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CNN This Morning

Americans Freed from Iran Arrive in U.S.; Biden to Deliver U.N. Speech as Key Leaders Skip Gathering; McCarthy Insists Spending Deal Can Pass House Despite Infighting; Union President: More Strikes Coming Friday without 'Serious Progress'; Trump to Skip 2nd GOP Debate for Detroit Primetime Speech. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired September 19, 2023 - 06:00   ET

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

KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR/CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's a good message. Hey, there's help out there, if you need it.

[06:00:04]

Andy Scholes, thanks very much --

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS: Yes.

HUNT: -- for being with us this morning.

Thanks to all of you for getting an early start with us. We've just got 11 days until the government shuts down, so keep it here for the latest and greatest. I'm Kasie Hunt. CNN THIS MORNING starts right now.

POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning on this Tuesday. So glad you are with us. Good morning.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.

HARLOW: We have good news. Americans are home.

MATTINGLY: Good news. Big news, breaking news. Yes.

HARLOW: Americans are home. And they just got here. A lot of big news this morning. Let's start with "Five Things to Know" for this Tuesday, September 19.

This breaking news, they are back in the United States. Those five American citizens who were held prisoner in Iran landed moments ago right near the nation's capital after nearly 24 hours of travel.

MATTINGLY: And this morning, President Biden speaks at the United Nations as he confronts multiple crises on the world stage.

Back at home, a shutdown drama in the House. Tempers are flaring as some Republican lawmakers calling their colleagues "lunatics," saying it's a clown show. As for the speaker, he says he's not quitting.

HARLOW: More autoworkers on strike potentially on the horizon. The union chief says if there's no progress by noon this Friday, more workers will walk off the job.

MATTINGLY: And that missing fighter jet, it has been found in South Carolina. Crews are now working to recover the debris. An investigation is under way into the, quote, "mishap" that forced the pilot to eject.

CNN THIS MORNING starts right now.

HARLOW: And of course, this is where we begin with the breaking news, the good news this morning. After five years -- after years in prison, five U.S. citizens released by Iran have just landed back on American soil. The plane landed moments ago right near Washington, D.C.

MATTINGLY: Now, under the deal with Tehran, the U.S. released five Iranians from custody and returned $6 billion in frozen oil revenue -- revenue to Iran.

Let's bring in CNN national security reporter Natasha Bertrand.

Natasha, this was a long trip home, but they are on the ground. What's the latest in terms of this exchange?

NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Phil. So they have just landed, just really in the last half an hour after a very long journey. And now they're going to have medical examinations. They are going to, of course, be able to call their loved ones.

They are going to be offered a program that reintegrates and reacclimates people who have been in this kind of position back into society, because, of course, it has been a very traumatic five years plus for these prisoners who have been detained there in Iran.

And so now, really, the work begins, right? In kind of getting these people re-adjusted to society after years of, essentially, captivity and being held hostage.

Now, the five Iranian-Americans -- or Iranians that have been released from a U.S. prison, some of them are en route back to Iran. Some of them are going to be remaining in the United States. All are non- violent offenders. They have been convicted or charged with crimes related to sanctions evasion, things like violating sanctions and, you know, violates FARA, which is Foreign Agent Registration Act, acting on behalf of Iran. So things that the U.S. does not consider to make them kind of threats to society.

So, obviously, that's a key part of the deal. Another key part is what you mentioned, which is that $6 billion in previously restricted Iranian funds that Iran will now be able to use for humanitarian purposes only. And that is going to be closely monitored by Qatar and the U.S. Treasury Department, guys.

HARLOW: Despite this return, which is good news, there's the cost, right? And the $6 billion of unfrozen Iranian assets that the U.S. has been vehement can only be spent for humanitarian purposes. But "The Washington Post" editorial board points out this morning this does free up other funds from Iran to spend on, quote, "nefarious purposes," such as buying weapons. A lot of push-back from Republicans on that front.

HARLOW: Republicans have really seized on this in recent weeks, ever since the news broke that this deal was in the works. And they are saying, essentially, that it is equivalent to a ransom payment and that it's only going to encourage Iran to take more Americans prisoner in the future.

Here's just a couple of Republicans expressing their criticism of this deal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Americans are now more of a target for Iran --

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: OK.

