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New iPhone Coming; Cheaper Weight Loss Drugs?; Interview With Michael Cohen; Latino Group Accuses Texas Attorney General of Voter Intimidation. Aired 11:30a-12p ET

Aired August 27, 2024 - 11:30   ET

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

[11:30:00]

JIM ACOSTA, CNN HOST: One of the nation's oldest Latino civil rights groups is accusing the Republican attorney general of Texas of voter intimidation and suppression.

They say Ken Paxton is targeting Democratic activists and leaders with home raids and more. One of them, a candidate for the Texas House, tells CNN that officials took away her own rights in her own home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CECILIA CASTELLANO (D), TEXAS STATE CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: The office of the attorney general did come to my home that morning at 6:00 a.m. They said: "Ma'am, can we come in?"

I said: "Well, can you please hold on so I can get my husband?"

When I went to go get my husband, they were already standing by my dinner table. They provided a search warrant, a one-page search warrant, but there was no specifics on it as far as, why did they want my phone? Since that day, as I walk into my home, I feel no peace in my home.

I can look towards my dinner table and see those men standing there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: CNN's Ed Lavandera joins us now.

Ed, LULAC, the League of United Latin American Citizens, they are now seeking a federal investigation into all of this. What's going on?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we have obtained the letter that LULAC officials sent to the Department of Justice.

And a spokesperson for the department confirms that they have received it. But in this letter, they're essentially asking for a civil rights investigation into Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's actions in this investigation.

And in that letter, LULAC says that this -- Paxton's move is a serious violation of the civil rights of Latino citizens. Also goes on to say that Ken Paxton's investigation and these raids that were carried out last week are a -- quote -- "direct attempt to suppress the Latino vote through intimidation and harassment."

We have made multiple attempts to reach Ken Paxton. They have not -- his office has not responded to our requests for information. But in a statement last week, the attorney general said that this was part of an investigation into illegal voter harvesting and organized electoral crimes.

And that is what he is saying that this is about, saying that the integrity of Texas elections is at stake here. But LULAC officials are saying this could not be further from the truth. There were at least six different raids that we know of at this point that took place last week.

There could be even more. And LULAC officials say that this is all much ado about nothing, that no illegal activity is ongoing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROMAN PALOMARES, PRESIDENT, LEAGUE OF UNITED LATIN AMERICAN CITIZENS: Attorney General Paxton is using his position of authority to harass and intimidate Latino nonprofit organizations, Latino leaders, and LULAC members.

This is point-blank voter intimidation and LULAC will fight for the right of very Latino to exercise their right to vote.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAVANDERA: And Jim, one of the people who had their homes raided also last week was an 87-year-old woman named Lidia Martinez, who tells us that she has been involved in local politics for many decades, many decades, helping register senior citizens and veterans to vote. She is adamant that she has done nothing wrong, has followed all the rules in the voter registration process.

She says she was interrogated for about three hours last week and forced to wait on her front porch in her bathrobe while investigators were inside looking for evidence and carrying out that search warrant. It's also important to point out, Jim, that the Texas attorney general has a history in recent years of going after these electoral integrity cases, but there hasn't been much "there" there.

In fact, many of these cases have kind of floundered and there hasn't really been any kind of evidence of widespread fraud across the state, Jim.

ACOSTA: Yes, those allegations, if proven true, are simply outrageous.

Ed Lavandera, thank you very much. We appreciate it.

Coming up: Donald Trump's former fixer Michael Cohen joins me on what he thinks about Trump suggesting he may back out of next month's debate. Michael has some thoughts on that. That's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:38:25]

ACOSTA: Some promising news for those wanting to try weight loss drugs, but can't afford the out-of-pocket costs. Cheaper starter doses of the weight loss Zepbound are now available in single-dose vials.

Drugmaker Eli Lilly says this will significantly expand supplies it tries to keep up with the growing demand.

CNN's Jacqueline Howard joins me now.

Jacqueline, I mean, there's a huge interest in these drugs. They're flying off the shelves, aren't they?

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: That's right Jim.

There's so much demand for these drugs. And these new single-dose vials are Eli Lilly's answer to try to reach that demand. So what we're seeing here, these single-dose vials are going to come at this cost. It will be $399 for a four-week supply of vials containing 2.5- milligram does.

It will cost $549 for four-week supply of vials containing five- milligram doses. And these costs are specifically for patients who are paying out-of-pocket who don't qualify for Eli Lilly's assistance program. And these prices are down from the original list price for Zepbound, which is $1,059.

So that's the difference here. Another key difference, these lower- cost vials will not come with a preloaded injector pin, which we have seen Zepbound come with. So patients will have to use a syringe to access the medication in the vial.

[11:40:03]

But, overall, Jim, like you said, this is Eli Lilly's response to try to reach that high demand that's out there, especially among patients who, again, don't have the insurance coverage for this medication, but they don't qualify for the assistance program, so they are paying all the costs out of pocket.

