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VP Debate Tonight; Port Workers Strike; IDF Destroys Hezbollah Tunnels; Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) is Interviewed about the VP Debate. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired October 01, 2024 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:00]

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: His grandson, Jason Carter, says that he's seen a renewed determination of, you know, in his grandfather's spirit to make it to October 15th to early vote.

Now, his birthday, of course, is today. But the big celebration was a couple of weeks ago at the Fox Theater. A star-studded event for America's first rock and roll president. And it was there that I caught up with his great grandson, Henry Carter, who just turned 18 earlier this summer, and he says he doesn't know who's more excited to vote in this upcoming election, him or his great grandfather.

Look, it goes without saying, Jimmy Carter has had a phenomenal second act as former president. He's founded the Carter Center here, helped eradicate guinea worm, building homes for Habitat for Humanity. He's a cancer survivor. The list goes on and on. All of that will be highlighted today.

I mentioned those private events that are going to be held here the begin in just about five minutes - or, I'm sorry, about an hour from now at 10:00 a.m. with a naturalization ceremony for 100 newly minted American citizens.

Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: I remember celebrating my grandmother's 100th birthday. She actually lived to be 107, if you can believe it. And just marveling at her stories that she can tell, as they can. It's just a beautiful day to mark for the Carter family and everyone.

Thank you so much, Nick. I really appreciate it.

VALENCIA: You know, I'm going to tell you, Kate, my grandma turned 104-years-old. So, when I told my daughter I was on my way here to celebrate the former president turning 100, she thought it was no big deal. But I told her, look, it is a huge deal. Your great grandma was an exception at 104. This is a very cool day too here for the former president and his family. So, a big day, Kate.

BOLDUAN: That's so good. I'm sure you're like, every year I kept having be like, no, no, no, is she really - is she really a hundred and whatever? Like it doesn't make - VALENCIA: Yes.

BOLDUAN: It doesn't seem right. That's a - you come from very good stock, my friend. It's -- congratulations to your grandma. Thank you so much.

VALENCIA: Hey, I think so too, Kate.

BOLDUAN: That is super special.

A new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts now.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, just hours from what could be the final debate of this entire presidential cycle. Walz, Vance, as they say in Thunderdome, two will enter, one will leave. We've got new reporting on the messaging plans for tonight.

And then from pack mules to semi-trucks. The all-out effort to get supplies to communities almost entirely cut off by Hurricane Helene.

And port workers on strike this morning. The impact on the supply chain, the economy, and maybe the presidential race.

I'm John Berman, with Kate Bolduan and Sara Sidner. This is CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: It's veep night. The first and only vice presidential debate between Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Ohio Senator J.D. Vance. It is just hours away now. A face-off that will also likely be the last debate by all accounts this entire election cycle with just 34 days left to go. Yes, a month and a few days.

Moments ago we saw Tim Walz departing Michigan for New York, where tonight the stakes will be enormously high on the debate when both nominees take the stage to make their cases to millions of voters.

Like the last two debates, there will be no audience. Microphones, however, will not, in this case, be muted. But CBS has said they reserve the right to mute if needed.

Each candidate will have two minutes to answer questions, two minutes to respond, and a minute rebuttal.

Let's get right to how each team is preparing. Steve Contorno and Priscilla Alvarez both standing by here in New York, just down the street.

Priscilla, I'm going to begin with you.

What is the latest from the camp - Harris/Walz camp when it comes to this and the preparations that are underway on his part?

PRISCILLA ALVARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, certainly this is going to be a high-stakes moment, uncharacteristically so for a vice presidential debate. But as you mentioned, it could be the last debate of the presidential election. And, of course, the race remains tight. So, the governor has been in Michigan over the last few days where he set up his own debate camp. And there he watched videos of Vance debating, as well as practiced in mock sessions with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg as the stand-in.

Now, aides I've talked to say he has two tasks before him. One, speak to the vice president's agenda, try to convince voters who still don't know her, the vice president, very well, to cast that vote for her in November, but also to tie J.D. Vance directly to former President Donald Trump, essentially arguing that he is just as much as a risk as the former president.

Now, of course, he, according to aides I've spoken with, not as good as a debater as Vance, that's what they believe, but they hope that he can lean into that every man appeal and his own likability to reach voters when he's on that debate stage.

Now, of course, they're going to talk about a range of issues, the economy, healthcare, immigration, among others. But this is also a moment that really showcases how much this presidential election has changed. Remember, only a few months ago was it Vice President Kamala Harris who was preparing for this very debate.

