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Biden to Join Striking Workers in Michigan; McCarthy Pushes for Short-Term Fix as Pressure Mounts; Trump's Busiest Week of Campaigning Since Launching Bid; Ukraine: Russia's Black Sea Fleet Commander Killed; Border Town Mayor to Extend Emergency Declaration. Aired 4- 4:30a ET

Aired September 26, 2023 - 04:00   ET

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

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BIANCA NOBILO, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, and a warm welcome to our viewers joining us in the United States and everywhere around the world. I'm Bianca Nobilo.

MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR: Doing a double shift. I'm Max Foster, joining you live from London.

Just ahead on CNN NEWSROOM.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Joe Biden will be in Michigan to walk the picket line with striking members of the United Auto Workers.

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Saturday night, that is the deadline to avoid a shutdown, avert a crisis here in Washington.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kyiv now claims have killed a commander of Russia's Black Sea fleet.

JOHN KIRBY, U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL: It makes perfect sense that Ukraine would want to hit strategic targets inside Crimea.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is still big groups of people coming in.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A loudspeaker invites each migrant to sing the anthem of the country they left behind.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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

FOSTER: It's Tuesday, September the 26th, 9:00 a.m. here in London, 4:00 a.m. in Detroit, Michigan, we're in the coming hours, U.S. President Joe Biden will join members of the auto -- United Auto Workers union on the picket line. NOBILO: The president is splitting his focus from an impending

government shutdown to support of the auto workers, who are striking for better wages from U.S. automakers. They're also asking for benefits they give up more than a decade ago when companies like Ford and General Motors were close to bankruptcy.

The president says the workers have earned it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Now that the industry as roared back, they should anticipate and benefit. And take a look at the significant increase in salaries for executives and growth in the industry, they should benefit from them. So yes, I support -- I've always supported the UAW.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Mr. Biden will be joined by the president of the United Auto Workers in Detroit. The White House has made it clear there are not involved in the negotiations. The president is just lending his support.

NOBILO: He will soon have to turn the tension back to Washington, where pressure is building as the deadline of a possible government shutdown draws ever closer. We are less than five days away from the federal government runs out of money, meeting some departments will shut down completely, and some federal employees will stop getting paid.

FOSTER: Lawmakers are at a standoff on a new agreement. But the president and his top aides are going to Americans get used to blame. Mr. Biden had no trouble calling hard-line Republican conservatives holding up the process.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: Now, a small group of extreme House Republicans, they do want to live up to that deal. And everyone in America could be faced with pain and pressure. Funding the government is one of the most basic fundamental responsibilities of Congress. And if the Republicans in the House don't start doing their job, we should stop electing them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: The White House is also warning about government departments and services at risk of shuttering because of a shutdown. Many things could happen, including active military members and border patrol agents going without pay. Thousands of non-essential workers could also be furloughed.

NOBILO: Nearly 7 million pregnant and new mothers and their children would also lose food assistance benefits. Farmers would have no access to government loans, and the countries national parks would also close.

One lawmaker says it would destroy the progress that the U.S. has made.

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REP. JAMES CLYBURN (D-SC): We are talking about shutting down the government on the heels of the come back from the worst health care crisis we had in this country in over 100 years. And we know what it did to the economy. Businesses are back up and running again. But and do we not have a lot of unhappy workers? And we see strikes taking place, because everybody is trying to get back on and even keel, back to where we were, before the pandemic. And for us to shut the government down now, that will destroy everything.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NOBILO: The biggest hurdle right now is getting enough support to pass a new spending bill. House Speaker McCarthy says he thinks he has enough votes from Republicans to make some progress this week. But right now, lacks enough votes to push through a short term bill to fund the government.

CNN's Manu Raju has the details for you.

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MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Congress is running out of time to avoid a government shutdown -- 11:59 p.m. Eastern, Saturday night.

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That is the deadline to avoid a shutdown. And there is just no agreement yet about how to do just that, in large part because of divisions within the House GOP conference. The speaker of the House trying to convince his members to all fall in line behind a Republican-only bill to keep the government open for just a few weeks.

But he doesn't have the votes, because he has included in this plan spending cuts Democrats won't accept, voter security measures the Democrats won't accept. But the cuts don't go far enough for some members on his far-right, which means he doesn't have that 218 votes to get this out of his chamber. He can only afford to lose four Republicans on any party line vote.

At the moment, he is probably losing about seven, maybe even up to ten members on a short term spending bill. So, what is the speaker's plan? He is still trying to pressure those same members to come on his side. This, as the Senate leadership is working on a completely different plan to keep the government open, with hardly any time to reconcile differences.

Now, I asked the speaker about what is looming over all this, threats from his far-right that he could lose his job as speaker if he were to cut a deal with Democrats to keep the government open. I asked him how much that is driving his decision-making over his handling of the spending talks. How much is the fact that if you do cut a deal with Democrats, there

could be a vote to push you out, how much is that driving your decision making right now?

