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Harris: Trump is a Fascist; Trump Touts Support for Israel; Turkey: Early Assessment Suggests PKK Behind Attack; Kamala Harris Town Hall in Battleground Pennsylvania; Devastation in Northern Gaza Amid Israeli Offensive. Aired 4-4:30a ET
Aired October 24, 2024 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[04:00:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAMALA HARRIS (D), VICE PRESIDENT OF THE U.S., 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I believe that Donald Trump is dangerous.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Do you think Donald Trump is a fascist?
HARRIS: Yes, I do. Yes, I do.
DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT, 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Christians are not tremendous voters in terms of percentage. If they were, we'd never lose an election. Christians are so supportive of Israel. Nobody's done what I've done for Israel.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why would Kim Jong Un be sending troops to Russia and to Ukraine? Reports of 70 shipments of shells, missiles, and anti- tank rockets since August 2023.
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: This is the first step to a world war.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: Live from London, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Max Foster and Christina Macfarlane.
MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, a warm welcome to our viewers joining us from the United States and around the world. I'm Max Foster.
CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Christina Macfarlane. It's Thursday, October 24th, 9 a.m. here in London, 4 a.m. in the swing state of Pennsylvania, where Kamala Harris earlier took questions from undecided voters in a CNN town hall. Harris talked about some of her policy plans and repeated her warning that a second Trump presidency would be dangerous for the country.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: Do you think Donald Trump is a fascist?
HARRIS: Yes, I do. Yes, I do. I believe Donald Trump is a danger to the well-being and security of America.
Our country deserves to have a president of the United States who is not afraid of good ideas and does not stand on pride. I'm never going to shy away from good ideas. And I'm not going to feel the need to have pride associate with a position that I've taken when the important thing is to build consensus to fix problems. I believe in fixing problems.
We cannot, and I will not, raise taxes on anyone making less than $400,000 a year. But we do need to take seriously the system that benefits the richest and does not help out working middle-class Americans.
I come from the middle class, and I believe that the middle class needs tax breaks to be able to actually not just get by, but get ahead.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: With 12 days to go before the election day, a new national poll from the Wall Street Journal shows there is still no clear leader in the presidential race. The latest numbers give Trump a slight edge over Harris, but it's within the poll's margin of error.
Turkey has carried out retaliatory strikes in northern Iraq and Syria following an attack near Ankara, which was on Wednesday. Turkey's defense minister says it struck more than 30 of what it called terrorist targets in the region, adding that a, quote, large number of terrorists were neutralized. Kurdish officials reported heavy shelling and airstrikes in at least four cities.
MACFARLANE: Well, this video from northern Syria shows a series of explosions overnight. Kurdish officials say at least two people were killed and six others wounded in the shelling. The Turkish government says it believes the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, is responsible for the attack in Ankara.
FOSTER: The strikes came hours after an explosion and gunfire ripped through the headquarters of the state-owned Turkish Aerospace Industries. That's near Ankara.
MACFARLANE: The video you're watching shows the moment armed attackers launched the assault. The interior minister says at least five people were killed and 22 injured.
FOSTER: Video verified by CNN shows at least two attackers carrying guns and wearing backpacks approaching the entrance of the facility there. No group is claiming responsibility for the attack. Authorities, Turkish authorities, are working to identify those involved, but officials have made an initial assessment.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALI YERLIKAYA TURKISH INTERIOR MINISTER (through translator): When compared to previous attacks, we have a strong opinion that it's the PKK terrorist organization, but it will become certain once the identities of the attackers are determined, which we'll announce with you to the public.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MACFARLANE: Now Salma Abdelaziz is following all the developments from London and has this report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Turkey is reeling after an attack on an aerospace company just on the outskirts of Ankara, the capital. We do have social media video to show you of the moments of this attack. It's been geolocated and verified by CNN.
And in this video, you can see a huge explosion. You can hear the sound of it as well. And then you can see that plume of smoke going up in the air.
[04:05:04]
And then an individual appears who is carrying or looks to be carrying a weapon. You can hear the sound of gunfire ringing out. Now, images like this are absolutely going to send shockwaves across Turkey.
It is no stranger to terror attacks, but it hasn't seen one like this in recent years. Authorities say that two assailants, two attackers, were killed, a man and a woman, and that a judicial investigation is underway to identify those who are behind this attack.
Now, the location is extremely significant. This aerospace firm is state-owned. It also provides military supplies, drones, airplanes, to Turkey's military. One analyst described it as the crown jewel of Turkey's defense industry.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has issued his condolences to those who were killed and said the attack targeted the survival of the country and the peace of our nation.
Salma Abdelaziz, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: Much more on CNN's town hall. Kamala Harris, including how her presidency would be different from the Biden one. Details just ahead.
