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Rep. Mike Quigley (D-IL) Is Interviewed About The DNC; Walz To Speak Day Three Of DNC; Kate Andersen Brower Is Interviewed About Michelle Obama. Aired 9:30-10a ET

Aired August 21, 2024 - 09:30   ET

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

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[09:32:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: We do not need four more years of bluster and bumbling and chaos. We have seen that movie before. And we all know that the sequel is usually worse.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN BERMAN, CNN HOST: That was former president Barack Obama last night talking about Donald Trump here. Trump pushed lies about the Obamas for years. But - but listen to what he said, Trump did, to CNN yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I like him. I think he's a nice gentleman. But he was very, very weak on trade.

But I happen to like him. I respect him and I respect his wife.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Yes, well -

SARA SIDNER, CNN HOST: Wow.

BERMAN: Again, a far cry. I mean I wouldn't - I wouldn't read too much into that.

SIDNER: Maybe not, but it is a really big thing for him to say, I like him. I think he's a nice gentleman. That is not the words that he has used for all this time since Obama's been out of office.

BERMAN: Certainly not.

All right, with us now is Congressman Mike Quigley, a Democrat from Illinois.

Congressman, thanks so much for being with us this morning. How does Chicago feel to you this morning after having the Obamas

onstage last night?

REP. MIKE QUIGLEY (D-IL): Yes, to quote the former president, all fired up and ready to go. You - you, in an earlier segment, mentioned there are people who had not seen the Obamas speak publicly. Even for those who were here in Illinois in '08 and '12 and politically grew up with the Obamas, my wife turned to me and said, oh, yes, they're really good. It was a stark reminder that they're some of the best orators of our lifetime.

SIDNER: Congressman Quigley, I'm curious, we played the sound from Donald Trump, who has mercilessly attacked Obama for years. The birther situation, all of these different things that weren't true. What did you make of what you just heard from him saying, you know, I liked the guy? Was it seeing the moment that happened here that really - people could not help, whether they were Republican or Democrat, to say, wow, that was good.

QUIGLEY: Yes, look, and he's talking about trade, which he sort of pulled out of the air. The fact of the matter is, the Obama trade deal, not doing that in Congress was one of the great mistakes we made challenging and competing with China in the Pacific Rim. So, he's frustrated when people have larger crowds than he did. Well, nobody had large crowds than President Obama.

And you saw it from the first day of the Trump administration where he was talking about his inaugural being so large. I was at the first Obama inaugural and you couldn't get near the place.

BERMAN: Congressman, obviously you were - and we've spoken about this - one of the most prominent and earliest people to come out and say that President Biden should drop out of the race. That happened.

Michelle Obama, one of the first thing she said when she was speaking last night was that she was feeling something here in the air that she hadn't felt in some time.

[09:35:03]

And by some time one could certainly infer that she meant for the last few years when President Biden has been president. And that's hope. I wonder how deliberate of a message you think that was, an acknowledgment that Democrats are in a different place now than they were a few weeks ago.

QUIGLEY: Well, they certainly are in a different place. And I don't think it's any reflection on President Biden. He was trying as hard as he possibly could. I think we owe him an extraordinary debt of gratitude for - for beating Trump, saving democracy, taking us out of Covid, you know, the darkness of January 6th and so much.

But, you know, the reason I did what I did was, the polls weren't, you know, trickling down. They were - they were taking everything down with them. They were cascading. And what we're seeing now is rising tides lift all boats. You know, what we're seeing at the D-trip (ph) for congressional races is, many, many more volunteers, dollars raised, polls changing. The task that the Vice President Harris had was, unite the party, ignite the base and change the polls. We're three for three. What you're seeing this week is a continuation of that momentum. But, you know, going after those swing voters, because again, as you just mentioned, it's still going to be close and the message last night - last night was, get to work. It's not a self- fulfilling prophecy. You've got to carry it across the finish line.

SIDNER: Congressman Quigley, I'm curious, where are here at the Bulls stadium. Some of us are old enough to remember a certain Bull that was -

BERMAN: Bill Ankton (ph).

SIDNER: That - that's not it.

BERMAN: No, no, no. Sorry, sorry.

SIDNER: That - that - that's not it.

BERMAN: Luke Longly (ph).

SIDNER: But conventions are like a basketball game where everyone's on the same team and cheering for the same team.

