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Presumptive Democratic Presidential Nominee Kamala Harris Campaign Reportedly to Target Disenfranchised Republicans in Georgia; Republican Vice Presidential Candidate J.D. Vance's Multiple Comments on Childless Americans Draw Controversy. Aired 8-8:30a ET

Aired July 30, 2024 - 08:00   ET

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

[08:00:00]

SARA SIDNER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It did send us a statement about its voter app, writing it has, quote, "developed specialized processes, technologies, and methodologies that have been affirmed by experts in courts," but wouldn't specify who those experts and courts are or answer any other questions. CNN spoke with more than a dozen county and state election administrators across the country who say the challenges of the app are repetitive and sometimes plain wrong.

Since the 2020 election, the Texas non-profit raised nearly $12 million based on publicly available records, all that money despite having no offices and listing only a handful of employees. Thanks to Kyung Lah's reporting for that.

A new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Brand new this morning, the first ad from the Harris campaign just released in the new target of opportunity they see.

We have a CNN exclusive, never-before-seen details on what happened behind closed doors as the Supreme Court rewrote the book on presidential immunity.

And breaking overnight, one of the largest wildfires on record getting even bigger, now sparking what is called fire tornadoes.

I'm John Berman with Sara Sidner and Kate Bolduan. This is CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Kamala Harris is heading to Georgia today, laser-focused on this battleground state. Exhibit A, a new Harris campaign memo shared with CNN overnight. The campaign threw strategy on how they plan to win Georgia. The secret weapon may be, according to them, disenfranchise Georgia Republicans. The memo saying in part, Trump has waged a full on war with Georgia's top Republicans, including Governor Brian Kemp and the secretary of state Brad Raffensperger. The Harris campaign is also launched a new $50 million ad campaign in battleground states today.

CNN's Priscilla Alvarez has new reporting on all of this. She's joining us now. What do we expect? What do you expect or are you hearing about to expect from Harris in Georgia when she touches down?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN REPORTER: Kate, this is expected to be a rally with big turnout. And the idea here is to surge that enthusiasm into action, especially in the critical state of Georgia. Remember, this was a state that President Biden narrowly won in 2020. And when he did, it marked the first time that a Democratic presidential candidate had won in nearly 30 years. And that is the reason that it is being so closely watched now.

Now, ahead of the visit, the campaign releasing a new ad that essentially gives us a glimpse of the argument that the vice president will continue to make over the next couple of months, and that is that she's going to prosecute the case against former President Donald Trump. All of this, of course, is part of that $50 million paid media campaign.

But Democratic strategists that I have spoken with also say that it's not just about prosecuting the case, but also articulating how her vision is going to impact people's lives, especially in Georgia. This is a state that President Biden also visited this year, and it was at a time where voters are disillusioned. They were quite apathetic over the two unpopular candidates, former President Donald Trump and President Biden. But now some strategists say they are observing that enthusiasm on the ground, and they're hoping that the vice president and the campaign can start to capitalize on that, especially with this rally.

But of course, Kate, its not an easy safe for Democrats, and the campaign is well aware of just how competitive it's going to be.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAN KANNINEN, BATTLEGROUND STATE DIRECTOR, HARRIS FOR PRESIDENT: We have 24 offices in the state of Georgia, and we do view Georgia as very competitive. It's clear the vice president is energizing and mobilizing our base. It's also true that Republicans, excuse me, Donald Trump and the ticket have problems with Republicans in Georgia. Look at Geoff Duncan who is a statewide official in that state who has repeated Trumps record and made it clear he is not fit for office.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALVAREZ: Now, the vice president will be joined with lawmakers and Democratic officials, but she's also bringing star power. Megan Thee Stallion will also be at the rally in, again, what is expected to be a big moment for her in Georgia, a state that Democrats are hoping to keep in play this election.

BOLDUAN: Thet absolutely are. Great to see you, Priscilla, and great reporting, as always.

Sara?

