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Trump, JD Vance Holds First Rally Together Since Nomination; Biden: Getting Back to the Campaign Trail Next Week; Israel Attacks Houthi Targets in Yemen for the First Time; Details Emerge About Trump's Would-Be Assassin a Week After Shooting; Trump Says He had "Very Good Phone Call" with Zelenskyy; WSJ Reporter Evan Gershkovich Sentenced to 16 Years in Prison; Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee Dead at Age 74. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired July 20, 2024 - 18:00   ET

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

[18:01:52]

JESSICA DEAN, CNN HOST: You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Hi, everyone. I'm Jessica Dean in New York.

And happening right now, former President Donald Trump holding his first rally since the assassination attempt last week. He was also joined by his new running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio.

The pair hitting the campaign trail in Michigan, a must-win state for the Republican ticket to win in November.

CNN's Kristen Holmes joining us now.

Kristen, you've been there following this rally. What are you hearing?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jess, I am trying to piece together so what was the original speech and what is Trump being Trump.

He is clearly right now enjoying this crowd. He has gone into various policies, only to be sidetracked by things he did in the White House or telling other stories, talking about poll numbers, talking about Elon Musk.

The gist of what I am getting in terms of the actual speech is that he is reaching out to Michigan workers, talking about how he will support auto workers if he is re-elected to the White House.

One thing I want to mention on that is that part of what he said when he took the stage, is that he chose JD Vance, the junior Ohio senator as his running mate because he was for the worker.

Obviously one of the things that Donald Trump has tried to do over and over again this campaign cycle is paint himself as pro-worker.

Now, obviously if you speak to any sort of labor union leaders as well as labor experts, they say that Donald Trump was not union friendly, was not labor friendly while he was in the White House, but we do know from looking at recent polling and actually polling from the last several years that working-class voters tend to side or would tend to vote for Donald Trump and he is clearly trying to reach out particularly here in Michigan.

It was interesting to see him and the vice presidential nominee, JD Vance up on that stage. They hugged, they shook hands, they took pictures together. It was almost as if JD Vance, you could tell he was green a little bit, that this was one of his first times in this kind of environment.

At one point, he said he was introducing Donald Trump to huge cheers and then he continued talking to boos because people wanted to see Donald Trump. It seems very new to him, which makes perfect sense. He is half of Donald Trump's age.

But he got out there, talked to the crowd. They seemed to love him as is former President Donald Trump. Remember one of the reasons he said he chose him, in addition to being pro-worker is that he has told people around me had the most chemistry with him.

So we are going to continue to listen to this speech. It feels like it is going to be a long one. He seems to again, be very much enjoying this crowd. But one thing I want to point out, as you noted, this is the first rally since that assassination attempt in Butler.

There is so much security around the former president, so much more than I've ever seen before. They have agents all over the stage, agents all over this arena. And in addition to that, we know there are so many local law enforcement.

The Secret Service actually requested 50 to 60 more officers. They had originally requested, we saw them on the perimeter. The streets are closed. They're taking the security very seriously as obviously they should be since he is the former president and due to that assassination attempt last week.

DEAN: All right, Kristen Holmes for us on the trail in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Thank you so much for that reporting.

[18:05:05]

And as the Republican Party rallies after its convention, the Democratic Party is still splintering on its choice with nearly three dozen Democratic lawmakers now publicly calling on President Biden to step aside.

Tonight, the president is recovering from COVID-19 in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. His campaign says he is the nominee, he will continue to be the nominee and he will be back on the campaign trail next week even as donors squirm amid new polling showing him trailing Trump and weakness for other down-ballot races.

Let's go now to CNN's Priscilla Alvarez, who is in Delaware and Priscilla, you have some new reporting tonight on how some Democrats are backing President Biden. What can you tell us?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Two high-profile Democrats that are urging donors to stay behind Biden and continue to donate toward his campaign, that would be former President Bill Clinton and Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, essentially, again, urging these donors to continue to send those big checks over to the Biden campaign.

One source describing the couple is being "deferential" to the process. In other words, that as long as President Biden is the presumptive nominee, he should be backed financially. But of course, there are still so many questions about just that and the Biden campaign has been facing multiple headwinds when it comes to donors.

