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Harris Campaign Visits Georgia Black Churches, Encouraging Early Voting; Trump Visits McDonald's In Battleground Pennsylvania; Israeli Strikes Intensify On Lebanon's Border Towns; Georgia Officials Investigating "Catastrophic" Failure Of 3-Year-Old Gangway; Harris Pushes For Black Voter Support In Battleground State Of Georgia; Cubans Begin Third Day Without Power As Hurricane Nears. Aired 2-3p ET

Aired October 20, 2024 - 14:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:00:31]

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

All right. There are just now 16 days until election day and the campaigns of Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are hitting a feverish pace. Both candidates are aiming to boost support today in key battleground states where the margins are razor- thin.

Trump is set to hold a town hall in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in the next several hours, a day after holding a rally in Latrobe, where he hurled vulgar insults at the vice president.

And Harris, well she is hitting the trail in Georgia today, meeting with voters at churches, this morning as the state is already seeing record breaking early voting totals.

CNN's Eva McKend is at the service or was at the service earlier at Stone Crest, Georgia. So Eva, what was the vice president's message today?

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Well Fred, she told congregants that this was the time for them to choose what kind of country they wanted to live in.

Did they want to lean into the politics of chaos and division or support her in a candidacy that she has defined as about freedom, compassion, and justice. Take a listen to what she told the church.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: In this movement across our nation, what we do see are (INAUDIBLE) of deepening division spread (INAUDIBLE) spread, sow fears and cause chaos.

There are those who suggest that the measure of the strength of a leader is based on who you beat down instead of what we know, which is the true measure of this kind of a leader that's based on who you lift up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKEND: And this is all part of a "Soul to the Polls" effort, Fred. The idea being that after you meet voters where they are, in predominantly black churches, that after service they go vote.

And listen, this comes at a time when Democrats routinely have been accused of taking black voters for granted, being that they are the base of the party.

But listen, the campaign are not treating anything -- taking anything for granted. They have long described black voters as persuadable voters. I spoke to the pastor of this church, Jamal Bryant, about this.

DR. JAMAL BRYANT, SENIOR PASTOR, NEW BIRTH MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH: I think "I'm voting for the vice president because she's black" is immature. Is that a part of our responsibility to shift from personality to policy?

What is best for your black children in terms of their education? Will the books be banned? Will they be able to get scholarships? Will your son be able to get access to capital for entrepreneurship.

And so I think that we've got to go beyond symbolic elections to substantive voting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKEND: And Fred, as we speak, the vice president continuing to make her case here in battleground Georgia. She's in Jonesborough at another predominantly black church right now in an event with Stevie Wonder, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Eva McKend, thank you so much.

All right, now to Pennsylvania where former President Trump is expected to hold a town hall in the next few hours. CNN's Danny Freeman, is there live from Lancaster? So Danny, the Keystone State has been a key focus of the former president in the last, you know, days of the race. What is he saying to voters there today?

DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Keystone State certainly getting a lot of attention from both campaigns, but certainly from the Trump campaign this weekend, especially right now, where former President Trump is actually in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, crucial purple area of the commonwealth at a McDonald's.

He's there right now and we have a little bit of footage to show you of the former president actually going up to a fryer and frying up some fries. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Twirl it slowly (INAUDIBLE).

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Ok. Right there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now, we've (INAUDIBLE) the timer so when the timer's up. Again, take the timer and take it out real slowly, give it a little shake or they'll be stuck together. Then lower it back into the oil.

[14:04:54]

TRUMP: Ok.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Probably this will fry this morning. There we go.

Lift it out of the oil and then you can serve it. (INAUDIBLE) take it slowly back into the oil.

And we got another one going on. So, set your timer right here (INAUDIBLE). There you go. And then our last one's going to go. And then you can do more fries.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: You can see right there perhaps a bit of unconventional retail politics going on in Pennsylvania right now. Former President Donald Trump wearing an apron, working that fry machine.

Now, as I understand it, you see images on your screen of him actually working the drive-through. We understand that Secret Service screened a number of the drivers beforehand that would be coming in for the drive-through to be served by former President Donald Trump.