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: Nothing drives my decision. If that was driving my decision making, wouldn't that have driven my decision-making 15 times before?

RAJU: You could've cut a deal with Democrats, and that could be the end of it.

MCCARTHY: Did I cut a deal then?

RAJU: When, when?

MCCARTHY: When I went 15 rounds.

RAJU: No, I'm talking about right now, with the CR.

MCCARTHY: But let me explain something to you. I am no different than I was then or before. My whole focus, what's in my mind, what drives me, is the American people. I am not worried if someone makes a motion, I am not worried if someone votes no. I'm going to wake up each and every day with the same thing that drives my opinion, what needs to be done, solving these problems. And that's what we're going to do. And I'm going to work with people who want to get that done.

RAJU: Now, even if the Senate were to reach a quick deal, it will still take some time for the chamber to process that measure. If it includes provisions dealing with aid to Ukraine, for instance, that could slow things down because of opponents, such as Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, who's warning he could drag things out.

But there is talk of potentially forgoing the issue of Ukraine aid, pushing that to later in the fall, just simply keep the government open just for a few more weeks.

But there is still no guarantee that Speaker McCarthy will put a Senate passed bill on the floor of the House. If he were to do that, again, he could face that same threat to push him out of the speakership.

So, huge questions looming over Washington, will the government shut down? How long could a shut down last? And how would this play politically? There are a lot of Republicans, including the speaker himself, concerned that the GOP would get the blame for this, as they try to move, try to get something done, avert a crisis here in Washington. But it's unclear at this moment whether they can.

Manu Raju, CNN, Capitol Hill.

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FOSTER: Now, former U.S. president Donald Trump is backing the hard- line Republicans, telling them they should shutdown Washington in less they get everything. NOBILO: He also insisted Republicans will not be blamed for a

shutdown, and that President Joe Biden will be. In his post, Trump lashed out at Republican Senator Mitch McConnell, calling him the weakest and dumbest leader in his Senate history.

This week is expected to become Trump's busiest week of campaigning since he launched his bid for reelection.

FOSTER: Yeah, he visited South Carolina on Monday. This is one of the early nominating states, and he will head to Michigan on Wednesday to speak with union workers. But a source says that united auto workers did not invite him, and they're not involved with a visit.

President Biden is expected to visit the picket line in Wayne County, Michigan, later today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT: He's selling our automobile companies, everything, right down the tubes. So I announce that I'm going to Michigan, and then he announced, 20 minutes later, I'm going to Michigan.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NOBILO: After Michigan, Trump is scheduled to be in southern California for the Republicans autumn convention. And then, it's back to Iowa on Sunday.

CNN's Kristen Holmes has further details.

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KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: He wants to be spending some time in the early voting states. We didn't see him out on the campaign trail for several weeks. Now, we do believe he has a comparable lead. We've seen that in the national polls and these early voting states. But they're also looking at some of the polling, where these conservative are saying that, while, yes they support former President Trump, they are open to an alternative.

So they are pounding the pavement, visiting Iowa and New Hampshire in the next couple of weeks. South Carolina on multiple occasions, really trying to shore up that support, and in some ways, rally the troops. Now, the other thing this week is that trip to Michigan this week, we've been talking about that. This is this team moving beyond this primary, starting to look at that general election, trying to essentially grab these working class voters that they believe they can siphon off not from the Democratic Party.

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But in order to do that, they do still have to win the primary. And they are very focused on making sure they do that.

(END VIDEOTAPE) FOSTER: One major event will be noticeably absent from Trump's schedule, and that's the second Republican primary today.

NOBILO: Trump is his party's undeniable front runner, and it's publicly questioned the point of participating in debates when you hold such a commanding lead over the challenges that you see here. Among, them his former vice president, the former U.S. ambassador to the U.N., and several past and present governors.

There is a growing concern that a U.S. government shutdown could jeopardize more military aid for Ukraine. The Biden administration has asked for $24 billion through the end of the year.

FOSTER: But a source tells CNN that number could be much smaller if it's part of a short term spending bill.

CNN spoke on Monday with John Kirby from the U.S. National Security Council.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KIRBY, U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL: We've got a little bit more funding to go. So I think will be okay for the next few weeks or so. But without the supplemental requests we asked for, it will absolutely have an effect on our ability to support Ukraine.

You know, once we get into the winter, it gets really hard for both militaries to maneuver and to operate. And so, we want to make sure that we're getting them everything they need here while they still have good conditions on the ground. Not getting that supplemental request if there's a shutdown, that's going to have a significant impact on their ability to succeed on the battlefield.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Well, a spokesperson for Ukraine's navy says Russian ships in the Black Sea are still launching attacks, despite the reported death of a commander. Ukraine claims Viktor Sokolov was killed on Friday in an attack on Sevastopol in Russian-annexed Crimea, along with 33 other officers and more than 100 service members.

