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U.S. Makes What It Hopes Is Final Push For Gaza Truce Deal; Blinken: Israel Agrees To Pull IDF From Gaza In Latest Deal; Rep. Robert Garcia (D-WI) Discusses Obamas Warning 2024 Will Be An "Uphill Battle" And "Tight Race" & V.P. Walz Taking Center Stage For Acceptance Speech; Doug Emhoff, Sons Highlight Their "Blended Family" With V.P. Harris. Aired 2:30-3p ET

Aired August 21, 2024 - 14:30   ET

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

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[14:32:58]

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Rescue workers in Gaza say two people are dead and several kids were injured after a reported Israeli airstrike on a school. IDF officials claim the facility was being used as a Hamas control and command center.

Meantime, the U.S. is making what it hopes will be a final push for a truce. U.S. talks are set to resume this week in Cairo. But an Israeli official tells CNN that President Biden will be speaking with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today.

Let's get the latest from Tel Aviv with CNN chief national security analyst, Jim Sciutto.

Jim, obviously, this is a crucial moment for these negotiations. Where do things stand?

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN HOST: I think "dim" is the word right now. Dim prospects for an agreement, Boris. Because when you talk about the two principal parties, Israel and Hamas, they're both saying publicly they're not on the same page with this deal.

So despite the cautious optimism you were hearing over the weekend, at least from the Israeli side, right now, they are publicly not on the same page.

But there also, at the same time, appears to be daylight between the U.S. and Israel specifically. And when I say Israel, I should say the Israeli prime minister, because there's even disagreement in this country on the way forward.

Specifically on Israel's presence in Gaza after any ceasefire and down the line, specifically, in particular, along the border between Gaza and Egypt, the border, which is so important because Israel is concerned about the flow of weapons in that way.

Now, the Israeli prime minister told hostage families yesterday that it's not leaving. It views that as a core strategic interest. Antony Blinken is -- seems to be communicating that's a non-starter. A State Department official told reporters on his plane yesterday that that is a maximalist position by Israel. That's the word of the State Department official, not helpful to these negotiations.

So until it's clear that Israel and the U.S. are on the same page about the way forward, it's hard to see how then you go and try to get Hamas and mediators to sit down again to find a way forward.

[14:35:04]

At this point, I wouldn't say quite an impasse. The talks are continuing but they are certainly not moving forward.

SANCHEZ: And, Jim, looming over all of this is Iran and the threat of retaliation after the killing of a Hamas commander in Iran. I understand Iran is making new comments about the potential response. What's the latest there?

SCIUTTO: So Iran has been cagey with this, as you might imagine. There have been some public comments from Iran saying no need to strike now. And saying quite publicly that they want a ceasefire in Gaza. They want the fighting to stop there.

But, in effect, saying, if we don't strike now, we could strike at a later date.

I will say that, last week, you would hear from U.S. officials going back to the beginning of last week that this war could expand at any moment, right? That a strike from Iran and perhaps Hezbollah as well was imminent.

I haven't heard that for a week. It appears those parties giving time for these negotiations to work -- to work out. But as these negotiations perhaps get to a point where we're there not moving forward, that raises that risk again.

The risk has always been there. The thread has been there. An Israeli official told me that today.

But of course, the concern is, if those talks so aren't moving forward, there will be heightened alert here and elsewhere in the region about the potential for an Iranian strike, a potential for a broader Hezbollah strike.

But keep in mind, Boris, Hezbollah is flying across Israels northern border every day, multiple times, and Israel is firing back. So that's a low-grade conflict up there. Of course, the concern is it becomes a higher grade one.

SANCHEZ: Absolutely.

Jim Sciutto, thank you for the latest from Tel Aviv.

Presidential campaigns are usually marathons. But for Vice President Harris, this has been a sprint. So can Democrats keep up their pace with just weeks until Election Day? We're going to discuss when we take you back with Democratic National Convention in just moments.

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[14:41:43]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: And joining us now is Democratic congressman from California, Robert Garcia. He was the co-chair of the Harris campaign in 2020. He's now a member of the Harris campaign advisory board.