ACOSTA: And do we think that some of these other pharmaceutical companies are going to try to follow suit and roll out these single- dose vials? What do you think?

HOWARD: That's a great question.

I think if we see that Eli Lilly is successful with this approach, I would not be surprised if other companies like the pharmaceutical companies behind semaglutides like Ozempic and Wegovy follow suit.

Zepbound itself is a tirzepatide weight loss drug, but the semaglutides are equally important. These include Ozempic and Wegovy. And prescriptions specifically for semaglutides have gone up 40-fold in the past five years, Jim.

So that's the demand that we're seeing right now. And I will be interested to see what the future holds if we do see other companies, like you said, follow this same model.

ACOSTA: All right, Jacqueline Howard, very important medical news. Thank you very much.

In the meantime, the newest iPhone is just around the corner. Apple has announced a special event set for September 9, when it's expected to officially unveil its iPhone 16. And artificial intelligence, as they call it, Apple Intelligence, is expected to be a key feature on the device, powering everything from A.I. emojis to a smarter Siri.

CNN's Clare Duffy joins me now.

Clare, a lot of anticipation for this. What do we know?

CLARE DUFFY, CNN BUSINESS WRITER: Yes, Jim, we get a new iPhone every September, but this is expected to be a real step up in functionality because of those new Apple Intelligence A.I. features that the company announced earlier this year.

At this September event, we will get a better idea of what that will actually look like in the newest iPhone. And this is really going to be the first iPhone that is custom-built, designed with artificial intelligence features in mind. We do know some of what to expect from that event earlier this year, things like a smarter Siri that will be able to answer more complex questions.

There will also be help in drafting e-mails. You can create personalized emojis. And Apple Intelligence is going to draw on people's personal data on their devices. So I could ask it what to expect from my day and it could pull information from my calendar and my e-mail to get me that answer.

And the big question for Apple here is, will these artificial intelligence features be enough to drive a major iPhone cycle? Apple hasn't given people very exciting reasons to upgrade in the past few years, and they're hoping that these A.I. features will be that exciting feature.

ACOSTA: All right, Clare Duffy, we're all going to be looking out for that, no question about it. Thanks so much. Really appreciate it.

Coming up, Donald Trump's former fixer Michael Cohen joins me on the presidential debate drama and much more. Stand by. He's coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:47:22]

ACOSTA: Back to the debate over the debate.

Former President Donald Trump is openly questioning whether he will participate in next month's scheduled debate with Vice President Kamala Harris on ABC, baselessly claiming the network is biased and hostile toward Republicans.

Let's discuss more now with Trump's former personal fixer and attorney Michael Cohen. He's also the host of "The Michael Cohen Show" on YouTube. So check it out. It's airing as we speak.

Michael Cohen, great to see you. We ran into each other at the DNC. Noticed a lot of folks wanted to take a picture with you there at Chicago. But you and I had a lot to talk about.

MICHAEL COHEN, FORMER ATTORNEY/FIXER FOR DONALD TRUMP: Yes, that was a wild time, wasn't it?

ACOSTA: Yes, it was. Yes.

But we had a lot to talk about outside of that conversation. So I'm glad you're back with us, because you and I both know that there's a history with former President Trump when it comes to debates. He likes to sort of keep it hanging out there as to whether or not he's going to participate in debates and what the ground rules are going to be.

What have been your thoughts as you have been listening to all that?

COHEN: Yes, so this is not new, as you just stated.

Donald's been playing the same old play from the same old playbook going back to 2015. He wants the debate to go the way he wants the debate to go. He wants to control all the levers. Now, with FOX News, he can do that. With CNN, he cannot do that. With ABC, NBC, CBS, et cetera, he cannot do that.

So, of course, he's going to claim that there's a bias towards him. None of it is true. It's all a figment of his imagination, which is getting more and more weird each and every day. But he's going to end up showing up, despite all of the nonsense, because he knows what Kamala Harris is going to do to him, right, if he doesn't show up.

She will just put a cardboard cut out of him in the spot and she will talk to him as if he's there. Now, he's really stuck right now in a very weird situation, using that word again. Why? Because, if he doesn't show up, Kamala will just do it on her own.

ACOSTA: Right.

COHEN: And, again, she will bring a cardboard cut out of him.

ACOSTA: Yes.

COHEN: If he does show up, he's going to show up unprepared, because Donald does not believe he needs to prepare. He said it himself the other day. I couldn't believe he actually said it.

ACOSTA: Yes, he just said it. Yes.

COHEN: You heard him. He said: I have been doing this my whole life. I have been preparing for this my whole life.

No, he hasn't. He has no idea what he's talking about. He's going to make again the same ridiculous statements as he did when he debated Joe Biden talking about, for example, Democrats want abortions after birth, without anybody questioning him and saying, that's not an abortion after birth. That's called murder.

