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A.G. Garland to Speak Against Making DOJ a Political Weapon; SpaceX Completes First-Ever Commercial Spacewalk; Tyreek Hill Calls for Officer to be Fired. Aired 10-10:30a ET

Aired September 12, 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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JIM ACOSTA, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. You are live in the CNN Newsroom. I'm Jim Acosta in Washington.

We begin the hour with an urgent message from Attorney General Merrick Garland, who was set to deliver a speech later this morning, slamming efforts to turn the Justice Department into a, quote, political weapon. The speech coming less than two months before the presidential election is expected to condemn what he calls an escalation of attacks based on, quote, conspiracy theories, dangerous falsehoods, efforts to bully and intimidate career public servants by repeatedly and publicly singling them out and threats of actual violence.

CNN's Jessica Schneider joins us now with more. And, Jessica, this is very un-Merrick Garland of Merrick Garland to come out like this.

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: It's notable Jim We've seen the attorney general respond to these attacks and congressional hearings when questioned by lawmakers Maybe in response to questions from the press, but he is going to be making a full-throated defense of his employees, DOJ officials, FBI agents in this really notable speech. He's going to be delivering it on 11:30 this morning to his employees, to U. S attorneys who are in town. And it's really incredible. You know, he's saying we won't let this department be used as a political weapon.

And while he doesn't mention Donald Trump or his allies by name, it is very clear even in reading the excerpts that we've been given that Merrick Garland is sending a message to Donald Trump and his allies, we don't appreciate these attacks, we won't tolerate these attacks and employees of the Justice Department, the attorney general will say, I have your back. In particular, Merrick Garland will say this to the employees, it is dangerous to target and intimidate individual employees of this department simply for doing their jobs, and it is outrageous that you have to face these unfounded attacks because you are doing what is right and upholding the rule of law.

I mean, in the past few years, there has been a spike in threats against DOJ officials, also in particular FBI agents, in the wake of that search of Mar-a-Lago two years ago, they faced a number of threats. So, this is the attorney general really, for the first time, speaking out in this forum in such a forceful speech that is directed to his employees, letting them know he backs them and he won't stand for any of this.

ACOSTA: And, Jessica, what's remarkable about this, you saw at the debate a couple of nights ago, Donald Trump accusing the Biden-Harris administration of using the Justice Department as a weapon, the weaponization of the Justice Department, as some on the right call it up on Capitol Hill. But at the same time, Trump just this past weekend on Truth Social was putting out a post saying he's going to go after election officials. He's going to go after Democratic donors if he feels that they are cheating in the upcoming election, which, of course, they won't be. But it's these kinds of attacks, I think, that Merrick Garland feels compelled to speak out against.

SCHNEIDER: Right, the rhetoric is to twofold from Donald Trump. He's accusing the Biden administration, the DOJ of using their force for political gain, which Merrick Garland has repeatedly said is not true, and then like you said, you know, threatening to do things to his political opponents, to election officials.

Merrick Garland addresses that. He says, you know, it is dangerous to target the employees for simply doing their jobs. He says, I also have seen you bravely carry on in the face of an unprecedented spike in threats targeting a range of public officials. So, he's commending his employees for even continuing on, you know, Jack Smith and his prosecutors, Donald Trump repeats them -- or attacks them what seems to be on a daily basis.

So, this is Merrick Garland coming to the defense of his own employees, but also sending a message to Donald Trump and his allies.

ACOSTA: Very interesting. All right, Jessica Schneider, we'll be following that. Thank you very much.

And for more on this, joining me now is Democratic Congressman Maxwell Frost of Florida. Congressman, thanks so much for joining us. We appreciate it. What is your take on what Jessica Schneider just reported a few moments ago that the attorney general, Merrick Garland, is going to send an urgent message to Department of Justice officials that he has their back and that this talk of a weaponized Department of Justice is just nonsense?

Obviously, he's talking about Donald Trump, even if the attorney general is not going to mention him by name. What's your reaction to that?

REP. MAXWELL FROST (D-FL): I think it's a very important step. I mean, we have a president here who is, number one, trying to scare the American people and erode their confidence in our institutions. I mean, our country was added to a list a few years ago, backsliding democracies, what was one of the top reasons that we have leaders like Donald Trump who are intentionally trying to erode public trust in our systems, and the DOJ is part of that.

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So, it's unfortunate that he's really -- he is trying to weaponize public opinion against our own government.

So, I think it's a good step that the attorney general has taken. We'd love to see the DOJ again become more aggressive in the way they're talking about this issue and any other ones as well.

ACOSTA: And I do want to ask you about what's going on down in Florida. I know that you and other Florida Democrats in the House are sending a letter to the Justice Department calling for an investigation into Governor Ron DeSantis down there. A lot of this stemming from what has been going on with the Amendment 4, which is a ballot amendment that's going to be coming up this election. Can you explain that for us?

