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CNN International: Millions Head To Polls Today To Vote On Super Tuesday; Super Tuesday Could Set Table For Biden-Trump Rematch; Trump Looks To Deliver Knockout Blow On Super Tuesday. Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired March 05, 2024 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
RAHEL SOLOMON, HOST, "CNN NEWSROOM": Good morning or good evening, depending on where you're watching. I'm Rahel Solomon live in New York.
Right now, across America, voting is underway in over a dozen state primaries. It is Super Tuesday with both Joe Biden and Donald Trump hoping for decisive victories, setting them up for an electoral rematch. Ukraine claims to have sunk another Russian ship in the Black Sea. But, the situation on the frontline, well, that remains precarious. We're going to have a live report from eastern Ukraine straight ahead. And in unexpected voices weighing in on shrinkflation, it seems that the rising price and shrinking size of cookies, well, that is being felt on Sesame Street and they do not like it.
But, before we get to shrinkflation and cookies, it is Super Tuesday. And right now, voters from coast to coast, in more than a dozen states, are going to the polls for Super Tuesday, the biggest primary date on the calendar. And by the end of the day, a Biden-Trump rematch could be all but certain. On the Republican side, Donald Trump can pretty much get to the doorstep of clinching the nomination with another strong showing and essentially put Nikki Haley in his rear- view mirror for good. Now, well, President Biden doesn't have to worry about being his party's nominee. He does have some work to do shoring up his base. That's after more than 100,000 people voted uncommitted in Michigan's Democratic primary, a protest vote over how the White House is handling the war in Gaza.
Let's start this hour with CNN's Alayna Treene, who joins us live from Richmond, Virginia. Alayna, you've been at that polling place all morning. I've spoken to you once already. Talk to us about what the mood has been like and what voters are telling you.
ALAYNA TREENE, CNN REPORTER: Well, that's right. Polls opened here in Richmond at 6 a.m. And it's been a pretty steady trickle of voters who have come in to that polling location just behind me, Rahel. And we've really heard a variety of opinions from voters, excuse me, as they've been leaving the polls. There has been some people who have been strong Trump supporters, some who voted for Nikki Haley, others who voted for Joe Biden. And I think the key here in South Carolina to know is that it is an open primary. It's one of two states that are participating in Super Tuesday that has that open primary rules around it. And that means that Democrats, Republicans, independents, they can show up as long as they are registered and vote for any candidate they want.
Now, I did speak with one voter. His name was Brady Kimball. He is 18. It was his first time voting, and he said he voted for Donald Trump. I also spoke with another voter named Doug Moran. He voted for Nikki Haley and said, even though he is a longtime Republican, he is not certain that he would ever vote for Donald Trump. Take a listen to what they said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TREENE: Have you voted in past elections, or is this your first?
BRADY KIMBALL, TRUMP VOTER: No. This is my first time.
TREENE: Congratulations.
KIMBALL: Thank you.
TREENE: Why did you vote for Donald Trump?
KIMBALL: I'm really excited about what he is doing with the economy. I think it's really going to benefit our country in the next four years.
TREENE: Did you ever think about voting for potentially another candidate? Is there anything about Nikki Haley that you like?
KIMBALL: Yeah. I definitely like -- I think she is a very compassionate person. And I think she is trying to have more unity across the country. So, I certainly like that. But, I think she doesn't have quite the proven record nationally.
TREENE: If it ends up being a Trump versus Biden rematch, who you would vote for?
DOUG MORAN, HALEY VOTER: Yeah. I hold my nose and vote for Biden again, just the moral objections, and moral and political objections like Donald Trump ran his campaign and his office and some of the choices he has made are I think just wrong for our country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TREENE: Now, Rahel, I think one really interesting thing that I've kind of heard through the majority of my conversations today is, those who voted for Nikki Haley, and even some of the people who said they voted for President Joe Biden and are Democrats, the common theme between them is that they were voting really against Donald Trump. A lot of these people said that they really weren't certain that they'd be happy with a rematch between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, although they acknowledge that that's most likely the path that they are headed towards. SOLOMON: Yeah. So interesting. Always interesting to hear from voters if it does become a race between Biden and Trump, as it's looking like. What do the Haley voters do? So interesting to hear from Doug Moran there say, I'm going to hold my nose and vote for Biden. Really interesting. Alayna Treene live for us in Richmond. Thank you, Alayna.
[11:05:00]
And let's continue this conversation and bring in our panel. Ron Brownstein is a CNN Senior Political Analyst and Senior Editor of The Atlantic, and Margaret Talev is a Senior Contributor for Axios, and also the Director for the Institute for Democracy, Journalism and Citizenship at Syracuse University. Good to see you both.
Margaret, let me start with you. Beyond top-line results, what are you watching for tonight?
MARGARET TALEV, SENIOR CONTRIBUTOR, AXIOS, & DIRECTOR, DEMOCRACY, JOURNALISM & CITIZENSHIP INSTITUTE AT SYRACUSE UNIV.: Rahel, there is a few things we'll be watching for. I think how Virginia votes in the presidential primary is going to be important, probably not in terms of determining who the Republican nominee is going to be, but in terms of understanding the fault lines for Donald Trump in suburban areas, around large cities. And then there are a couple of other interesting contests just on the merits beyond the presidential primary, what happens in California in the Democratic Senate nominating contest and how the Republican contest lines up for the gubernatorial nomination in the really once very important battleground state of North Carolina. These are all races I'm watching.
