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First Lawsuit Filed Against McDonald's Over E. coli; Decision on Menendez Brothers Expected Today; Kamala Harris and Barack Obama Campaign in Georgia. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired October 24, 2024 - 13:00   ET

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

[13:00:57]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: The Sun Belt showdown.

With 12 days to go, Vice President Harris is bringing out the star power and heading back to Georgia for her first joint event with Barack Obama, while Donald Trump aims to energize critical voters in Arizona and Nevada.

Plus, McDonald's facing its first lawsuit over its deadly E. coli outbreak. We will talk to a lawyer for the victims who specializes in food safety cases.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: And just hours from now, a crucial decision about the fate of Lyle and Erik Menendez, the L.A. DA expected to announce whether he will recommend resentencing for the two brothers who killed their parents.

We're following these major developing stories and many more all coming in right here to CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

KEILAR: The stars are out in Georgia.

This hour, Vice President Harris is heading to the Peach State with some of the biggest names backing her campaign. With polls showing a neck-and-neck race there in Georgia and early voting well under way, the vice president will rally near Atlanta with former President Obama and rock legend Bruce Springsteen.

SANCHEZ: Meantime, former President Donald Trump is heading West today, holding two rallies in critical battlegrounds in Arizona and in Nevada.

And it comes after Trump acknowledged in a radio interview that, if he is reelected, he intends to use his powers to get the federal charges against him dismissed, saying that he would fire special counsel Jack Smith -- quote -- "within two seconds."

CNN's Steve Contorno is live for us in Tempe, Arizona, where Trump is set to hold an event later tonight.

But let's start with CNN's Priscilla Alvarez in Georgia.

Priscilla, some big names expected up on the stage with Vice President Harris. What else should we expect?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, certainly.

Look, as the Harris campaign turns to getting out the vote, they are bringing out all those jobs, and that includes here in Georgia tonight where the vice president is going to be joined by -- with former President Barack Obama. This will be the first time that they have been on the campaign trail together.

And they are going to try to energize and mobilize voters here in battleground Georgia, where, as you mentioned, early voting is already under way. Now, Bruce Springsteen will be headlining tonight. He, of course, has made frequent appearances before in the waning days of the election for other Democratic candidates.

But we're also learning about some other stars who are going to be coming out over the next few days. That includes Beyonce, according to a source familiar with the planning. She will be joining the vice president tomorrow in Houston, Texas, where the vice president and her team want to amplify and highlight reproductive freedoms.

Texas is not a battleground state, but they say it is the epicenter of what they call the Trump abortion bans. So that is what they're going to be focused on tomorrow. Now, of course, Beyonce all but endorsed Vice President Harris when she allowed her to use her song "Freedom" at her campaign rallies, but it will be the first time that we see them out together.

Now, in addition to all of this, the campaign knows that they still have a lot of work to do when it comes to introducing and reintroducing the vice president. We saw some of that at CNN's town hall last night, but part of this message as they close out the next few days is also going to be on a warning of a second potential Trump term.

And I obtained a digital ad that the campaign is now going to be putting out in battlegrounds where they're seizing on John Kelly's comments to "The New York Times" and "The Atlantic" in which he called former President Donald Trump a fascist.

And they're using the vice president's response from CNN's town hall to sort of make and warn -- make that point and warn of that potential second Trump term. So, all of this is coming together. Reproductive freedoms, of course, a key issue for the vice president, one she will be focused on tomorrow, but also over the next few days trying to create or at least illustrate this stark contrast with former President Donald Trump.

I will also note that next Tuesday, as we look ahead, the vice president will be delivering her closing argument in -- at the National Mall at the Ellipse, of course, where former President Donald Trump delivered his fiery speech on January 6 that ultimately set that attack on the U.S. Capitol in motion.

[13:05:05] So, clearly, the team, the vice president's team, doubling down on their messaging, but also making sure along the way that they are mobilizing voters as they try to capitalize especially on early voting.

SANCHEZ: Yes, added significance with that decision for the location of her closing arguments.

Priscilla Alvarez live for us in Clarkston, Georgia, thanks so much.

Let's go to Tempe, Arizona, now with Steve Contorno, who's been tracking the Trump campaign.

So, Steve, as Trump is getting ready for his rally there, he is responding to Harris' remarks during the CNN town hall last night, where she said that she thinks the former president is a fascist. What is Trump saying?

