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CNN International: Trump Pleads Not Guilty in 2020 Election Plot; Video Shows Ukrainian Sea Drone Attack on Russian Warship; Parts of U.S. Will See More Scorching Temperatures; U.S. Navy Sailors Accused of Sharing Secrets with China. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired August 04, 2023 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:00]

MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and a warm welcome to our viewers joining us in the United States and all around the world. I'm Max Foster in London. Bianca off today. But just ahead on CNN NEWSROOM.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This is a persecution of a political opponent. This was never supposed to happen in America.

CROWD CHANTING: Lock him up, lock him up!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You are entitled to question whether it was honest or not.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's not OK to create fake electors and attack the Capitol to get your way.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The whole thing was a fraud on the United States.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Live from London, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Max Foster and Bianca Nobilo.

FOSTER: It is Friday, August 4, 9:00 a.m. here in London, 4:00 a.m. in Bedminster, New Jersey where Donald Trump isn't letting his latest indictment stand in the way of his bid to win reelection. The former U.S. president is back at his golf resort after pleading not guilty to four felony counts in his alleged plot to reverse his 2020 election loss. Trump plans to attend a fundraiser in Alabama tonight and another event in South Carolina on Saturday.

His next hearing is set for August 28 when the judge is expected to set a trial date. Justice Department prosecutors want to move things along quickly, but Trump's legal team is looking to delay the trial until after the 2024 election.

Sources tell CNN that Trump left the courthouse on Thursday in a sour and a dejected mood, upset that the judge addressed him as Mr. Trump instead of Mr. President. He spoke briefly with reporters at the airport.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: This is a persecution of a political opponent. This was never supposed to happen in America. This is the persecution of the person that's leading by very, very substantial numbers in the Republican primary and leading Biden by a lot. So if you can't beat him, you persecute or you prosecute him. We can't let this happen in America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: A number of House Democrats are demanding that Trump's trials be televised despite rules against cameras in federal court.

They say: If the public is to fully accept the outcome, it will be vitally important for it to witness as directly as possible, how the trials are conducted, the strength of the evidence adduced and the credibility of witnesses.

More now from CNN's Katelyn Polantz.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN SENIOR CRIME AND JUSTICE REPORTER: Donald Trump has pleaded not guilty for the third time in a criminal case. This time facing charges in Washington, D.C. So he came to the federal courthouse behind me on Thursday afternoon for this initial appearance before a magistrate judge. And Donald Trump was in court personally with three of his lawyers as well as the special counsel himself Jack Smith and other prosecutors from his office.

So in court today, Trump was there sitting and he was addressed directly by the judge. He was asked several questions about understanding his rights, understanding what was happening. He was even asked what he was pleading to the charges that he faces. There are four of them. Largely conspiracies related to the 2020 election disenfranchising people's votes, obstructing the congressional proceeding, defrauding the United States government. And he said in these words, not guilty. That's how he said it.

And so Trump before the judge -- he also had to speak directly to her to assert that he understood that it was his right to remain silent. If he spoke to any federal investigators, it could be used against him in court. He acknowledged that he understood that. He also acknowledged that he understood that it would be a crime while he's out on bail to intimidate witnesses or potential jurors in this case. And so that was something that the judge made sure he understood.

So this is one of the proceedings that was quite procedural, but quite a moment for this courthouse. A courthouse that is right across the street from the U.S. Capitol building where the riot on January 6 took place. And also a courthouse where many of the judges here have handled special investigations around Donald Trump previously. Have handled the criminal cases and sentenced his former campaign staffers to jail. And then also this is a court that has heard hundreds of Capitol riot cases with many of those people being sentenced to jail time. And the punishments sometimes being quite harsh for what happened on that day.

[04:05:00]

So Trump himself in court was really a moment that many people wanted to observe including seven judges on the bench here, the chief judge himself was in the courtroom even though he want presiding.

The next hearing is going to be on August 28, that's going to be before the judge that will oversee this case to trial, and the issue teed up before her is when will the trial date be? Big question there. Specifically because the Justice Department wants to go to trial as fast as they can and Donald Trump's team in court already were saying they want to see how large the evidence bulk is in this case because they want to make sure that they have a fair trial and want to be able to take their time going through it.

