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Harris Repeatedly Baits Trump During Debate; Remember 9/11; Biden, Harris, Trump to Commemorate 23 Years Since Sept. 11 Attacks; Price Hikes Slower to Lowest Rates; Taylor Swift Endorses VP Harris. Aired 8:30-9a ET

Aired September 11, 2024 - 08:30   ET

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

[08:30:00]

CHRISTINE QUINN, EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE CHAIR, NY STATE DEMOCRATIC COMMITTEE: So, it's just classic Trump, you know, the dog ate my homework over and over again.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: I will say, Tim Alberta, a friend of the show, but he used to write for the National Review, now writes for The Atlantic. He put out a tweet on the moderators last night, he said, by the way, David Muir and Lizzie Davis, I work with both of them, they're friends.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: Yes.

BERMAN: Alberta writes, one way to look at it, ABC moderators fact check Trump two to three times, Harris zero times. Another way to look at it, ABC moderators fact check Trump two to three times instead of 500 times. So, you know.

SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR AND FORMER ASSISTANT TO PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH: But several times they asked Harris direct questions about the economy. You know, they asked her if she thought they bore any responsibility for inflation. Why did you wait three and a half years to do anything on immigration? Why did you wait until six months before the election? She blew completely past it with no pushback from the moderators.

Now, they did the same to Trump, and you might say, well, they shouldn't do that, or they should, but I think, if you're going to -- you got to pick one and do it to both.

BERMAN: She -- Trump spoke five minutes more than she did. It wasn't like they didn't give Trump a chance to talk. He talked way more.

JENNINGS: And he said before the debate, by the way, he was going to let her talk.

BERMAN: Yes.

JENNINGS: And he ended up talking more.

QUINN: He constitutionally can't, right? And that could be said about me too, but he can't not talk. It's genetic. BERMAN: Can I ask about what -- now, you talked about debates don't

win elections, now it's an issue about moving forward. What can she take from that debate that she should now do more? We haven't seen a lot of her, you know, we had the CNN interview, but no other interviews. Should she do interviews where she uses a lot of the lines she used last night? Should she get back on the trail, do town meetings, town halls? What do you think she'll do differently now?

QUINN: I hope that she'll be more in the media, but maybe not with like national outlets, but more local outlets in the swing states. She is really good in a town hall setting, you know, kind of with one person asking questions from the crowd, et cetera. She should do more of those. Those are a real comfort area for her.

Because although we saw really encouraging numbers with the independents out of last night, we still know that too many Americans don't know her, local press, and those kind of town halls will get her known in a very positive way.

SIDNER: Scott, I am curious what you think about relitigating 2020 that came up and he went there.

JENNINGS: Yes. No, look, the only thing he needs to relitigate are the decisions of Biden-Harris for the last three and a half years. This is a simple election. It's a change election. Now, The New York Times poll this weekend showed that people do want change and they believe him to be the change agent. And so, if he could continue to drive that, but relitigating the 2020 election doesn't get you there, relitigating their decisions does.

He tried to get to it in his closing statement, but it's bait, right? It's bait. Talk about your rallies. Talk about the 2020 election. Talk about --

SIDNER: But he took the bait?

QUINN: Yes.

JENNINGS: I know. And again, there's a way to win this election, it's called inflation and immigration. Every minute. You're not talking about that you're losing.

SIDNER: All right. Scott Jennings, Christine Quinn, thank you. I also have the talking issue. It's constitutional, right, John? It's constitutional.

BERMAN: But everything you say is worth it.

SIDNER: That's lovely. Thank you, John Berman. All right. Out to you, Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you so much, guys. We are moments away from the beginning of this ceremony, the commemoration of the 23rd anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks. And here to attend the ceremony here in Lower Manhattan today, President Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, Donald Trump, and J. D. Vance. We have seen Donald Trump and J. D. Vance in the crowd of dignitaries. We've been told the motorcades for the president and the vice president. They are here. All of this, moments away, from getting -- from beginning here in Lower Manhattan. We're going to bring you those life moments when we get back.

