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Biden Weighing Response Options Following Drone Attack; Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Is Interviewed About Fed For Fueling Affordability Crisis In Housing; Smartmatic: OAN Execs May Have "Engaged In Criminal Activities". Aired 11-11:30a ET

Aired January 29, 2024 - 11:00   ET

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

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[11:03:26]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN HOST: Just moments ago, we saw Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin at the Pentagon for the first time since his medical procedure. What he is saying about the attack that left three U.S. service members dead.

SARA SIDNER, CNN HOST: And explosive new allegation from the second voting machine company claiming it was defamed in 2020. The accusation that a Conservative News Network engaged in criminal activity.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN HOST: Right now a serious question being considered by a judge in South Carolina should convicted murderer Alex Murdaugh, get a new trial. A hearing is underway as we speak with a former juror just testified to. I'm Kate Bolduan with John Berman and Sara Sidner. This is CNN News Central.

BERMAN: All right moments ago, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was back at the Pentagon for the first time since his surgery. He spoke about the attack that left three U.S. service members dead in Jordan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LLOYD AUSTIN, DEFENSE SECRETARY: Let me start with my outrage and sorrow for the deaths of three brave U.S. troops in Jordan and for the other troops who were wounded. The President and I will not tolerate attack on U.S. forces. And we will take all necessary actions to defend the U.S. and our troops.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: So U.S. officials say they believe the attack was carried out by an Iranian-backed militia group. Iran has denied any involvement. In addition to the three killed, at least 34 others were wounded. Eight service members have to be evacuated to launch to a Regional Medical Center in Germany. And we just learned they are in stable condition. CNN's Natasha Bertrand is at the Pentagon with the very latest. Natasha?

[11:05:12] NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yes, John. So we are learning a bit more details now about the status of those wounded service members, eight of whom were medically evacuated to launch tool, as you said, and they are now in stable condition, which is a positive sign. But three U.S. Army soldiers were told, were killed in this drone attack, this one way drone attack on a small outpost in northeast Jordan, a U.S. base called Tower 22.

And it is unclear at this point just which Iranian-backed militia was responsible for this attack, the U.S. is squarely pointing the finger though at these Iran-backed proxies trying to determine at this point exactly which group was responsible for this particular drone attack, because there have been over 150 attacks on U.S. and coalition bases by these Iran-backed proxies, just since October alone.

Previously, they have resulted only in injuries, mostly minor injuries. But this is the first time that they have managed to do what U.S. officials say was their goal all along, which was to kill U.S. service members. Now, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby, he did say that he believes at this point, the U.S. assesses at this point that this group was supported by Kata'ib Hezbollah, which is an Iran-backed proxies.

However, they're still working to get some more specificity on exactly which group carried out the attack. He did say, however, that when it comes to a response, President Biden is still weighing his options. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KIRBY, NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL SPOKESMAN: I certainly can't deny the fact that there have been a series of attacks now increasingly lethal over weeks and months, which is why the President is going to be reviewing what the appropriate response is going forward. We don't want to see these attacks continue. And we want to make it clear that they're unacceptable. We also want to make it clear that we'll do what we have to do to protect our troops, our facilities, our national security interest in the region. Those are the options that the President is weighing right now. And we're going to take this very, very seriously.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERTRAND: Now, the question now is what is this response going to look like? Is the U.S. going to attack Iran-backed militias kind of narrowly? Or are they going to go broader and perhaps attack Iranian assets themselves, as some Republican lawmakers have been calling for the U.S. to do. That remains to be seen. And we'll be watching closely about how the U.S. responds to this provocation in the coming days. John?

BERMAN: All right. Natasha Bertrand at the Pentagon. Natasha to keep us posted. Thank you. Sara?

SIDNER: So we don't yet know who was responsible for these attacks this morning. Donald Trump is blaming President Biden for that deadly drone attack and slamming him for the southern border crisis. Trump is seizing on these events to help sell his general election message. CNN's Kristen Holmes is joining us now from Washington, D.C. this morning. Kristen, Trump seems to be really focusing his campaign attacks at this point. Sometimes they're random and they're all over the place. He's pressing -- presenting himself as the cure to all of these issues, one of the things that he is telling voters now.