MACFARLANE: Plus, Trump lashes out at his former chief of staff for calling him a fascist. We'll have the latest on the name-calling attacks.
FOSTER: And later, King Charles in the South Pacific, what the British monarch is up to on the island nation of Samoa.
[04:10:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: Hello, and welcome to our viewers joining us from the U.S. and around the world, I'm Max Foster.
MACFARLANE: And I'm Christina Macfarlane. With 12 days and counting until Election Day, nearly 24 million Americans have already cast their ballots in early voting, but the race is still way too close to call.
FOSTER: And both candidates are working hard to pick up that extra support that they need to actually win. In the coming hours, Donald Trump will travel to two battleground states with campaign events planned in Arizona and Nevada. Kamala Harris will campaign with former President Barack Obama and rock legend Bruce Springsteen in Atlanta.
MACFARLANE: Harris took her message to undecided voters in a CNN town hall in Pennsylvania Wednesday. She repeated her warning to Americans that Donald Trump poses a threat to the nation's core principles.
FOSTER: She looks like she's singing with Bruce. Harris also ran through some major policy plans, outlining some of why she's the right choice to lead the United States for the next four years. These details from Julia Benbrook.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JULIA BENBROOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Vice President Kamala Harris spoke directly to voters during a CNN town hall moderated by Anderson Cooper Wednesday night. Part of her strategy in these final weeks was on full display as she presented herself as a candidate who can bring change, a new generation of leadership.
BENBROOK (voice-over): Vice President Kamala Harris taking questions from voters in the key battleground state of Pennsylvania.
HARRIS: It is close, but there are undecided voters who clearly by being here have an open mind, want to talk in a way that is grounded in issues and fact.
BENBROOK (voice-over): Tackling the top issues like the economy, immigration and abortion rights.
HARRIS: This is probably one of the most fundamental freedoms that we as Americans could imagine, which is the freedom to literally make decisions about your own body.
BENBROOK (voice-over): Sharpening her message to voters.
HARRIS: The vast majority of us have so much more in common than what separates us. And I think that the American people deserve to have a president who is grounded in what is common sense, what is practical, and what is in the best interest of the people, not themselves.
BENBROOK (voice-over): And taking her opponent, former President Donald Trump, head on.
COOPER: You've quoted General Milley calling Donald Trump a fascist. You yourself have not used that word to describe him. Let me ask you tonight, do you think Donald Trump is a fascist? HARRIS: Yes, I do. Yes, I do. And I also believe that the people who know him best on this subject should be trusted.
BENBROOK: Polls show there's no clear leader in this race. And Pennsylvania, where this town hall took place, is one of three blue wall states that flipped for Trump in 2016 and then swung back for Democrats in 2020.
Reporting in Pennsylvania, I'm Julia Benbrook.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MACFARLANE: Well, joining me now to discuss this is Thomas Gift, director for the Centre on U.S. Politics at University College London. And so nice to have you in the studio for a change, Thomas.
THOMAS GIFT, DIRECTOR, CENTRE ON U.S. POLITICS, UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON: Thanks, Christina. It's great to be with you.
MACFARLANE: 12 days to go until the election. It's mind-boggling in many ways because we heard the candidates there in Kamala Harris last night using this remaining time to still try and grasp those underside of voters. What did you make of her performance, of her efforts to do that?
GIFT: Well, you know, I think that Kamala Harris is making a strategic error by focusing so much on democracy. This was Biden's slogan, that democracy is at stake. I think that she would be better off focusing on policies like abortion, like immigration, like health care, because I think that that's where she has stronger footing.
Data show about 60 percent to 70 percent of Americans think that democracy is at risk. At the same time, only 3 percent of Americans think that it's the most important issue in this election, which is why, again, I think that she needs to focus on policy, she needs to be specific, and she needs to outline what she'll do in her first 100 days in office.
FOSTER: Abortion is a policy that she's done well on, but she's got a very clear policy, hasn't she, whereas Trump's feels a bit confused. But it's become a bit less of the debate as we've moved on, as Trump pushes it towards immigration, which is something he's strong on, and economy, which also the polls show he's strong on.
GIFT: Absolutely. And this is where Harris really has to be effective at framing what the discussion is about. She is absolutely strongest on the abortion issue.
We saw in the 2022 midterms that Democrats significantly outperformed Republicans. There was no red wave in large part because of the abortion issue. In addition, we've seen Democrats do really well in state-level referendums across the country in the last couple of weeks.
[04:15:00] So if she can keep the talking points on immigration and at least rebut some of Trump's charges on immigration and the economy, I think she's going to be strong.
