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Democratic Presidential Candidate Kamala Harris Campaigns in Detroit with Singer Lizzo before Heading to Campaign in Atlanta with Singer Usher; Republican Presidential Candidate Donald Trump Campaigns in Pennsylvania; Early Voting Taking Place in Georgia; New Video and Satellite Images Provide Picture of Hamas Leader Yahya Sinwar's Final Hours; Food Situation in Gaza Dire as Israeli Forces Continue Bombardment; College Newspaper Editors Interviewed on Status of Youth Vote in 2024; Special Counsel Jack Smith Releases Nearly 2,000 Heavily Redacted Pages of Documents Related to 2020 Election Subversion Case against Donald Trump; Democratic Party Working to Shore Up So Called Blue Wall in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania. Aired 2-3p ET

Aired October 19, 2024 - 14:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:01:03]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

All right, the presidential race is reaching a fever pitch with only 17 days until Election Day. Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump trying to lock down votes in pivotal battleground states that will decide who claims the White House. Right now, supporters for Harris are gathering in Detroit. She is set to speak there in just a matter of moments, sharing the stage with pop singer Lizzo right there, who announced that she has already voted early for Harris. And next hour, the vice president then travels to Atlanta for a rally with singer Usher.

Both campaigns are barnstorming states seen as key to victory. Trump is preparing a rally with voters in a few hours in western Pennsylvania. And in these final weeks, the margins are razor thin, and voters are taking notice. Early voting shattering during records in some states, more than 11 million ballots already cast nationwide so far.

CNN's Priscilla Alvarez is with the Harris campaign in Detroit. So Priscilla, we just heard from Lizzo there, and soon to also join the audience there, Kamala Harris?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN REPORTER: Yes, we are waiting now for the vice president. She should be on stage momentarily at what is a get out the vote event where, as you mentioned, she has been joined by Lizzo, who a little while ago also spoke to the voters here and the audience.

Look, the message today is for people to get out and to get out early to vote. So this is an attempt to harness the Vice President's support and do that early at the polls. Of course, this is the first day of early voting in Detroit for the first time. So certainly, a big moment that this campaign is trying to capitalize on because they want to repeat what President Biden did in 2020, turning out voters and this majority nonwhite city and also its suburbs. Similarly in Atlanta where the vice president is headed after this event, where she too will be joined by Usher to harness that support.

Now, the vice president already speaking to reporters moments ago where she was asked about her messaging in the final weeks, and especially about criticisms of former President Donald Trump. And she said that she -- her near rapid response to just about everything in the media about the former president is because he is, quote, "increasingly unhinged." So certainly, we'll see more of that in the coming days.

But here in Michigan, the vice president spending time crisscrossing the state yesterday where she tried to hone in on her message for labor and union workers, drawing a stark contrast with the former president on manufacturing, especially in those counties where they're trying to widen margins. And then, two, also talking to the Arab American community. Of course, Michigan has a large Arab American population, and it is one that this campaign has, in some cases, struggled to get support amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. So the vice president also speaking directly to that community at her rally last night.

So certainly, an important state and one where they're trying to fortify the blue wall. So the vice president paying close attention to it. She will also be returning to Michigan next week with Michelle Obama. Fred?

WHITFIELD: All right, Priscilla Alvarez, thank you so much there in Detroit.

So as for former President Trump, he is making his case today with voters in Pennsylvania. CNN's Steve Contorno is there. So Steve, what will the message be there?

STEVE CONTORNO, CNN REPORTER: It's a good question, Fred, because his message has been somewhat scattershot in these closing weeks. Here we are in a part of the country, the rustbelt, where this campaign has really pushed an economic message, talking about inflation, talking about manufacturing. And that is certainly one of the ways they have billed this event.

But when Donald Trump takes the stage, he often says he doesn't think the economy is the number one issue.

[14:05:02]

In fact, he thinks that closing the southern border and deporting the undocumented population in the United States is the top priority.

