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Harris' Book: Reckless To Let Biden make Reelection Decision On His Own; Israel Faces Growing Backlash Over Unprecedented Qatar Strike; RFK Jr. Unveils Plan To Tackle Childhood Chronic Disease. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired September 10, 2025 - 07:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:30:00]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Breaking this morning for the first time former Vice President Kamala Harris reveals her thoughts about President Biden's decision not to run for reelection.

The Atlantic just published excerpts from her new book.

She writes, "'It's Joe and Jill's decision.' We all said that, like a mantra, as if we'd all been hypnotized. Was it grace, or was it recklessness? In retrospect, I think it was recklessness. The stakes were simply too high. This wasn't a choice that should have been left to an individual's ego, an individual's ambition. It should have been more than personal decision."

Now, on the other hand, she challenges the notion that there was a White House coverup.

She writes, "Many people want to spin up a narrative of some big conspiracy that the White House to hide Joe Biden's infirmity. Here is the truth as I lived it. Joe Biden was a smart guy with long experience and deep conviction, able to discharge the duties of president. One his worst day, he was more deeply knowledgeable, more capable of exercising judgment, and far more compassionate than Donald Trump on his best.

But at 81, Joe got tired. That's when his age showed in physical and verbal stumbles. I don't think it's any surprise that the debate debacle happened right after two back-to-back trips to Europe and a flight to the West Coast for a Hollywood fundraiser. I don't believe it was incapacity. If I believed that, I would have said so. As loyal as I am to President Biden, I am more loyal to my country."

Let's get right to CNN political commentator Bakari Sellers, and Maura Gillespie, former press adviser to then-House Speaker John Boehner.

Bakari, first to you. That first almost mea culpa saying recklessness. Not to question Joe Biden's decision to run again. What do you see there?

BAKARI SELLERS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR, (D) FORMER SOUTH CAROLINA STATE REPRESENTATIVE (via Webex by Cisco): No, I think it's right.

And I think that many of us throughout this campaign -- I came on the air many times over and over and over again and said that it was Joe Biden's decision whether or not he was going to run for president again. It wasn't for Jon Stewart or the "Pod Save America" guys or anybody else to push him out of the race. It was literally his decision to make that choice.

And I think what she's saying is that in hindsight, yes, it was his decision, but more people should have been involved in that decision- making process.

It wasn't the kind of circular firing squad that Democrats had which proved to be reckless in itself, but it was the fact that more people should have been allowed in Joe Biden's inner circle so that we could have a decision because I think that we should have fully grasped that it was more than one person's ego. It was a country at stake.

BERMAN: Maura, what do you think of what she said about had she believed he was incapable of doing the job she would have spoken up?

MAURA GILLESPIE, FORMER PRESS ADVISER TO THEN-HOUSE SPEAKER JOHN BOEHNER (via Webex by Cisco): I do think she was curtailing it a little bit to protect the fact that she still is loyal to Joe Biden in a lot of ways. She served as his vice president. I'm sure he also recognized that the position she was in having been a vice president prior and knowing that the staff can be brutal at times because it's easier to put the blame on the vice president than it is to accept any blame as the president.

But I do think it's interesting and I'm curious to read more from the book as far as why she had people like Anita Dunn and Jen O'Malley Dillon in her inner circle knowing what they were putting on her when they were running the president's campaign.

So I just -- I find it a little bit of an easy out.

BERMAN: It is interesting. I mean, she did bring in her own people to work alongside the campaign officials who were already there, but she does point fingers inside the Biden administration to be sure.

Let me read two more quotes. And this has to do with her time as vice president, Bakari, where she did not feel supported by the West Wing.

She wrote, "They, as in the White House, had a huge comms team. They had Karine Jean-Pierre briefing in the pressroom every day. But getting anything positive said about my work or any defense against untrue attacks was almost impossible."

Then Harris continues in these brand new excerpts, "And when the stories were unfair or inaccurate, the president's inner circle seemed fine with it. Indeed, it seemed as if they decided I should be knocked down a little bit more."

You know, Bakari, you were an early prominent supporter of then-Sen. Harris and her campaign, but I know you have connections inside. What do you think of this sentiment?

SELLERS: Well, first of all, I don't have -- I didn't have connections inside the White House and I think that's part of -- part of the reason was my loyalty to the Vice President of the United States.

