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Musk, Trump Held a Live Chat on X, Centers Important Topics; Los Angeles Jolted Magnitude 4.4 Quake; Wildfire Situation in Athens Now Improving. Putin Vows for a Strong Response into the Ukrainian Incursion; Pennsylvania Voters Say on Kamala Harris' Chances in November; Male Cancer Patients May Double Its Death Rate Worldwide, According to a New Study. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired August 13, 2024 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead, Donald Trump joins Elon Musk for an unscripted, no-holds- barred interview, what the former president and Republican presidential candidate had to say after technical delays.

Watching and waiting. Nearly two weeks after the killing of a senior Hamas leader in Tehran, the Middle East is still bracing for Iran to strike back.

And Russia needs to be forced into peace. Those words coming from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as his troops push deeper into Russian territory. How Vladimir Putin is responding to Ukraine's bold incursion.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from Atlanta, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Rosemary Church.

CHURCH: I appreciate you joining us and we begin here in the United States as former President Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk hosted a friendly conversation for more than two hours on Monday. They spoke live on Musk's social media platform X, covering a broad range of topics including energy policy, climate change and immigration, with Trump promising the largest deportation in the history of the country.

He also recounted the assassination attempt he survived last month. And he lashed out at Vice President Kamala Harris, calling her names and slamming Harris's stance on the economy and immigration.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Kamala was the border zone. Now she's denying it. Everything that I do, she's saying she was strong on the border. We're going to be strong. Well, she doesn't have to say it. She could close it up right now. They could do things right now. It's horrible. No tax on tips. And all of a sudden she's making a speech and saying there will be no tax on tips. I said that months ago. And all of a sudden for politics, she says, you know, she comes out with what I said, which I think is terrible. And I think it's also hitting them very hard. These people are fake.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

CHURCH: At several points in the interview, it sounded as if Trump was slurring his words. The event started more than 40 minutes late due to technical problems. Musk said they were caused by an attack that overwhelmed the company's servers.

Trump and his team have been struggling to cope with the soaring momentum of Vice President Kamala Harris, with recent polling showing the Democratic presidential nominee leading by four points in three key states, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. CNN's Kristen Holmes has more on Trump's attempt to improve his poll numbers by attacking Harris.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As the momentum around Kamala Harris continues to build, Donald Trump promoting far-right conspiracy theories around his Democratic challenger, falsely claiming on social media that the crowd size at Harris Detroit rally was A.I. generated, writing, quote, "this is the way Democrats win elections by cheating. And they're even worse at the ballot box", adding that anyone who is willing to fake their crowd size, quote, "will cheat at anything."

Recent polling showing Harris improving on President Joe Biden standing in several battlegrounds with a close race in the critical states of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Trump's allies imploring the former president to focus on policy, not personal attacks.

KEVIN MCCARTHY (R), FORMER U.S. HOUSE SPEAKER: You've got to make this race not on personalities. Stop questioning the size of her crowds and start questioning her position when it comes to what did she do as attorney general on crime.

TRUMP: And I will never, ever let you down.

HOLMES (voice-over): Trump trying to get back on message, releasing a series of videos on X, including one painting Harris as a, quote, "San Francisco radical."

The former president also expected to hit the campaign trail Wednesday with what's being billed as an economy focused speech in the crucial state of North Carolina. Harris has promised to put out details about her economic policies this week as Republicans hammer away at the lack of details around her policy plans.

Over the weekend, Republican V.P. nominee J.D. Vance taking on the role of a tack dog, sitting for interviews as Trump campaign aims to highlight Harris's decision so far not to take a lot of questions from the press.

[03:04:55]

SEN. J.D. VANCE (R-OH), U.S. VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think that what it is, is two people, Kamala Harris and Tim Walz, who aren't comfortable in their own skin because they aren't comfortable with their policy positions for the American people. And so their name calling, instead of actually telling the American people how they're going to make their lives better. I think that's weird, Dana. But look, they can call me whatever they want to.