And the reason that the former president is at the stop is because he's trying to challenge that Vice President Kamala Harris, who has said multiple times that she is a younger person, as a college student, worked at McDonald's former President Trump without evidence has said that that is not true.

The Harris campaign not directly responding to this stop today, but saying that Harris worked at a McDonald's in Alameda, California in 1983 during the summer when she was still a student at Howard University.

So again, just a bit of stunning video right there to kick off the day. But that's not the only visit that former President Donald Trump has had in Pennsylvania this whole weekend.

Yesterday, he was in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. That's on the western part of the state. It was at times a rambling speech. It was also at times a vulgar speech.

Take a listen to how he decided to define Vice President Harris' experience in the Biden administration.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) TRUMP: You have to tell Kamala Harris that you've had enough, that you just can't take it anymore, we can't stand you. You're a (EXPLETIVE DELETED) vice president. The worst, you're the worst vice president.

Kamala, you're fired. Get the hell out. You're fired. Get out of here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FREEMAN: Now Fred, make no mistake, The former president did talk about inflation, immigration, bringing jobs back to America. But it was truly a scattered speech as we've come to expect from the former president of the past few weeks and final stops of this campaign.

And the challenge is for that campaign, is that a senior adviser tells CNN that this trip to Pennsylvania really is the beginning of that closing argument for former President Trump.

So well see if he is able to stay perhaps a little bit more on message when he joins us here in Lancaster later tonight. In between the McDonald's event and this event in Lancaster, he is also expected to stop at a black barbershop in Philadelphia to try and hold a roundtable in rally some black supporters in that city.

Fred, I'll toss it back to you.

WHITFIELD: All right.

Danny Freeman, keep us posted on all of -- all of the journeys there in Pennsylvania.

So you can say it's been a rather eyebrow-raising kind of week on the campaign trail for the former president, one that Democrats say shows Trump is becoming increasingly unhinged.

Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: This is a guy that was old man, when he took showers with the other pros, they came out of there. They said, oh my God, that's unbelievable.

We can't stand you. You're a sick vice president. The worst -- you're the worst vice president.

Kamala, you're fired. Get the hell out. You're fired. Get out of here.

White Dudes for Harris, anybody know -- I have some of you here, white dudes (INAUDIBLE).

But I'm not worried about them at all because their wives and their wives' lovers are all voting for me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You waited so long to take action while your supporters were attacking the Capitol. TRUMP: I said peacefully and patriotically, nothing done wrong at all,

nothing done wrong. And action was taken, strong action. Ashley Babbitt was killed, nobody was killed.

There were no guns down there. We didn't have guns. The others had guns.

This was a tiny percentage of the overall which nobody sees and nobody -- nobody shows. But that was a day of love from the standpoint of the media.

I want to talk about IVF. I'm the father --

(CROSSTALKING)

TRUMP: -- I'm the father of IVF.

They should be allowed to put those bad votes and illegal votes back in and let the people vote. so I haven't -- I haven't gotten, I haven't gotten over that. A lot of people have seen that. They can't even believe it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The question is about Google President Trump.

[14:09:55]

TRUMP: So play YMCA. Go ahead. Let's go. Nice and loud.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Here we go, everybody.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. So it was interesting week, shall we say. And that last bit there a moment where Trump danced on stage for half an hour at what was supposed to be a town hall event.

And with the stakes so high in this election, today Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson came on CNN's "STATE OF THE UNION" with Jake Tapper and he was asked to address how he felt Trump has been handling these last few days of the election. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: Is this really the closing message you want voters to hear from Donald Trump? Stories about Arnold Palmer's penis?

REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: Well listen, I think that the headline that I read about the rally in Pennsylvania yesterday was the big question and it's the one that Kamala Harris has not been able or willing to answer. And that is, are you better off now than you were under the Trump administration four years ago?

And no one can answer that question with a yes. I mean, no one. And that's why Kamala Harris herself avoids the question.

Look, I've been traveling the country nonstop, Jake. I've been in over 230 cities and 40 states right now. And I'm spending these final closing weeks in the swing states, in blue states, in toss up districts for the House.

