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Harris Defends Policy Reversals, My Values Have Not Changed; Trump Says Florida Six-Week Ban Proposal is Too Short; Report Shows Key Inflation Gauge Did Better Than Expected Last Month. Aired 10- 10:30a ET

Aired August 30, 2024 - 10:00   ET

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

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PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN ANCHOR: A good Friday morning. You are live in the CNN Newsroom. I'm Phil Mattingly in Washington. Jim Acosta is off.

And we begin this morning with explanations and aspirations. In Vice President Kamala Harris's first joint interview with Governor Tim Walz, she defended policy reversals on both fracking and immigration.

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KAMALA HARRIS, U.S. VICE PRESIDENT, DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: My values have not changed. I believe it is very important that we take seriously what we must do to guard against what is a clear crisis in terms of the climate.

We can grow and we can increase a thriving clean energy economy without banning fracking.

We have laws that have to be followed and enforced that address and deal with people who cross our border illegally. And there should be consequences.

I think the most important and most significant aspect of my policy perspective and decisions is my values have not changed.

My value around what we need to do to secure our border, that value has not changed.

My values have not changed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: We'll have much more from that CNN exclusive interview ahead as the Democratic ticket works to clearly define their policies, in turn, clearly surging enthusiasm into actual votes.

For President former President Trump, it's back to the industrial Midwest as he rallies his base today heading to a Pennsylvania County he won in 2020 by almost 40 votes turnout. It's everythihng. Let's discuss much more about the Harris-Walz interview with CNN's Eva McKend. Eva, when you talk to campaign officials, you're talking to them every single day. You're on the road with the vice president and her running mate. What do they think about last night? What were they hoping to get out of last night?

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: I think that they're pleased with her performance. My key takeaway from her performance is that she cleaned up, explained some of these policy evolutions on immigration on climate. You didn't get the sense that she abandoned her values. That's what she said that her values remain the same, but that she has evolved in terms of the mechanisms to achieve some of those policy aspirations.

And then now on the border issue, Democrats really feel comfortable in the argument that they have to make that they advocated for a bipartisan border enforcement bill that was unpopular, even with some members of their own party. And it is the former president's fault that it did not advance. Let's listen.

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HARRIS: Through bipartisan work, including some of the most conservative members of the United States Congress, a bill was crafted, which we supported, which I support. And Donald Trump got word of this bill that would have contributed to securing our border. And because he believes that it would not have helped him politically, he told his folks in Congress, don't put it forward. He killed the bill.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKEND: So something else that stuck out to me is that she really tried to characterize herself as a bridge builder. You know, the right is working overtime to try to define her as a San Francisco liberal, but she said that if elected president, she would put a Republican in her cabinet. So, that I think is a message to those conservatives kind of on the fence, those never Trumpers, those folks kind of flirting with supporting her.

MATTINGLY: So, this was a key kind of fence post in this still very early campaign, given the fact it just came to be about 40 days ago. Looking ahead, they have a reproductive rights tour very well timed, given the former president weighing in on this issue once again last night. What's that going to look like?

MCKEND: They love talking about this issue. They think that it's a political winner for them. And I think they're showing even more confidence by starting in Florida, of all places, in Palm Beach, on Tuesday. Senator Amy Klobuchar is going to be among those on the bus tour as well as a whole host of celebrities. There are going to do 50 stops. And they're also going to strategically use this tour to try to mobilize and recruit volunteers.

MATTINGLY: All right. Eva McKend, it's nice to have you in D.C. You're always on the trail. It's good to see you in person. Thanks so much. I appreciate it. We're joined now by CNN Political Commentators Paul Begala and Scott Jennings.

Scott, I'll get to you in a minute about whether you would serve as a cabinet official in a forthcoming Harris administration. But, Paul, I want to start with you in terms of, look, this was highly anticipated. The entire political world was watching last night. The vice president has been criticized for weeks for not doing interviews, reversing on policy, but not explaining why. What did you make of how that was addressed last night?

PAUL BEGALA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes. I thought she did a great job.

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She did three things. Capture the center. She did that, right, by saying, I'm for fracking, I'm for border security, I'll put Scott Jennings in my cabinet, which I would heartily endorse. Second -- she's got to do that without abandoning her values.

Second, she's got to be the candidate of change without abandoning Joe Biden. She did that. She had this wonderful phrase about a new way forward and the last ten years really meaning the Trump era in our politics, and she is change incarnate, and so she has captured -- this is hard to do. The incumbent vice president has captured the metal of change.

