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Soldier: Israeli Military Used Palestinians as Human Shields; Obama, Celebs Joining Harris Today For Get Out The Vote Event; Source: Beyonce, Willie Nelson to Join Harris in Houston Friday; Just Aired 2- 2:30p ET

Aired October 24, 2024 - 14:00   ET

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

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[14:01:51]

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Obama and the boss? It's going to be a star studded night for the Harris campaign in Georgia as former President Donald Trump heads out west. We're following both candidates on the campaign trail. And an Israeli soldier revealing to CNN that the IDF used Palestinians as human shields, forcing them to enter potentially booby trapped houses and tunnels. You'll hear that IDF soldier in his own words.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: And moments of terror caught on tape. 911 calls from the Trump rally shooting have just been released.

We're following these major developing stories and many more, all coming in right here to CNN News Central.

SANCHEZ: We start this hour with an eye on the campaign trail as the candidates look to pick up support in critical battlegrounds just days before the election. Right now, Vice President Kamala Harris is on her way to the key swing state of Georgia, where tonight she's going to bring out some major star power in a big way. Former President Barack Obama will join her on stage for their first joint event, the Boss, Bruce Springsteen, Tyler Perry, Spike Lee, Samuel L. Jackson, all of them will be there, all coming on the heels of a CNN town hall where Harris made a pitch to undecided and persuadable voters, painting former President Trump as unfit to serve.

KEILAR: Trump, in the meantime, is headed out west today with rallies in Arizona and Nevada as he gives new details about how he handle some of the charges against him if reelected. Our correspondents are live on the trail, traveling with both campaigns. Let's begin with CNN Steve Contorno, who is just outside of Phoenix. Steve, what's Trump saying about those charges? And is that a message that we might expect to hear from him tonight?

STEVE CONTORNO, CNN REPORTER: Brianna, Donald Trump in an interview earlier today saying that he intends to fire Special Prosecutor Jack Smith if he is reinstalled in the White House. This is obviously the individual who is overseeing the two federal cases against Donald Trump. And it's the latest example of how he intends to use the White House and the powers of the presidency to get rid of these charges that he faces in multiple cases. Take a listen to what he told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt earlier today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HUGH HEWITT: You're going to have to pardon yourself or you're going to have to fire Jack Smith. Which one will you do?

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES (R) AND CURRENT U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's so easy. I would fire him within two seconds.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CONTORNO: As for what he intends to say later today, look, his message has been quite scattershot lately.I was at a rally with him just outside of Pittsburgh on Saturday where he told a lengthy story about Arnold Palmer that ended with an anecdote about what he looked like in the men's locker room. Yesterday, he talked about getting toxic chemicals out of our food supply and promising to eliminate taxes on car loans. So his messaging of late has been somewhat all over the place. But what I could tell you is that we are in Arizona, which is a border state, and Donald Trump believes that the issues at the U.S. southern border are the greatest priority for this country and should be the number one issue on the minds of voters this election, so I can anticipate that he is most certainly going to talk about that in this swing state that he narrowly lose four years ago.

[14:05:13]

KEILAR: All right. Steve, the topics do run the gamut. I will say that so does the musical stylings that we always enjoy when Steve is at a rally. Let's turn now to CNN's Priscilla Alvarez, who is live for us near Atlanta. Priscilla, where you're at is significant? Tell us more about why the Harris campaign has picked this location in such a tight race in that state.

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is, of course, battleground Georgia. And with polls showing that both candidates are deadlocked, the campaign is trying to energize and mobilize voters. We know from state data that a third of active voters have already cast their ballot. This is a state where early voting is well underway. So the campaign is trying to capitalize on that over the next several days by again encouraging their supporters to go out and vote.

Now, they're bringing in all the stops to do exactly that, with former President Barack Obama joining the Vice President today here. It's their first time on the campaign trail together. And of course, Bruce Springsteen will be headlining. He, of course, has made frequent appearances in the waning days of the election for democratic candidates before. But even as all of this is ongoing, we are also getting a glimpse into the Vice President's closing argument.

