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Will Trump Tank Bipartisan Border Deal?; Interview With Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL); Three U.S. Service Members Killed in Jordan. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired January 29, 2024 - 13:00   ET

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

[13:00:32]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Vowing to act. The White House says President Biden is reviewing response options after three Americans were killed in a drone strike in Jordan. What that response looks like, we don't know yet. What we do know is, decisions will have major consequences overseas and right here at home.

And a battle over a bill that doesn't even stand a chance. A key negotiator says an agreement could be ready for the Senate floor in days, though, but is the bipartisan agreement dead before it even gets a vote because of former President Trump?

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: And Vegas, baby, Vegas. We have a Super Bowl matchup for the ages, a conference championship weekend that had a bit of everything, an epic comeback, a redemption story, a love story, more Taylor Swift than anybody ever asked for, as we take a live look at where it will all go down in just two weeks.

We're following these major developing stories and many more all coming in right here to CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

KEILAR: Three service members dead and more than 30 wounded after a strike on a U.S. base in Jordan just over the border from Syria. U.S. officials tell CNN a hostile drone came in behind an American drone that was returning to the base, leading to confusion and a delay in the defensive response.

The White House says Iranian-backed militants are responsible for this. These are the first U.S. military fatalities from outright attacks since war broke out between Israel and Hamas on October 7. President Biden, who met with his national security team this morning, is promising to respond, and the world is waiting to see what that will look like and if it could risk dragging the U.S. into a broader war in the region.

This morning, CNN got some insight into the administration's decision- making.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KIRBY, NSC COORDINATOR FOR STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS: 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 will do what we have to do to protect our troops, our facilities, our national security interests in the region.

Those are the options that the president is weighing right now. We're going to take this very, very seriously.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Several Republicans in Congress are calling for direct strikes on Iran. The regime there, as it often does when proxy groups that it funds and trains conduct attacks, is denying involvement in this particular attack.

We start at the Pentagon with CNN's Natasha Bertrand on this story.

Natasha, catch us up here. What's the latest?

NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yes, Brianna.

So we are learning today a little bit more about what may have led this drone to be able to make an impact on this U.S. army base -- U.S. military base and kill those three U.S. Army soldiers and wound dozens more.

Apparently, according to officials, that enemy drone closely followed an American drone that was returning to the base. And there was some confusion about the origin and identity of the enemy drone. And that led to a delay in the U.S. response. And, ultimately, that drone did make impact near the living quarters of this base called Tower 22, which is in Northeast Jordan, right on the border with Syria.

In total, the base houses around 350 U.S. Army and Air Force personnel. And the number of wounded is expected to continue to rise as U.S. service members are presenting with symptoms consistent with traumatic brain injury.

Now, the question that remains is, who was responsible for this attack? The U.S. has pointed the finger at Iran-backed militias, but they have not yet said which group was responsible for this drone strike. We know that there have been over 150 drone attacks, drone and rocket attacks on U.S. and coalition bases in Iraq and Syria just since October.

But, previously, the injuries that resulted from these drone strikes were either nonexistent or they were pretty minor. This is the first time that officials say these groups were actually able to succeed in what they believed they were aiming to do, which is, unfortunately and sadly, kill U.S. service members.

And we are expecting to get the names of those service members as soon as today, given that the next of kin notifications to their families has now been completed, Brianna.

KEILAR: All right, Natasha Bertrand live for us from the Pentagon, we know that you will be following this. There will be new developments -- Boris. SANCHEZ: We want to get the view from the White House now with CNN's

M.J. Lee, who's there for us.

So, M.J., walk us through the implications here for President Biden.

M.J. LEE, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Boris, this is a hugely significant moment for President Biden and his White House.

Obviously, these attacks by these Iranian-backed proxy groups, they have been ongoing for weeks and weeks, but the news that we got yesterday, the deaths of U.S. personnel, that is precisely the kind of bad news that the president and his senior advisers have been fearing.

[13:05:07]

And we saw the president saying in a statement yesterday that he intends to hold responsible everyone -- hold to account everyone who is responsible, and he said at a time and in a manner of our choosing, and that is precisely what he and his top advisers are working through right now.

We know that he convened his national security team yesterday. We have just gotten word that they also met this morning as they're trying to gather more intelligence and figure out what exactly the next step might be.

And one thing that is important to note is how much the U.S. and the Biden administration have been set on not widening the Israel-Hamas war into a broader regional conflict. This is a consideration that has really affected every major decision that this White House has made. And now they are considering potentially the possibility of striking inside Iran.

So that is a kind of response that we are potentially waiting for word from the White House on whether they are seriously considering. But that would be a major escalation and something, again, that the administration has been wary of sort of going down that path.