So, they are aware of the task at hand. The vice president remains behind closed doors today in Washington, D.C.

[09:05:02]

She said over the weekend in Las Vegas that she would be cheering on Tim Walz and that it shouldn't be the last word as she continues to needle the former president to try to get one more debate in before Election Day.

Sara.

SIDNER: Yes, she continues to needle him. And we heard from former President Donald Trump going after Walz. We will see what happens.

But let's talk to Steve Contorno, who is going to give us some idea of how Vance is - sorry, how - how Vance is sort of preparing for tonight himself.

STEVE CONTORNO, CNN REPORTER: Yes, Sara, you mentioned Donald Trump. He called Tim Walz a, quote, "moron." But there's a very different message coming from the Trump campaign when we talked to them. They said that they believe that the Minnesota governor is, quote, "a wily political veteran and very good in debates." And so they have spent the better part of the last month preparing J.D. Vance for this moment. He's someone they picked in part because of his oration skills, and they believe that he will be a strong debater. And they have been preparing him, in part, by having him have frequent engagements with the media. He has kept up a pretty aggressive interview appetite, much more aggressive than his counterparts. It includes interviews with the press, it - Sunday shows. He regularly takes questions from the reporters that travel with him. All that they believe has sharpened his debate skills and gotten him ready for tonight.

Now, one of the big questions, though, coming out of this is how Americans respond to it going into this night. He is under water in his favorability rating. Of course, though, Sara, his main audience is of one, Donald Trump.

SIDNER: Absolutely. Thank you to the both of you, Steve Contorno and Priscilla Alvarez, here in New York with us waiting that debate in just a few hours.

John.

BERMAN: All right, with me now, CNN's senior political analyst Gloria Borger, and CNN's senior political commentator David Axelrod.

Thank you both so much for being here.

Now, I know you guys are new to politics, but an old maxim used to be that the vice presidential debate, ah, it doesn't matter so much.

David, why - make the case that that is not so this time.

DAVID AXELROD, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, this is - there's nothing about this race that is like any other race. And one of the things that isn't like any other race is that the presidential candidate on the Democratic side is brand new, basically 90 days. So is still in the process of introducing herself to the American people. It is - and the other thing that's kind essential here is, this is a razor-tight race. So, any change in the environment can be significant.

Now, vice presidential races don't necessarily mean that much. Gloria and I remember the most famous debate line ever was Lloyd Bentsen crushing Dan Quayle in a vice presidential debate, saying, you know, Jack Kennedy was my friend. You're no Jack Kennedy. And they called him Vice President Quayle after that election because people vote for the president.

But to the degree that they advance the cause of their candidates, it could be meaningful.

BERMAN: Gloria.

GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: You know, John - and - and don't forget, this could be the last time - the last big debate we have because Donald Trump has said he's not going to debate again, even though Kamala Harris wants another debate. And so, you know, this is the last, big chance with a huge audience you get to defend your ticket. So, it makes it - the stakes a little bit higher.

AXELROD: I'd say one other thing about this that is unusual about this. Donald Trump is 78-years-old. And he's given us a lesson, and the world has seen age has its ravages. It takes its toll. People are going to be looking at J.D. Vance, and they have reason to think, this guy could be president of the United States in the next four years if we elect this ticket. So, there may be an added bit of scrutiny to Vance in this debate.

BERMAN: So, we can show people what Americans think of all four candidates right now. We have it up on the screen here. Let's take a shot of that. And you can see, when they're looking at J.D. Vance right now, they have an unfavorable opinion of him.

BORGER: Right.

BERMAN: Harry put together this slide. This is net favorable ratings. Minus 11 for J.D. Vance. Harry's take on it was oy vey. That was his statistical analysis of being minus 11.

AXELROD: Is that French or what? I don't know.

BERMAN: It is.

BORGER: Right.

BERMAN: Tim Walz at plus four.

So, Gloria, if you're minus 11 in terms of favorability, how does Vance maybe need to be careful or not in prosecuting the case against Tim Walz.

BORGER: You know, I think it's a fine line to walk because he's pretty good on the attack. He's very good at turning any question from a reporter around to what he wants to talk about. He's been pairying (ph) with reporters. But he can get nasty. And he can get angry. Both of these guys can. So, I think you have to be very, very careful about that.

And on the flip side of that, you know, Walz can't play up the folksy side of himself too much or people will think, wait a minute, what is he doing a heartbeat away from the presidency?

