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Biden Meets With Netanyahu Over Gaza Ceasefire; VP Harris To Meet Netanyahu Later This Afternoon; Jennifer Aniston Slams JD Vance For "Childless Cat Ladies" Remark. Aired 3-3:30p ET

Aired July 25, 2024 - 15:00   ET

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

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[15:00:43]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: The push for a ceasefire. President Biden says ending the war in Gaza and securing the release of hostages held by Hamas will be a major focus of his final months in office. The President and Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, are meeting right now, and we're following the latest.

Plus, insults flying on the campaign trail. Harris saying, "Bring it on," unleashing fresh attacks in the new campaign video. As Trump now says, "I'm not going to be nice."

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: And counting down the hours until the opening ceremony of the Olympics. Last-minute preparations underway in Paris, but we're also learning about new security concerns.

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

KEILAR: Right now, President Joe Biden and Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, are meeting face-to-face at the White House. And this is happening as pressure is continuing to build on the Israeli leader to get a Gaza ceasefire deal across the finish line. The two men will then hold a joint meeting with the families of American hostages being held by Hamas.

SANCHEZ: This all comes ahead of another crucial meeting for Netanyahu. He's set to sit down face-to-face with Vice President Kamala Harris. That's roughly 90 minutes from now. Of course, it comes as Harris becomes the presumptive Democratic nominee for the White House in 2024. Let's get the latest from CNN Senior White House Correspondent MJ Lee, also with us, CNN Senior Reporter Isaac Dovere.

MJ, we want to start with you because you have new reporting about what President Biden is planning to do in this meeting with Netanyahu. Walk us through that.

MJ LEE, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. You know, these are two men who have obviously known each other for a number of decades. But that is a relationship that has really frayed since this war began back in October. And this meeting in person now that's going on at the White House comes at really a pivotal moment for each of their political careers.

Our sources tell us that the President is expected in this setting to push the Prime Minister with as much urgency as we've ever seen before to accept the ceasefire deal that is currently on the table that of course would end this war that is now just two months shy of reaching its one year mark. As one senior official put it to me, we're closer than we've ever been and it's up to the Israelis to accept that agreement.

John Kirby just echoed that sentiment in the White House briefing room to reporters. He said that there are gaps that need to be closed but that the administration does feel like those gaps can eventually be closed. We should also talk about this meeting that is coming after that bilateral meeting wraps up and that is a sit down with the families of the American hostages that are still in Gaza.

We are told that the administration sees that as a second important opportunity to exert additional pressure on the prime minister as one U.S. official tells our colleague, Kylie Atwood. They see this as a setting where the prime minister can really be held accountable to his commitment to this deal that would free the hostages that are remaining in Gaza.

Just as an important reminder, of course, there are still eight remaining American hostages believed to be in Gaza, but keep all of this in mind in the context of the fact that the President is no longer running for a second term and so whether this war can come to an end before his first term is over and exactly what post-war Gaza looks like, those are now going to be really important features of the President's legacy as a one-term president.

KEILAR: Yes, certainly. MJ, thank you so much.

We should mention we'll be speaking here with John Kirby here in the coming minutes.

And Isaac, you have some reporting on how Vice President Harris is preparing for her meeting with Netanyahu.

ISAAC DOVERE, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Yes, look, it's all the context that MJ just laid out as the background for this, but Kamala Harris is coming into this without a longstanding relationship with Benjamin Netanyahu, with a different view of maybe what this relationship should be like.

She has, over the course of the past month, since October 7th, been internally and somewhat publicly pushing for a more empathetic approach to talking about the Palestinians and what's been going on there and to be more skeptical of the Israeli government than even Joe Biden has been.