Katelyn Polantz, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: One of Trump's closest Republican allies is coming to his defense. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy lashed out on Thursday on what he called a different standard of justice for Trump. He claims Democrats Hillary Clinton and Al Gore contested elections but they weren't prosecuted.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA) U.S. HOUSE SPEAKER: Were any of them put in jail? Were any of them held with no response to be able to get out? The answer is no. So, Yes, you can raise that -- but someone raised the question. And you know, in America, you are entitled to raise a question. You are entitled to question whether it was honest or not. That's the uniqueness of the First Amendment. That's the uniqueness of America. But you know what? You shouldn't be prosecuted for your thoughts. And the difference here is, when Hillary Clinton said it, nothing happened to her. When they said it in Georgia's election, nothing happened to them either. You know what, when the DNC said it, nothing happened to them either. So stop using government to go after people who politically disagree with you. That is wrong and that should stop now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Trump was released after his arraignment without any real conditions but the judge reminded him not to commit any crimes and not to interfere with any witnesses. Take a listen to a former federal prosecutor Shan Wu.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHAN WU, FORMER U.S. FEDERAL PROSECUTOR: This judge -- the magistrate judge's admonition to him not to influence jurors is very interesting. He's a different man than the one who was arraigned in Mar-a-Lago's case because now there are additional obstruction counts against him. It makes perfect sense to admonish him about that because that threat has grown larger.

But it also creates a potential conundrum here because almost everything that he says when he is insulting a prosecutor, insulting witnesses, all of that can easily in a normal case be construed as trying to affect the jurors. If he gets called on that, that's going to set up quite a train wreck just over that issue. I mean, in the normal case, he could be held in contempt for that. His release conditions could be revoked and of course that's going to immediately tee up the First Amendment arguments.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: American voters have a lot to say about the president's legal troubles. A Reuter/Ipsos poll conducted before Thursday's arraignment asked Republicans if they would still vote for Trump if he were convicted of a felony by a jury. 35 percent said yes. 45 percent said no. Here's some reaction.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think that justice would be in a fair verdict and I think that requires jail time.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We all saw what went down January 6 -- what went down. Completely unnecessary, obstruction of justice and it shouldn't stand. I think that he should be held accountable.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's plenty on this guy. So I'm hoping they -- I'm hoping they get him and we don't ever have to see his face in this town again.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well I think true justice would be restoring him back into the White House and giving power back to the people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: CNN has received dramatic video showing Ukrainian drone strike on a Russian warship this morning. The footage shows a sea drone approaching the vessel which appears to be the naval port in southwestern Russia. A Ukrainian source said the ship was hit and was left with serious damage.

And northwest of there Russia claims that it had success during a separate aerial drone attack on Crimea.

Meanwhile, Ukraine is tamping down expectations of its counteroffensive which has slowed down to a crawl really because of complex Russian defensive line. A top Ukrainian official says that Russians have laid, quote, an insane number of land mines which Ukrainians are clearing on foot. The official adds that Ukrainians are not facing any deadlines to deliver results. Russians are also trying to push back along parts of the frontline, but according to President Zelenskyy, they are not getting anywhere.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Frontline the battles are tough. The occupiers are trying with all their might to stop our guys. The assaults are very fierce. But no matter what the enemy does, it is the Ukrainian forces that dominate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Nada joins us now with more on the sea drone attack. They're quite incredible to hear they managed to hold it.

NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER: Absolutely. And just overnight we heard from the Russian authority, the defense minister saying they had repelled this sea drone attack near the Black Sea naval base.

[04:10:00]

Now of course we're seeing this video which has emerged. Initially we saw the video emerge on social media showing a Russian naval ship tilting to one side, clearly facing some issues and being towed toward the base. Now CNN has been provided with further video showing unmanned sea drone approaching what appears to be that very same vessel, which appeared in the previous video on social media, it appears to have been killed at night. And that video cuts out just as the sea drone approaches the vessel.

Now we have at this stage heard from one Ukrainian source who has told CNN that the attack was in fact carried out as part of a joint operation of the security services of the Ukrainian Armed Forces as well as the Ukrainian Navy. And according to that source, the sea drone approached the Russian vessel with 450 kilograms of TNT and caused substantial damage to the vessel, which has said to have held around 100 Russian personnel. That hasn't been independently verified just yet.

FOSTER: The Russian defense minister visiting his troops in Ukraine.

BASHIR: We've seen video of Shoigu taking in that visit. It's said to have been an inspection that he carried out, according to the Russian Defense Ministry at the frontline command post in that special operation as they described it. He is said to have been given an update on the situation on the ground from frontline troops as well as the operation of the Ukrainian armed forces along those frontlines at this stage. But he also delivered his own message to the Russian troops. He thanks them for their ongoing work. But he also underscored the importance, in his words, of inflicted pre-emptive fire against the Ukrainian Armed Forces, particularly in positions that are still being held along those frontlines by Ukraine.

