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U.S. Women's Soccer Team Moves to Elimination Rounds in World Cup after Lackluster Performance; Ukraine Drone Strike Hits Moscow Skyscraper; Donald Trump Possibly Facing More Indictments Related to 2020 Presidential Election Interference. Aired 8-8:30a ET

Aired August 01, 2023 - 08:00   ET

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

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[08:01:11]

POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. We are so glad you are with us, 8:00 a.m. here out east, 5:00 a.m. on the west coast. And there is a lot happening around the world and in the political world, that is for sure.

Former President Trump bracing for possibly more indictments, but we are learning that his political action committee is nearly tapped out of money. It had more than $100 million at the start of last year, but now it has less than $4 million. Most of that money went to legal bills for himself and his associates.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN ANCHOR: And the U.S. punching their ticket to the knockout stage at the Women's World Cup. It wasn't pretty and it was pretty close. Team USA legend Carli Lloyd called the zero-zero draw uninspiring and disappointing. We're going to have highlights.

HARLOW: And a concertgoer filing a report against Cardi B, saying they were struck by the microphone she threw from the stage. We have new details on what may have happened right before Cardi B was hit with a drink that was thrown at her.

This hour of CNN THIS MORNING starts now.

MATTINGLY: Good morning, everybody. Brand-new this morning, I hope you are all awake at 3:00 a.m. like we were when the U.S. women's soccer team was playing, and they are now advancing to the next round of the World Cup after a hard fought scoreless draw with Portugal. The reigning world champs looking frustrated as they struggled to maintain possession, repeatedly failed to breck through Portugal's staunch defense. This is only the second time in World Cup history the U.S. women's team has failed that win their group, finishing behind the Netherlands. Andy Scholes is with us. Andy, we aren't used to seeing this team struggle. What's up?

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well, well, Phil and Pop, we certainly are not used to these kinds of performances from the U.S. Women's National Team. They entered this tournament as the favorites as they try to become the first team ever to win three straight World Cups. There is good news and bad news after today. The good news is they made it out of the group stage, which is always the goal at the beginning of a World Cup. The bad news is, though, they haven't shown much chemistry in any of the three games thus far.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

CROWD: USA! USA!

SCHOLES: The U.S. women's national team in an unfamiliar position at the World Cup.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We thought it would be an easy win for us and we thought we would already be on the road to victory, but tonight's a big game.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We support the team. We love them. But just a little anxious.

SCHOLES: Those anxious feelings would last deep into the match with the U.S. and Portugal tied at zero all the way into the 91st minute when the U.S. would find themselves inches away from elimination.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's off the post!

SCHOLES: Ana Capeta, nearly a heroic goal for Portugal. With the Netherlands beating Vietnam handily, that goal would have doomed the U.S.

Megan Rapinoe entering the game in the 61st minute, but was unable to provide a spark. The match would end scoreless, but the result good enough to earn second place in the group and advance.

ALEX MORGAN, TWO-TIME WOMEN'S WORLD CUP CHAMPION: Yes, it's tough to be second. We wanted to go through first. I mean, this team gave everything. We just didn't put the ball in the back of the net. And in the last few minutes we just had to hold down. We had to get the result and move on, and now we look forward.

SCHOLES: This was the worst performance ever for the U.S. in the group stage, winning just one game. The results not what U.S. fans were expecting from the two-time defending champs.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All I have to say is that the U.S. needs to get their -- together because, you know, we can't make it through the knockout stages like this.

SCHOLES: The slate, though, now, is wiped clean. It's on to the round of 16 where the U.S. women have never lost.

MEGAN RAPINOE, PLAYING IN HER FINAL WOMEN'S WORLD CUP: We're thrilled to be going on to the next stage. That's exactly what we wanted out of this match, ultimately, is to have another one.

[08:05:00]

So on to the round of 16. Excited to see who we play. (END VIDEO TAPE)

SCHOLES (on camera): So getting second in the group is not ideal. Now the U.S. will have to more than likely play Sweden on Sunday in that round of 16. And you, guys, could call Sweden the U.S.'s kryptonite. They have beaten the U.S. in two straight Olympics. The team will certainly need to play better if they hope to make that run at an historic third straight World Cup title. Next game, Sunday, 5:00 a.m. eastern, guys. So you could set that alarm clock a little later and can sleep in considering what we had to do today to watch the game.