Now, we should note that the vice president did have a fundraiser today in Massachusetts that raked in more than $2 million, and she also spoke with donors yesterday at the behest of Biden advisers, so they are certainly trying to make some inroads here and get these donors in line with the president and the campaign.

Of course, money is important for any campaign, but certainly in addition to all of this, more Democratic lawmakers coming out today, publicly saying that the president should drop out of the presidential race and that has been the reality for the president over the last few weeks following the CNN presidential debate, where he had a halting performance that stoked so much anxiety and panic within the Democratic Party.

Now, in light of all of this, the Biden campaign has maintained on the airwaves and in statements that the president is staying in the race while simultaneously acknowledging that it has been a tough couple of weeks, that there has been some erosion of support, but otherwise that the views among voters are already hardened and they do feel that President Biden is best suited to go up against former President Donald Trump.

But when you look behind-the-scenes and according to sources to have spoken with CNN, there are aides who find this current situation wholly untenable and other loyal aides who say the president is dug in.

So currently the president is here, self-isolating at his residence in Delaware, where sources tell us he is deliberating. He is with his inner circle and you can imagine that these are the conversations that they are having, but the message that the campaign continues to send and that the president has sent himself is that he is still in this race and that he anticipates getting back on the campaign trail next week and he recovers from COVID -- Jessica.

DEAN: All right, Priscilla Alvarez for us, live in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. Thank you for that reporting.

And while President Biden contemplates next move, Vice President Kamala Harris is at the top of the list of who might take a spot if he were to suspend his campaign. Today, Harris headlined a fundraiser on Cape Cod that raised about $2 million. That's according to its organizers, and tonight she will be at a campaign rally in Provincetown, Massachusetts.

Both Democrats and Republicans are imagining a potential Harris run and whether she could beat former President Donald Trump.

CNN's Eva McKend has been speaking to voters about not all of this, and I am so curious, Eva, what they are telling you.

EVAN MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: So Jessica, it is really a range of responses. Some voters, they say that it is just too late in the game for this type of switch. Others tell me that they would be more excited to vote for Vice President Harris at the top of the ticket, but they feel as though President Biden should be able to arrive at this decision on his own, they should not be pushed out of the contest.

Most important to them though, Jessica, took pretty much all Democrats, which you speak to in these pivotal battleground states is for Democrats to get their act together so that former President Donald Trump doesn't get re-elected.

Take a listen to a little bit of what I am hearing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEBORAH CUNNINGHAM, NORTH CAROLINA VOTER: I don't think he should step aside. I mean, regardless of his physical appearance, I think as far as his administration and his policies and things that he is putting forth to advance America is what it is all about.

KELLY WALTER, VOTER: If they -- if he does step aside, I absolutely believe it should be Kamala Harris. She is the vice president. She is the next in line. She has been running alongside him this whole time. To bring in someone else, a governor or somebody, I feel like that's someone too new, too late and I don't think that's appropriate and it is frankly rude to Kamala.

[18:10:01]

MARK YARBOR, NORTH CAROLINA VOTER: I would be very supportive of whoever is the Democratic nominee. I feel like these are unprecedented times and that all hands need to be on-deck because I do believe democracy is at risk of being something that we've never seen before.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKEND: You know, Jessica, what most surprises me is that independent of me prompting them, voters independently will talk about Project 2025. That of course is the blueprint, the outline for a future Trump administration, a policy outline, a policy vision that conservatives share and they will tell me that they are really worried about Project 2025.

So the Democratic messaging so strong on that issue, and that seems to be a key motivator for Democrats right now.

DEAN: Yes, it does seem to be breaking through and even just a few minutes ago, Eva seeing former President Trump again trying to distance himself from Project 2025 even though more than 140 people who worked in his administration were part of it.

I also want to ask you about this because Harris is maintaining absolute loyalty to Biden in public. Do we know what she is talking about privately? Or if there is any sort of positioning to try to be in a strong a position as possible if she is called on to run. It is a really fine line, a tricky situation that she is in right now.

MCKEND: She is Jessica, but from what I am hearing, the public and the private comments of loyalty really match each other and everyone on her team being really disciplined at this time.