[15:05:00]

It should be pointed out that Biden is, for all the way that he is about this, he has been losing patience with Netanyahu too. But really, we just don't know fully what Harris thinks about Israel. And that's part of why her husband, Doug Emhoff, got on a call yesterday, a Zoom call with a bunch of Jewish and other Israel- supporting Democrats to make a surprise appearance and just try to reassure them. Let's take a listen to what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DOUGLAS EMHOFF, SECOND GENTLEMAN: Let me just make this clear, Vice President Harris has been and will be a strong supporter of Israel as a secure Democratic and Jewish state. And she will always ensure that Israel can defend itself, period. That's who Kamala Harris is.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DOVERE: And so that's what we're hearing out of them as they try to make clear that she is a strong supporter of Israel. Yet, when I asked her office whether Kamala Harris considers herself a Zionist, which is a word that Joe Biden, as recently as two weeks ago, said he is proud to call himself, I didn't get a direct yes or no answer. I got a long statement that talked about standing up for Israel's right to exist in security, but also about the rights of the Palestinian people.

SANCHEZ: Notable that - that's one of the things we heard Netanyahu say in the Oval Office next to Biden. He thanked him for, he said, 50 years of support for Israel, for being a proud Zionist.

We are still figuring out the contours of Kamala Harris' policy views when it comes to the Middle East, but we do know where she stands on Hamas and protesters that were here in D.C. who expressed an affinity toward the terrorist group yesterday.

DOVERE: Yes, saying Hamas is coming and that there is a very - a lot of support from some of the protesters who were in Washington yesterday. And she put out a very strong statement this morning, unequivocal, saying that there's no place for this, it's anti-Semitic, and condemning it. Also condemning the burning of the American flag.

But if there were any questions about where she was on that, and truly nothing that she has said or done should have prompted such questions, because she has been pretty clear before, that statement was very direct.

SANCHEZ: Isaac Dovere, I appreciate the reporting. Thanks so much.

And just to piggyback off of the tease that Brianna gave us a moment ago, we're actually going to be speaking with White House National Security Communications Advisor, John Kirby, about the status of a Gaza ceasefire deal. So look forward to that.

Meantime, social media has been on fire over comments that were made by Donald Trump's running mate, JD Vance, back in 2021 on Fox News. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. JD VANCE (R, Vice Presidential Nominee): We're effectively run in this country, via the Democrats, via our corporate oligarchs, by a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they've made. And so they want to make the rest of the country miserable too. And it's just a basic fact. You look at Kamala Harris, Pete Buttigieg, AOC, the entire future of the Democrats is controlled by people without children. And how does it make any sense that we've turned our country over to people who don't really have a direct stake in it?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Well, that struck a nerve with a lot of people, including actress, Jennifer Aniston, who has been open with her struggle to become pregnant. She posted, "Mr. Vance, I pray that your daughter is fortunate enough to bear children of her own one day. I hope she will not need to turn to IVF as a second option because you are trying to take that away from her too."

SANCHEZ: Let's discuss this with Lee Carter, former Republican strategist and pollster. We also have with us Natasha Alford, a senior correspondent for theGrio and the author of the book, "American Negra" and Jackie Kucinich, CNN political analyst and Washington Bureau Chief for The Boston Globe. Thank you all for being with us.

Lee, what do you make of these comments from JD Vance? Do they show him to be out of step with Trump and the base or actually right in line with it?

LEE CARTER, STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS EXPERT: So I think it's an unfortunate reality that this is pretty representative of the party at large at this moment. Now, I think there's going to be a lot of Republican women who are going to be really angry that these comments are being replayed. I think there's a lot - I've seen a lot on social media, but I think Republicans, quite a few of them are going to have buyer's remorse at the JD Vance pick in this moment.

Now, how is he going to respond to that, I'm not exactly sure. And the question is: Was he ever meant to go after the demographic that he's trying to pull from? I don't think this was ever a pick that was based on addition. I think it was about doubling down on his base. And so perhaps this will galvanize more folks, but I think it's a really, really risky strategy and I think it's going to alienate an awful lot of women, Republicans, Independents and Democrats alike.

KEILAR: I also wonder, Lee - I mean, this is a sort of an old soundbite of his. But Pete Buttigieg, now a father, Kamala Harris, a stepmother, and was when he said what he said, in that comment by JD Vance. She has two stepchildren. I will say full disclosure, I personally am a proud stepmother, which has been one of the most amazing things in my life.

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It's rewarding, hard, underappreciated. I think those are the themes a lot of stepparents have said to me when they talk about their roles, but it is a big role and there are so many stepparents across the political spectrum. Why do you think Republicans think it's a good idea to diminish the role of one in this case?