HARLOW: Slightly better. Andy, I want your reaction to what former player and two-time World Cup women's soccer champion Julie Foudy told us earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JULIE FOUDY, TNT SOCCER ANALYST: It just hasn't clicked. And the thing is, I mean, this happens in a tournament, and so the first thing you say as a team is it's great that they got through, they advanced. The thing that I keep coming back to is it doesn't feel like there is a lot of chemistry, there's not a lot of confidence and swagger that we normally see with this U.S. team. And so I honestly think they need to stop thinking about the x's and o's and just focus on let's just go enjoy this and play and have fun and actually bring some joy back to it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARLOW: What's your take, Andy?

SCHOLES: I completely agree. Anytime you score four goals in three matches, you could definitely say they are lacking chemistry. And as Carli Lloyd on the broadcast said the team was uninspiring, disappointing. You do have a lot of new, young members on this squad this time around, and maybe they are feeling some of that pressure of hearing, you know, well, they've won the last two times, we are going for the three-peat, it's up to you now.

But the bottom line is, they have play better. Alex Morgan is going to have to start scoring goals if the U.S. is going to end up winning their third straight World Cup. And the coach Vlatko Andonovski getting a lot of criticism as well. People want to see a better scheme, a better gameplan, better substitutions, because now, you know, like we said earlier, there's no margin for air. If they end up playing Sweden, which is more than likely going to happen on Sunday, you can't lose that game. There is no draws. You going to have to score goals and win. Everyone hoping they are going to be able to flip the switch.

MATTINGLY: Survive and advance. I'm going to take the optimist take. They are going to flip the switch.

HARLOW: Yes. Five days to figure it out.

MATTINGLY: They might not be cohesive, but the talent on the team is just absurd. They've just got that to play together. Andy Scholes, as always, my friend, thank you.

HARLOW: To Russia. Russia calling a second drone strike by Ukraine on a Moscow skyscraper a terrorist attack this morning. Russia's defense ministry says it shot down three drones, saying one lost control before crashing into a high-rise tower in that very same building that was hit on Sunday. Ministry officials say they also repelled a Ukrainian drone attack on two patrol ships the Black Sea. Meantime, at least, six team have died after a Russian missile attack on the hometown of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Nick Paton Walsh joins us again this hour. He is live in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine. Nick, good morning to you. Is this the next phase of counteroffensive by Ukraine?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY EDITOR: Certainly, the feeling that perhaps Moscow's elite could have had, that this was a war fought by Russia's poor far away from their glass towers, that is definitely being shattered to give the metaphor there. This is the second time that the same building housing government agencies, ministries, perhaps close to the defense industry, has been hit in just three days. That's clearly no mistake.

And while Ukraine is not openly saying they are behind these drone attacks, it is, obviously, their message to say they can hit with pinpoint accuracy parts of Russia's defense infrastructure.

Quite a different story, though, while Russia has called these acts of desperation and acts of terrorism, there is certainly, I think, a feeling amongst Ukrainian civilians here that it's actually desperation that they are on the receiving end of, night after night civilian targets hit here by Russian barrages. And in fact, while you mentioned Kryvyi Rih, the hometown of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, being hit now with six dead there and over 70 injured, Kherson, recently liberated from Russian occupying forces, that saw four dead from shelling yesterday, and just now a hospital there hit where a doctor was killed and a nurse injured.

This is just the daily repeat cycle of Russian brutality upon the Ukrainian civilian population here. And while Ukraine's president says that the drone attacks on Russia are a sign that the war is slowly returning to Russian territory, there is still intense fighting along the southern front here. We saw it ourselves yesterday, and the Russian chief of staff Valery Gerasimov appears to have visited that front line. It's vitally important for Russia's war effort. It's continued presence, frankly, here at all, and those attacks are intensifying and so are the barrages, one against the other across the Ukraine Russia border. Phil, Poppy?

HARLOW: Nick Paton Walsh, thank you very much.

MATTINGLY: Also this morning, a federal grand jury is expected to convene in Washington, and former president Donald Trump is bracing for yet another possible indictment. Trump posting on Truth Social that he assumes Special Counsel Jack Smith will indict any day now as part of a long running 2020 election interference probe.

[08:10:03] But this investigation is just one of many legal battles Trump is facing along with his associates. And in the classified documents case, his Mar-a-Lago property manager is out on $100,000 bond after appearing in a Miami courtroom. Carlos De Oliveira, seen there, is accused, of among other things, of telling the club's I.T. director that the boss wanted surveillance footage deleted. That surveillance video is now in the hands of lawyers for both the defense and prosecution according to a new court filing.

