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Ohio State Troopers Patrol Springfield Schools After Threats; Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-TN) Discusses Senate Re-Vote On IVF Bill; Fed Begins 2-Day Policy Meeting Ahead Of Possible Rate Cut. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired September 17, 2024 - 13:30   ET

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

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[13:34:18]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Schools in Springfield, Ohio, are open today but with precautions that would seem absurd, except for everything that this town has really gone through over the past week, state troopers, tower cams, bomb-sniffing dogs.

The state has had to deploy all of these since Springfield schools received over 30 bomb threats in the last week.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Now all of those were hoaxes, some apparently coming from overseas.

But they stem from this debate that started about a week ago when former President Donald Trump described a baseless conspiracy theory that Haitian immigrants are stealing and eating peoples' pets.

CNN's Omar Jimenez is live for us in Springfield, Ohio.

And, Omar, you've now spent some time in that community speaking to people about how this is impacting their lives. What have they shared with you?

[13:35:08]

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, look, I was here last week and I'm here again this week. And one of the prevailing things that I've heard from many people is, yes, sure, from that particular debate, many, particularly in the Haitian community, were surprised to hear those things come about.

But more broadly, you look at what's happened over the past few days here, yes, the governor has said that these -- these believed threats to the school system, city buildings, and more over the past few days were believed to be hoaxes coming from overseas.

But they did have a very real effect here in the sense that students still had to be evacuated from buildings. City -- city buildings had to be evacuated as well. And it created a general sense of tension over the past few days.

And as you mentioned, now, they decided to make a stand and say that schools will be opened.

But they've deployed nearly 40 extra Ohio State Highway Patrol members to these schools just to assist and actually sweep through these schools to essentially combat any potential further messages or hoaxes. Again as the government now has described it as well.

I want to play some sound for you from - this is a Haitian immigrant, of course, that I spoke to here who actually goes to one of the schools, Clark State College, that was -- now, that is now virtual, I should, say. They were not evacuated or canceled.

But take a listen to some of what he told me.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VILBRUN DORSAHVIL, NURSING STUDENT AT CLARK STATE COLLEGE, HAITIAN IMMIGRANT: They we're a lot of bomb threats. The last few days at my school and at the hospital where I work. So, yes, right now, we go virtually everything.

As English is a second language for me, when I'm talking face-to-face to a person, so I get a better understanding of what you're talking about.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JIMENEZ: And again, even prior to the presidential debate, the wider context here is, of course, Springfield has seen a large influx in Haitian population, largely through word of mouth. As some have come, word has spread.

But it's gotten to the point where it makes up -- they make up about 25 percent of about 58,000-person population here. And it has led to real strains on resources in regard to traffic accidents, as we've heard from officials, but also some health resources and also housing resources as well.

So that was the backdrop before all of the national politics got involved. And of course, that has only inflamed some tensions.

But interestingly enough, that Haitian immigrant I spoke to told me, when I asked him, is Springfield still a great place to live even through all of it, and he unequivocally said, yes, because here is a place where he believes he has opportunity, one that he didn't have back home in Haiti.

SANCHEZ: Omar Jimenez, thank you so much for that report.

I want to let you know, in the next hour, the mayor of Springfield is going to join us live for his perspective on what's happening in his community.

And plenty more news still ahead. Former President Donald Trump has called himself a, quote, "leader on IVF." And now Democrats are pushing for a vote forcing Republican Senators to take a stand on this issue for the second time in just a matter of months. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:42:23]

KEILAR: Today, on Capitol Hill, the Senate is set to re-vote on legislation that would establish national protections for IVF.

Republicans already blocked the same measure from advancing just three months ago, but that was before former President Trump announced to proposal that pretty much mirrors the plan if he's reelected.

Now, Democrats are putting new pressure on their Republican colleagues to take a stand on the issue.

And just last hour, some Democratic Senators went to the steps of the capitol trying to make the point on this. They were holding photos of parents with children who were conceived through IVF.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer issuing this challenge today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): Today, our Republican colleagues get their second chance either to stand with American families that struggle with infertility or stand with Project 2025 in the quest to roll back all reproductive freedoms.