I'm absolutely convinced, there's an energy out there right now. I'm convinced that we're going to win the White House, the Senate and the House. And we're going to have a very aggressive agenda to get the economy going again, to help everyone.

Look, everywhere I go, Jake, everybody has the same concerns. They're fed up and they're fired up about the cost of living that's unaffordable now, and the rising crime rates everywhere, and the weakness on the world stage, and the wide-open border.

And they know that Kamala Harris is responsible for those things. And they know that President Trump is offering alternatives. So put the rhetoric aside, look at the record of these two candidates.

This shouldn't be about personalities. It should be about policy. And I think people are looking at that seriously and that's why I'm convinced we're going to win.

TAPPER: I'm sure that you think that a policy debate would be better than a personality debate. But if President Biden had gone on stage and spoke about the size of a pro-golfer's penis. I think you would be on this show right now saying you were shocked and appalled and you would suggest it was evidence of his cognitive decline.

I wonder how Trump's remarks, not just the one about Arnold Palmer on his quote, "manhood", but everything we've heard from Trump this week, how it fits in with the analysis that "The New York Times" offered a few days ago. They looked at his speeches from 2015 and 2016 and looked at his speeches today and said, quote, "With the passage of time, the 78-year-old former president's speeches have grown darker, harsher, longer, angrier, less focused, more profane, and increasingly fixated on the past.

I know you want to talk about policy and I respect that, but the reason that Donald Trump is not up 10 points is because of comments like that one where people do have concerns about his fitness, his acuity, and his stability.

Why is he talking about Arnold Palmer's penis in front of Pennsylvania voters.

JOHNSON: Jake, you seem to like that line a lot. Let me tell you that --

(CROSSTALKING)

JOHNSON: -- Donald Trump is doing rallies non-stop around the country.

TAPPER: Excuse me -- let me just say something. Let me just something.

JOHNSON: Ok. All right.

TAPPER: I don't want to be talking about that? Donald Trump is out there saying it. It is --

JOHNSON: But you continue to. Let's talk about --

TAPPER: -- because you won't address it.

JOHNSON: Wait a minute. Hold on.

TAPPER: You won't address it. He is out there talking about --

JOHNSON: No, I'll address it. Let me answer.

TAPPER: Ok. Go ahead.

JOHNSON: Ok. Don't say it again. We don't have to say it. I get it. There -- there's lines in a rally -- when President Trump is at a rally, sometimes he'll speak for two straight hours.

You're questioning his stamina, his mental acuity clearly, Joe Biden couldn't do that for five minutes. That's how you started this segment.

You said, what if Biden was in a rally like that? He couldn't fill the room. Donald Trump does. You know why? Because they see him as a change agent and they understand he has a record of performance.

In his first administration, we had the greatest economy in the history of the world, Jake. Not just the U.S. Everybody's wages were going up. Everybody had more jobs available to them. The pathway out of poverty was widened for more people.

And that's what the American people are looking at.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So much more to come in these last couple of weeks on the campaign trail. Don't miss this, the next big event, at least on CNN, right when Vice President Kamala Harris joins this network for a town hall live from Philadelphia moderated by Anderson Cooper.

That's Wednesday night, 9:00 only on CNN and streaming on Max.

All right. As Israel ramps up its airstrikes in southern Lebanon against Iran-backed Hezbollah targets, an investigation is underway to find out who leaked highly classified intel on Israel's plans to retaliate against Iran.

[14:14:51]

WHITFIELD: Also ahead, a celebration of the Gullah-Geechee community turned tragic after several people were killed when a ferry dock collapsed. What we know about the incident, next.

And Cuba plunged into darkness again. millions of people without power for a third day in a row as a hurricane is barreling towards the island.

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[14:19:51]

WHITFIELD: All right. New details today in a devastating strike in northern Gaza. Health officials there say at least 87 people were killed and 40 injured in an Israeli airstrike.

The United Nations warning the nightmare in Gaza is intensifying, quoting them, as Israel accelerates its offensive.

And in Lebanon, the army says three of its soldiers were killed in one of several Israeli airstrikes near the border. Lebanon's army is not part of the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, which have been exchanging intense fire across the border.

