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Trump, Harris Holding Rallies In Key Southern Swing States; California's Secretary Of State Making Push For Ballot Safety; Biden Stumping For Harris Today In Battleground Pennsylvania. Harris, Trump Focus On Southern Swing States Of GA, NC Today; What's At Stake On Election Day? The Planet. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired November 02, 2024 - 13:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:01:12]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: All right. Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me this Saturday. I'm -- I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

All right, top of the hour, and we have officially entered the homestretch for the 2024 presidential race, as there are now just three days left until Election Day. And right now, both candidates are holding dueling rallies in key southern states. Donald Trump is holding the first of two campaign events in battleground North Carolina.

Vice President Kamala Harris is holding a Get Out the Vote Rally in the swing state of Georgia before heading to North Carolina later on today. Today is the last day of early voting in North Carolina. And so far, more than 4 million people in that critical swing state have already cast their ballots, exceeding the total number of early voters four years ago.

CNN's Alayna Treene is covering the Trump campaign. She's joining us right now from that rally that he's holding. Alayna, what can you tell us about his closing message in this final stretch?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN REPORTER: Well, Fred, Donald Trump is just moments away from taking the stage behind me here in Gastonia. But, look, what his closing message is and what his campaign wants his closing message to be is likely going to be different than what you hear him say on stage. Now, Donald Trump, his team did share some of his prepared remarks with me prior to him coming on behind me. And a lot of it is what you would expect to hear.

They walked through saying that he will say that he wants to end inflation, that he will stop the invasion on the border, that he will bring back the American dream. These are all themes that his campaign has really been trying to instill in the minds of voters in this final, crucial stretch. They told me that really this is the closing argument. This is the impression they want voters to have as they make up their minds and head to the polls on November 5th. Now, of course, Donald Trump has been veering off topic a lot, particularly in recent weeks at these rallies. You're seeing a lot of some of the anxieties that I know he and his campaign have about this election kind of seeping into the forefront. And one of those key concerns is the gender gap.

Now, there's no secret that Kamala Harris is doing better with women than Donald Trump. But that's even more problematic right now, Fred, because if you look at the early voting data that has come in, it shows that women are outpacing men. And so they have not solved for that gender gap. And it's something Donald Trump is continuously bringing up in his conversations.

Now, he actually talked about it this morning while doing an interview with "Fox & Friends." Take a listen to what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Can you imagine a wife not telling her husband who she's voting for? Do you ever hear anything like that? Even if you have a horrible -- if you had a bad relationship, you're going to tell your husband. It's ridiculous. It's so stupid.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: Now, Fred, and I apologize. I know it's very loud. Clearly, Donald Trump is coming on stage behind me. But he's questioning something that we've actually been learning and -- and looking at what we've been hearing from women across the country, which is that some women may be lying to their husbands about who they're going to vote for on Election Day. It's something that we've seen the Harris campaign really seize on.

Now, quickly, because before we get into his remarks, I want to talk about the importance of North Carolina. Now, this is a state that has 15 Electoral College votes. And Donald Trump narrowly won this state both in 2016 and 2020. His campaign has always thought of North Carolina as a battleground.

But I can tell you, over the past several months, particularly after Harris became the Democratic presidential nominee, this state has become far more competitive. Donald Trump is doing two stops here alone today. But he'll have another two stops here before Election Day. I think that just shows you how competitive this state really is. And the fact that they're spending so much time here with just three days left to go until Election Day is that they're not so sure that they could win it once again. Fred?

[13:05:09]

WHITFIELD: Right. So Alayna, just to clarify what -- what I think I heard you say, because it is really wild there because he's now about to speak. You said two stops in North Carolina today and then he's going to come back to North Carolina before Election Day? TREENE: That's right. He has two stops in North Carolina today. This first one here in Gastonia. Later today, he's going to be in Greensboro. Tomorrow, he has a rally in Kinston. Then Monday, we're told he's going to have another stop in this state. So very aggressively running after North Carolina in this final stretch, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Yes, really underscoring how important it is, of course, former President Trump now speaking to that audience there in Gastonia, North Carolina. We'll continue to monitor the remarks there and you will as well for us. Alayna Treene, appreciate it.