Meanwhile, his campaign has moved away from advertisements talking about immigration to a bombardment of ads flooding the airwaves focusing on Vice President Harris's past positions supporting certain policies in favor of transgender rights. And Trump himself has also continued these deeply personal attacks on the vice president. Take a listen to what he said yesterday while campaigning in Michigan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Obviously, I'm in the middle of a very big, very contentious fight. We're leading. I've given my health exams. I've also done cognitive tests twice, and I've aced them, meaning a perfect storm. I want to see her do a cognitive test because she couldn't ace -- because she wasn't born smart.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CONTORNO: Now, Trump is speaking today about 45 minutes east of Pittsburgh. This is Westmoreland County. It's a place he won four years ago by about a two-to-one margin, and he's going to need that kind of turnout again. Pennsylvania is going to be one of these hard- fought battle grounds. Early voting has already started here. Hundreds of thousands of ballots have been cast. His campaign has been pushing a message, trying to encourage people to take advantage of all the early voting opportunities. That's going to be a tough task because he has spent so long training his voters to be skeptical of mail-in ballots and be skeptical of early voting. So we'll see how he is able to coach them on that today when he takes the stage. He's scheduled to speak at about 6:00 tonight, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, Steve Contorno, thank you so much.

All right, early voting is underway in several battleground states, and that includes a closely watched state of Georgia where voters have already turned out in record numbers, casting more than 1 million ballots since Tuesday. Former President Donald Trump is trying to reclaim the peach state after losing to President Biden by a small margin in 2020. Plus, next hour Vice President Harris will be making her way from Detroit to Atlanta for a rally with R&B star Usher.

CNN's Rafael Romo joining me right now from a polling site in Gwinnett County, Georgia, where it's been pretty active there throughout the day. But how are the lines now?

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN SENIOR LATIN AMERICAN AFFAIRS EDITOR: Hi, Fred. Well, it ebbs and flows. Just a few moments ago, the line extended all the way outside. Now, as you can see, it is gone. The process is going very, very smoothly. And we've noticed a couple of things here, Fred. Number one, there's a lot of interest from voters because they are really focused on multiple issues. Some of the ones that they have mentioned to us are taxes, the economy, abortion rights. Somebody even told us civic duty and this state of our country. So you have that on the one hand.

On the other hand, the processing seems to be going very smoothly, at least here where we are. This is the Five Forks branch of the Gwinnett County library system. It's one of multiple locations they have across the country.

And one thing that is very important for voters is that the county on its page is telling people in real time the lines, how long they are and how long it's going to take to cast a ballot. Earlier I spoke with a gentleman who told us that it took him a grand total of seven minutes to go through a line and cast his ballot. Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DON O'BRIANT, GWINNETT COUNTY EARLY VOTER: This was the easiest voting I've ever had, and I've voted early before. I think everyone realizes this is probably one of the most important elections they're going to have in years, and then when they get it done.

ALICE BROKOPP, GWINNETT COUNTY EARLY VOTER: I wasn't even really thinking about voting early except for the fact that my daughter is back from college for fall break. So I just figured I'd go with her.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: So convenience, Fred, is another reason why people are voting today. Many people have to work on Election Day itself, so they say might as well take it out of the way of right now.

Now, Georgia is just amazing in terms of how many people have already voted on Friday. The state surpassed the 1 million mark. I just checked the numbers from the secretary of state's office. It is 1.2 million. Here in this state, in Gwinnett County alone, the figure is now 82,000 people who have voted just today, Fred. Back to you.

WHITFIELD: Wow, very impressive. All right, Rafael Romo, thanks so much.

On Wednesday, be sure to watch a CNN special event. In the final sprint to Election Day, Vice President Kamala Harris facing voters and taking their most pressing questions live. Anderson Cooper moderates our presidential town hall with Harris Wednesday at 9:00 p.m. eastern right here on CNN.

[14:10:01]

Next in the CNN Newsroom, we're now seeing what is likely the very last footage of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar alive. New details on his final moments as Israel forces moved in straight ahead.

Plus, a massive document dump, nearly 2,000 pages of court filings former President Trump fought to keep secret are now public. What we're learning coming up.

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[14:07:00]

WHITFIELD: New today, the Middle East is still assessing the fallout from the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar. Both Israel and Hamas remain entrenched, and the fighting in Gaza continues. Earlier, rescuers searched for survivors after an Israeli strike hit a school in northern Gaza where people were sheltering. That's according to Gaza civil defense officials. We're also learning more about the capture of the Hamas leader.