The IDF says at least 160 rockets were fired into northern Israel this weekend.

CNN's Kaitlan Collins is in Tel Aviv. Kaitlan, good to see you.

So what are we learning about the strikes in Gaza?

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Well I think what this shows Fred is that despite hopes that Yahya Sinwar's death would be a turning point for the fighting that we've been seeing, that's just -- it's just not happening. I mean, we've continued to see Israel strike targets in Gaza, which they say are Hamas terrorist strongholds.

Obviously, Gaza officials have been talking about the scores of people killed as a result of those strikes. And you can see the video from your own eyes as a result of what those strikes have looked like.

And also we've seen a lot of action still happening Lebanon today. And the IDF, I should note, Fred has just announced some breaking news tonight that they are going to be striking Hezbollah-linked financial institutions across Lebanon tonight.

So that is something that we're expecting. They say that those will be targeted strikes, but we've seen the fire going back and forth with Hezbollah also firing and trying to hit at least one city in Israel, some military bases as well in the last 24 hours or so.

So this fighting is very much still going on both in the south and in the north, despite these hopes that there would be maybe a turning point here.

You heard that from President Biden just the other day, hoping that there could at least be maybe a ceasefire in Lebanon. That still obviously has not happened.

And I should note that right now as were speaking, Prime Minister Netanyahu here in Tel Aviv with his security cabinet, has been meeting. Whether or not any other decisions come out of that, we wait to see.

But we do know -- we do expect Israeli strikes against Hezbollah- linked institutions in Lebanon in the coming hours.

WHITFIELD: And Kaitlan, have a listen to what Donald Trump is saying about his conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: He's had very little cooperation from the White House, as you know. They don't -- they didn't want him to do anything and they would not be in a good position they're in right now if they listened to the White House, which I guess would be a combination of Kamala and Joe.

They're not happy about that either, I will tell you. Israel's not happy --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So Kaitlan, is there a response from Israel right now.

COLLINS: Well, I should note we've heard from Trump yesterday talking about this conversation he had with Netanyahu at a rally where he said that essentially Netanyahu communicated to him that he wasn't listening to President Biden because had they been listening to what the U.S. had been saying, warnings month ago not to go into Rafah, they wouldn't be in the position therein, obviously referencing Yahya Sinwar's death.

He was killed as part of a routine patrol when he was in Rafah, as we know in the last several days, a big development happening here.

But listening to Trump say that, you know, what -- what Netanyahu has been advised by President Biden in recent days has been in this response to Iran's attack on Israel, which we know is expected to happen soon, they're saying don't go after the nuclear facilities, don't go after the oil and gas facilities because the White House is concerned it's going to only escalate this war further if they do that. And then Iran will respond to Israel and it will continue.

That is obviously some nuance there. They're not saying they shouldn't respond at all, but to hear Trump say that they're not helping at all, I should note that the White House has just announced it's sending a very sophisticated missile defense system, the THAAD system to Israel. Actually they've requested a second one now. That comes with 100 U.S. troops to operate it.

So certainly the idea that the U.S. is not supporting Israel here, not helping them in this situation is just not fully accurate.

WHITFIELD: And then let me ask you too about a very dramatic protest in Hostages' Square in Tel Aviv that involve someone that you actually spoke with yesterday.

COLLINS: Yes. Hostage Square for those who don't know has essentially been a gathering place for the families of the hostages ever since October 7th.

They meet there almost every single Saturday. We were down there yesterday. It's actually the first time they'd been there since Sinwar's death and he was the mastermind behind that October 7th attack.

And what you're seeing here are women. This is Maya that you're looking at right now. They are friends of Naama Levy. People will remember Naama Levy because she was one of the most searing images on October 7, where she was being dragged by her hair, her hands were zip tied, into Gaza. Her gray sweatpants were bloodied, signs of sexual abuse.

And it was just a moment that no one could forget. These are her friends and her family who were gathered there paying tribute to what she looked like when she was kidnapped into Gaza.

[14:24:46]

COLLINS: She is still believed to be being held there with the other hostages that are being held as well. She was an observer in the Israel Defense Forces.

