Return to Transcripts main page

CNN News Central

New Brief Lays out Trump's Conduct; Storm Damage in Valdosta, Georgia; Matthew Cloyd is Interviewed about His Missing Father; Secret to Living Longer. Aired 8:30-9a ET

Aired October 03, 2024 - 08:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:30:04]

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: This morning, new fallout as Donald Trump faces a stunning legal filing with just a few weeks left in his presidential run. A judge has unsealed never-before-see evidence in special counsel Jack Smith's election subversion case, as federal prosecutors now try to prove Donald Trump should be prosecuted under the presidential immunity act. Basically that he was not the president in his capacity when he did some of these things. Smith writing, "at its core, the defendant's scheme was a private one. He extensively used private actors and his campaign infrastructure to attempt to overturn the election results and operated in a private capacity as a candidate."

Former Manhattan prosecutor Jeremy Saland and CNN senior legal analyst, Elie Honig, joining us now.

First to you, Elie.

We are seeing an incredible amount of information that we weren't - none of us, the public, the media, no one was privy to until Judge Tanya Chutkan unsealed them. Why were they unsealed?

ELIE HONIG, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Well, Sara, this is all about immunity. So, if we remember, a year ago or so Jack Smith returned the indictment on Donald Trump relating to January 6th. It was a very broad indictment.

Since then, though, this past summer, the U.S. Supreme Court said a lot of the stuff, some of the stuff in this indictment, is immune and has to come out. Some of it is in a sort of gray area and you, on the district court, have to figure it out. And some of it can probably stay in.

So, this is Jack Smith saying, OK, Judge Chutkan, we've taken out the stuff that he's definitely immune for. And here's us defending the rest of it, arguing why he's not immune. And the sentence you just showed, Sara, uses the word "private" three times. That's the gist of Jack Smith's argument, that Donald Trump's conduct here was not being done as president, it was done in his private capacity. SIDNER: Yes, He may have been in office as the president, but he was

doing this in his campaign or private capacity. That's a really good point, Elie.

Jeremy, this is a - this is a lot to read through. It's a book. It's 165 some odd pages. What was your takeaway from - from sort of what you saw in this - in this indictment?

JEREMY SALAND, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY AND FORMER MANHATTAN PROSECUTOR: Some of this is sort of jaw on the floor, oh, my gosh, I can't believe that the former president said these things. And - and not to be too tongue in cheek, but if I'm J.D. Vance, I'm looking at Mike Pence and I'm saying, I don't want to be in that same position and be thrown under that proverbial bus, or worse if things go sideways.

Some of the things are shocking. He, you know, let them riot. I don't care. Some of the words that this president uttered and said are - are - really should shock your conscience, whether you're a Republican or Democrat.

And it all constructively builds a few and critical important elements. You see the intent, you see that knowledge, that information that he had, that he knew he lost. And while it's not required, that sort of premeditation effort to scheme to get back and stay in office.

SIDNER: I want to talk about a couple of those things that stood out to me because you're talking about - it's like bombs dropping over and over and over again in this particular indictment.

SALAND: Yes. Yes.

SIDNER: The prosecutor said they have evidence that revealed an aide talked to him about Vice President Pence, that he was in peril, that he was in danger.

SALAND: Yes.

SIDNER: And as this was escalating, President Trump replied, according to the indictment, so what. And then the second one was, when his lawyers were talking to him, that his false claims that the election had been - had been marred by widespread fraud, that those would not hold up in court. And Trump responding, according to the indictment, the details don't matter.

Elie, I do want to ask you about this. This is about intent. Is this -- you know, how do you fight this when - and, obviously, these are just allegations, right? They are being made by the prosecutor. They have to be proven in court beyond a reasonable doubt. But how do you respond to some of these things that are in this indictment if you are his lawyers?

HONIG: Boy, OK, that's a tough spot. Well, first of all, I have to say -

SIDNER: Sorry, Elie. HONIG: The comment I don't care is something Donald Trump said. But I do have to correct something that was just said. The, let them riot comment was not something allegedly said by Donald Trump. That was said by somebody else, according to Jack Smith.

How do I respond to this if I'm Donald Trump's lawyers? Look, the allegations are very damning, no question about it. I think the response that we're hearing from Trump's lawyers is, this is not a trial. This is Jack Smith unilaterally laying out his evidenced. It's not been subject to the rules of evidence. In fact, some of the stuff that Jack Smith puts in there, he says, I don't even believe this can come into the trial, but I'm telling you, Judge Chutkan. Now, that's fine to do, but it means the jury wouldn't see it.