[07:35:00]

But Maura was right. I mean, Valerie Biden Owens, Jen O'Malley Dillon, Anita Dunn made life very, very difficult for Kamala Harris when she was Vice President of the United States. And by making life difficult for her, the reason that she had to keep them on is because she only had 107 days left. And so you can't flip the ship completely upside- down when you're running for President of the United States.

But it's not secret to those people in and around the White House and the vice president that there were people 1) who did not want her to be vice president because they carried this grudge from the debate in Miami all the way through. And the other thing was that when she became vice president, they just made it very, very difficult for her.

And I think that when you have a vice president who has that age, who has a future, there is always this -- and it's not just Joe Biden and Kamala Harris but there's always a question about ambition. And so whenever Kamala Harris did something correct or wanted to have a platform, they shot that down. When I came on air and said that her portfolio was trash it made news, and they were not thrilled about that. But her portfolio when she first got started was trash and unachievable, but things changed.

And so Joe Biden and Kamala Harris love each other. The people around Joe Biden, I would say, not so much.

BERMAN: Maura, Jeffrey Goldberg, who wrote a preamble to the excerpt in The Atlantic today, basically said the news here is that there's news. That she pushes the envelope a little bit in terms of new information out there.

Take that one step further. Do you think this is news that Democrats are happy about being released this September when some of the political winds have begun blowing in their direction? The jobs numbers have been dismal. President Trump is taking fire on the Jeffrey Epstein situation.

How much do you think this makes Democrats uncomfortable right now?

GILLESPIE: It really makes a handful of them uncomfortable. But I think at the same time, when you have Zohran Mamdani running in New York City and the Democratic Party is blanching to even talk about it, they have to start to get at the core of their issues and figure out what the next step looks like for them if they want to win back a midterm. If they want to win back in 2028.

And so dealing with the reality of what happened in '24 is maybe the first step. And I'm sure they're not thrilled by this but maybe they need to take a look in the mirror, especially for those who were in the inner circle who are purporting to play a role in the next few elections. They really need to be thinking about what role they played.

And having it shown a light like this for Biden's inner circle -- the West Wing -- I think that's important because we should know who is running it.

BERMAN: Maura Gillespie, Bakari Sellers, thanks to both of you. Appreciate it -- Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Also this morning the prime minister of Qatar is calling the unprecedented Israeli strike on Hamas targets inside Doha a "act of state terrorism."

Right now, the backlash against Israel continues to mount after this. Israel has long vowed to take out every leader of the Hamas terror group. But this was different not only because Israel quickly took responsibility for the attack but also because it happened inside an important U.S. ally -- a nation that has been a key mediator in the talks to try and bring about a ceasefire in Gaza and bring the hostages home.

The biggest question now, what all of this means for the new U.S.- proposed Gaza ceasefire plan that was just put on the table, and for the hostages that are still being held there by Hamas.

CNN's Oren Liebermann tracking all of this from Jerusalem. And Oren, you have new reporting still about the strikes and more. What have you learned?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF AND CORRESPONDENT: Well, there is growing pessimism within Israel and amongst Israeli officials that these strikes carried out by Israel in the Qatari capital of Doha had their intended effect.

The target was chief Hamas negotiator Khalil al-Hayya and other senior Hamas leaders. But again, there is that growing pessimism, Israeli officials tell us, that they were killed in the strike. Hamas, meanwhile, says their negotiating team survived, although five other members were killed in the strike.

An Israeli security official had said there were more than 10 fighter jets used, launching more than 10 munitions against a single target. That strike carried out just under 24 hours ago.

The key question, of course, where do ceasefire negotiations go from here. That is why Hamas was in Doha to begin with, having this meeting to discuss the latest U.S. ceasefire proposal. And that is at least unclear. Hamas officials say nobody is talking about the ceasefire effort now, although we'll see if the U.S. or the Qataris try to get it back on track.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the strike could have brought the end of the war closer, although it's unclear what he feels about it now that the intended targets of the strike were not killed. The problem is that's a claim we've heard before when Israel has killed senior Hamas officials in Gaza -- Yahya Sinwar, Mohammad Sinwar, and others. We have heard the claim that Israel believes it could bring the end of the war closer and yet here we are as the war nears the two-year mark.

[07:40:00]

So at least from what we see now there is no indication that targeting senior Hamas leaders in a non-enemy state by Israel will do anything to move negotiations forward. But that, as you pointed out Kate, is one of the key questions now. And the other question: How does the U.S. respond and what moves does the U.S. make, if any?

BOLDUAN: Yeah, absolutely.