CNN's Katie Polglase has the story. And a warning. Some of the footage you're about to see is disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

KATIE POLGLASE, CNN INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER: New video and satellite images are providing a clearer picture of Yahya Sinwar's final hours. CNN has geolocated the house shown in this August satellite to the Tel al-Sultan neighborhood in Rafah. In August, the area had less destruction. You can see houses still standing.

But during September, you can see a more tank tracks through the area as the destruction grows. By October 16, the morning before he died, IDF tanks were 250 meters away. You can see them here in this satellite image surrounding the place Sinwar spent his final moments. The IDF later said they were not aware he was in the area, but spotted a man fleeing from another house in the area and sent a drone to follow the fleeing man up to his new location.

This video is likely the last footage where we see Sinwar alive, staring into the drone's camera from the second floor of a rubble- strewn building. Back down on street-level. This IDF video shows a tank firing at the building where Sinwar is inside.

We don't have any images of what happens after that. But in the next images we do have Sinwar is dead. In this photo visibly taken in the same location, we can see Sinwar's body surrounded by IDF soldiers. But we noticed a change in some videos we assume were taken later that reveal some details about what happened to his body.

Take a closer look here at Sinwar's hand and watch. In this next video the watch is gone and one finger is missing. The pathologist who conducted the autopsy on his body told CNN his finger was taken to Israel to identify it was Sinwar. The IDF are yet to confirm this. You can also see a serious head injury in this photo -- we're blurring it because it's so graphic -- which would fit with what the pathologist said, that it was a gunshot wound the head that was the cause of his death. Again, the IDF are yet to confirm.

For now, these photos and videos are our main clues as to how this operation unfolded as the world waits to see the political consequences of his death.

Katie Polglase, CNN, London.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, Katie, thank you so much.

Asked to comment on the pathologist's findings, an IDF spokesperson told CNN there was an exchange of gunfire and that the combat ended with the firing of a tank shell. The IDF is still working to learn the full details the spokesperson said.

All right, let's get more on the situation in Gaza. Sam Rose is senior deputy director for the U.N. Relief and Works Agency Affairs in Gaza. He joins us now from inside Gaza. Good to see you. So western journalists are not able to get into Gaza right now. Describe some of the conditions that you and other UNRWA workers are experiencing and witnessing.

SAM ROSE, SENIOR DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF UNRWA AFFAIRS IN GAZA: Thanks for having me on. The conditions are simply atrocious and getting worse from day to day. I'm in central Gaza. And, you know, every 10 minutes there are loud explosions. There are bombardments. There are screams of people outside, drones constantly overhead periodically dropping artillery. It may stop for a few hours in the night, but it simply starts again at 4:00 or 5:00 in the morning.

And of course, ten kilometers further north we've got 400,000 people who are essentially under siege. They've received very little by way of food and water in the past three weeks, many of them literally encircled within Jabalya, including hospitals. And the stories that we're hearing, the reports that we're getting out of those hospitals, absolutely harrowing. And let's not forget, we're now into month 13 of this. So it's not like it started yesterday. People are continuing to go through so much.

WHITFIELD: Sam, I remember it was months ago when it was being said that so many were starving to death. So is more aid getting through now? I mean, obviously a lot of roads impassable, structures, I mean, it's a nightmare trying to get aid in. But what has transpired in the last couple of months? And if people were starving just two to three months ago, what is happening now?

[14:20:00]

ROSE: Yes, I mean, the reports, the famine assessments came out a few months ago saying that large swathes of the population here were on the verge of famine and everyone else was essentially in catastrophic food security, or food insecurity, rather. That prompted an increased push for aid to get in, for food to get, for medicines to get in. So we had a period when trucks were coming in, when aid was being distributed.

But then in the following the operation that started in Rafah way back in May, now, that essentially choked off the main supply route that we have aid getting in. So an update of that famine assessment and food security report has just come out. It was released on Thursday, and it paints the same picture, that people are on the verge, on the edge of famine. The worst edges of it were taken off what they said with this food day that was coming in in regular supply a few months ago. But that's dried up. There are no commercial supplies coming in. There's very little dietary diversity. Hygienic, unsanitary conditions are worsening as well, all of which attacks peoples immune system and makes them more liable to fall foul of infectious diseases or become malnourished.