CHRISTIE: -- than they were before, because they took five this time. Maybe they'll take ten next time.

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY): Unfortunately, the deal that secured their release may very well be the latest example of President Biden rewarding and incentivizing Tehran's bad behavior.

SEN. TIM SCOTT (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Six billion dollars of released funds will only make it far more expensive for every single American who's traveling abroad. It's a bad decision.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[06:05:04]

BERTRAND: Now, look, Poppy, Phil, the U.S. has emphasized here that their relationship, the U.S.'s relationship with Iran is not going to fundamentally change after this. They will continue to hold them accountable.

And they do not believe that this money is going to be able to be used for anything other than food, medicine, agricultural devices.

But still, expect them to face a lot of scrutiny in the next coming weeks and face a lot of examination, of course, of how Iran is going to use this money.

But we should note that the U.S. has also already issued new sanctions on Iran just in the last day. Expect Iran to not be very happy about that either -- Poppy, Phil.

HARLOW: OK. Natasha, thank you for all that reporting.

MATTINGLY: Well, also this morning, President Biden is now preparing to deliver a foreign policy speech to the United Nations General Assembly, an annual endeavor. It's going to be in just a few hours.

He's expected to tout his administration's accomplishments around the world and call on member nations to rally behind Ukraine.

But there are concerns here in town that the remarks won't necessarily pack a huge punch, particularly with several key heads of state not even in attendance.

CNN's Kayla Tausche joins me now. Welcome. It's good to see you up in New York.

KAYLA TAUSCHE, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good to be here. Thank you for having me.

MATTINGLY: This -- the idea that several key leaders, including Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin -- there are some key U.S. allies, as well -- are not going to physically be present. What does the White House say about that?

TAUSCHE: Well, they say the important thing is showing up. And that's what President Biden is doing by being here, the third speech to the United Nations General Assembly of his presidency and the second since Russia invaded Ukraine.

Officials say that the president is going to be talking about a number of things. The need to get more aid to Ukraine. The importance of Democratic values around the world. And the need to mobilize resources for development for infrastructure, for climate change.

But there is the question of whether that message is going to fall flat when you have the U.S. as the only permanent member of the U.N. Security Council that is in attendance this week, and with criticism from a lot of smaller nations that the U.S. has been focusing on Ukraine too much at all costs and at the expense of other important issues around the world.

Now, the administration says that's not true. That's one of the reasons why President Biden is going to be meeting with five leaders of central Asian nations for the first time to talk about the need to counter China, especially in that region.

And he'll also be meeting with Brazil's president to talk about some labor issues in that country and also the prime minister of Israel for the first time since the controversial judicial reform process moved on in that country.

So they say he's still focusing on the matters at hand, highlighting important things from the U.S.'s agenda. But they acknowledge that perhaps the conversation, the condemnation will not land as heavily as they might hope it would.

HARLOW: What about politically? I mean, he's dealing with some pretty rough polling numbers. How does this play for him politically?

TAUSCHE: Well, it depends on how he shows. I mean, certainly, the president is in his comfort zone most when he's -- HARLOW: Yes.

TAUSCHE: -- on the world stage. This is -- these international engagements are usually a feather in his cap, but it's the domestic developments that move the poll numbers here.

And so perhaps for the burgeoning campaign effort, less important is, you know, what he's able to achieve at the United Nations, which doesn't always resonate with the American people, nor does the G-20 or any of the forthcoming summits that are packing the calendar.

And more important is whether the U.S. can avoid a government shutdown.

HARLOW: Yes.

TAUSCHE: You know, whether some of these domestic agenda items can get across the finish line. How people feel when they start repaying their student loans --

HARLOW: October 1.

TAUSCHE: -- in just over a month's time.

HARLOW: Yes.

TAUSCHE: So there are a lot of other issues that are going to be pestering the president from the polling perspective. But certainly, they hope that this is going to be one event that's going to be on the positive side of the ledger.

HARLOW: It's interesting. As he does this on the world stage, we know now Trump is going to go talk to union autoworkers next week on the domestic stage. It will be interesting.

Kayla, thank you very much.

Let's bring in chief national security correspondent and anchor, Jim Sciutto, at the table; and Bloomberg editor and foreign affairs columnist, Bobby Ghosh.

