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Critical Day for Biden as Calls Grow Louder for Him to Step Aside; Trump Claims He Doesn't Know Who's Behind Project 2025, CNN Finds At Least 140 Trump Associates Involved With It; Fake Electors Get Tapped as GOP Convention Delegates. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired July 11, 2024 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: The big test today, Democrats and the world, quite frankly, may get a definitive answer on whether the CNN debate was one bad night for Joe Biden or something else, maybe the most important press conference of President Biden's political career.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: And this morning, prosecutors calling more witnesses to the stand in Alec Baldwin's involuntary manslaughter trial after saying in opening statements Baldwin played a dangerous game of make believe on the movie set.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: And new video showing the moments before an American Airlines flight aborted takeoff after blowing multiple tires on the runway.

I'm John Berman with Kate Bolduan and Sarah Sidner and this is CNN News Central.

The first news conference of the rest of his campaign or the last news conference of a fading campaign. By the end of the day, the world will see President Biden in the kind of unscripted, no prompter setting that wavering Democrats have been demanding. But will it be enough?

Senator Peter Welch became the first Democratic senator to publicly call on Biden to drop out. George Clooney did too. Nancy Pelosi has been speaking in code. And now, overnight, veteran journalist Carl Bernstein said this about Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARL BERNSTEIN, JOURNALIST AND AUTHOR He's frustrated with the whole situation, especially the way the White House, the way Biden the way the first family has dug in and has said that there's no more discussion of this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: And brand new, just moments ago, an ABC/Ipsos poll showing the race between President Biden and Donald Trump still essentially tied. The Biden campaign may look at this and say, hey, that's good news, but look at this. Among all voters, 67 percent say that President Biden should step aside. 62 percent of Democrats or Democratic-leaning independents say he should step aside. And even 54 percent of Biden supporters, 54 percent of Biden supporters say he should get out of the presidential race.

Let's get right to CNN's Arlette Saenz at the White House with the latest. Good morning, Arlette.

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hey, John. Well, there is no question President Biden is facing a major test today as he prepares to hold this solo news conference as he's looking to get his campaign on more solid footing amid some cracks in support within the Democratic Party.

Now, these solo news conferences have been a rarity in the Biden administration. This will be the 15th time he is holding a solo press conference, taking multiple questions from reporters, and it comes as allies have really encouraged the president to engage in these type of impromptu moments, press conferences or town halls to show voters that he is up for a second term and can handle some of these impromptu, unscripted type of questions.

But it does come as President Biden is feeling the heat from many corners And the Democratic Party, even as he and his team have insisted he is not changing course and his remaining in this campaign through November.

Now, while there are many Democrats still publicly backing Biden, there are others who have privately expressed concern and the number of congressional Democrats calling him for him to step aside has grown in the last 24 hours. That number currently stands at ten with Senator Peter Welch of Vermont being the first Democratic senator to call for the president to bow out of the race. You also had former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi yesterday kind of trying to open the door to the possibility of Biden potentially reconsidering his decision to stay in the race.

There is also that major op-ed from Actor George Clooney. He's not just any celebrity. He's someone who's who hosted a key Hollywood fundraiser or headlined that key Hollywood fundraiser for Biden back in June and said that the Biden he saw at that fundraiser was the same Biden he saw at the debate stage, and he needed to step aside. There's also concerns among the donor class about President Biden's path forward with one Democratic strategist saying, everything is frozen because no one knows what's going to happen.

Now, in addition to the president's news conference today, his key advisers will be up on Capitol Hill briefing Senate Democrats. That includes Jen O'Malley Dillon, Steve Ricchetti, and Mike Donilon.

[07:05:03]

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer inviting them there so they could hear these concerns directly from senators, as they are trying to keep President Biden's campaign on track, even as there are serious doubts within certain corners of the Democratic Party about his path forward in November. BERMAN: Arlette Saenz at the White House, Arlette, thank you very much. Sara?

SIDNER: All right, thank you, John. This morning, Donald Trump is doubling down on claims he knows nothing about the controversial and extreme conservative plan for the presidency known as Project 2025. But one look at the roster of those who created it shows dozens of his allies, former staffers and ex-cabinet members deeply involved in the project's sprawling manifesto for overhauling the executive branch.

CNN's Steve Contorno has the reporting for us. You looked through this. Walk us through what exactly you found as you look through this list of names.

STEVE CONTORNO, CNN RERPORTER: Sara, when Donald Trump asserted last week that he didn't know who was behind Project 2025, we decided to take a look at all the authors and contributors who are listed on Project 2025's signature project, this 900 page playbook for Trump's second term. And we found at least 140 people who were authors or contributors had prior experience working for the Trump administration.