And whether people are on the verge of famine or in famine, they're in absolutely desperate, desperate conditions. And this is completely manmade. The ability to fix this is through food trucks coming in, hundreds and hundreds. We've got three months of food supply waiting outside that could feed the entire Gaza Strip. Right now, it's just not able to get in through the south.

WHITFIELD: If only it could make its way in to help. All right, Sam Rose, all the best in your continued efforts. Thank you so much.

Still to come, are the presidential candidates doing enough to make a play for young voters in this final sprint to the election? We'll hear from college students in two critical battlegrounds on what it might take to win their support.

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[14:26:36]

WHITFIELD: All alright, 17 days to go, and the candidates are in key battleground states. Let's listen in to Vice President Kamala Harris Kamala Harris, who right now is in Detroit, Michigan.

(CHEERING)

KAMALA HARRIS, (D) VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And these are the things that we stand for as a community of people that understand the importance of caring and kindness, who understand the importance of having a leader who speaks truth and is not so self-consumed. You know, I keep talking about him. Somebody needs to just watch his rallies if you're not really sure how to vote, because he spends his full-time talking about himself and mythical characters, not talking about the working people, not talking about you, not talking about lifting you up.

And so as we spend these next 17 days, we're going to go vote today. We're going to remind people to vote. We're going to register folks to vote. We're going to email, text, phone call, knock on doors.

(CHEERING)

HARRIS: And we're going to remind people of what is at stake. And with that I want to thank incredible leaders from Michigan who are here. The Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist.

(CHEERING)

HARRIS: He always stands above the crowd.

WHITFIELD: All right, Kamala Harris there in Detroit, Michigan, a key battleground area. She's encouraging people to vote early, take advantage of early voting there. We heard from Lizzo earlier in an introduction to Kamala Harris who said she already voted. And then Kamala Harris will be making our way to Georgia where already early voting thing is underway. She'll be meeting up with singer Usher and a number of fans there.

All right, the battle for young voters has indeed intensified with a focus on Taylor Swift now. The Democratic National Committee is using the last stretch of Swift's Eras tour, Eras tour, rather, to roll out Taylor themed snapchat filters and ads that will direct Swifties to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris.

While former president Donald Trump has not bought a single ad on Snapchat due to an ongoing feud with parent company Snap, he is, though, using conservative influencers on Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok to try and win over young voters. So is it working?

Joining me right now is Amy Schafer, editor in chief for "The Daily Collegian" at Penn State, and Laney Crawley, editor in chief of "Daily Tar Heels" student newspaper at UNC Chapel Hill. Great to see you both, ladies.

LANEY CRAWLEY, EDITOR IN CHIEF, "DAILY TAR HEEL": Ji, thank you so much.

WHITFIELD: All right, so to editors of college newspapers in battleground states. Amy, you first. How enthusiastic our college age voters this go round?

AMY SCHAFER, EDITOR IN CHIEF, "THE DAILY COLLEGIAN": Yes, I would say we've seen across campus a lot of students really active, a lot of voter registration efforts going on across Penn State. Penn State is pretty much one-to-one split when it comes to liberal and conservative voices. So on both sides, we've really seen a lot of people getting out, getting students registered to vote, and really a lot of activism going on in Penn State's campus right now.

WHITFIELD: OK, and Laney, what's happening there at UNC?

CRAWLEY: Yes, I think I can say the same.

[14:30:00]

We have an explosion of just voter registration happening on campus right now. I think there's a really strong Democratic presence, and a lot of people are just encouraging people to go out there and vote. And we're really doing a lot to just encourage people to be involved in their local elections as well.

WHITFIELD: OK. And we just showed you all in Detroit, Kamala Harris is there talking to voters, encouraging people to vote early. And just ahead of Kamala Harris speaking, Lizzo was onstage, and Lizzo told everybody, you know, she's already voted there in Detroit, is excited about it, encouraging everyone to do the same. Then Harris will be heading to Atlanta. Usher will be there helping to get voters enthusiastic about heading to the polling stations.

So I wonder, Amy, this kind of celebrity excitement, does it help these candidates better appeal to the younger of voting electorate?

SCHAFER: Yes, I do think it plays a role, I think. Especially among younger generations, we're seeing people call on leaders and celebrities, whether or not they're politically active or maybe just in the entertainment sphere, people like Taylor Swift, Chappell Roan. We've seen students call on them to use their platform to encourage people to vote and to endorse a candidate.