Third, she needed to draw contrast with Trump. I wish she did a little more of that, to tell you the truth. But she sure did it on border security, which is maybe her weakest issue where she's got to get strong and she's got to attack Trump. And she did. She told the truth, which is we had the toughest border security we'd ever negotiated and Trump tanked it.

So, as a Democrat, I was very happy with how Vice President Harris handled herself.

MATTINGLY: Scott, look, I watched you and listened to you last night, the friends on your side and kind of their perception of the interview as well. It feels on some level, you talk to Democrats, you talk to Republicans, two very different views of what happened last night in terms of how this plays moving forward in this campaign. What do you think the takeaway is?

SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, look, I mean, we got more of what we already knew Kamala Harris was and she's a vapid tosser of word salads. I mean, that's what she did last night. I have a different view of how she handled her flip flops on issues.

I mean, I came away believing that she's basically just an actor. I think she's probably a liberal at heart, but her profession is acting. In 2019, she was reading scripts about banning fracking. In 2024, she's reading scripts about not banning fracking.

And I guess what the American people have to ask themselves is, do you want an actor who will read whatever script someone puts in front of them as the president? Now, some people may like that, some people may not, but that's how I view her.

So, how does that play going forward? Do voters want that? Do they believe that? Does that, is that the kind of person, is that the kind of politician that they want leading the country?

On the change issue, Paul and I have been aligned on this for months. It is a change election. And on the economic stuff, she embraced, supported, defended, and promised a continuation of Biden's economic agenda. I don't believe that's tenable. I still think she's going to have to break with him on some of that at some point.

MATTINGLY: Paul, on the issue of the attacks that have come through, you know, the Trump supporters will say, look, he's authentic. We may not always like what he's saying, but at least he's authentic, you know who he is, those attacks and the response that the vice president has had to them. Take a listen.

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DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: He suggested that you happened to turn black recently for political purposes, questioning a core part of your identity. Any --

HARRIS: Same old tired playbook. Next question, please.

BASH: That's it?

HARRIS: That's it.

BASH: Okay.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: This is the clear strategy. We've seen it before when asked about these issues. Do you think it's a good strategy?

BEGALA: I think it's a great strategy. See, the Democrats used to have this strategy, every time Trump did something of, ah, hair's on fire, that's why I no longer have any hair, burned it all off.

Every time -- Trump's strategist told me this, and he was right, he said, every time you go on T.V. and you're screaming and yelling that Trump's a bully, we get stronger, because our voters want strength. So, look at what Kamala Harris is doing. She's doing this move that I think Jay-Z taught President Obama, which is this. Just diminish him.

And the truth is we know what's going on. I mean, Mr. Trump's had a bad week. He's had a new superseding indictment for his alleged criminality around January 6th. He had this really infuriating incident at Arlington National Cemetery, where it looks like he violated the law and filmed a political video at the most sacred ground in America. And every swing state poll shows him losing his lead and now trailing Kamala Harris. So, he's had a really bad week. He needs a hug, I think, is really what Donald needs.

MATTINGLY: You know, Scott, the vice president, we talked about wanting to see a culture shift in politics where you aren't beating people up. You're lifting them up. It was something J.D. Vance was asked about by our colleague, John Berman, earlier this morning. Here's what he said.

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SEN. J.D. VANCE (R-OH), VICE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I think if you look at Donald Trump's full campaign appearances, and, yes, his social media appearances, what you see is two things, a guy with an agenda to lower prices and bring back American prosperity, and a political candidate who isn't stodgy, who likes to have some fun and likes to tell some jokes. I'd much rather have a candidate who's willing to go off script, who's willing to give every interview and is willing to tell some jokes. I do think that's how you lift people up. Politics of boring scolds, telling people they can't laugh, that is not lifting Americans up. That's how to tear us down.

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MATTINGLY: Scott, this is my question. Look, I get this. I've -- as you know, I've covered Capitol Hill for a long time. It rings somewhat similar to what you'd hear from lawmakers, Republicans who didn't want to actually talk about what the former president had posted on Twitter or on Truth Social. They like the policy, he's just joking, he's just having fun. Is that really -- like this week what we've seen, is this just joking, is he just having fun?

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JENNINGS: I don't know. I mean, I don't consult his campaign and I do know this. This is exactly the same person who ran in 2020 and lost, but only by about 44,000 votes in three states. And he's -- I mean, look, he's the same guy. He always was, that he's running against someone who is not the same person they were.

And I think that's ultimately what they're getting at here is, Trump is basically the same. The through line is the same. You can love it, you can hate it, but it is the same. And by some measures, he's more popular now than he's ever been, and his administration is looked upon more favorably now than it has ever been.