Jim, you take issue with some of the criticism here from Republicans on this Iran deal. It was interesting. Brett McGurk, national security coordinator for the Middle East, talked to Jason Rezaian from "The Washington Post," who'd been held in Iran for more than 500 days. And Jason asked him, Are you hopeful that we will see a day that Iran stops taking hostages like this?

His answer, No, not under the current system. So to the critics who say this doesn't deter Iran.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT/ANCHOR: Here's the trouble, is that hostage diplomacy has become a thing. Not just Iran, but Russia, China. They take Americans and people of other nationalities, in effect, as collateral, as hostages that they can gain something, either to pressure the United States or to gain something in return.

Prisoners of their own nationalities or money or other concessions. This is becoming more of a weapon, not less of a weapon.

Invariably -- and then, by the way, both Republican and Democratic administrations have made deals with Iran and other countries and Russia, by the way, to release. In which case you give something up to do that, right?

The argument is by doing that, you encourage the next hostage to be taken. And there's certainly some truth to that.

[06:10:02]

The flip is that how do you get Americans home? Right? And invariably, it's going to require giving something in return. Then it becomes how much is too much?

The trouble is this has become a thing. Right? And countries are taking advantage of it. And the U.S. is trying to be tough. Trying to deter it. Trying to disincentivize it.

But when the choice is between -- what the administration will say, when the choice is between taking Americans home or leaving them where they are, they'd rather get Americans home.

MATTINGLY: Bobby, when it comes to the president's remarks today, all presidents but certainly this president used the U.N. General Assembly speech, the annual speech as an effort -- opportunity to put a marker down. Right? Kind of take a step back and look at the bigger picture, lay out their theory of the case.

I was struck by something that former vice president, Mike Pence, said on the campaign trail. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE PENCE (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Some Republican candidates, including my former running mate, are abandoning the traditional conservative position of American leadership on the world stage and embracing a new and dangerous form of isolationism.

I believe isolationism is just another word for appeasement. And let's be clear, appeasement will not make America any safer. In fact, appeasement would only make America and the world more dangerous.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: Not sure there's many issues where the former vice president and President Biden align. I think, generally, American's role in the world is, to some degree, one of them.

I guess my question is, in the audience today, the kind of inter- domestic warfare that's going on about the direction of the country and foreign policy, what do other countries think of that? BOBBY GHOSH, EDITOR AND FOREIGN AFFAIRS COLUMNIST, BLOOMBERG: Well,

the other countries will be watching. They'll -- they'll know that this country is now entering the presidential election cycle. Because the -- the candidate on the other side is most likely to be Donald Trump, they will be bracing for that possibility.

They will be looking at Biden's poll numbers that we were talking about earlier, and wondering. And probably quite a lot of the folks in the audience will be worrying about the possibility of Trump coming back. Not so much because of the -- they care one way or the other about domestic politics in the United States.

But about the unpredictability of Donald Trump. The fact that, you know, if Trump were to come back, that would -- that would throw all their calculations off, because they just don't know what to expect.

Biden is predictable. Biden is the devil you know, versus the devil you don't.

So a lot of people in the audience will be -- will be paying attention not so much to what Biden says but what they're hearing on the sidelines, what they're reading in the American newspapers, what their cab driver was telling them on their way to the United Nations. That's what they will be looking at.

SCIUTTO: And that's something I hear frequently when I speak to leaders in Europe or in Asia, is this idea of a pendulum swing in the U.S. approach to the world, that with each election -- you know, under Trump you have a certain approach, America first, however you want to describe it. Biden is more traditional, old-school, bipartisan, America is a leader in the world, standing up for democracy, values, et cetera.

And then this concern, you have 2024 coming -- that well, the pendulum might swing back again. So what exactly is America's position in the world? And Biden today is going to make the case for the kind of old- school approach.

HARLOW: Guys, stick around. Thank you very much for the reporting. Jim, Bobby and Kayla. We have a lot ahead.

MATTINGLY: Well, Kevin McCarthy is shrugging off threats to oust him as House speaker as he grapples with GOP infighting and a looming government shutdown.

HARLOW: The United Auto Workers union is now threatening to expand this strike. New deadline Detroit's Big Three automakers are facing. That's ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We just need better wages. We need to be able to support our families. Equal pay.

