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House of Representatives to Vote on Impeachment Inquiry into President Biden; Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D- NY) Interviewed on Pending Impeachment Inquiry Vote in House and President Biden's Reelection Campaign; NH Governor Chris Sununu Endorses Nikki Haley; Day 3 of Rudy Giuliani Defamation Damages Trial. Aired 8-8:30a ET

Aired December 13, 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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POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. It's the top of the hour. We are glad you are with us. And in just hours from now the House is set to vote to formalize an impeachment inquiry into President Biden after a resolution passed yesterday. Republicans have alleged the president benefitted from his family's foreign business dealings. They have not provided evidence of wrongdoing by the president. Top Democrat in the House Hakeem Jeffries with us in just moments.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN ANCHOR: And Rudy Giuliani is back in court today after jurors heard graphic voicemails that one election worker says she received because of Giuliani's lies about the election. The judge also rebuking Trump's former attorney after he repeated those lies once again about the election and those election workers outside the courthouse this week.

HARLOW: In half-an-hour, the Labor Department will release a key report giving us a critical look at the state of inflation in this country. We will have the numbers for you as soon as they come in.

This hour of CNN THIS MORNING starts now.

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REP. JIM MCGOVERN, (D-MA) RANKING MEMBER, RULES COMMITTEE: Trump says jump, the MAGA extremists say, how high? Donald Trump asks them to impeach Joe Biden, and here we are. And when this is all over, I am confident that the American people will overwhelmingly agree that this whole impeachment stunt is a national disgrace. There is nothing there. There is no smoke. And so this is a colossal waste of time.

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HARLOW: It's going forward for now. Good morning, everyone. I'm Poppy Harlow with Phil Mattingly in New York. And here is where we begin. The House getting ready to vote to formally launch an impeachment inquiry into President Biden even though Republicans to date have not shown any direct evidence that the president did anything wrong on this front. House Speaker Mike Johnson and his leadership team say they are confident, though, they do have enough votes.

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REP. MIKE JOHNSON, (R-LA) HOUSE SPEAKER: We have shown great restraint. There are a lot of people who are frustrated that this hasn't moved fast faster.

There's a big distinction between what's happening now and what the Democrats do. Those were rushed sham impeachments. They did it quickly. They did not follow any of the procedures that I just described. We have three committees investigating this and following the truth where they lead, and they have no option in doing anything else. It's Ways and Means, Judiciary, and Oversight, and they have uncovered some alarming facts about the Biden family and their dealings.

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MATTINGLY: It is worth nothing that is the same Mike Johnson who had this to say almost exactly four years ago about Democrats wanting impeach Donald Trump.

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REP. MIKE JOHNSON, (R-LA) HOUSE SPEAKER: The founders of this country warned against a single party impeachment for good reason. They feared that it would bitterly and perhaps irreparably divide the nation. I hope and pray that future Congresses can and will exercise greater restraint.

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MATTINGLY: We begin with Lauren Fox live on Capitol Hill. Lauren, the biggest question that I have is you talked to, and you have done it a lot with great reporting, some of the more moderate Republicans of the Republican conference. They say look, this is just the inquiry. We are doing this for tools. It doesn't mean we have made up our minds on impeaching President Biden. Is there any way this doesn't end with an impeachment vote?

LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, they are really rationalizing this vote potentially happening later today as really just a baby step, right, that this is just opening the door, getting more information. They still don't see the evidence that they believe would lead them to vote for impeachment against Joe Biden, and yet they argue that this has to happen because they argue it strengthens and bolsters their case in court.

But you bring up a really important point, Phil, which is the underlying political reality. Once you start down this road, the base is going to be hungry to move forward with impeachment, an actual vote against the president of the United States. And right now, that is really the difficult place that the speaker finds himself in. It's important to point out that an impeachment inquiry was announced this fall by former speaker Kevin McCarthy. They are already in that process, Phil, and yet here they are taking this formal step today.