All right. Vice President Harris also hitting the campaign trail hard today. She will soon be speaking at a rally in Atlanta, these dual of -- dueling events happening now before she eventually heads to North Carolina. Harris is being joined at that Georgia Get Out the Vote Rally by movie director Spike Lee, singer, songwriter Victoria Monet and other musical guests. And we also saw the two Georgia senators who've already been hitting the stage there ahead of Harris's arrival there.

All right. Early in-person voting in Georgia ended on Friday with more than 4 million people in that state already casting their votes. And before departing Milwaukee this morning to -- to head there to Atlanta, Harris focused on the economy as part of her closing message.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I intend to earn the vote of everyone and I don't take anyone's vote for granted. And my highest priority as president will be to bring down the cost because to that point, look, I know the cost of groceries is too high. Still, everyone knows it. And so my plan includes what we're going to do in terms of taking on corporate price gouging and having the first ever national ban on corporate price gouging on groceries.

My plan includes addressing the issue of affordable housing, including for first time homebuyers, giving them $25,000 down payment assistance so they can just get their foot in the door. My plan includes addressing the needs of parents, in particular, young parents.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. Aside from the platforms of the candidates, some big concerns concerning voters is, you know, the safety of their ballots. With me now is California Secretary of State Shirley Weber. Secretary Weber, I hope you can hear me. We're live now here on CNN. Great. So three days out. What is the number one priority for your office right now?

SHIRLEY WEBER, CALIFORNIA SECRETARY OF STATE: Well, our number one priority, obviously, is making sure that voters are safe, that all of our polls are open, that people know they have the opportunity to vote. That would just -- we're basically dealing with a lot of misinformation and disinformation, so getting the correct information out. We've already had 7 million Californians who voted thus far. So people

are -- are excited about the election and coming forth to participate. So we are -- we are a huge state with a lot of voters. And so we have to have a tremendous operation to make sure that everyone gets a chance to vote, that every issue is addressed and that we have safe voting in California, as well as everyone has access to their ballots and on and on.

So we have a lot of things going on, but we want to make sure everyone knows that they have the right to vote and that they're safe where they are in terms of voting.

WHITFIELD: Yes, we know you are really busy. And I wonder if we could, you know, zero in on that misinformation, disinformation, not necessarily conveying what is incorrectly being stated out there. But does it have to do the kind of information misinformation you're talking about? Does it have to do with how people are casting their ballots, you know, the process of voting more so than it is about what each campaign represents?

WEBER: It's -- it's more about the process right now, because I think the candidates have made their -- their case to the public that's out here. And -- and -- and it's really about the process, trying to get people to believe that there's something wrong with the process. We are litigated to death in California in terms of every day. There must be a new lawsuit filed against us for incorrect information in terms of trying to stop California's voting, trying to impact it.

We have -- we have a lot of that occurring because obviously our legislature is not going to create these regulations and laws that restrict voting as it is in some other states. California is a very blue state. So as a result, people attack us in -- in the courts regularly.

So we know that there's a lot of information going out. There's a lot of things trying to stop people from -- from feeling comfortable in voting, trying to give them the slightest little thing that goes wrong. They -- they don't seek new information. They basically put misinformation out. So my staff is extensively working around the clock to make sure that we get all of the information out. And -- and that we answer every last one of them.

[13:10:12]

WHITFIELD: I wonder how are you getting the information out?

WEBER: You know, it's amazing.

WHITFIELD: How are you getting the information out? Is it via your website, I mean, are you doing, you know, calls, sending texts? I mean, how are you getting to people who might already be influenced by what they're getting when they're looking on their phones, you know, they're on their computers, et cetera? How do you now get ahead of that?

WEBER: Right, right. We have a team that is -- that is working not only with the regular media, the social media. We have our -- our -- our T.V., our radio individuals who we work with over the year to basically make sure they get the message out. We just corrected some things today that were misinformation that the -- that the T.V. station corrected, that the paper corrected for us.

So we have been working to make sure that we get the correct information out. Our website is very extensive with regards to mis and disinformation. So we are putting that on our website. All of our staff is working to make sure that we get the correct information out. We meet regularly every morning at least. And then sometime if necessary in the day, our attorneys are working to make sure that all the stuff that comes out is correct.

So we have quite an extensive team that really deals with the mis and disinformation that's coming out. And I was pleased this morning on our call that everything that had been talked about yesterday and last night has been corrected because we know that's extremely important. And the faster we get the information out, the better it is for those who are voting.