And, I would argue, this has not been subject to cross-examination. So, anytime a prosecutor has the floor to himself or herself, I've had it, you can make a quite compelling case. But I think Trump's team, for now, is going to say he has a right to defend himself and he will when the time's right.

SIDNER: How successful, Elie, do you think this case will be? Because it has changed. It had to change because of the Supreme Court ruling. And it has changed quite a bit.

[08:35:01]

HONIG: Yes, look, my position all along, Sara, is that Donald Trump was deservedly indicted for what he did leading up to January 6th. I've believed that the case against him is strong. But the Supreme Court's immunity decision changed everything. It already removed a large pillar of this case. And whatever Judge Chutkan decides to do here, whatever she leaves in or out of the case, that gets appealed back up to the U.S. Supreme Court.

So, it's possible the Supreme Court says more of the case has to be removed. It's possible that they do that to a point where the indictment can't even stand on its own legs and never gets to trial at all.

SIDNER: We're now learning what this filing is. Sort of in a legal sense, to you, Jeremy, where does this put us as far as timing? Because Donald Trump wants to make sure this does not go forward before the election. And there is no chance, I think at this point, that it would.

SALAND: Well, the trial itself is certainly not going forward before the election. And Judge Chutkan sets some deadlines up in October for responses. But this this is really - it's opening that pandora's box. It's allowing people to vote on that - that rabbit hole because the amount of information here is - is really allowing, within reason, Jack Smith to - I don't want to say try his case in public, but I remind people that this isn't Jack Smith's doing. I mean he had to respond to the Supreme Court saying that there is immunity for these official acts and then there's those that are within the duty of the president that are proceed and really are - are going to be subject to immunity. So, he had to do this. He had to put this forth for the court.

And it was the court's decision, not Jack Smith's decision ultimately, to present this to the public and allow the public to see it subject to some redactions. But it doesn't change the timeline in the sense of having a trial by November. That's not happening.

SIDNER: We will see, but there are a lot of details in this case. And the prosecutor putting its evidence sort of out there for the public to see.

Jeremy Saland, thank you so much.

Elie Honig, always a pleasure.

Thank you, gentlemen.

All right, ahead, a week since Hurricane Helene struck. Many families still trying to find their loved ones who have been missing since the storm hit. We'll have more and speak to one of those family members ahead.

And during this week of celebrating Jimmy Carter's 100th birthday, unlocking the secrets to a long life. This is worth you sticking around because Dr. Sanjay Gupta has some answers to your questions, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:41:52]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: This morning the death toll from Hurricane Helene keeps rising, 191 people across six states, with rescue crews still searching for people unaccounted for. President Biden has just approved more federal disaster relief funding as he prepares to visit Florida and Georgia today. This follows his trip to North Carolina.

CNN's senior national correspondent, Ryan Young, is in Valdosta, Georgia.

The storm passed right over where you are, Ryan. Give us the latest from there.

RYAN YOUNG, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It did, John.

Look, you were about 70 miles away from here when the storm was going on in Tallahassee. When you arrive here in Valdosta, we made the drive up from Thomasville. You could just see devastation with big trees down everywhere, homes that have been impacted, bricks like this, all a part of the landscape because this storm had so much power.

And when you walk this direction, you can see in a building like this one, it just really destroyed this facade. Seventy percent of this areas is still without power. There is a curfew that goes on from 8:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. every morning. So, you understand the folks here really want that relief. And on top of all that, of course, the president's going to have a

very busy schedule today as he's going to be in Florida and he's going to be in south Georgia. But for the residents here, you could understand their frustration and their want and desire for more help.

Take a listen to a few folks talking about the cleanup efforts so far.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I would say that I'm at a complete loss. Very emotional. Almost at a point where your - your hands are tied.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just hate to see - it's been rough just for everyone. People just afraid and, you know, just devastated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

YOUNG: John, and as I walk over from that building, you can see the line of wind that came through here. Part of the roof is all the way down here, more than 200 yards away from the building. It tossed a part of this light just very easily. So, you can see this still down here.

We're still assessing the area and, obviously, the smaller cities around here are clamoring for more attention. Those big trees have really played a role in knocking this power out all across the area. But as you can understand, that presidential visit will put eyes on this complete area.

The governor was here earlier in the week and so was former President Trump. So the folks of south Georgia really hoping to see some changes. And, of course, the Georgia National Guard through here making way in terms of clearing the roads so people can get left and right. But, obviously, still a long road to go with 70 percent of people still without power.

John.

BERMAN: Look, so much destruction and the recovery is slow and it is hard.

Ryan Young, great to have you there. Thank you very much.

