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New York Times Poll Shows Trump Ahead in Arizona, No Clear Leader in North Carolina and Georgia; IDF Conducting Extensive Strikes on Hezbollah Targets; Birmingham Police Investigating Deadly Shooting Leaving Four Dead. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired September 23, 2024 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking this morning, new polls with good news for Donald Trump in key battleground states as Vice President Harris unveils a new aggressive plan for the week.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking overnight, Israel carrying out extensive strikes on Hezbollah in Lebanon, issuing a warning to civilians with the most intense fire erupting in the region since the Israel-Hamas War began.

Plus, the FBI joining the hunt for the gunman in an Alabama nightclub shooting. Four people are dead, more than a dozen injured in the crossfire.

I'm Sarah Sidner with John Berman. Kate Bolduan is out this morning. This is CNN News Central.

BERMAN: Closest election we have ever seen. That is what this one is, at least right now. Brand new polling this morning shows Donald Trump narrowly ahead in three critical battleground states, Arizona, Georgia, and North Carolina, this after polls last week that showed the opposite, Harris narrowly ahead in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin.

The new polling from The New York Times and Siena College shows that Trump has a five-point lead in Arizona. In Georgia and North Carolina, it is within the margin of error. In North Carolina, where it is closest, the poll was mostly taken before the controversy surrounding Republican Mark Robinson's campaign for governor.

And breaking overnight, his top campaign staffers, they resigned, almost all of them, after a CNN KFILE investigation uncovered Robinson's history of making inflammatory comments on a porn website, and believe me, that's euphemistic.

CNN's Alayna Treene is with us this morning. This polling is the first kind of polling good news that Trump has had in a week or so.

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN REPORTER: That's right. I'd actually argue, John, that this polling is some of the best polling we've seen for Donald Trump in the Sun Belt states. As you mentioned, he lost both Arizona and Georgia to Joe Biden in 2020, but these polls showed that he has a lead over Harris for now. I mean, obviously, we still 43 days until the election. But again, this is good news for Donald Trump.

Now, North Carolina shows that he only has a slim margin over Harris, notable because a Democrat has not won in North Carolina since 2008.

Now, I do just want to note. Touch on your point about Mark Robinson. We actually are going to see Donald Trump's running mate, J.D. Vance, travel to North Carolina today obviously amid this Robinson drama. We saw Donald Trump there over the weekend, where he did not mention Robinson or anything involving that. Again, notable in itself, given that all of the past rallies we've really seen Donald Trump do in North Carolina, he has had Robinson there.

So, the one thing I just want you to keep in mind when it comes to North Carolina is that when I talk to Donald Trump's team and many of his allies, they note that Robinson was already not doing so great in his own governor's race. But the stakes are very high for Donald Trump because this is a state where Harris is really competing in. She's been to North Carolina several times. She's continuing to try to make a push there. So, you know, we'll see what happens.

One thing I want to go back to in these polls, though, is that even though they're showing right now, this is good news for Donald Trump, about 15 percent of the electorate in Arizona, Georgia and North Carolina said that they are still undecided. So, that means that essentially these and I think it's important to note that the states are still up for grabs, even though, you know, we've already entered this phase where we are beginning to see early voting in several states. There is still enough time for people to change their minds. So, keep that in mind.

But I think overall, the bottom line when I look at this poll is that it's kind of been the same for the last several months now, which is that this -- the nation is still sharply divided and this is going to be one of the tightest elections in recent history. And so a lot at stake, which is 43 days to go.

BERMAN: Yes, the closest election we have seen at least at this stage. We're talking about 2024, Alayna. I guess we've got some news about 2028.

TREENE: We do. We actually heard Donald Trump say publicly for, I believe, this is the first time that he would not run in 2028 if he were to lose this November. I want you to take a listen to what he said.

[07:05:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REPORTER: If you're not successful this time, do you see yourself running again in four years?

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT, 2024 PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: No, I don't. No, I don't. I think that that will be it. I don't see that at all. I think that hopefully we're going to be successful.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: Now, I actually found this really interesting, John, because we very rarely hear Donald Trump talk about what would come after this election. But, to another point, I will say, that this lines up with what I hear from Donald Trump's team, that this is really Donald Trump's last stand. He's already done three. He's ran in three elections in the past, and you've heard him actually say kind of alluding to this before, like when he's referenced to Christian voters, for example, that he thinks that they need to vote now, and it won't matter in the future. This is what he's referencing, that this is going to be his last stand this election. But, again, notable because he doesn't often say this, and he's never really admitted this publicly before. John ?