WHITFIELD: And I wonder, Ms. Secretary, you -- you said 7 million people have already voted early. I mean, that's a phenomenal number. But then there is voting day. And on voting day --

WEBER: Yes.

WHITFIELD: -- people have a whole lot of concerns, whether it be about, you know, the safety of their vote, the safety of themselves. And even your election workers are also conveying in -- in so many different polling stations across the country. You know, they're concerned, too, about their safety. What are you doing to ensure them and to allay any fears that people have?

WEBER: Right. When I came into office about almost four years ago now, one of the things that people were concerned about is that people leaving the -- the field of -- of voting because they were being intimidated, they were -- were being harassed in their communities, those kinds of things.

Immediately, our AG my -- my AG and I got together and we made clear, first of all, that we would prosecute anyone for the fullest extent of the law if there was any effort in terms of attacking those at the polls, intimidating them, bum rushing offices, as some people try to do to take things.

We want to make sure that this was not something that boys will be boys kind of attitude in California, that we would basically deal with this as effectively as we can with every method that we have. Since then, we've written additional legislation in California that makes it a criminal offense to even harass a -- a person who works in the polls. And so -- yes, yes, we -- we've done that.

We -- we made sure that people understand that attacking any kind of box in California voting box, it is a federal offense and will be prosecuted as such. We've been working not only with our local officers, but our statewide officers and the federal officers as well, in terms of assuring that we will have a safe voting place for everyone and that we take it very seriously. So we've done that.

We also have monitors at many of our places. We have that come in and make sure that those who are observers watching the -- the election, we have a lot of observers who come to see the election in certain areas to make sure that they are following the law. We've trained most of, we've sent information out to all of our police officers, the police stations to make sure that they understand California's Voting Rights Act so that they don't take these things as minor offenses, if someone is doing something or blocking the polling place or standing outside campaigning in areas that they should not be.

So we make sure that they're all trained.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

WEBER: That they know that. And so we have had a lot of activity occurring pre-election to make sure that everyone is trained. Everyone knows what they're supposed to do, know what their rights are. And we also know and let them know how we will respond to the activities that occur. So we take this very seriously. This is not something that we just slough off as -- as being unimportant.

WHITFIELD: Sure. I hear you loud and clear. It sounds like you all are ready. California Secretary of State Shirley Weber, thank you so much and thanks for your time.

WEBER: And thank you. Thank you for the opportunity.

[13:14:44]

WHITFIELD: Still to come, President Biden stumping for Kamala Harris in his hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania. How Democrats hope they can help secure union votes there, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. In the last hour, President Joe Biden arrived in the battleground state of Pennsylvania, where he is set to speak at a Carpenters Union town hall in his hometown of Scranton. Let's get right to CNN's Kevin Liptak, who is in Scranton. Kevin, great to see you. So what's the message Biden hopes to deliver to voters there

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, certainly he wants to reinforce his credentials among union members, but also try and burnish the credentials of his vice president, Kamala Harris, certainly trying to make the point that she will be a better president for union workers than Donald Trump. And you saw and burnish the credentials of his vice president, Kamala Harris, certainly trying to make the point that she will be a better president for union workers than Donald Trump.

[13:20:08]

And you saw Biden being introduced there by the president of the Carpenters Union. And it's interesting, those signs behind him, you see the Harris-Walz signs, but you also see the signs that say, thank you, Joe. Certainly President Biden here in Scranton, in his hometown, sort of basking in the support among the people that he knows best.

And this is sort of a constituency that Democrats, at least in President Biden's mind, think that he can help shore up support among, certainly the white working class voters that he performed well among in 2020. President Biden, of course, has not been a very visible presence on the campaign trail this year. Kamala Harris trying to put some distance between herself and the current administration.

President Biden, of course, is still relatively unpopular. They also view President Biden as something of a liability, given his penchant for saying things that could open up Harris to criticism. But I think if President Biden was going to campaign anywhere in this final stretch, it would be here in Scranton, in his hometown.

This is a place where there is a lot of goodwill for the president. You know, you take the President Biden Expressway right into downtown, and we saw that when President arrived about a half an hour ago, a lot of warmth on the tarmac from the mayor, from the county commissioner.