So, this morning, a new Tennessee state investigation into the deaths of factory workers there. Flooding from Hurricane Helene swept away 11 employees at Impact Plastics in Erwin. Companies in the state have eight hours to report a workplace death, but investigators say they still have not received one. Workers say the plant only shut down once the power went out and water flooded the parking lot, despite warnings of potentially life-threatening floods. Several of the workers never made it home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT JARVIS, EMPLOYEE: Why did you make us work that day? Why? We shouldn't have worked. We shouldn't have been there. None of us should have been there.

[08:45:01]

And that's what I should have said to them. Why did you make us work when you knew - (INAUDIBLE) statement you were monitoring it? Why did you make us stay and work?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: So, five of the 11 people swept away were rescued. Two have been confirmed dead. Four are still missing. The company says they have not been contacted by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, but will fully cooperate. And they are preparing an internal review which will be released, they say, to the public.

Sara.

SIDNER: All right, this morning, search efforts are ongoing for hundreds of people still unaccounted for after Hurricane Helene. One of them is Steven Cloyd, who is missing after trying to escape rising floodwaters in Jonesborough, Tennessee. One of his sons, Matthew, is joining us now.

Thank you so much for joining us. I know this is a really difficult time as you wait to hear anything from your dad.

When was the last time you were able to speak to your dad or one of your family members, like your mom talked to your father?

MATTHEW CLOYD, FATHER STEVEN CLOYD IS MISSING: Last contact we had with my dad was actually the day of the storm. I wanted to say the last contact my mom had was right around like the 2:40-ish area. Last - last cell phone ping we had was right around 3:11.

SIDNER: When we see hurricanes like this, we think of coastal towns being hit really, really hard. Did you ever think, and did he ever considered that Jonesborough, Tennessee, would be affected like this, nowhere near the beach?

CLOYD: I - I - no. I mean, I - I've stated that in - in - in multiple conversations I've had with people. I mean you - when you hear hurricane, I think I talked to one of your guy's - your guy's correspondents earlier for the - for the written article. I stressed to him, I said, no, this isn't something you think of when you think of - of - of - of hurricanes. You think beaches. You think palm trees. You think the coast. You don't think, you know, mountainside cabins in the middle of the woods in - in - in the Appalachian region. It's - it's not something you think about. You - you don't - your mind doesn't go there.

So, like I said when I got the phone call from my mom telling me that my dad was in trouble, at first I was just confused. Like, what do you mean? What do you mean? You know, I - I never knew this was going to be something that was - that this hurricane was going to affect this entire region in this way. I - I wasn't prepared for the phone call.

SIDNER: We're seeing some pictures of your father playing with a cute dog.

You know, and in this area, you know, people tend to be a little rugged. They're - they're used to sort of dealing with the outdoors. They enjoy the outdoors.

Can you give us some sense of what you know happened up until the time that you lost contact with your father, what he was going through as the storm was coming in?

CLOYD: So at first he - my mom went to work and it was fine. And I think I want to say it was right around 11:00 he started texting my mom and sending her videos. And, I mean, over the course of like the following three hours, you can see the different stages that it just gets progressively worse. (INAUDIBLE) we don't know (INAUDIBLE) what happened yet. We're hoping we can start to get some answers really soon once we get some of the - the - the video surveillance that was around my uncle's house, we're hoping we can start to piece together maybe what exactly happened in the - in the moments leading up.

I know the main thing that he was stressing inside his - his phone conversations was, he wanted to make sure that - that my uncle and my mom do not come home because he knew that the waters were starting to get bad. I think throughout the course of it, I think (INAUDIBLE) just - he was just like everybody else, he - he didn't think it was going to keep going. And it keep going - and it just got -

SIDNER: Is that - is that your mom in the background?

CLOYD: Yes, that's my mom and then - and then the - the dog (INAUDIBLE). She actually just jumped down from me. She's trying to find mom right now. She won't let her out of her sight. So, she's -

SIDNER: No, because she's scared and she knows something is off.

What can you tell me about the search and rescue process and what you, if anything, are hearing from folks that are looking for him and what challenges that - that are still being faced in that area?

CLOYD: I mean, in regards to the search and rescue efforts, if you want me full honest, yes, I think in terms for everybody, I think it started off really slow. And at the same time I know that state and local agencies can only use, you know, what they're equipped to use. I mean, I keep holding on. I keep telling people that, you know, we needed this declaration faster.