FOSTER: Nada, thank you.

The U.S. credit downgrade by Fitch ratings has been a drag on U.S. financial markets for the past few days. But Wall Street is hoping for a winning end in the week. Trading begins in just a few hours and they're pretty positive. As you can see all us but less than one percent. Economic analysts are predicting the U.S. added a modest 200,000 jobs last month. That would be an encouraging sign that inflation in the U.S. is coming down.

The government's latest employment numbers are set to be released in just a few hours and analysts say pegging the jobless rate to remain at 3.6 percent. But if the July employment figure is significantly higher than 200,000, it could be viewed as too inflationary and more possibly lead to more rate hikes by the Federal Reserve.

U.S. Gasoline prices have now climbed to their highest level in nine months. Up an average 28 cents per gallon in just the past month. But don't expect relief from OPEC because an official Saudi source says Saudi Arabia will keep in place its voluntary cuts in oil production that were enacted in June. That's 1 million barrels a day of Saudi crude being kept off market. On top of that, Russia reportedly will trim its oil exports by 300,000 barrels a day beginning next month. Also affecting fuel prices is the extremely hot weather around the world which has had a negative impact on refinery operations.

We're expecting an update on the Gilgo Beach murders. The investigation there in the coming hours. Local, state and federal authorities say that they will brief the public in just a few hours.

Meanwhile, officials are asking the court to obtain a DNA swab from suspect Rex Heuermann. Earlier on Thursday an attorney for Heuermann's wife said that she has not been asked to give a DNA sample or interview. The attorney says she has spoken to her husband in jail but has not processed her beliefs on guilt or innocence.

Police in Florida have arrested an elderly man for allegedly killing and dismembering his wife. Her remains were found in suitcases in Delray Beach nearly two weeks ago. 78-year-old William Lowe now faces a charge of first-degree murder. Investigators say they found blood splatter in his apartment. And a search of his storage unit turned up a chain saw they believe was used in the crime. The victim's cause of death is listed as a gunshot to the head.

The weekend just around the corner and it's going to be another scorcher in parts of the U.S. Meteorologist Chad Myers tells us what's in store.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well the eat is on another day here, yes, for the southern part of the country all the way to the southwest as well. Excessive heat warnings, meaning that temperatures are 10 to 15 degrees above summertime, above where we should be. Even for Dallas today at 106, same story for tomorrow. Your normal should be somewhere around 97 so above where you should be. Add in the heat and humidity, it's going to feel a lot worse than that.

The heat stays in the South and Southwest for the next few days. Very pleasant across the northern part of the country. Temperatures are either at or below normal in some spots. But not here. Not for Dallas, for Little Rock, all the way down even toward New Orleans and Memphis, they're going to see very warm temperatures here.

[04:15:02] You are right in that area where the humidity is very thick and even your heat index tomorrow will be 111 degrees in Dallas. So, yes, big time temperatures here.

No more rainfall here for a while. The monsoon has really shut off a little bit for the Southwest. That allows temperatures to warm up in the afternoon. You don't get the cloud cover, you don't get the showers, you don't get the cooler air to come in in the afternoon and evening. So Phoenix, you're going to be 114 to 115 for the next couple days. Vegas hot again back up above 100 for the next days in a row. Look at Phoenix, 115, 114, 113, temperatures are hot there under that ridge.

And here's the ridge. You can find it. Well this is where the rainfall is going to be the heaviest for later on today. Right along the top of the heat dome here, the rainfall comes down here, and in the same places that we had rainfall yesterday and really almost the day before yesterday. Some of these areas, especially south of Nashville, south of Atlanta, could pick up 2 to 4 inches of rain, in some spots maybe enough to cause some flash flooding.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's mansion was the scene of a climate protest on Thursday. Five Greenpeace activists were arrested after draping the house in oil black cloth. They have been released on bail. Greenpeace says the move was a protest against Mr. Sunak's plan to max out Britain's oil and gas resources in the North Sea. The protesters spent a total of five hours on the roof. No one was at home at the time.

In a statement Greenpeace said: We desperately need our Prime Minister to be a climate leader not a climate arsonist. He seems quite happy to hold a blow torch to the planet if he can score a few political points.

In response, Number 10 says: We make no apology for taking the right approach -- to ensure our energy security -- using the resources we have here at home so we're never rely on aggressors like Putin for our energy.

