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Funeral Held For Israeli-American Hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin; Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY), Is Interviewed About Ceasefire Talks Thrown Into Question After 6 Hostages Killed; Trump Claims He Had "Every Right To" Interfere With Election. Aired 11-11:30a ET

Aired September 02, 2024 - 11:00   ET

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

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[11:01:44]

MIMI ZEMAH, PROTESTER: It's about being human. There are people there. There's no reason on earth they're still there, and that's why we're here. They shouldn't be here anymore. There's one person who wants to sit on this chair, and he's willing to sacrifice everything this country, these people, our freedom, our values, he's willing to sacrifice everything so that he can remain on his chair.

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JIM ACOSTA, CNN HOST: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu facing crushing pressure to strike a ceasefire deal with Hamas and bring the remaining hostages home. Good morning. You're live in the CNN Newsroom. I'm Jim Acosta in Washington.

This morning at the White House, President Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris will hold a critical meeting, sitting down with the U.S. hostage negotiating team with a new sense of urgency after this weekend's gruesome discovery of six hostages killed in a Hamas tunnel. Israel calls it, quote, cold blooded murder.

This morning in Jerusalem, a funeral for one of those victims, 23- year-old Israeli American, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, he was abducted from a music festival in southern Israel during the Hamas terror attack on October 7th. His father said any eulogy that he hoped his death would be the fuel that will bring home the remaining hostages.

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JON POLIN, FATHER OF HERSH GOLDBERG-POLIN: First, we failed you. We all failed you. You would not have failed you. You would have put harder for justice. You would have worked to understand the other, to bridge differences. You would have challenged more people, to challenge their own thinking. And what you will be pushing for now is to ensure that your death, the deaths of all the soldiers and so many innocent civilians are not leshav (ph), not in vain. (END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: One American still held is 20-year-old, Edan Alexander. Last hour I spoke with his parents, and here's a part of that conversation.

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YAEL ALEXANDER, MOTHER OF HOSTAGE EDAN ALEXANDER: What happened in Israel now that everybody at the street, there was a strike today, everyone was just screaming and being with the family and just to make sure that they're going to seal the deal, they're going to bring our loved ones home, safety, like, right? They're doing whatever they can just to make a noise. It's not a political issue. It's humanitarian issue. And to see all the crowds in -- on the streets, we are not alone, you know. We are fighting this fight for 332 days. It's almost 11 months that our son is not with us, is not with the family. And we are going to do everything in our power to make it happen and to bring him home and to bring the other hostages home.

ACOSTA: Well, I just want to say, you are definitely not alone. We're -- we're all thinking about you. We're all praying for their safe return. I do want to play a little bit of what President Biden said just a few moments ago about all of this. Let's Listen.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. President, if you think it's time for Prime Minister Netanyahu to do more on this issue, do you think he's doing enough?

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No.

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ACOSTA: So you hear the President there saying he doesn't think the Prime Minister is doing enough. What is your thought on that?

[11:05:04]

ADI ALEXANDER, FATHER OF HOSTAGE EDAN ALEXANDER: I think he's absolutely right, from the get go the U.S. government, we in touch with U.S. government. As you know, we met Jake Sullivan yesterday for 15 times. And we don't see the same sense of urgency and the same dedication from the Israelis as we see from the Americans. And this is devastating, and it's actually very surprising.

ACOSTA: Do you think -- what -- what more could be done?

A. ALEXANDER: First of all, on Netanyahu government, they have to stop to move the goal post of the negotiation. They have to stop to undermine the negotiating team itself. And they have to seal the deal. Enough, it's enough.

Y. ALEXANDER: Exactly. They need to bring the hostages back home. That's it. It's 11 months. We don't have time, like we saw on Saturday what happened. They murdered them over there. So they need to understand, that's why we urge them since the beginning, that it's -- they don't have time. They live in hell.

ACOSTA: And I do want to share some of the essay that you both wrote for "The New York Times," we can show this to our viewers. It's not just the fear of losing our son that now keeps us up at night. It's the fact that his murder is becoming the more probable outcome, and we have no faith in Mr. Netanyahu's will to change that. As a parent, reading that just breaks my heart. How do you find the hope that Edan is still alive?