Those were a lot of women who were in charge of essentially watching the security cameras leading up to that. They'd actually sounded the alarm saying that Hamas was preparing for some kind of attack. Their warnings went unheeded, a lot of them have argued. Many of them were killed that day.

But they were paying tribute to her and I actually spoke to Naama's father, Yoni, while we were down there just about what he hopes this moment with Sinwar's death could mean for her.

Listen to some of what her father had to say to me.

We may not have that sound bite but I was speaking to him. You can see the women now here, they are gathered at this makeshift tunnel and hostage square because they essentially want people to understand what a lot of these hostages are living through.

I stood in that tunnel myself. It was hot, it's cramped, it's dark, and obviously, you know, that's just a small slice of what the hostages have been through over a year now that they've been held inside Gaza. Yoni's father was telling me -- Yoni, Naama's father was telling me though that he hoped this moment could be one of opportunity, that Prime Minister Netanyahu would take this and try to use this leverage to get the hostages home. He didn't care if it meant letting Palestinian prisoners be released.

Really the guidelines here, he was saying, this is the opportunity to take this because what's going to change in three months, what's going to change in six months, what's going to change in six months.

He was a very frustrated father who is dealt such heartache, seeing that last image of his daughter being kidnapped into Gaza.

And it was just one hostage family that was saying that we saw a lot of them marching in the streets of Tel Aviv last night, wanting the Israeli officials to try to use this moment to have a ceasefire, to have these hostages be released so they can finally get their loved ones home, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Yes. This has been agonizing for so many.

Kaitlan Collins in Tel Aviv, thank you so much.

Let's bring in now Mark Esper. He is a CNN global affairs analyst and former secretary of Defense in the Trump administration. He serves on the board as a strategic advisor for a handful of aerospace and defense-related companies right now. Great to see you, Secretary.

So you know, I wonder before I ask you about your ideas about Israel's approach here, I mean you know, just listening to Kaitlan and her conversations with people who are still heartbroken, agonizing over whether there will ever be the release of their loved ones who are being held hostage in Gaza since that conflict, October 7th.

In your view, should they feel any more confident now that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar has been killed?

MARK ESPER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: It was a very powerful report by Kaitlan and the imagery as well and what's going on in Hostage Square is just very, you know, very personal to so many people.

We've got to keep in mind of the 101 hostages, it's believed that only two-thirds or so are alive. So you have Hamas, this brutal terrorist organization that's keeping bodies simply for leverage in a negotiation.

But to your question, Fredricka, should they have hope? I think so, but we won't know until we understand who Hamas appoints has its new political leader.

Of course, as you know, a couple of months ago, a few months ago, Ismail Haniyeh was killed in Tehran by the IDF and he was replaced by Yahya Sinwar, who then wore two hats. One, the political leader, and secondly, the military leader in Gaza.

And he was a hardliner and he really was willing to sacrifice how many innocent Palestinians it took to get what he wanted. So the question now, who will step into that role or will it be his brother who is left surviving in Gaza playing both?

And then depending on who that is, but somebody from outside Gaza, they may be more moderates, so-called moderate for Hamas, and be willing to negotiate a deal that gives back the hostages.

We'll see.

WHITFIELD: Benjamin Netanyahu had said now following Hamas leader Sinwar's killing, now saying that the conflict will continue and the objective is to win the release of hostages.

But one has to wonder whether the negotiations have also fallen apart, or gone by the wayside as a result of Sinwar's death. Who will be part of the negotiations at all? ESPER: Well, they fell apart as part of Sinwar's life. You know, for

the past several weeks now, of course, he was not budging on his demands nor was Israel. So that's why I say it depends on who takes over political leadership of Hamas. That will tell us a little bit about whether there is a window opening back up for a negotiation.

But I would think at this point Israel has achieved many of its military objectives. I mean at last count, 22 of 24 militia battalions were killed. The leadership was decimated to now include Yahya Sinwar.

And of course they've been able to go underground and collapse the tunnels and secure the southern border. So the question is what's next in the negotiation.

[14:29:48]

ESPER: And I think an important part here, Fredricka is Bibi Netanyahu has yet to identify what the political endgame is. Does Israel want to occupy Gaza for years and govern it and police it so forth and so on? Many in his right-wing coalition do.