HOLMES: Now, Kamala Harris is also expected to be back on the campaign trail on Thursday with President Joe Biden. It's going to be their first joint campaign appearance since Joe Biden dropped out of the race. Now, it's going to be interesting to watch how Kamala Harris navigates this, because on one hand, she, of course, is going to want to stand next to the man who essentially put her at the top of the ticket, who made her vice president.

But yet at the same time, she has already tried to distance herself from some of his more unpopular policy decisions, particularly around immigration or inflation and crime.

We also know Republicans are seeking to tie her to Joe Biden in a negative way. So she's really going to have to walk this fine line as she figures out how she's going to campaign with Joe Biden in this now very tight race.

Kristen Holmes, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: CNN political analyst Julian Zelizer is an historian and professor at Princeton University. He joins me now from New York. Welcome.

JULIAN ZELIZER, HISTORIAN AND PROFESSOR, PRINCETON UNIVERSITY AND CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Thanks for having me.

CHURCH: So let's start with Donald Trump's social media disaster Monday night. His official return to X was meant to be a live chat with the platform's owner, Elon Musk. But instead, technical problems delayed the start. Musk blamed it on a malicious attempt to shut down his platform, even though the rest of X was working perfectly.

While Trump's people said he broke the Internet. So it appears even before they got started, we were getting subjected to disinformation and misinformation, just as the European Union had warned would happen. So what were your thoughts on Trump trying to use X to get his message out and then eventually what he said?

ZELIZER: Well, some of it appeared like a candidate who is really struggling to get attention, to be honest. And the platform is not primary platform for the former president. And then the delays and the problems all added to the sense this was almost a second-rate operation. So I'm sure he's not happy with it.

And then in terms of the conversation, a lot of it was very familiar. Going back to some of the former president's favorite lines of attack and honing in on issues like immigration and inflation and then just moving from one sort of insult to the other. So that part was just very familiar. And Musk sometimes tried to guide him to different kinds of conclusions.

CHURCH: And Donald Trump has been responding to new polls showing Kamala Harris ahead in key battleground states by making massive ad purchases as he struggles to define her and look at ways to fight back. How worried do you think is Trump that Harris will beat him in 84 days and how possible is that outcome?

ZELIZER: Well, I think he is worried he sees the same numbers, they're now consistent in different kinds of polls and his register, which involves crowd sizes at events. It includes how much media attention he can get. All of that is not going his way and he sees it. So I'm sure he's worried. And you can hear in an interview like this, he hasn't quite figured out what he wants to say. He always had great clarity with opponents, including Hillary Clinton and President Biden.

He doesn't have that with Harris. And this is coming late because of the nature of the campaign. And so I think he is concerned. And I think obviously it's a neck-and-neck race. So that means either candidate can win right now.

CHURCH: And as Trump continues to falsely claim that large crowds at Kamala Harris' Michigan rally are A.I. generated, Republican Kevin McCarthy went public with calls for Trump to stop questioning the size of Harris's crowds and start questioning her positions on issues like crime and immigration. So why isn't Trump doing that instead of going down all these rabbit holes?

ZELIZER: It's not in his nature. I think that's what you learn when you watch him over time. He wants to come back to the issues that matter to him.

And he understands inflation and immigration are good political issues. But he also really cares about proving that he has bigger crowds than his opponents. And I don't think he can resist and I don't think anyone can talk him out of it. And I don't anticipate any cessation of this line of attack and disinformation in the coming months.

CHURCH: Of course, meantime, Kamala Harris is focusing on the issue. She is in Washington, D.C., working on her economic pitch to voters and preparing for the Democratic National Convention next week. What does she need to do to continue her momentum and respond to criticisms from the GOP that she hasn't answered questions from the media yet?

[03:09:58]

ZELIZER: Well, I think she will answer questions from the media and that is not necessary in her mind right now. She's getting this massive campaign going. But I do think she needs to craft an answer on the economy.

The polls that show her ahead also show voters are not happy with the Democrats on inflation as well as immigration. And I think this is a chance not only to showcase yourself and Governor Walz, but also to offer an answer that's more than everything's OK, that this is my vision forward. This is how I'll address the concerns that the country has.

And to start gaining more trust on economic issues, that would be very damaging if she can do that and keep the momentum. Democrats would be in a good position going into September.