Oren, great reporting. Thank you very much.

Joining us right now to talk more about it is CNN global affairs analyst Brett McGurk.

Brett, you call these strikes not surprising maybe, but shocking. Why?

BRETT MCGURK, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Well, not surprising Kate because the leaders of Hamas -- true, it's a negotiating team and they're also the leaders of Hamas. Israel has made clear every leader of Hamas -- their time is coming. So these were dead men walking since October 7th of 2023. So, not surprising they're targeted. However -- and Oren just laid it out -- shocking in the time, manner, and location.

Now look, strategy is what you're trying to achieve. The Israelis say their strategy is to get the hostages out and have a Gaza without Hamas there. The tactics are how you get there. This was a tactical strike. I don't think it connects to the strategy. I think it sets back the hostage talks significantly.

It's unprecedented to have standoff military strikes and an overt military operation in an Arab capital that's aligned with the United States and that, frankly, Israel and the United States has asked Qatar to play this mediating role.

So I can't see as we sit here right now, and as the results of the strikes seem to be very uncertain as Oren just laid out, how this advances the goal to getting the hostages out and ultimately ending the war.

In fact, I am deeply concerned that Hamas might respond by bringing harm to the hostages because it's the one tool they have in their hand. This is horrific but it's the truth of this awful war. They control the fate of the hostages in those tunnels. The hostages can only be released through a deal. There's not a rescue operation available. They're deep in tunnels. You need a deal.

So the dust is still settling here but this does not seem to have been a successful operation if you consider how it connects to the longer- term strategic objective.

BOLDUAN: And the mother of one -- and to that point, the mother of one of the Israeli hostages said that she thinks it's -- the strike could serve as a death sentence for her son, which is just horrific to think about -- I mean, to your point.

What about the response so far? We're waiting to hear from President Trump. He has said that he's going to have kind of a fuller statement today.

But let me play the president's initial response speaking to reporters last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I was very unhappy about it. Very unhappy about every aspect. And we've got to get the hostages back. But I was very unhappy about the way that went down.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: The reporting though is that the U.S. was notified minutes before missiles were launched. And we've just seen some new reporting coming in, Brett, that Trump was informed by the chairman of the Joints Chiefs. That's according to an official. Trump then informed U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, that official said, who then notified the Qataris. Just like the incredibly circuitous route that it took from when you know Bibi Netanyahu has Donald Trump's cellphone number.

What do you make of that?

MCGURK: Yeah, Kate, I've done this work. So I've done negotiations in Doha. I've worked with the Israelis for years. Sometimes they will notify for an operation that's coming in a week. Sometimes they'll you just after it happens. Sometimes just before it happened.

Oftentimes most solid (PH) clandestine type operations -- say the Hezbollah beeper attack or the operation they did to take out one of the Hamas leaders in Tehran. That was a clandestine operation that Israel actually for months never even acknowledged.

But this was an overt military operation with a named operation. About 10 fighter aircraft, 10 standoff strikes. To not consult with the United States significantly beforehand, particularly -- we have one of our largest military bases not far from here. It's one of the busiest international airports in Doha. I just find extraordinary.

So I think we'll learn a little more about that tick-tock and chain of events. But if that's true that there was almost no notification into the White House and there was just a military notification, that is truly extraordinary, and I really cannot -- I can't understand it.

Again, nobody is shedding a tear for these Hamas leaders. These guys have blood on their hands. Forty-six Americans were killed on October 7. But you have to think through strategy and what you're trying to achieve, and right now this just raises more questions than answers. BOLDUAN: Yeah. And it's so -- I mean, to say the least, you've seen a lot and you've been in a lot of negotiations and discussions in this very region. And the fact that you kind of were scratching your head and baffled by this I think is a -- is a real statement about what's going on here.

It's great to see you, Brett. Thank you so much -- John.

MCGURK: Thanks, Kate.

BERMAN: All right. New this morning, Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. unveiled his plan to address chronic illness in U.S. children. The White House commission report card -- report calls for better nutrition, more exercise, and a review of vaccines and drugs. But just as revealing is what it leaves out.

[07:45:00]

Here with us now is CNN medical correspondent Meg Tirrell. So Meg, let's hear what's not here.

MEG TIRRELL CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. So what everybody agrees on, of course, is that it would be great to make kids healthier.

BERMAN: Sure.

TIRRELL: That's pretty much where the agreement ends about this strategy.