There are some of her allies that are sort of putting in the atmosphere that if President Biden were to step aside, that she has to be the only choice, but is an argument that you see her -- that she is engaging or anyone on her official team at this juncture. They sort of don't see any value to trying to weaken an already weakened president.

DEAN: All right, Eva McKend for us out of Washington tonight. Thank you for that reporting. We appreciate it.

And breaking news tonight, Iran has condemned the Israeli strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen. The Iranian foreign minister, warning of escalating tensions and the risk of war in that region. Houthi-run Tv saying 80 people were injured in the strikes today.

The Iranian-backed rebel group claiming responsibility for a strike in Tel Aviv yesterday that killed one person.

CNN's Jeremy Diamond has more on that.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jessica, for months now, Houthi militants have carried out attacks against Israel and on those shipping lanes in the Red Sea.

But this is the first time that Israel has actually carried out strikes against Houthi targets on Yemeni soil and I am told that the reason for that is because of that Houthi drone attack yesterday. That drone attack carried out against Central Tel Aviv actually resulting in Israeli casualties. One Israeli man in his 50s was killed in that attack, and that changed the calculus for the Israeli government, which for months now has really let the United States and the United Kingdom take the lead in striking Houthi targets in Yemen.

But they felt that because of those civilian casualties, they needed to act, striking the area of the Al-Hudaydah Port.

Here is the Israeli military spokesman, Admiral Daniel Hagari.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REAR ADM. DANIEL HAGARI, ISRAEL'S CHIEF MILITARY SPOKESPERSON: The Houthis attacks are acts of aggression, a violation of international law and a threat to the international peace and security.

Today, Israel stepped up its actions in self-defense against these attacks. The Israeli Air Force conducted precise strikes on Houthi military targets in Yemen. The military target was the Al-Hudaydah Port used by the Houthis as a main supply route for the transfer of Iranian weapons from Iran to Yemen, like the UAV itself that was used in the attack on Friday morning.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DIAMOND: The Israeli prime minister also saying that this is about sending a message, making clear that there is no area that Israel cannot and will not reach when it is attacked.

I am told by an Israeli Defense official that this was a 100 percent Israeli strike, not carried out in conjunction with the United States or the United Kingdom. However, the Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant did get on the phone with his American counterpart, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, informing him of Israel's intentions to strike ahead of time -- Jessica.

DEAN: Jeremy Diamond for us. Thank you very much.

Coming up, why experts warn the recovery won't be quick after a massive glitch had everything from airports to hospitals, banks, and beyond.

Plus new details emerging about the gunman who shot Donald Trump, including his apparent use of a drone before that shooting.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:19:39 ]

DEAN: It is being called the largest IT outage in history after a software update from a cybersecurity company, CrowdStrike took down millions of computers running Microsoft Windows. That outage has knocked out software systems all over the world, disrupting banks, healthcare providers, and some 911 call centers.

It has also caused a lot of chaos at airports canceling thousands of flights and delaying thousands more.

CNN's Isabel Rosales is at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson Airport.

[18:20:10]

ISABEL ROSALES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Jessica, day one of this outage was total chaos across multiple carriers. But today, what we are seeing is really a concentration of that mess with one carrier and that's Delta.

Take a look right up here at the departures. Sign after sign after sign here, cancellations and delays. So this is a huge headache for delta customers and that tracks because this is Atlanta Hartsfield- Jackson, this is Delta's headquarters. This is their largest hub. The most amount of flights from Delta right here.

Take a look at this line right over here. These are people who have had some sort of an issue with their flights. They are waiting to talk to a customer service agent and over here to the left, yet another line, those are people waiting here.

They've been canceled. They're trying to get their luggage back. So a nightmare scenario for so many travelers.

I want to also introduce you to some passengers right over here. This is Richard and this is Johnny. Tell me where were you guys supposed to be today?

RICHARD, TRAVELER: Portola Valley, California for my mom's wedding.

ROSALES: You're missing the wedding.

RICHARD: Yep.

ROSALES: And you're trying to get back home to Tampa, Pasco County to be precise. How has that experience been like for you guys to get some answers from Delta and get back home?