Now, we know that the president, as he makes his decision, is going to be weighing sort of that desire for containment and also the desire to show a strong response, given that these attacks were now responsible for the deaths of U.S. personnel. We will wait to see what more information we get at the White House press briefing that is set to begin in a few minutes.

But we are seeing this come in a moment when he is facing a lot of pressures, including, of course, criticism and calls for him to back calls for a cease-fire. There are ongoing deliberations and negotiations going on right now to free the remaining hostages that are in Gaza as well, so a lot of these different pressures that are coming to a head right now at this moment, Boris.

SANCHEZ: M.J. Lee live from the White House, thanks so much for the update -- Brianna.

KEILAR: And we're joined now by Republican Congressman Mike Waltz of Florida. He is a former Green Beret who served multiple combat deployments, including in the Middle East, as well as in Afghanistan.

Congressman, how should the U.S. respond here specifically? What would or could it look like?

REP. MICHAEL WALTZ (R-FL): Well, Brianna, I think, first, the administration needs to take a step back and appreciate and realize that their Middle East policy is failing and deterrence has failed when it comes to Iran.

All roads, whether it's Hezbollah, whether it's the Houthis, whether it's Hamas, or whether it's these militias in Iraq, all roads lead back to Tehran. The appeasement strategy has failed. This de- escalation attempt has actually only invited escalation from the Iranian regime. The president said Friday Iran's gotten the message. Clearly, they have not.

And now we have three service members dead because of it. So I'm looking on this administration to do a 180 and set politics aside. Just a few years ago, under the previous administration, ISIS was defeated, Iran was broke, and we had -- literally, we had peace breaking out in the Middle East with the Abraham Accords under President Trump. And now we have this.

So they have got to -- look, we just had Sabrina Singh on this network lying to the American people and saying -- she's the Pentagon spokeswoman -- and saying the conflict has been contained. Tell that to the Navy SEAL families that just died in the Red Sea. Tell that to these three service members' families.

Tell that to the thousands of soldiers that are in bunkers every night under assault from Iranian-backed militias. Until we make Iran pay -- and there are all kinds of ways to do that, through cyber, through hitting their operatives in Iraq, through hitting their operatives in Syria. There are all kinds of options.

But until we make Iran pay in a way that's meaningful and not bombing empty warehouses in the middle of the night, which is what the administration's been doing, then deterrent is not going to be restored. Iran does not believe this administration is going to hit back in a way that they care about.

And every time you hear, well, we just want to de-escalate, they hear a green light to push further.

KEILAR: I know you're critical of President Biden, that you think he's emboldening Iran here. But how should the U.S. respond, when even former President Trump -- I mean, you said peace broke out, but his very direct and controversial action, like taking out Soleimani, did not stop the deadly attacks on U.S. troops.

So how can the U.S. thread the needle?

WALTZ: Wait, wait, wait.

KEILAR: Go ahead. WALTZ: Brianna, I mean, I'm sorry. We had our shippings were -- our

ships were attacked. Saudi Aramco was attacked. One of our drones was shot down. And then it was once they actually stormed our embassy and killed an American, President Trump gave the order to take out Iran's field general that was plotting more attacks.

[13:10:01]

KEILAR: No, I'm talking about what -- sir, I hear you.

(CROSSTALK)

WALTZ: And then what happened?

(CROSSTALK)

KEILAR: No, no, I let you speak.

WALTZ: They launched some missiles. No, they launched some missiles, and that was it.

KEILAR: Wait. No, service members died.

WALTZ: So, show me the service member, the base that was attacked post-Soleimani strike.

Who died post-Soleimani strike?

KEILAR: March 2020...

WALTZ: I'm sorry. Deterrence was restored post-Soleimani.

KEILAR: March 2020, U.S. service members died.

You had Iranian-backed proxies. You had al-Assad, which we all remember, because former President Trump downplayed the TBIs, which you certainly know and I certainly know are a big deal. You had an attack in Kirkuk in February, which looked like it might have been Iran.

But the one in March was determined that it very likely was or that it was. And you had service members, two Americans and one Brit, who were killed. So you still had -- this is the drumbeat of these proxy attacks that we have had.

So, if we're talking realistically about what actually deters and does not deter the proxies, then let's use those facts to talk about what might actually be the way to thread the needle here to get them to stop, to get Iran to stop.

WALTZ: Right.

We right now -- we have the IRGC. We have Quds Force. We have the new commander, Salami, that replaced Soleimani running unfettered all over the Middle East, plotting and planning these attacks. We have a whole series of drones, missiles, resources flowing into all of these proxies from Tehran.

At the end of the Trump administration, the foreign currency reserves in Iran were $4 billion. Now they're over $70 billion. The amount of oil being exported from Iran was less than 200,000 barrels per day. Now it's back to the millions per day.

KEILAR: Do you think that...