Or does he want to bring in some type of pan-Arab force or Arab- European forced to do those things, policing and governing and so forth and so on.

And then ultimately, does he reinforce a two-state solution we need to see that next, because that'll tell us what -- what a negotiation looks like and what it leads to as we get into those details.

WHITFIELD: And then meantime, the U.S. is now investigating the leak of highly classified intelligence about Israel's planned response against Iran. So, how does something like that classified information get leaked?

ESPER: Yeah, look, it's terrible. It happened on my watch. I had to initiate an investigation that happened several times. It happened on my predecessors watch. In this case, we don't know whether it was a hack or a leak. I think we are assuming it was a leak, in which case I think those need to be held accountable because you're concerned is always on leaks, is, you know, first of all, what's the risk to the force, the risk to the mission? Those are the two big things you think about.

And in this case, we're asking the same of Israel. I -- from what I've seen and read and heard, it doesn't seem to be anything too explosive. I mean, we know, of course, Israel's rehearsing, we know, of course, it will probably be airstrikes, but I don't know what else is compromised.

And I think a big part of the investigation right now is to find out what else was taken and what else may be out there that could compromise the Israelis, U.S. security, allied security, you name it.

WHITFIELD: All right. Secretary Mark Esper, thanks so much. Great to see you.

ESPER: Thanks, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Officials are investigating a dock gangway collapse in Georgia that killed at least seven people at a cultural festival on Sapelo Island. What investigators are saying may have caused the incident next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:36:03]

WHITFIELD: Officials in Georgia are working to figure out what caused a ferry dock gangway to collapse, leaving at least seven people dead. The collapse happened on Sapelo Island off the Georgia coast during a celebration of the islands of Gullah-Geechee culture. Members of the community pulling together to assist first responders after for the tragic collapse.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JERALD J. THOMAS, PASTOR, ELM GROVE BAPTIST CHURCH: They came together quickly and they began to send a necessary things that was needed in order to make the people stay while they were going through this tragic time, more bearable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Absolutely tragic.

Rafael Romo is joining us now with more details on which direction does this investigation go?

Is it an issue of, you know, that gangway being compromised by erosion or something else?

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: There are many things that officials are looking at but it seems like structural integrity may be the main focus for the time being, although still too early to tell with certainty what happened there and officials believe the cause of the gangway collapse could have been with the commission of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. Described as catastrophic failure of the structure, the gangway collapse shortly before 40 in the afternoon noon on Saturday as crowds gathered on Sapelo Island, are celebration of the Gullah-Geechee community of Black slave descendants.

According to Walter Rabon, the commissioner of the Georgian Department of Natural Resources, the gangway -- gangway that led from the dock to the fairy collapse when 40 people were on it, 20 of those people ended up in the water and tragically seven died, including Charles Houston, who served as chaplain for the DNR, was the city of Planes, a volunteer firefighter and also previously worked with the Georgia Bureau of Investigations.

Officials also said there are three other people in critical condition. Commissioner Raven said they are investigating why the gangway collapsed. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WALTER RABON, COMMISSIONER, GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES: The initial findings of our investigation at this point show a catastrophic failure of the gangway house to collapse. I can assure you that the Department of Natural Resources Critical Incident Reconstruction Team will be working tirelessly in conjunction with engineers and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to gather and preserve evidence in interviewing witnesses.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMO: Raven also said less than 100 people a day use the gangway compared to 700 who were on the island on Saturday. President Biden reacted to the news saying that he and the first lady are heartbroken to learn about the ferry dock walkway collapsed on Georgia's Sapelo Island, what should have been a joyous celebration of Gullah-Geechee culture and history instead turned into tragedy and devastation, the president said.

Sapelo Island, as many people know, is a barrier island off the coast of Georgia, accessible only by boat. It's home to about 70 full-time residents and most of them are descendants from slaves who worked on plantations.

But what a sad thing to happen, especially when people were celebrating such an important annual event. It's just so sad.

WHITFIELD: It's sure it is.

All right. Well, let us know what the conclusion of the investigation -- what -- why was this possibly structurally compromised?