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[08:35:00]

BOLDUAN: Welcome back, everyone. We are here at the 9/11 Memorial Plaza as the Commemoration Ceremony of the 23rd anniversary of the September 11th terror attack. And we want to show you this video that just came in. We saw this moments ago, Kamala Harris being -- speaking with obviously New York Senator Chuck Schumer. You see Kirsten Gillibrand in the -- behind her. Joe Biden next to her.

Mike Bloomberg seems to be facilitating a handshake between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump just hours after that debate in Philadelphia. The two candidates standing nearly side by side, two people apart and shaking hands as they are now standing very close to where we are here as this ceremony is about to begin. Quite a moment to see and probably a moment a lot of people want to see, which is at least kindness and being cordial to one another in the face of this somber, hallowed place, Ground Zero, as the ceremony is about to get underway.

Here with me watching all of this is CNN law enforcement -- senior law enforcement analyst John Miller. I mean, before we talk about all of the things related to security that -- and the evolution of security and the threat landscapes in the 20 plus years since 9/11. Just seeing that though, John, this is not a day about politics or about politicians, the families have always made that clear and seeing that, it's something.

JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: I mean, one of the, on that terrible, terrible day, 9/11, one of the things that came out of it was it brought the country together. It brought people together. It brought competitors and even enemies together because of just the nature of that event.

And it is good to see, because the question that always lingers is, well, how long is long enough to forget that this morning two people who were going at it last night about politics can put that on the shelf for a minute.

BOLDUAN: I was thinking about that this morning, actually, John, because, I mean, not only does this anniversary land in the thick of the election season, it also comes the day after, the morning after that hugely consequential and contentious debate.

[08:40:00]

And I was thinking back to 2008, when you had two other presidential candidates, Barack Obama and John McCain, who were in the thick of an election as well, set it aside on this anniversary morning and walk together side by side and laid flowers together, roses together, just really the embodiment of putting politics aside for the moment.

And I have to be honest, I thought this morning there is no way we would see anything like that in this day and age and how contentious politics is, but they shook hands.

MILLER: Well, it may be a tribute to the day or it may be a tribute to Mike Bloomberg, as a guy who can bring people together.

BOLDUAN: That -- Mike Bloomberg was definitely making it happen.

MILLER: But if you think about that debate last night, one of the things that barely got a mention was the specter of terrorism. They talked about Afghanistan and the withdrawal. but not about the current threat to the United States.

BOLDUAN: And that's something -- I mean, you have been tracking. There's been so many big bold names in the security space talking about the -- all of the lights are blinking red right now. How do you see and what do your sources say about the threat landscape today?

MILLER: Well, I look to people like Mike Morell, the former deputy director of the CIA, Graham Allison, the terrorism expert from Harvard, and they're saying, we are in a September 10, 2001 moment here, which is at its simplest, when terrorist organizations tell you they're going to do something, it usually means they intend to do it. It's not code. It's not a trick.

And what we've been seeing here is the re-emergence of ISIS, extolling people to attack the United States' lone wolves. But we're also seeing enabled and directed plots in places like Moscow, where people were killed and the shopping mall burned to the ground. Or even Iran, where ISIS attacked a funeral of Qasem Soleimani, arguably another terrorist leader.

So, the idea that terrorism in the post 9/11 world, after all those wars in those places, has been put to rest or is under control, is something I would really warn against. This is a time where, on that issue, we have to have our left hand tied.

BOLDUAN: And, look, I had the secretary of homeland security, Alejandro Mayorkas, standing with me speaking this morning, a department created in the -- as the lessons learned in the post 9/11 world. Are things fixed in terms of the intelligence gaps? Oh, let's actually pause, John.

MILLER: Sure.

BOLDUAN: We're now hearing behind me, we see the procession beginning as the ceremony is about to begin. Let's sit, let's watch this together.

Can continue watching this procession. We will soon be hearing the national anthem as we approach 8:46. The moment of silence, the moment that the first hijacked plane struck the first tower, the North Tower of the World Trade Center. And, John, as we are watching this, this image is beautiful image is reminding me of the call -- one of the changes that 9/11 brought about was the call to service of so many.

MILLER: It's fascinating to see today, as these firemen walk by, policemen marching, that there are those who were here and survived, long retired, there are those who are here and did not survive, whose children were either just born, because we're talking, you know, a couple of decades, who are now on the fire department, who have now joined the police department, and carry their parents' legacies forward, both men and women.