It's also an important day on Capitol Hill because Hunter Biden is scheduled to be before the committees behind closed doors. Whether or not he shows up is going to be really a key question today. We do not know the answer to that.

[08:05:05]

But that is something else that is bolstering Republicans as they prepare to leave for the holidays.

HARLOW: All right, Lauren Fox, thanks for the reporting on Capitol Hill.

MATTINGLY: There is a lot to get to this morning. Joining us to talk about all of it, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York. Sir, we appreciate your time this morning. I want to start with what I was asking Lauren Fox about, because I do think it's a critical question. When Republicans say this is just opening and formalizing an inquiry, is there any way you see this not ending in a vote to impeach President Biden?

REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES, (D-NY) HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: That remains to be seen. What we do know is that there is zero evidence that President Biden has engaged in an impeachable offense. There is zero evidence that President Biden has engaged in any wrongdoing whatsoever. There is zero evidence that President Biden has broken the law. The Republicans have now reviewed more than 100,000 pages of documents, heard from many witnesses, and they can't find a scintilla of evidence to justify this impeachment inquiry.

It is happening because the puppet master in chief, the former, twice impeached, so-called president of the United States of America has ordered them to launch this impeachment inquiry as a political hit job on President Joe Biden.

MATTINGLY: You believe that's explicitly the case, that because the former president has tweeted about this, because his allies have certainly pushed this throughout much of this Congress, that that's why this is happening, that's the only reason is this is happening?

JEFFRIES: There are no facts. There is no evidence. There is no basis in law for this illegitimate impeachment inquiry. And so the only reasonable conclusion I believe that people can reach is that the Republicans have been directed to execute this political hit, this political stunt, engage in this political gamesmanship as it relates to President Joe Biden as part of an effort to try to take him down in advance of the 2024 presidential election.

It's not going to work because the American people will be focused on the issues. And we, as House Democrats, the president, Senate Democrats, we are going to continue to put people over politics and focus on the things that matter, making a difference in the lives of everyday Americans on the economy, on health care, on a woman's freedom to make her own reproductive health care decisions.

MATTINGLY: Your point about you don't believe this is going to work. A member of your caucus, who I will acknowledge is running for president against the incumbent president, Dean Phillips, suggested in an interview earlier this week that that would make -- be problematic politically for President Biden, would make him, quote, unelectable. You think that's wrong?

JEFFRIES: I think it's dead wrong. President Biden has an incredible track record of success. He has produced over and over again on issue after issue, from the American Rescue Plan, shots in arms, money in pockets, kids back in school, allowing us to emerge from a once-in-a- century pandemic, and put our economy on an incredible path forward. We still have a lot of work to do to build an economy from the middle out and the bottom up, but we are moving in the right direction.

The infrastructure investment and jobs act was historic, fixing our crumbling bridges, roads, tunnels, our airports, our sewer and water systems, clean water in every single community, creating millions of good paying jobs. The Inflation Reduction Act to strike a blow again the climate crisis. The largest investment in combatting the climate crisis by any country in the history of the world. We've lowered the cost of insulin to $35 a month, and we are bringing domestic manufacturing jobs back home to the United States of America.

That's an incredible track record of success that President Biden can articulate to the American people, not to say reward us, but to say trust us. We are going to continue to do more to solve problems for hard working American taxpayers.

MATTINGLY: When you list all that off, and certainly that was the first two years when the Democrats were in the majority as well with the legislative accomplishments, do you believe the president has done a good enough job of articulating that laundry list of legislative victories?

JEFFRIES: Well, over the next year we are going to have to continue to make sure that we are communicating aggressively with the American people about the things that we have done as a foundation for our vision to make a difference in the lives of the American people as we move forward. There is much more work that needs to be done on the economy to combat inflation, with respect to affordable housing, fighting for lowers costs across the board, safer communities to grow the middle class. That's our vision for the next four years at the completion of President Biden's first term will look like. And we have an opportunity over the next 11 months to really articulate that vision and contrast it with the do-nothing Republican Congress. Extreme MAGA Republicans have nothing to show for their time in the majority, which is why they are wasting time and taxpayer dollars on an illegitimate impeachment inquiry.