I'm very excited to speak with you. You spoke on Monday night during the first night of the convention. And I wanted to talk to you specifically about Latino men because it's not like they're going en mass to Donald Trump.

But the margins here matter, and he is getting them in numbers that are concerning to Democrats. How should Kamala Harris address this?

REP. ROBERT GARCIA (D-CA): Well, I think, first, look, I think if you're looking at undecided voters and some of the polls, certainly a lot of undecided voters within the Latino community are moving over to Kamala Harris. I think she's consolidating a lot of that support.

But there's no question that we have work to do in the party. I think Vice President Harris understands this. I think you saw, for example, her proposal around homeownership, around housing for all around, making sure that we're building affordable housing, providing tax credits for first-time homebuyers.

Those are the kind of policy proposals that are going to speak to the Latino community, to Latino men, in particular. I think you're going to hear more about issues around health care, around access to affordable health care for their families.

One thing you hear a lot from the Latino community is making sure that we have strong public school systems. Let's not forget, Donald Trump wants to destroy the Department of Education.

So those are the contrasts that will be made. And I think that Vice President Harris and Governor Walz will continue to reach out to the Latino community, especially in those swing-states.

KEILAR: You talk to Latino men in your community, across the country, even in your own family. What turns them off of Democrats this ticket, and what -- some of them, I should say -- and what is drawing some of them to Donald Trump? What do they tell you?

GARCIA: Look, I think, first, a lot of folks I've talked to recently, whether they're folks are family or friends, I actually think folks are moving towards the ticket.

There's a lot of interests, I think, in Kamala Harris. She has a great record in California. I think Latinos feel like she's been part of the broader community, which is why have you seen people swing towards her?

But I think what Latino men and I think Latinos in general want to hear about is not just immigration issues.

But also what -- what are the tickets going to talk about when it comes to health care, about lowering the price of insulin, which Biden-Harris has done, about how there's more access for their kids and their families to go to college or go to a technical school.

[14:45:06]

Those proposals are -- on their way. I think we've seen the Biden administration do some of the work. And now the Harris team, with Walz, are going to provide more of that to the community,

But I think they're going to win the Latino community strongly. And some of those undecided Latinos will continue to come to Harris-Walz.

KEILAR: Social issues and abortion has been very big for Democrats. That's an issue that plays very well for them. What about that issue?

GARCIA: Well, I think if you look at most -- most voters, whether they're Latino or anyone else, the issue of abortion resonates. People believe that women should have access to make those choices about their bodies. And that includes the Latino community. And you see that again in survey after survey.

So we've got to lean in even in those swing states with a lot of Latino voters, Pennsylvania and North Carolina, Georgia, Nevada, Arizona, and talk about abortion.

I think it helps the ticket. It also helps to reach out to Latino community in the language that they speak. And you're going to see a lot of that in the ads that are out today and wins in the future.

KEILAR: What do you want to hear from Governor Walz tonight?

GARCIA: I mean, I'm so fired up. I mean, what an amazing selection that the vice president make in the governor. But we've already heard him kind of go around and speak to some of the delegations.

What I want to hear is the kind of vice president he is going to be.

KEILAR: He's onstage. I just want to -- I just want to mention this right now. We see him doing a walk through there here at the United Center because, obviously, he will be speaking tonight. He's going to get his familiarity of where he'll be. So we'll keep an eye on that.

So please continue what you were saying.

GARCIA: Yes. No, look, I think -- I think we're going to hear and what I want to hear is how he's going to be as vice president. I think we're going to hear his own vision for the ticket.

But the most important thing that happens tonight is when the country needs to get to know the governor and get to know him as a person.

And it's really his introduction as a person and his record as governor. He's going to talk about tonight what he's done as governor and how that adds to the Harris-Walz ticket.

KEILAR: We thank you so much, Congressman, for being with us. We really appreciate it.

And Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff have a different family from really any that we've seen before in the White House. But it's a family that many Americans are familiar with.

Ahead, we'll talk about the appeal of their modern family and how that reflects the lives of some voters. We'll have that next.

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[14:51:48]

KEILAR: All right, welcome back to CNN's special live coverage from the DNC where we will be hearing tonight from this man, the governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz.