For example, tomorrow, she heads to Houston, Texas. Not a battleground, but it is where the campaign says it is the epicenter of what they call the Trump abortion ban. So giving them an opportunity to amplify their messaging on this issue with none other than Beyonce, who we're told is going to be joining the Vice President. There has been work behind the scenes between the campaign and -- or the celebrities team, the singers team, to try to get something on the books. This is going to be one of those moments where the two talk together about reproductive freedom.

Now, moving forward, the Vice President will continue to warn about a potential second Trump term. We saw that bring CNN's town hall last night. We expect to hear more of that, particularly her messaging that the former President is out to get revenge of his -- of who he says are his enemies, while the Vice President is focused on what she calls the American to-do list.

So anticipate hearing more of that messaging in the closing days of this election as well. One of the places she'll be making or delivering that message is going to be in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday at the National Mall at the Ellipse where former President Donald Trump delivered his fiery speech on January 6th that set in motion the attack on the U.S. Capitol by his supporters. So certainly, again, the Vice President pulling together all these different issues to make her case to the American people.

KEILAR: All right. Priscilla Alvarez live for us from Georgia. Thank you. Now, stop us if you've heard this before or honestly don't, because I don't know what else we'd say then. Like, what would we be saying that the race between Vice President Harris and former President Trump is just neck and neck, razor thin, virtually tied, no clear leader.

It is true, though, the polling has shown an extremely tight competition for months now.

SANCHEZ: We've been saying that?

KEILAR: Yeah.

SANCHEZ: Yeah.

KEILAR: Yeah, we have.

SANCHEZ: You know who has?

KEILAR: This guy.

SANCHEZ: I don't remember Harry Enten saying that. We're wondering, Harry, how accurate the numbers are, really. Here's CNN Senior Data Reporter Harry Enten joining us now. Put this into perspective for us, Harry. What are the polls actually revealing to us? Discern the math for us, because sometimes, it's just a lot of numbers, Harry.

HARRY ENTEN, CNN SENIOR DATA REPORTER: It's a lot of numbers. I will discern the math for you. But during this segment, I have a job for the two of you. I haven't eaten lunch yet, so if you two could come up with a game plan for what I should do for lunch, I would really, really appreciate it, okay?

All right. So we're going to run the numbers. And here's the deal, someone could win this election in a blowout, despite the fact that the polls are so tight. In fact, at this particular point, if you take an aggregation of the different forecast models, will the 2024 winner get at least 300 electoral votes? In fact, the majority answer is yes. A 60% chance that either Kamala Harris or Donald Trump will get 300 plus electoral votes. The minority answer, 40% chance that, no, the winner will get less than 300 electoral votes. But the bottom line is, at this particular point, if you're making a bet on a really tight election in the electoral college or one in which you get a relative blowout, you'll actually be betting on the relative blowout, guys.

KEILAR: And how is that possible, given that polls are so close in the swing states?

ENTEN: Yes. How is it possible? I'm not just going to tell you the what, I'm going to show you the how and why. All right. How is that possible? Well, look, swing state polling averages, right? If you look across the seven key battleground states, they're all within two points at this particular point. But here's the thing to keep in mind. If you look at the average swing state poll since 1972, the average swing state average, the average error is actually 3.4 points.

So let's just say that there's a 3.4 point error, right, an average error, and it goes to one side or the other.

[14:10:06]

Let's say, for instance, that that error benefits Kamala Harris across all the swing states. Well, what happens? She wins in the Great Lake battleground states. Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin. She wins down in the southeast, right, North Carolina, Georgia. She wins out west in Nevada and Arizona. Look at this, she gets to 319 electoral votes. Of course, we don't know which way the polling era is going to go if there's in fact one. It could benefit Donald Trump. Let's say he gets Michigan there. I pointed to Wisconsin when I said Michigan, I'm losing my mind.

Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia, Arizona, Nevada. If the polling error actually benefits Donald Trump, he gets the 312 electoral votes. So the bottom line is the race is so close at this point. But if a polling error goes to one folks, that folk could actually get north to 300 electoral votes, guys.

SANCHEZ: Yeah, there's a range of scenarios. And we've seen the polling underrepresent certain voters that Donald Trump seems to attract. So we'll see if things may be different this time around. Harry, I think you should go get that bowl of pokey that you and I talked about getting years ago and ultimately never did.

He tried to take me to like a pokey lunch date while it was raining. And I was like, Harry, I'm not walking several blocks in the rain for this. I'm sorry.

ENTEN: You know what, Boris? Maybe the next time you're around, we'll get poke together. And I'll just note at the end of this that when a polling error misses for one candidate in one state, it manages to miss in all the states.

SANCHEZ: Those pivots.

ENTEN: I had that last slide. I was going to get it in and I just did, despite being told to rap, whatever.

SANCHEZ: What do you think we should have for lunch?

KEILAR: I'm going to go with a burrito bowl, Harry. Think about a burrito bowl.

ENTEN: I like that.

SANCHEZ: So (inaudible). Harry Enten --

ENTEN: I will.

SANCHEZ: -- thank you so much.

ENTEN: Bye.

KEILAR: Bye.

SANCHEZ: Let's get serious now and discuss all of this with David Axelrod, CNN Senior Political Commentator and Former Senior Advisor to President Obama. David, thank you so much for being with us. You've got former President Obama, Bruce Springsteen, Samuel L. Jackson, a lot of star power tonight in Georgia, Beyonce in Texas after tonight. How much does having these big names help the Harris campaign?

DAVID AXELROD, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, first of all, let me say, I think Harry pulled off the hokey pokey to get his last slide in there at my expense. But look, I think that at this point, these large crowd rallies are all about getting base voters out. They're going to a county in Georgia that Joe Biden carried with 81% of the vote. So they're not on a persuasion mission in that part of Georgia, around Atlanta to so much persuade, although there's some of that as to motivate and tell people to get out and vote.

I think there was some concern about early vote in Georgia and some of the numbers that were coming out of rural Georgia and some of the Republican efforts there. So I think that this is a well-timed rally to try and get people out engaged and voting. And so, you know, you bring your biggest attractions to do that. And that's an all-star cast.

As for Houston, I think it's a little bit different. I think they're going to use them not because they believe they're going to win the state of Texas, but because they want to highlight this issue of abortion rights and reproductive rights, Texas being ground zero in terms of restrictive abortion laws that have had really grave impacts on some women there. So I think they're trying to give people a peek into what could happen if there were a national abortion ban.

And I think Beyonce will certainly bring more attention to that event. But that's slightly different than what's going on in Georgia today.

SANCHEZ: Sure. Sure, yeah. And then there's a potentially competitive Senate race there in Texas in which the Democrat is --

AXELROD: True.

SANCHEZ: -- pushing a message of reproductive rights. I do want to go back to something you said about motivation for certain voters for Obama. He's been more direct than Harris has when it comes to addressing support for Trump from black men. She's kind of avoided making identity and her identity a central focus of the campaign. Do you think that's the right approach? Should that be adjusted in the final days of the campaign?

AXELROD: It's interesting because I think she, in some ways, is taking some cues from Barack Obama when he ran for president. We never spoke about the historic nature of his candidacy. We thought people who were motivated by that, probably understood that he was a black man and that there had never been an African-American president. And we also thought people who weren't motivated -- who were motivated against him for that reason knew that.

But voters wanted to know, what about me who weren't necessarily black? And do you understand my life? Are you going to advocate for me?

[14:15:04]

And he ran to be president of the whole United States and not get earmarked or narrow casted into a kind of identity candidacy. And I think she's done the same thing, and I think it's the right thing to do. Kamala Harris is running not to be the first woman and not to be the first Asian-African-American woman. She's running to be president of the United States. And she's speaking to issues that have universal appeal and concern.