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Sara. I mean, I know that we're just tuning in, but as somebody who has followed from the last year, this has been something he's been selling for quite some time that he could fix everything. Now, part of this is general election messaging, as you said, we talk about foreign policy. Donald Trump himself had a chaotic tenure in the White House. However, he has sought to turn the tables and the messaging on Joe Biden saying it is actually Joe Biden's tenure that has been marked by chaos, saying routinely that none of the things that happened overseas, which includes Ukraine, Israel, and now of course, this attack on U.S. troops, would happen if he was still in office.

This is all part of a larger tactic that we've always seen from Donald Trump when he is campaigning, which is really playing into people's fears. And there's nothing that he's really doubled down on that more than with immigration. Now, keep in mind, as he's saying that Biden is weak on immigration, that there's this problem at the border that Biden cause. It's also happening at the same time that Donald Trump himself is trying to kill off a Senate compromise bill that might make things easier on the southern border, something he seemed to almost take credit for over the weekend when he was in Nevada. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: So I did such a good job with the border that the border wasn't an issue. And now I'm saying the border is in play like it's never been in play before. Please blame it on me, please, because they were getting ready to pass a very bad bill. And I'll tell you what, a bad bill is I'd rather have no bill than a bad bill. There's a 100 percent chance that there will be a major terrorist attack in the United States.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: So obviously, they're playing to the fears on the terror attack. But when it comes to the bill, whether or not Donald Trump thinks it's a good bill, sure, but the other part of this is self- preservation. We know that Donald Trump wants to run in the general election on three main topics, the economy, crime and immigration. There is a concern among Trump and his allies that one of those arguments could go out the window that being the economy.

We have seen that it is ticking upward still people in the middle of the country are feeling that inflation. But where are we going to be for November? Well, that leaves immigration and crime, immigration than being a core issue of Donald Trump's. So again whether or not he believes it's a good bill he needs to run on immigration. So if there's something that's going to fix what's going on in the border, that does not help his 2024 presidential bid. [11:10:16]

SIDNER: A lot going on there, those three pillars crime also going down as well. We will see what happens going forward. And I know you'll be watching every single detail for us. We appreciate it, Kristen. Kate?

BOLDUAN: And joining us now to talk more about this a lot of Kristen's reporting there as Democratic senator from Massachusetts, Senator Elizabeth Warren. Senator, thank you for coming in. Let's start with the border talks, those negotiations that Kristen was talking about there. James Lankford, the Republican who has been key in these negotiations, the way he's described, the deal that's coming to light the text is still being written is there's -- the bill focuses on getting us to zero illegal crossings a day, no amnesty, it increases the number of border patrol agents, it increases asylum officers, it increases detention beds so we can quickly detain and then deport individuals. They are finalizing the wording, of course, still, do you think this is a deal you will support?

SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN (D-MA): So we have to see what the final details are. And I have to read it carefully, like I do with everything that comes in front of Congress, I have long argued that we need comprehensive immigration reform. And we need to make sure that whatever we do is consistent with our values, consistent with U.S. law and consistent with international law. But the real threat here is the one you identified just now. And that is Donald Trump, who says there's a problem at the border. But he wants that problem, to get worse, to continue to be a problem so that he can run on it next November.

That is another example of Donald Trump trying to put his own political interests ahead of the interests of the United States. He says he's out there cheering for an economic recession, knowing it would put people out of work, knowing it would cost people their savings. But that's what he wants, because he thinks it will help him come November. You know, this is a man who puts himself first and puts the United States of America way behind that.

BOLDUAN: If that -- if what we heard from Donald Trump trying to tank this deal, if that is what holds Republicans in Congress back from supporting this deal. What does that say to you?

WARREN: You know, that really should say to all of us, who do Republicans put first, you know, for a long time, they just put the millionaires and billionaires first. But now it's Donald Trump first, and then the millionaires and billionaires right behind that, and then the rest of the country behind that. They're not a party that's talking about how to make things better, safer, how to make our economy grow better here in the United States. They're a party that's all about politics, and all about political theater, designed to try to flatter Donald Trump. That's not good for our country. In fact, that's a real danger to our country.

BOLDUAN: I want to ask you about the economy. Specifically, you just sent a letter to the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, calling for the Fed to cut rates, and also hitting him pretty hard. Part of what you wrote, is the Feds decision to raise interest rates rapidly and keep them high has resulted in higher costs for home purchasers, higher rents and reductions in new home and apartment building. And in this letter, you call the rates astronomical. Do you blame Jay Powell for this?