So I think utilizing celebrities and social media as a way to encourage voter registration efforts and getting that younger voter base is definitely a good strategy.

WHITFIELD: And so Lanny, I remember hearing from Florida Representative Maxwell Frost earlier in the week, who said, particularly about a lot of younger voters, it may not necessarily be all about issues, but it really is about a vibe. It's about these voters feeling a particular vibe from either Trump or Kamala Harris. Talk to me more about what constitutes the vibe, what's the vibe that these young voters are looking for? How is that so influential in who they choose to be in the White House?

CRAWLEY: Yes, I mean, I think a lot of people who are young voters, this is their first presidential election that they're voting in. They haven't really had an opportunity to use their voice on that wider scale yet. So people are really looking for someone who cares, who they think cares about them and their voice, and as well as just someone who has a good moral high ground, someone who is connected with the people that they're going to be representing and really has that joy and cares about the people that they're going to be serving.

WHITFIELD: And I wonder Laney, where people are getting their information? I mean, they may not be right in front of the TV sets are on their phones watching some of these last-minute campaign stops for these candidates. But how are they getting their information? And what's most influential about the kind of information or dialog they're hearing, Laney?

CRAWLEY: Yes, I will say that I think newsletters is a really big thing, because it just comes in peoples email and that's just something that they see every day. They're checking constantly, for young voters. I also think social media is huge. We've seen Kamala Harris on TikTok and platforms that mostly Gen Z use. And I think that's really helpful in her campaign in just making an impact and making sure they're reaching people that don't necessarily have subscriptions, they can't afford subscriptions to different news sites and are checking the news every single day and things like that.

WHITFIELD: Amy, same question to you. How are young people getting their information? What is proving to be most influential for them?

SCHAFER: Yes, I agree. I think definitely social media is huge among younger generations. I think, especially in the news atmosphere, we've kind of seen this shift in the younger generation's mindset to more of a news finds me mentality, where they're expecting news about politics, entertainment, whatever, to find then through their social media algorithms. So I think especially when the presidential election, making sure that you're active on social media and going out on your social media platforms to try and engage with that younger voter audience is definitely key kind of across the board for any candidate looking to win that younger vote.

WHITFIELD: All right, Amy Shafer, Laney Crawley, you all are doing excellent, amazing work as editors of your college campus newspapers. I applaud you on that. Keep it up, and thank you so much for making the time for us, too.

SCHAFER: Thank you.

CRAWLEY: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Awesome.

All right, tonight, it's a brand new episode of "Have I Got News For You" with host Roy Wood jr. and team captains Amber Ruffin and Michael Ian Black. Guests this week will be comedian Alex Edelman and political commentator Sam Seder. Here's a preview of what so expect from tonight's show.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROY WOOD JR., COMEDIAN: Trump's opponent, Kamala Harris, sat down for an interview with FOX News with someone who was definitely not voting for her, and it got a little testy. Which exchange prompted this gesture from Bret Baier.

MICHAEL IAN BLACK, COMEDIAN: It's when she spoke.

(LAUGHTER)

AMBER RUFFIN: I think he was reaching for a high-five. He's just a well-meaning guy enjoying himself with his friend Kamala Harris.

(LAUGHTER)

[14:35:02]

BLACK: Well, there was the famous thing where he played the wrong clip of Trump saying something horrible, and then she said, with all due respect. And then he was like, I don't respect. Is that right?

WOOD: So anytime she spoke, the hand went up?

BLACK: Yes.

WOOD: Amber, say something, just show me.

BLACK: So Amber, oh --

(LAUGHTER)

BLACK: Oh, that is effective.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: OK, that was funny. Be sure to tune in, a new episode of "Have I Got News For You," airs tonight at 9:00 p.m. eastern right here on CNN.

All right, straight ahead, just weeks to go until the election and a trove of new evidence has just been released in the election interference case against former President Donald Trump. What the documents reveal coming up.