CHURCH: Julian Zelizer, thank you so much for joining us. I Appreciate it.

ZELIZER: Thank you.

CHURCH: Israel says its military is on high alert as the country prepares for a potential attack from Iran. Both Iran and its most powerful proxy, Hezbollah, have been vowing to retaliate after the recent assassinations of two top Hezbollah and Hamas leaders. And there are fears an Iranian attack could risk disrupting Gaza ceasefire talks scheduled for this week.

Amid the escalating tensions, the U.S. is strengthening its military forces in the Middle East with a guided missile submarine and carrier strike group expected in the region soon. The U.S. has also released previously approved funds of $3.5 billion to Israel to spend on weapons and military equipment. The Israeli military says it's taking the threat seriously and is at the highest level of readiness.

CNN's Paula Hancocks is following developments for us. She joins us live from London right now. So, Paula, how is Israel preparing for this potential attack from Iran?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, as you say, the Israeli military is at its highest level of readiness at this point, saying that it's both in a defensive posture and also offensive. They have increased the air flights over Lebanon on the northern border.

We also know at this point, though, that they have canceled some of the vacation flights for its permanent personnel. So they're making sure that everybody is in place should there be a need after any Iranian retaliation. There hasn't been a change in stature when it comes to the -- the civilian population. There hasn't been any additional recommendations when it comes to that.

We did hear, though, from the White House on Monday saying that they share Israel's concern. They share their expectations that there will be some kind of response from Tehran, potentially from its proxies as well, following the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas political leader on Iranian soil. We have heard from numerous Iranian officials saying that it is their right to respond, that it was a violation of their sovereignty.

We did hear from the Biden administration as well about concerns that this could have some kind of an impact on upcoming talks, potentially on Thursday, at least that's the latest information we have at this point, to try and secure a ceasefire and hostage deal.

But the Biden administration say that they have secured what they believe is a more defensive posture to try and support Israel.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

JOHN KIRBY, NATIONAL SECURITY SPOKESPERSON: The president is confident that we have the capability available to us to help defend Israel should it come to that. Nobody wants to see it come to that, which is why we continue to have these diplomatic conversations in earnest over the last few days to see what can be done to de-escalate this situation.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

HANCOCKS: And the State Department deputy spokesperson says that they do expect these talks to go ahead on Thursday. We know that the U.S. and the mediators, Qatar and Egypt, are trying to put together a final bridging proposal for Hamas and Israel.

We have heard from Hamas, though, over the weekend. They issued a statement saying that they still agree with that original July decision and proposal that the U.S. president was very vocally supportive of and also the U.N. Security Council. And they don't believe that there needs to be any changes to that.

At one point, that was raising concerns that maybe they wouldn't send a representative on Thursday. But one source familiar with these discussions believe that they will be present.

We know Israel as well will be present. The prime minister's office saying they will send a delegation. We'll have to wait and see if anything moves forward beyond this. Rosemary?

CHURCH: Indeed. Our thanks to Paula Hancocks for bringing us that live report from London.

[03:15:04]

Joining me now from Cairo is H.A. Hellyer, a Middle East Studies scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a senior associate fellow for security studies at the Royal United Services Institute. Thank you for joining us.

H.A. HELLYER, MIDDLE EAST STUDIES SCHOLAR, CARNEGIE ENDOWMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL PEACE AND SR. ASSOCIATE FELLOW, ROYAL UNITED SERVICES INSTITUTE: Good morning.

CHURCH: So Israel is still bracing for a potential retaliatory attack from Iran nearly two weeks after the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh and the killing of the Hezbollah commander in Beirut. Now, we don't know when or where these strikes will take place. So what's the calibration for Iran as it prepares to retaliate while at the same time trying to avoid triggering a wider conflict in the region?

HELLYER: Thank you for having me on your show. So I think you set it up quite well. Iran needs to retaliate in order to continue in the same sort of, quote unquote, "deterrence mode" that it thinks it's getting into. So I think we have to expect that there will be some sort of reprisal retaliation.

But, of course, all of this is very, how shall I say, theoretical. When you try to calibrate an escalation, you're assuming that you have control over all the variables. Of course, you don't.