FROST: Yes. Well, my colleagues and I led with Debbie Wasserman Schultz in South Florida are sending a letter to the DOJ requesting that they look into and investigate something really serious that's going on in the state of Florida. As many people know, this year, we're going to have Amendment 4 on the ballot, which would codify abortion rights. I mean, it's really important. And that I believe will pass in the state of Florida. The governor opposes it because he's against bodily autonomy and freedom for all women, childbearing adults in the state of Florida.

And the governor, unfortunately, is using official state government resources to fight back and campaign against Amendment 4. And not only is he using official government resources to campaign against Amendment 4, he's using government resources to what looks like sabotage and really suppress the vote. There have been reports that state government officials have gone to supervisor of elections offices requested to see loads and loads, we're talking thousands of petitions. They are scanning the petitions and checking them for fraud. Then sending state law enforcement agents to go to the homes of people who signed these petitions to tell them that they might have been the victim of fraud, asserting that somehow, you know, their name was forged in the petition, which is completely false.

Each supervisor of elections does this process already. They go through, they verify the petitions. It was verified. That is why Amendment 4 will be on the ballot. Not only that, but the governor, it seems, has directed our state health care administration agency to put out, number one, of video working against Amendment 4 and then a whole page on the official government website talking about and campaigning against Amendment 4.

So, the message to the governor is this, number one, we believe this is improper, it is not normal and it might even be illegal. But if he wants to campaign against amendment four, he needs to start a political action committee to go ahead and do that and not use state resources against something that is going to be a bipartisan vote across the state of Florida.

ACOSTA: Yes. And it's a vote that could put the state of Florida in play on the presidential level and with the Senate race that is going to be a hotly contested in Florida, no question about it.

And, Congressman, while I have you, I do want to switch gear to the Republican-led attacks on Haitian immigrants in Ohio. There's one moment of the presidential debate, obviously, that went viral from Donald Trump. Let's listen to that and talk about on the other side.

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DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT, 2024 PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: They're eating the dogs, the people that came in. They're eating the cats. They're eating the pets of the people that live there.

I've seen people on television.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let me just say here, this is --

TRUMP: The people on television say my dog was taken and used for food.

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ACOSTA: This, of course, has been completely debunked by officials in Springfield, Ohio. But, Congressman, I do want to ask you about this because you represent one of the largest Haitian communities in the United States. I believe you are also of Haitian ancestry. Correct me if I'm wrong about that. But what do you think is driving this What has been your reaction to Donald Trump saying that the other night?

FROST: Yes, I appreciate the question. And like you said, I am very proud to represent one of the largest concentrations of Haitian- Americans in the entire country in Central Florida. These are our neighbors. These are folks who work and live in our communities and these are Americans. And so when Donald Trump is lobbying these racist, bigoted attacks on Haitians, he is lobbying these attacks on Americans, and it's completely disgusting.

And it shows us two things. Number one, he knows he's losing this race, and so he's defaulting at what's something that's very normal for him, racism and bigotry. Number two, it also shines a light on his ideology and the way he would govern. He is someone who, I believe, is a neo-fascist, and when we look at Project 2025, it shows us that right there. And part of that ideology is picking groups of marginalized communities, minority groups, and blaming the issues of the country on those people. We've seen tyrants and dictators and the worst leaders in the history of humanity do similar things.

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And he has chosen Haitian-Americans now to go after, number one, a baseless lie. People have contacted law enforcement agencies, municipal government over there. This is not going on the way Donald Trump says it is. And not just that, but it's plain out racist.

And so I'm going to stand up for the Haitian community, not just in my district, but across the entire country, strong, resilient people, beautiful culture. And these folks in this country, they are Americans.

ACOSTA: Absolutely beautiful culture, and many of them are here because they're fleeing turmoil in their own country. And the United States has obviously a long, rich tradition of welcoming people who are in those circumstances.

Congressman Maxwell Frost of Florida, thanks so much for your time. We appreciate it.

FROST: Thanks for having me.

ACOSTA: And this morning, history being made after SpaceX's Polaris Dawn crew completed the first commercial spacewalk. Take a look at this. These pictures are truly out of this world against the backdrop of Earth. Yes, that is Earth right there. One of the four crew members, tech billionaire Jared Isaacman, left the capsule to venture out into space. And this is how it played out.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Back at home, we all have a lot of work to do. But in here, Earth sure looks like a perfect world.

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ACOSTA: All right. Let's discuss now with former NASA astronaut Mike Massimino. Mike, great to see you, as always.

