Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Florida on Alert as Ian Strengthens into Hurricane; Tampa's Hillsborough County Preparing Dozens of Shelters; January 6 Committee Returns with Public Hearing This Week; Call Placed from White House to January 6 Rioter; Zelenskyy Says Putin Not Bluffing on Nuclear Threat. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired September 26, 2022 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:00]

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: People already waiting in long lines outside of stores, looking to stock up on supplies while they can. They're also filling sandbags, prepping homes and businesses.

Florida governor Ron DeSantis already has declared a state of emergency for the entire state. He's also activated the National Guard. We are covering all the angles of this rapidly intensifying hurricane.

(WEATHER REPORT)

SCIUTTO: People up and down Florida's Gulf Coast are preparing now as hurricane Ian closes in. CNN's Carlos Suarez is in Tampa at this hour.

Carlos, I wonder, storm surges is the real issue here. There's been a lot of building along the coastline in recent years.

What are people doing there to get ready?

CARLOS SUAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jim, good morning. The storm preparations across the city of Tampa and really all of Hillsborough County are well underway at this hour. There are three sandbag distribution sites across the city of Tampa and it has been a pretty busy morning.

You can see just crews out here, trying to help residents fill up these sandbags ahead of whatever impact we're going to see when it comes to Ian. As you guys were talking about, before you came out to me, the concern for this part of the state of Florida is going to be the storm surge.

You're going to have all of that water pushing up along Pinellas County, which has the Gulf of Mexico on one side and it's got the bay on the other side. And even Tampa's mayor is also concerned that a lot of these low-lying areas are going to see some intense flooding, even if Ian doesn't end up making a direct hit out here.

Folks have been lining up since early this morning to get a sandbag or a few if they can. Joining us right now is Danele Grant.

Danele, you were catching your breath when I first get met you.

How many bags did you get?

DANELE GRANT, TAMPA RESIDENT: I got 10 bags.

SUAREZ: What's your concern?

GRANT: My concern is the flooding. It gets really flooded here when we get any type of storms. So my grandmother, she is a little bit older so I wanted to get out here super early (INAUDIBLE) her house. My house is pretty secure because it's up on stilts.

SUAREZ: What time did you get here this morning?

GRANT: Around like 6:45 (ph).

SUAREZ: How long did it take you to get the bags?

GRANT: About an hour.

SUAREZ: Ten bags in all?

GRANT: Yes.

SUAREZ: I feel like some places flood on a thunderstorm.

Is that your sense as well?

GRANT: Yes, I've seen here in Tampa, the drain system isn't great. So it really floods. Whenever a hurricane is coming, you have to be extra prepared and take precautions just in case.

SUAREZ: Are you a first timer or have you ridden out a couple of these storms?

GRANT: Yes, I've ridden out most of these storms.

SUAREZ: Are you going to stay put?

GRANT: Yes, for right now I'm going to stay put. But if it looks like it's going to be too serious, we will head up north.

SUAREZ: You have family and friends you can go to?

GRANT: Yes, I have family in the north we can go to if we need to.

SUAREZ: Well, Danele Grant, thank you so much. I appreciate it. Stay safe.

Jim, that's the story from here in Tampa right now. Still no word on any evacuation orders, although the mayor of Tampa was getting a briefing this morning. So we might be getting an update on that later today.

[09:05:00]

SCIUTTO: Yes. So much will depend on how much storm surge there is. Need more sandbags if there is. Carlos Suarez, thanks so much.

Meanwhile, in Cuba, people are bracing for what's expected to be life- threatening storm surge as well. Hurricane force winds coming there as soon as tonight. CNN's Patrick Oppmann joins us from Havana.

They've seen storms like this before; I'm curious what the level of concern is there now.

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: People are holding their breath. This, of course, comes at a time where there is not a lot of gasoline, a lot of diesel, if you want to evacuate. The store shelves are already pretty empty.

So it is bringing injury to injury, essentially, Jim. People are watching very closely. It's just a question of, does this storm skirt farther to the west, to a province which is a relatively unpopulated -- it's an important agricultural center for this island.

So a lot of food could be lost there. The famous tobacco for Cuban cigars is grown there. But if even tropical storm force winds come to Havana, that can lead to very bad flooding. A lot of the older buildings that have not been maintained over the years can collapse, even in tropical storm force winds.