And at this Carpenters Union, I think you'll hear President Biden really trying to contrast his record with that of President Trump. We actually heard him do that yesterday at a union hall in Philadelphia, saying that he, President Biden, was very proud to join a picket line, but that President Trump is someone who would look for a picket line to cross.

And so you hear that message, that economic message coming through loud and clear. President Biden really does think that he has a lot to say to these union workers when it comes to Kamala Harris. He wants to do everything he can to support her candidacy with the recognition that a Kamala Harris victory would do a lot to cement his own legacy, but that if Donald Trump were to win, there could be potential recriminations against President Biden, questions about whether he dropped out of the race too late, and certainly some of the gains that he thinks he made on the economy and other areas could be reversed by President Trump.

So this is, you know, no doubt an important moment for President Biden, trying to do everything he can. But I think when you look at his schedule over the last three months or so, the numbers really do tell a story. He's only appeared alongside Harris five times in that stretch. He's only had six political appearances altogether. That's far short, I think, of what he might have expected to be doing in the final stretches of this campaign.

And when we do see him out and about, it is at relatively small events. You know, this event only has about 100 people in it. That's far smaller than the rallies that we've seen Harris doing or even former President Barack Obama. Even the first lady, Jill Biden, has been out more on the campaign trail, and we just learned that she will be appearing at stops alongside the Pennsylvania governor, Josh Shapiro.

And it looks like President Biden is walking out to the podium now, shaking hands with the union president. I guess we'll listen maybe to hear a little bit of what President Biden has to say. JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I know all you folks in this area know when we say it's good to be home, a lot of us mean it because we have family. Our roots are here. And I -- I -- I told my granddaughter, my deceased son, Beau, who was a decorated Army veteran, anyway, an attorney general in the state of Delaware, his daughter, who is a sophomore at the University of Pennsylvania, said, Pop, you're heading to Scranton. Can I come? I want you to meet her.

(CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

BIDEN: This is Natalie. She's the love of my life and the life of my love. And I'll tell you what, man, and she's probably heard so many stories about Scranton growing up that she -- she -- she said, can I come? She'd been here before with me, been here before. But we're not going to get to go to North Washington Avenue this time. OK?

(LAUGHTER)

(APPLAUSE)

BIDEN: Folks, look, you know, I know a lot of you know folks who used to live in Scranton and don't live here anymore but still talk about home all the time. Because a lot of them had to leave for, like my dad did, when Cole was dying back in the late 40s and the 50s, he used to talk about home all the time. Because a lot of them had to leave for, like my dad did, when Cole was dying back in the late 40s and the 50s, he moved back to Delaware. My grandfather, Biden, who died six days before I was born at Mercy Hospital in 1942, 200 years ago.

(LAUGHTER)

[13:25:22]

BIDEN: But, you know, Scranton is -- Scranton becomes part of your heart. It crawls into your heart, and it -- it is real. It's not hyperbole, it's not a joke, it's real. And my relatives are here right now, the Finnegans.

(APPLAUSE)

BIDEN: And there's, you know, my only regret every time I come home is that my mom's not with me. My mom, Catherine Eugenia Finnegan Biden, one of five children, four -- she had four brothers. No one screwed around, man.

(LAUGHTER)

BIDEN: And -- but anyway, I -- I just -- I'm so proud to be back, and I'm so proud that we finally were able, as Doug pointed out, to -- to begin to build back better in a big way. We are. Scranton's coming back.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

(CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

BIDEN: And by the way, you know, we've been through a lot together. Not only have you been my allies in labor, you've been my friends. Carpenters were the first outfit to endorse me in Delaware in 1972 as a 29-year-old kid running for the United States Senate. And as I say, you guys brought me home. I want to thank Doug. He's been a great, great, great ally. You've always had my back, and I think I can honestly say I've had yours as well.

(CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

BIDEN: You understand -- you understand what my dad taught me. And they used to say at this dinner table, I swear to God, he said, Joey, the job's about a lot more than the paycheck. It's about your dignity. It's about respect. It's about the way you're treated in the community. It's about how you're able to look your kid in the eye and say, honey, it's going to be OK. He meant it. He meant it. And that's it.

Three days to Election Day. And the stakes couldn't be higher. The choice couldn't be clearer.