Appreciate it. Rafael Romo, appreciate it.

WHITFIELD: All right. Vice President Kamala Harris, she is in battleground Georgia, making her closing pitch to Black voters as early voting continues. Is her message resonating with men in that voting bloc? We'll discuss, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The vice president is campaigning in the battleground state of Georgia, again today, where she told the congregation at a large Black church in suburban Atlanta this morning that the values of compassion and respect should be lived, not just preached this is her fifth visit to the peach state as part of a Harris campaign push especially for the support from Black voters.

Joining me right now is Justin Carter, the host and investigative reporter for "The Shade Room".

Good to see you, Justin. Glad you could be here.

JUSTIN CARTER, HOST AND INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER, THE SHADE ROOM: Thank you for having me, Fred. WHITFIELD: Wonderful.

Well, in addition to, you know, Kamala Harris being here in Georgia, Democratic Maryland Governor Wes Moore, you know, was on "Fox News Sunday" this morning and had this to say about what Black voters are thinking and feeling ahead of this election?

[14:45:04]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. WES MOORE (D), MARYLAND: There was a natural skepticism that I think a lot of Black voters have and not necessarily about the vice president and not about a Democratic Party. It's about the pace of progress in America, is that the pace of progress in America has not been even, and it has not been fair and that's why I think this past week for the opportunity agenda for Black men and that the vice present released was so important because it is detailed policy positions.

You have to be able to go and make your case. You have to be able to go and make your argument.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The pace of, progress in America is that the kind of message that is resonating that voters feel like they're hearing from Kamala Harris.

CARTER: Yeah. And that is the thing, that's the million dollar question, right, and I feel like we're in two different spaces with these -- these campaigns. On one hand, you have the vice president right now. She's really targeting Black voters.

And then on the other hand, you have Donald Trump, who is broadening his spectrum when it comes to touching on different topics, women, immigration, we saw that this past week. So, yes, the big question is, is this effective?

And, of course, you're seeing Vice President Harris using thing big political figures like President Obama, who's been on the campaign trail campaigning for the vice president as well.

WHITFIELD: Should be together this week, in fact.

CARTER: There'll be together this week as well.

So, yes, is the rhetoric from president -- President Obama, is it sticking for Black voters, specifically Black men, you know, over the course of the last few weeks? That's something that we've kind of dove into a little bit.

WHITFIELD: Yeah, because you recently had a conversation with Kamala Harris and it came right after Obama said, you know, men have to kind of get around -- I'm paraphrasing -- have to get over the macho thing. So I wonder, do you feel like she has shifted her messaging, tried to craft it to reach some of the electorate that Obama said shed may not be connecting with it. Is she changing minds?

CARTER: Yeah. And so, I pressed her on that. I said, is what you're doing is what the rhetoric from President Obama doing? Is that resonating or is that putting a bad taste in our mouth?

And she said right now, Justin, you know, I have not had this experience where it feels like Black men are not supporting me as much as they did and, you know, say, Hillary Clinton's campaign or even President Biden's campaign.

But she said, that is not my experience. My experience as I'm out in the field is making sure that people hear me, making sure that people hear my economic plans and she talked to me literally a week ago today, I was sitting with her now I am sitting with you, which is insane. So, think about it.

WHITFIELD: Not so insane that you're sitting with me.

CARTER: I know.

WHITFIELD: I'm pretty accessible. This is great. I'm glad you're here. This is wonderful. And you live here in Georgia.

CARTER: I do.

WHITFIELD: And so, we are looking at in Georgia, an incredible, an impressive of voter turnout in this early voting. Even Senator Rafael Warnock said today, you know, big turnout does not necessarily mean that there is an absence of voter suppression and this, despite, you know, the Georgia superior court judge throwing out recent Georgia election board changes that might have delayed the certification of some of the votes. Harris is now visiting the state for the fifth time. So, clearly, Georgia is highly important.

Do you believe that she and her camp are worried about winning Georgia, which was narrowly won by Biden in 2020? That explains her visit here. Or do you think instead, it's showing a level of confidence in the way in which she is reading voter -- reaching voters?