A. ALEXANDER: First, we have some eyewitnesses that were released back in November that he is -- that he's alive. So --

Y. ALEXANDER: We just taking through this hope that he's strong -- he's a strong kid. He was a professional swimmer in high school. Is like --

A. ALEXANDER: We hope he's -- he's --

Y. ALEXANDER: He's full of life and he's a good like he's amazing, Edan. And I'm hoping that he's strong and he knows that we are fighting for him, and he's will come back home.

ACOSTA: And we're looking at some pictures of Edan now. And he just looks like a re -- remarkable young man. Tell us a little bit more about him.

Y. ALEXANDER: Edan -- Edan, I don't know, he's got this beautiful smile. He love like to be with friends. He love to party. He love to be at the beach. He love to go to restaurants like, this is Edan, you know.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA: And we are praying for the return of Edan and all the hostages really thinking about that family this morning. Thanks very much for their time.

And as we await developments on potential ceasefire negotiations, the outcry in Israel is growing louder, with protesters pouring into the streets to demand the release of the remaining hostages. Our Nic Robertson is on the ground in Tel Aviv. Nic, it is extraordinary to see that number of Israelis on the streets passionately voicing their outrage over the deaths of those hostages. What can you tell us? What did you hear from the protesters today?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: You know, last night, Jim, there was just so much energy on the streets, determined to show their -- their heartbreak, their anger, their frustration with the Prime Minister, their demand for change. And we're now in the square that has become the place where so many families of hostages have gathered with so many protesters have gathered and started.

And it's -- it's -- it's an empty space as some beautiful singing that was going on with a group of ladies over there that's over just before you came to us. There was a young man at the piano there playing, just such a -- a soulful lament. To hear that and to hear the interview you just playing, they come together, because that's the outpouring here and -- and where people's hearts and minds and feelings are at.

Today, I think, with that energy of -- of last night, but still that huge sense of loss. Yes, you -- you kind of get that moment here, at the moment where it -- it's pain and suffering, and people are gathering their ideas and wits about how to challenge the Prime Minister and what it is that's going to convince him. We know that the court struck down today the -- the union's strike. They said that was illegal. It was a member of the Prime Minister's real right wing cabinet that brought that about, Itamar Ben-Gvir.

And, you -- you know, people are wondering, how are they going to do it? They've ever managed to shift the dial on the Prime Minister. They've called on the Prime Minister to show public contrition, to say is sorry, to -- to promise to change things. And -- and what did people get today, a commitment from the -- the President instead, not the Prime Minister at the funeral of -- of Hersh Goldberg-Polin.

[11:10:01]

They're really saying, you know, sorry, and -- and we couldn't bring them home. And -- and if you look just behind me here at the -- at the six wreaths there that have been laid yesterday, it says sorry in the middle of the wreaths. And that's the sentiment. Everyone here is saying sorry. But right now they're in that moment of struggle to figure out, OK, how do we turn sorrow into change? And -- and that's what you're hearing in interviews, and that's what we're hearing here.

ACOSTA: All right. Nic Robertson, thank you very much. Live in Tel Aviv for us. We appreciate it.

Let's discuss more now with the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Congressman Gregory Meeks of New York. Congressman, thank you so much for being with us. We appreciate it. I do want to talk about that meeting at the White House in just a moment, but first, can we talk about the victims and their families? I know you got to know Hersh Goldberg-Polin's family. I -- I was able to interview them at the DNC. I mean your heart just goes out to them.

REP. GREGORY MEEKS (D-NY): My heart, you know, I just mourn with the families, of course, of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, like the whole family and alongside the five other hostages that were found this weekend. You know, as you said, Jon and Rachel appeared before Congress on numerous occasions. They were in Chicago. And, you know, they're tireless advocates for their son, Hersh, as well as all of the hostages.