NOBILO: Ukraine says the missile and drone attacks on the Odesa region have now continued into today, badly damaging the port infrastructure and an abandoned hotel, too.

More now from CNN's Sam Kiley.

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SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Ukraine dismissed this as a pathetic attempt at retaliation, a Russian bombardment of the port city of Odesa with drones and long range missiles. Two warehouse workers were killed, an abandoned hotel smashed, in what could've been an almost routine attack by Russia, but for this. Kyiv knows to claim to kill the commander of Russia's Black Sea fleet,

Admiral Viktor Sokolov. Ukraine says it also killed another 33 Russian officers in the missile strike against the fleet headquarters in Sevastopol on Friday.

The Ukrainians have targeted senior Russian officers throughout this war, often using intelligence from NATO. And specialist units have been tasked by Kyiv with these killings. They're aimed at sapping morale and undermining command systems.

CNN has no independent confirmation of Ukraine's claim to have killed Russia's admiral, but it would be its biggest success in this campaign and part of an ongoing effort to breakthrough Russia's defense lines to ultimately strike at Crimea. They've included earlier attacks on Putin's navy and a bridge to Russia itself.

The first batch of U.S. donated Abrams tanks have now also arrived in Ukraine, but they're not the strategic weapons the Ukrainians say they need.

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Defense packages from the United States, including artillery, necessary shells, HIMARS munitions, air defense missiles, additional air defense systems, tactical vehicle, and some of types of weapons that will prove themselves on the battlefield.

KILEY: Kyiv wants these ATACMS, long-range missile systems to attack deep behind Russian lines to kill more officers and destroy logistics hubs. The U.S. has yet to announce that Ukraine will get these missiles before the winter freezes over the front lines where they are.

Sam Kiley, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NOBILO: Ukraine's strikes on Russian targets in Crimea may not seem at first glance to play a major pardons counteroffensive. But the attacks could actually help Kyiv regained territory captured by Russia.

Once again, John Kirby from the U.S. National Security Council.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KIRBY: Crimea is critical for Russia's efforts to continue its occupation, north of Crimea, north of that peninsula, and then up the eastern side of the country into the Donbas. Crimea acts as a bit of a staging ground, not just for attacks from the Black Sea, but also to be able to help replenish and resource their troops, particularly in the southern part of Ukraine.

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So it makes perfect sense that Ukraine would want to hit strategic targets inside Crimea to try to hamper their ability to use Crimea as a staging base, if you will, for supporting their troops further inland.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Clare Sebastian has been watching all the movements, and it's across Ukraine, isn't it, including quite squarely close to the Romanian border.

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, more overnight attacks, including the far southwest of the Odesa region. Quite faraway from the actual city of Odesa that was a targeted on Monday. This is near the port town of Izmail, which is on the Danube, just across the Danube from Romania, of course, a NATO country.

Today, Ukrainians are saying that a border crossing has been damage, an international border crossing, ferry crossing to Romania. Both the Ukrainian border, and the Romanian authorities are saying that the very crossing has now been suspended, has been closed. I believe this is the first time we've seen this happen, even though we've seen multiple strikes on those Danube ports, which of course, critical part of Ukraine's grain infrastructure, even more critical since the Black Sea ports are now effectively blockaded, after Russia canceled that grain deal.

That significant, possibly a follow on from the attack on Odesa that we saw on Monday, which Ukraine is painted as retaliation for that attack on Sevastopol on the Black Sea fleet headquarters.

FOSTER: In terms of the commander who was killed, how significant was that?

SEBASTIAN: Really significant, I think you can tell that by how little Russia is saying about it. It tends to reverse fleet correlate with the amount of information they put out. We saw the same thing with the thing that the Moskva warship that we don't even hear about until family started complain if they don't have information about their sons and brothers.

It's very significant symbolically. The Black Sea fleet has been station in Sevastopol since long before the invasion, even of Crimea. The annexation of the peninsula, a symbol of Russia's rightful claim to that peninsula. So a major blow to it there.

Also, operationally because the Black Sea region in Crimea, an increasingly important theater in this war, as Ukraine steps of these long-range missile attacks, Ukrainian navy spokesperson said attacks on the Black Sea into Ukraine continue. He described it as like a chicken running around without its head. So, painted a picture of chaos and confusion out of this commander is gone.

We haven't independently verified that he's been killed. But that is what Ukrainians are saying.

FOSTER: Okay, Clare, thank you so much.

NOBILO: Still ahead for you, the steps a U.S. border town is taking to cope with the growing influx of migrants. FOSTER: An indicted U.S. senator pleads his case to the public and as

he and his wife face charges that they took hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of bribes.