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[14:40:30]

WHITFIELD: Special Counsel Jack Smith on Friday released nearly 2,000 heavily redacted pages of documents in his 2020 election subversion case against former President Trump. They reveal snippets of the evidence Smith relied on to charge the former president. CNN's Katelyn Polantz details what they mean for the case.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN SENIOR CRIME AND JUSTICE REPORTER: The federal court in Washington on Friday released nearly 2,000 pages of evidence in the 2020 election case against Donald Trump. But much of it looks like this, blank or sealed, redacted. That's because this evidence is backing up what the Justice Department says a trial court must look at that would be shown to jurors at a trial to try and prove Donald Trump was conspiring against the federal government as a candidate for office, not as the president.

So at this point in time, we've heard the narrative from the Justice Department. They've written that and they've described what Trump was doing and the evidence that they've gathered. But now, as on Friday, the Justice Department has this evidence put into the court record in largely these blank pages, these sealed records.

There are some things in this evidence that we can see that we know the Justice Department wants to rely on for their case that's already been public, things like Donald Trump's tweets, speeches, and transcripts of speeches he was giving after the 2020 election, saying he didn't believe that he had lost, even though the Justice Department says he knew very clearly that he had.

There are other things like Mike Pence's book that is also in this court record that we can see publicly, photocopied pages of Pence's book where things that Trump was saying to him that he wrote about as when he was during the vice presidency that are highlighted by the prosecutors.

All of this is going to be looked at by the trial judge as she considers whether this case can move on to trial. It also is very likely to be looked at by appeals courts in the future, again, to determine whether Trump can go to trial or whether he has protection because of the presidency.

But his team has been digging in. They do not like the fact that any of this has been released in court at this time, especially before the election. They claim its election interference which the judge says it absolutely is not. It's litigation.

But they also are trying to build a record to say this judge has just not handled things appropriately. Whether that is going to be an argument that goes far in the appellate courts, we will have to see, but it's very likely this case is going to go back to the Supreme Court before a trial is even on the calendar.

Katelyn Polantz, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, for more perspective now on what all this means for the criminal case against Donald Trump, I want to bring in former U.S. attorney Harry Litman to discuss. Harry, great to see you. So as you saw when Katelyn held up the page, you can't really see very much, but there are a whole lot of pages of a lot of redacted information. So is the goal here to say, you can't see it, but look, there's a whole lot here?

HARRY LITMAN, FORMER DEPUTY ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL: Not exactly. So you're right, 95 percent of this is blank pages and it's frustrating to us. We don't have the juiciest things. We don't have grand jury transcripts. We don't have interviews with FBI. But there is a reason. That had already been demarcated as sensitive in the case.

And as Katelyn says, this is a very specific purpose. It is to try to anticipate anything that could be immune. So Jack Smith has to give some thought to, well, what happens in our rebuttal case at trial if we want to use some of this stuff to rebut their evidence. You don't want to introduce it and all of a sudden have everything stop and have to go up and down again. Smith and Chutkan share the goal of only one more trip up and down the federal courts. And it's for that reason that it's comprehensive.

But really, I think its a mistake to try to look for any glimmers of Smith's case. He's just putting everything in there that could matter in an immunity determination.

WHITFIELD: So you do see it, however, as a kind smart chess move?

LITMAN: Yes, almost a forced, however, chess move because she now has to call balls and strikes for dozens, hundreds of different possible pieces of evidence. And that includes evidence that could come in or could not come in depending on what, say, Trump does.

[14:45:02]

What it isn't is a kind of revelation, as the former brief was, of what's out there and what isn't out there. There's a little bit of new stuff, at least it was new to me, about the financing of January 6th. Otherwise, it's exactly what we already knew.

WHITFIELD: And it looks like, or it appears as though Judge Chutkan was prepared for this argument by the Trump team, that this is election interference by releasing this with so few days before Election Day, and she said, it's quite the opposite. Not revealing this would be -- or I guess would be election interference.

LITMAN: Interference, yes.

WHITFIELD: Yes. So help us --

LITMAN: She totally swatted it down. And she's been the most consistent of all the judges. She's saying, look, I'm wearing blinders here. I don't care about election interference. I'm going with a time clock that's really been bestowed on me kind of by the Supreme Court. So I don't think anyone is going to be able to take her to task for somehow putting a thumb on the scale.

WHITFIELD: Interesting. All right, Harry Litman, always great to see you. Thanks so much thanks.

LITMAN: Thanks, Fredricka. You too.