[08:50:02]

We needed these resources on the ground a lot quicker. They can - local - local authorities only have so much capacity to - and access to equipment to get - to get birds up into the air, to get drones out there, to get side-by-sides out there to go out there and search. I mean, so far, honestly from day one, everything has just been the - the - the - the people out here. It's - it's - it's been volunteers. It's been - it's been people going out and trying to do what they can. And even now, we're limited. I mean for an entire day we were essentially cut off from the other side. I mean it took - I want to say it was Saturday that they finally opened the bridge and we were able to get people, you know, in and out of the area because there was only one access point.

SIDNER: Yes.

CLOYD: They lost so many (INAUDIBLE) and ways in. So many people just got stuck.

SIDNER: Yes. And while you're stuck on one side -

CLOYD: And I - I -

SIDNER: Authorities have a hard time getting there because we're looking at some of the roads where there's just - there's no way in and no way out. And that's - they're trying to change that. But it takes time.

What can you tell us about your dad? What do you want us to know about him? What should people be looking out for as well. But personality- wise, what's he like?

CLOYD: I mean, I think the pictures show it. I mean he was a goofball. He was - he was a jokester. He was a prankster. I think I was talking to, again, one of your guys correspondence, and then I talked to a couple news (ph) agents and I told them I - that the - the thing with my dad was, was that if my dad didn't raz you and mess with you, it means dad didn't like you.

So, it was always - it was always good when dad gave you - he gave you a little bit of crap. He - he - he liked to - he like to make people (INAUDIBLE). It's really what it comes down to. You have to - he's got one of the biggest hearts imaginable. He'd gives you the last $5 in his pocket, the shirt off of his back. And, I mean, he put that into all of us. I carry that with me today. I know my brother does too. I know it's what attracted most - what made my mom attacks to him. And, God, you know, they just celebrate 36 years on the 20th. So, he's just - he's just one of those people that you don't forget him once you meet him.

SIDNER: Sounds like a great guy. And they just celebrated 36 years of marriage.

Matthew Cloyd, thank you so much. And here's hoping that authorities finally find your father after five days that he's been missing. Really appreciate you coming on and I hope you're going to be OK, you and your family.

John.

BERMAN: Yes, thinking the best for all of them.

All right, Melania Trump revealing a break from her husband on a key issue. And the daughter of one of Donald Trump's most loyal allies, Rudy Giuliani, publicly goes against her father and endorses Vice President Harris.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:57:25]

SIDNER: When former President Jimmy Carter turned 100-years-old this week it kicked off a conversation on this show about why Americans are living longer. We asked you yesterday to submit your questions about aging, and CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta answer the call, as usual. He's always on call. We call him all the time just to talk.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

SIDNER: OK, you've got some questions to answer for this segment. The first one comes from North Carolina, asking this, are there some findings or revelations or relationships between certain vitamin levels and longevity and a healthier lifestyle? I like that they're asking about health span, not just lifespan.

GUPTA: Yes. Yes. And important distinction for sure.

You know, it's interesting, when it comes to these supplements and vitamins, for a long time I think that headline was, insufficient evidence to make recommendations. But I think that's starting to change.

Carl Sagan used to say, absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. And I think that applies here to some extent. So, if you take the top of the list there, daily multivitamin, there was a study that came out a couple of years ago now showing -

SIDNER: I hope people are willing to write this down.

GUPTA: That people who took - took the - people who took the daily multivitamin actually had an improvement in cognition over a three- year period. About a 60 percent reduction in cognitive decline. The rest of the supplements and vitamins on that list, the omega-3s, the Co-Q10, Vitamin C, B12, magnesium, lion's mane and probiotics, these are things that I take now after looking at a lot of the evidence. And this has been something that I sort of established over years.

In part also because of the work that we did on the last Alzheimer's documentary. You may remember that, Sara. They did these large trials where they actually included those supplements, along with a healthy diet and exercise, and they found a significant reduction in how quickly your cognition might decline. And in some cases even a reversal of cognitive decline. So, it was really quite impressive.

One more thing I'll throw into the mix, and there's emerging evidence on this. This is a prescription medication called metformin. But, Sara, you remember we talked about the hallmarks of aging yesterday.

SIDNER: Yes.

GUPTA: Aging is not just the number of years, it's how much inflammation you have, your immunity, your metabolism, things like that. Metformin is one of these medications that seems to target many of these hallmarks of aging according to longevity researchers. So, decreases your chance of diabetes, decreases your chance of cardiovascular disease, and slows down your cognitive decline.

[09:00:01]

That's how I put it together.

SIDNER: It is pretty incredible and I love that you've sort of looked into this vitamin thing because everyone would say take your vitamins and I was like, ah, that doesn't matter.