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MATTINGLY: There is a very significant be policy negotiation going on across the capital from where you are standing right now between Senate Democrats and Republicans over the president's national security supplemental package. It seemed like last night, based on several hours of closed-door discussions, they've at least made some progress compared to where they had been for days prior. Do you trust, particularly on the issue of immigration, that the administration won't sign anything or won't push anything that runs contrary to where your caucus is?

JEFFRIES: Well, our position is that -- and I'm confident that the administration will proceed in this manner along with Senate Democrats -- is that we have to fund America's national security priorities as it relates to the safety and security of the American people, and that connects with making sure that we are supporting Israel's effort to decisively defeat Hamas and the terrorist regime that inflicted such brutality on the Israeli people on October 7th.

We have to make sure we stand by Ukraine in its effort to aggressively push back against Russian aggression, and the Ukrainian war effort has been successful to date. Fifty percent of the territory initially captured by Russia has been recaptured. More than 300,000 casualties have been inflicted upon the Russian army. We have to continue that war effort, and, of course, make sure that we deal with our other national security priorities.

With respect to the border issue, it's my view that the administration will continue to proceed and make sure that these discussions are consistent with our values as a nation of immigrants, but also consistent with our values as a nation anchored in the rule of law.

MATTINGLY: If an agreement is reached, do you believe the Speaker will put it on the floor?

JEFFRIES: That remains to be seen, because the pro-Putin caucus of the House Republican conference is extreme, it's loud, and it's growing. It's led by Marjorie Taylor Greene and Jim Jordan on the inside, and on the outside, it's led by Donald Trump and Tucker Carlson. And it seems increasingly clear that this pro-Putin caucus would like to see Vladimir Putin win in Ukraine, which would be bad for America's national security, which is why it's an open question as to whether House Republicans are serious at all about funding the Ukrainian war efforts.

MATTINGLY: There was a major, at least in New York politics yesterday, decision that came through when it comes to redistricting, when it comes to how New York districts are set up. New York was always going to be front and center, center stage in 2024 for the House and the battle for the House. Did the decision yesterday clinch your pathway to the speakership in 2025?

JEFFRIES: No, we are not looking at the decision through the lens of what may happen in November of 2024. We are looking at the court of appeals decision through the lens of what the constitution of the state of New York requires, which is that congressional lines be drawn by an independent redistricting commission, period, full stop. We are operating right now under congressional lines that were drawn by an out of town, unelected special master who was air dropped into the state of New York by a rightwing extreme judge from Steuben County, which, Phil, by the way, is closer to Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Toronto, than it is to Westchester, Long Island, and New York City.

And so this was a broken process that was forced upon the voters of New York state. And now, because of the court of appeals decisions, we can get back to doing things consistent with the New York state constitution, which will lead to fairer maps in the state of New York.

MATTINGLY: It is a position Republicans certainly dispute. But there is a lot on the line in the state, no question about that that. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, we appreciate your time this morning. Thank you.

JEFFRIES: Thank you.

HARLOW: That was a really interesting interview. The question is, what does it mean for Jeffries potentially being speaker?

Nikki Haley getting a surprise endorsement from New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu weeks before the state's pivotal primary. What impact could that have on Former President Trump's commanding lead?

MATTINGLY: And an election worker in tears as she testified about the death threats she received because of Rudy Giuliani's election lies. Those horrifying messages next.

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HARLOW: Welcome back to CNN this morning. Nikki Haley getting a big endorsement from New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu. The support from the popular governor is a big boost for Haley's campaign, and it comes just over a month before New Hampshire's primary.