NOBILO: Plus, Tennessee's first transgender lawmaker will be sworn into office soon. We'll have the details of her historic win.

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ROLANDO SALINAS JR., EAGLE PASS, TEXAS MAYOR: So far, the situation remains the same. There's still no concrete solutions to this issue. Bridge one remains closed, just so you all know, bridge one is closed. Pedestrian traffic is open.

So if you walk, you can go through bridge one. The rail, as you can see, it's also up and running. That's how the majority of the people are coming in. But we need bigger action, better action from our federal government and the Mexican government as well. It's impacting our safety. It's impacting our economy. It's just a mess.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NOBILO: The mayor of Eagle Pass, Texas, there, summing up the ongoing crisis of the U.S. Mexico border. He says he's planning to extend the cities emergency declaration as a migrant surge shows no signs of slowing down.

FOSTER: Other places are also taking steps to cope with the growing influx. El Paso City Council voted unanimously on Monday to purchase a former school that could serve as an additional emergency migrant shelter.

Meanwhile, one migrant shelter official is warning that the number of asylum seekers seeking on the streets despite, and is expected to continue to grow.

NOBILO: Some striking video we want to show you of people hoping to reach the United States. These are predominately Venezuelan migrants gathered in the dark at a migrant camp. Thousands of miles from the U.S. border, and they're about to start one of the most treacherous parts of their trek north. Somewhat prompts the crowd to sing the national anthem before they leave.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

FOSTER: Well, a U.S. official says they expect the number of U.S. border crossings to remain high for now.

Stefano Pozzebon reports on white migrants are taking incredible risks to reach America.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The journey for the American dream starts before dawn. At four a.m., this group of migrants is getting ready to cross the Darien Gap, the stretch of tropical forest between Colombia and Panama. In the darkness, a loudspeaker invites each migrant to sing the anthems of the countries they've left behind.

The voices of the Venezuelans resonate the loudest. At sunrise, the gates of this makeshift migrant camp open up and the group advances into the forest.

Panamanian authorities estimate that on average, more than 1,400 people have crossed this thick stretch of forest every day this year, already more than double the numbers in 2022. Most of those crossings are Venezuelans. But migrants from Ecuador, Haiti, Colombia, and even China attempt this route.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: China?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: China.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: China?

POZZEBON: Hundreds of thousands of personal stories, but one shared goal.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I have a lump in my throat, but I'm doing this for my family, for a better future.

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POZZEBON: The hike lasts several days across rivers and jungle mud. But the prospect of making it into the United States, over 2,000 miles north from here, is stronger than ever.

MARISELA SILVA, INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS: So the longer term mission, I think it's difficult to say right now. But we can work with what we see in terms of a trend, and the trend is the numbers will continue increasing.

POZZEBON: Venezuelans have been leaving their home country for years. But until recently, most of them headed towards other South American countries. What sets this year apart is that hundreds of thousands of migrants are now traveling directly to the United States.

Worryingly, according to United Nations, a growing number of unaccompanied children are attempting the trek on their own. These little ones instead follow their parents, tied together so they don't get lost in the crowd. On the other side funneling Panama, a small group gets a passage on the boat down the river, others heal their feet, wounded from the hike before the journey continues north.

From the air, these soldiers can only monitor the record flow, but there is no way of stopping it. Colombian and Panamanian authorities say. And for most of these people, there's no way of turning back. Despite recent economic reforms, Venezuela remains in deep humanitarian crisis, with over 80 percent of the population living below the poverty line, according to independent figures.

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POZZEBON (on camera): With living conditions in Venezuela not showing any sign of improving anytime soon, and the rest of south America that is already struggling with their own problems because of the impact of the COVID-19 crisis, inflation in the last few years, it's only natural that a growing number of people are trying to reach what is seen as the only place where they can have better opportunities, the United States.

For CNN, this is Stefano Pozzebon, Bogota.

FOSTER: A gunman who killed 23 people and injured dozens of others at a Walmart in Texas has agreed to pay more than $5 million in restitution to those impacted by the shooter. According to new court filings, Patrick Crusius reached an agreement with prosecutors to pay the amount. Authorities say he went on a rampage in 2019 at a Walmart in El Paso with a sole intention of killing Mexican people and immigrants.

NOBILO: He pleaded guilty to 90 federal charges in February, and was sentenced in July two 90 consecutive life sentences. It was one of the deadliest attacks targeting Latinos in modern U.S. history.

New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez says he will be exonerated of bribery charges. Coming up, we'll hear from him and from a defense attorney about what prosecutors will have to prove to convict him.

FOSTER: Plus, the Writers Guild of America have reached a tentative deal with these studios and their strike. More on what that agreement can actually hold, that's next.

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