MACFARLANE: It was interesting last night because she was clearly, again, trying to distance herself from Biden, whilst at the same time not really providing any specifics, any of her own priorities, her own policies, other than to say she will bring a new approach and she has a different experience. How does that land with voters at this point? Is that a failure at this stage?
GIFT: I think she needs to have a really concise, pat answer to how she's going to differ from Joe Biden. And she kind of uses this broad language about turning the page to the next generation. That's all well and good, but every time she's been asked how she departs from the Biden administration, what she would do differently, she never has a clear answer.
I do think that that's problematic because she's not Joe Biden. At the same time, she's tethered to his policies, his successes, but also his failures.
FOSTER: She talked a bit about Sinwar's death, didn't she? But that's as close as they seem to be getting to foreign policy. In a lot of these debates, we don't actually know that much about her foreign policy.
MACFARLANE: I think she swerved the answer, didn't she, on the arms to Israel?
GIFT: Well, I think both Kamala Harris and Donald Trump want to make this election about domestic policy. They don't want to get into foreign policy. I think that they're just as happy to let that slide simply because they don't have clear answers, as you suggest, Max. Plus, they're going to alienate some voters. So I think that they just kind of want to keep the focus on what's happening inside the country.
MACFARLANE: Just to go back to when you say there shouldn't be a debate about democracy, I mean, given that John Kelly, former Chief of Staff, came out just in the last 24 hours to call Trump a fascist, to say he's dangerous, unfit to serve. I mean, it would be wrong of Harris not to capitalize on that moment, but how much do you think that is really going to impact voters? You're hearing that kind of rhetoric so close to the election.
GIFT: Yes, I mean, I think it's persuasive to voters who already are going to support Kamala Harris. I think for swing voters, moderate voters, they, again, are more focused on kitchen table issues.
It's not just John Kelly, though, that has made these remarks about Donald Trump. We heard Mark Milley say that Trump is a fascist to the core. General Mattis said that Trump is a threat to democracy. Still, despite all of this critiques that we've heard in the last year, two years, from former Trump associates and from high-level distinguished public servants, it hasn't budged public opinion much with the MAGA base, and so it's unlikely that it's going to do so now. FOSTER: The Republicans who don't like Trump, who she's trying to swing over, do you think that's targeted at them because it reinforces what they don't like about him?
GIFT: I think that that's possible. I mean, these kind of non-Trump Republicans are sort of a rare breed now. A lot of them have come over to Trump. A lot of them may just not vote, though. You know, I think these are kind of low-propensity voters. They find each candidate kind of equally unsatisfactory, and so if they haven't made up their mind now, I'm not sure what's going to persuade them in one direction or the other.
MACFARLANE: And when you're talking about issues that matter to voters, I hear you call it, what, tabletop issues?
GIFT: Kitchen table issues.
MACFARLANE: Kitchen table issues, right. I mean, she is pitching her economic strategy very much at the middle class. We're seeing child tax credits, first-time homebuyer credits.
She's being accused of overlooking other groups in that strategy. I mean, is that the right approach? What's the dynamic at play there?
GIFT: Well, I still think that most politicians are going to try to court the center middle-class voters, and so she has pledged to have a number of free giveaways, as you suggested. $25,000 tax credit for new homeowners, $6,000 tax credit for individuals with children. She's promised tax cuts across the board for the middle class.
So I don't see anything wrong there. It's just that she needs to say that, but she needs to focus on it rather than some of these other issues surrounding democracy.
MACFARLANE: OK, well, 12 days to go, Thomas, thank you. We'll hold our breath and see what happens.
FOSTER: We'll probably get the result, though, will we, on the night? We won't get it in 12 days.
GIFT: I think it's very unlikely that we will hear it then.
FOSTER: It's longer than 12 days.
MACFARLANE: I know.
FOSTER: Lebanon, meanwhile, saying more Israeli airstrikes are pounding the southern suburbs of Beirut. The latest from the Middle East next.
MACFARLANE: Plus, Vladimir Putin shares plans for shaking up the world order ahead of his meeting with the U.N. secretary-general.
[04:20:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) MACFARLANE: Hi, welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. Here are some of the top stories we're following today.
33,000 workers at Boeing will remain on the picket line after union members rejected an offer from the airplane maker on Wednesday. The deal promised higher wages, retirement benefits and job security. 64 percent of workers voted to reject it.
The supplier of yellow onions for McDonald's is removing them from the marketplace. This follows the deadly E. coli outbreak linked to quarter pounders. The supplier says it has found no traces of E. coli in its raw onions in the past but said they're removing them out of an abundance of caution.
And in Samoa, Britain's King Charles was declared a high chief in the one-time Pacific Island colony. He's also took part in a traditional kava drinking ceremony.
He'll also attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Summit. King Charles and Queen Camilla are on an 11-day tour of Australia and Samoa. This is the first major foreign trip since being diagnosed with cancer earlier this year.