What was your reaction when you saw this morning? I mean, I was holding my breath watching this, just thinking, you know, this is a commercial spaceflight. These suits, you know, they're a little different than the NASA astronaut suits that you typically see in these spacewalks. I was just hoping, please let this all happen safely.

MIKE MASSIMINO, FORMER NASA ASTRONAUT: Yes, I was thinking the same thing, Jim. I know those folks pretty well and they're friends of mine. I'm very happy for them. And I'm happy for the space program. Having a vibrant commercial space program, as a NASA administrator said today, is something that NASA has wanted to do for many years. And this was another huge step in that direction. This first private space walk is really a huge accomplishment.

ACOSTA: Yes. And, I mean, the space suits, not harp on that or fixate on that, but they do look a lot different from what you used to wear. Can you tell us about them? And, apparently, SpaceX designed them specifically for this mission.

MASSIMINO: Yes, Jim. They're actually kind of a different version of what they use for their launch and entry suits, the spacesuits that NASA astronauts have been using to go to the space station while they're riding the SpaceX vehicle.

They kind of remind me -- I guess the whole concept kind of reminds me of what was done back in the 1960s during the Gemini program. If we look back there 60 years ago, and it was just NASA and the Soviet Union doing these things. They completed a suborbital flight, which is what was in Project Mercury, then the first orbital flights. That's been done. And then the first spacewalks were conducted back then, too. And the suit was similar in that it had an umbilical. It didn't have a -- when I spacewalked on the Hubble Space Telescope, and what the astronauts use now, the NASA astronauts, is a self-contained life support system. And that's a pretty big distinction as opposed to using an umbilical cord that provides you with your life support.

So, it's kind of like a modern version of what was used back in the 60s, but a huge step, just being able to get out and move around, testing the viability of the suit. The whole spacecraft had to be depressed. They don't have an airlock, like we had on the space station or what we did have on the shuttle. The whole spacecraft went to vacuum. So, that meant all four of the astronauts that were on board, all for the crew members, had to be in their space suits. Two of them went out to take a look around and do some tests of the suits. And I look forward to what they say afterwards. I hope we get a pretty good debrief of what they experienced.

ACOSTA: Yes, that'd be great. Mike, what can you tell us about what it's like to do a spacewalk?

MASSIMINO: Jim, it's glorious. It is an amazing thing to do. It's the coolest thing I've ever done. It is a lot of work when we were -- you're showing some scenes of when I spacewalked on Hubble. So, we were really concentrating. You had to focus on what we were doing, and we were well trained for years to do the tasks we did on Hubble. But at the same time, you know, you have an amazing view over your shoulder. Earth from that vantage point at that high altitude, looking down at our planet, I felt like I was looking into heaven. I was looking into an absolute paradise.

So, it's a lot of work, a bit of stressful from when we were the spacewalks we were doing. I'm sure it was the same for the crew today, but it's just an amazing opportunity that stays with you forever. I think about those moments every day of my life.

ACOSTA: All right. And those moments that we were witnessing this morning, it just felt like we were witnessing the space mission moving further down the path towards perhaps a mission to Mars and beyond.

Mike Massimino, great to talk to you, as always, thanks so much.

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MASSIMINO: Thanks, Jim.

ACOSTA: I appreciate it. Coming up a new point of view this time from the body cam of the officer at the center of the Tyreek Hill incident, as the NFL star says he could have done things differently.

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TYREEK HILL, MIAMI DOLPHINS WIDE RECEIVER: I could have been better. You know, I could have let down my window, you know, in that instant.

Now, does that give them the right to literally beat the dog out of me? Absolutely not.

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HILL: Gone, gone, gone. He got to go, man.

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ACOSTA: There's Tyreek Hill now calling for the Miami Dade police officer who detained him to be fired. That officer identified as 27- year veteran Danny Torres, who's at the center of an investigation into the controversial incident. The body cam video shows him pulling Hill from his car and forcibly restraining him face down as things start to escalate and then moments like this.

Torres appears to grab the back of Hill's neck while forcing him down to the sidewalk, mocking him as he complains about having had recent knee surgery before confronting Hill's teammates and eventually handcuffing one.

Hill's attorney blasted the actions as excessive, escalating and reckless in a statement, calling for Torres immediate termination. Meanwhile, Miami-Dade Police have put Torres on administrative duties and his attorney said he will not comment until after the investigation.

Joining me now for more on this, CNN Legal Analyst, Criminal Defense Attorney Joey Jackson and CNN Senior Law Enforcement Analyst and former Police Chief Charles Ramsey.

Chief, let me talk to you first. When you see this, where in this video do things go wrong, in your view?

CHARLES RAMSEY, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, I think there's a couple things. First of all, what the video did not show, and that is the initial interaction between the first officer and Mr. Hill after the stop was made. Mr. Hill originally had said he was cooperative. He was not. He was really confrontational. The officer asked him to roll down his window. Why is that important? I mean, he had dark lieutenant windows for officer safety purposes. You need to be able to see inside and see what's going on. I mean, at a traffic stop, you never know what you have.