WARREN: So let's back up just a little bit and get the overview here. First, I want to give great credit to President Joe Biden, and to the Democrats who continued to invest in America in Americans. And what's the consequence of that? We have a strong economy, rising GDP and low unemployment doing better than any of the other wealthy nations in the world, so two thumbs up for that.

But the problem we've got is that because Jay Powell raised interest rates so fast, it actually has increased costs for families, look, particularly at home mortgages. So that now we've seen home mortgages just explode in terms of the rates. And that increases the cost of housing for families all across this country. It also increases costs for renters, because it means that fewer people are willing to invest in building new housing and building new apartment buildings. And that keeps rents high.

So I want to see costs come down for families. And the best way we can make that happen is for Jay Powell and the Fed now to start lowering those interest rates.

BOLDUAN: Do you think if Joe Biden deserves credit, Joe Biden deserves two thumbs up for the handling of the economy and where things have ended up? Do you also think Jay Powell deserves two thumbs up because '23 ended is the year of the much predicted and never materialized recession? I mean, we're talking about the, quote unquote, very nearly impossible to obtain soft landing when in the fight against inflation.

[11:15:18]

WARREN: Fair enough. But let's look at all the factors that were at play here. One is that Joe Biden and the Democrats made an investment in our people and have continued to with things like the investments now in clean energy money that keeps flowing into our economy that made our economy strong. The second is, look at the reasons that we saw prices go up. Part of it was supply chain kinks, we finally have been gotten to unkink those, rising oil prices, oil prices have come down and going after the giant corporations on price gouging, who have increased their margins and their profit margins, and said that they were going to use inflation as a cover to raise prices.

We now have a government that's gone after them. And that means we've had a stronger economy and more push from the Biden administration to get costs lower for families. The biggest obstacle in the way right now is the fed with these high interest rates, because they are keeping housing prices high. And I should add, they also increase the cost of being able to buy a car because most people have to finance. So we need --

BOLDUAN: But do you think the aggressive hikes were necessary, though, in order to even get to where we are now that the tops not still popping off that when you're looking at inflation. I mean, it's not great, but it could be a whole lot worse was the fear.

WARREN: Well, let's remember, on inflation, six out of the last seven months, inflation has been below 2 percent, which was the Feds target. But keep in mind, there were a lot of things that were causing prices to go up. Jay Powell and the Fed have just one tool, and that is interest rates. But there are a lot of other things that affect prices in the economy like price gouging, like supply chain kinks, like whether or not the government is investing in the economy.

President Biden used all of those tools, it helped bring prices down. And as I said, what's happening now is the Fed is actually increasing costs for families by keeping those interest rates high, inflation is down, come on, fed, turn it around and drop those interest rates. Make it possible for a first time homebuyer to get out there and get into the housing market, make it possible for someone to move out of where they are and move somewhere else. Make it possible for us to get more apartments and more rental units. Make it possible for that part of the economy to get prices under better control as well.

BOLDUAN: We've got an important meeting this week, I believe and also then the big March meeting which everyone has their eyes on to start seeing potentially cutting rates. Senator Elizabeth Warren, thank you for your time. Sara?

SIDNER: All right, a new lawsuit by voting machine company, Smartmatic, alleges that execs from the pro-Trump television network, OAN, may have engaged in criminal activity while promoting lies about the 2020 election. We will discuss that.

And right now, Alex Murdaugh, back in South Carolina courtroom hoping to get a new murder trial, one juror just testifying that yes, the clerk did influence her decision to convict Murdaugh of murder, what it could mean for retrial.

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[11:23:27]

BERMAN: All right, new this morning, pro-Trump network, One America News, OAN, is now accused of, quote, engaging in criminal activities while promoting lies about the 2020 election. The accusations are part of a new court filing and a lawsuit brought by the voting technology company, Smartmatic. CNN's Marshall Cohen, part of the team that broke this story, criminal activity, Marshall, here what exactly is this allegation?

MARSHALL COHEN, CNN REPORTER: It's notable. It's a very notable allegation. And this is a pretty wild story, John. According to court filings after the 2020 election, the president of OAN, Charles Herring, sent a spreadsheet to former Trump lawyer, Sidney Powell, claiming to contain passwords of Smartmatic employees. This came at a time when OAN and Powell were both promoting baseless conspiracy theories that Smartmatic had rigged the 2020 elections.