SIDNER: All right, just out, a brand-new attack ad from Donald Trump targeting, of course, Kamala Harris, this time on the border.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Joe Biden made Kamala Harris border czar to fix immigration. First, she ignored it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you have any plans to visit the border?

KAMALA HARRIS, (D) VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES AND PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: At some point.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Then she just lied.

HARRIS: The border is secure.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: Of course, she is not the border czar. However, the attack lines getting sharper from Donald Trump's side of things.

[08:05:00]

But now the J.D. Vance cat lady controversy is growing, partly because our KFILE report this morning finds the things Republican vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance has said about Americans without children goes well beyond childless cat ladies.

CNN's Alayna Treene is joining us now with more on this. What can you tell us about this?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: Well, what we've learned, Sara, and this is due to our colleagues on the great KFILE team, they found that those now infamous childless cat ladies comments that Vance made last week that resurfaced, that was not a onetime thing. He has said, we have a history, really, I should say, of making similar comments. The team dug into some of what he had said publicly and found that he has referred to people without children as being mentally unstable, as being sociopathic.

I want you to take a listen to what he said in this podcast from 2020.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. J.D. VANCE, (R-OH) VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There are just these basic cadences of life that I think are really powerful and really valuable when you have kids in your life. And the fact that so many people, especially in America's leadership class, just don't have that in their lives, I worry that it makes people more sociopathic and ultimately our whole country a little bit less, less mentally stable.

And of course, you talk about going on Twitter. Final point I'll make is you go on Twitter and almost always the people who are most deranged and most psychotic are people who don't have kids at home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: So clearly very harsh rhetoric and it shows that, again, this was not a onetime thing despite what Vance's team has said, that his comments in 2021, that clip that resurfaced last week and got a lot of attention from him speaking on Tucker Carlson's show, was out of context.

I'm going to walk you through some of the other instances that our team found. So in May of 2019, Vance had told the crowd that, quote, "babies are good because were not sociopaths." In November 2020, he said, quote, that the "most deranged" and most psychotic people do not have kids. In 2021, there was an email that his team had circulated that said "radical childless leaders in this country" are those, referring to people without children. And then in September 2021, he tweeted, quote, "cat ladies must be stopped."

And I want to put some of this into context for you, Sara, because I've been talking to both Vance's team as well as Trump's team about some of these comments. First of all, as much as they are pushing back on this, we saw J.D. Vance kind of tried to clean up his comments at the end of last week. Privately, they acknowledge of course they do not like that this attention is on these comments. It's not a good look for him, particularly on the week, his first week really getting out there on the trail as Donald Trump's running mate.

But they also are arguing and that, look, Donald Trump is still happy with Vance. They think that they can move beyond this. I think its difficult as we're continuing to dig up old emails and interviews that he has done saying similar things. And so it's going to be interesting to see how they try to move away from this just given he has said this so many times and repeatedly. And it does seem like it's something he believes, that people who do not have children don't really understand policies and make poor decisions. That's what he has said in the past.

SIDNER: With no proof of any of that. And using Twitter as real life is interesting.

Also new this morning, though, J.D. Vance's team is now responding to new audio obtained by "The Washington Post" of a private conversation that he recently had with donors, Vance appearing to share concerns that Harris has taken over the ticket. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VANCE: All of us were hit with a little bit of a political sucker punch. The bad news is that Kamala Harris does not have the same baggage as Joe Biden because, whatever you might say, Kamala Harris is a lot younger, and Kamala Harris is, obviously, not struggling in the same way that Joe Biden did.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: I mean, he's basically saying, look, she's a better candidate. What is the campaign saying, though, about these comments?

TREENE: I will read you their statement, but I do just want to point out, I mean, that is a remarkable soundbite that "The Washington Post" got, and also I think just focusing on what he said, which was, you know, whatever we might have to say. It makes very clear that what they are saying publicly is not necessarily what they believe privately.

But here is a statement from Vance's spokesperson William Martin. He said, quote -- sorry. OK. He said, quote, "Poll after poll shows President Trump leading Kamala Harris as voters become aware of her weak, failed, and dangerously liberal agenda. Her far-left ideas are even more radioactive than Joe Biden, particularly in the key swing states that will decide this election, like Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin."