[11:50:18]

ACOSTA: Right. Yes.

COHEN: But nobody called upon it. Kamala Harris will.

So he knows he has to prepare. And he doesn't like to do that.

ACOSTA: Yes, and I do want to ask.

I mean, there's been this discussion over muting the microphones. And I guess his campaign wants the microphone muted, but he's been saying something different. Let's listen to what he said about this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

QUESTION: Would you want the microphone muted at the debate whenever you're not speaking?

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES (R) AND CURRENT U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We agreed to the same rules. I don't know. Doesn't matter to me. I'd rather have it probably on. But the agreement was that it would be the same as it was last time. In that case, it was muted.

I didn't like it the last time, but it worked out fine. Ask Biden how it worked out. It was fine. And I think it should be the same.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Yes, Michael, it sounds like it's the Trump campaign that wants the mute button working.

COHEN: Yes, probably because they don't trust that he's going to keep his mouth shut and he won't stay normal for the 90 minutes of the debate.

But, Jim, one of the things that I want you and your viewers to also note is, when you see the accordion hands start going, what that means is that he's lying, all right? It's a tell with Donald. Any time that the accordion hands start, that means he's not telling the truth.

He does not want the mic on because he knows he can't control himself. He says things under his breath. He's going to continuously interrupt Kamala every time she says something that he doesn't agree with. He can't help himself.

(CROSSTALK) ACOSTA: You think he's worried about debating Kamala Harris? Is that is that part of this? Do you think -- I mean, maybe he thought he matched up better with Joe Biden versus Kamala Harris? Could that be part of this?

COHEN: A hundred percent. He knows that he did.

Look, with all due respect to Joe Biden -- and I'm a massive Joe Biden fan -- it was not Biden's best. It's not the old Joe Biden of years ago. It was a very poor performance by Biden. If he thinks that that type of a performance is going to be again by Kamala Harris, he's obviously mistaken.

And I think he knows better than that. He knows that she's going to call him out on every single lie, on every single misstatement. And he just doesn't know how to prepare for. One of the things that he doesn't want to do, he doesn't want to prepare. He turned around and he even said: I don't need to prepare.

Really? It's funny because there's nothing that he says that that is accurate, including during that Biden debate. It was one misinformation, disinformation, malinformation statement after another.

ACOSTA: And, Michael, I do want to talk to you a little bit about the classified documents case and some of the legal troubles that Trump has been in.

Jack Smith asked the federal appeals court to reinstate the classified documents case against Trump. Smith did not, however, ask for the case to be reassigned after the judge who was presiding over it dismissed that case last month.

What do you make of this battle over the classified documents case? Do you think Trump is ever going to be held accountable in either the classified documents case or the January 6 case?

COHEN: Well, he will be held ultimately accountable for everything after he loses to Kamala Harris. Then he won't have any of the levers of power to put aside the prosecutions on the federal basis.

I think what we should also be concentrating on is what's going to be happening on September 18, which is when Donald Trump has to appear for sentencing before Judge Juan Merchan here in New York. One of the things that I think is very disturbing -- and a lot of people feel obviously the same way -- is, Donald Trump, whether he's a former president or, God forbid a million times, again president, the law is supposed to apply equally to each and every one of us.

And what Donald Trump has shown this country is that it does not, that he is above the law. When he said that he could kill somebody on Fifth Avenue and get away with it, he wasn't joking.

So, I do believe that Jack Smith, with the 11th Circuit, who's now overturned Judge Cannon's decision several times already, and I think that they have lost their patience with her. ACOSTA: Yes.

COHEN: I believe that they will overturn the decision. It will be remanded, unfortunately, back to her court, and this case will go forward.

ACOSTA: Yes.

[11:55:00]

Very quickly, Michael, finally, Trump has been saying that Kamala Harris became the nominee because of a coup. We're running out of time, but I did want to get a quick reaction to that from you.

What do you think about that when he says that?

COHEN: He's an idiot.

I mean, how else do you describe it? I mean, she got it as a coup? Had he and his campaign not done the debate against Joe Biden, he probably would still be running against Joe Biden, which is really what he wanted. It's not a coup.

This is the way that the politics work. This is the way that the Democratic Party decided. She is the rightful nominee, as he is the rightful nominee, which has been provided to them by the -- whether it was the Republican National Convention or the Democratic National Convention. They received the necessary votes.

He is running against Kamala Harris. He needs to -- he needs to understand that.

ACOSTA: All right, Michael Cohen, as I expected, we did not have enough time to cover all the ground we wanted to cover. Let's get you back again soon. Michael, thanks a lot. Really appreciate it.

COHEN: Any time, Jim.

ACOSTA: All right.

And thanks very much for joining us this morning. I'm Jim Acosta.

"INSIDE POLITICS" with Manu Raju starts after a quick break. Have a great day.