CARTER: Yeah, I don't think there's any worry amongst the Harris campaign. I really think for them the strategy is moving the needle forward and showing what she can do. And really being focused on that, what her opportunity plan is for specifically Black voters, even here in Georgia, you know, she's been Atlanta, so much, you know this.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

CARTER: And I think that is what overall the strategy is moving forward. She says she told me last week she said, Justin, I want to make sure that voters know where I stand on the issues, just because I'm a Black woman does not mean that I have earned all Black votes. And that is something that I really want to drive home.

The polls can say whatever they want, but I want people to understand that just because I'm a Black woman does not mean that I automatically get that vote. I think, too, you're seeing it with millennials, right? That is who we serve at "The Shade Room". Millennials, black millennials, even the younger generation.

WHITFIELD: And this is a really important voting bloc.

CARTER: Yeah.

WHITFIELD: You know? You heard Maxwell Frost earlier in the week who said, you know, the younger of voters, they're looking for a vibe.

CARTER: Yes.

WHITFIELD: They may not be as looking and parsing out the policy promises, but instead they're -- they're looking for vibe. Do you think these two candidates are aware of that, and they're making adjustments accordingly?

CARTER: You hit it on the head. They're looking for vibe. We are not our grandmothers, our grandfathers. We are not our older -- we're not even our parents.

We are looking for a candidate. We're not going to be grandfathered into being Democrats just because we're Black.

[14:50:04]

That's what I'm seeing a lot in our comments and the feedback we're getting. You know, we get so many -- we get billions of impressions on "The Shade Room" and it's insane to see and sift through all the comments. But I think that is the common denominator is. We're going to make a decision regardless of what everybody else says, what our parents voted for years and years ago. We're going to make educated -- educated votes and moving forward.

WHITFIELD: Very good. The vibe is good here, Justin.

CARTER: It's good here on this yellow couch.

WHITFIELD: Yeah, it should with you being here.

CARTER: Of course.

WHITFIELD: Justin Carter, good to see you. Thank you so much.

CARTER: Thank you. You, too.

(LAUGHTER)

WHITFIELD: All right. We'll be right back.

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[14:55:17]

WHITFIELD: An island-wide blackout in Cuba has left millions without power for the third day in a row. And now with Hurricane Oscar headed their way, conditions could get worse. The national power grid initially collapsed Friday when a major power plants failed, the grid collapsed two more times on Saturday after failed attempts to restore power.

CNN's Patrick Oppmann is joining us in Havana there.

Patrick, tell us what it's been like for people now, three days?

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You know, it's tough because of course it becomes a domino effect. You don't have water to bathe or, you know, cook with? You can really very warm. It's your sleeping outside and there's a lot of dengue this time of year, mosquito-borne illnesses. You know, people have been writing me because they know I have a generator which thankfully is working again after about a day where it didn't to store medicines in my fridge because, you know, people medicines said that they need to keep cold.

Those kinds of issues it reminds me a little bit of a big New Orleans after Katrina, where all of a sudden, the problem is just beginning to add up and start to wonder if you're getting into kind of a dangerous situation for people because three days is a long time. Right now, officials say that about 10 percent center of the city of Havana, where I am at the moment, have power about 200,000 people.

But we saw yesterday, I briefly had powerful about an hour and they came crashing down, you know what it came back on people in my street were yelling like, you know, the favorite football team had just scored a goal or something. And, you know, you felt normal for the briefest amount of time, and then it goes away.

And so, you know, for those of us who have small kids, you know, keeping them entertained the Cuban schools will not be open tomorrow, we've just heard as well. So it just becomes a series of frustrations, some which are very, very minor, like you keep putting the light switch and the lights don't come on, to so which are quite a big deal, when your food begins to spoil? Or you can't keep medicine cold, or you have elderly parents and they're waiting outside good lines that we've seen, and for hours and hours and don't get in food, you know, and people are running low on water.

So it is concerning. Officials say they're working around the clock, but we are not seeing the results now to give us a lot of hope.

WHITFIELD: Yeah, the cascading effect. Patrick Oppmann in Havana. Thank you so much.

We'll be right back.

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