And so, as you noted, they focus on nutrition, they focus on exercise, they focus on looking at different drugs and chemical exposures. In some places public health experts are worried this might go too far, and in other places some advocates say this doesn't go far enough.

And in one of the areas that public health experts are concerned about, of course, is Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s focus on vaccines. As part of this strategy he says the Department of Health and Human Services and the NIH are going to start a new vaccine injury research center, and here is why he says that's needed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR., HHS SECRETARY: It's very important to have a post-licensing surveillance system where you're going to see the vaccine injuries. Under the current system most of those vaccine injuries remain invisible and we will not be able to understand the risk profile of those products and do something about it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TIRRELL: Now, we should note that vaccines, of course, are some of the actions that RFK Jr. has taken as health secretary that have caused the most alarm in the public health world.

And I want to show you a slide from the CDC. Its own scientists prepared this for the last meeting of its outside advisers on vaccines in June, titled "COVID-19 Vaccines Have Been Evaluated Under the Most Extensive Safety Monitoring Program in U.S. History." And they detail the ways that they continue to monitor the safety of those vaccines. Of course, CDC has systems in place to continuously monitor the safety of all vaccines.

And so a lot of folks are concerned over not just this initiative but the overall focus from RFK Jr. on vaccines in his role as health secretary.

BERMAN: You know, there were mentions in this report that were much in the -- like sort of the sweet spot of consensus though.

TIRRELL: Absolutely. Things like ultra-processed foods. There as a lot of cheering when the initial report on the focus areas came out saying maybe there will be real change in the food system. And what we saw in this strategy was for ultra-processed foods -- they essentially said that they're going to "...continue their efforts to develop a government-wide definition for what it is to support potential future research and policy activity."

One expert called that a distant goal. The other one said it lacked teeth.

The other area that people were -- some people were hoping to see more of a focus on was pesticides. And what we ended up seeing in this strategy document is essentially that they said they want to ensure the public has awareness of their already robust procedures for reviewing those. And you heard from a lot of folks who wanted to see potential reviews and maybe more regulation.

BERMAN: I think people maybe were expecting more specifics overall here.

Meg Tirrell, thank you very much -- Kate.

TIRRELL: Thanks.

BOLDUAN: Ahead, it has six decks, a private cinema, a marble fireplace, and so much more. It is clearly very stunning. But why is the U.S. government now putting a mega yacht on sale with a deep discount?

And new video in showing smoke billowing as protesters storm the steps of government buildings overseas. Just look at that. Why they're taking -- why they are taking to the streets and what came of these protests.

We'll be right back.

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[07:52:38]

BOLDUAN: So this morning CNN anchor and dear friend Boris Sanchez is spotlighting his Champion for Change, fellow Cuban American Adam San Miguel. Adam is using his cafe to help migrants, support students, and to promote Cuban culture. The result, a special blend of coffee and community.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ADAM SAN MIGUEL, CEO, CORTADITOS: I would equate the Cuban culture to the coffee, which has elements of joy. The strength and perseverance and resilience, just the coffee, is very strong and they're very passionate people about what they care about.

I'm very proud of Cortaditos, a five-store -- going to be six soon -- Cuban coffee shop chain. We're building careers and pathways to resettling and growing in this country, and to support, specifically, Cuban American students.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: I am a Cuban American immigrant, and my family came to the United States the day that I turned three. I feel very connected to Adam in part because of our shared background and the idea that our families fled our homeland in order to create a new life.

Coming to Cortaditos feels like a slice of home. It feels like I'm back in Miami sharing cafecito and talking about the events of the day.

You hire a lot of Cuban migrants.

MIGUEL: We are very purposeful about it. So we work with refugee resettlement agencies, and we go specifically to the job fairs, and we recruit. And so I always tell them I want you to have a career with us or a career without us, and we're going to help you get there.

IVONNE BENITEZ, MANAGER, CORTADITOS: (through translator): As a young girl, I always wanted to leave Cuba. I came to achieve a dream to be a professional.

SANCHEZ: (Speaking foreign language). What would be your goal now for yourself?

BENITEZ (through translator): My first goal is doing English and improve myself a little more because I really would like to know a little more about business.

SANCHEZ: It can be extremely intimidating as a new arrival in the United States to try to carve a path for yourself and your family, especially if you don't speak English.

What Adam is doing at Cortaditos is giving an express lane to these folks to assimilate and to pursue their dreams.

[07:55:00]

LIZ FIS, BARISTA, CORTADITOS: I was born in Havanna, Cuba and I immigrated to the United States when I was eight years old.

