Ron DeSantis campaign, at least here in New Hampshire as of late.

That said, one of the interesting things about this shift in tone is when Chris Christie got out of the race, we talked to a lot of the people that were supporting him at the time. And what was holding back some of them from jumping over to her side was they believed she wasn't going hard enough after Trump. So it'll be interesting to see, obviously, five days out to the primary at this point, it'll be interesting to see if this is sort of the beginning of these targeted attacks toward Trump or if she's really just testing the waters.

But bottom line, it is a steep hill to climb, but she knows she has an opportunity here, even better than most candidates we have seen to this point, and all the candidates we have seen to this point, to give Trump not only a serious challenge, but also potentially to win the state in a best-case scenario as well.

[15:45:03]

Even though her campaign is saying that they are looking for a strong second-place finish here, we will have to see -- Brianna.

KEILAR: Yes, is that tone something she can dial back, and will the former president let her? We shall see. Omar, thank you for that report from Henniker, New Hampshire.

And be sure to watch the CNN Town Hall with Nikki Haley, moderated by our Jake Tapper, airing at 9 p.m. tonight.

Jobless claims and mortgage rates both down according to the latest figures. Ahead, how the mortgage rate dip could be both good and bad news if you're shopping for a home.

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[15:50:00]

KEILAR: Just in to CNN, the House is now debating a stopgap spending bill that could help Congress avoid a partial shutdown this week. Could help us all avoid it, in fact.

Earlier, the Senate passed the bill 77 to 18. Now it's the House's turn. Of course, in the tradition of Congress's past, this really does just kick the can down the road. It sets up new deadlines of March 1st and 8th. But it does give lawmakers a little more breathing room to negotiate a deal on spending. So we'll be keeping a close eye on this -- Boris.

SANCHEZ: A double dose of good news about two things that Americans care about, jobs and the housing market. First time jobless claims fell to the lowest level since September 2022, far below economists' projections. And also falling mortgage rates. They're the lowest they've been since May. But these trends don't necessarily mean that Americans feel at ease.

Let's go to CNN's Matt Egan now. Here's a closer look at the numbers and what they mean. Matt, should we be encouraged by the numbers we're seeing?

MATT EGAN, CNN REPORTER: I think so, Boris, especially on the jobs front. Initial claims, this is a proxy for layoffs, falling to just 187,000.

Some context, that is not just a 16-month low. This is historically low. If you remember back in 2020, during the peak of the COVID crisis, this metric spiked to above 6 million. I mean, that was crazy high. But really anything above 300,000 would be flashing a recession warning. But clearly we are nowhere near that level for a simple reason, right? Bosses, they can't let go of the workers they have because they need them to keep up with all of this strong demand.

Look at really very robust retail sales in December. Bosses are also worried that if they let go of workers, they won't be able to find new ones. So clearly the jobs market is in a very good place. I mean, unemployment below 4 percent. Hiring is steady. And paychecks are finally starting to rise faster than prices.

But, Boris, as you know, this economy does not have a jobs problem. It's a cost of living problem. Even White House officials acknowledge there are real affordability challenges out there, cars, child care, and of course housing. And there's nothing about today's numbers that are going to solve any of those issues.

SANCHEZ: Yes, so let's talk about mortgage rates. They spiked over the last few weeks, but now they're lower.

EGAN: Right, Boris. So this is good news. Another step in the right direction, the average 30-year fixed rate mortgage ticking down to 6.6 percent. That is the lowest level since last May. You can see on that chart starting to go lower, but obviously not at all low. I mean, we're still talking about rates that are twice as high as two years ago.

Now, remember, homebuyers, they've been really hit by a double whammy, record high home prices and punishing borrowing costs. I mean, that is why this housing market is historically unaffordable. I recently spoke to a woman in Georgia who told me at these prices and these rates, she doesn't know if she'll ever be able to buy a home. And there's a lot of people out there who have those same frustrations.

No coincidence that President Biden today in a speech in North Carolina, he mentioned mortgage rates, talking about how they are falling and predicting that they're going to go lower. Of course, that is not up to the White House. That is really up to the market and the Federal Reserve. And Fed officials they are signaling that rate cuts are probably coming. But, Boris, there's a lot of debate over when the Fed will be able to start cutting rates and by how much. And there's a lot at stake there, especially for all those homebuyers out there.

SANCHEZ: Now, the question of inflation and affordability likely to be central to this presidential campaign. Matt Egan, appreciate the analysis. Thanks.

EGAN: Thanks, Boris.

SANCHEZ: Brianna.

KEILAR: Longtime Meta executive Sheryl Sandberg is leaving the company's board of directors after more than a decade. Until recently, she was second in command to Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg. He credits her for teaching him how to run a company when the social network was first launched. And while Sandberg oversaw massive growth in Facebook's popularity, she and its other executives also face criticism for a range of issues, including harming teen users and allegedly undermining democracy. Sandberg says she'll focus more on philanthropy after she leaves in May, but plans to serve still as a company advisor.

More than a million people in upstate New York are under lake effect snow warnings, and that includes the city of Buffalo. Local officials say travel there could be very difficult to nearly impossible. This comes after Buffalo's airport got a foot of snow yesterday. Some areas of the city could face wind gusts up to 40 miles per hour, wind chills of 10 below zero.

[15:55:02]

All of this happening just days before that huge playoff game for the Buffalo Bills, who host the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday night.

Two senior members of the royal family now resting comfortably, one in the hospital, the other planning to go under the knife soon. We'll have that next.

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SANCHEZ: Prince William has visited his wife, Kate, at a London area hospital where she's recovering from an abdominal surgery. The Princess of Wales is expected to be there for up to two weeks and she is not expected to resume public duties until April.

[16:00:00]

KEILAR: That's right, and we also got an update today on King Charles. Queen Camilla says her husband is doing fine as he prepares for a hospital visit himself. Buckingham Palace revealed that he will undergo a procedure for a benign enlarged prostate next week. The Queen also said he was looking forward to getting back to work.

SANCHEZ: Yes, all the best to them and their health issues. Hopefully it turns out well.

KEILAR: Yes, certainly.

SANCHEZ: "THE LEAD WITH JAKE TAPPER" starts in just a few seconds. Thanks for joining us today.