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Supreme Court Hears Case on Elections; German Authorities Stop Coup Plot; China Curbs COVID Crackdown; Trump Lawyers Conduct Search For Classified Documents?; Senator Raphael Warnock Wins Reelection in Georgia. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired December 07, 2022 - 13:00   ET

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

[13:00:00]

JOHN KING, CNN HOST: Second gentlemen Doug Emhoff, who is Jewish, stepping into a bigger role in the fight against antisemitism, leading today a roundtable on the spike in high-profile antisemitic incidents.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DOUGLAS EMHOFF, SECOND GENTLEMAN: Antisemitism is dangerous. We cannot normalize this. We all have an obligation to condemn these vile acts. We must all -- all of us cannot stay silent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: We will see you tomorrow.

Ana Cabrera picks up our coverage right now.

ANA CABRERA, CNN HOST: Hello. I'm Ana Cabrera in New York. Thanks so much for being here.

A big win for Democrats, a blow to Donald Trump and a potential blueprint for 2024. Today, the political landscape is feeling a lot clearer now that the midterms are finally wrapped up.

Senator Raphael Warnock's victory in Georgia is a crucial win for President Biden's agenda over the next two years. It's also raising some serious questions about who the Republicans want to back in their fight for the White House in 2024.

Lisa Rayam, a radio host of NPR's "Morning Edition" in Atlanta, is with us. And CNN chief congressional correspondent Manu Raju is with lawmakers getting new reaction the Hill.

And so, Manu, let me start there.

The GOP blame game has begun. Was this a big enough loss to chip away at Trump's grip on the party? What are you hearing from Republicans?

MANU RAJU, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: There is a lot of blame that's being spread this morning. I have been spending the days talking to Republicans who are concerned

about their strategy, their tactics, about Donald Trump's involvement, and all saying that things need to change in different ways in order for them to get back in a majority in 2024, some saying it was Trump getting directly involved, selecting these candidates and pushing them through the primaries, some blaming the National Republican Senatorial Committee for not being more assertive in its own approach.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee decided not to get involved in those primaries. And when I asked Rick Scott, the chairman of the committee, why he didn't get involved, he said it was up to the voters and he defended his approach.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: Should you have taken a more active role and try to prop up the candidates who would have been more electable?

SEN. RICK SCOTT (R-FL): Well, I think you got to rely on the voters of the states. It's their states.

RAJU: I mean, there's talk of...

SCOTT: I trust the voters.

SEN. JOHN THUNE (R-SD): I think in an election year when it should have been a referendum on the current administration and their policies, the Democrats, in many cases, were able to kind of turn it into a choice election because of Trump's presence.

RAJU: Do you agree that?

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): No.

RAJU: You don't.

GRAHAM: I think we're losing close elections, not because of Donald Trump.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: So, Lindsey Graham there saying it was not Donald Trump, blaming Democratic fund-raising instead, but all of them also agreed on this. They need to spend more of an effort to try to prop up early voting, prop up mail-in voting, even as Donald Trump has demagogued that.

They said they need to change is going forward in the next election cycle. Pat Toomey, a Republican who is retiring, said that it was -- that Trump's obsession is very bad for the party, and Mitt Romney said it is a kiss of death to get the Trump endorsement.

So a lot of blame going around, but no unity on how to move forward.

CABRERA: Lisa, I think there are a number of ways you can read these results from Georgia. Is the takeaway Georgia is now a purple state? Was it that Republicans blew this? Or was this just a one-off?

LISA RAYAM, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: All of the above.

It was quite the run-off, as we saw these past four weeks. And, yes, the win has Georgia looking more purple. To add to the earlier report, Lieutenant Governor, outgoing Lieutenant Governor Geoff Duncan is very angry, very outspoken as to what transpired in this latest run-off.

He says all Republicans here in Georgia should be held accountable, and all Republicans should hold Donald Trump accountable for endorsing Herschel Walker, someone who was not a viable candidate, in his opinion. And he says the party has just gone all wrong.

So you have all sorts of things happening here. But who emerged the winner? It was Senator Raphael Warnock.

CABRERA: And the Democrats, who now have 51 votes in the Senate, Manu. That's a big deal. How does that change the Democratic Party's strategy in the new Congress?

RAJU: Well, one of the big issues will be on nominations and also on the committee level.

Right now, committees are split evenly between the two sides in the 50/50 Senate. That means a single nomination could be deadlocked in the committee, and it would take extra steps in the legislative process to move them forward. Now, with the 51-49 Senate, things change. There will be an extra seat on the committees, at least so they can move forward.