BOLDUAN: And --

[08:45:00]

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: O say can you see, by the dawn's early light, what so proudly we hail'd at the twilight's last gleaming. Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight. O'er the ramparts we watch'd were so gallantly streaming? And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air, gave proof through the night that our flag was still there. O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave. O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

BOLDUAN: 8:46 a.m., that is the moment of Flight 11 struck the North Tower, striking floors 93 through 99. Another moment of silence will be coming shortly. 9:03, that is when the South Tower was hit. John Miller still with me in this moment. Every year in the city goes silent.

MILLER: It's true. And when you think of what was it like that day?

BOLDUAN: Yes.

MILLER: It was just like this.

BOLDUAN: It was just like this.

MILLER: There was not a single cloud in the sky, it wasn't hot, it wasn't cold. And I remember waking up that day early and driving and looking in the sky and saying, what could go wrong on a day like this? It was a perfect day for about an hour and a half, and then the world changed.

BOLDUAN: That is literally what happened. The world changed. We're going to have much more of our live coverage. John is here with me. We'll be right back.

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[08:50:00]

BERMAN: All right. The breaking news, brand-new numbers on inflation. The Consumer Price Index just out with us now. CNN's Julia Chatterley. Everyone looking at this because the Fed meets next week. Talks about interest rates. But what do these numbers show?

JULIA CHATTERLEY, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: These numbers show that we saw a big drop from the prior month. This is the lowest level of price rises that we've seen since February of 2021. I know it's still painful for people out there, but this is great news.

What's continuing to keep the pressures up? You can probably tell me better than I can tell you, rental costs, housing, just simply putting a roof over your head. That was the big contributor to these numbers again. But I'll reiterate, they are coming down, and this is good news for borrowers out there because it confirms once again rates are coming down. You can see the trend.

I mentioned it. These are the big drivers of the ongoing price increases that we saw, half a percent on shelter, 3.9 percent on airfare, some late summer travel despite five months of declines. Guilty, your honor. That may have been me contributing to that. Something that everybody keeps talking to me about, the sheer cost of car insurance rising again, despite the drop in used cars and trucks that we've seen.

What's helping us to the downside, it's all about gasoline and energy prices and the big drops that we've seen in that down, what, six- tenths of 1 percent in the month this year. But actually, AAA, average gallon of gas price down 17 percent over the past year. And actually, even in the last week, all prices are falling again.

BERMAN: Here you go.

CHATTERLEY: Here you go.

BERMAN: Some of those, yes.

CHATTERLEY: This gives you a sense. Overall, bottom line, to your initial point, what does this mean for the Fed? Quarter point rate cut next week. I'll go out on a limb and say it, they could do more. This blunts the case further.

BERMAN: But inflation slowing.

CHATTERLEY: Yes. It's still painful, isn't it, for people out there.

BERMAN: It is.

CHATTERLEY: And we can't hide from that, but it's getting better.

BERMAN: That number, 2.5, a lot closer to the 2 percent that the Fed likes to see.

CHATTERLEY: A lot closer.

BERMAN: All right. Julia, thank you very much. Sara.

SIDNER: All right. I think the saying goes, debates don't win elections necessarily, right. Both the Trump and Harris campaigns are spinning the debate as a win for their candidates. We wanted to know what debate watchers thought. CNN Senior Data Reporter Harry Enten is here with a brand-new suit, by the way.

HARRY ENTEN, CNN SENIOR DATA REPORTER: Oh, yes.

SIDNER: But he's also running the numbers. That's a new one. I know I'm right, right?

ENTEN: It's a tan. I haven't worn this in years. I don't know if it's brand-new, but it's brand-new for you. And I wanted to match you.

SIDNER: A tan suit, by the way.

ENTEN: Tan and a little bit of tan. There we go.

[08:55:00]

SIDNER: I mean, we're matching. All right. What did you find here as far as how this was received?