It is Harris who we don't know really who they are. Is she the 2019 Harris who's describing, we have to ban fracking to save the earth for my nieces, or is it the Harris of last night who says my nieces apparently, their future doesn't matter anymore, I'm all for fracking.

To me, that is the greatest contrast here. Do you want somebody who basically has some consistency to their personality, or someone who takes the latest political consultant script and reads it with a straight face into the camera and tries to make you think it's sincere? That's the contrast.

MATTINGLY: And it's going to be the one I think people are trying to figure out going forward. I would say on abortion, sincerity and consistency, maybe a little bit less so on some level. Paul Begala, Scott Jennings, always great to see you guys, particularly with Paul being the one of the three of us to make the Jay-Z reference.

JENNINGS: No, hold on.

MATTINGLY: Go ahead, Scott. Okay, quickly, go ahead.

JENNINGS: First of all, you guys already slipped into your holiday weekend attire. I showed up here ready to work. I saw you come on the screen. I'm like, wait a minute. I don't know what's going on here.

BEGALA: You're lucky I'm not just wearing all my Longhorn gear. It's football weekend, man.

MATTINGLY: It is football weekend. And I'm going to tell you right now.

BEGALA: (INAUDIBLE).

MATTINGLY: Right now, first off, it's Scarlet. I want to be very clear about that. Texas is not back yet. We don't get to do this. And, Scott, I'm going to be honest with you. Right now, I can feel the control room saying, I swear to God, if they get into a fashion discussion on live television, these three individuals, none of us will be employed anymore.

I appreciate you guys very much. Thanks so much for coming on. Have a great holiday weekend, okay?

BEGALA: Thank you.

MATTINGLY: All right, coming up, it's an issue he says he wanted left to the states, but abortion is on the ballot in Donald Trump's home state of Florida. This morning, his team now working to clarify the former president's comments on the six-week ban.

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VANCE: Well, I think what he's saying is that he doesn't like doing it at just six weeks. Obviously, he's going to make his own judgment on how he ultimately votes on the amendment. I think he's probably making an argument about how he feels about the issue.

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MATTINGLY: It's fair to say it's been somewhat difficult to pin down exactly how former President Trump feels about the issue of abortion. We got a little insight into his current view last night when he was asked about an amendment in Florida banning abortions after six weeks

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT, 2024 PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Well, I think the six week is too short It has to be more time. And so that's -- and I've told them that I want more weeks.

REPORTER: So, you'll vote in favor of the amendment?

TRUMP: I'm voting that I am going to be voting that we need more than six weeks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: Now, his campaign leader clarified that he wasn't actually revealing how he would vote on the Florida amendment, just his views on limiting abortion after a certain number of weeks.

His running mate, Senator J.D. Vance, attempted to further clarify that this morning.

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VANCE: Well, I think what he's saying is that he doesn't like doing it at just six weeks. Obviously, he's going to make his own judgment on how he ultimately votes on the amendment. I think he's probably making an argument about how he feels about the issue. He's not making some proclamation about how he's going to vote on the amendment.

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MATTINGLY: Joining me now, Trump surrogate and current North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum. He ran for president. Governor, I appreciate your time this morning. What do you say to voters who are kind of understandably concerned, not just voters, also pro-life groups who are very confused about where the former president was last night, where the Trump-Vance ticket actually stands on the issue of abortion?

GOV. DOUG BURGUM (R-ND): Well, I think it's been very clear, which is they're the president. Trump is saying that he is opposed to a national ban. He's repeated that multiple times. And he supports that states make their own decisions on that and he recognizes, acknowledges, said many times that if the people in states or the state legislators make these decisions, it's going to vary state by state based on how the state themselves approach that.

And I think what he really is saying is that this is an issue that should be left to the state. And as president, there's a limited number of things with the Tenth Amendment that the federal government should focus on, and that includes national security, that includes the border, that includes our economy, and that's what President (INAUDIBLE).

MATTINGLY: I think the confusing part here, particularly in a moment where Republicans are rightfully challenging the current vice president's reversals, or as they would call it, flip flops on certain policies, is this issue is in a state. It is the state where the former president lives. The former president is now going to get to vote on this issue, and he refuses to say exactly where he stands on it.

BURGUM: Well, I think he's been very clear about how he views it as president, which it's up to the states and it's up to the voters in the state. In this case in Florida, he is just one of those voters in the state of Florida. But he's been very clear. He's opposed to a national ban. The Democrats have misrepresented this (INAUDIBLE). that the federal government has a specific and limited set of things to do. He wants to focus on those things that the federal government.

Like one of the things that's very clear is that border and as part of national security is the federal government's job. That's not left to the states. President Trump wants to secure our border.