SOLOMON: Ron, let me ask -- actually, let me play for you a clip from the former President this morning on Fox News.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOICE OF DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, my focus is really at this point, it's on Biden. I should win almost every state today. We literally (inaudible) Biden. We think we're going to be very well unified. We have more enthusiasm now that we had in 2020 or 2016, and that's a lot.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOLOMON: And Ron, what I thought was interesting was your piece this morning on cnn.com about how the composition of the GOP base has changed, and essentially, where that enthusiasm for Trump remains. Talk to me about that and what we might see how that might play out in the results today.
RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST, & SENIOR EDITOR, THE ATLANTIC: Yeah. Trump is on track to win more primaries and caucuses than any Republican presidential candidate who is not an incumbent, which is why we probably should be thinking of him, as several Republican pollster said to me, as a quasi-incumbent. Republican voters, I think, large to a greater extent than the other candidates expected essentially did view him as an incumbent and did not -- most of them did not see a reason to fire him.
But, we do see clear fault lines in the party. I mean, he is a more narrowly defined candidate, even in the Republican context that he was in 2016. In 2016, there was not much ideological difference in his support. There was not much difference between his support among evangelicals and non-evangelicals. This time, there are big divides. He has really consolidated the most conservative parts of the party.
But, you continue to see, as Margaret was saying, this resistance to him in basically college educated, economically focused, somewhat more moderate, particularly on social and cultural issues, Republican voters. Now, whether Biden can harvest that discontent, given the negative views that those voters have about him as well, is an open question. But, there is no issue that it's there. I mean, at least 60 percent of Nikki Haley voters in each of Iowa and New Hampshire and South Carolina said they would not vote for Trump in a general election. Whether Biden can actually translate that into support for him, as I said, is a very different question. And we will see whether he can overcome some of the doubts voters have by him as well.
SOLOMON: Yeah. I mean, to that point, that's exactly what that voter, Doug Moran, told our Alayna Treene there, right, that I would hold my nose and vote for Biden. He said he couldn't vote for Trump for various reasons.
Margaret, let me play for you a clip from Nikki Haley this morning on Fox News. She made her rounds this morning, also talking to Fox. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NIKKI HALEY, U.S. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We lost in 2018. We lost in 2020. We lost in 2022. This is not personal. This is about the fact that we have to win. We can want to change the country all day long. But, if we can't win an election, we can't do any of that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOLOMON: And so, Nikki, Margaret, essentially getting to what you're referring to there, the fault lines within the base, at least for Trump. Does she have a point? I mean, if the moderates break away from Trump, if the independents break away from Trump, mathematically, maybe he wants the primary, but can he win the general because polls do show him winning right now?
TALEV: Yeah. That's certainly the argument that she is making. And what Donald Trump seems to have on his side at this stage in March of 2024, a good six months plus before the general election, is how much lack of enthusiasm there is in the swing for Biden himself. And so, you've got people who are very resistant to elements of the idea of a second Trump term. They don't like a lot of his policies. They don't like his personal conduct. They're concerned about the legal issues. But, they remember a time when the economy felt better to them than it does now. And it was kind of pre-COVID or early COVID. They're blaming Joe Biden for inflation. And right now, they're not blaming Trump or Trump's policies or larger forces for it. [11:10:00]
So, Trump is counting on factors that have very little to do with him and much more to do with voter psychology and memories to carry him across the line. But, if you're Nikki Haley, you're not in position to become the nominee. You're part of the party is shrinking and atrophying anyway, and you're one of these Republicans who served Donald Trump when he was President. You are looking out for your legacy. You are trying to come up with a good explanation for why it's not going to be you in office this time around, and you're trying to position yourself a few years out to be able to say, I told you so, and now let me rebuild the party.
That's a lot of ifs, and it's all predicated on Trump losing the ballot in November. But, this is the argument that she is making now.
SOLOMON: Ron, what about the fault lines for Biden? I mean, obviously, he is not facing a competitive race, but certainly after Michigan. I mean, certainly --
BROWNSTEIN: Yeah.
SOLOMON: -- there are parts of his party that have to be concerning as well.
BROWNSTEIN: Oh, yeah. It's really striking. I mean, if you look at the four high-quality national polls that came out really just over the weekend in the U.S., they all showed Trump two to four points ahead. And the internal picture was strikingly consistent. Biden isn't that far off, his share of the vote from 2020 among white voters, among not only college-educated white voters, where he is on track to run better than he did in 2020, but even among non-college white voters who are the core of the Trump coalition. Biden really hasn't deteriorated that much from 2020 in these polls, if at all in some of them.