WALTZ: As long as Tehran is flush with cash, then -- so, if you're asking for my prescription, go back to the maximum pressure.

KEILAR: Is that the bigger deal to you? Can I ask you seriously, Congressman..

WALTZ: Sure.

KEILAR: ... is that really -- is that the more important piece of this, that they're going to care much more about that revenue, and that is actually what is going to deter Iran here?

WALTZ: A few years ago, we heard all of these groups, the reporting was clear, they were all complaining that they were out of money, out of resources and couldn't continue the fighting.

That was from Nasrallah and Hezbollah, down to the Houthis, Hamas, the PMF, the militias in Iraq, were all broke, because Tehran's currency was failing. Their oil couldn't be exported. We were actually enforcing the sanctions.

So, at the end of the day, if the administration wants to do something effective, then they have to back away from this vain hope of getting back into an Iran deal and the appeasement that goes with that, go back to maximum pressure, dry up the coffers, and that will have a deterrent effect across the Middle East, in addition to a kinetic attack on their operatives.

That doesn't have to be inside Iran. They're all over the Middle East, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen. So there are a number of things that we can do, but what we hear is this, well, you have to invade Iran in order to have a deterrent effect. No, that's not what we did in the last administration.

And we know what works. At the end of the day, the Iranian regime cares about its money, its control on power, and its influence across the Middle East. And there are ways to affect that. But what this administration has been doing has not been effective, clearly. We need an admission of that.

KEILAR: Well, let me ask you. There have been some attacks under this administration that have killed, for instance, if not -- we're talking about maybe a different militia here, but that have killed Houthi militants. It certainly hasn't stopped anything there.

WALTZ: Right.

KEILAR: We saw attacks under the Trump administration from these Iranian-backed proxies as well.

So, what actually -- I mean, what actually stops them, though? Because you're talking about...

WALTZ: Yes.

KEILAR: You're talking about attacking them, but that didn't actually stop.

WALTZ: So, Tehran will trade the lives of its proxies for an American -- for American and Israeli lives all day long. That's why they have these proxies.

And that's a good deal for Tehran. Until you hit their actual operatives, like Soleimani or some of their IRGC operatives, and until you dry up the cash, which, for example, we just passed out of the House secondary sanctions on their oil exports.

(CROSSTALK)

KEILAR: Trump did that. Trump did that. Trump did that, and then more American service members were killed in response.

WALTZ: Well, we did both. We did both.

They -- the Trump administration hit both the proxies and then eventually Soleimani himself. And that's what reestablished...

[13:15:01]

KEILAR: In January of 2020 and in March of 2020...

WALTZ: Right.

KEILAR: ... American service members were killed.

WALTZ: And beyond there, we had no more attacks. And we certainly didn't have...

KEILAR: But that's not true.

WALTZ: ... the hundreds of attacks that we have now.

KEILAR: That's not true.

WALTZ: We didn't have the attacks on international shipping.

KEILAR: The attacks have been consistent.

WALTZ: We didn't have missiles flying...

KEILAR: I'm not disputing that.

WALTZ: ... into international commercial ships.

KEILAR: I'm talking about service members. WALTZ: We didn't have Hamas massacre 1,500 Israelis in the largest

attack on Israel in its history.

KEILAR: Well, we're talking -- sir, in fairness, we're talking about service members.

WALTZ: But this is all interlinked. But this is all interlinked, Dana. This is -- I mean, excuse me -- Bri. This is Iran's effort to kick out the United States from the Middle East and wipe Israel off the face of the earth using all of these proxies and now bolstered by its relationship with Russia and its relationship with China.

So I don't think we can look at each one of these through the soda straw. And we certainly can't come on international television and say, well, it's been contained to Gaza, as the Pentagon's deputy press spokeswoman just did half-an-hour ago.

I mean, that's gaslighting. It's wrong. It's inaccurate. And it's giving the wrong impression, not only to the American people, but I think it sends a signal to our adversaries that they can continue to get away with it.

KEILAR: My point is just, if all of the families of these service members who have passed away due to Iranian-backed proxies deserve answers, then all of them deserve answers. And that is just the point that I was making.

WALTZ: Absolutely.

KEILAR: But, Congressman, this is a very difficult problem, obviously, and we appreciate your time today talking with us about it.

Congressman Mike Waltz, thank you very much.

WALTZ: All right, thank you.

KEILAR: So, after months of talks, a bipartisan border bill could hit the Senate floor this week, but will it be dead on arrival?

And we have some new CNN reporting. The head of the far right network OAN accused of engaging in criminal activities while promoting 2020 election lies. What the voting machine company Smartmatic is alleging in a multibillion-dollar lawsuit.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:21:24]

SANCHEZ: A bipartisan deal on securing the southern border has been reached, and it could be ready for the Senate floor in the coming days. That's according to a key negotiator who says that lawmakers are right now finishing the text of the bill.