BERMAN: Alayna Treene for us in Washington. Alayna, thank you very much.

SIDNER: All right. Thank you, John.

New this morning, the battle for reproductive rights is the focus of a brand new ad from the Harris campaign. It features a military spouse and her concerns about access to fertility care if her husband is relocated to a state that might limit her ability to get IVF to start a family.

This week, Kamala Harris is also expected to lay out more of her economic vision to voters in a major campaign blitz starting Wednesday in the battleground commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

CNN's Eva McKend is with me now. Eva, Harris lags Trump in brand new polling, as we just heard there from Alayna Treene. State she's focusing on going into next week, what is the campaign sort of looking at right now?

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Sara, this new polling suggests that the former president continues to hold an advantage in the Sunbelt states. And that really reifies this argument that the Harris campaign is continuing to make the supporters that they are very much the underdog and have their work cut out for them in the final sprint to November.

So, in Arizona, Trump tops Harris 48 percent to 43 percent in a matchup that includes the names of third party candidates who are, in fact, going to appear on the ballot there. In Georgia, Trump holds 47 percent to Harris' 44 percent. And in North Carolina, it stands at 47 percent, Trump to 45 percent.

So, there's no clear leader in the race in Georgia and in North Carolina, but that is why we see this aggressive campaign schedule from the vice president. She's going to be in Pennsylvania on Wednesday, followed by Arizona on Friday, and then she'll continue to be out west on Sunday.

And they argue that they have the infrastructure in place to outpace Trump ultimately in these key swing states. So, what does that infrastructure mean? That looks like staff on the ground.

Now, she's also expected to talk about her economic vision aimed at laying out her vision for the economy. That is, of course, what continues to be the most pressing issue for most voters. And she's also needling the former president about having an additional debate. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAMALA HARRIS, U.S. VICE PRESIDENT, DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Join me on the debate stage. Let's have another debate. There's more to talk about. And voters of America deserve to hear the conversations that I think we should be having on substance, on issues, on policies. What's your plan? What's my plan? And we should have another one before Election Day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKEND: So, Sara, we don't have the details yet of the economic plan that she is expected to roll out this week, but she has been long been branding it as the opportunity economy, so really listening to the persistent concern of voters as it relates to the high price of groceries and the difficulties and being able to own a home.

SIDNER: All right. Eva McKend, thank you so much, live there from Washington for us.

Also breaking overnight. Israel issues a warning to Lebanese civilians while carrying out about 150 new airstrikes in Lebanon, killing at least 50 people there.

And a deadly night in Birmingham. Everybody was screaming. Witnesses described what happened when dozens of gunshots were fired in the crowded entertainment district. Four people killed, many more injured. So, who did this? What police are saying this morning.

And Bulls on the run, a bolo issued for a runaway bull that escaped a rodeo with seven others.

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BERMAN: Breaking overnight, the Israeli military says extensive strikes targeting Hezbollah are underway in Lebanon, and it is warning civilians to leave areas where the Iranian backed militant group operates. Lebanon says at least 50 people have been killed today.

Over the weekend, the two sides exchanged the most intense fire of the conflict so far, with Hezbollah second in command saying that a battle without limits was underway. This is the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ISAAC HERZOG, ISRAELI PRESIDENT: We did not want this war. We're not seeking war. This war was waged upon us by the proxies of the empire of evil of Iran on October 7th by Hamas and on October 8th by Hezbollah.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: All right. Let's get right to CNN International Diplomatic Editor Nic Robertson, in Tel Aviv with the very latest, Nic, what's happening this morning?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: John, it certainly does look like that this is the most extensive and wide scale strikes by the IDF into Israel into Lebanon by geographic area.

[07:15:02]

Early this morning, the IDF spokesman said extensive strikes in Lebanon. The total at that time was about 150 strikes. Now, we understand that that is up to about 300 strikes inside of Lebanon. And for the first time, the IDF warning citizens inside Lebanon, that if they live near a building that has Hezbollah in it, or Hezbollah and weapons, then they should leave that area.