CARTER: I think it's a horrible idea to diminish the role. More - you know, half of the - half of Americans are from, you know, mixed families or blended families. I, too, am a stepmom, and it's one of the most important roles in my life. I look at my stepson as my family. He is the future, and I'm invested in the future because of him.

And I just - I can't say that I relate or understand. I think this was a really, really, really bad comment that he's got to find a way. He can't explain it away. And I think it's going to be something that lingers as a problem. But let's not forget, there have been videos that have come back to haunt people that they've gotten away with as well.

I mean, think back to 2016, the Access Hollywood tape. Donald Trump got out of that. So let's see how JD Vance is able to play through this. But I think it's going to be a lot harder in many ways because this hurts so many people personally for so many reasons, as you just mentioned.

SANCHEZ: Jackie, I guess the point that he was trying to make is that the people running the country who don't have kids don't have a stake in the future. What does that tell you about how that lands in Republican politics that he's now the vice presidential nominee? What exactly is he trying to say?

JACKIE KUCINICH, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: I mean, this doesn't seem like a comment that made by someone who thought they were going to be the vice presidential nominee. Because let's just look at the numbers here. They need people to vote for them, right? And they need more women to vote for them.

And Donald Trump was making some inroads with women when Joe Biden was at the top of the ticket. We could see that in polling. But now that you have a woman at the top of the ticket, we'll see how this pans out. But Democrats generally, more women vote for them. And when you have comments like this, I mean, it - that - it doesn't play well. We know that women voted against Trump in droves because of his tone, because of the insults, because of some of the things that he said in the 2020 campaign. And having someone who's a little bit younger kind of saying the same grating things, hurtful things to a lot of people, you can't imagine that's something they're going to want to put in an ad and put out there themselves, for sure.

KEILAR: Yes. Natasha, I wonder what you think. I mean, obviously it's an offensive comment. Does it move any needle?

NATASHA ALFORD, SENIOR CORRESPONDENT, THEGRIO: Well, I just want to challenge the premise that people who have chosen to not have children are somehow miserable. My child-free by choice friends are traveling. They're enjoying the extra income. They're actually very fine with their lives. And so I think that this whole separating of people and saying who is worthy, this narrow notion of what an American family looks like, I think that is for JD Vance and people who think like him to really wrestle with because they're ignoring huge swaths of the population.

And I will say also as a mother that for Democrats, this is an opportunity to highlight the policies that Republicans have opposed, which have made it harder to have families, right? So if you want people to have children, you want people to be parents in whatever form, perhaps you shouldn't oppose SNAP benefits, be - try to cut SNAP benefits or oppose the expansion of the child tax credit or oppose universal pre-K. Daycare costs a mortgage right now, right?

So there's so many realities of trying to raise a family that make it so hard in America as it is. And Democrats do have policies which support families. They can highlight that in this moment. And then just the general hypocrisy and cruelness of saying whose life matters more, I think they can call that out and say, this is not the America that we want. We have an America where everyone matters and is included.

SANCHEZ: More broadly, Natasha, I'm wondering what you make of the Trump team, JD Vance included, trying out some new lines of attack on Vice President Harris. So I was talking to Anthony Scaramucci about an hour ago or so, and he was essentially saying that he doesn't think that they've landed on something that works. And so you're seeing them sort of throw spaghetti at the wall to see what sticks.

ALFORD: Well, the whole democratic coup that they keep bringing up, this line where they're saying that they're so concerned about democracy, it just rings as truly hypocritical when you look at January 6th, when you look at this resistance to the peaceful transfer of power, when you listen to the recording of Donald Trump asking for some more votes to be found in Georgia, so that way he can say that he won this election, right? This is just - it's not going to work.

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People voted for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. They were a package. They had strengths that complemented each other. And you see by the enthusiasm, the millions of dollars raised, the record setting millions that were raised in 24 hours, 81 million for Kamala Harris. Just in 24 hours that people are excited that they see her as an extension of that administration and the accomplishments. And she just represents a new generation, bold, energetic, her 59 years compared to Trump's 78 years, quite a contrast. And so I think those lines are just not going to land with the people who know what the truth is.