STEVE CONTORNO, CNN REPORTER: That's right, Boris. Trump is saying that it's actually Democrats who are using the federal government to go after their political enemies, such as himself.

It's an argument that he has been making for the better part of a year now. However, he took it a step further this morning, telling conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt that he intends to fire Jack Smith, the special prosecutor overseeing two federal cases against him, within two seconds of taking office if he is elected this November.

Trump elsewhere in that interview making fun of and attacking Vice President Harris' performance yesterday in that CNN town hall. Take a listen.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES (R) AND CURRENT U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Yes, I thought it was her worst performance. She hasn't had a good one, but this was her worst performance.

These people are crude, rude, and vicious. And, by the way, she's only a vessel. And so is Joe Biden. He's not the leader of the party. He never was. She's no different. She's a vessel. I watched her last night. She's got no intelligence. She's got nothing. She's got nothing.

And you can't have a leader like that.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

CONTORNO: Now, I should point out that that town hall could have been a debate.

It was -- the invitation was extended to Donald Trump. He instead chose to hit the campaign trail. That will continue today with his tour of battleground states, landing him in Arizona, which will be at an event right behind me, in Tempe, Arizona, on the Arizona State campus.

And from there, he moves on to Reno -- or -- excuse me -- Las Vegas, Nevada, hitting up these two West Coast battleground states, making the border a key issue here. It's the issue he says is the most important in this election, even as poll over after poll suggests it might be the economy -- Boris and Brianna.

SANCHEZ: Steve Contorno, thank you so much for the update.

We have plenty of headlines to discuss. Let's bring in our panel.

We have Tia Mitchell, Washington correspondent for "The Atlanta Journal-Constitution," and Sabrina Rodriguez, national politics reporter for "The Washington Post."

First to you, Tia.

This star power on the trail with Vice President Harris, obviously, former President Obama, Bruce Springsteen, Spike Lee, Tyler Perry, what kind of an impact do you think that will have on voters' minds in the Peach State?

TIA MITCHELL, WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT, "THE ATLANTA JOURNAL- CONSTITUTION": I think the breadth of the entertainment that is going to be on the stage tonight.

You got Bruce Springsteen, which you know speaks to older, more white fan base, versus Spike Lee. Tyler Perry, of course, his fan base is huge with black women. So I think even the entertainers that are coming out for Vice President Harris are indicative of her really trying to have a broad base of support and continue to try to broaden it as we enter the closing days of the election.

KEILAR: And, Sabrina, at this town hall last night, Harris really -- she went a little bit further. And that was bolstered, of course, by John Kelly describing Trump as a fascist, but she said that he is.

How significant is that?

SABRINA RODRIGUEZ, "THE WASHINGTON POST": I mean, it is a huge step for Kamala Harris to say it. It's clear that she has been cautious about how she talks about Donald Trump.

And I think we saw it when it was the Biden campaign and when it transitioned to her of her trying to focus on the issues and in these few months of her campaign, her trying to define herself, what she stands for, what are her values, who she is. And I think now, in these final weeks, we see how deadlocked the polls are.

And she's saying, OK, I'm still talking about policy, but I also need to -- let's talk about the stakes and let's talk about that distinct contrast. And having someone as respected as John Kelly coming out and using that kind of language, saying that this is who Donald Trump is really does give her that opportunity to also co-sign it and say, people need to actually pay attention.

She called it a 911 call to the American people.

KEILAR: Yes, she is sounding more of an alarm, right?

SANCHEZ: Yes.

KEILAR: She's sounding more of an alarm.

But also, Tia, we're seeing Trump have more of these odd moments. I think you could say. And one that happened last night was actually at this Turning Point event that Trump headlined with Tucker Carlson saying this. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TUCKER CARLSON, FORMER FOX NEWS ANCHOR: There has to be a point at which dad comes home. Dad comes home.

(CHEERING)

CARLSON: And he's pissed. When dad gets home, you know what he says? You have been a bad girl. You have been a bad little girl and you're getting a vigorous spanking right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[13:10:06]

KEILAR: Now, Tia, I will just say sometimes I wonder if talking about moments like, I don't know, unintentionally rewarding a flasher by paying attention to them.

But, at the same time you just -- I do think it raises an interesting question, which is this appeal of Trump meting out a punishment. What do you think it is?