Now Sara, this does drive, of course, with what I'm hearing as well in my conversations with senior Trump advisers. I think it's clear that they were essentially measuring the drapes after that CNN debate in late June.

[08:10:5]

And now with Harris in the race, it's entirely changed this election cycle and their entire playbook on how to attack their opponent. They are, of course, concerned about Harris and have had to change gears on how to try to find out how to define her, workshopping lines. It's very -- they recognize that this race is going to be harder in the fall. And while they have not said that publicly, here's kind of the proof of having Vance say that to donors in a private meeting. Sara?

SIDNER: It is OK to say that you are facing a more formidable challenger. It's an interesting to see the way they're trying to clean this up. Alayna Treene, thank you so much. Appreciate your reporting this morning.

TREENE: Thank you.

SIDNER: John?

BERMAN: All right, new this morning, U.S. intelligence says Iran is using social media to interfere in the U.S. presidential election. The details and the efforts to keep Donald Trump out of the White House.

And then with COVID cases on the rise this summer, get the newest guidance on how to prevent the spread.

And the end is nigh. What is nigh exactly? Rhode Island under attack here. Stay with us and we will tell you if it survives.

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[08:15:50]

SIDNER: New US intelligence reveals Iran is working to carry out a covert influence campaign on social media to try and undermine Donald Trump's candidacy. It comes just weeks after US intelligence discovered in Iranian plot to assassinate the former president.

Joining me now is Chris Krebs, former director of the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency during the Trump administration. First of all, how is Iran trying to do this, trying to get into the minds of Americans? CHRIS KREBS, CHIEF PUBLIC POLICY OFFICER, SENTINELONE: Well, they've effectively copied the Russian playbook from the 2016 election. They're using covert personas, fake personas on social media. They're using their contractors' proxies and their own intelligence services to get out there and share messages that undermine the former president, that is.

I do think though they are still much like other countries and other groups are still trying to figure out what the change at the top of the ticket on the Democratic side means. So, there's probably more to come down the road on what their true intentions are.

SIDNER: How is this all being monitored and sort of figured out that this is Iran's work? We also, as you mentioned, Russia is still playing around in the electorate here in the United States. How is that figured out? How is that monitored?

KREBS: Well, yes. Well, this information from the director of National Intelligence is part of a regular set of intelligence reporting. Again, that has developed over time since the 2016 election, where the intelligence community -- the US intelligence community is trying to keep the American people updated on what those foreign threats are to democracy in our public institutions.

And so, this report does include information on Iran, on Russia, and China, and others. What they do is they use our unique assets in the intelligence community that signals intelligence, that's human intelligence. So, those are resources, assets on the ground, but also working with partner intelligence agencies from other countries to develop this full picture and use a blended plethora of insights and options to develop this understanding.

And it also includes use of, or partnerships with social media companies that uncover to their own internal investigations, accounts that are linked to suspicious sources and other countries.

SIDNER: Who is better at this? I'm just curious from your perspective. You've got Russia and Iran clearly wanting to have some say in the United States elections. I mean, when you look at the scope of what they're able to do. What should the United States be more worried about?

KREBS: Well, the intelligence report, which is consistent with my understanding of the problem said, is that Russia continues to be the biggest threat to US elections and democracy writ large. I do think it's important to step back and think about what their larger objectives are, their strategic objectives.

And it is not necessarily to determine or influence the outcome in favor of a single candidate in the upcoming election. Really, what the Kremlin is trying to do and let's make no mistake, the Russian activities in the '24 election, just like the '20 election in the '18 and '16 before them are directed by the Kremlin and Putin himself.

Their objective here is chaos. It's undermining democracy, it's causing us to lose faith in our political leadership and the processes is by which we elect our leaders. They have generally of view that democracy doesn't work, and that their approach, autocracy and authoritarianism is the appropriate solution at this point in time.