SANCHEZ: David, I want to get one more question in. We did give that lunch conversation with Harry extra time, so I wanted to make sure I got your perspective on this other thing you mentioned last night after the town hall with Kamala Harris here on CNN. You mentioned that some of her responses to tough questions, specifically on Israel and on immigration, resulted in Word Salad City essentially reverting to talking points. By his own admission, Donald Trump weaves when responding to certain questions. And it seems to make no discernible difference to his supporters. So I'm wondering how you think Harris can manage what seem to be two very different standards?

AXELROD: Well, you know, yeah, she's in a more difficult position because she has basically had to introduce herself to the American people in 90 days. Donald Trump, we've seen for years. And he does get -- there's no doubt about it, Boris. You listen to a Donald Trump rally and it is an incredible flight because you never know where he's going or where he's going to land or how one point connects to another. But that in some ways is priced into the stock of Donald Trump, whereas people are really trying to get to know Kamala Harris. So her answers are being scrutinized more closely because people are looking for clues to who she is and where she's going. And that puts additional pressure on her. I know that that particular piece of my analysis was quoted widely. I also talked about some of the strengths of her presentation, including when she said, the difference between us is that he's going to come to the office with an enemies list and I'm going to come with a to-do list about how we work on those things, those concerns that we've discussed here tonight. I thought that was powerful and compelling, and really a fundamental argument in the final 10 days of this campaign.

And every time Donald Trump goes out with his grievance list and talks about who he's going to fire to protect himself and who he's going to go after using the tools of the Justice Department and the presidency, I think he underscores the fact that that's his fundamental concern. That's his focus. Donald Trump -- I think that's a great opportunity for Kamala Harris. And I was -- I thought when she said that last night, it really struck a chord in me.

SANCHEZ: Yeah. You predicted that we would hear more of that. And today, she's repeating that refrain about the --

AXELROD: Yeah, and I'm glad.

SANCHEZ: -- to-do list. Yeah, I suspect we'll keep hearing it until next Tuesday. David Axelrod, thank you so much for being with us.

AXELROD: Great to see you, Boris.

SANCHEZ: Of course. Things actually two Tuesdays from now, just to be precise. Ahead this hour on CNN News Central, has Elon Musk ended his $1 million voter sweepstakes after being warned he could be breaking the law? We have the latest details on that.

Plus, the world's largest lake, roughly the size of Montana, is shrinking. We investigate why and the impact it could have.

KEILAR: But first, an Israeli soldier comes forward with disturbing accusations that the IDF has used Palestinians in Gaza as human shields. His testimony and photographic evidence next.

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[14:23:21]

KEILAR: Secretary of State Tony Blinken says he expects talks on a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal to resume here in the coming days. Blinken wrapped up his trip to the Middle East earlier today with a visit to Qatar. It's, of course, the key mediator that is expected to host a meeting this weekend.

SANCHEZ: In the northern part of Gaza, health officials are warning the area is at a breaking point, the IDF ordering large scale evacuations as its military operations there intensify. Let's take you live to Tel Aviv with CNN's Jeremy Diamond.

Jeremy, you've learned some of the disturbing tactics that have been employed by the IDF. What did you find? JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, listen, Boris, the

Israeli military frequently accuses Hamas of using Palestinian civilians as human shields. And there is ample evidence for it. Rockets fired from residential neighborhoods, tunnels passing beneath civilian homes. But now, there is also mounting evidence that the Israeli military itself has been using Palestinians as human shields as well, sending civilians into potentially booby trapped buildings and tunnels ahead of its soldiers. And for the first time on television, we have an Israeli soldier who I interviewed describing that practice.

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DIAMOND: They walked through the rubble at gunpoint into potentially booby trapped buildings and down darkened tunnels. Some were teenagers, like 17-year-old Mohammed (ph).

MAN #1: (Speaking in Foreign Language)

DIAMOND: Others, like Abu Ali Asin (ph), were grandparents.