So, I think, you know, they both have challenges there.

[09:10:00]

But, you know, it's very hard for Vance - it's been very hard for Vance to live down the childless cat lady of earlier in the campaign. And I guarantee you, Walz is going to raise that again tonight.

BERMAN: Walz really hasn't been out there that much, David.

AXELROD: Yes.

BORGER: Right.

AXELROD: This is - this is one - this is one of the issues. You know, Vance was chosen by Trump to be his designated hitter on TV. And he is ubiquitous on these Sunday shows and in interviews. He is - he has been prepping, not just for the last week, but through these appearances. Walz has not. And the campaign - it's interesting to me that the campaign has basically leaked over the last 24 hours, well, he told us that he wasn't a good debater. I mean they're actively trying to lower expectations for Walz.

Gloria's right, I mean Vance - Vance is very good at this. And he was chosen for that. Walz was chosen for that affability, that warmth. And the question is, you know, is it going to be a labrador retriever versus a coyote, you know? And how does that turn out?

BERMAN: Gloria, you brought up something that I'm fixated on in this campaign, which is that if this is in fact the last debate, what's left to move the needle between today and November 5?

BORGER: Well, I think he'll get a lot of more of the same. And that's a really - that's a really good question.

I think if Vance doesn't do particularly well tonight for some reason, then I'm wondering whether Donald Trump and the campaign will say, we can't let that be the last word. And that they will then decide, OK, wait a minute, maybe October 23rd isn't too late to have a debate.

I think that - t hat they're going to be looking at this in a very, very careful way. And if you don't have another debate and you just continue to the end of the campaign, then you wait for something to happen. You know, the old October surprise. Remember that? Will there be one of those? I mean, we don't know.

This whole race has been so unpredictable that we can't really tell what's going to happen. But this is so few debates for the American people that a lot of voters are going to go into that voting booth, or fill out their form and say, you know, I'm just not sure about - about Kamala Harris or, you know, Vance or whatever because I don't know that much about them.

BERMAN: Look, given the way this campaign has gone, we can get an October surprise every day, three a day -

BORGER: Right.

BERMAN: Between now and Election Day.

Gloria Borger, David Axelrod, great to see both of you. Thank you so much.

And be sure to tune in tonight to watch Tim Walz and J.D. Vance in their first and only debate. A CNN special event, the vice presidential debate simulcast hosted by CBS News. It airs live at 9:00 p.m. Eastern on CNN.

Sara.

SIDNER: All right, thank you so much, John.

Right now, tens of thousands of port workers are walking off the job. The major strike that could have a huge impact on the economy depending on how long it lasts, and the things you buy every day.

Plus, days after Hurricane Helene, the death toll is still climbing. More than 1 million people still I do not have power and devastated communities are growing desperate for much needed supplies.

And a legal battle happening right now in a key battleground state. Democrats are fighting Georgia's new rules in court, saying it could throw the presidential election into chaos.

All those stories ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:17:59]

SIDNER: This morning, thousands of workers at more than a dozen ports on the east and gulf coast are on strike, cutting off a variety of imports and exports, in what could become America's most disruptive work stoppage in decades. The strike is taking place at 14 major points from Maine to Texas. It could eventually lead to shortages of consumer and industrial goods, which could then, of course, lead to price hikes and a problem for the economy.

CNN's Vanessa Yurkevich is in New Jersey with more on this.

Where exactly do the negotiations stand? And I see that people are standing up right behind you protecting and striking at this very hour.

VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, negotiations really have not moved since yesterday. And that is when the president of the ILA union called the strike, 12:01 a.m. Tens of thousands of union workers out on the picket lines, not working at the docks.

People have been here in New Jersey at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey since very early this morning at about midnight. You see many of them taking a little rest, taking a little break, maybe going to be in this for the long haul.

And then you can see just behind some of those workers who are standing (INAUDIBLE) you can see the port. It's pretty much idled. Nothing coming in. Nothing going out.

Just a few moments ago we caught up with the president of the ILA union, Harold Daggett, who explained why he and his men and women are out here on the picket lines this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HAROLD J. DAGGETT, PRESIDENT, INTERNATIONAL LONGSHOREMEN'S ASSOCIATION: We're out here for one reason, fighting for our rights, fighting for our families, telling the world who we are. we're the longshoremen who runs this world. And I want the world to know that.

These companies that - from overseas, they don't live in this country, yet they're making billions and billions of dollars off of our backs.