JOHNNY, TRAVELER: It's been nearly impossible. We've been waiting online for about 24 hours to talk to someone. He is still waiting. Last night he was 2,001 in line and then two hours later he was about 2,300 in line. And this morning, we're still about a good two hours away to hear from anybody.

So we're waiting to see if we can either get a plane home to Tampa and if not, a rental car, but that also is looking nearly please impossible right now.

ROSALES: Tell me more about that, about the alternatives of getting back home if you can't fly.

JOHNNY: Well, yes, the alternative would be a rental car. We want a one-way, but of course, only -- companies will only give certain amount of those one ways out. So when we got there, there was only one left. They had gouged that price up to about $586.00, and then there are other options, buses, trains.

The train was about $1,000.00 per person, Amtrak, so it is just -- it is nearly impossible. So were just waiting here. We are at the mercy of the travel gods right now, and just praying that something is going to open up for us.

ROSALES: In one quick word. How would you describe this entire experience?

RICHARD: Therapeutic.

ROSALES: You guys are in high spirits. Keep that up and I hope you get back home soon.

RICHARD: Thank you. ROSALES: Thank you. Back to you.

DEAN: Isabel Rosales, thanks so much. We hope they get back home soon, too.

Joining us now is Glenn Gerstell. He is the former general counsel at the National Security Agency, now a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Glenn, thanks so much for being here with us tonight. This is being called the largest IT outage in history. I don't remember anything else this big. Do you -- would you categorize it that way?

GLENN GERSTELL, SENIOR ADVISER, CENTER FOR STRATEGIC AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES: I think so at least in terms of the number of people affected, in terms of their personal life, their commercial life. This is probably going to be the biggest single computer incident in terms of overall effect, maybe not the number of computers, but the impact on peoples' lives as we just heard, everything from hospitals to airplanes, to banking transactions.

And I think of course, the rich irony here is that this was caused by a company whose sole purpose for being is to provide cybersecurity services to big companies around the world. The one thing they had to do and that's exactly where the mistake occurred.

DEAN: It is deeply ironic and you mentioned these software updates, yes, we, get those on our phones, our laptops. These are things that people are familiar with. But this one went so wrong in such a big way. How did that happen?

GERSTELL: We will know the answer to that probably after a series of investigations, whether they are by the Department of Homeland Security or Congress that has already started -- a number of members of Congress already started pounding the table demanding answers as you would expect with an outage of this significance.

But whether it was a failure of CrowdStrike to properly test the update beforehand. Perhaps they were rushing to get something to market. Perhaps they thought they didn't need to test it because it was very similar to an old update that they had already done that was okay, and maybe this one, they thought they didn't have to go through a full testing process. We will find the answer out to that at some point.

But clearly, clearly there was a very significant error here.

DEAN: Yes, and our lives are so dependent on tech now. I mean, it became abundantly clear, right? And you talk about things like banking. I mean, people get nervous when it is about their money. Should people be worried about how impactful this was on things that are deeply personal to them?

GERSTELL: Well, there is no sign that this was caused by malevolence. This was just seeming an error. Of course, there is always the potential that there could be copycat attacks, copycat efforts by Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, who could try to reverse engineer this, exploit, and use it to their advantage, of course.

[18:25:09]

But right now, I think all this is, is an outage that has basically turned computers into bricks around the world and they need to be rebooted and restarted. The other alternative is taking a hammer to it, that may provide some emotional satisfaction for a minute or two, but isn't going to solve the problem but individually, to go back to your question, I don't think the average individual needs to worry about their banking transactions being affected by this particular outage.

DEAN: Right. And what about -- does Congress play an oversight role in all of this? Or was this just simply a mistake that happened?

GERSTELL: Well, there are two answers to that. So the immediate problem is a mistake by a accompany whose responsibility is to provide secure updates to its customers around the world. And by the way, this company, CrowdStrike provide cybersecurity services to about 300 of the Fortune 500, so no surprise that an error or mishap on their end has global ramifications.

We are going to see over time exactly what the role of Congress is here. Clearly, there is going to be increased calls for more regulation, more liability. I don't know that that's completely the right answer. I think we just need to recognize that we have not spent anywhere near the amount of time and energy and money on resilience and backups and better defenses, and we have just assumed all along that lightning wont strike. Well, in this case, it did.