And any strike from Iran or any strike from Israel or any strike from any of these actors in the region over the past 10 months has the potential to spin out of control.

And I think we're at that point again at the present moment in time.

It's why the continual escalation by the Israelis over the past 10 months has been so concerning. Even during these negotiations, assassinating the lead negotiator on the other side, Ismail Haniyeh, attacking the school that your reporter mentioned, which killed at least 100 Palestinians, including many children, and injuring 200 others.

None of this makes for a terribly good environment for escalation and for the success of ceasefire negotiations, even though the notion of a ceasefire where one-side promises that they will return to war as soon as they get their hostages back is still quite dubious.

CHURCH: And how likely is it, do you think, that this will be a coordinated attack between Iran and Hezbollah and perhaps even involving other proxies? And how extensive do you expect these retaliatory strikes to be?

HELLYER: So I just want to be clear, these other groups in the region, Hezbollah, the Houthis, Iraqi militias, I don't want to describe them all as, quote unquote, "proxies" because it implies that they don't have agency of their own and they're simply a part of Iran's command and control.

Of course, they are allied to Iran on particular issues and in some cases, extremely strongly. Hezbollah, for example, is much closely related to Iran than, for example, the Houthis.

So they will respond, I think, in concert in the same way that, you know, France and Germany or the U.K. and so on might engage in one particular action together. But I do think that we have to keep in mind they all have slightly different interests involved here. Hezbollah is literally on the border with the Israelis and is going to be considering that very strongly.

The Houthis are not. The Houthis are very, very far away. The Iraqis are very, very far away. The Iranians are also very far away. So I think that there are these quite different calibrations that are going to take place. Are they all going to jump in? I don't know. I don't know if that will

be considered to be necessary. Are they all going to look at Israeli targets within Israel or are they going to be looking at targets that are related to the Israelis outside of Israel? Again, unclear. And we don't know that. What we do know is that the Iranians sent a pretty clear signal at the U.N. where they prioritized the ceasefire negotiations.

And what we've seen over the last 10 months is that all negotiations that have taken place, they're constantly sabotaged. And the sabotage, as Israeli press and Israeli officials have stated, very often is related to how Netanyahu himself is engaging in those negotiations.

And that's happened again on this particular occasion with the assassination, with the attack on the school, but also the raising of new demands within the negotiation" that doesn't that don't follow the quote unquote "Biden plan of last month that everyone seemed to agree to have agreed to.

So if we -- if we want this to calm down, as it were, I think we really have to look at the key that unlocks all of this. And that's the ceasefire in Gaza.

CHURCH: Right. And we'll be watching to see what happens on Thursday. Of course, H.A. Hellyer, thank you so much for joining us and sharing your perspective on this issue. I Appreciate it.

HELLYER: Thank you.

[03:20:06]

CHURCH: An earthquake in Los Angeles left people rattled throughout the county. Coming up, why experts say the shallow quake could be felt by so many communities.

Plus, smoke from an out of control wildfire is tainting the air in Athens, Greece. We will bring you the latest on the fire's rapid progress. That's next.

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(VIDEO PLAYING)

CHURCH: People in California were left shaken after a 4.4 magnitude earthquake hit Los Angeles on Monday. The quake was not very deep, but was felt widely as it was directly under the populated areas of Los Angeles. Earthquakes of this magnitude generally only bring light shaking. And fire officials say there were no reports of injuries or structural damage. In the past few weeks, there have been two other earthquakes in the area of similar magnitude.

[03:25:00]

Several Caribbean islands are under warnings and watches for tropical storm Ernesto. It's moving toward the Leeward Islands with top sustained winds around 65 kilometers per hour. But it'll likely get stronger in the days ahead after the Leewards. Ernesto is forecast to impact the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico by late Tuesday.

Hundreds of firefighters are working to keep an extremely dangerous wildfire from getting any closer to the Greek capital. And now they say the situation is improving. The fire started Sunday near a town north of Athens and has spread rapidly. Officials have ordered residents in dozens of areas to evacuate as homes and buildings burn. They have their work cut out for them as strong winds and drought conditions drive the flames toward the capital.