You shouldn't have to choose between paying a mortgage and paying a car note. (END VIDEO CLIP)

[06:17:12]

MATTINGLY: Well, this morning in "How the House Republican Conference Turns," House Speaker Kevin McCarthy still clinging to the short-term government funding deal reached by six Republicans over the weekend, despite multiple warnings from multiple conservatives they're going to oppose it.

Now, McCarthy can only afford to lose four votes without relying on Democrats. And even if it does somehow pass the House, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer warning it will never pass the Senate.

CNN's Lauren Fox joins us now.

Lauren, this is a mess. We've known it was going to be a mess, but I think it's messier than the mess that we thought, if that's plausible. How does this end?

LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Phil. This is really starting to erupt. with House conservatives going after one another on Twitter. You saw bitter infighting yesterday.

And this is because three members of the House Freedom Caucus negotiated this deal with the Main Street Caucus. And it is not being well-received.

Like you noted, there are now more than a dozen conservatives who say they're either going to vote no against this proposal or are leaning against voting for this proposal.

Meanwhile, leadership still trying to bring this to the floor as soon as Thursday. And all Republicans are starting to believe a shutdown is not only looming but likely. Here's what they said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MIKE LAWLER (R-NY): This is not conservative Republicanism. This is stupidity. They don't know how to take yes for an answer. It's a clown show.

If you want to have a stronger hand, run better candidates and win more elections. You keep running lunatics, you're going to be in this position.

REP. TONY GONZALES (R-TX): I think we're headed for a government shutdown with no end in sight. Part of it is we're not having real conversations.

REP. BYRON DONALDS (R-FL): Take a shot at me, I'm going to say something, you know? What about -- didn't we go through this back in January? 6'2", 275, baby. I ain't worried about none of that stuff.

(END VIDEO CLIP) FOX: House Republicans, Phil, are going to gather for their conference meeting this morning. That is when they are hoping to sort out some of these differences.

But they have such a long way to go at this point, Phil. It's hard to imagine how they get this bill on the floor as it's written now without some significant changes, if McCarthy thinks he's going to get the votes.

MATTINGLY: I've got to be honest, FOX, we need to get an iso of Manu's face when he and Byron Donalds were going back and forth. You guys had some -- Hill team had some great reporting last night about Republicans considering working with Democrats to actually move this forward.

I feel like we hear that every single time we get into this, and it never comes to fruition. What's the deal with that?

FOX: Yes. I mean, you have a number of Republicans like Mike Lawler who are starting to say, if Republicans aren't going to work together, then we can just cross the aisle and get some Democratic votes.

But it is a little more complicated than that. And Democrats that I'm talking to say that there are some procedural steps that Lawler would have to take in order to get that process rolling.

It's a rare procedural tool that you can use on the floor to try to force a vote on something. But, there may not actually be enough time.

And there's kind of always this open question of are you just trying to whip votes for Kevin McCarthy on this Republican C.R. by threatening to work with Democrats? Or are you actually serious that you're going to cross the aisle, you're going to work with us, and we're going to get this across the finish line?

I think that there's a lot of question marks on that this morning. We're just going to have to wait and see how it plays out over the next 24 hours, Phil.

MATTINGLY: No question. Lauren Fox, great reporting, as always. Thank you -- Poppy.

HARLOW: All right. Now to the auto strike. There is a new deadline. That is Friday. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHAWN FAIN, PRESIDENT, UNITED AUTO WORKERS: If we don't make serious progress by noon on Friday, September 22nd, more locals will be called on to stand up and join the strike.

That will mark more than a week since our first members walked out. And that will mark more than a week of the Big Three failing to make progress in negotiations toward reaching a deal that does right by our members.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARLOW: That is the union president. And the message comes nearly -- as nearly 13,000 autoworkers start their fifth day on the picket lines.

Our Gabe Cohen is live outside one of the striking plants in Toledo. I mean, the strategy here -- and they've conceded this -- is get leverage by these sort of surprise strikes at all different plants. And now they say this is going to expand on Friday if there's no deal. Is that right?

GABE COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, Poppy. And it really refutes some of the reports, some of the claims we had heard in recent days that they had been taking these steps in the right direction. We had seen statements from the Big Three or sources at the union, saying that there were at least semi-productive conversations happening.