So people are concerned. They know the infrastructure here can give out, that you can have quite a bit of flooding, even in a heavy rainstorm, forgetting hurricane force rains -- or tropical storm force rain.

So people are watching this very closely but, of course, when you live on an island, Jim, you have to simply ride it out. There is nowhere people can go. So people are preparing to go to their homes, stay with relatives and ride this out if they have to.

SCIUTTO: Been in some of those older buildings and that can be a real challenge. Patrick Oppmann, good to have you in Havana. Stay safe.

Back to Florida now, joining me is Rob Herrin. He's the public information officer for the Hillsborough County, Florida, fire and rescue.

Thanks for taking the time this morning. I know you have a lot to do there.

ROB HERRIN, PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER, HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY FIRE AND RESCUE: Thank you, Jim.

SCIUTTO: First, a lot of folks in Florida watching right now.

What's your advice to residents?

I mean, always the game now, as it were, right, is you don't know exactly where the storm is going to hit. And there's a big difference where it ends up.

So what advice are you giving to people, particularly on Florida's West coast?

HERRIN: Residents need to have a plan. It's as simple as that. And just understand that that plan might include evacuating. And we want to stress that evacuating doesn't necessarily mean that you have to leave the state or drive over to the East Coast of Florida. It could be as simple as moving 20 miles inland and staying with friends and family.

SCIUTTO: Yes, that's a good point there, right?

You don't have to drive all the way up I-95.

When do you make that call?

Because you've got a lot of variables you've got to put into that decision. You don't take that kind of decision and evacuation order lightly.

How soon do you think you make that decision?

HERRIN: Well, we continue to monitor this storm very closely and I would encourage residents to continue to follow trusted sources from official government, the media and weather forecasts. And we will alert them if an evacuation is ordered.

SCIUTTO: We at CNN will certainly do our best to get that word out as soon as it happens. You know as well as me, Florida has seen its share of hurricanes before; Tampa area has as well.

But as I understand it this may be the first direct hit to Tampa of a storm of this strength in as long as a century.

I just wonder, how do you keep residents from becoming complacent?

HERRIN: Yes, that's somewhat the challenge. You know, we really have stressed over the last few days for our residents to take this seriously. As you've said this morning, these storms are very unpredictable.

So it's very important that our residents have a plan and they begin to start thinking about executing that plan. We also have a lot of new residents to the Hillsborough County area and from other states. So we are doing our best to keep them informed and continue to execute their plan as necessary.

SCIUTTO: In my experience, one of the issues when communities do ask their residents -- or order their residents to evacuate -- is it's options. You know, the shelters get filled up quickly; the hotels get filled up quickly inland.

Are you confident that you have the resources, the space in the area at a safe distance to accommodate people if there is an evacuation order? HERRIN: Yes, sir. I'm confident of that. We have several dozen shelters that are staged and ready. We will make the decision on what shelters to open, based on a community's needs and these shelters have accommodate -- there's some that can accommodate special needs citizens and pets as well. So we are prepared.

SCIUTTO: Yes, you're doing a good job. But before we go, tell us what you're going to be looking for in the next couple of days --

[09:10:00]

SCIUTTO: -- to make your decision and to share the latest information you have with residents along the coast.

HERRIN: Yes, as -- you know, as it gets closer and we get within, you know, 48 hours or 72 hours of the storm hitting, then we need to start mobilizing if necessary.

So it's all going to be dependent on the advisories that come out regarding the path and trajectory of the storm. But our leadership is poised to make that decision and communicate it to the residents.

SCIUTTO: Rob, good luck to you and the community in these coming hours and days. As I said earlier, as you report to us decisions, we will do our best to get that out to folks. Thank you.

HERRIN: Thanks, Jim. Thank you, sir.

SCIUTTO: Still to come this hour, there is new CNN reporting; a key figure in the plot to overturn the 2020 election messaged then White House chief of staff Mark Meadows on plans to seize voting machines. What those texts reveal -- that's coming up.

Plus, the U.S. has privately warned Russia more than once that there will be catastrophic consequences if it uses nuclear weapons in its war on Ukraine. This as the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that Vladimir Putin is not bluffing when he makes these threats.

And NASA's mission to slam a spacecraft into a giant asteroid happens today. What we're going to be able to see and why they believe we need this crucial test now.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:15:00]

(MUSIC PLAYING)

SCIUTTO: The January 6th committee will hold what is expected to be its final public hearing this week. But panel members are staying tight-lipped about what we can expect from this hearing.