Greece isn't the only country suffering and sweltering heat. Nearly two dozen countries are under heat alerts right now as temperatures soar across Europe. And CNN's Nada Bashir has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The scorching orange blaze illuminating the night sky of a Greece's Attica region, just north of Athens. Hundreds of firefighters and volunteers desperately working to battle a devastating wildfire which broke out on Sunday. As dawn breaks, the air is filled with thick smoke.

The damage already evident, with some homes in this community now destroyed. Residents left powerless in the face of disaster.

MARIANA PAPATHANA, SUPERMARKET EMPLOYEE (through translator): The situation is very difficult. We still have strong fires. From midnight onward some houses started to burn. We are trying to protect our local restaurant. The firefighters are doing very well.

BASHIR (voice-over): As the fire edges closer to the capital, Athens, authorities have urged some residents to evacuate. More than a dozen people in the area are said to have already been treated for respiratory problems or burns. At least three hospitals are now on heightened alert, with two in the region already evacuated. But as the blaze continues to intensify, officials warn extreme weather conditions could continue throughout the week.

DIMITRIOS PIPIKOS, RESERVIST (through translator): The situation is chaotic. Our military unit has been here from the beginning. We're trying to help the fire unit and volunteer teams. You can see we're surrounded by fire here. The night will be very hard.

BASHIR (voice-over): Officials in Greece have now called for air and ground assistance from the European Union, with France, Italy and the Czech Republic among those sending emergency personnel or equipment. Greece has already faced dozens of fires so far this summer, the country recording its hottest June and July on record this year. But experts warn that weather conditions are only growing more dangerous, with wildfires set to become more frequent and potentially more deadly in the coming years.

Nada Bashir, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: So let's go to Eleni Giokos. She joins us now near Athens, from near Athens there in Greece. So Eleni, we are hearing that firefighters have been able to contain some of this wildfire. What more are you learning?

ELENI GIOKOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, so this morning, as of this morning, Rosemary, we know that the last front has been put out. And right now the fire department tells us that they're currently monitoring for any danger zones. Where I am right now is Bedeli. It's one of the hardest hit areas in southeastern Attica. And you can see behind me the devastation at this particular business.

This was a wood storage factory for people that would buy wood over the winter season, completely razed to the ground. And you can actually see a fire truck there as well, periodically putting out flames that are, of course, at risk of spreading even further. We took a drive around. We saw around 40 to 50 homes that have been impacted. The official number in terms of how much destruction there's been has not been announced yet. What we do know is one woman lost her life. There have been numerous reports of animals being impacted, killed, as well as livestock in this area.

Just to give you a perspective of how close this is to the Athens city center. We're around 11 miles away, Rosemary, and this is what makes this fire very different.

It started around noon on Sunday, around 40 kilometers outside of Athens, sped rapidly around 47 knots of gale force winds over the last few days. As you can see, we don't have wind today, which, of course, is a huge blessing for those fighting the blazes. Because if it does pick up, where you're seeing sort of heat areas, you could actually start to see it spreading even further. And that's why we're seeing just so much monitoring today. And the hope is that it is finally contained, Rosemary.

[03:30:00]

CHURCH: Yeah, absolutely. That is the hope. It's good to see some progress there. Eleni Giokos, joining us from just outside Athens in Greece. I appreciate that report.

A bold incursion catches the Kremlin off guard. We will look at the impact and the fallout from Ukraine's military offensive inside Russia. Back in just a moment.

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CHURCH: Welcome back everyone. The FBI says it's investigating allegations that Donald Trump's campaign was hacked by Iran over the weekend. Sources tell CNN that investigators suspect the hackers got access to Trump ally Roger Stone's email, then used Stone's account to try to break into a senior Trump campaign official's account.

They apparently planned to send that official a link that if opened would give them access to that person's computer. The Trump campaign has declined to comment on whose account was breached. Iran has denied the allegations. Lawyers for Donald Trump have filed a $100 million claim against the Justice Department related to the 2022 FBI search of Mar-a-Lago for classified documents. Trump alleges the search was inappropriate and hurt his reputation, even though it was approved by a federal judge.