The details about this spreadsheet have not been public before we pieced together the story from three different court cases that were stemming from the 2020 election fallout. One of those cases, Smartmatic is suing OAN for defamation. And then a recent filing Smartmatic reference this e-mail between Herring and Powell.

It's not clear how Herring got the supposed spreadsheet of the passwords. And it's not clear if they were authentic. But Smartmatic says that this means OAN executives, quote, may have engaged in criminal activities because they appear to have violated state and federal laws regarding data privacy.

Now, let me be clear about this, OAN denies any wrongdoing, Charles Babcock and attorney for the fringe far right network told CNN in a statement that quote this vague accusation is a clumsy attempt to smear OAN and to divert attention from Smartmatic's own misconduct.

[11:25:17]

Now this email was sent in January 2021. The timing is so crucial. It was sent one day after the voting systems in Coffee County, Georgia were breached by some of Sidney Powell's associates there.

They were looking for evidence that would backup their voter fraud claims. Sidney Powell has pleaded guilty to state charges in Georgia stemming from that breach. John?

BERMAN: Marshall Cohen, a spreadsheet with passwords, interesting development there. Thank you so much for sharing your reporting. Sara?

SIDNER: All right, happening right now convicted murderer, Alex Murdaugh, back in a South Carolina courtroom trying to convince the court he should receive a brand new murder trial. Murdaugh's attorney claims a court clerk, Rebecca Hill, tampered with the jury that found him guilty last year of murdering his wife and his son.

Now, one of those jurors has testified that the clerk did in fact influence her decision. CNN's Diane Gallagher was in Columbia, South Carolina, outside the courthouse. You've followed this case from the beginning. And now we're in a second phase where he's asking for a brand new trial. This is fascinating that you have a juror that has now told the court that she was influenced. What can you tell us?

DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And like almost everything in case -- the case surrounding Alex Murdaugh, Sara, this comes with a caveat as well. First of all, an absolutely shocking moment, the first juror called today on the stand when being interviewed by the judge said that she did hear college and county clerk of court, Becky Hill, talk about Alex Murdaugh and make comments. And then I want you to listen to how she phrased the fact that she said she was influenced by that commentary. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JUDGE JEAN TOAL, FORMER CHIEF JUSTICE, SOUTH CAROLINA SUPREME COURT: Was your verdict influenced in any way by the communications of the clerk report in this case?

REBECCA HILL, COURT CLERK: Yes, ma'am. TOAL: And how was it influenced?

HILL: To me it felt like she made it seem like he was already guilty.

TOAL: All right. And I understand that, that that's the tenor of the remarks she made. Did that affect your finding of guilty in this case?

HILL: Yes, ma'am.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GALLAGHER: That is key right there because the judge had a -- had set a very high and narrow standard that she couldn't have just said comments. But those comments had to directly influence jurors to make the -- to make them vote guilty when they rendered that verdict last year. Now, I will tell you that we are on juror number nine right now. That is the only juror thus far that has said that they had their vote influenced by Becky Hill. The others have said they didn't.

But there are two additional jurors who said that they heard Becky Hill making remarks about Alex Murdaugh and the case ahead of time. Here's the caveat I was talking about, Sara, this particular juror who was just on the stand that you heard also issued a signed affidavit earlier, many of them did. And in that affidavit, she said that it was the other jurors who pressured her not and made her feel like she had to vote guilty.

The judge asked her about that, read it to her, said if it was more accurate. And she answered, yes, the judge would not allow any clarification. Of course, the attorneys for Murdaugh, Sara, saying that both could be true at the same time. But at this point, we're not getting any further clarification on that.

SIDNER: This is big. That one jury it only takes one juror to have a hang jury. So this is a very, very big deal and could have the judge to decide that a new murder trial is an order. But we will have to wait and see what the judge does. Dianne Gallagher, I know you got into court. Thank you so much for all your reporting on the story. Kate?

BOLDUAN: The target deck now under review, President Biden weighing his options to respond to the deadly drone attack that killed three U.S. service members, what could be coming now.

And the royal palace says that Kate, the Princess of Wales, is home after her nearly two week hospital-stay following abdominal surgery, details on her recovery now. It's coming up.

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