And it could neutralize the opposition from some members of their party, such as Senator Joe Manchin, for instance, who's running for -- who might run for reelection. If he does, he might bolt on some key nominations. But the big issue here is on the issue of nominations.

If there's a Supreme Court vacancy, for instance, Democrats can afford to lose one of their members and still get a nomination confirmed, which could turn out to be hugely significant. The issue of legislating, though, is much different, because getting a bill through is going to require the House and the Senate to agree on legislation.

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And with a divided Congress, that will be very, very difficult. But getting the nominations confirmed will be the most immediate impact in the new Congress.

CABRERA: And, Lisa, Democrats are now talking about changing the presidential primary calendar, making a huge Southern shift, with South Carolina first, moving Georgia up.

Georgia's Republican secretary of state just this morning said he likes this idea. How could this move potentially impact the 2024 race?

RAYAM: Well, a lot of people here in Georgia, mainly Democrats, like that, because they say it reflects what Georgia is, a diverse state. And that's what's needed, as opposed to an Iowa, that doesn't appear

to be as diverse. Georgia was key in getting President Biden elected. And they say Georgia is truly, truly a battleground state now, and so it makes perfect sense.

CABRERA: Manu, speaking of 2024, a former Warnock campaign staffer writes in a CNN op-ed today: "Should Biden decide not to run for reelection, Warnock should be the Democratic Party's first choice to lead them back to the presidency."

I wonder, do you think the party's leaders right now, the lawmakers you talk to every day, see Warnock in that light?

RAJU: They have -- I have not heard that from many members of the Senate. In fact, most Senate Democrats are just taking a wait-and-see approach to see what Joe Biden does.

And if he decides not to run, that's when it would open the floodgates. Any number of senators may want to run for president. Oftentimes, the expression is that any senator wakes up in the morning, looks in the mirror, and they see a future president. That may be the case for any one of the soon-to-be 51 Democratic senators.

But in talking to Democratic senators, including one I talked to this morning, Senator Jon Tester, he's running for reelection in Montana. He might run for reelection in Montana. He has not made a decision in 2024. I asked him, does he want Joe Biden to run? He said it is up to Joe Biden himself. I said, will affect you in your race going forward? He downplayed the impact it would have down-ticket.

So, Democrats are not get pushing Biden out of the race. They're waiting for him to make a decision. And if he decides not to run, that will change, of course, everything.

CABRERA: Lisa, what do you make of the Warnock 2024 talk? Can you extrapolate from his win there in Georgia?

RAYAM: Yes, well, you know what? He made it clear last night in his victory speech. He says: I plan on remaining pastor of the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church, and I want to represent Georgia in Washington.

So he says those are his two main priorities right now. Is it possible? Anything is possible. But he's not thinking and talking about that right now.

CABRERA: OK, there's a lot to see what will come in 2024, as the next election will be here before we know it.

Thank you so much, Lisa Rayam and Manu Raju. As always, thank you both.

New today, we're learning Donald Trump's legal team hired an outside team now to search four of his properties for any classified materials that may still be unaccounted for. And this is according to a source familiar with the matter. CNN senior justice correspondent Evan Perez is here to walk us through

this.

Evan, just help us understand. Again, this is Trump's legal team wanting to do these additional searches, right? Why?

EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, because, well, the former president has some legal jeopardy.

The fact is that the -- there was a grand jury subpoena that was served on the former president this summer. He and his legal team said that they turned over everything that was marked classified to satisfy that grand jury subpoena.

But it turns out, weeks later, when the FBI went to Mar-a-Lago, they found hundreds of other pages of classified documents, documents marked as classified. So, that present -- that has presented a problem for the former president and his legal team, because they know, technically, he's in violation or he was in violation of a grand jury subpoena.

So, this idea came up, which is, we want to do additional searches just in case these documents are in one of the other properties. According to a source who talked to Kaitlan Collins, they offered the Justice Department a chance to come in and observe the search at Bedminster. DOJ declined.

But, Ana, this really does point to the exposure that the Trump legal team believes that the former president has on this issue.

CABRERA: So, if more classified documents were found, then what? Is Trump's legal team required to turn them over?

PEREZ: Yes.

CABRERA: Or at least alert the Justice Department?

PEREZ: Oh, yes, they absolutely would have to, because, again, there is a subpoena that they were -- they were supposed to satisfy, which is to turn over everything in their possession that was marked as classified.