Now, having said that, the actions of the first officer I didn't have a problem with, it was the second officer, the one with the black sleeves underneath his shirt. He was aggressive from the very start. When he was ordered -- when he ordered Mr. Hill out of the car, they didn't even give him a chance to get out of the car on his own. He just yanked him out of the car, put him face down on the ground, handcuffed him. And then the last thing, once he's standing up and he's handcuffed, you got at least three cops there. There was no need to put him down on the curb. Although in some jurisdictions, I guess that's procedure, but he forcibly took him down to the curb. I didn't see a need for that.

So, I think both sides could have handled things a lot better.

ACOSTA: Yes. And, Joey, I want to play a little bit more of what Hill had to say about the incidents. Let's talk about this on the other side.

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HILL: I could have been better. You know, I could have let down my window, you know, in that instant. I'm human.

I got to follow rules. I got to, you know, do what, you know, everyone else would do, you know? So, now, does that give them the right to literally beat the dog out of me? Absolutely not.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Yes. I mean, Joey, that was my reaction to this, you know, okay, he's not rolling the window down. Not how you're supposed to do it. If the officer asks you to roll the window down, you roll the window down. But, you know, the officer could have been more patient too and just said, okay, maybe, you know, you can't -- why assume every situation is a bad situation. But what was your response?

JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yes. To me, Jim, it's about interpersonal communication. You know, my dad, who was a police officer, may he rest in peace, always used to tell me that of all the tools he had at his disposal, and there were a lot of them, including a nightstick, et cetera, the most effective tool was his voice, the ability to treat people with courtesy, with professionalism, with respect. And, yes, you know, sometimes they're going to be a very non- compliant public.

The question then becomes is proportionality. If someone's non- compliant, does that automatically give you the right to lay hands on them to escalate the matter? We depend upon our officers to bring reason and judgment and good common sense to any situation.

Let me say there's a lot of officers out here, the vast majority serving with dignity. We really owe them a debt of gratitude for all they do. But when you have others who are so quick to escalate, so quick to make something, turn into something so bad that doesn't need to be, that is concerning to me. And so that is what I think we need to focus.

Last point, Jim, and that's this. I think it's a teachable moment, right? If it were not him being Tyreek Hill, where would we be? Would it be a lot worse than this? And that's what concerns me. So, if we could use this to continue to bridge that gap, then we're more in a more effective place. And at the end of the day, that's the teaching tool in this situation.

ACOSTA: And, Chief Ramsey, would you fire this officer?

RAMSEY: Well, first of all, I don't know his complete history and I've made a lot of decisions around discipline. You have to look at the past record. Now he's a 27-year veteran. I'm sure he's got a history either complimentary or disciplinary, one or the other.

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I think there should be some disciplinary action taken against him. Whether it rises to the level of termination or not, I'm not really certain. I would need to have more information.

But let me just agree with something that Joey said and where you're taught in the academy with de-escalation. Even if you have a confrontational person, somebody has to be the adult in the room, so to speak. In other words, your job is to deescalate best you can to try to get the situation under control. That second officer made no attempt to deescalate, yanking him out of the car the way he did and so forth. So, he took a situation that could have been resolved a lot differently. Give the guy a ticket and go on your way.

ACOSTA: Yes. Joey, what do you think? Very quickly.

JACKSON: No, I do agree with that. I think what happens next is in terms of discipline is there'll be a disciplinary proceeding. And at that hearing, right, he's entitled to his due process. You're going to have people like Chief Ramsey, who ultimately make the call. And that call will be predicated upon his actions, his responses, his level of intervention and what he did in this situation. And was it uncalled for an inappropriate? I don't care if you're a 45-year veteran. That gives you no right to do anything other than your job, which is about, again, courtesy, professionalism and respect.

And I think that's what has to be assessed. And if he transcended the bounds and I think discipline is appropriate and it sends the right message to the community that we hear you, we respect you. And ultimately we're going to address things that should not be what they are.

ACOSTA: Yes. And if this hadn't been Tyreek Hill, would we even hear about this? You know, will this officers just still be out there doing his thing? Who knows?

Joey Jackson, Chief Ramsey, as always. Thanks so much. I appreciate it.

Coming up, burning out of control with no relief in sight. Firefighters in California are racing to put out more than 70 wildfires across the state. CNN's Stephanie Elam joins us now from the scene from one of those fires. Stephanie?

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Jim. I am in the midst of the bridge fire in Wrightwood, California, one of three major blazes that is churning through acres in Southern California. I'll tell you what fire officials are facing today right after this break.

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