Now, there is some evidence that some people are leaving some towns and villages in Lebanon and driving away, going further north. The Ministry of Information in Beirut said that they had received a warning that they should evacuate their building. They said everyone was going to stay at work and describe these as psychological sort of terror tactics by the Israeli government. But this really does seem to be an escalation, as you say, the Ministry of Health in Lebanon now reporting more than 50 people dead in the strikes there.

And in Israel today, reports of strikes impacting just over the border and about 20 miles deep into Israel in the lower Galilee area. And the police there reporting a house was hit with the two people in that house were in the safe room. They weren't injured. But this is causing concern at the White House over the weekend.

John Kirby, national security adviser, said that they were the White House in direct communications about the escalation with Israeli officials.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KIRBY, WHITE NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL SPOKESPERSON: We don't believe that a military conflict, and we're saying this directly to our Israeli counterparts, George. We don't believe that escalating this military conflict is in their best interest. It's certainly not going to be in the best interest of all those people that Prime Minister Netanyahu says he wants to be able to send back home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTSON: And I think, just to give a little bit of context here, IDF in other areas, such as Gaza, has warned people to get out of buildings and move away from where they say there are terrorist operatives. When they issued that kind of warning, they very generally will follow up with strikes on the buildings where they believe that Hamas, in the case of Gaza now, we're talking about Hezbollah in Lebanon are hiding. So, these warnings when they come. as it's happened for the first time today, generally, a very, very serious warnings that more strikes will come.

BERMAN: Yes. It portends that there is more to come. Nic Robertson in Tel Aviv for us, Nic, keep us posted. Thank you so much.

All right, a new warning from health officials as cases of whooping cough are surging. Why doctors are considering purposefully infecting people with the disease.

And this morning, an urgent search underway for multiple shooters. Police say targeted a targeted and left 4 people dead and 17 others injured.

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[07:20:00]

SIDNER: This morning, police still trying to figure out who fired dozens of bullets into a crowded entertainment district that left 4 people dead and 17 injured in Birmingham, Alabama. Police believe the Saturday night shooting targeted just one person, but crossfire led to the death and injuries of bystanders, some of whom are clinging to life this morning.

Joining me now from Birmingham is CNN's Rafael Romo. Rafael, what have you learned so far this morning and overnight? This was a total, horrible tragedy, and we're seeing people from the video on Sunday night just in tears at the scene.

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, horrible, Sara. Good morning. One of the victims of the shooting is describing what happened here in the Five Point south area of Birmingham as a horror movie.

The shooting happened just after 11:00 on Saturday night when this popular area, which is full of restaurants, nightclubs, pubs and live music venues was crowded with people just trying to have a good time.

CNN has obtained video showing what the scene was like here Saturday night, just moments after the shooting. And before we go to the video, we need to warn our viewers that it may be disturbing for some people.

As you can see, the video captures a scene of panic and chaos and shows at least three people lying on the ground, as police lights flash in the background. One of those celebrating that night was Gabriel Eslami, a 24-year-old who says he was at the end of a long line outside an establishment here in the Five Point South area when the shooting began. Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GABRIEL ESLAMI, BIRMINGHAM SHOOTING SURVIVOR: I start running for my life and I heard the shots, not even three seconds in the running. I mean, I can't feel my leg out of nowhere. I just fell. The thought of me being shot wasn't even in my mind yet, because, you know, you're like, how could that happen to me, you know?

So, I get up and I kind of turn around and look. And it's literally a horror movie. There's bodies just laid out all over the side wall. There's gun smoke in the air, and there's people's, you know, shoes, like they ran out of their shoes trying to escape. I saw people hiding behind cars, laying in their cars.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: And, Sara, the Birmingham Police Department has identified three out of four people who died in the shooting as 21-year-old Anitra Holloman, 27-year-old Taj Booker and 27-year-old Carlos McCain.

[07:25:04]

The fourth victim's name has not yet been released.

17 other people were injured, Birmingham Police Chief Scott Thurmond said his officers found there are 100 shell casings at the side of the shooting.

And this has been a very violent year for the city of Birmingham. In February, four men were shot and killed outside a public library, And then in July, a shooting at a nightclub left four people dead and ten others injured. Sara?

SIDNER: Rafael Romo, what a devastating scene there. Thank you so much. We will check back with you when you get new information. I appreciate it.

New polling out this morning, highlighting the hard fought Sun Belt.

And Patrick Mahomes passing Tom Brady's record. What, John?

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