In Georgia, the district attorney says that she will decide whether to charge anyone by the efforts by Trump and his allies to overturn the 2020 election there by the end of the month.

HARLOW: The legal bills for all of these cases for Trump and his associates are really adding up. We are getting a sense of by how much, what a dent it is putting in his campaign war chest. We're learning that his PAC is nearly broke and has less than $4 million left in its account down from $105 million. That is a huge change in the beginning of last year. The situation is so desperate, team Trump to clawing back a donation it made to a pro-Trump super PAC to help with legal feels. Whenever Trump has been charged or arraigned, I should note -- look at that. See those spikes? That's what he has been charged or arraigned, his donations go up. The question remains, could a third, potentially fourth indictment if they come impact his donations in the same way?

Let's bring in what we may see from the grand jury, they are expected to potentially meet today. Kristy Greenberg, she is the former criminal division deputy chief at the Southern District of New York, CNN political commentator and political anchor at Spectrum News, Errol Louis is back. Also joining us again, national correspondent for "The Washington Post" Philip Bump. Good to have you all. Philip, just what's your response to seeing those numbers and the fact that team Trump had to claw back money that they'd given to a pro-Trump super PAC?

PHILIP BUMP, NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, "THE WASHINGTON POST": It's impossible to spin that as a positive. The thing that you just showed that I'd be most worried about if I were the Trump camp is on that graphic where you saw this big surge in donations after the Manhattan indictment that then became a much smaller surge in donations during the indictment for Mar-a-Lago. If that's the pattern, the pattern is I'm being targeted, give me all your money, and he gets a lot money, and then I am being targeted, give me more money, and he gets a little less money, that's potentially problematic, because he needs to keep raising money. He needs to keep paying these legal bills. He may not need to put a bunch of ads up against Ron DeSantis as much --

HARLOW: But he has to pay the bill, yes.

MATTINGLY: We are also just learning -- we're talking about all the Trump legal issues that he is facing, including the investigation from the special counsel on the 2020 election. We're learning right now that the grand jury is, in fact, securing evidence from the Special Counsel Jack Smith's investigation in the effort to overturn the 2020 election. They're meeting today at the federal courthouse in Washington. We expected them or thought it was a possibility. We now know that they are according to our reporters on the grounds there. What is happening behind closed doors here? For people that don't understand necessarily this process or haven't been inside of it, what should they be thinking is happening?

KRISTY GREENBERG, FORMER FEDERAL PROSECUTOR: So I expect that the evidence has been submitted to the grand jury and really at this point it's coming down to instructing the grand jurors what the law is related to the charges that are in the indictment, explaining how the facts apply to the law, and then asking the grand jurors to vote ,and seeing before they vote if they have any questions about anything. If they don't have questions, then expecting the vote. And I expect it will happen today. I think the charges are imminent.

MATTINGLY: Why?

GREENBERG: Because I think Jack Smith wants to get ahead of Fani Willis. Fani Willis has said that she is going to charge in the first two weeks of August. This is a packed calendar of trials that Donald Trump is already facing. I think Jack Smith wants to get on that calendar and he wants to get in before Fani Willis does.

HARLOW: Ostensibly, she in this Georgia state probe wouldn't charge before that August 10th hearing that is coming up. So Jack Smith does have a little bit of time here, right Errol?

ERROL LOUIS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes, that's right. And these are is -- these are cases where there actually might be some overlapping facts, so the order which they do this sort of matters. And presumably there has been some, at least, informal communication by the staffs --

HARLOW: Can you explain that to people, the overlapping part?

LOUIS: If the question is whether or not there was a fake electors scheme that high officials, included Donald Trump, were involved in, well, there are some allegations and some evidence that's already been made public that that happened in the case of Georgia.

HARLOW: Part of in Georgia.

LOUIS: And presumably the scheme was hatched or at least advanced out of Washington, which is why Jack Smith has it. And so it could be the same scheme. It could be different elements of a larger scheme. We know that they've talked to people in multiple states, and so there may be people brought in from Michigan or witnesses or common facts. So this is a big, big deal, which is in part why it's so important that Jack Smith has this case. Whatever else went on in Georgia, there may be something much larger.

And unlike the documents case, which looked pretty straightforward on some level, you have the evidence of people taking boxes and putting them in the bathroom or you don't, this is a lot more subtle. Conspiracy cases, these kinds of broad cases, it gets into what was in somebody's mind, who said what, when did they say it. This is a much more complicated one, and I think it will be really important that they get this right.