The Justice Department tried for months to get Trump and his lawyers to voluntarily turn over hundreds of classified documents that he kept after leaving the White House. District Judge Eileen Cannon dismissed the criminal case against Trump last month.

Vladimir Putin is vowing a strong response after accusing Ukraine of trying to destabilize his country and instill fear during its week- long incursion into southwest Russia.

[03:35:04]

A Ukrainian military chief said his country's troops now control about 1,000 square kilometers in Kursk, where tens of thousands of Russians have already been evacuated. None of this going over well with the Russian president who lashed out at the West and accused Ukraine of trying to improve its negotiating position.

Meanwhile, the Kremlin released this footage of tanks and other reinforcements that it says are headed to Kursk. Ukraine's president said Russia brought war to others and now it's coming home. Volodymyr Zelenskyy also arguing that the incursion is actually self-defense.

And CNN's Clare Sebastian is following all of this live from London. She joins us now. Good Morning to you, Clare. So, what is the latest on Ukraine's incursion into Russia and the response from President Putin?

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Rosemary. Putin is having to tread a pretty fine line here. On the one hand, appearing in control of the situation while also wanting to downplay it given that it is humiliating for Russia to have failed to defend its border in this way and not wanting it to threaten public support for this war, which is, of course, so crucial to the Kremlin being able to continue to prosecute it.

So, we got this meeting, you can see it there, a sort of choreographed meeting with his top officials and the regional heads. This that you can see here is the head of the Kursk region that have been most affected by this.

And he, you know, did some of his usual strategies of trying to discredit Ukraine. He said they were doing this at the behest of their Western masters. This clearly not true because we know certainly from the U.S. that they did not get a heads up from Ukraine about this operation on Russian soil. And he claimed that this was Ukraine trying to improve its negotiating positions, which in Putin's view will not work. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): What kind of negotiations can we even talk about with people who indiscriminately target civilians, civilian infrastructure, or try to threaten nuclear power facilities? What can we even talk about with them?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SEBASTIAN: So this is a well-worn strategy, obviously, of taking the accusations that Russia faces of indiscriminately targeting civilians. And, of course, this week accused by Ukraine of starting a fire at the Zaporizhzhya nuclear plant. We don't yet know officially the cause of that fire. But he's not wrong in principle, perhaps, about this being a way that Ukraine sees this as a way to potentially bring the war into negotiations. President Zelenskyy saying on Monday that bringing the war onto Russian soil could be a way, a useful way, he said, of forcing Russia into peace. Obviously, the two sides still very far apart on that issue.

And Russia, of course, continues to attack Ukrainian civilians. But it is a problem for Putin. He has to play it down, as I said. And there are serious questions, of course, as to the failings that led up to this and why a week in, it is still ongoing in Ukraine, it says occupying some 1,000 kilometers of Russian territory.

CHURCH: Our thanks to Clare Sebastian brings that live report from London.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL BOCIURKIW, GLOBAL ANALYST AND SR. FELLOW, ATLANTIC COUNCIL: I think what's happened here is Mr. Putin has revealed himself as the master of the bluff.

My friend and colleague at the Atlantic Council, John Herbst, he's a former ambassador to Ukraine, has frequently described Mr. Putin as a con man using his ability or his potential capability to use tactical nuclear weapons to scare the West into forcing Ukraine not to escalate further.

So another big, big red line has crossed with very little response from Mr. Putin. I think it's very, very difficult for him to respond because Russia has deployed so many resources to the Ukrainian front line. And also, we have to remember that years and years of corruption within the Russian defense ministry has basically hollowed it out. Hence, the firing of officials, the replacement of a minister not long ago. They're not in very good shape to handle this.

CHURCH: Now, you mentioned Ukraine strengthening its hand. So if Ukraine is able to hold this territory, does it plan to negotiate an exchange for Ukrainian land occupied by Russia and for prisoners of war, as you mentioned?

BOCIURKIW: Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's the strategy right now to strengthen their hand and bring Russia to the negotiating table as quickly as possible. Because there are two things happening in the background. One is the U.S. election, where a Trump administration could still get in, and then growing weariness domestically in Ukraine for this war to end. I mean, you know very well, I've been based in Odessa for so long. And I see day by day by day, the deterioration of the economy and that sort of thing. So it's very, very important to bring this to. And then finally, as those U.S. politicians you had on indicated, there is strong bipartisan support for Ukraine.