WHITFIELD: Coming up, this election could come down to just a trio of states -- Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania. How Democrats are working to fortify the so-called blue wall in an exceedingly tight race.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:51:01]

WHITFIELD: All right, we're on the final sprint to Election Day right here in America. And the next president could very well be decided by a trio of states -- Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania.

CNN's Jeff Zeleny has more on how Democrats are working to win the so- called blue wall in an incredibly tight race.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So much is at stake in this election.

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Democrats are grabbing a bullhorn and feverishly working to fortify their blue wall.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This election is going to come down to a handful of states, and that's why we're doing the blue wall bus tour. Michigan, Pennsylvania and, of course, the great state of Wisconsin are going to decide the outcome of this election.

ZELENY: Few battlegrounds hold as much critical symbolism as this trio of states where Democrats are still haunted by Donald Trump's 2016 victory.

Is the anxiety among Democrats justified?

GOV. GRETCHEN WHITMER (D), MICHIGAN: You know what, I would always want my side to be anxious, right? It means we're taking it seriously. It means we understand how high the stakes are.

ZELENY: Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer is making the case for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz, hitting the road with Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers.

GOV. TONY EVERS (D), WISCONSIN: We're going to need every single freaking vote we can get.

ZELENY: In hopes of helping Harris win over voters skeptical of Trump who are not yet sold on her. WHITMER: We've got a lot of folks who aren't quite sure what they're going to do yet. And that's why making a seat at the table for Romney Republicans or Bush Republicans. You don't need to believe 100 percent, and that's why we're showing up in red areas and blue areas alike.

EVERS: There's a whole bunch of people that don't start thinking about this until the last minute.

ZELENY: The November election will test whether the states will march in lockstep as they have all but twice over a half century, except 1988 when Michael Dukakis won Wisconsin and George H.W. Bush carried Michigan and Pennsylvania, and 1976, when Jimmy Carter won Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, and Gerald Ford carried his home state of Michigan.

GOV. TIM WALZ (D-MN), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: One or two people in every precinct in Wisconsin or Michigan or Pennsylvania will be the difference not just for the next four years, but for the next 40 years.

WHITMER: Let's go.

ZELENY: Democrats are seeking to convey urgency without panic.

Does the thought of his reelection scare you?

CHRISTINE FINK, WISCONSIN VOTER: Actually, it scares me quite a bit. I've actually applied for dual citizenship in Ireland if it happens. I'm thinking about moving if he gets in.

ZELENY: Trump accepted the GOP nomination in Wisconsin and has returned again and again.

BRIAN SCHIMMING, WISCONSIN GOP: It kind of feels like 2016.

ZELENY: You won in 2016.

SCHIMMING: We won in 2016.

ZELENY: Brian Schimming leads the Wisconsin Republican Party and believes a Trump comeback after falling short in 2020 could start here.

SCHIMMING: They are in trouble in that blue wall, and that blue wall is not built right now for them.

JILL BIDEN, FIRST LADY: It's great to be here in Michigan.

ZELENY: Democrats are stepping up their efforts in the final weeks, warning against third party candidates like Jill Stein.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Stein was key to Trump's 2016 wins in battleground states.

ZELENY: And imploring supporters to turn anxiety into action here in the blue wall, Harris's most favorable path to the presidency. WHITMER: Stop ringing your hands and roll up your sleeves. A couple of votes per precinct, which is what, you know, the election was eight years ago. That can be made up through hard work.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:59:04]

WHITFIELD: All right, hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me this Saturday. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

We begin on the campaign trail where we're seeing a whole lot of activity would just 17 days to go until Election Day. Just moments ago, Vice President Kamala Harris spoke to supporters in Detroit, encouraging them to get out and vote early. And at any moment now, she's actually leaving Michigan for the swing state of Georgia.

Former President Donald Trump is focusing on a different battleground state today, Pennsylvania. He holds a rally in just a few hours from now.

CNN's Eva McKend and Steve Contorno are all monitoring all the developments. Eva is on the Harris campaign trail in Atlanta. So the vice president just spoke in Detroit, soon making her way to Georgia. Will the message be similar or different?

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS REPORTER: Well, Fred, what we're hearing from the vice president is her increasingly using the former president's own words against him as she aims to characterize himself -- him as fundamentally unserious and unhinged.