KEILAR: Jackie, how do you see the Trump ticket navigating these changes on the Democratic ticket? How do you see this situation before them?

KUCINICH: I mean, we've seen Republicans this week really scrambling, frankly, and trying to settle on a message. I mean, you've already had Republicans I talked to, and you've already heard from Republican leadership telling their members to talk about issues, talk about policies when they're talking about Kamala Harris and not start talking - and we've talked about DEI and some of the racist and gendered things that they've said just in the last couple of days.

The more they're talking about that, the less they're attracting more people, and the more that, you know, they're putting out this very caustic message. And GOP leaders and Republican strategists I've spoken to this week are saying, absolutely not, don't do that. Talk about policies that you disagree with and keep it there.

KEILAR: Jackie, Lee, Natasha, thank you so much for the conversation at just an amazing moment. I just want to step back and say that, an amazing moment that we are at in this presidential race. Thank you.

And still ahead, Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, at the White House for critical meetings. We're joined by White House National Security Spokesman, John Kirby.

SANCHEZ: Plus, the Supreme Court's recent decision on homelessness is already sweeping through California. We'll explain what Gov. Gavin Newsom is ordering.

And a battle inside the Murdoch media empire has many people thinking of "Succession," the HBO show. Why Murdoch is trying to push three of his children out of control of his empire.

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KEILAR: As President Joe Biden meets right now with Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, at the White House, administration officials are pushing back on this idea that Biden has lost his leverage in Gaza ceasefire negotiations since his time in office is now coming to an end at the end of this term.

I want to talk more about this with White House National Security Communications Advisor, John Kirby.

And John, you've said that you're closer than ever on a deal to end this conflict. Why is that?

JOHN KIRBY, WHITE HOUSE NATIONAL SECURITY COMMUNICATIONS ADVISER: Because we believe that the gaps that are remaining, Brianna, are of such a narrow nature that they can easily be breached. Now, I say easily, that's probably not a great choice of words on my part because if it was easy, we'd be there by now.

But what I mean is that they are narrow enough that with some compromise and some leadership on both sides here, we believe that we can get this over the finish line. We're close and as I said earlier, closer than we've been before. We're still not there though. So there's still work that needs to be done.

KEILAR: What specific gaps?

KIRBY: Well, again, I don't think it'd be good for me to negotiate it in public ...

KEILAR: Okay, fair.

KIRBY: ... and in terms of exactly what it is though.

KEILAR: Okay, fair. So then let me ask you this, why should we not read this then simply as pressure on Israel by the U.S. to get a deal done considering pressure on Israel in the past has failed and it can easily be construed as that?

KIRBY: Look, this isn't about some sort of pressure tactic. I mean, we have been very strident in our negotiations with our counterparts, again, on both sides of this conflict that this framework deal will work. It will get the hostages home. It will get us to six weeks of a ceasefire and it will dramatically improve the ability for humanitarian assistance to get around inside Gaza. There's a lot of goodness here. It's really just a matter of working out the final details.

So if it's - I mean, if you want to say that we're putting pressure on both sides because we are working on it so hard and continue to put teams in the field there, well then I guess, okay, we're putting pressure on both sides. We want to get this done.

Two-hundred ninety-three days, Brianna, today, that these people have been held hostage by Hamas. Two-hundred ninety-three days that their families who are here just over my shoulder in the West Wing meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu and the President have been waiting in anguish, sometimes for any word of their loved ones, certainly for their loved ones to come home. It's got to end. We've got to get this done.

KEILAR: Yeah, it's heartbreaking and you certainly get that talking to those families.

Prime Minister Netanyahu just highlighted - this was one of the big things that he said during this meeting with President Biden - he highlighted that he was a Zionist. Is Vice President Kamala Harris a Zionist?

KIRBY: I can tell you for sure, because I've been in the room with her since my two and a half years of being here at the White House, that Vice President Harris shares President Biden's steadfast commitment to the nation of Israel, to the security of the Israeli people, to making sure Israel can defend itself against attacks like they suffered on the 7th of October. She's been a full partner in every policy discussion.

KEILAR: Sorry, John, let's listen in to Vice President Harris. I'm so sorry.

KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: ... into the previously agreed upon September 10th debate, he agreed to that previously.

[15:25:06] Now it appears he's backpedaling, but I'm ready. And I think the voters deserve to see the split screen that exists in this race on a debate stage. And so I'm ready, let's go.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Will you do it on Fox News?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you have any comment on the protest yesterday?

KEILAR: All right. And we're back now with John Kirby. But just to be clear, that's Vice President Kamala Harris. They're at Joint Base Andrews.

Kind of, I guess, challenging former President Trump when it comes to a debate. She says that he is backpedaling on a debate, but she's ready, let's go. So we'll see, of course, where that lands.

Okay, but John, back to the question I was asking. And I hear what you're saying, that she shares his stance. Is she a Zionist? Does she embrace that label? Because we have not heard that.

KIRBY: She - well, again, I won't speak for the Vice President in that level of detail, but I can tell you, having seen her at work, she absolutely believes in all the facets of a free, secure, independent Israel, the nation of Israel, and the safety and security of the Israeli people. And she's been working harder than just about anybody to make sure that as a team, we are looking after our commitments to our neighbors, our allies, our friends in Israel.

KEILAR: In his speech yesterday, Netanyahu said, quote, "Israel does not seek to resettle Gaza, but for the foreseeable future, we must retain overriding security control there." I wonder if that violates what the U.S. has said it wants to see. Secretary Blinken has been clear that Israel should not occupy, not just settle ...

KIRBY: Right.

KEILAR: ... but should not occupy. Does that violate what the US wants to see?

KIRBY: No, Secretary Blinken has also said that he understands - we all understand that when the war comes to an end, it's certainly plausible that for immediate security concerns, there may need to be some sort of Israeli footprint there. But we're not there yet. We're not even at this ceasefire deal that gets us a ceasefire for six weeks and no fighting in Gaza.

So we've understood that there may have to be a sort of interim presence by Israeli defense forces for, again, immediate security concerns. But the Israelis have also said that they support our efforts, the United States efforts, in terms of the day after, making sure that there is credible governance in Gaza that can meet the aspirations of the Palestinians who live there. And they understand that what we want to do is achieve that through a revitalized Palestinian Authority, that the Palestinian Authority has got to have a vote and a voice here. KEILAR: The chairman of the Joint Chiefs, CQ Brown, just testified that - or not testified, I should say spoke in a briefing and said that Israel has not shown the U.S. a detailed day after post-war plan, that does not having that plan, in your view, increase the chance of Israel prolonging that footprint there in Gaza and possibly occupying it in a way that the U.S. has already condemned?

KIRBY: Well, the chairman's right. We don't have a plan yet, but it's something that we've been working on with the Israelis since almost immediately, the day after itself, the attacks of the 7th of October. This is something that Secretary Blinken has been laser-focused on. And we're talking to counterparts in the region, not just the Israelis, but our Arab partners as well.

KEILAR: Have you seen a plan then? He's saying that ...

KIRBY: No, there's ...

KEILAR: ... there's not a lot of detail that I've been able to see from a plan from them.

KIRBY: There is not a plan today that I can point to and say, here it is for the day after the war ends. That is why Secretary Blinken and the whole team here at the National Security Council have been working so hard with our counterparts to get some sort of outcome to that effect so that we have a day after plan here for Gaza. Again, that meets the aspirations of the Palestinians who live there.

Now, as for your first question, going back to, you know, is this going to - the fact that there's no plan going to mean that the Israelis will slow roll this or try to perpetuate the war. The Israeli people want to see an end to this war and we want to see an end to this war. This ceasefire deal that we are so close to getting over the finish line could get us there.

Phase one gets you six weeks of a ceasefire, but that leads you to negotiations on phase two. And phase two can get you to a real cessation of hostilities. There's no reason why we can't achieve that.

KEILAR: John Kirby, thank you so much for your time. A big day at the White House as these hostage families especially are getting the chance to meet with both of these leaders. We appreciate your time.

KIRBY: Yes, you bet.

KEILAR: Still ahead, California governor, Gavin Newsom, ordering state agencies to clear homeless encampments after a major Supreme Court ruling. How people are responding there.