ENTEN: Yes, I'm just going to use a scientific term, and that is that the vice president crushed the Donald Trump. All right. So, how did the vice president -- how much did she crush him by? Look at this. First debate winner margins. Look at that. She won by a 26-point margin, nearly matching Trump's margin over Biden back in June when he won by 34 points, very similar to Joe Biden's margin of over Donald Trump back in 2020 of 32 points and significantly higher than the 2016 margin that Hillary Clinton had over Donald Trump in their first debate, just 13 points.

But the bottom line here is debate watchers, and they actually leaned a little bit more Republican than the nation as a whole, believe that Kamala Harris easily, easily won this debate. Again, the scientific term is she crushed Former President Donald Trump.

SIDNER: All right. Will we see, though, a change in the polls, a rise or a bump for Harris after this?

ENTEN: I think that the most likely scenario is that you will, in fact, see a rise in the polls. Why? Take a look at the last four times we had a first debate, and look at those winners. Did they see a rise in the polls? Yes. Mitt Romney in 2012, Hillary Clinton in 2016, Joe Biden in 2020, and Donald Trump earlier this year, they all saw rises in the polls of two points or more.

And given how close this race is nationally, given how close it is in the swing states, do not be surprised if Kamala Harris jumps out to lead nationally and don't be surprised if she jumps out to a slight small lead in those key battleground states. It should still probably be a close race based upon history, but no doubt, at least based upon history, we should expect Kamala Harris to receive a polling bump and a race as tight as this one, what would certainly be welcomed.

SIDNER: OK. So, the big question is, historically, what does this all mean for the potential of winning in November? Because there have been debates that people have lost, but they've won the election.

ENTEN: Yes, there you go. That's the key question, Sara Sidner. You may receive a momentary polling bump, but does that mean you're going to go on and win the election? Not necessarily, because the fact is, the election's all the way in November. And by my calendar, we're still in September.

And look at that, lost the first debate, but won the election. George W. Bush in 2004 lost that first debate to John Kerry, he won in the fall. How about Barack Obama? We mentioned Mitt Romney earlier. He won -- Mitt Romney won that first debate, but Barack Obama won in the fall. And of course, Donald Trump, in 2016, he lost that first debate to Hillary Clinton, but he went on to win in the fall.

So, the bottom line is, yes, last night was good news for Kamala Harris. She won the debate in the minds of debate watchers. Yes, based upon history, she should see a polling bump, but that doesn't necessarily mean that she'll win come November.

SIDNER: There's another big difference here, whether or not there's going to be a second debate. We heard Donald Trump early this morning saying that he doesn't think there needs to be one because he felt he won decisively. That is not what the voters that you looked at said, though. Over to you, John. Or Taylor

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

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BERMAN: All right. So, minutes after the debate, Taylor Swift announced in an Instagram post that she has endorsed Kamala Harris and Tim Waltz. She signed off as childless cat lady. That's a jab at J. D. Vance. Let's get right to Elizabeth Wagmeister with all the details here. What are you learning about how this happened? Why it happened now?

ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: You know, Taylor does what she wants, when she wants. And clearly, this was a huge moment for her to come out with this huge endorsement right after the debate.

Obviously, this is, perhaps, the biggest celebrity endorsement that you can get. Taylor Swift no doubt is the biggest star on the planet. The woman moves global economy. She certainly can move voters. Now, we know that back in 2020 she endorsed the Biden-Harris ticket. So, this isn't the biggest surprise. The surprise was whether she was going to endorse at all, and she did.

Now, just this morning, about an hour ago, Trump was asked about this on Fox News. Let's take a look at what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I actually like Mrs. Mahomes much better, if you want to know the truth. She's a big Trump fan. I was not a Taylor Swift fan. It was just a question of time. She couldn't -- you couldn't possibly endorse Biden. You look at Biden, you couldn't possibly endorse him. But she's a very liberal person. She seems to always endorse a Democrat. And she'll probably pay a price for it at the -- in the marketplace.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WAGMEISTER: I don't know if she will pay a price for it in the marketplace. Again, she has made her politics clear in the past and she continues to have millions and millions of fans around the world from both side of the aisle, by the way.

Now, just to clarify, what the former president was talking about there when he said Brittany is Brittany Mahomes, who is the wife to football star Patrick Mahomes. She recently allegedly liked a post of Trump's. So, there's been a lot of conversation about that.

[09:00:00]