MITCHELL: Well, I was at that rally last night and I can tell you that line went over really well with that crowd.

So, again, Tucker Carlson, Donald Trump continue to speak to a specific audience. And so the metaphor of daddy being home and disciplining a wayward teenager, A, just speaks to kind of their world vision of this kind of traditional family that's kind of part of what's based into the MAGAsphere and Christian nationalism.

But then, it also drives home the point that they believe Trump has been aggrieved and that they need to reward him by restoring him to the White House and allowing him to punish his enemies. So, to them, that is part of what their mission is, is to allow Trump to come home and right these wrongs, and, again, because he said, when I'm aggrieved, you, my supporters, are also aggrieved.

So they think he needs to come to right the wrongs as well. They're calling him daddy and want him to come home. It's really interesting. And I know it seems wild to people who aren't already in this world or people like us who have to watch it.

But being there last night, I can tell you, there were 15,000 people there who were cheering Tucker Carlson when he said that.

SANCHEZ: There is something really unusual about describing a former president or someone who's in elected office as a daddy who's preparing to spank his kids for being bad.

And in terms of strategy, Sabrina, I wonder, because early on for Harris, it was a message of joy and going after Trump for things like that. I mean, I think her running mate, Governor Walz, sort of branded that ethos of the Trump campaign as weird and other Democrats picked up on that.

But since then, I think the calls have become more urgent and more descriptive of the kind of danger Trump could do in the eyes of Democrats to the democracy. I'm wondering, are you hearing from people on the campaign that they might return to some of that joy message or is this kind of what we're going to get from here on out?

RODRIGUEZ: I mean, I think they're trying to do both, which is a really hard juggling act to do.

I mean, I don't expect that when we hear Bruce Springsteen and Obama tonight and Tyler Perry and that cast, I think they're going to talk about the joys of getting to elect Kamala Harris for president. But then at the same time, they're going to have to talk about the reality of what Donald Trump is saying.

And I think that's the challenge too, because these are two separate campaigns. And when you look at the rallies that Donald Trump is holding, I mean, it's him talking for two hours and he will say, oh, it's a campaign -- it's a rally that is focused on the economy or it's going to be a rally that's focused on immigration, but, really, it ends up being two hours with the weave and the meandering thoughts.

And I was just earlier this week at his Latino summit that was supposed to be focused on just talking to leaders who are supportive of him. And at one point, he was talking about killing bunnies and the threat that solar panels cost them and just all these meandering thoughts.

And I think what the Harris campaign now is doing is saying, we can't look past this. We can't just lean into this excitement of the history we'd make if she gets elected. We need to show people what exactly it is he's talking about.

SANCHEZ: Sabrina, I actually have to personally apologize to you, because somehow in the intro, we missed that you were the duchess of Hialeah, Florida, which, as you know, is my hometown as well.

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: There was one quick thing I wanted to ask you about, because I know you were in Hialeah earlier this week. There was a poll that came out from Florida International University. It's not meeting CNN's methodology, so we won't get into the details of it.

But, generally, it showed overwhelming support among Cuban Americans for Donald Trump. I'm wondering what you're hearing from voters there, what it was like to vote in Hialeah.

RODRIGUEZ: I mean, I think what we have seen in the last four years has been Democrats ceding ground in South Florida, and that is where you then find polls like that FIU poll.

And just the energy you see on the ground, you don't even need to get into numbers, just the energy. I mean, the amount of Trump signs that you see everywhere, the Trump flags on the hood of the car, the Latinos for Trump signs or Hialeah for Trump signs, and even Trump doing that event in South Florida when we're 12 days out from the campaign in South Florida is not considered a battleground state says a lot about what he thinks of his standing there.

So I think we're sort of in this position where Democrats in South Florida and Democrats in Florida, if they want the state to move back toward them, are going to have to make some real investments that haven't necessarily come to fruition this cycle.

KEILAR: Well, duchess Sabrina of Hialeah, duchess Tia of Atlanta, thank you so much to both of you for your insights today. We appreciate it.

(LAUGHTER)

[13:15:00]

MITCHELL: Thank you.

KEILAR: Could the Menendez brothers go free after serving all of these years behind bars for the deaths of their parents? We are actually awaiting word right now from the L.A. County DA's office on their possible resentencing.

Also ahead, as McDonald's scrambles to keep its customers safe from an outbreak of E. coli, the first lawsuit is filed. We will have details next.