Now, this includes people who rose to the highest levels of his government, including six people who served as cabinet secretaries, including HUD Secretary Ben Carson, who remains very close to Donald Trump, as well as the cabinet secretary in charge of the Office of Personnel and Management, that's Russ Vought, who I should also point out, recently helped put together the RNC platform that Trump approved.

There's also several ambassadors he appointed. There are people who worked very closely at shaping his immigration policies, as well as someone who served as a deputy chief of staff. And there are also more than a hundred organizations that are heavily conservative that helped advise this project. We found many Trump allies in those organizations as well, including his former chief of staff, Mark Meadows, one of his top advisers, Stephen Miller.

And we took this information to the Trump campaign. They said, look, these people may have worked for Donald Trump in the past, but they don't work for him now. They certainly don't speak for him. The party platform, as well as the agenda he has posted on his website is what he is looking to do in a second term. Trump himself responding to all these attempts to link him to the Project 2025 by Democrats on social media. This morning, he posted, quote, I know nothing about Project 2025. I have not seen it, have no idea who is in charge of it, and unlike our very well-received Republican platform, had nothing to do with it. He then went on to criticize Democrats for trying to link him to some of Project 2025's more controversial policies. That's not going to end anytime soon though, Sara.

SIDNER: Surprising, he says he hasn't seen it when most of the public has seen it. It is out there. Steve Contorno, thank you so much for your reporting. I appreciate it. Kate?

BOLDUAN: They refused to accept the legitimate result of the 2020 election. They worked to up, upend that election. Some of them now facing criminal charges for what they tried to do with that election. And they're headed now to the Republican convention as delegates and more. The new CNN reporting coming in.

Plus, somber testimony continues in New Mexico today. Prosecutors are seeking to highlight what they call Alec Baldwin's reckless behavior with guns on the Rust movie set as the trial continues.

And an American woman arrested in Turks and Caicos for having ammunition in her luggage facing her sentencing today.

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BOLDUAN: New CNN reporting today, seven battleground states are sending fake electors and other election deniers as delegates and national committee members to the Republican convention next week. In Milwaukee, among the people being given these new titles and roles in the future of the Republican Party and the nominating process, several who are facing criminal charges right now for helping Donald Trump try to overturn the 2020 election result.

CNN's Zach Cohen has this new reporting, he's here with us now. Zach, tell us more about what you've learned.

ZACHARY COHEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yes, Kate, we looked at seven key battleground states that were critical to the 2020 election and who's going to be physically representing them at the Republican convention. And what we found is that the list of delegations and some of the Republican National Committee people that were chosen in these states and will be in Milwaukee later this month are election deniers and some that actively participated in efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

Multiple individuals that are on these delegations or that will serve as sort of the national representative from places like Arizona, from places like Michigan, from places like Georgia, from Nevada, they were individuals who served as fake electors that was really part of that broader scheme by Donald Trump to try to overturn the 2020 election results. They're now going to be the physical representative for their state when the convention is held and when they help appoint Donald Trump officially as the Republican nominee for president.

Now, look, I want to highlight who some of these people are because they really are kind of a who's who of election deniers. In one case in Arizona, the Republican National Committee man that was just elected to lead the Republican Party there is named Jake Hoffman. He's a state senator. He also served as a fake elector and was indicted earlier this year as part of that state level criminal investigation in Arizona. He's accused of participating in a conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election results alongside the other fake electors in that state.

In a place like Michigan, they'll be represented by also a fake elector named Meshawn Maddock. Meshawn Maddock was similarly indicted on state level charges there. But it really speaks to how Donald Trump has remade the Republican Party and the RNC in his own image.

[07:15:04]

BOLDUAN: It's really interesting reporting, Zach. Thanks so much for putting it together. John?

BERMAN: It is sentencing day for an American mother arrested for having ammunition in her bag.

And we are waiting to see President Biden hold a crucial news conference as brand new polling shows that two-thirds of Americans say he should drop his re-election bid. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SIDNER: Both campaigns in overdrive working to energize young people to go out and vote, especially in critical swing states, like Pennsylvania.

CNN's Danny Freeman takes us there to get the pulse of the youth vote. He gauges how the Biden and Trump campaigns are reaching out to young people and if their messages are actually getting through.

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DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): As President Joe Biden worked the rope line in Harrisburg Sunday, trying to fight off questions about his age, a younger face in the crowd was creating content.

Did you ever think that you'd be influencing for a presidential campaign?

KENNY SCREVEN, SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCER: Definitely not.

FREEMAN: Kenny Screven is a social media influencer in Pennsylvania, one of many the Biden campaign has recently partnered with to try and reach younger voters.

[07:20:00]

SCREVEN: Things can get much harder if we don't vote.

FREEMAN: In addition to makeup tutorials and LGBTQ advocacy, Screven now posts about the importance of voting for Biden.