WHITFIELD: And on that note, we're going to continue to monitor other remarks coming from President Biden there, who is there in his hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania, a very important swing state of Pennsylvania. And the President there, joined very tenderly by his granddaughter, Natalie. What a cute moment that was.

Kevin Liptak, thanks to you as well. He's on the road with the President, and he'll continue to monitor the remarks there.

All right, coming up next, some of former President Donald Trump's supporters are pushing false claims of voter fraud. And they're already planning to contest the election even before votes have been counted.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:32:32]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: All right, we are continuing to monitor the dueling events of the presidential candidates on the campaign -- on the campaign swing in battleground states.

Just moments ago, former President Trump was in Gastonia, North Carolina. And he had this to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The patrol guys are fantastic. They just endorsed me. They said, he is the greatest president in the history of our country. I said, does that include Abraham Lincoln and George Washington?

(LAUGHTER)

TRUMP: To them, yes.

But the reason they said it is because, to them, there is nobody the ever did the border job like I did. And I called them all the time and I bugged them.

And I said to them, in front of a big audience, I said, how many times -- she was the border czar, right? She was in charge of the border.

I said, how many times did she call? They said, never. So in almost 4 years. I look at, what, 10 officials behind me. They gave me this beautiful endorsement.

And they have always endorsed me. The endorsement me every year, every year. Hoping - t were hoping but they just endorsed me. They're great people. And they want this country to be so good.

They hate -- you know, it is easier for them to let people go in, just go ahead in. But they don't want the people to go in. They love their country. The Border Patrol, and ICE, too. ICE is incredible.

But, I said, how many times did she call? Sir, she never called. I said, never? None of you guys? We never received a call. She never went to the border.

And it's, in my opinion, the single biggest problem we have. I mean, to me, I rate it bigger than inflation. Inflation is terrible and you saw the horrible numbers we had, the worst numbers I have ever seen - 1,200 000 --

We had 12,000 jobs. Nobody -- 12,000 jobs is nothing. We have 12,000 jobs. It's the worst numbers I have ever seen. I will fix that.

But when she allows --

(CHEERING)

TRUMP: But when she allows 13,099 murderers, murderers -- these are people that incarcerated for murder, many of them, more than one murderer -- they are now roaming our country and we have no idea who the hell they are.

You know who knows? Our local police, our law-enforcement. And they're going to work with us because we're going to get them the hell out. They know everything about them.

(CHEERING)

TRUMP: So we are just three days away from the greatest political victory in world history. But it only happens if you get out and vote, OK? You've got to get out -- WHITFIELD: All right, Election Day just three days away. We continue

to monitor the remarks coming from the former president in Gastonia, North Carolina.

[13:35:03]

But again, clarification, the Biden administration never designated Harris as the borders czar, but that continues to be in the vernacular of the former president.

Meantime, Vice President Harris is arriving in Atlanta and we continue to monitor the events of these dueling rallies. She is soon to take the stage there in Atlanta on just three days away from Election Day. We'll take you there, live, right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:40:12]

WHITFIELD: Where are just moments away from Vice President Kamala Harris taking the stage in Atlanta. Georgia is one of the critical battleground states up for grabs in this heated presidential race. She is also going to North Carolina today, a final push ahead of Election Day.

Oh, and we are hearing the music, which means she is soon to be taking the stage. She is being introduced, by the way, by a first-time voter. We will continue to monitor those remarks coming from Kamala Harris.

And at the same time, let's see if we can do this at the same time. I have Stef Kight me. She's a political reporter for Axios.

Stef, great to see you as we see Kamala Harris there taking the stage. She is in Georgia right now, and then heading to North Carolina.

Trump is going to North Carolina. He is actually in North Carolina. And then he'll be going to Virginia and back to North Carolina. So these are important, critical states in these three days away from Election Day.

So I'm wondering, Stef, if you can tell us, what does it tell you about these states' importance and the strategy of these candidates canvassing these battlegrounds? And clearly, Kamala Harris is zeroing in on younger voters.

STEF KIGHT, POLITICAL REPORTER, AXIOS: Well, we all know this election will come down to just a handful of voters in a handful of states. So we are seeing both Trump and Kamala Harris really zeroing in on these few states that will be close.

States that Trump will have to win if he will have a chance at winning the White House back. And also, states that would be huge for Kamala Harris to flip and win to get her into the White House.