He's currently doing his walk through. These are live pictures here from the United Center in Chicago. He is getting the lay of the land ahead of his big high-stakes remarks this evening.

Last night, though, second gentleman, Doug Emhoff, took the stage to show a different side of Vice President Harris. He highlighted their love for their blended family and how much is children have embraced the woman they call Momala.

Emhoff was introduced by his son, Cole, who says that they weren't used to politics or the spotlight as her political career bloomed. But they gladly stepped up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COLE EMHOFF, SON OF KAMALA HARRIS & DOUG EMHOFF: It felt like Doug was a bit out of place on Capitol Hill. I thought, what is my goofy dad doing here? But he embraced it.

We might not look like other families in the White House. But we are ready to represent all families in America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Let's bring in our numbers guy, Harry Enten.

All right, Harry, Cole Emhoff says they may not look like a lot of America, but actually they do.

HARRY ENTEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL DATA REPORTER: They do. I mean, look, it's the modern American family, right? We look at the percentage of Americans who have a step relative of any sort, it's greater than 40 percent. How about a stepchild? It's more than 10 percent.

You know, my buddy, Norm Foreman (ph), for example, is a stepfather to a stepchild. More than that, you know, we talk about people who are married more than once, right? Which Doug Emhoff obviously has been, And that number has about doubled since 1980.

My parents --

KEILAR: 1980.

ENTEN: 1980, I have a tendency to do that. I don't know why I do that. That's like looking back in the olden days.

(CROSSTALK)

ENTEN: But both my parents were married more than once.

So the bottom line is, they might say, hey, this is a little bit strange, a little bit different, but you know what America is, a little bit strange, a little bit different from what it used to be.

And the Emhoff family and Kamala Harris is part of a growing diverse American structure in terms of the American family dynamic.

KEILAR: And President Obama also touched on something that many spouses can relate to. Let's listen to this.

BARACK OBAMA, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: She will have an outstanding partner in Governor Tim Walz.

He knows what's important. You can tell those -- those flannel shirts he wears don't come from some political consultant. They come from his closet.

(CHEERING)

OBAMA: And they have been through some stuff.

(CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: (INAUDIBLE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Gosh, we all have this shirt of her husbands that we hate.

(LAUGHTER)

ENTEN: My girlfriend hated many of those shirts. I still have my little league T-shirt, you know, that I wear all around the house sometimes. I don't know how it still fits me.

But, you know, the bottom line is this. The bottom line is that Tim Walz is a fairly popular guy, right? We've had a number of polls that have been taken since he was selected as the Democratic V.P. nominee.

And you know what? He's actually liked by more Americans than disliked, which is such an odd thing in today's America, where basically politicians are almost always in the red. [14:55:07]

And it's such a difference from J.D. Vance, right? He has been consistently in the red across all of the polls.

And Walz, Tim Walz has actually been a pretty good pick, at least according to the American public, J.D. Vance, going back over the last 40 years, is the least popular V.P. nominee a month out from his party's convention.

He's less liked than Paul Ryan. He's less liked than Dan Quayle. And of course, a sort of infamous in terms of his unlikability.

The bottom line is this, J.D. Vance is not helping the Republican ticket at this particular point. Tim Walz, if nothing else, is probably at least helping a little bit on the Democratic side.

She made a good selection. Donald Trump didn't. Will it ultimately make a difference in the outcome of this election? Maybe not.

But the bottom line is that Donald Trump has been having to answer for J.D. Vance, and Kamala Harris hasn't had to do any real answering for Tim Walz.

KEILAR: We also need some interviews, so maybe there will look --

(CROSSTALK)

ENTEN: Look, hopefully, they'll do an interview, some tough interviews. But the bottom line is, with about 80 days or so to go, one made a good selection, the other didn't.

Yes, point taken.

All right, Harry Enten, thank you so much that.

ENTEN: Thank you.

KEILAR: Step-mom here.

(CROSSTALK)

KEILAR: So a pretty good segment.

Tim Walz has fired up the base, but can he win over the voters that he and Kamala Harris need to win in November? We're going to talk about the challenge for the Minnesota governor and the V.P. nominee's speech tonight.

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