[08:15:00]

I think that part is why they've waited so long.

MATTINGLY: Kristy, Fani Willis was quoted saying that she hasn't had any interactions with the special counsel's team. How is there not deconfliction given some of the overlapping? Is that strange to you?

GREENBERG: I was very surprised to hear that she first, she said she wouldn't know him if Jack Smith if he was -- if he was standing next to her. Which I assume if she's turned on a television or open a newspaper, she would know what Jack Smith looked like so.

But putting that aside, there needs to be coordination. When you have the same witnesses, when you are both calling the Georgia Governor Brian Kemp to testify before your respective Grand Juries. The prosecutors want to know what the -- what has been said before to know if there are inconsistencies, things to follow up on. You know, it seems as though they have a lot of the same witnesses, they do have overlapping facts when they're looking at a perfect call for example.

If you're looking at the same conduct, you need to know what the witnesses have said. You also need to coordinate in terms of discovery obligations that you may have down the road, sharing when there are secrecy rules pertaining to Grand Jury investigations can be complicated. So, you need to be in some contact to make sure that you're following the rules and you're doing this all appropriately.

HARLOW: It's interesting that this comes as the New York Times, Siena College Poll shows in a hypothetical general election matchup, Trump and Biden totally tied at 43 percent.

BUMP: Yes. I mean, it's I think there's long days of been this assumption, particularly on the left, that these indictments would be a game changer. And you know, we've, you know, for the past eight years there's been saying.

HARLOW: Their funds -- they are fundraiser.

BUMP: Right. Well, yes, that is the minimum, yes, absolutely. But yes, I mean, we have this polarized political state that we exist in the United States. And Joe Biden's best bet is to run against Donald Trump because Democrats really dislike Donald Trump. And Donald Trump is very happy to run against Joe Biden, because Republican base really dislikes Joe Biden. And that leads to this polarized situation.

And the fact that Donald I mean, you know, this time Siena Poll College Poll that came out yesterday. They asked Republicans, Republican primary voters if they thought that Donald Trump commit felony. Precisely zero, Donald Trump's supporters said they thought he had committed a felony.

HARLOW: Yes.

BUMP: So, it doesn't, you know, I mean, so Jack Smith go ahead and indict. The odds that his base are going to accept that that's legitimate are very low. Therefore, the odds of that impact November are low as well.

MATTINGLY: It feels like the pulling of the football by Lucy in terms of folks who don't like --

HARLOW: Charlie Brown.

MATTINGLY: -- this is going to be the one. It's -- we should probably we have learned at this point. When you looked into the numbers for the New York Times Siena Poll today, related to Biden. It was interesting, I think Democrats are coming home a little bit more, not as much as probably he would like at this point, there's a clear shift back towards him. People kind of understanding that all right, this is going to be the guy more or less. What else stood out to you?

BUMP: Yes, I mean, I think the fact that Democrats now feel slightly more comfortable with Biden is important. Because the way that he won in 2020 was not because people adored Joe Biden, right? The reason he won is because he was running against Donald Trump and that everyone had his strong opinion about Donald Trump. And that's why he was elected President.

There are people like Joe Biden, I, you know, I don't mean to diminish that. But that dynamic is still in play for next year. That's hugely important for the Democrats. If it is not, Joe, if it is not Donald Trump, who they're running against, that mixes things up a little bit, doesn't necessarily make, you know, mean, it's potentially worse for Joe Biden.

But that's this lineup that they have wanted to see for some time now. And what this shows, that even with that, it still is problematic based on the fact that it's 43-43.

HARLOW: Thank you very much, Phil, Errol, Kristy. Appreciate it.

MATTINGLY: Thanks, guys. We're actually -- we're going to show live pictures right now. I think that -- yes, live pictures right now of the Federal courthouse in Washington D.C. The grand jury is meeting we know now. There was some expectation it would happen.

We know now they have been seen going in their meeting behind closed doors. There is a possibility that this could be the day where the indictment is voted on and brought down. Our team obviously is on the ground, watching very closely. We'll keep you guys updated.

HARLOW: Also, there's a concert goer now filing a police report claiming she was struck by a microphone thrown from the stage. Right, you saw that at the Cardi B concert. New details ahead.

MATTINGLY: And two more top ranking military officials are set to retire this month as Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville continues to hold up military promotions when speak to a military spouse about the real-world impacts as hold who's having military families.