SANCHEZ: And Boeing workers rejecting management's latest contract offer. Why they're willing to keep sticking it out on the picket line for a better deal.

You're watching CNN NEWS CENTRAL. We will be back in just moments.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: We have breaking news in the Menendez brothers case.

[13:20:00]

In just over three hours from now, the Los Angeles district attorney is set to announce his decision whether Erik and Lyle Menendez will be resentenced or potentially even get a new trial.

KEILAR: The brothers are currently serving life sentences without parole for killing their parents in their Beverly Hills mansion back in 1989. CNN's Stephanie Elam is in Los Angeles on this story.

What can we expect here, Steph?

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's what everyone wants to know. What is going to play out here?

But just to give a perspective on how long this has been going on, you had the first trial, which ended in a mistrial, where the defense there was saying that they had been abused sexually, emotionally, and physically. And then, after that mistrial, there was another case, and that is when they were convicted and sentenced to life in prison without a chance of parole.

But there was a letter, and this has been confirmed by the attorneys for the defense, that was written by one of the brothers to their first cousin, which says in part: "I have been trying to avoid dad. It's still happening, Andy, but it's worse for me now. I never know when it's going to happen. It is driving me crazy. Every night, I stay up thinking he might come in."

So, this evidence they're saying here that was not submitted to that second trial, they say is very key because it points to the fact that the boys were being abused, boys at the time were being abused. There's also a change in California law, which means that a judge could look at sentencing in other cases that are similar here, so all of this playing into it and what's going to actually happen here today.

But, despite the fact that the district attorney, George Gascon, could come out and say that he does believe that they should be resentenced, it's up to a judge to decide that. And that hearing is scheduled for November 26. The judge could decide for resentencing, could choose another day and figure out when they're going to address this.

The judge will also consider whether or not the boys were in fact abuse victims, were -- have these men been rehabilitated, also whether or not these men are a danger to society at this point. All of this will feed into this overall picture, but -- so we may not know all of it today, but this is just what the DA is recommending at this point.

SANCHEZ: Stephanie, the convergence of events that led to this moment is notable, because you have a very popular case that has seen a resurgence of attention because of documentaries, because of a Netflix dramatization.

And then on top of that, you also have a district attorney running for reelection who is underwater. He's fairly unpopular, and this could be read as a move to try to gain some popular esteem, some favorability. Talk to us about all these dynamics at play.

ELAM: It's Hollywood Hollywooding in a most judicial way. You are completely right, right, because people love true crime, and this is a very, very banner case of it.

This was one of the first publicized or lively shown cases that we had here in this country. So people saw these handsome brothers who were in this debacle, wanted to know more about it. But then, when you read the details of what happened, it's a heinous murder. These murders were very, very brutal.

But because of this, you have a lot of people who weren't even alive at the time who are interested in this case. And on top of it, George Gascon, who -- has been embattled, has been running on a platform of sentencing reform. So this fits in line with what he wants to do here, but all of this as we are very close to the election here in Los Angeles County.

KEILAR: All right, Stephanie Elam, thank you so much. We will be waiting and watching.

So, the fallout from a deadly E. coli outbreak may actually just be beginning. A Colorado man filed the first lawsuit against McDonald's. He blamed them for his case of E. coli that he alleges sent him to the emergency room. His sickness is among 49 cases reported across 10 states, including one person who died, many of the cases concentrated in Colorado.

The CDC issued a food safety warning that dozens of people reported becoming sick after eating a McDonald's quarter pounder.

SANCHEZ: McDonald's officials say they are confident it is safe to eat at their restaurants, but they did not immediately respond to CNN's request for comment on this new lawsuit.

We want to speak now to the attorney who filed the lawsuit on behalf of his client in Colorado and several others.

Ron Simon specializes in food poisoning cases.

Ron, thank you so much for sharing part of your afternoon with us.

First, what is it that your clients are alleging and how do you go about actually proving that they got sick from McDonald's because connecting an E. coli illness to a source is difficult, right?

RON SIMON, ATTORNEY: It is, but in this case, E. coli in the United States is what's called a reportable disease. So if you test positive for E. coli, they will send that sample to the state health lab, which will perform a DNA analysis on it.

And so all of our clients have been serotyped and tested with a strain of E. coli matching the outbreak strain related to the McDonald's outbreak.

