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Steve Vladeck is Interviewed about the Texas Abortion Ban; Final Pitch to Virginia Voters; American Airlines Cancels Flights; Baldwin Speaks about Shooting; Jury Selection in Rittenhouse Trial Begins. Aired 9:30-10a ET

Aired November 01, 2021 - 09:30   ET

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

[09:30:00]

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Joining us now, University of Texas School of Law Professor Steve Vladeck.

So, Steve, good to have you with us this morning.

You say the court, you know, and you point out here, this is, again, not about the court deciding whether this six-week abortion ban is constitutional, but how it's being played out.

So just give us broad picture, what should we really be looking for in these oral arguments?

STEVE VLADECK, PROFESSOR OF LAW, UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS SCHOOL OF LAW: Yes, Erica, it's the right question. And I think the short answer is, where are the justices who we all think are going to be the decisive votes on this? Where is Justice Brett Kavanaugh? Where is Justice Amy Coney Barrett? Are they worried that Texas has effectively made it impossible for individuals to vindicate an existing constitutional right, or are they focused on these specific procedural traps Texas has created and worried about undoing those traps, worried about opening the door to lawsuits? Which way those two justices are leaning I think is going to tell us a lot about how these two cases are going to come out.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR: It's a remarkable precedent set here by Texas because basically -- and tell me if this is true, does it set up other state legislatures using the same method to get around constitutional protections? Here, you're delegating to private citizens to enforce, in effect, abortion ban. Could you do the same, delegate to private citizens to, I don't know, enforce, you know, actions against desegregation, against a whole host of things that in prior Supreme Court decisions have been granted to the American people?

VLADECK: Yes, Jim, that's a slippery slope here. I mean if Texas can do it to abortion, you know, is the next move for California to do it to guns? And I think that's why this is so not about abortion. In some respects, you know, everyone's focused on the abortion piece of this, and, obviously, that's critically important. But it's almost more important, even though it's harder to see why because it's so technical, if states can effectively frustrate our constitutional rights, if states can pick and choose which rights can be meaningfully enforced in court, then our rights don't mean that much. Then our rights are basically subject to the whims of the legislatures of each state.

And, Jim, in that context, we wouldn't have one federal constitution, we'd have 50. And that's not a system that's going to be sustainable in the long-term.

HILL: And -- so as everybody's watching this so closely, we see this expedited timeline to review the case. What does that mean for when we could actually hear from the justices? Is that expedited as well?

VLADECK: Yes, good point, and this is -- today is ten days since the court agreed to take up these cases. That's the shortest period between a grant of review and oral argument since Bush versus Gore in December of 2000.

You know, I think we're going to hear fairly quickly from the justices, probably not today, but sometime later this week, early next week, partly because I think they understand the implications one way or the other and partly because I think they want to resolve this question of whether abortion provider in Texas or the federal government can challenge this law before next month, December, when they're set to hear an equally important case about Roe itself coming out of Mississippi.

SCIUTTO: Let me ask you this, though, again, and you're the expert here, but whether the court decides now just on the issue of this particularly enforcement mechanism here as opposed to making a qualitative decision on Roe v. Wade, is the effect the same? I mean, because if you allow the mechanism to go forward, then that Roe v. Wade decision and the right that came from it, as you say, doesn't mean a lot in states that would pass similar legislation.

VLADECK: Yes, I mean -- Jim, that's exactly right. And I think that's why back in September, when the Supreme Court allowed this law to go into effect by a 5-4 vote, you know, so many folks thought that was a harbinger of things to come for Roe, that if there weren't five justices to block a law like this, that that spelled trouble for Roe versus Wade.

But, again, I mean I think the key here is not just that a ruling against the providers that are ruling against the federal government would allow this incredibly restrictive abortion law to remain in effect and that other states would surely copy-cat it, Jim. The problem is that it wouldn't stop with abortion. And that's why even though, obviously, folks have strong views about abortion and about the constitutional right the Supreme Court has recognized to abortion, but the cases the Supreme Court is hearing this morning are about so much more than that. And I think that's why it's going to be really critical to see if conservative justices who we know are hostile to Roe versus Wade and to the constitutional right the Supreme Court recognized they're in are even more hostile to the idea that the meaning of our constitutional rights is ultimately up to state legislators and not the court.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HILL: So much interest. And we will be watching it closely.

Really great to have you with us this morning. Steve, thank you.

VLADECK: Thank you.

SCIUTTO: Enormous effect for people's lives.

Still ahead, election day looming in Virginia. A look at Republican Glenn Youngkin's momentum in the race for the governor's office and how, regardless of the outcome tomorrow, the new lieutenant governor will make history.

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[09:39:35]

HILL: This morning, Democrat Terry McAuliffe and Republican Glenn Youngkin are making one final push in the race for Virginia's governor. It's a contest that recent polling shows is neck in neck.

SCIUTTO: Many see this race, as they do a lot of races, frankly, as a bellwether for the 2022 midterms.

Joining us now, CNN national political reporter Dan Merica. He's in Richmond, Virginia.