[09:20:06]

And I'm tired of it.

We'll bring this country down in three weeks. But it's long overdue. Now it's time I want a piece of that pie for my members.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

YURKEVICH: Now, USMX, which represents the shipping lines in this negotiation, says that they've made an offer of 50 percent in wage increases over six years, as well as keeping language in their current contract that would protect automation of jobs. However, the union says that is not good enough.

And in terms of the overall economy, Sara, this could have a significant impact. Just a one-week strike by some estimates, $2.1 billion in impact to the U.S. economy. In this port alone, fruits, vegetables furniture, chocolate, alcohol come into this port, and exports, auto parts that foreign countries need in order to produce vehicles.

The only power - the only person that has the power to stop a strike is President Biden. He can invoked the Taft-Hartley Act. However, he has indicated that he does not plan to do so. The Biden administration encouraging both sides to come up with a deal on their own.

But as the president of the ILA union said, he's not going to be making any concessions. He wants the deal that he has offered the shippers. He wants a wage increase of over 60 percent. He wants stronger language around automation. They have worked during the pandemic when all of us were at home buying items that these very dock workers helped bring into this port.

This looks like it may be a long haul, and many of these men and women out here today are prepared for that long haul.

Sara.

SIDNER: Yes, they certainly put their bodies on the line. But it will be interesting to see just kind of how long this lasts. And we're in the middle of an election just - election year, 34 days to the election. All of this could potentially have but an impact, depending on whether or not a deal is reached or not.

Really appreciate it, Vanessa Yurkevich, you out there on the picket lines showing what's happening there.

John.

BERMAN: All right, this morning, the big debate within the Trump campaign about whether Tim Walz is a good debater. Trump's senior adviser basically called him Cicero. Trump himself called him a "moron."

The election board in a key battleground state now being sued by Democrats. Why they say the board's rules would, quote, invite chaos in the presidential election.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:27:16]

BERMAN: All right, breaking this morning, we have new video coming in from the IDF showing what they say are tunnels under villages in Lebanon used by Hezbollah. The IDF claims they have destroyed many of these tunnels. This was released just after Israel announced it had launched a ground operation - ground incursions into southern Lebanon.

CNN's Jim Sciutto is in Tel Aviv tracking this all.

What is the latest you're hearing now, Jim?

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: John, you know, these tunnels are key because the IDF has said that this is not just where Hezbollah fighters hide, but also their firing positions, right? They move weapons in and out to rain down on northern Israel, missiles, rockets that we've seen so much in the year since October 7th, in particular. And it's required the evacuation of a big portion of northern Israel.

It is significant, though, that - that Israeli forces have been dealing with these firing positions, largely from the air in recent months. Now there are Israeli boots on the ground there.

And just, big picture, Israel has a bloody history right on the ground in Lebanon. You go back to the 2006 war. It was a month long. Israel took heavy casualties. There were more than 1,000 Lebanese killed in that war. And then you go back to the '80s and '90s, when Israel had a nearly 20-year occupation there.

So, this step in this war is a significant one. It seems to be starting in a measured way with raids going cross the border and coming back. But it's not clear at this point where this ends and how long it goes.

BERMAN: All right. I just keep looking at these images coming from the IDF, from inside these tunnels. We will see - we will see how much further Israel presses these incursions.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

BERMAN: Jim Sciutto, in Tel Aviv, thank you so much.

Kate.

BOLDUAN: Tonight could be the final debate of the entire presidential election cycle. A running mate debate. Tim Walz and J.D. Vance are in final preparations now to face off on the debate stage with just - just over one month until most voters cast their ballots. But remember, some states are already - have already sent out ballots. Some people are already early voting.

While both campaigns are working hard to manage expectations ahead of tonight, Donald Trump is disregarding his campaign team and targeting a new attack against Tim Walz. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think J.D. is going to do great. He's a very smart guy. He's done a great job. People like him a lot.

He's going up against a moron. A total moron. How she picked him is unbelievable. And I think it's a big factor. There's something wrong with that guy. He's sick.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: Joining me right now, Democratic congressman from California, Eric Swalwell.

It's good to see you, Congressman.

REP. ERIC SWALWELL (D-CA): You too.

BOLDUAN: First, let's talk about tonight. We're going to talk about what Donald Trump also said.

[09:29:59]

Talking about tonight, the way "Politico" puts it today is as follows. "Today is what could be the last big opportunity for either ticket to make an impression on a wide swath.