And yet, we saw Shawn Fain come out late last night with this new deadline, noon on Friday, saying more units like the one here in Toledo could go on strike, which would mean more facilities may shut down.

And as you heard him say, he said it would mark a week of really little progress in negotiations, really pointing the finger at the Big Three.

So again, it says that little progress is being made at the table. We know there's no main table negotiations happening today. They're scheduled with General Motors and Ford for tomorrow and then Stellantis on Thursday.

And right now, nearly 3,000 workers across the -- across the U.S. are on strike.

I want to actually bring one of them in right now. Annette, you want to join me for a second. You're the strike captain here. I want to get your thoughts on this news, Shawn Fain's announcement yesterday, that more facilities could go on strike this Friday if there's not progress. What do you think?

ANNETTE ALFARO, AUTOWORKER STRIKER: It's a scary -- it's a scary situation for Toledo and Detroit. We're the Big Three. And this is the moneymaker for all of us. So, we need to -- we need to -- you need to --

MATTINGLY: It's OK. Are you worried -- are you worried that there hasn't been much progress at this point?

ALFARO: Yes, yes. I think it could go -- To me, my personal opinion, I feel like we're heading the way GM was three, four years ago when they were on strike for eight weeks. I'm afraid that could be us.

COHEN: OK. Well, thank you so much. Really appreciate it.

Again -- again, sorry. There's no time. Again, Poppy, this new deadline Friday at noon, and we'll see if more facilities go on strike.

HARLOW: It's really interesting, because there was that strike against GM in 2019. And she seems obviously concerned about sort of the broader economic impact of all Big Three automakers in this strike. Thank you, Gabe, for the reporting -- Phil.

MATTINGLY: Well, former President Trump is ditching the second primary debate, instead visiting those strike -- striking autoworkers, this time in Detroit. But the union head blasting it.

HARLOW: Also, Canada's prime minister, Justin Trudeau, with allegations saying, quote, "There's credible intelligence linking India to the assassination of a prominent religious leader on Canadian soil." We have all of that reporting and the international rift, ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:27:47]

MATTINGLY: Well, the second Republican debate next week in California will once again be Trumpless. The Republican front-runner instead plans to head to Detroit to inject himself into the autoworkers strike.

Now we're told he'll deliver a primetime speech in front of current and former members of the autoworkers union. That's all according to a source familiar with his plans.

And we're learning this morning the Trump campaign has produced a radio ad that will begin running today in Detroit and Toledo, Ohio. The ad designed to align the former president with the auto workers, even as it doesn't mention the strike specifically.

The campaign is also considering the possibility of having Trump make an appearance at the picket line.

Joining us now, White House and politics editor at Bloomberg, Mario Parker; and national political correspondent for "The New York Times," Lisa Lerer. Guys, thank you. Welcome to the table.

Mario, nobody covers UAW and the strike like your organization. Kind of lived and died by their coverage over the course of the last several days.

Trump's decision to try and insert himself, not just through statements but also by physically being there, his campaign trying to take advantage, I think, from a Michigan perspective. What does that do to those dynamics on the ground right now?

MARIO PARKER, WHITE HOUSE AND POLITICS EDITOR, BLOOMBERG: Well, what Trump is trying to do is drive a wedge between the rank-and-file leadership with Shawn Fain, the UAW's president, right?

We know, Phil, from years of covering Trump that the rank-and-file hasn't always followed the direction of the leadership, right? Trump feels as though he's been able to connect with those blue-collar workers with his brand of populism.

And so what you're seeing is he -- him trying to drive a wedge between both the leadership but also drive a wedge between unions and Biden in a key swing state.

HARLOW: But what's also sort of interesting and different this time around is that Shawn Fain is the first union leader of the UAW in many years to actually be elected directly by the union workers. Right? Before it was sort of their heads that elected him. So it's different. He seems more aligned with them now, which might change the dynamic.

But also the fact that Trump only lost Michigan by, what, three points? And now you've got this opening, don't you, for Republicans. Not only in the presidential race but in the Senate race.

PARKER: And that's the -- that's the key, Poppy, because Trump right now, he's criticizing Shawn Fain, right? They're kind of in a war of words right now at this point.

But, as you mentioned, again, he -- he won Michigan in 2016. Democrats have done a lot over the last four years or so to try to shore that up, secure it.