MAN #2: (Speaking in Foreign Language)

DIAMOND: These five Palestinians, all civilians, say the Israeli military detained them and used them as human shields in Gaza.

[14:25:05]

MAN #3: (Speaking in Foreign Language)

DIAMOND: Now, for the first time on camera, an Israeli soldier is coming forward with his own account describing how his infantry unit used two Palestinians as human shields.

MAN #4: We told them to enter the building before us. If there are any booby traps, they will explode and not us.

DIAMOND: We've blurred his face and changed his voice because he risks reprisals for speaking out. Breaking the silence, a watchdog group which verifies soldiers testimonials provided photographs and facilitated the interview. The soldier says a 16-year-old boy and 20- year-old man were brought to his unit this spring.

MAN #3: Their hands were tied behind their back and they had a cloth over their eyes.

DIAMOND: The instructions from the intelligence officer who delivered them were clear.

MAN #3: He told me to take them in the next attack, use them as a human shield. He told me that they have a connection to Hamas.

DIAMOND: For two days, his unit followed those orders. This haunting photo captures the scene, the silhouette of a Palestinian man flanked by two soldiers ordering him forward MAN #3: When we went to the attack before they enter a building, we took the cloth up so they could see. In my company, one of the soldiers knew Arabic. He just shouted in Arabic, open the door, walk to this building or the other.

DIAMOND: You're using them because you think this building might be booby trapped.

MAN #3: Yes. My soldiers didn't like that at all. And they refused to do this anymore.

DIAMOND: The soldiers decided to take their concerns to their senior commander, telling him they believed they were violating international law.

MAN #3: The commander told this fellow, a simple soldier doesn't need to think about international law.

DIAMOND: He didn't say, you guys shouldn't be doing this, this shouldn't be happening.

MAN #3: He said that we need to do this. He said that our lives are more important. So he didn't just tell you, don't worry about it.

DIAMOND: So he said, keep doing it?

MAN #3: Yes, yes.

DIAMOND: Eventually, the commander relented, telling his soldiers they could release the two Palestinians.

Suddenly you're allowed to release?

MAN #3: Yeah. It made it sure to us that they are not terrorists.

DIAMOND: In a statement, the Israeli military said the IDF's directives and guidelines strictly prohibit the use of detained Gaza civilians for military operations. The relevant protocols and instructions are routinely clarified to soldiers in the field during the conflict. But the Israeli military's use of human shields in Gaza appears to have been widespread, so common it even had a name, Mosquito Protocol. Both Israeli and international law ban the use of civilians in combat. Israel also accuses Hamas of using civilians as human shields. There is ample evidence for it.

Tunnels dug beneath homes and rockets fired from residential neighborhoods.

MAN #3: For me, it's more painful with my own army. Hamas is a terrorist organization. The IDF shouldn't use terrorist organization practices.

DIAMOND: So when you hear, you know, spokespeople for the Israeli military, Israeli government officials saying, you know, the Israeli military is the most moral army in the world.

MAN #: That's bull. Of course, I don't believe that.

DIAMOND: Dr. Yahya Al-Kayali who worked at Al Shifa Hospital, knows that all too well. Months after he says Israeli soldiers forced him to risk his life, he cannot shake this terrifying experience.

YAHYA AL-KAYALI, WORKED AT AL SHIFA HOSPITAL: A soldier asked me to come. He was talking to me, to English. He told me, I will kill you if you didn't enter there. I was thinking that I will be killed or die within minutes.

DIAMOND: His brush with death and the day he feared he would never again see his family.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DIAMOND: And I think it's important to note that while the Israeli military said its directives do not allow for the use of human shields, it also didn't deny the existence of the practice in Gaza. And of course, it is just one of a long list of alleged violations of international law by Israeli soldiers in Gaza. Boris, Brianna?

KEILAR: All right. Jeremy, thank you for that report. Jeremy Diamond, live from Tel Aviv.

And still to come on CNN News Central, for the first time, the 911 calls from the assassination attempt against Former President Trump have been released. And we're going to play them.

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