The real deterioration for him is among non-white voters. I mean, these polls show Trump winning what would be historic percentages of black voters, around a quarter of them in all of those polls, and among Hispanic voters, around 45 percent in all of those polls. And those are voters who are very much affected by the dynamic Margaret talked about, the sense that they had more money in their pocket at the end of the week when Trump was President. And that really has to be a focus for Biden. A lot of them are younger voters, who were also, in some cases, discontented over his handling of the war in Gaza.
But, I think the core for Biden is going to be trying to convince those ordinarily Democratic-leaning voters about what the next four years would be. I'm not sure he can win a retrospective argument at this point about whose four years were better. Biden has a lot of positive economic accomplishments, enormous job growth, investment boom, new businesses starting, but inflation remains a cloud eclipsing all of that. I think his best line of argument is going to be what would four more years of Trump mean. There is new polling out this week, for example, that shows very few voters know about some of his more extreme promises, such as pardoning January 6 rioters. So, there is a pathway for Biden, but it is a steep hill, and it is
really focused on a surprising area of vulnerability, historic shares of non-white voters at this point saying they will vote for Trump.
SOLOMON: Margaret, it's interesting because Biden did a radio interview this morning in Dallas, Texas, where he --
BROWNSTEIN: Yeah.
SOLOMON: -- spoke directly to the African American community, actually, and I think we have the clip for you, Margaret. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOICE OF JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: There is so much at stake: Democracy, freedom, economic opportunity. Thinking the alternative, folks. If we lose this election, you're going to be back with Donald Trump. And Donald Trump -- anyway, the way he talks about, the way he acted, the way he dealt with African American community, I think it's been shameful.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOLOMON: Margaret, I'm curious if there is an issue with messaging, right, because we heard Biden say there. It doesn't really get to the specifics of -- even last week, what critics of Trump will say, he talked to a group of black conservatives and he said the reason why some black voters like me is because I have a mugshot, because I've been arrested, because they understand how unfair the justice system is. Putting aside those comments, I mean, some have said Biden needs to be stronger with the messaging. I mean, does that seem to be an issue here for him?
TALEV: We know that it is. My institute is involved in monthly focus grouping of key blocs of voters with a group called "Engagious" and with NBC. And in our most recent panel, they were panels of African American voters who were dissatisfied with both candidates. What we learned from those panels is not that these black voters were flocking towards Donald Trump, but that they were incredibly disappointed and disillusioned with Joe Biden. It wasn't really a matter of them threatening to switch who they voted for. It was just a matter of them saying, I don't really know if I want to bother to turn out again.
And one of their big arguments was they don't know what Biden has done for them. And when he talks about his accomplishments, they don't feel real to them. They talk about lowest unemployment rate and all these things, and they don't -- they're not experiencing that in their own lives, the people that they know or not. So, I think he does have a messaging challenge, both in terms of talking about his accomplishments and then talking about them credibly in a way that resonates with African American voters.
[11:15:00]
SOLOMON: Well, we certainly will be watching Thursday night to see sort of what the messaging is. We'll have to leave it here. Senior Political Analyst, Ron Brownstein, and Margaret Talev, Senior Contributor for Axios, great conversation. Thank you, both.
TALEV: Thanks, Rahel.
BROWNSTEIN: Thanks for having me.
SOLOMON: All right. This just in. White House officials say that they invited the widow of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny to attend the State of the Union, but she cannot come. She would have been a personal guest of the President and First Lady. She and her daughter met with President Biden last month after her husband died in a Russian prison. Mr. Biden has rebuked Russian President Vladimir Putin for Navalny's death.
Also just coming into CNN, widespread outages hitting social media sites belonging to Meta, among them, Facebook, Messenger and Instagram. As many as 500,000 Facebook users have reported issues, according to outage tracker Downdetector. No word right now on a cause. But, a Meta spokesperson says that the company is aware that people are having trouble accessing the services and that they are working on it. We're going to continue to keep an eye on this, and we'll bring you more details just as soon as we get them.
Ukraine claiming victory at sea. What we are learning about a new Black Sea drone attack, coming up. Plus, leaders in China are working to restore confidence in the world's second largest economy. Details ahead on the ambitious targets for this year. We'll be right back.
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SOLOMON: Welcome back. We are tracking what could be victory at sea for Ukraine. This is video from Ukraine's Defense Intelligence and it shows what Kyiv says. It's another successful attack on a Russian warship in the Black Sea. Ukraine says that a maritime drone sunk a 1,300-ton Russian patrol vessel after triggering a fire on board. Now, if true, it is a much needed victory for Ukraine. Its troops have struggled to halt a Russian ground campaign as Western aid dries up.
CNN's Nick Paton Walsh has seen the effects of stalled foreign aid firsthand on the frontlines, and filed this report from eastern Ukraine.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It's a lonely path ahead. The Russians have never been louder or closer. Occupied Bakhmut is just up the road. But now, some Ukrainian tank guns are silent just when they're needed most. Here, they don't have enough shells.
WALSH: Sometimes, they just won't fire at all for a whole day. Other days, they will be shooting constantly. And it is loud on the other side of that hill. And it's sort of surreal to hear that sort of noise over there and see this tank unit having a Russia envoy (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (Interpreted): We have people, but without weapons. This is not a war you can win with a sword.
WALSH (voice over): We learned they didn't fire a tool that day or the day before or the next day.