[04:25:00]
FOSTER: Now that explosion rocking a southern Beirut suburb late on Wednesday, the Lebanese health ministry says at least one person was killed, five injured by Israeli airstrikes on a residential complex.
Lebanon's national news agency described the strikes as the most violent in the area since the conflict began. This video on social media capturing a large fireball rising from the buildings along with the sound of explosions of course.
A spokesperson with the Israel Defense Forces had warned civilians to stay away from certain areas minutes before that strike.
Now the U.S. Secretary of State is urging a diplomatic solution to the conflicts in Lebanon and Gaza during his trip to the Middle East.
MACFARLANE: Antony Blinken landed in Qatar moments ago after spending Wednesday in Saudi Arabia where he sat down for about an hour with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The U.S. is renewing its efforts for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release to deter a broader conflict in the region. Developments in the Middle East is a key issue ahead of the U.S. election.
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump had this to say at an event in Georgia.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: But we're going to take care of Israel and they know that. Bibi called me yesterday, called me the day before. And we have a very good relationship. And I have to say they've done -- fortunately they didn't listen to Biden because if they'd listened to Biden, they'd right now be waiting for a bomb to drop on them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: CNN's Paul Hancocks following developments joins us live from Abu Dhabi. We're going to talk about the local developments. But how much notice are they taking there of how this, you know, area of foreign policy is playing into the U.S. election?
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Max, it's certainly key at this point, especially with Antony Blinken having just come to the region. He's in Qatar, a key mediator when it comes to these negotiations, I should say the stalled negotiations between Hamas and Israel. Expectations are fairly low at this point in the region that there could be some kind of breakthrough between either of the sides.
But what we've also heard from the U.S. Secretary of State is a call for more humanitarian aid to be getting into Gaza, in particular northern Gaza. This is an area that Israel has been carrying out an almost three-week operation now, saying that Hamas is trying to rebuild in the area. But there are U.N. groups we hear from, health authorities, that the area is at breaking point.
Now, I should warn our viewers that this upcoming report does have some images that they may find disturbing.
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HANCOCKS (voice-over): Hundreds stand in the midst of what looks like a post-apocalyptic world. Civilians being evacuated from Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza by the Israeli military after being trapped for days without food or water.
Perpetual expulsion of desperate civilians. The United Nations Human Rights Office warns the population in northern Gaza may be destroyed through, quote, death and displacement. U.N. teams on the ground claim forceful transfers of people.
Israel says Hamas is regrouping and rebuilding in the area, which it is fighting to prevent. The wasteland illustrates the intensity of the military force being used.
There was bombardment every minute, explosions every second, gunfire, this woman says. We never experienced such fear and horror. It was one of the darkest nights we ever lived through.
Remarkable that the hell civilians have lived through for more than a year could still get worse.
The reality increasingly resembles the so-called General's Plan, a proposal to force civilians out of northern Gaza and blockade going in. Sources say the Israeli cabinet declined to adopt the plan earlier this month, but U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken felt the need to ask Israel's prime minister about it this week. Dr. Hossam Abu Safia runs the Kamal Adwan Hospital in the north, which
he says is now surrounded by the Israeli military and under constant shelling. He says they ran out of blood and medication on Monday, calling the constant stream of injured a massacre.
The medical staff are few, he says, and the volume of injuries high. We have had to implement a difficult triage system. We have to let some die so some can live.
He films the children's ICU himself to show the impossibility of evacuating despite IDF orders.
[04:30:00]
This boy arrived with burns covering more than 70 percent of his body, he says.
Israel says 47 humanitarian aid trucks entered northern Gaza within a 24-hour period this week. Gaza's health ministry says no medical supplies or food have entered the area for 18 days, claiming aid is being diverted to central Gaza. U.N. aid workers cannot find food, water or medical care, according to the head of the U.N. Agency for Palestinian Refugees. Adding: The smell of death is everywhere, as bodies are left lying on the roads or under the rubble.
Gazan health officials say more than 770 have been killed in the more than two-week Israeli campaign, no breakdown of militants versus civilians. But the innocent are among the hardest hit in this never- ending war.
This young boy, Adam, was pulled alive but injured from the rubble last week. The man who saved him says his greatest pain was when he heard his parents did not survive.
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HANCOCKS (on camera): And we've also heard from one of the deputy directors of UNRWA who have said that this is beyond anything we have seen since the start of the war, which is really staggering when you consider what we have seen in Gaza over the past 12 months.
We also heard from that U.N. agency that two of their aid workers have been killed. They say it was two brothers who were driving an aid truck that was clearly marked in central Gaza. We have asked the IDF for comment -- Max, Christina.