Do you feel young people are energized right now to vote in this election?

SCREVEN: Truthfully, no, I feel like a lot of people are discouraged. But I think that's where influencers come in. We can really help motivate them, encourage them to vote.

FREEMAN: In 2020, younger voters overwhelmingly supported President Biden over former President Trump. But recent polls show the two candidates running about even among this key demographic.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just Matt and Ariev (ph).

FREEMAN: 24-year-old Jahnavi Rao runs a group out of Chester County. The goal, to register young voters in crucial swing states and motivate them to vote.

JAHNAVI RAO, PRESIDENT, NEW VOTERS: There are more than enough people in this country who don't want you to vote as a young voter. All we're doing is giving you the tools and the resources so that you can.

FREEMAN: But resources are one thing. Enthusiasm is another. We asked several young voters on a scale from one to ten, how excited are they to go to the polls in November?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'd say like a five.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm a seven right now, seven or eight.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'd say probably a five.

SARANYA SINGH, 18-YEAR-OLD PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: I mean, I would put myself at a one, like I'm not excited at all.

FREEMAN: 18-year-old Saranya Singh said she will 100 percent vote for President Biden because reproductive issues are so important to her. But she worries about the president's appeal to other young voters.

SINGH: A lot of my friends and a lot of people in our age group are really hesitant to vote this year at all because, I mean, Biden is not the ideal Democratic candidate in any way.

FREEMAN: Anish Garamidi is a rising sophomore at the University of Pennsylvania. And while he's also all in for Biden, he's nervous about the lack of enthusiasm, too.

ANISH GARIMIDI, 18-YEAR-OLD PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: The Biden campaign should definitely be seeing that as, like, if the youth vote slips away, like, Pennsylvania slips away.

FREEMAN: Here, former President Trump's campaign season opening. Though his team did not provide examples of state-specific youth outreach, the campaign points to their recent launch on TikTok as a sign of its youth voter push.

TREVOR TAYLOR, ADAMS COUNTY YOUNG REPUBLICANS: When we talk about, you know, the economic issues, that resonates more with the youth vote. And that's my advice to engage with them. And we're having success.

FREEMAN: Trevor Taylor leads the Young Republicans in bright red Adams County. He says the past few weeks have been pivotal.

TAYLOR: Especially seeing Biden's debate performance, I think that the trend is definitely moving towards not only Biden losing support but Trump gaining support, and momentum.

FREEMAN: The Biden campaign hopes volunteers, like Lauren Kuntz, will be able to change that momentum.

LAUREN KUNTZ, BIDEN CAMPAIGN VOLUNTEER: I couldn't sit by and not participate in a campaign that's so essential to keeping America how we know it.

FREEMAN: The 26-year-old mom from Lancaster, Pennsylvania started volunteering with the Biden campaign earlier this year, and she understands the youth challenge.

What's your pitch to younger voters to say, you should be excited about this election?

KUNTZ: I think it's going to be less about the, the candidate itself and more about the policies that are going to help us as a generation. I mean, it's becoming more expensive to just live. And there are a lot of policies that the Biden administration has put in place to make it more affordable, which we should be excited about.

FREEMAN: Danny Freeman, CNN, Philadelphia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: All right, thanks to Danny for that. So, a dog saved an elderly New Hampshire man from a naked attacker. Ned Tarmy's (ph) family says he was letting his dog, Cain, outside when a neighbor appeared naked and started throwing bricks. So, Cain, the dog, held down the attacker until police arrived. The family says police used a stun gun on the neighbor and even had to use it on Cain to get him to let go of the guy.

Our affiliate reports the dog is doing fine. We got a picture here, I think, of the dog is doing fine, and you can see Ned there in the hospital. We're told he's getting out of intensive care. I guess we don't have word of the naked guy also in New Hampshire. Kate?

BOLDUAN: Wait, what? This is what I really do need to read ahead what you're talking about before you come to me.

Moving on, moving on, the new poll out this morning, a poll conducted after the CNN debate, showing Biden and Trump in a dead heat still. And still, a majority of Biden supporters and a majority of Democrats and Democratic-leaning voters in this poll want Biden to step aside. What message are voters sending here? And what is the White House hearing?

And prosecutors say he was, quote, playing make believe with a real gun. Testimony continues shortly in the trial of Alec Baldwin. This court resumes.

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[07:25:00]

BOLDUAN: A new read on the state of the race in a new ABC News poll showing Biden and Trump are still running evenly among voters nationally, with no meaningful post-debate change in vote preferences, yet 67 percent of respondents said Biden should step aside from the race, that includes 62 percent of Democrats and Democratic-leaning voters, and 54 percent of self-proclaimed Biden supporters.

[07:30:04]

Add this up. it's much more to consider as lawmakers on Capitol Hill are.