Representative Liz Cheney has said the committee uncovered new information from the nearly 800,000 pages of Secret Service communications it received. You may remember the Secret Service initially said texts from the day before and during the Capitol attack had all been inadvertently deleted.

Meanwhile, committee chair Bennie Thompson has said the panel has substantial footage and significant witness testimony that have not been seen yet in the hearings so far. The hearing set to get underway Wednesday, 1:00 Eastern time. Of course, we will bring you those.

New this morning, text messages obtained by CNN revealed that a key figure in the plot to overturn the 2020 election briefed White House chief of staff Mark Meadows about his attempts to gain access to voting machines in battleground states.

Joining me now CNN national security reporter Zachary Cohen.

Zach, this shows the president's chief of staff knew about these efforts.

ZACH COHEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Jim, it's really remarkable. These are texts between Meadows and this guy named Phil Waldron. Waldron was really behind some of the most outlandish proposals for overturning the election.

And they really focused on getting access to voting machines in particular. He was really hung up on this idea that foreign countries, foreign adversaries had hacked into voting machines through outlandish ways.

SCIUTTO: Based on nothing.

COHEN: Based on nothing -- satellites, thermostats -- and he was on a mission to prove it.

So this shows that Mark Meadows was talking to Phil Waldron, a direct line to Trump's chief of staff, at a time when Trump's closest allies were really hunting and really urgently hunting for proof, any proof or evidence of voter fraud that they never really did turn up.

So I think the timing of this is really important. It's interesting to note that what they're talking about here is not necessarily illegal. But what it shows is just the sense of urgency from the Trump people to really prove the conspiracies that were out there.

SCIUTTO: How did Meadows respond when he was made aware of this?

COHEN: In both instances, he responds in one word. In the first example, they are talking about an effort to get voting machine access in Arizona. And a judge says, no, we are not going to let that happen. And Waldron is informing Meadows about this.

But when he does, Meadows says one thing; he says, "Pathetic."

SCIUTTO: He wasn't satisfied with the efforts.

COHEN: He cleanly makes his feelings ... SCIUTTO: There is a criminal investigation at both the state and

federal level -- so investigations, I should say -- into obtaining voting machines potentially illegally. So that is a criminal investigation now.

COHEN: Yes, Jim, look, there is state and federal investigations, criminal investigations involving incidents in three different states. It's not clear and there is no evidence that it's directly related to what Waldron is talking to Meadows about in these text messages.

But it's interesting because several of the individuals who are targets of these criminal investigations are also associates of Waldron and have worked with him in the past. So those investigations have to play out but the overlap there is notable.

SCIUTTO: Investigations have to play out. That is a familiar mantra. Zach Cohen, thanks for the reporting. Thanks so much.

In a new interview, a former senior technical adviser to the January 6th committee, Denver Riggleman, says that the White House placed a phone call to a Capitol rioter on the day of the insurrection.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DENVER RIGGLEMAN, FORMER ADVISER, JANUARY 6 SELECT COMMITTEE: You get a real ah-ha moment when you see that the White House switchboard had connected to a rioter's phone while it's happening.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Someone in the White House was calling one of the rioters while the riot was going on?

RIGGLEMAN: On January 6, absolutely.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: Joining me now, former federal prosecutor, CNN legal analyst Jennifer Rodgers.

I'm curious, the significance of this here, to have a communication -- by the way, an outgoing call -- from the White House to a rioter, I believe, for a handful of seconds. But still a connection there.

What significance do you see potentially?

Again, I know you don't have a lot of details -- who placed the call and what was the content -- but potential significance of that link.

JENNIFER RODGERS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Well, it would be, of course, a communication between the White House and the rioters, which suggests possible coordination.

I mean, there is a lot we don't know, of course; who placed the call -- they are going to have to do some detective work to figure out if they can -- who placed that call from inside the White House.

But then you start to think about what coordination was there between people on the ground, who were breaching the Capitol, and the White House and, of course, looking back to see whether there are other communications earlier in that day and the days preceding January 6.

SCIUTTO: OK. So the other new reporting from my colleague, Zach Cohen, we were just discussing and that is text messages.

[09:20:00]

SCIUTTO: We do know who was on both sides of those text messages, the then White House chief of staff Mark Meadows; Waldron, who was cooking up this plot to access voting machines in swing states.