[11:20:00]
The silence here is what losing sounds like, so too is what these soldiers had to say.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (Interpreted): If the Americans don't give money, what's going to happen?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (Interpreted): I think we're all going to die. Everybody who is here. We will be no more.
WALSH: Is this the worst you've seen it?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah. Yeah, definitely. I think this year is going to be the worst year in the war. Oh, I do know that there is certain units that they're running out of tanks.
WALSH: How angry does it make you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah, I'm pissed. I'm absolutely pissed off. There is no point in trying to paint this in any sort of light where it's good for us that Russia takes Ukraine. That's going to be very, very, very bad for us geopolitically.
WALSH (voice over): It's here, Chasiv Yar, that already looks like defeat, those left sounding like they'd be just about OK when Russia comes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (Interpreted): I want to see my granddaughter. She's in Moscow. My sister is in Kaliningrad. Half of Russia are my relatives. But I'm here alone. No water, no gas, no power, nothing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (Interpreted): The drive straight to the house where people live. And they fire right from the house. They hide behind the civilians backs.
WALSH (voice over): Further south, near Avdiivka, homes that dealt with about 10 years of war just up the road are finally emptying out.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (Interpreted): You know, the house shook four times already. It's made of clay and straw. They shell so hard that every time I think that's it. We are done. The most scary would be if that horde comes here. There can be no trusting people whose hands are covered in blood.
WALSH (voice over): The skyline is bleak enough as it is, but now rumbles with Russia advancing. Ukraine said it would hold steady at three villages near here after it left Avdiivka. That hasn't happened. All three are now heavily contested at best. And the noise of the Russian approach is louder.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (Interpreted): Donbas was Ukraine, we were living a normal life. We had jobs. I will turn 70 soon. I've been married for 52 years. We will be buried together. Right here. Right in that ditch there.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (Interpreted): Did you expect the Russians to get so close?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (Interpreted): We didn't expect it. We thought it would somehow settle, calm down.
WALSH (voice over): Some units had enough shells, they said, these firing American rounds in a donated Paladin. But still, less than before. We didn't see much in the way of heavy defences around here. And the worry is, was, and will be that Russia does not stop. It may not be huge and southern enough to make the West pay urgent attention. But, that's exactly what Putin wants anyway.
WALSH: So, ultimately, we are dealing with the frontline under extreme pressure. And the news really from that frontline that Ukraine hoped it would be able to defend after it left Avdiivka was consistently negative. Suggestions from their officials, they have been able to stabilize it, but also to from Russian sources, and some Ukrainian bloggers that it's a very difficult situation indeed.
On a separate note, I should point out that the International Criminal Court have just issued arrest warrants for two key Black Sea fleet commanders of Russia for attacks on civilian infrastructure that have injured civilians. That's a move with some significant consequences potentially, as it sort of create an international jurisdiction for the atrocities we've seen across occupied areas here in Ukraine. So, a lot moving in this story. But, the most stark part, Rahel, how difficult it is for Ukraine on the front. Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOLOMON: Yeah. Certainly an illuminating report there from the frontlines. Nick Paton Walsh in eastern Ukraine. Nick, thank you.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says that it's on Hamas to accept an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. Blinken met with Qatar's Prime Minister at the State Department today. Qatar is playing a critical role in efforts to indirectly broker a truce and hostage agreement between Israel and Hamas. Blinken spoke to reporters a short time ago. Listen.
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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: And here we have an opportunity for an immediate ceasefire that can bring hostages home, that can dramatically increase the amount of humanitarian assistance getting into Palestinians who so desperately need it, and can also set the conditions for an enduring resolution. And it is on Hamas to make decisions about whether it is prepared to engage in that ceasefire.
(END VIDEO CLIP) SOLOMON: We know that Blinken is also meeting today with Israeli war cabinet member Benny Gantz.
Let's go to our Jennifer Hansler who is live at the State Department with more on all of these developments. So, Jennifer, what impact was this meeting expected to have on those talks?
JENNIFER HANSLER, CNN STATE DEPARTMENT REPORTER: Well, Rahel, we weren't expecting a lot of impact out of this meeting with the Qataris. It was more a chance for Blinken and his counterpart from Qatar to touch base and continue to remain on the same page about these urgent efforts to secure a ceasefire. As you saw, Secretary Blinken called on Hamas to make the decisions necessary to reach that ceasefire as the situation on the ground in Gaza continues to deteriorate. We continue to see this massive humanitarian toll that is happening there on the ground as aid continues not to reach the people in need there.
And the Biden administration has said consistently that it is a ceasefire that needs to be put in place in order for more aid to get in and for those hostages to get out. And this question of aid is also expected to be at the front and top of mind in his conversation with Benny Gantz, who has just arrived here at the State Department. We know that Gantz's visit here is causing some controversy in Israel. He is seen as the main political rivals for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Netanyahu has taken the extraordinary effort to try to obscure his meetings here. He has said these were not authorized. He has blocked his Israeli ambassador here in the U.S. from attending those meetings.