And there are places where she has gained ground and compared to President Biden, in states like Georgia and North Carolina. And of course, we have seen Harris really focus on the youth vote.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

KIGHT: Again, when you look at polls that are this close, any kind of voting bloc that you can get to turn out, even young voters who do not tend to turn out at -- as at higher rates as other age groups.

If you can get them to turn out, that could make or break the election in some of the states where we are looking at tens of thousands of votes potentially making all the difference.

WHITFIELD: Right. And we can see, just by the introduction by the young first-time voter introducing Harris, the Harris camp is counting on it. So let's talk a little more about these younger voters, first- time voters, voters in college.

It has been reported that traditionally college-aged voters are less dependable than older voting blocs. And that was until 2020 after the pandemic, nationwide racial reckoning.

Now, expectations of the highest rates of use electro participation. What impact would that make?

KIGHT: If it does pan out, it could be a huge boost for Kamala Harris' bid for the White House. You know, it is one of those things, this is a demographic that is very hard to predict.

I mean, we've seen this in election cycle after election cycle, where it seems like there is energy and it seems like the young voters will turn out and they've invested, they're paying close attention. But there is always still the question of, do they actually turn out?

You know, looking at early voting numbers, some certainly are. We are not going to have a good handle on how much these voters follow- through in casting the ballots until after Election Day.

But if we see the energy, if Harris manages to get them invigorated and ready to go to the polls, that could make all the difference.

And I remember when Biden was at the top of the ticket, one of his biggest challenges was the disappointment in young voters. He lost young voters rapidly. And that was one of the huge warning signs for his candidacy.

And so to have Harris now seeing more support and really focus on this age group, it is really interesting. And it shows what a different kind of candidate she has been.

And I would also note, one of the most interesting things when we look into the polling on the youth vote, is it is where the gender gap is most clear. Young women are far more likely to back Kamala Harris, while young men, they give Trump the edge.

And so it will depend on who in the young voter category is turning out. WHITFIELD: Oh, interesting.

All right, Stef, hold tight for a minute.

Let's listen in to what Kamala Harris is saying in Atlanta.

(CHEERING)

KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And, Georgia, you know me. I am not afraid of tough fights.

(CHEERING)

HARRIS: Evidently.

(LAUGHTER)

HARRIS: For decades, I was a prosecutor. I was the top law-enforcement officer of the biggest state. And I won fights against banks who ripped off homeowners, against for-profit colleges that scammed veterans and students. Against predators, who abused women and children. Against cartels that trafficked in guns, drugs and human beings.

(CHEERING)

[13:45:04]

HARRIS: I won those fights.

And I pledge to you that if you give me the chance to fight on your behalf as president, there is nothing in the world that will stand in my way.

(CHEERING)

HARRIS: And look, we know who Donald Trump is.

(BOOING)

HARRIS: Because we know this is not someone who is thinking about how to make your life better. This is someone who is increasingly unstable. Obsessed with revenge. Consumed with grievance. And the man is out for unchecked power.

And in less than 90 days, it is he or me in the Oval Office?

(CHEERING)

(CHANTING)

HARRIS: And here is the thing. Help spread the word. Part of it is to -- if you can imagine in your mind the Oval Office, right, you can picture it and have seen it on TV.

So just imagine, if he is elected, on day one, Donald Trump would walk into the Oval Office with his enemies list, stewing over an enemies list. When I am elected, I will walk in on your behalf with my to-do list.

(CHEERING)

WHITFIELD: All right, Kamala Harris in Atlanta talking about her to-do list, the things she wants to tackle.

Stef Kight back with me now.

If you look at the backdrop there, a pretty diverse crowd. But we are zeroing in on the power of the youth vote. If you look at just George so far, 18 to 24-year-old are outpacing other younger voting blocs in early voting.

In other battleground states, the non-profit Voters for Tomorrow group is predicting record youth vote totals. Even in Michigan, youth votes are projected to exceed 200 percent of last election. That is extraordinary.

What do you suppose it is that is motivating or driving younger voters to the polls this time around?

KIGHT: Certainly, Harris has made young voters a focus of her campaign from the beginning. I am thinking about even some of the more fun things her campaign has done. Whether it was the Kamala Is BRAT tweet or Taylor Swift endorsement.