Look, they've demonstrated extraordinary strength and character under the most excruciating circumstances. And so we just need to have a ceasefire that brings all of the hostages home. It's been 331 days since October 7th. And we know that there's still -- Hamas is still holding over 100 hostages, and the urgency of having a cease fire is now, as indicated by the president, the vice president, and the people who see the streets of Israel right now.

ACOSTA: And Congressman this morning, President Biden said point blank, Prime Minister Netanyahu is not doing enough to secure the release of the hostages. What do you think? And -- and what more needs to be done?

MEEKS: Well, I know, you know, democracy and diplomacy is hard. But I know that the president has been having some tough languages and tough words with the Prime Minister behind the scenes for a while. And, you know, things that have not been necessarily reported and some that are still classified, but there has to be continued pressure. And we heard Secretary Blinken say recently that, you know, if something didn't happen soon, he and the president will start talking about who is at fault on both sides, whether Hamas or, in this case, the prime minister.

So I think that what you hear the president's frustrations coming out, and as opposed to having some of those negotiations, of those talks that were taking place behind the scenes, it seems to me that the president is starting to say that he's going to reveal some of those other things and who he believes is at fault or, you know, or preventing a ceasefire here, whether, you know, on both sides, you know, Hamas may have some responsibility, and Netanyahu has some responsibility.

And I think that some of the work, the hard work that the administration has been doing behind the scenes now the general public, they need to know what it is so that folks can understand what's taking place, to try to get this ceasefire, to get the hostages home. You know, that's what we really need to do, you know, as well as to make sure that Hamas does not continue the threat that it poses to the American people and to the Israelis, as well as to the Palestinians, and Hamas cannot, you know, govern in Gaza. So that's all part of these negotiations that's taking place.

ACOSTA: Yes.

MEEKS: And I think that maybe now we have to make sure the American people know exactly what those negotiations and what is being said in those negotiations behind the scenes.

ACOSTA: And what is the -- the main sticking point at this point, is it this Philadelphi corridor that has been at issue in some of these talks. What's your sense of it?

MEEKS: Well, there's a number of things, but I'm not at liberty to say right now, because when I was briefed, it was in a classified session, so I've got to wait for the administration to either declassify and -- and say some things publicly. And I'm thinking we're getting to that point so that there are the American people clearly knows what is and is not taking place, as well as those in Israel, as well as our allies in the region.

So I think that we're getting close to the point where that the president will be able to discuss more openly to exactly what where we are and who is withholding an agreement, whichever side that is. So I -- I -- I can't say more than that based upon how I was briefed on this.

ACOSTA: Yes.

MEEKS: But I think that we need to get -- get all that information out.

ACOSTA: All right, Congressman Meeks, thank you very much for your time. We appreciate it.

[11:14:53]

Still ahead this hour, as President Biden, Vice President Harris, meet with the hostage negotiating team, former President Trump is making some bold statements, saying quote, the October 7th Israeli crisis would never have happened if he were president. A live report from the campaign, next.

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ACOSTA: Crisis escalating in Israel right now is intersecting with the campaign trail back here in the U.S., six additional hostages were murdered in Gaza, as we've been talking about, including American citizen Hersh Goldberg-Polin. Vice President Harris spoke to his family last night. Former President Donald Trump, for his part, extended his sympathies on Truth Social while also attempting to place the blame on the Biden-Harris administration. Eva McKend and Kristen Holmes are joining me now. Eva, you are following Vice President Harris. How is she reacting?

[11:20:20]

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jim, I can tell you that the Vice President spent the morning in the Situation Room with the President, meeting with the hostage negotiation team as they tried to advance a deal that would bring home the remaining hostages and again, a ceasefire to end the widespread suffering of Palestinians.

And this really illustrates, while it is active campaign season, the Vice President going to be here to rally with union workers later this afternoon. She's still responsible for governing, and that this issue in her telling is top of mind for her to bring an end to this war.

ACOSTA: Yes, Kristen, what -- so what's Trump saying?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So he's posting on Truth Social unsurprisingly, one of the things he's saying is that October 7th would have never happened if he was president, something he has said time and time again. And he also goes on to say the hostage crisis in Israel is only taking place because comrade Kamala Harris is weak and ineffective and has no idea what she is doing.