It's not hard. If Republicans truly care about American families, they should vote yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: And Republican Senator Bill Hagerty of Tennessee is with us now.

Thank you so much for coming into the studio. We appreciate it.

SEN. BILL HAGERTY (R-TN): It's good to be with you, Brianna. Thank you.

KEILAR: OK, so how are you going to vote this time? And just more broadly, do you expect the vote count to mirror what we saw in June?

HAGERTY: I think it certainly will mirror what we saw in June. This is just to show vote. It's just Chuck Schumer's attempt to bring an issue back to the four.

It's not an issue. It's a problem looking for a solution. And it's not just about IVF. This goes much further, into gene editing, into cloning.

Chuck Schumer designed this to fail. But what he's trying to do is put this back in for the American public so he can avoid talking about issues that really do matter to Americans.

KEILAR: And Trump's promise doesn't change anything about how Republicans view this bill?

HAGERTY: What President Trump has done is what every single U.S. Senator has done on the Republican side. We support IVF. We have supported IVF. President Trump wants to take it even further.

I think families looking at their ability to access and afford IVF will find, under a Trump administration, that there'll be even in a better place do that from an affordability standpoint.

Because President Trump wants to make certain, whether it's covered under private insurance or the public domain, that it will be taken care of.

KEILAR: I do want to listen to what he promised because it is a little different, significantly different in one regard from what Republicans are promising. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Under the Trump administration, your government will pay for or your insurance company will be mandated to pay for all costs associated with IVF treatment, fertilization for women --

(CHEERING)

TRUMP: -- IVF treat.

(APPLAUSE)

TRUMP: Because we want more babies, to put it very nicely.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[13:45:02]

KEILAR: He's promising a mandate to pay for it, either through private insurance companies or through publicly provided insurance coverage.

Which is something that -- and Republicans, a number with your colleagues in the Senate, have been very clear this goes too far for them, especially as it hearkens back to their traditionally fiscally conservative roots.

This is something that kind of alarms them.

Clearly though --

HAGERTY: What concerns me, though, is the notion that we would vote for something that would include cloning and gene editing, which is what Chuck Schumer plans to put on the floor this afternoon.

Again, Schumer knows it's going to fail. He's just trying to shift the narrative away from the fact that 67 percent of Americans think that countries on the wrong track.

We should be talking about immigration, the economy, our national security, our border security instead. Instead, we're doing this.

KEILAR: I do think that Democrats and the two Republican female Senators who voted for this bill that you're talking about would maybe take issue with how you are characterizing it. Although, I can understand that you do have your differences of understanding of what's in the bill.

But to that point, it was two female Republican Senators, Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, who voted with them, with Democrats on the bill in June.

Do you think that they might know something about what conservative and moderate women, voters, the kind of voters that Donald Trump really needs to win over to end up in the White House, what those kinds of voters want to see?

HAGERTY: I think what those voters and what every voter wants to see across America is the fact that we do support IVF. And every Republican Senator has made that clear, as you just saw President Trump do the same.

And this piece of legislation, to me, again, goes too far when it gets into cloning and gene editing. That doesn't suit me and it didn't say the vast majority of Republicans.

Again, it's a solution in search of an answer. This is not (INAUDIBLE) in any state in American. Chuck Schumer is just trying to change the narrative.

KEILAR: Do you think Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins see it that way that you're describing it?

HAGERTY: I haven't talked to them about their particular vote. But I can say this --

KEILAR: Why not? Why haven't you spoken to them about it? It seems like they would be two people who would be very good to speak to about -- on this issue.

HAGERTY: I speak with them about a number of things, but on this issue, I'm clear, and I'm certainly not going to go into this realm. And as I said, this is something that is not needed. A solution in search of a problem.

Because IVF is legal in every state and every Republican Senator has made that very, very clear that -- that we support it.

Again, for me, it's a bridge too far to get into cloning, gene editing, and doing away with state laws that have to do with medical processes and procedures everywhere.