DEAN: Do you think that something like this is going to happen again? It sounds like now would be a good time to maybe think about better backup.

GERSTELL: Well, we are too far gone. We are 20 years into this particular internet and the structure and the backups. And so we are not going to be able to change the underlying fragility and architecture of the internet and the way digital systems communicate and the way updates are delivered, in particular by third parties who you can't -- you just have to rely on. You just have to accept an update to your phone or your computer. You don't really know what is in it.

It is sort of too late to change that system. I guess, the analogy I might use is if you had a bridge that collapsed, you might rebuild it with better steel and make sure it is stronger and we certainly should do that.

But if the underlying foundations, if it is just not practical to rebuild them, you're going to be stuck with them and I am afraid in this particular case, we are going to be stuck with inherent fragility of the internet and our digital system.

We can do more to protect ourselves, but at the end of the day, this kind of thing might well happen again. DEAN: And I just want to ask you, too, about this reporting that hackers are already taking advantage of this. They've set up phony URLS meant to appeal to people who are obviously trying to get more information about how to fix this -- get solutions. What should people be on the lookout for?

And it seems unfortunate, but this seems like the reality in these situations, hackers want to take advantage.

GERSTELL: After every one of these outage, criminals jump on it and creates spoofed websites that mimic CrowdStrike's own websites and maybe it says, I don't know, I am making it up, crowdstrikefix.com. I am just making that up -- and this particular case, the people who would be drawn to that are not the average consumer because the average consumer's computer wasn't hit by this.

Presumably, relatively sophisticated IT personnel at companies are engaged in fixing this. So I don't know that those spoofs in this case are going to be all that important. But you could see how that could in other situations be a big problem.

And then lastly, foreign countries such as Russia, China, North Korea, Iran, our adversaries in the cyber realm, they are going to look at this kind of bug, see if they can replicate it, reverse engineer it, and use it in their nefarious activities in the future. So we've got to be on lookout for that.

DEAN: Yes, Glenn Gerstell, thank you so much. Good to have your expertise. We appreciate it.

GERSTELL: Thank you.

DEAN: Bit by bit, investigators are putting together a more detailed picture of what Donald Trump's would-be assassin did before for that shooting, including the device he used just hours before pulling the trigger. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:33:43]

DEAN: Tonight, we're learning new details about the assassination attempt against former President Trump. A source telling CNN investigators now believe the shooter may have used a drone to scope out the area just hours before that attack. The FBI has been combing through the shooter's home in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, trying to figure out a possible motive here. CNN's Gloria Pazmino is there with the latest.

Gloria, what more do you know about this working theory now from investigators?

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jessica, this new detail about the drone that they found in Crooks' vehicle is definitely interesting and important because it suggests a level of planning and preparation on Crooks' part, right? They are telling us they believe he was able to deploy that drone on Saturday morning, which means that he got a bird's eye view of where this rally was going to take place. He got to look at the place, potentially decide where he was going to position himself. We know that he was on a roof very close to where the former president was speaking and that he had a very clear shot of him and the crowd that was in attendance to that rally.

So being able to deploy this drone certainly suggests that this was being well thought out and planned well in advance.

[18:35:02]

As you said, the motive remains elusive here. That is the one part that investigators have not been able to point, to conclude. But they are looking at the evidence that they have gathered so far. And we know just a little bit more about Crooks and potentially his state of mind by the Internet searches that he was carrying out in the days before the shooting. He looked up information about both Donald Trump and President Joe Biden. He looked up information about the Democratic National Convention, about other high-profile politicians and information about Saturday's rally.

We also know that he was there early on Saturday, hours before it was set to take place and that that morning he traveled to a local Home Depot, bought a ladder and also bought ammunition at a local gun store. He drove about an hour north of here. That's where the location of the rally is and that's where he carried out that attack and failed assassination attempt on the former president.

Investigators still combing through the evidence, trying to put together the pieces. But the questions are mounting as we head into next week and lawmakers are expected to be asking questions, both of the director of the Secret Service as well as others as they try to understand why this happened, how it happened and if there was anything that could have been done in order to prevent it. Jessica?