What is the legal significance or liability for Meadows to be aware of an attempt to access and perhaps interfere with voting machines?

RODGERS: So Mark Meadows has long been the kind of key to a potential cooperator, who could blow this whole thing open, right?

He's privy to what Trump knew; he is really the funnel kind of for information coming into the White House and going out from Trump to other people.

So any pressure that could be put on Mark Meadows, that puts him in jeopardy, that influences him to cooperate is important. And this strikes me as something like that.

Here is an instance, where you have someone very deeply involved in these potentially illegal schemes to access voting information. And it's not just through Sidney Powell and Rudy Giuliani and Mike Flynn and those folks but directly to Mark Meadows.

That, to me, is a pressure point that you can use to say to Mark Meadows, listen, you need to come on board and cooperate and tell us what you know. And that, of course, could be a treasure trove.

SCIUTTO: I want to ask you big picture here. This is the question I get most often from family and friends looking at these various investigations. Let's focus on January 6. Wednesday, the last public hearing. We have had many public hearings, many important revelations.

The question, of course, is now what happens with it?

Will there be a criminal referral, for example?

You spent years as a prosecutor.

Do you see the evidence here?

Have they made the case for criminal referral for anyone up to and including the former president?

RODGERS: Well, certainly they've made the case for a referral. And in fact, we know that DOJ is already investigating parts of this plot at least. So to be honest the referral isn't particularly important to DOJ. They are already looking at what's going on here. What is very important to DOJ is the evidence that has been amassed by

the committee. And it's been very powerful and impressive. So they are already looking into this. There is substantial evidence of an illegal scheme.

The question is, when they put it all together, will they charge or not in their discretion?

And that's what we're all waiting to hear, of course.

SCIUTTO: The former president seems to be under the impression that, if and when he announces his candidacy for 2024, that he is less likely to be indicted.

Is that true?

RODGERS: No, not at all. I mean, if we got to within 60 days of an election, we know that the unwritten rule at DOJ is that they wouldn't bring a charge in that period. But just because you've been announced as a candidate doesn't mean that you won't be investigated.

Indeed, if he really thought that were true, I think he would have announced already to put a stop to all of this. So I believe that he knows that that's not true. Certainly Merrick Garland isn't paying any attention to that.

SCIUTTO: Jennifer Rodgers, thanks so much.

RODGERS: Thanks.

SCIUTTO: In remarkable scenes, Russians are lining up for miles to flee their country as Vladimir Putin expands his war mobilization -- partial, as he's calling it. This against Ukraine.

Also threatening Ukraine and the West with the use of nuclear weapons. CNN, we are on the ground in Ukraine, coming up.

Plus, we're moments away from the opening bell on Wall Street. Futures pointing lower once again this morning. This as the British pound hit a record all-time low against the dollar. These levels have not been seen since the '80s.

The Federal Reserve's interest rate hikes have caused the dollar to surge. Britain's plans calling the pound a fall -- (INAUDIBLE). Investors keeping an eye on foreign currency shifts, also the bigger economic global picture. We're keeping an eye on all of it. Stay with us.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:25:00]

(MUSIC PLAYING) SCIUTTO: Right now U.S. officials are making it clear to their Russian counterparts that there will be, quote, "catastrophic consequences" if Russia were to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine.

Secretary of state Antony Blinken and other officials are now going public, reiterating warnings they made so far in private as the Kremlin's threats have intensified.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: It's very important that Moscow hear from us and know from us that the consequences would be horrific and we've made that very clear.

Any use of nuclear weapons would have catastrophic effects for, of course, the country using them but for many others as well.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you tell us that the administration has a plan?

BLINKEN: We do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that Putin's nuclear threats must be taken seriously.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): I don't think he's bluffing. I think the world is deterring it and containing this threat. We need to keep putting pressure on him and not allow him to continue.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: CNN's Ben Wedeman joins me now from a town in the east, Izyum, recently retaken by Ukrainian forces from Russian occupying forces this past weekend.

Ben, I wonder, you are very close to the front lines there, as are thousands of Ukrainian troops. You speak to Ukrainian officials, residents, soldiers.

Do they take the nuclear threats seriously?

Are they preparing for that possibility?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: They take them seriously.

But it's difficult to say, how can you prepare for a nuclear attack?

Really, they're just, I think, hoping it doesn't happen. And really the focus at the moment is, rather than on a --

[09:30:00]