Dan, Virginia, as you know, was an easy win for President Biden in 2020. This one based on the public polling shows to be a lot closer.

[09:40:04]

How did it get to this point?

DAN MERICA, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER: Yes, and I think -- yes, I think this is why Republicans are so excited headed into election day. I mean they haven't had a real viable state-wide candidate in a number of years. This has been eight years of Democratic control, the governor's mansion here in Virginia. So they're excited that Youngkin is closing strong. And as you note, polls are very tight. These -- this is a tight race that either -- it could go either way. And that's why you saw candidates really crisscrossing the state over the weekend, stumping across the state.

You saw Youngkin up in northern Virginia but also out in western Virginia, where a much more conservative voting bloc. And then you saw Governor McAuliffe, he spent a lot of time in the Tidewater region, which is around Norfolk, Portsmouth, that area, and then up in the northern Virginia suburbs that are very vote rich that he feels like he has to do well in.

This weekend was critical. It was the last day of early vote was on Saturday and over 1.1 million Virginians have already cast their ballots in this race. That's important to remember. So all these swings that we've seen, the momentum, the polls, a lot of that can be negated by the fact that 1.1 million ballots have already been banked. So that means these last-minute, you know, pushes and these swings that we see, the ads that we see campaigns going up with, yes, they matter because there's going to be a lot of voting on election day, but it's not as central, not as critical as if there was no pre- election voting.

Jim.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HILL: You know, Dan, one other thing a lot of people are looking at is, we talk so much about the governor's race here, but whoever -- whatever the outcome, the lieutenant governor in Virginia will be making history.

MERICA: Yes. Yes, it will be a significant day no matter what on Tuesday. Democrat Hala Ayala and Republican Winsome Sears, both women of color who are running to be the second in command here in Virginia, that is significant obviously in any state, but specifically here in Virginia. The city behind me you see used to be the capital of confederacy. This commonwealth has been grappling with its history of race -- on race for the last few years. And so just the significance of either one of them winning on Tuesday will mean a lot to this commonwealth, especially given that history that has been addressed. You've seen confederate monuments all over the city I'm currently in, in Richmond, taken down. Actually, behind the camera here was one that was taken down that was a confederate monument to soldiers and sailors. So that history is overlaying all of this race. And, yes, they're very different candidates, Hala Ayala, a Democrat, has been very outspoken on COVID, making it central to her race. Winsome Sears is actually, in an interview with me, would not tell me whether she was vaccinated or not. So, yes, they're dramatically different candidates but that history will be made no matter what on Tuesday.

HILL: That it will.

Dan Merica, great to see you this morning. Thank you.

And just a reminder to join us for CNN's live coverage tomorrow night of election night in America. And, of course, we are not just talking about Virginia. CNN also following the races for New Jersey governor, New York City mayor and many more. Our special coverage begins tomorrow at 6:00 p.m. Eastern.

SCIUTTO: American Airlines has now canceled another 250 flights this morning as the company deals with staffing shortages and weather issues that have disrupted schedules for days.

HILL: More than 1,900 flights have been canceled since last Friday. Here's a look, one of the lines there. These are travelers waiting in Miami, Florida. American says help is on the way.

CNN aviation correspondent Pete Muntean has been following this for us.

So, Pete, thousands of flight attendants, we're told, for American should be back on the job today. How long, though, for the airline to catch up at this point?

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Erica, and they're all returning from pandemic time off. And the help can't come soon enough for American Airlines. It says it will see considerable improvement in its schedule starting today.

But just look at the latest numbers of cancellations. American has canceled about 262 flights so far today, 1,058 on Sunday, 548 on Saturday, 343 on Friday. All this amounts to one in every ten American Airlines flights canceled over that four-day period. But American says these problems really all started back on Thursday when bad weather and high winds hit its major hub at DFW in Dallas. That started this chain reaction of cancellations that left people and planes out of position.

American's COO, David Seymour, sent a letter to the entire workforce saying he wanted to build certainty into the operation so the airline began proactively canceling flights. But that left thousands of people stranded and long lines across the country.

Listen now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't understand why it's canceled. I -- I've heard they don't have enough staff. Well, you sold me a product. I paid for it. Now it's your job to get me there

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We were waiting to board the aircraft and then they said the flight was canceled.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, at this point we want to -- we just want to go back home but we don't want to lose the money that we've already paid for at the resort.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MUNTEAN: If this sounds like a familiar story, it's because it is.

[09:45:01]

Southwest Airlines had a similar issue happen to it only three weeks ago when it had to cancel about 2,000 flights. It blamed weather and air traffic control issues that cascaded over the course of a few days.

Remember, airlines are a lot smaller than they were going into the pandemic. There are fewer workers services fewer airplanes. That's exacerbating this problem. DOT data shows that airlines, as an entire industry, are about 7,000 people smaller than they were back in 2019.

SCIUTTO: Pete, you mentioned Southwest Airlines. They've got another issue to deal with. An internal investigation against one of their pilots for using just a frankly offensive phrase. Tell us what the latest is on that? MUNTEAN: That phrase is called let's go, Brandon, and the right uses

it essentially as a facsimile for the words f Joe Biden. And a pilot, according to an "Associated Press" reporter, said this on a Southwest flight from Houston to Albuquerque on Friday.