President Biden is urging them to pass the compromise, calling it the toughest and fairest set of reforms yet. But in an effort to take away a policy win for Biden, former President Donald Trump is pressuring Republicans to block it, saying he will take the blame if it fails.

Let's take you now live to Capitol Hill with CNN's Melanie Zanona.

so, Melanie, what are we hearing is in this bill so far?

MELANIE ZANONA, CNN CAPITOL HILL REPORTER: Well, Boris, we have not seen bill text yet, but we are learning about some details over the weekend about what has been agreed upon.

One of the provisions that negotiators have agreed upon is a provision that would shut down the southern border if migrant crossings reach a certain level each day. Now, they're also agreeing on a provision that would speed up the process for those who are seeking asylum at the southern border, so some pretty big concessions there from Democrats.

And, significantly, President Biden has indicated that he would sign this package into law. But, Boris, as you noted there at the top, there are some other key figures in the GOP who are not on board with this deal. And that is primarily former speaker (sic) Donald Trump, who, of course, is now the front-runner for the Republican nomination.

He has been openly urging Republicans to reject this deal, in part because he wants a campaign on this issue, and he doesn't want to hand Biden and the Democrats a win. And House Speaker Mike Johnson, as if on cue, put out a letter on Friday and has been saying through the weekend that this deal, as he understands it, is likely dead on arrival in the House.

So the pathway right now for a border security deal is very uncertain, even though Republicans have been demanding a number of these things, this proposal is likely to be fairly conservative, and even though Republicans are the ones who are insisting on border policy changes in exchange for Ukraine aid, as opposed to just border security money, which is what Biden had initially proposed in his package for Israel, Ukraine, the border, and Taiwan.

So once this deal is announced, negotiators are still going to have to sell it to the rest of their colleagues since there's going to be opposition both on the right and on the left, we should mention, and just at this point, again, very uncertain how successful that sales job is going to be, Boris.

SANCHEZ: Yes, a tough road ahead for this deal.

Melanie Zanona, live from Capitol Hill, thank you so much.

Let's take you now live to CNN's Rosa Flores, who's in Houston for us.

And, Rosa, you're in contact with sources on the southern border. What's happening there in light of this discussion over a proposed immigration deal in Congress?

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Boris, what I'm hearing from sources is that migrant apprehensions on the U.S. southern border are still down. Yes, there has been a small spike in the Tucson Border Patrol Sector, but it's very small. It's not significant, nothing compared to the thousands of migrants that we were seeing that were pouring into the U.S. southern border back in mid-December.

Now, DHS attributes this drop in migrant apprehensions to armed enforcement in Mexico in Mexico's northern border in -- on the trains and also the migrant routes and deportations by Mexican officials of these migrants before they get to the U.S. southern border.

Now, this lull in migrant apprehensions gives Border Patrol a breather, but there's no question the answer to solving the border issue is immigration and border security reform. Both of these things, they're different and both need to happen.

Meanwhile, while this goes unsolved in Washington, it's states like Texas who are taking matters into their own hands. Now, I want you to take a look at this video, because this is what it looks like on the U.S. southern border while this issue continues unsolved.

[13:25:03]

What you're looking at, these are migrants from Venezuela. They had several young children several months old. They were cold, they were hungry, and they were trying to turn themselves in to U.S. immigration authorities at Shelby Park.

This is the area that has been taken over by the state of Texas for several weeks now. And they were trying to turn themselves in, and Texas authorities were telling them to go back. And these individuals, these migrants were telling them, no, we want to turn ourselves into U.S. immigration authorities. Does the United States not have human rights? Does the United States not have human rights?

Those were the questions that were being posed by these migrants. After going back and forth several times, eventually, these migrants turned themselves in to Texas authorities, the point here being that, while this issue goes unsolved, in the state of Texas, in this area, Texas authorities have taken over a portion of the border. Border Patrol does not have access to this area.

I talked to a law enforcement source this morning who says that Border Patrol still does not have access, and that migrant apprehensions in the Del Rio Border Patrol sector, which includes Eagle Pass, was about 200. So the numbers are still low, Boris, but the point being here is that DHS is trying to get Border Patrol access, but they have given the state of Texas two deadlines that have come and went, and there has been no change on the border, with Texas maintaining that it has constitutional authority to keep Border Patrol out.

Again, the point being, until this is solved in Washington, the standoff continues here in the state of Texas -- Boris, back to you.

SANCHEZ: Yes, potentially by Congress or the Supreme Court.

Rosa Flores, thank you so much for the update from Houston.

So, the voting technology giant Smartmatic that's currently embroiled in lawsuits against FOX News and other right-wing outlets is launching new explosive allegations, this time directed at the pro-Trump network One America News.

The details, potentially stolen passwords -- when we come back.

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