Then you have to go out of the convention, and you have to make this happen for the candidate. What advice would you give to your colleagues, to voters? What does the - what do the Democrats need to do to bring more people to their team, particularly independents in many of the swing states, which could mean the election?

QUIGLEY: You know, I do still think it's a contrast. You know, what we're seeing is one campaign that - that takes the anger that's out there and says it, you know, take that anger and hate other people. I think the Obamas reference that. And I think the friendly warrior alternative for them on the Democratic side is, there's more that unites us than divides us. There are things we have to address, right? There's a lot more work to do.

But campaigns, who your referenced before, it's a little like Tom Sawyer convincing people that it's fun to paint that fence. It's not always fun. It's hard work. You have to leave your family, knock on doors, get on phones. It's stressful. It's - you know. But there's a part of it that can be very dynamic. And I think last night feeds into that. You're not just part of something, you're part of something bigger than yourself. And it has a historical quality. I think you're starting to see that move coming from Chicago.

BERMAN: Congressman Mike Quigley from Chicago, thanks so much for being with us this morning. Appreciate it.

QUIGLEY: Thank you.

SIDNER: Appreciate you.

It was Michael Jordan, by the way, who I was hoping that you would say, number 23.

BERMAN: You know, Bill Ankton (ph) is Canadian, I think. I - you know, I was - I was - I wasn't even dealing with American (ph) voter that way (ph).

SIDNER: (INAUDIBLE).

All right, as much as the DNC focused on hope, it wasn't without some pretty big jabs at Donald Trump. And one of the messengers was the Illinois governor and heir to the Hyatt hotel fortune.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. JB PRITZKER (D-IL): Donald Trump thinks that we should trust him on the economy because he claims to be very rich. But take it from an actual billionaire, Trump is rich in only one thing, stupidity.

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[09:43:36]

SIDNER: Tonight, Tim Walz will take the main stage to formally accept his party's nomination for vice president. It will be a major moment for the Minnesota governor who has been thrust into the national spotlight since becoming Kamala Harris' running mate just a few short weeks ago.

CNN's Manu Raja joins us now.

What the few short weeks - what a change we have seen. What was your takeaway from last night?

MANU RAJU, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it is really remarkable just the unity that we're seeing in this Democratic Convention. How - could you imagine what this convention would have looked like if it was Joe Biden as the nominee? They would have had to try to make the case for him. There would be a lot of people not happy, concerned about it going forward. But with Kamala Harris it has changed completely.

The challenge for Tim Walz now is - it's a risk and an opportunity really to define himself in the eyes of the American public. We have seen public polls really not know anything about who this man is who wants to be vice president tonight. So, what will he do? What will Kamala Harris do?

Even Harris herself, I mean, "The New York Times"/Sienna poll from over the weekend, a third of voters have no idea what he - she would do as president of the United States. The question that I have is, does that - this convention answer that question? What exactly will they do for the country? I think they've effectively made the argument about why Donald Trump should not be in the White House. Especially the Obamas, last night, did just that.

[09:45:00]

But what will their agenda be going forward? That's going to be a challenge for Tim Walz tonight.

BERMAN: First of all, it's great to have you here, you know, Maju Raju with us on CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

SIDNER: Dito.

BERMAN: And we're lucky to have, you know, the anchor of "INSIDE POLITICS" Sunday here. And given that it's such a rare occurrence, I do want to know, what do you think the most important thing left to do is at this convention?

RAJU: Yes, that's a good question. I think it is the independent, moderate swing voters who are going to decide this election. What we've seen - been very clear since Harris has gotten in the race, she's got the coalition back. She has got the base back. We are seeing numbers grow with young voters, with black voters, with Hispanic voters. Getting to the levels where Joe Biden was.

But there is still a sizable amount of voters, particularly in those battleground states, according to the polls, that think she's too liberal. They're concerned about her policies. On the economy and immigration, coming in, Donald Trump was winning on those key issues, which is a big reason why a lot of those Republicans say focus on policies not personality. Don't make this a personality contest.

So, can she make that pivot to the middle? And to some extent at least woo those disaffected Republican and independent leaning Republican voters? That's a big question.

SIDNER: Manu Raju, we could talk to you all day, and we just might next times, so be careful.

RAJU: Yes, absolutely.

SIDNER: Thank you so much for coming in early this morning and hanging out with us.

BERMAN: Nice to see you, Manu.

RAJU: You got it. Thanks.