Now Southwest is acknowledging that this issue happened and it just released a statement saying, Southwest does not condone employees sharing their political opinions while on the job. Southwest is conducting an internal investigation into the recently reported event and it will be addressing the situation directly with any employee involves. Southwest continues by saying, we continue to remind all employees that public expression of personal opinions while on duty is unacceptable.

But this is hardly the only incident, maybe just one, that only passengers have heard. United Airlines, the union that represents its pilots, issued a statement to pilots saying that they should not use the emergency radio frequency that pilots used to report may day calls, serious stuff, to use it as a political pulpit.

I'm a pilot. I have heard it over the radio. The words FJB, I just heard it flying yesterday. So this is a problem that a lot of people are experiencing. Maybe only passengers are just now starting to realize it.

SCIUTTO: It's just so adolescent at the end of the day.

Pete Muntean, thanks so much for filling us in.

Coming up next, an emotional Alec Baldwin speaks for the first time since he shot and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of his movie in a bizarre, tragic accident. We'll have more, next.

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[09:51:39]

SCIUTTO: The actor Alec Baldwin is speaking publicly for the first time since cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was fatally shot on the set of his latest movie, "Rust." He says that Hollywood needs to make changes when it comes to firearm safety.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALEC BALDWIN, ACTOR: Some new measures have to take place, rubber guns, plastic guns, no live -- no real (INAUDIBLE).

But that's not the (INAUDIBLE). It's urgent. It's urgent that you understand. I'm not an expert in this field. So whatever other people decide is the best way to go in terms of protecting people's safety on film sets, I'm all in favor of and I will cooperate with that in any way that I can.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Baldwin went on to say he has been in touch with law enforcement daily and that he doubts "Rust" will resume filming after the tragedy.

CNN's Natasha Chen following these latest developments for us.

Natasha, there's also some new reporting about the moments which led up to the shooting and those new details are eye-opening.

NATASHA CHEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Erica and Jim, the new details are from "The Los Angeles Times." It gives us a look into, as you know, those final moments before Baldwin fired that shot that killed Hutchins.

"The L.A. Times" did this by interviewed 14 crew members from "Rust," including nine people who were at Bonanza Creek Ranch the day this happened. They also gathered records, emails, text messages from Santa Fe County, as well as from -- communications from the "Rust" production.

And I want to share here a quote from their article, what Alec Baldwin said as he was doing this move. "The L.A. Times" quote says, so he had said, placing his hand on the Colt .45 revolver in its holster, I guess I'm going to take this out, pull it and go bang.

And as we've previously reported, this was a rehearsal. And assistant director Dave Halls had told investigators that he had handed Baldwin a cold gun. We also reported previously that director Joe Souza told investigators as well that he heard the term cold gun on set and that this was a rehearsal where Baldwin was practicing a cross draw, a move where the shooter pulls the weapon from the holster from the opposite side of the body from the draw arm.

And so we knew some of that context, but this is the first time we're hearing an exact quote from Alec Baldwin as reported by "The L.A. Times." And, of course, as you said on Saturday, Baldwin spoke in front of cameras for the first time saying also that he was friends with Hutchins and that he even took her and Director Souza to dinner when he arrived on set and this is very devastating for everyone.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HILL: Natasha Chen with those new details for us.

Natasha, thank you.

We are now just moments away from the start of jury selection in the trial of Kyle Rittenhouse. He's the Illinois teenager who shot and killed two people, wounded another with an AR-15-style rifle during a protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, last summer.

SCIUTTO: Yes, he drove from his home to take part in this, carrying a semiautomatic rifle with him. The trial tests the legality of vigilante killings as defense lawyers claim that Rittenhouse, the 17, was acting in self-defense.

CNN's Omar Jimenez, he's live in Kenosha this morning.

Omar, talk about this litmus test in place now for selecting jurors here.

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jim and Erica, perception is going to be everything here.

[09:55:03]

It's why, when the judge ruled that the word "victims" could not be used, yet the words "rioters" and "looters" could be used is so crucial prosecutors argue on this front. And he has been consistent on that. I will say, every pre-trial I've listened to since early this year he has not allowed the word "victim" to be used. But, again, prosecutors argue now is the most crucial time.

The jury selection process will begin in a few minutes at the top of the hour here. Up to 150 prospective jurors are expected to be called over the course of this process to whittle down to 12, plus alternates.

And as a reminder, the charges Kyle Rittenhouse is facing, he's facing five felonies and a misdemeanor. Among the felonies, first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree reckless homicide and that misdemeanor possession of a dangerous weapon under the age of 18.

And the process, again, begins in a few minutes.

Jim. Erica.

HILL: All right, we'll be looking -- looking to you, of course, for more updates as they come in, Oman. Appreciate it, as always.

Still ahead, President Biden expected to address world leaders on the global climate crisis.

Stay with us.

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