Much more to come on CNN. Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny is expected in court in the coming hours to hear a verdict on extremism charges against him. We'll have the latest.

Plus, the U.S. government is demanding an investigation into the drowning deaths of two migrants in the Rio Grande. But Texas authorities insist that their buoy carrier -- for barrier rather -- isn't to blame.

And Pope Francis gets a rock star welcome to Portugal for the World Youth Day there. We'll tell you all about his trip so far and what's next for the pontiff.

[04:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: We're just a few hours away from the verdict in the trial of Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny. He's accused of creating a, quote, extremist community. On social media on Thursday, Navalny said he expects a long sentence.

Tweeting: It's going to be a huge term. This is what's called a "Stalinist" term. They asked for 20 years and they will give 18 or something around that.

And Navalny calls for charges politically motivated. He is already serving an 11 1/2-year sentence. The verdict could add decades to his time in prison.

Two U.S. Navy sailors have been arrested on espionage charges. Federal authorities say they shared national defense information with Chinese intelligence officers who paid thousands of dollars in return. But Chinese Embassy in Washington say it's unaware of the details of the case. No surprise there, Anna Coren.

ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, it's no surprise at all. This is very serious. You know, U.S. officials are condemning China's espionage campaign.

Let me tell you a bit about these sailors, Max. One of them, 22-year- old Jinchao Wei, was arrested Wednesday. And as he arrived for work at Naval Base San Diego, one of the largest navy installations in the Pacific. He is charged conspiring to send national defense information to China in can exchange for just a few thousand dollars.

Now the other sailor is 26-year-old Wenheng Zhao, a petty officer at Naval Base Ventura County in Port Hueneme, California. Now Zhao was charged with conspiracy and bribe taking having been paid $15,000 in exchange for photographs and videos of sensitive U.S. military information. Not a lot of money to really throw your career away. Let's have a listen now to Matt Olson from the Justice Department.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATTHEW OLSON, U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR NATIONAL SECURITY: The charges demonstrate the PRC's determination to obtain information that is critical to our national defense by any means. So it could be used to their advantage. The alleged conduct also represents a violation of the solemn obligation of members of our military to defend our country, to safe guard our secrets and to protect their fellow service members.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: Yes, I mean, this is seen as a serious act of betrayal. Prosecutors say that Wei, who received U.S. citizenship last year in May, served as an engineer on the USS Essex, an NABS (ph) assault ship. He allegedly entered into a handler asset relationship with a Chinese intelligence officer just a few months earlier. Wei allegedly sent photos and videos of the USS Essex and other U.S. Navy ships to the Chinese officer, as well as dozens of technical and mechanical manuals relating to the ships layouts and weapons systems.

Now this, Max, went on for over a year. Much of the information was stored on restricted access Navy computer systems and that Wei was able to access because he had security clearance.

As to Zhao, the other sailor, he was responsible for installing, repairing and servicing electrical equipment on U.S. military installations and also had security clearance. He allegedly provided sensitive information to the Chinese for almost two years. Including operational plans for major military exercise in the Indo-Pacific. Plus photos of blue prints and diagrams of U.S. radar systems stationed on a military base in Okinawa, Japan.

Max, this week's arrests come amid growing concerns by the U.S. military about China's ongoing and rather brazen campaign to target U.S. officials with access to sensitive military secrets.

[04:25:00]

The Chinese Embassy in the U.S. refuse to comment on the case and we are yet to get any statement from the ministry of foreign affairs today -- Max.

FOSTER: Anna Coren in Hong Kong, we'll be watching. Thank you so much.

Crowds in Niger celebrate their independence day with a show of support for the country's new military rulers. And we'll have the latest in a live report.

Plus, a U.S. appeals court makes a decision on a controversial asylum policy. What it means for migrants crossing the southern border.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Max Foster. If you're just joining us, let me bring you up to date with our top stories this hour.

Donald Trump has pleaded not guilty to federal criminal charges that he plotted to overturn the 2020 election. This is the third indictment for the former president this year. Trump is expected to hold a campaign event in Alabama later today.

Two U.S. Navy sailors had been arrested on espionage charges. Both are accused of sharing national defense information with Chinese intelligence officials.

Donald Trump's legal exposure only threatens to get worse in the coming weeks with yet another criminal indictment possible in Georgia. But as the many cases work through the various courts, it's inevitable that some will collide with next year's Republican primaries. CNN's Brian Todd explains what we can expect.