Now, the U.S. says it is important to meet with Gantz regardless of the controversy because of his role on the war cabinet there, Rahel. They say they need to press this need for more aid to get an update on the talks and to try to continue to push that message that more aid needs to be done. Israel needs to do more to secure a ceasefire here to try to help get more aid into the Gaza Strip. Rahel.
SOLOMON: OK. A lot to watch. Jennifer Hansler live at the State Department. Jennifer, thank you.
HANSLER: Thank you.
SOLOMON: Well, it has been nearly 10 years since a Malaysia Airlines plane mysteriously disappeared. Still ahead, why the government may launch a new search? Plus, millions of Americans are voting today across the U.S. on Super Tuesday. Is it Nikki Haley's last stand as she tries to make up ground against Donald Trump? We'll be right back.
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[11:30:00]
SOLOMON: Welcome back. You are watching CNN Newsroom, and I'm Rahel Solomon live in New York.
Here are some of the international headlines we're watching for you today. Leaders in China are setting an ambitious economic growth target of around five percent for this year. That figure announced Tuesday morning at the National People's Congress. That's the Chinese Parliament's annual week-long meeting attended by thousands of delegates and President Xi Jinping.
Iran is reporting record low turnout in last week's election. Just 41 percent of eligible voters cast ballots. That's despite Iran extending voting three times. The election leaves hardliners with a firm grip on Parliament. Many moderates and reformers were disqualified from the race.
And there are new calls to search for a Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 which, you might remember, disappeared in 2014. The seabed exploration company "Ocean Infinity" would like to begin a new search for the plate, and family members of those missing have asked the Malaysian government to approve it. "Ocean Infinity" previously conducted two searches for the plane.
Right now, back to our top story this morning, 16 races, millions of voters, and one huge day. Super Tuesday voting is happening in states across the country. President Biden is expected to win easily on the Democratic side. But, will we see more protest votes like we did in Michigan? With Republican Donald Trump holding a pretty commanding delegate lead, today may represent Nikki Haley's last best chance to derail a Biden-Trump rematch. A lot to watch.
So, let's get to CNN's Brian Todd, who joins us now from Sandy, Utah. Brian, good morning. So, you're outside a polling place that just opened. Talk to us about what the mood is on the ground from what you can tell already.
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rahel, it promises to be a very dynamic day here in Utah because Nikki Haley might have her best chance to have he best showing here on Super Tuesday, right here in this state. We are at a polling site here. But, we have to say that this is a caucus site. So, the voters have not arrived here yet. They won't arrive here for several hours. They get here at 6 p.m. local time. That's 8 p.m. Eastern. They caucus all at the same time. That starts at 7 p.m. local, which is 9 p.m. Eastern. That's when the caucusing starts. And I'll show you where that's going to happen in a second.
But first, let's set the beautiful scene here. These are the Wasatch Mountains, just due south of Salt Lake City here in Sandy, Utah. This is the polling site, not polling site, but the caucus site. This is Alta High School here in Sandy, Utah, massive high school. The voters will come in here this evening at that front entrance there. This vote -- this caucus thing will take place in 32 different rooms because there are 32 different precincts voting here. So, you're going to have hundreds of Republican voters here tonight caucusing in 32 different rooms. Then they do the couch in a separate room and we're going to be able to show that to our voters.
This is a pretty simple format. This is the ballot that they're going to be casting their votes on. Ryan Binkley is a candidate from outside, running here in the Republican primary. But, there is Nikki Haley and there is Donald Trump. Pretty simple ballot. You fill it in, and then they put it into a container. And again, they start that counting here at about 8 p.m. local time. That's 10 p.m. Eastern time tonight. So, it's going to be a very interesting time to actually talk to voters, see what they're thinking, what drove them out to the polls.
It's interesting here because they didn't switch to the caucus format, Rahel, until 2016. They had a primary format before that where voters would come in all day in a typical primary voting format. But, in 2016, they started a caucus format. That's better for us on the media side because it's much more dynamic. You can show people doing the actual voting, the counting. The speeches being made to the voters by the surrogates. So, it's a fun evening once it starts later tonight. Rahel.
SOLOMON: Yeah. It's funny, Brian. I was thinking, it may look cold based on the snow on the mountain there, but the caucuses are always a lot more hot. They're a lot more fiery. Brian, let me ask, you so that Nikki Haley may have her best chance in Utah to show a more strong showing. What are the factors that seem to be favoring her there in the Utah caucuses, and what seem to be favoring Trump?
TODD: Well, they each have their own unique advantages here, Rahel. What Nikki Haley has in her favor is the fact that Donald Trump has gotten lukewarm support here in past caucuses. In 2016, he lost that caucus to Ted Cruz handily. He wasn't really even close in that caucus. Now, in 2020, in the general election, Donald Trump did beat Joe Biden by about 20 percentage points in the general election. But, here in Utah, there is some anti-Trump sentiment. The governor, Spencer Cox, has not formally endorsed Nikki Haley, but he says he likes Nikki Haley. He does not like Donald Trump or Joe Biden as candidates. He has said that. His wife, Abby Cox, has formally endorsed Nikki Haley, and the Lieutenant Governor, Deidre Henderson, has also endorsed Nikki Haley. So, you've got that sentiment out there.