He also offered his condolences to the families of these hostages on Truth Social. One thing to point out is he has continually said this for months now, that this would have never happened. He also says that the war in Ukraine would have never happened if he was still at office, but doesn't offer any sort of evidence as to why he believes that, just that it wouldn't. And I will note, he has met with Netanyahu, met with him in Mar-a-Lago. And essentially all sources would tell us that were familiar with what happened during that meeting was that Trump did not say that Netanyahu should reach a ceasefire, but instead said, you need to end this.

ACOSTA: Yes. And -- and President Biden, for his part, this morning, was very tough on Netanyahu, saying that he has not done enough. And Kristen, I did want to ask you, Trump made some comments last night on "Fox" about election interference. Let's listen to this talk about on the other side.

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DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: It's so crazy that my poll numbers go up. Whoever heard you get indicted for interfering with a presidential election where you have -- have every right to do it, you get indicted and you poll numbers go up.

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ACOSTA: Yes, yes, Kristen, it almost sounds like he's admitting that he did try to interfere in the -- in the previous election. And -- and says he has every right to do it. Yes.

HOLMES: Well, so this is something that he has said a version of before, but this obviously takes out the middle part where he says --

ACOSTA: Yes.

HOLMES: They're accusing me of interfering with the election.

ACOSTA: Yes. He comes out and says it. Yes.

HOLMES: He's obviously not saying they're accusing me here. He's saying, you interfere with an election, which I have every right to do. So if you talk to his campaign, they say, hey, he said a version of this before. He's just saying what he said in the past --

ACOSTA: Yes.

HOLMES: -- which is, oh, you get indicted for something that you're accused of doing, which, by the way, I have every right to ask questions about the election. But obviously this is not something they want him saying during an interview that he not only did it, but had every right to do it, when he has just spent months in his legal scheme, has spent months and he spent millions of dollars trying to deny these charges.

ACOSTA: Right. I'm -- I'm sure Jack Smith took that comment tucked in his folder for later use. Eva, you're in Detroit, where Vice President Harris will hold the first of two rallies today. I mean, we used to say Labor Day, the unofficial kickoff of the camp -- I mean, of the nitty-gritty of the campaign cycle, that's where we are this morning. But President Biden is going to be joining her later today in Pennsylvania. What can you tell us about that?

MCKEND: Well, what we see from the Vice President is her deploying President Biden as a surrogate in a very strategic way. We know that President Biden is particularly comfortable in a union hall among union workers. But she is trying to do a delicate dance here, because she's characterizing herself as a new way forward. She argues that the former president is principally concerned about the past, while she is looking towards the future. It's a somewhat difficult argument to make, given that she is currently in the administration.

But she is embracing Biden in places where she believes that it makes sense, and that is no doubt, in Pennsylvania, where President Biden won by about just 80,000 votes in 2020. It is a critical battleground state where union support will be so important, Jim, because they are such a tremendous organizing force.

ACOSTA: All right. Eva McKend, Kristen Holmes it's going to get busy for both of you. And I -- I hate to break it to you. Labor Day is almost over. Both of you, thank you very much. Appreciate it.

[11:24:35]

George Clooney speaking for the first time publicly about President Biden's decision to not seek a second term, what the actor said about his own role in the President's decision to step aside. It's coming up.

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ACOSTA: Just over two months to go until Election Day and just over one week until Kamala Harris and Donald Trump go head to head in their first presidential debate. But right now, both campaigns are focusing on key battleground states with the first ballots of the 2024 election set to go out at the end of the week. You heard that right.

Let's bring in our political panel, CNN political commentator, Republican strategist, Shermichael Singleton, Washington correspondent for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Tia Mitchell, and former Democratic congressman from New York, Max Rose. All of you, Happy Labor Day. Thanks for joining us. We appreciate it.

[11:29:57]

Shermichael, I mean, it's hard to believe we're -- we're getting there fast. This is going quickly. And, you know, this debate is coming up quickly as well. And I wonder if what you think about this, you know --