There have been a lot of things in the Harris campaign strategy, since she became the presidential nominee, that have been very tailored to younger voters.

And another thing I saw reported recently that is interesting is that young people are starting to be reminded of things that Trump said in the past. Like the "Access Hollywood" tape many say they have not seen before.

That could also be having an impact that younger voters are being reminded that some of things some of us can never forget. But they are seeing Trump right now and that could be an effective strategy for her.

WHITFIELD: Yes, we heard a lot of those young people -- I mean, you are using the word reminding. In some cases, they have never heard it before. You know, they we're in high school and their worlds were -- or even junior high school.

And they we're so separated from the messaging that was coming out during the 2016 election. So for many of them, they are hearing it for the first time and it has been influential to many who have expressed so.

All right, Stef Kight, good to see you. Thank you so much.

KIGHT: Thanks for having me.

WHITFIELD: And we will be right back.

[13:48:48]

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[13:53:12]

WHITFIELD: All right, we have some dueling events taking place out west as well. We're talking about the presidential candidates along the east coast, right there, in Nevada.

You have Governor Tim Walz in Henderson, which is outside of Las Vegas and in the heart of Las Vegas. You have Senator J.D. Vance. Both trying to push their platforms in these critical three days before Election Day.

Election Day is a critical time for the country. And a crucial moment for the planet. The climate crisis touches almost every aspect of our lives. And we are seeing it now, with recent severe weather, hurricanes, extreme heat.

Voters will have the choice between candidates that cannot be further apart on the issue. One plans to build on the clean energy growth of the Biden administration, while the other calls the issue a hoax.

CNN climate -- chief climate correspondent, Bill Weir, explains what is at stake for the planet.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL WEIR, CNN CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On the devastated West Coast of Florida, where back-to-back hurricanes have upended life for so many, Susan Glickman takes stock.

SUSAN GLICKMAN, VP OF POLICY AND PARTNERSHIPS, CLEO INSTITUTE: Before Hurricane Helene, we had huge sand dunes here and those all washed out to sea.

WEIR: And she swirls with both worry for the future and anger over the decisions of the past.

GLICKMAN: In 1965, President Lyndon Baines Johnson, three weeks after his inauguration, said this generation is altering the composition of the Earth's atmosphere by burning fossil fuels. So, in anybody's book, we have known about this for a very long time.

WEIR: After an early career fighting the tobacco industry, Susan now works in climate education and sees how decades of deliberate misinformation by polluting industries has filled her neighbors with confusion and doubt.

[13:55:03]

SANDY DAUGHTRY, PINELLAS COUNTY, FLORIDA RESIDENT: Maybe it's just a hundred-year cycle or, you know, some kind of a cycle that we go through.

WEIR (on camera): Even though all the scientists are telling you this is what climate change looks like?

DAUGHTRY: Well, yes. Well, that's the point. I'm not sure all the scientists are in agreement.

WEIR (voice-over): That skepticism mirrors Former President Donald Trump.

TRUMP: It'll start getting cooler.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I wish --

TRUMP: You just watch.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I wish science agreed with you.

(LAUGHTER)

TRUMP: Well, I don't think science knows actually.

WEIR: Two years after Vice President Kamala Harris cast the tie- breaking vote on the Inflation Reduction Act --

(CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

WEIR: -- there are tighter regulations on polluters.

And hundreds of billions of public and private investments are flowing into the climate fight, mostly in Republican districts. Solar, wind, and storage are now so cheap that Texas leads the nation in clean energy installations.

But Trump is vowing to undo as much of it as he can on day one, which concerns one of the world's most active climate investors.

WEIR (on camera): You lobbied for the Inflation Reduction Act. How would you assess it's working now?

BILL GATES, FOUNDER, BREAKTHROUGH ENERGY: I'd give it a high grade so far. We need -- you know, we need some understanding of what constant policy looks like.

Because stop and go for things that involve 2030 or plant investments, you -- you'll just scare the whole industry away from a country that's inconsistent.

GLICKMAN: It's very simple. This is about parts-per-million of carbon in the atmosphere and that's warming the Gulf. It's supercharging storms. It's melting glaciers and ice sheets and raising the sea rise. And here we are.

WEIR (voice-over): Bill Weir, CNN, New York. (END VIDEOTAPE)

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