I absolutely love working at Cortaditos. I get to work with other Cubans whom I can identify with, and the chemistry is just there because we get each other. SANCHEZ: Something that Adam and I share and certainly other Cuban Americans and immigrants across this country is that from a very early age our parents instilled us with the idea that you have to work hard. You have to study.

Adam has not only made good on the American dream for himself and for his family, he's now turned around and offered a helping hand to the next generation.

MIGUEL: When I say welcome, you say CAALE. Welcome!

CORTADITOS STAFF: CAALE.

MIGUEL: I founded CAALE in 2013 -- the Cuban American Alliance for Leadership and Education. Our mission is to build leadership capacity in the next generation of Cuban American leaders. We give out three $10,000 scholarships a year. And the goal of the program is to build a professional -- one that is successful in their career, has a spirit of service, and they know and care about their cultural identity, which is Cuba.

FIS: I am proud to be a scholarship recipient and to work at Cortaditos. CAALE has been such a resource that's helped me find out what career I want to continue in so that I know what options I can have for my future.

MIGUEL: My grandfather always marveled at how big and how great this country was, and he always knew the opportunity was there. If he would have saw, you know --

SANCHEZ: Of course.

MIGUEL: -- not just what I've accomplished because I don't think owning a coffee shop is so special. But I know he would be very, very proud of how I did it. He would be proud because I did it helping people.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: I have to note that Adam's service extends beyond what he's doing at Cortaditos. We actually had a very limited time with him to shoot the piece because he had to ship off to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy to attend reserve officer candidate indoctrination. He was an enlisted soldier; now he's an officer in the U.S. Coast Guard.

And he's so enthusiastic about giving back to this country which has given his family and so many others like mine so much -- John, Kate.

BOLDUAN: Thank you so much, Boris. Be sure to tune in Saturday at 10:00 p.m. Eastern for "CHAMPIONS FOR CHANGE," the one-hour special.

This morning an investigation is underway after dozens of shipping containers fell off a massive cargo ship at the Port of Long Beach in California. Port -- we'll show you the video at some point. Port officials say the ship had just arrived from China and crews were just beginning to release the straps that hold the containers down. And unfortunately, triggered something of a domino effect and you see the end result. That is a disaster of a mess.

Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've got about 15 more containers in the water. We're going to head back and get a secondary boat to see if we can push some of these around.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: This forced the port to temporarily suspend operations at the pier. No injuries were reported, thankfully.

Also this morning new drone footage shows protesters in Nepal roaming the streets as fires burn. Today, soldiers have been deployed in the capital Kathmandu after days of youth-led demonstrations. Protesters this week -- they set for to Parliament and the Supreme Court there and clashed with government forces.

Some of the aftermath -- we'll show you right here. Just take a look. Fires burning, charred buildings, and some of them still smoking.

The demonstrations were sparked by claims of widespread corruption, poor economic opportunities, and a ban on social media platforms, which was seen as a form of censorship -- and that, at least, has since been revered -- John.

BERMAN: Remarkable pictures.

All right, today is your last chance to bid on a mega yacht once owned by a Russian billionaire. The U.S. government auctioning it for $100 million after seizing it three years ago as part of an operation targeting Russians on the U.S. sanctions list.

CNN's Kara Scannell is here. I hope you got your bid in.

KARA SCANNELL, CNN REPORTER: Well, John, I was thinking maybe we could pool our money because it's a little steep for me.

But yeah, this boat is going on the auction block. It was seized three years ago as part of the government's KleptoCapture Task Force, which was intended to go after these toys -- these yachts, these planes that belong to wealthy Russians with ties to the Kremlin to pressure Putin's invasion of Ukraine.

So this mega yacht has six decks. It has a helipad. It has an infinity pool. Even something you might be interested in, a lobster tank, as well as sauna, a gym. A lot of bells and whistles.

It's a sealed auction. The bids are due today at 2:00. You just need a $10 million deposit to place a bid, and it will go to the highest bidder, so we don't know how much this is going to be. But I did talk to some experts who say this yacht that was once valued as much as $350 million now is probably valued about $80-$120 million.

BERMAN: It's a bargain.

SCANNELL: It's a bargain because of the continuing litigation. There's been this court battle for three years over the actual ownership of this boat. A judge said it did belong to this Russian who made his fortune in gold. But there is another Russian, the former head of Rosneft who is still contesting that this is his.