And also, you've got the Mitt Romney factor here. Mitt Romney, still a popular Senator. He is retiring. But, he has, of course, been a very harsh critic of Donald Trump, and his -- Mitt Romney's word carries a lot of weight here in Utah. Now, the advantages for Donald Trump, as we kind of again show you the venue here, the advantages for Donald Trump are this.
[11:35:00]
A caucus format, and again, this is what will happen tonight, that is run by the state Republicans, not by the state itself. It was run by the Republican Party in the state. And that means that usually it's the committed registered Republicans who come here and those voters tend to be more conservative. The registered Republicans who vote in the caucuses here in Utah, at least, tend to be more conservative. That's going to favor Donald Trump here. And Trump is expected to win the caucus here. But, we'll see. We'll see if Nikki Haley can pick up some delegates and see if by some chance she pulls off an upset here tonight. Rahel.
SOLOMON: Yeah. That would be interesting. We certainly will be watching. CNN's Brian Dodd in Sandy, Utah. Brian, thank you.
Let's continue the conversation now. I want to bring in a Republican Strategist, Rina Shah, and CNN Political Commentator, Bakari Sellers, who is also an Attorney and former South Carolina State Representative. Good to see you both.
Rina, let me start with you and pick up where Brian left off. I mean, what are your expectations tonight? Might Nikki Haley pull off an upset somewhere and pick up some delegates? What are you watching?
RINA SHAH, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: It's a very real possibility for her to pull off an upset in a place that has a open or semi-open primary. And to remind our viewers, there are five different types of primaries closed, and then there is partly closed, and then there is open to unaffiliated voters, and then there is open and then partly open. What the Nikki Haley campaign has decided is that they just want to be competitive today. That is the name of the game. She wants to close the gap with Trump, of course, in many of the key states. But, when you're looking at open primaries, you're talking about places like Alabama, Arkansas, Minnesota, Texas, Vermont, and Virginia.
And so, I would say what she has got to do to be able to be competitive again, just close that gap a bit, because Trump goes out there talking about party unity. The party clearly is not that unified when you've got somewhere in the 40 percent ranges between Iowa, New Hampshire, as well as South Carolina, of Republican voters showing up to vote against Trump. Now, of course, in Michigan, it was a bit different. That was in the 30 percent range. But, what they're really hoping to do is say, look, she can survive another day. She has got the money to do it, but needs the numbers on her side. No doubt today is the definitive today to make up that math against Trump.
SOLOMON: Bakari, not a competitive race on the Democratic side. It doesn't mean that there is not necessarily a lot to be learned from the results. What are you watching?
BAKARI SELLERS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR, & FORMER SOUTH CAROLINA STATE HOUSE REPRESENTATIVE: Well, I think Nikki Haley would actually do well in the two caucuses. I think she'll win in Utah. I think she'll win in Alaska. And I think she'll do well in a place like Maine. Outside of that, you'll look at the competitiveness of North Carolina and Virginia just to see how competitive those races are where you have a great deal of college-educated voters versus the rural voters that Donald Trump does extremely well with.
On the other side of the aisle, California has a competitive Senate primary going on. Adam Schiff looks to be walking away with that victory, and he has done it in a unique fashion by boosting the Republican over there to get to about 25 percent, 26 percent. So, it's a jungle primary where the top two individuals actually will make it on to the general election. And it looks like it will be one Democrat and one Republican. It looks like that Democrat will be Adam Schiff.
And then in Texas, Sheila Jackson Lee, who has been a stalwart here in Washington, D.C., is in a fight for her life. She has a primary against Amanda Edwards, who is an at-large City Council person down there. It's unique because Sheila Jackson Lee was running for the mayor of Houston, got beat soundly in that race, and then decided she was going to double back and run for her old seat. Well, Amanda was already in that seat. And Amanda said, not so fast. And so, that race is going to be one in which you have a new generation of Democrats versus yesterday's generation of Democrats, and we'll see what happens.
SOLOMON: Bakari, let me stick with you for just a moment since you mentioned Texas. Biden spoke on a radio program in Dallas, Texas, reaching an African American audience. Let me play a clip of what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOICE OF BIDEN: There is so much at stake: Democracy, freedom, economic opportunity. Thinking the alternative, folks. If we lose this election, you're going to be back with Donald Trump. And Donald Trump -- anyway, the way he talks about, the way he acted, the way he dealt with African American community, I think it's been shameful.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOLOMON: Bakari, I'm just wondering, from a communication standpoint, is Biden's message strong enough? And I'm thinking about Charlamagne tha God and what he said a few weeks ago that the campaign just essentially needs to be more forceful. They need to be more, I don't think he use the word theatrical or dramatic, but they need to be mixing it up, is I think the word he used. What do you think just about sort of the way Biden sometimes phrases the stakes?
SELLERS: I mean, there two things. One, he is actually meeting voters where they are. I mean, he was on DeDe in the morning down in Texas. So, actually showing up and being on that radio station, being on Black Radio is important, so voters actually can hear you on their morning drive and while they're getting their cups of coffee in the morning.
[11:40:00]
So, that's a very important step.