[03:40:09]

Ukraine is showing also that it can fight back, and it can operate very strategically gaining results.

CHURCH: And of course, even if Ukraine ends up retreating, we don't know if that'll be the case. But even if it does, has it won the psychological war with this incursion by humiliating President Putin and making the Russian people feel particularly vulnerable?

BOCIURKIW: Oh, absolutely. You know, it's interesting to watch the reaction of Russians is that you don't see any active resistance, or, you know, them, you know, fighting Ukrainian troops or blowing things up. It's this passivity that is happening, which is very interesting.

But, you know, I think also at the back of people's minds, whether it's in the White House or on the ground in Ukraine, is that Putin can act very irrationally if he's backed into a corner. And the fear there is that he still does have that Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant under Russian control.

There could be a staged mistake, so to speak, at that plant. And that could have devastating consequences. So everyone has to keep that in mind as well.

CHURCH: And how are Russians dealing with the news that Ukraine is moving inside their country?

BOCIURKIW: Well, that would be nice to know, because there's such a clampdown on Russian social media and the press and even military bloggers now. It's difficult to come by. But watching the footage, again, we see the Russians are very upset because they don't have the resources necessary to move.

They don't have fast evacuations. It's also exposing weaknesses in the Russian emergency services.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And that was global affairs analyst Michael Bociurkiw, who is a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council and a former spokesperson for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, joining me last hour.

Coming up, what some suburban Pennsylvania Republicans are saying about Kamala Harris' chances of potentially winning the state.

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[03:45:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris has been campaigning in battleground states, reintroducing herself to voters since ascending to the top of the Democratic ticket. CNN's John King went to Pennsylvania for the next installment of his series, "All over the Map", and spoke with voters in Philadelphia suburbs about where they stand.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Bucks County, Pennsylvania, this covered bridge, a local treasure. Michael Pesce often stops along the trail here to fish and to think.

Not a great time to be a Reagan Republican. Pacey supported Nikki Haley, but won't vote for Donald Trump ever. And he sees Kamala Harris as more liberal than he would like.

MICHAEL PESCE, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: I have doubts about her. She's going to be tied to the Biden record regardless of what she says or what she does.

KING: Does it impact your calculation for what you do?

PESCE: No, it doesn't change anything at all. I'm still not going to vote for Trump regardless. So I'm not excited about voting for Kamala Harris, but it's better than the alternative.

KING (voice-over): Every vote counts, though, enthusiastic or not. Big margins in the suburbs that surround Philadelphia are critical for Democrats. Bucks is more blue collar and of late, the most competitive of the collar counties.

KING: If I were here the day after the debate and I asked you, do you think Biden could win Pennsylvania? You would have said --

PESCE: No way, there would have been no way.

KING: Do you think Harris can win Pennsylvania?

PESCE: I think she can. I think she can. I think the energy she's brought to the campaign, the fact that she's a woman and women's rights are going to be a big deal here in Pennsylvania. And I think that's kind of where Pennsylvania will go.

KING (voice-over): Berks County is more rural and more Trumpy just outside the suburban collar. But margins matter everywhere in the battlegrounds. Joan London is an attorney for local governments.

JOAN LONDON, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: Bloom Farm zoning permit status. We had a meeting this morning, very productive meeting.

KING (voice-over): London cast a primary vote for Haley, then switched her registration to independent. She worries about Trump's coarse tone and what she sees as angry populism. A new worry since our last visit in May. Trump running mate J.D. Vance. No cats, but married and childless. Now, even more proud she left the GOP.

LONDON: I've led a very full life that way. And to say I don't have a stake in the future of the country, I had I had some difficulty with that. And all I could think of, Senator Vance, are you going to tell Ann Coulter or Condoleezza Rice or Elizabeth Dole they're miserable cat ladies? I don't I don't think so.

KING (voice-over): London plans to write in a conservative, but she leaves the Harris window open just a crack.