[10:20:00]

You know, Harris wants to have open borders, just like Biden has. And that's one of the big issues that people are going to be facing. And we're very clear about how President Trump's stands on that issue.

MATTINGLY: Yes. No, I mean, unequivocally, the contrast argument is clear and something that the former president and his team want to talk about.

But he also talked about something else last night on this issue, and then we can move on to broader issues, mandating and I think the question is, how do you explain the financing of IVF treatment? That would, at least the way he framed it, come from the federal government, be something he would want to do.

And I got to be honest, as somebody who covered the Obamacare debate, both its creation and the dozens of efforts to repeal it, a Republican supporting a mandate for insurance companies to pay for any treatment, let alone IVF treatment, which is also sometimes a contentious issue inside the Republican Party, is that something you would support?

BURGUM: Well, I think this is less contentious all the time because the Republican Party is emphatically (INAUDIBLE) and President Trump himself has said over and over that he supports IVF (INAUDIBLE). that are going to define the things that affect every (INAUDIBLE).

This is super important for families that are trying to have a family and can't, but we got to talk about the things that, in the Biden Harris administration that have hurt every American, and that's inflation. It doesn't matter if you're a Republican, a Democrat, an independent. Inflation, high interest rate, wars abroad, open borders, those are the things that have hurt every American.

MATTINGLY: I think the, just one last thing on this, the idea of a government mandate. Is that seems antithetical to Republican ideology, in general, let alone on health care.

BURGUM: Well, there aren't going to be any mandates. There aren't going to be any, you know, free giveaways from Harris if unless one party or the other has got, you know, control of both chambers. And so a lot of this is election talk and posturing and all the work that's got to get done is voters have got to get out and vote. They've got to get out (INAUDIBLE) back to where we had low inflation, low interest rates, you know, peace, (INAUDIBLE) and an energy policy that wasn't creating, you know, poverty here at home and empowering our adversaries. And those are the issues that the election is going to turn on and I think (INAUDIBLE).

MATTINGLY: Governor, your audio has been dipping out a little bit. So, I just want to -- I think we're going to have to cut it a little bit short. I do want to ask you, though, if we still have you on the audio, will you be paying Colorado Governor Jared Polis the ten pounds of bison meat that you bet on the game last night between the Colorado Buffaloes and the North Dakota State Bison?

BURGUM: Well, yes, absolutely, we will. It was a fantastic game. Great to see football season starting. North Dakota State carried itself well last night in a super energetic stadium. (INAUDIBLE).

MATTINGLY: We just lost him and I had a sense the governor was actually probably had about 15 minutes of analysis there. We do have confirmation though, there will be payment on that bet. I always appreciate the governor's time and certainly a lot more issues to get to if we get a chance to talk to him in the future.

Still to come, the latest inflation numbers are in and it's looking good for consumers, but there still may be a bumpy road ahead. We'll explain next.

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MATTINGLY: Well, new this morning, some better than expected numbers from the Feds' go-to inflation gauge. The personal consumption expenditures index, we call PCE, it held steady last month at 2.5 percent. That beat economist projections. But what does it actually mean for interest rates?

Joining me now, Jared Bernstein, chair of the Council on Economic Advisers, who will not tell me what it means for interest rates because he's not going to weigh in on Fed policy. But we're going to talk a little bit more about that in a bit. But I do want to ask your reaction to this report, what you kind of saw as you dove into the numbers here.

JARED BERNSTEIN, CHAIR, COUNCIL OF ECONOMIC ADVISERS: Well, as you said, 2.5 percent year over year, that's the lowest yearly inflation rate tied with June for the lowest rate since early 2021. It means continued movement in the right direction with easing inflation. That translates into real wage and income gains for American families.

There's another number in this report related to those real gains that hasn't gotten probably enough attention. Consumer spending was strong in July, 0.4 percent for the month, just below 3 percent year over year. That means ongoing economic growth. It means people are out there traveling. They're taking advantage of gas prices that are $0.50, just about $0.50 down from a year ago, rising real pay, rising incomes, translating into rising consumer spending and an ongoing economic recovery.

MATTINGLY: The durability of consumer spending, Jared, has been, I think, one of the things that economic analysts have been perplexed by, surprised by on some level. They've been surprised by a lot of things over the last three and a half years. What's your explanation? What do you see as the reason why it has maintained its kind of robust level and pace?

BERNSTEIN: Sure. I have to say, this one hasn't surprised me that much for the following reason. Let me give you one number, 70 percent. Our GDP, our overall economy is 70 percent consumer spending. That's a lot higher than most other countries. And if we have an American consumer --

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