Two, one of the things that is concerning, I talk to Charlemagne all the time, and one of the things that Charlemagne is highlighting is the fact that black voters in particular know who Donald Trump is. We know the evil that Donald Trump represents. We know the racism, the bigotry, the xenophobia that comes with Donald Trump, and stop telling us who Donald Trump is because we already know that. And so, I'm not sure a message of Donald Trump is X, Y and Z is going to sound like the White House thinks it is. Continue to tell us about the things that you've done, because this White House has actually done a great deal for African American voters, a whole hell of a lot for African American voters.
What the problem is, there is a disconnect in the messaging, because sometimes the things that have been done in Washington, D.C. haven't yet hit people's pocketbooks. So, you have to be able to close that gap. And instead of talking about Donald Trump, I think what Charlemagne and many others are saying are, talk about Joe Biden, mix it up, tell your story, tell who you are. And I think that's a more positive message going into the 2024 election.
SOLOMON: Yeah. And to that point, Rina, I mean, what do you think we might hear on Thursday in State of the Union? I mean, there had been some reporting that we might hear from Biden less acronyms about legislation and more sort of practical real speak about what he claims he has done for the African American community and average Americans at large.
SHAH: Well, I think on Thursday, it's definitely a tall order for this President, because the kitchen table issues that are going to dominate into November are there right now glaring him in the face. And it does feel like this administration is a bit reactive when it's a day late. And I don't want to say $1 short, because, of course, when you talk to Republicans, they feel like this administration just spends on all the wrong things. But, that's a separate conversation.
Going into Thursday, and particularly on Thursday, voters need to hear from the President on just how he has made their life better, when it comes to economic mobility, the ability to live and work in safe communities. Crime and public safety is something that Republicans have driven out their electorate with on fear so much, and that is what you continue to hear Donald Trump nail every time he takes a podium somewhere, is that there is a sense that we are not a safer America under this administration. And so, again, he is going to have to push back on that with some actual data points of what he has done. And I've heard them in recent weeks.
But again, this is a situation in which we are already sitting in March. The general election is November. A lot of people are not going to the polls today. There is a tremendous apathy that's out there, because a lot of folks feel like these nominees are already chosen. And so, what's the point of showing up. And I think Joe Biden really just in this selling himself for reelection, it's just going to have to be talk of his legislative record in order to go up against a lot of the misinformation and disinformation that you're hearing from congressional Republicans as well.
SOLOMON: Bakari, really quick if I could ask before you go, who is the biggest challenger right now to Biden? Is it Trump or is it the couch?
SELLERS: Look at you, taking my political analysis from me and asking me the question. The couch, this is not a persuasion election. This is a GOTV election. It's ingrained. People feel the way they feel about Donald Trump and feel the way they feel about Joe Biden. The question is, whether or not you can get these people to show up and vote. Donald Trump is going to have his people come out rain, sleet, and snow.
The question is, will voters, particularly black voters and young voters who make up -- black and brown voters who make up the coalition that made Joe Biden President of the United States, will they come out to vote for him in Milwaukee, Detroit, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Phoenix, Las Vegas, in those areas, Raleigh-Durham, in those areas that will determine in their suburbs that will determine who is the next President of the United States? I think they will, but it takes a lot of work between now and November.
SOLOMON: Yeah. Well, he is certainly trying to get the message out. I know he'll be in the great city of Philadelphia, a city I know and love very well. On Friday, a lot to watch. I know you guys both have very busy days. So, we appreciate you being here with us.
SELLERS: Thank you.
SOLOMON: Republican Strategist Rina Shah and CNN Political Commentator Bakari Sellers, thank you both.
All right. Still ahead for us, a U.S. Air Force employee accused of sharing classified information on a foreign dating website. We're going to have a report with the latest. Plus, a beloved blue children's character has some food for thought on the U.S. economy. That story fresh from the oven, just ahead.
[11:45:00]
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SOLOMON: Welcome back. A U.S. Air Force employee with top secret security clearance is accused of sharing classified information on a dating website. Prosecutors say that the man facing charges is a retired Army Lieutenant Colonel who sent sensitive information about Russia's war in Ukraine to a woman who claimed to be living in Ukraine.
Joining us now is CNN's National Security Correspondent Natasha Bertrand. So, Natasha, what do we know both about this Air Force employee and why he allegedly pass along this information?
NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Rahel. So, this was an Air Force employee who was working at U.S. Strategic Command, which is responsible for the United States' nuclear arsenal, and he had a top secret security clearance. And according to the Justice Department, he began communicating on a foreign dating website, that is not identified in charging documents, with a woman who claimed to be a Ukrainian. And she, according to prosecutors, really began asking him in 2022 for information relating to the war in Ukraine, relating to Russia, and she kind of needled him and implored him to disclose some of the sensitive information that prosecutors say he was receiving pretty regularly as part of his job at U.S. Strategic Command.
Now, according to prosecutors, this person posing as a Ukrainian woman, or identifying herself as such, told him things like "Dear, what is shown on the screens in the special room? It is very interesting." She also said, "You are my secret informant love. How were your meetings? Successfully?" And she also said, "You have a job in the Operations Center today, I remember, I'm sure there is a lot of interesting news there."