SIDNER: Their brand is chaos. I am curious how much influence you think that they do have, both Russia and Iran have on the electorate. When you look across the broad scope of the things that they do, mostly using social media to try to get into people's heads.

KREBS: I think this is exactly the right question we need to be asking at this time. I think we tend to make these foreign intelligence services and their proxies look to be a hundred foot giant, they are not.

They are not that capable. We do more damage to ourselves frankly in our own online political discourse. But the issue is not the tactical impact on the specifics of the election, it is the broader strategic impacts on our confidence in democracy and public institutions, and the process itself.

[08:20:18]

And if they succeed there, that's good enough from their point of view. And this why we to have be made of a bit sterner stuff. We have to not let them get in our heads. We have to take a deep breath and realize, you know, ultimately it's American voters that decide American elections.

SIDNER: Yes. Chris, I think you hit the nail on the head when you said we do it to ourselves so much more. They just sort of exploit what we do to ourselves in many instances. Chris Krebs, thank you so much for your expertise on this, appreciate your time this morning.

KREBS: Thanks, Sara.

SIDNER: -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: The Secret Service is facing new criticism today from Capitol Hill. The new acting director of the Secret Service headed there now, admitting failures that led to the attack on Donald Trump.

And the Park Fire is now one of the biggest wildfires in California's history. Why this one is proving so hard to contain.

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[08:25:25]

BERMAN: New this morning, a wildfire burning in California is now the sixth largest in that state's history, burning through more than 370,000 acres.

The man accused of starting it is now charged with arson. He did not enter a plea during his first court appearance and was denied bail.

CNN's Lucy Kafanov is in Cohasset, California with the latest for us this morning. What do you see? What are you feeling, Lucy? LUCY KAFANOV, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, first of all, John, good morning. I'm wearing this mask because the air is just still so thick with the smoke, even though the fire tore through this particular area on Thursday.

And just to put that larger number that you mentioned into perspective, more than 373,000 acres burned, just 14 percent contained, John, that is more than 12 times the size of San Francisco.

Now, we are in a small town near the Chico area called Cohasset. The population here just under 900. Most of the people were evacuated from this area when the flames tore through here on Thursday, devouring structures.

You can see very little left behind. We could make out a white vehicle, a pickup truck in the background, but a lot of these structures -- it's really hard to figure out even what they were, whether they were homes, or some sort of storage garage areas. That's sort of unclear just because of how comprehensive this damage has been. And these -- or this is just one of at least 165 structures so far destroyed by the Park Fire. Thousands of people under evacuation in this whole area.

Meanwhile, the man accused of starting what were now describing as the sixth largest fire in California history appeared in court on Monday. Ronnie Dean Stout II, has been charged with arson. And according to court documents, witnesses saw him pushing a burning car down the 60- foot embankment. It then caused the dry grass near there to catch fire and explode. He was seen, according to court documents, blending in calmly with a crowd afterwards.

He did not enter a plea on Monday, but Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey said that Stout had a previous criminal record. He was denied bail. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE RAMSEY, BUTTE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: No bail today because of his record. The fact that he is facing life imprisonment, that this was an extraordinarily dangerous act and he does appear to have an alcohol problem. And so, we can't have such a dangerous person out there in the community, particularly in these times.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAFANOV: Now, if convicted, this would be his third felony and under California's three-strikes law, he would be automatically sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. But regardless of who started this fire, John, these unprecedented hot and dry conditions are extremely dangerous. We have nearly 5,000 people battling this fire, 30 helicopters assigned to this blaze, and we are -- the good news here is, we are expecting relatively low winds which should help with the fire fighting efforts, but we are also expecting higher temperatures.

And so, folks in these areas are no way in the clear at the moment -- John. BERMAN: I know it's got to be difficulties. These pictures are extraordinary. We're seeing Lucy Kavanaugh, thanks so much for being there, stay safe -- Sara.

SIDNER: All right, ahead, protests in the streets of Venezuela with uncertain election results. We'll have more on that coming up.

And, is one veep candidate going to be the ticket to the White House for Kamala Harris? We are checking the numbers. That's next.

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