LONDON: If Donald Trump or J.D. Vance really says something so outrageously offensive, that could drive me to vote for Vice President Harris. But it's highly unlikely she just doesn't she doesn't represent my values, my beliefs about policy.

KING (voice-over): Media is in Delaware County. Cynthia Sabatini knows a lot about the change here.

CYNTHIA SABATINI, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: My street was rock ribbed Republican. Now you have to shake a stick to find a Republican.

KING (voice-over): Sabatini is also never-Trump.

SABATINI: And I watch his campaign rallies. It's all about him. It's not about the country.

KING (voice-over): This is now the third campaign in which these never-Trump voters hold significant sway. In 2016, Sabatini wrote in a Republican senator. Trump narrowly won Pennsylvania. In 2020, she voted for Biden.

KING: Was that hard?

SABATINI: No, because I don't want to see Trump elected after the chaos of the prior four years.

KING (voice-over): Sabatini says she's read things that worry her about Harris, about immigration policy, and about being tough on her staff. Probably another right in this November. But the 2016 result still stings.

SABATINI: I'm trying to keep an open mind about Harris. If the rap on her, as I read, is correct.

KING (voice-over): Bella Kinwood is in Montgomery County.

BELLA KINWOOD, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: It was very Republican when I was growing up and it's Democrat now.

KING (voice-over): Carol Carty is an attorney, a registered Republican. She's angry that Trump constantly attacks courts and judges and election results.

CAROL CARTY, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: I'm now turning on 80s songs to go back to the 80s. In my lifetime, the Republican Party has changed with Donald Trump. KING (voice-over): Clinton 2016, Biden 2020, a never-Trumper, she thought. But inflation and immigration soured her on Biden. And then she watched the June debate.

CARTY: When Biden was on the ticket, I was going to vote for Trump. But now it's -- it's a harder call just because I am not a fan of Donald Trump.

KING (voice-over): Nor now of Senator Vance.

CARTY: I'm not a cat lady. I was a childless dog lady because I didn't meet the right person until I was over 40 years old.

[03:50:01]

So I could very well be one of those childless women. And I found the comment insensitive and narrow minded.

KING (voice-over): This is near Carty's summer home on Maryland's eastern shore. She says the conversations back home among her Philly suburban mom friends are crystal clear.

CARTY: Definitely, I have more friends saying that they're leaning towards Harris.

KING (voice-over): But she still has reservations and hopes a Harris- Trump debate helps.

CARTY: Tell me what you did exactly at your last job and what are your goals for this job if you get the job? And that's what I want to hear from Kamala Harris.

KING (voice-over): Scoring the campaign just like a job interview in the suburbs that usually decide who gets hired.

John King, CNN, Allakinwood, Pennsylvania.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: When we return, a new study reveals some alarming trends and predictions when it comes to cancer cases and deaths in men. Back with that in just a moment.

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CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. A new study finds cancer deaths among men could nearly double worldwide by the year 2050, from almost 5.5 million in 2022 to 10.5 million, and cancer cases could surge by 84 percent.

[03:55:08]

Most of the increases are expected in men 65 and older, lung cancer is expected to remain the leading cause of death, with the largest increase in deaths coming from prostate cancer. Researchers in Australia analyzed cancer cases and deaths from 30 types of cancer in 185 countries and territories to make their projections. They say better health care access and infrastructure and expanding universal health coverage worldwide could help improve cancer outcomes.

Well if you're looking to read like a president, Barack Obama has got you covered. The former president released his annual summer reading list on his Instagram account, continuing the tradition from his White House years. He recommends eight fiction and six nonfiction titles, books exploring global and American history, democracy, culture, religion, gender identity, and more.

Nonfiction reads include "The Wide Wide Sea" about Captain James Cook, an exploration in the 18th century, along with "Of Boys and Men, Why the Modern Male is Struggling." For fiction, Obama recommends "The Ministry of Time", a time travel love story by Callian Bradley, and "The God of the Woods" by Liz Moore, a thriller about a missing child whose disappearance sends shockwaves through different communities.

I want to thank you so much for your company. I'm Rosemary Church. Have yourselves a wonderful day. "CNN Newsroom" continues next with Christina Macfarlane in London.

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