KEILAR: Yes, which is huge. It's like forensic stuff, right? So what are your clients seeking here?

[13:25:02]

SIMON: So at the end of the day, the client seek three things.

First of all, of course, they want to get just compensations for their injuries and their suffering. But, second of all, they just want their voices heard. They want McDonald's and perhaps Taylor Farms to listen and understand these are real people with real illnesses that could have been prevented.

And then, finally, all of them said, look, we want to file these lawsuits so we can figure out how this happened, so we can make sure it doesn't happen again.

SANCHEZ: To that question of how this happened, the FDA and the CDC are investigating slivered onion and beef patties, but there's no specific ingredient that's been confirmed to have been the source of the outbreak.

So I heard you say McDonald's or Taylor Farms. Who would wind up being liable? Is it McDonald's or the supplier of the beef patties and the onions?

SIMON: So, actually, that's a great question.

In the United States, we have a law called strict liability, which means anybody involved in the process of serving you poison food is liable. So it's McDonald's and Taylor Farms, if it turns out to be the onions.

KEILAR: So you right now are representing around 16 victims confirmed to have E. coli. Are you expecting this to grow?

SIMON: I do. Even though McDonald's has pulled the suspect ingredients, the hamburger patties and the onions, off the market, we're still going to see illnesses showing up that haven't fully gone through the testing process.

So I expect this outbreak to at least double. And another thing for your viewers. For every case that's counted by the CDC -- and, right now, it's at 49 -- the CDC says there are at least 30 others that aren't reported. And those are people that went to McDonald's that ate, they got sick and had E. coli, but they either never got tested or decided to go home and just gut it out.

SANCHEZ: So those folks wouldn't have, as you noted before, the conclusive DNA proof that the E. coli they suffered from was from the tainted food at McDonald's.

I wonder why specifically you led with filing with -- for Eric Stelly. He's the first plaintiff in this lawsuit. I'm wondering why you chose to go that route. I know you have multiple clients that you're representing.

SIMON: Sure.

Well, Eric came to us once it was announced the link between McDonald's and the outbreak and wanted us to get a suit on file. And so we filed in Chicago, Illinois, which is where McDonald's headquarters is located.

KEILAR: So you -- I know you are -- your firm specializes in food poisoning. You have seen other instances where something like this plays out, although, I don't know, this is such a big name. This seems like something really significant.

How does this normally play out in other cases that you have seen?

SIMON: Well, interestingly, we have handled dozens of cases against McDonald's and Taylor Farms in the past for prior outbreaks, prior produce.

So, unfortunately, this isn't a new thing. And what I expect will happen, if they do the right things, they will try to resolve the cases. But more importantly, they have to get into their testing system and figure out how this poisons material is coming out without being detected. That's got to be somewhere in the production or the testing of the onions and the beef or whatever it is, the ingredient, that's causing this problem.

SANCHEZ: Ron Simon, we thank you so much for joining us. We hope you will come back when there are further developments in the case.

SIMON: You bet. Thank you so much for having us.

SANCHEZ: Sure.

We should know that a Taylor Farms spokesperson said in a statement that it has found no traces of E. coli in tests of raw or unfinished onions.

We want to pivot now and actually take you to a press gaggle that Vice President Kamala Harris just held moments ago in Philadelphia. This is on the heels of her CNN town hall last night. Let's listen in.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES (D) AND U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Good afternoon. Good afternoon.

Well, let me start by saying I'm really very proud to announce that we have had some endorsements this morning, as we have been rolling out endorsements, but two leaders in the Republican Party, the mayor of Waukesha, and then, of course, former Representative Fred Upton.

And this continues to be, I think, evidence of the fact that people who have been leaders in our country, regardless of their political party, understand what's at stake. And they are weighing in, courageously in many cases, in support of what we need to have, which is a president of the United States who understands the obligation to uphold the Constitution of the United States and our democracy.

As for last night, yet again, Trump not showing up, refused to be a part of a CNN debate. And, clearly, his staff has been saying he's exhausted. And the sad part about that is, he's trying to be president of the United States, probably the toughest job in the world, and he's exhausted.

I said last night what I mean, which is, the American people are being presented with a very serious decision. And it includes what we must understand will happen starting on January 20 in this choice. Either you have the choice of a Donald Trump, who will sit in the Oval Office stewing, plotting revenge, retribution, writing out his enemies list.