So, if they found any additional material, they would need to turn that over.

CABRERA: But does that help his legal case then?

PEREZ: It's not clear.

I mean, look, the fact remains that this is still an ongoing investigation, and the Justice Department believes that there are still documents missing, and they have been telling that to the Trump legal team.

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CABRERA: OK, let me ask you a quick question about the January 6 Committee.

PEREZ: Yes.

CABRERA: Because multiple sources are now telling CNN that the committee is considering criminal referrals for Trump and some of his allies.

PEREZ: Right.

CABRERA: If these referrals are made, would this just be symbolic? We know the DOJ already has an investigation into January 6 on its own. It doesn't need these referrals. Or could it be more than just symbolic?

PEREZ: Well, look, I mean, it is symbolic, but it is also -- I think it is a meaningful thing certainly for a congressional committee that has been investigating this to produce a document in which they say, we believe these crimes were committed.

The Justice Department, of course, has its own investigation, Ana, as you know. And -- but here's what -- here's what's important. I think the prosecutors, criminal prosecutors who are doing this really do want to see what evidence this committee has come up with. They want to see what these transcripts of these hundreds of interviews that they have done.

And so, from that perspective, it is important what the committee is about to produce, because, certainly, prosecutors want to see some of that to help their own criminal investigation.

CABRERA: And, again, that report from the committee expected by year's end, just a few weeks away.

PEREZ: Yes.

CABRERA: Evan Perez, thank you so much.

PEREZ: Thanks, Ana.

CABRERA: In another investigation, this time specific to the Trump Organization, lawyers for the Trump family business say they will appeal yesterday's guilty verdict.

The jury convicted the Trump Organization on multiple counts of criminal tax fraud and falsifying business records. Just to be clear, Trump and his family were not charged in this case. This verdict was against the organization. But the legal battles don't stop there.

This morning on CNN, we talked to the Manhattan district attorney and asked about a report in "The New York Times" that his office is now considering a criminal inquiry into the 2016 hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. He didn't seem to deny it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALVIN BRAGG, MANHATTAN DISTRICT ATTORNEY: This is one chapter, an important chapter. But there are a lot of tentacles, if you will. We're following the facts where they go.

We can't talk about it publicly because it could prejudice it, but we have to do our work.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Now, Trump's former attorney Michael Cohen paid Stormy Daniels that $130,000 allegedly to silence her about a sexual encounter in 2006. Trump has denied they had an affair. Cohen pleaded guilty to violating campaign contribution laws in making that payment.

A surprise shift from one of the most restrictive nations on the planet, China reversing course on its controversial COVID crackdown in a massive victory for protesters. We have the details.

Plus, a restaurant refuses to serve a Christian group for its opposition to abortion and same-sex marriage. How is that any different from a Web site designer who's at the Supreme Court fighting to deny service to gay couples?

And Walmart now says shoplifting is so bad that it may have to close some stores.

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CABRERA: China hitting the brakes on the COVID crackdown that sparked nationwide protests.

The government now scrapping some of its most controversial restrictions, including the mobile phone color codes that decided if people could leave their homes, enter public places and use public transportation.

CNN's Ivan Watson is in Hong Kong with the details -- Ivan.

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IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: For the first time in months, the Chinese government has announced a relaxation significant relaxation, of its strict zero COVID policies.

And that's triggered some real excitement, for example, a surge in inquiries about plane tickets for internal travel. And why is it so important? Because look at some of the changes. For example, the government says that no longer will people need to be required to get negative PCR tests to go into public places like shopping malls, for example.

Previously, a lot of cities required people to line up and get tests every 48 hours just to do things like travel on public transport or to go to public places. Asymptomatic COVID cases, people with mild symptoms, and close contacts of COVID cases, are no longer going to be bundled off to government quarantine, where there have been reports of kind of poor accommodations, poor food, poor sanitary conditions. They can now do home quarantine. And another big change is the lifting of restrictions on travel between regions and provinces. So, I spoke with a friend in Shanghai and told her about this for the first time. And she said: "This is wonderful. I can go travel to see my parents, who I haven't seen in another province in months now."

There is a flip side to some of this excitement, and that is that the Chinese government has been warning about the fears, the dangers of COVID for years now. And now, suddenly, the narrative is changing. And it's saying, hey, this new variant is milder, you can live with it. There are still prominent fears in the population. There is a run on over-the-counter medicines for fever and respiratory illnesses, for example, at pharmacies.