Now, according to prosecutors, this individual, David Franklin Slater, he actually did disclose in March of 2022, in April of that year, information relating to Russian military capabilities as well as Russian troop movements to this individual, and that then resulted in these charges being filed against him. He faces many, many years in prison if he is convicted of these very serious charges. Of course, it comes at a time when the U.S. Air Force is already grappling with the extensive leak of classified information by an airman named Jack Teixeira who just pleaded guilty to those charges yesterday. Rahel.
SOLOMON: Wow. All right. Fascinating. Natasha Bertrand live for us at the Pentagon. Natasha, thank you.
All right. Coming up, a controversial U.S. economic trend getting attention from both the White House and Sesame Street. We will explain after a short break.
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[11:50:00]
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SOLOMON: Welcome back. Jeff Bezos has reclaimed the title of world's richest person. The Amazon founder has returned to the top spot on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, beating out Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. Now, his net worth is now estimated at $200 billion, while Musk is worth a measly $198 billion. Now, a lot of this does have to do with market performance. According to the index, Musk has lost about $31 billion over the past year, while Bezos has gained $23 billion.
All right. A beloved Sesame Street character is taking a bite out of the controversial trend in the U.S. economy. Take a look.
(VIDEO PLAYING)
SOLOMON: So, Cookie Monster is expressing his bitter feelings towards shrinkflation, which has led to downsizing of certain consumer goods without a drop in prices. So, essentially, the price stays the same, but the actual item gets smaller. On social media, Cookie Monster wrote "Me hate shrinkflation. Me cookies are getting smaller. Guess gets me going to have to eat double da cookies."
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden is set to launch a strike force aimed at price-gouging practices. The timing of this is expected -- this expected launch comes just two days ahead of his State of the Union address.
From cookies to the Big Apple, CNN's Nathaniel Meyersohn joins us live in New York. Nathaniel, for the record. I don't think it's ever a bad idea to eat double the cookies. But, that is not besides the point. Talk to me about what Cookie Monster is complaining about.
NATHANIEL MEYERSOHN, CNN BUSINESS REPORTER: Rahel, I liked your cookie monster impression, I'm not even going to try to duplicate it. But, yeah, Cookie Monster is the latest to call out shrinkflation. And I think before the pandemic, I don't think most people knew what the term shrinkflation was. But, it has become kind of into the -- it's become into the mainstream as you go to the store and you see your Doritos chips a little bit smaller. And maybe you have fewer sheets in the toilet paper roll or the paper towel roll.
And it's another way for companies to mask inflation, instead of just increasing the price of the bag of chips or the cookies. They make it a little bit smaller where people can't really figure it out. Do you remember whether your soft drink was 12 liters or 11 and a half liters? You're not really kind of comparing the two. And you'll see kind of a little description on the bottom of the bag. But, you're not thinking about, OK, how much -- how big was this a couple of years ago. So, it's another way for companies to hide these higher prices.
SOLOMON: Yeah. And what's really interesting is you sometimes can't tell because they change the packaging, like sometimes even the bottle gets more thin. So, what items seem to have the highest shrinkflation from what we can tell?
MEYERSOHN: So, toilet paper and paper towels, household paper products, those have the highest rate of shrinkflation. You look at some data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, household paper products have shrunk 35 percent from 2019 to 2023. Candy and chewing gum shrunk about 30 percent. Snacks are getting smaller. And then, household cleaning products like Dawn dish soap, laundry detergent, those are getting a little bit smaller as well. And it's kind of like this irritating and frustrating form of inflation. You're not seeing it at a higher price. You're just getting a little bit less in the bag or the box.
SOLOMON: So, what's the Biden administration trying to do to fix this issue? Really quickly, Nathaniel.
MEYERSOHN: So, the Biden administration and the President have called out shrinkflation. You see Democratic senators really trying to rally around. And it's a way to put pressure on companies. There is not so much they can do to force a company to make bigger products. But, if there is enough public pressure on the companies, they're going to be a little bit more careful, a little bit more fearful of consumer backlash.
And then, the Biden administration is also launching a task force to really try to crack down on junk fees and other fees that folks are paying.
[11:55:00]
So, this is kind of an economic populist message that the Biden administration is leaning into, and it's really taking aim at corporations for inflation.
SOLOMON: Yeah. That's certainly something we've heard him say before, but we'll likely hear even more of as the campaign ramps up. Nathaniel Meyersohn live for us in New York. Nathaniel, thank you.
All right. Before we go, let's take a quick look at where the markets are today, and in the U.S. Well, it's right across the board. Dow, NASDAQ, S&P, all off with the S&O off about one percent. The NASDAQ, the worst among them, off about 1.8 percent. And here are the major indexes in Europe and Asia, a bit more of a mixed picture, the FTSE 100 closing up fractionally. Shanghai Composite closing up about a quarter of a percentage points. Elsewhere, pretty much lower across the board.
Well, speaking of money, we know your time is money. So, thank you for spending some time with me today. I'm Rahel Solomon in New York. Stick with CNN. One World is coming up next. I'll see you tomorrow.
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