KEILAR: There is something we hear, a refrain from Republicans. They'll say IVF is -- is protected. But we saw it in Alabama, it's protected until it isn't, right? And there was a short but consequential interruption in that coverage. Can you see how families, who are going through what is an incredibly financially costly, emotionally costly process of IVF, want to make sure that there is not an interruption in their IVF care? Because that's the kind of thing that can cost them thousands of dollars.

HAGERTY: And President Trump is trying to address the cost component of it. Obviously, there's misstatements there. I haven't seen the details, but I'm happy to look into that.

With respect to what happened in Alabama, we also saw a state legislature step up and move very quickly to address some uncertainty created by a court decision.

(CROSSTALK)

HAGERTY: So I think that's the way --

KEILAR: -- in the middle of an IVF cycle.

HAGERTY: Well, I think that they tried to do it and address it as quickly as they possibly could.

KEILAR: Do you agree -- Trump has been, as you said, not completely clear on the details, but he's been clear on that it's a mandate. It would be paid for by private insurance companies and that it would be paid for under publicly provided insurance.

Do you commit to that as well?

HAGERTY: I commit to taking a look at the details. I serve on the Appropriations Committee and I will certainly pursue that responsibly.

I understand the direction of the content and I understand the desire to be pro-family, which I think all us Republicans are.

But I think all of us would like to get off the topic of, again, a problem that's in search of a solution and get down to the real problems that are facing American today.

And we're not talking about the economy. We're not talking about our border security. We're not talking about national security in the face of dramatic concerns.

Again, Chuck Schumer is going to put a show vote up today. We should be looking at the fact that the government's going to shut down next week if we don't act on our appropriations bills. We're not.

This, in my view, is just another irresponsible ploy to shift the narrative here in America.

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

HAGERTY: Thank you.

[13:49:22] KEILAR: And we'll be right back.

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SANCHEZ: The Federal Reserve kicked off its two-day policy meeting today under pressure to answer the question that U.S. consumers have been anxious to hear: Is the first interest-rate cuts since the Covid- 19 pandemic coming? And if so, how big is it going to be?

The Fed opened it's meeting on the news that U.S. retail spending increased in August despite some anxiety about a potential slowdown.

CNN's Julia Chatterley joins us now.

So, Julia, how will today's economic news potentially impact the Fed's decision?

JULIA CHATTERLEY, CNN BUSINESS ANCHOR, "FIRST MOVE": Well, it's just one more piece of the economic jigsaw puzzle that they're putting together to try and decide what to do. As you said, it was better than expected.

The details in this, though, matter. We bought less furniture, clothing, electronics, gasoline as prices came down. We bought more essentials. We bargain-shopped online.

That's what happens in an economic slowdown, particularly when prices remained high.

So in a long-winded way to answer your question, I don't think it matters so much for what they do tomorrow in this rate decision. It matters how much they cut overall, because that's going to help American borrowers.

And it's why there are big voices out there saying, look, we need you to do more not less.

[13:55:00]

SANCHEZ: And one of those big voices is Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren. She's calling for a sizable cut. What do you think is going to happen?

CHATTERLEY: She's calling for a three-quarter of a percentage point cut. I'll be very clear on this. That is not going to happen. I think that would cause some degree of panic about what the Fed knew. But she does raise a good point.

Look, I do think there's more pressure on them to do more rather than less.

Just take a look at what the market is predicting now. We're two-to- one odds that actually they cut by half a percentage point tomorrow rather than a quarter of a percentage point, even though lots of analysts are out there saying, look, a quarter of a percentage point probably is right at this moment. Boris, normally, I would be able to predict at this moment what they do. And it's really tough.

I will say for American borrowers out there, actually, it's about the destination, not the journey. So whatever they do tomorrow, look at their projections because we'll get a sense of how much they plan to cut, particularly over the next six to 12 months.

And I think that's what American borrowers want to hear, to see loans and mortgage rates come down. We'll see.

SANCHEZ: Yes, a significant moment, especially just before the election.

Julia Chatterley, thanks so much for the analysis.

CHATTERLEY: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Appreciate it.

Some minutes from now, music mogul, Sean Diddy Combs, is going to make his first court appearance as he faces federal charges of racketeering, conspiracy and sex trafficking.

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