But there are some real threats as well. Epidemiologists are warning that there are large numbers of Chinese that are very vulnerable to COVID. For example, 23 percent of citizens over 80 are completely unvaccinated. That's like 8.4 million people now at risk.

China is trying to rush out vaccines to these vulnerable parts of the population right now.

Ivan Watson, CNN, Hong Kong.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CABRERA: Our thanks to Ivan.

Now to Germany, where officials say they have foiled a QAnon-inspired plot to overthrow that country's government. Police assisting and arresting more than two dozen people in a series of raids. They're believed to be members or supporters of a far right terrorist organization.

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CNN international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson is live for us in London gathering details on this.

What do police think this group was about to do, Nic?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, this group doesn't believe in the legitimacy of the German government.

And the police believe that they were going to storm the Bundestag, the government building, potentially with weapons to seize control of the government to install their own parallel government -- apparently, they had even selected who would be the minister of various different departments -- and put in an alternate German military.

So the authorities using about 3,000 police, which is a huge number for Germany -- this is one of the biggest operations against a terror group that they have -- that they have instigated before -- at 150 different locations. They have pulled in 25 people, 22 in this group, another three believed to be supporters of the group, one of them a former right-wing parliamentarian from the sort of mainstream large right-wing party, the AfD, Alternative Movement for Germany.

But this group itself is extreme. It's on the fringe. It has violent ideologies, according to -- according to government officials in Germany. So the operation has, it seems, prevented what could have been a very deadly situation in the Parliament building.

And the connections or similarities to QAnon are quite similar, thinking back to January the 6th, thinking that both these organizations believe in an alternate deep state that's really running their country, so real deep conspiracy theories in a very hardcore fringe right wing.

CABRERA: And real consequences to these conspiracy theories taking root.

Thank you so much, Nic, for that reporting.

Also overseas today, a wounded American receiving a medal from Ukraine's president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Thank you so much for your bravery. A great honor. Thank you so much.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's my honor. Thank you, sir.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: That soldier, only identified as Eric, his nickname apparently is Stretch.

The nature of his injury not clear. We don't know what he did to earn this award, but President Zelenskyy clearly grateful for the help of these volunteer foreign fighters, as that war rages on.

And Zelenskyy also honored today, "TIME" magazine naming him and the spirit of Ukraine as its person of the year, "TIME" also naming as heroes of the year the women of Iran. Nationwide demonstrations started there in September after a woman died in custody of the so- called morality police. She was allegedly arrested for not wearing her headscarf properly.

No reservations. A Virginia restaurant refuses to serve a conservative Christian group for its position on same-sex marriage and abortion. Is there a legal fallout here?

And a major case before the High Court today, at stake, the future of federal elections.

Those stories and much more when we return.

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[13:28:03] CABRERA: The future of federal elections is in the Supreme Court's hands, the justices today hearing arguments on a case that centers on the very issue that fueled Trump's effort to overturn the 2020 election.

We all witnessed the chaos, the flurry of lawsuits after that election. And now what the High Court decides could fundamentally shift election laws and who gets the final say on those laws.

CNN's Jessica Schneider is following it all closely for us.

Jessica, U.S. federal elections, they're a patchwork of local and state rules and laws to begin with. So things are already messy. And that was even before you throw in 2020's election conspiracy. So explain what's at stake here. Could this case muddy things up even more?

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: It definitely could. And that's the warning from some court watchers here, Ana.

The outcome of this could really up end the way elections are currently run. We did hear in these arguments, though, some pushback from several conservative justices that maybe Republicans are pushing this theory just a bit too far, because what the Republican argument is here is that state legislatures have unchecked power to control election procedures, including redistricting, because, of course, it's a redistricting map out of North Carolina that's the core issue in dispute here.

The Republicans are trying to argue that, since legislatures control election procedures, in their view, state courts and state constitutions have no role in checking that power.

Of course, the liberal justices really pushed back on this. Justice Elena Kagan said that that interpretation would really destroy the country system of checks and balances. And even Justice Brett Kavanaugh, he piped in a bit to say that previous mentions of this independent state legislature theory maybe never intended to completely foreclose review from state courts.

And what's really an issue here that the Supreme Court will have to decide on is this elections clause in the Constitution, how it should be interpreted. This is a clause that says the time, place and manner of holding elections is determined by state legislatures.

So, the question is, do those political bodies have the final say here, or can state courts step in?

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