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MATTINGLY: Well, new this morning, Alabama Republicans are slamming President Biden's decision against moving the U.S. Space Command Headquarters to their state in Colorado. The decision comes after months of deliberation and is sure to anger Senator Tommy Tuberville, who is continuing the hold on senior military nominations that is now impacting more than 300 flag and general officers over the Pentagon's abortion policy.

Let's get some perspective now from Sarah Streyder. She's the Executive Director of Secure Families Initiatives. She's also a military spouse herself. Sarah, thank you for taking the time. I think, you know, there's a lot of discussion about National Security implications. Obviously, the Marine Commandant is now an unopened position or an unfilled position to some degree as well.

And I understand that I didn't want to address that. But I'm mostly interested in military families. I think, well, disclosure, I'm an Army brat. I understand what it's like when you're in the middle of a relocation process or in the middle of a promotion. There are schools, there are housing, there are finances to deal with right now. Do you see a tangible effect on the families of these military officers?

SARAH STREYDER, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, SECURE FAMILIES' INITIATIVE: Oh, absolutely. On the 300 families directly impacted, this is taking folks who have given decades of their life to service and saying thank you for your service. We're going to hold your career hostage. I mean, to your point, this affects the spouses who have already had to uproot their personal and professional lives over a dozen times.

It affects kids who only want to do is get to the next duty station so they can try out for fall sports. And now in their, let's say junior or senior year of high school, they can't even do that. It's attacking the wrong people. Because these 300 families whose entire lives are uprooted. They don't have control over the policy that the Senator is so upset about and it's so unfair.

MATTINGLY: You know, the counter that we've heard from Senator Tuberville, you know, and he had a -- U.S. have a petition that you sent to both the Senate leadership and Tuberville. But Tuberville has his own petition or supporters, have their own position, which says quote by pledging a hold these nominations to the defense department until administration officials reverse course. The senator is doing a great service for the American people, including its service members. What's your response to that?

STREYDER: Gosh, I don't feel that at all. I -- it can't be understated the immediate and long-lasting negative impact this has had on military families. I mean, families like mine were scared. This is automatically made us look weaker on the global stage. And that makes service members like my husband at higher risk of harm.

[08:25:10]

There's a reason that you have military families, the loved ones of those who are actively serving this fired up about this issue. Because these are our futures, and these are our immediate lives. And we're just asking the Senator to leave us alone.

MATTINGLY: Yes. The Senator has made clear that if the Senate Majority Leader wanted to work through regular order, they could certainly get through all of these nominations. It would take an awfully long time, that would be a divergence from kind of normal course with these types of promotions. Have you talked to Democrats about doing that? Why is that not an option?

STREYDER: From what I understand, it's not realistic, it would take years to go through the -- all of the nominations one by one. But speaking of normal order, I would ask the Senator to do the same for his own grandstanding. Rather than hold up these promotions for hostage, work with your colleagues to pass a law that might codify the policy that you're so fired up about. I mean, the fact that the senator hasn't chosen to use normal legislative channels, probably indicates he does not have the personal or political support for his grandstanding.

MATTINGLY: Before I let you go, can you just walk people through what it's like, when you get orders? I think so few Americans have connection now to military service, to the branches, to the day today lives of families. When you receive orders, your spouse receives orders, what happens next?

STREYDER: Yes. It's immediate, you immediately start researching the next duty station, trying to look for what neighborhood you want to live in, what kind of house might be available, what school district you want to get to. You start transferring your prescriptions, your medical stuff to a new doctor's office. All of that happens right away, because you never know when your orders are going to get escalated.

You start saying goodbye to folks back home, you start quitting that old job and looking for your new one. And so, to get partway through that process, and then all of a sudden being told you're on an indefinite limbo, you might be stuck in a hotel somewhere. I mean, that's just so exasperating to say the least.

MATTINGLY: And just to be clear, those orders are not optional, right?

STREYDER: Definitely not. We do not have a geographic self- determination about where we ended up.

MATTINGLY: I think that's an important point. Sarah Streyder, I appreciate your time and perspective. Thank you.

STREYDER: Thank you, Phil.

HARLOW: Really important to hear about the sacrifices that military families make every day to keep our country safe, so great interview. Meantime, House Republicans, using testimony from Hunter Biden's former business partner to go after President Biden what he told lawmakers behind closed door, it says next. MATTINGLY: And asylum seekers in New York City, spending days camping outside the Roosevelt Hotel relief center, which is at capacity. Were there live next.

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