DEAN: All right. Gloria Pazmino for us, thank you so much for that reporting.

The U.S. has a long and bloody history when it comes to political violence from the brutal colonization, the American Revolution, the Civil War, the upheaval of the '60s and the politically polarized atmosphere we see today. Former President Donald Trump, just the latest to be attacked and this week on "The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper," CNN's Sara Sidner examines the history of these attacks and the motivations behind them. She spoke with people whose families have been torn apart by this violence including Patrick Kennedy and Martin Luther King III.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Senator Kennedy was involved in a shooting.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The last report was hit twice in the head and once in the hip. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Losing King and Robert Kennedy in the same season was bad enough but it reminded Americans of JFK's assassination less than five years before.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was just a baby when my Uncle Bobby was killed, but I just know what a loss it was not only for their children, my cousins, but a loss for everybody that knew them and knew how much they wanted to change the world.

They had so much promise and so much inspiration and hope as part of their whole message.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Be sure to tune in an all new episode of "The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper" tomorrow night at 10 Eastern and Pacific, only on CNN.

Still ahead, how world leaders like Ukrainian President Zelenskyy are looking to hedge their bets in preparation for president - former President Trump's potential return to the White House here in CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:43:03]

DEAN: We are learning more about that call Friday between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Donald Trump. Trump saying it was a, quote, "very good phone call." A Ukraine official saying Trump told Zelenskyy not to believe the, quote, "fake news" that a Trump presidency would be beneficial to Russia.

Now remember Trump has said he would end the war in Ukraine within a day although he never explained exactly how. And today Zelenskyy telling the BBC he's worried such an end would come at the expense of Ukraine.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE: So for us we have to work with the United States. And if a new team will come, we have to work with them. We need their support.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It could be hard work, I guess.

ZELENSKYY: Hard work.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It could be hard to persuade them.

ZELENSKYY: Yes, but we don't - I mean, we don't afraid of hard work.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Joining us now to talk more about this CNN National Security Analyst and former CIA Chief of Russia Operations, Steve Hall. Steve, good to see you. Thanks for coming on.

I first just want to get your reaction to what we're learning about this phone call between Trump and Zelenskyy because Trump has said a lot of things. JD Vance, his pick, is very against aid to Ukraine. What do you make of this phone call?

STEVE HALL, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, I don't envy Mr. Zelenskyy, President Zelenskyy in his position because he's got to be concerned. If we're thinking that there's a serious possibility of a Trump administration with the Vice President that he has picked it is going to be hard going and I think Zelenskyy is absolutely right. It's going to be hard work which probably accounts for Zelenskyy's interest in reaching out to Trump and getting in contact with him at this point to try to pave the way, because Zelenskyy's right, the United States is a very important ally, perhaps the most important ally for Ukraine. And if there's a different administration after November here in the United States, that could cause significant problems based on what Donald Trump and the Republican Party have said about Ukraine in the past, so, yes, he's got to be worried.

DEAN: And Sen. JD Vance I mentioned has been one of the more outspoken critics of U.S. support for Ukraine.

[18:45:04]

If you're Zelenskyy and Ukraine supporters, people who - Ukrainians who live there, what do you gather from this pick and does it sound real alarm bells for those who support aid to Ukraine?

HALL: Yes. I mean, I think it does sound alarm bells, especially if you live in Ukraine and you're at the receiving end of Russian attacks and Russian bombs. You know, they need to be able to defend themselves and picking somebody like Vance and having Donald Trump having said some of the things that he's said in the past and this is of course not fake news. These are words that Donald Trump himself has said about the lessening of importance to him of NATO, about how he respects and even admires Vladimir Putin.

And I think really Zelenskyy hit it on the head when he talk about if Donald Trump is serious about trying to, you know, solve this in 24 hours or some other ridiculous claim like that, it's going to be at the expense of Ukraine, not of Russia. So yes I would be very worried if I were Zelenskyy or Ukraine.

DEAN: And then there is the Russia and the Putin of all of this, right? And how do you think this information, what's - what they're seeing play out is being received by Vladimir Putin?