SIDNER: Great to see you.

BERMAN: So -

SIDNER: All right.

BERMAN: If Vice President Harris wins, the United States would have its first, first gentlemen in history. And Doug Emhoff's son had a chance to introduce his father to the contrary.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COLE EMHOFF, DOUG EMHOFF'S SON: He's the glue that keeps this family together. We might not look like other families in the White House, but we are ready to represent all families in America. (END VIDEO CLIP)

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[09:51:13]

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MICHELLE OBAMA, FORMER FIRST LADY: Something wonderfully magical is in the air, isn't it? Yes. You know, we're feeling it here in this arena, but it's spreading all across this country we love. A familiar feeling that's been buried too deep for far too long. You know what I'm talking about. It's the contagious power of hope.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN HOST: Former First Lady Michelle Obama there. Definitely a star on - of the night on the stage last night. Not only bringing back a word synonymous with the Obama campaign slogan in ala 2008, hope, she also electrified the Democrats that were in the audience and took on Donald Trump in a way really only Michelle Obama can.

Joining us right now is Kate Andersen Brower. She's the author of "First Women: The Grace and Power of America's Modern First Ladies."

Kate, what did you see in that message, in that - I'll call it a performance, but in her overall remarks coming for Michelle Obama on that stage?

KATE ANDERSEN BROWER, AUTHOR: Well, I think we saw why Donald Trump was really worried about Michelle Obama potentially becoming the Democratic nominee, right? It's something she never wanted to do. But it was something that a lot of Democrats were hopeful for. She electrified the crowd.

I think that she was able to kind of get in some jabs, but also keep it about hope. I think they're walking that delicate line where it's about hope and the future, but also, this is a really scary prospect for a lot of Democrats to think about Donald Trump coming back to the White House.

And you could see it, you know, the birther conspiracy theories, they - they still burn very strong in the Obama household. And there's a lot of personal really bad blood and animosity there. And she's very, very concerned that he could win. So, this is about getting people to the polls.

BOLDUAN: Yes. Let me play some of what you're getting at and the way that she did not hold back in taking on Donald Trump in her own way.

Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE OBAMA, FORMER FIRST LADY: For years Donald Trump did everything in his power to try to make people fear us. See, his - his limited, narrow view of the world made him feel threatened by the existence of two hard work, highly educated, successful people, who happen to be black.

Who's going to tell him - who's going to tell him that the job he's currently seeking might just be one of those black jobs.

If things don't go our way, we don't have the luxury of whining or cheating others to get further ahead. No, we don't get to change the rules so we always win. If we -

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: She says in - if we - we don't have an escalator to ride up to help us if we don't win.

A former top Democratic Party official said that this showed that she'd been waiting for years to give this kind of speech. Is Michelle Obama unique in her stature among former first ladies, do you think?

BROWER: Oh, she's absolutely unique. I mean, you know, Laura Bush was an authentic first lady too, but she didn't mesmerize and captive a crowd in the way Michelle Obama does. I mean even Barack Obama said, you know, this is such a tough act to follow. And there are no other presidents that you can look at in recent history where they're actually getting fewer, you know, applause lines in and energizing the crowd less than their wives.

So, she's just such a natural at this. And I think part of the reason why people really like her is because she's not interested in running for office.

[09:55:02]

This isn't about politics for her. This is something she feels very deeply about, passionately about. So, there's like an authentic part of her that connects with people.

BOLDUAN: Yes.

Talk to me about the potential next first spouse, Kamala Harris' husband, Doug Emhoff. I mean you describe the - you describe the role of the first lady as kind of one of the most under estimated and challenging positions in the world. And then add into, he could be a first gentlemen. What do you see?

BROWER: You know, I think that, again, there was something very authentic last night when you looked in the crowd and his daughter was in tears hearing about Kamala as Mamala, right? And what all spouses do is humanize the candidate. And he was able to do that last night in a really compelling way. And he's got that goofy kind of dad vibe that he plays off of, that really connects with people.

So, I think it was really powerful. And I can't wait, if she is elected, to see a man in that role, to play kind of that supporting position. I think it will be really important for little girls everywhere to see that.

BOLDUAN: In seeing that. Yes, again, that role now transforming in another very significant way.

Great to see you, Kate. Thank you so much.

BROWER: Thanks.

BOLDUAN: And thank you all so much for joining us today. "CNN NEWSROOM" is up next.

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