HALL: Well, again, U.S. intelligence community has already weighed in on - again, it's not fake news. It's not something that any news network is making up. It's the U.S. intelligence community which has already assessed formally that Russia prefers to see Donald Trump as opposed to whoever might be the candidate on the other side. And this is, of course, obvious, commonsensical even for most of us. Because, again, when you look at the claims that Donald Trump has made in the policy directions and the indications that he's made with regard to Ukraine and Russia, you know, it's a much less harsh position, vis-a- vis Russia and Russia's invasion of Ukraine than the Biden administration has. So again yes, lots of reason to worry.

DEAN: And I do want to ask you about another development. Yesterday, Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was convicted of espionage by a Russian court, sentenced to 16 years in a maximum security prison. The U.S. government has said this is a sham. His employer has said this is a sham. These are trumped up charges that are just not real and yet he is still there in a jail cell. How likely is a potential prisoner exchange or any sort of effort to get him back home? How likely do you think that will be successful?

HALL: Well, first, let me caution viewers, lest they make a mistake and when we talk about judges in courtrooms and --

DEAN: Right.

HALL: -- you know, court appearances. I mean, of course, that is all a Potemkin village. You know, there's guys that dress like judges in Russia but they aren't really judges. The only thing that there's realistically as part of the legal system in Russia is there's some very bad prisons and Mr. Gershkovich is unfortunately in one of those and has been sentenced to 16 years, I believe.

You know, I think there's a good chance, the signs indicate or seem to be indicating that the Russians are interested in cutting some sort of deal. That's why all of a sudden this case took much less time than all other cases have taken because the Russians, I think, are anxious to get this hostage that they've taken in Mr. Gershkovich to use him to get him back.

Probably this FSB-associated person that's under a life sentence in Germany for killing a Chechen in a German park a number of years back. The difficult problem is, of course, that's Germany, not the United States, but Putin says, you know, they'll do whatever you say.

I think at the end of the day there's going to be some sort of deal, but the Russians don't want to talk about it publicly. That's just how they do business, but I would be surprised if there weren't some sort of movement behind the scenes.

DEAN: Yes. Journalism is not a crime. Steve Hall, thank you so much. We appreciate you.

HALL: My pleasure.

DEAN: More news when we come back.

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[18:53:23]

DEAN: We are remembering the life and legacy of Democratic congresswoman from Texas, Sheila Jackson Lee. Vice President Kamala Harris releasing a new statement describing Jackson Lee as, quote, "A tenacious advocate for justice and a tireless fighter for the people of Houston and the people of America."

Here was Jackson Lee back in 2005 after speaking with survivors sheltering from the devastation of the Category 5 Hurricane Katrina.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHEILA JACKSON LEE, (D) FORMER UNITED STATES REPRESENTATIVE: What we see here is the greatness of human spirit, but also human devastation. People who have experienced such trauma that it is unspeakable. When I stop and listen to the stories of holding one-month-old babies above your head so they could survive, of amputees who couldn't get out, of destruction and devastation inside the Superdome, we are grateful that they're here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: The late Congresswoman was also a proud fan of the Houston Astros. She went on to the House floor to congratulate them for their first World Series victory back in 2017.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACKSON LEE: Let me thank the Houston Astros for taking a Harvey-worn community to the highest lengths. We have never won the World Series. And the L.A. Dodgers were a very fine competitor. Let me thank all of them for the great sportsmanship, the character that was shown. Show what America's about. You can be two great adversaries on the battlefield of baseball, but you can still be great friends and colleagues and part of the great American pastime.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Congresswoman Jackson Lee announced in June she'd been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She was 74 years old.

[18:55:01]

Today marks the 55th anniversary of the historic Apollo 11 lunar landing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NEIL ARMSTRONG: One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: More than a half billion people watched Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin make history back in 1969 as the first humans to ever set foot on the moon. The anniversary overlaps with another special lunar event this month called the "buck moon." Stargazers will get a chance to see the full moon shine bright in the sky this weekend, reaching its peak on Sunday around 6 AM.

Former President Donald Trump's still on stage in Michigan looking to keep up this week's momentum by taking his new VP pick to one of the state's most critical in this race for the White House. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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