Can that endorsement, though, actually narrow the gap between her and President Trump's commanding lead? CNN Senior Data reporter Harry Enten joins us now, he's popular.

HARRY ENTEN, CNN SENIOR DATA REPORTER: He is.

HARLOW: She cares a little bit about the state of New Hampshire, what does this mean?

ENTEN: Yeah, I mean, look, could it boost Nikki Haley? Sure, but I want to go back through history, go back a few years, go back last year, actually, big 2022 Sununu endorsements. In the United States Senate race, Chuck Morse lost the primary.

George Hansel lost the primary for the US House in the second district. Morse, of course, lost to a Trump backhand, Don Bolduc, who was able to win that primary and then, of course, lose in the general election. Exactly right, and I think that part of the argument that Sununu is making now, is Trump can't win in the general election.

HARLOW: I just think before we move on, one interesting thing about that Bolduc support was that he differed with him on several key issues, and ultimately went behind him. He's pretty in lockstep with Nikki Haley.

ENTEN: That is true, you know, the other thing I will note is, of course, these early state governors have been endorsing candidates besides Donald Trump, right? So, in Iowa, Ron DeSantis got the backing of Kim Reynolds, the Republican governor there.

And there was a good poll question, does Reynolds' endorsement make you more likely to support DeSantis? Just 31 percent of likely caucusgoers said yes. The clear majority, 54 percent, said no effect, less likely at 14 percent.

HARLOW: That's interesting.

ENTEN: Exactly.

HARLOW: Less likely.

ENTEN: Less likely, less likely. So, the majority clearly said no effect or less likely. But here's the thing. Here's the other thing I will point out here, which is endorsements overall. That is only Nikki Haley's second endorsement. That's a new, new endorsement from governors or members of Congress.

DeSantis only has seven. Trump, I'm going to come over here, Poppy, 97 overall. So, Trump is leading in endorsements, and this is a much different

thing than what we saw eight years ago.

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Where Trump had zero endorsements through the Iowa caucuses. His first endorsement didn't come until February 24th. These 97, do they matter Poppy? I'll leave this with the audience. Does the endorsement leader win the primary pretty much all the time on the GOP side?

Yes, the only example of no was Trump in 2016. Of course, now Trump is the endorsement leader and is, of course, the clear and likely front- runner to win the nomination at this point.

HARLOW: It's really interesting, thank you, Harry.

ENTEN: Thank you.

HARLOW: Appreciate it, be sure to tune in today to Inside Politics with Dana Bash. You're going to see Nikki Haley and Chris Sununu, they'll both join Dana for a joint interview, that's noon Eastern time right here on CNN.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN NEWS ANCHOR: Well, also happening today, Rudy Giuliani will be back in court for the third day of his defamation trial. Shaye Moss, one of the Georgia election workers who successfully sued Giuliani, will be back on the stand after telling jurors her life was changed forever by Giuliani's, quote, "crazy lies" about her.

Yesterday, Moss told the court, quote, "I am most scared of my son finding me or my mom hanging outside my house on a tree or having to get the news at school that his mama was killed." Those are actual words used by her. The jurors will decide just how much money Giuliani owes the two election workers.

And that all comes as the judge slammed Giuliani for these comments he made outside the courtroom on Monday.

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RUDY GIULIANI, FORMER TRUMP ATTORNEY: But everything I said about them is true.

REPORTER: Do you regret what you did to -

GIULIANI: Of course not, I don't regret it, I told the truth, they were engaged in changing votes.

REPOTER: There's no proof of that.

GIULIANI: Oh, you're damn right there is, stay tuned.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: There is not, CNN's Katelyn Polantz is tracking this trial for us. And, Katelyn, I'm not a lawyer, but it seems pretty obvious that making defamatory statements against the plaintiffs during a trial where you could owe millions for defaming those very plaintiffs is not a great strategy and very much kind of aligns with Giuliani being completely wrong and lying all the time.

What did the judge say about this?

KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN SENIOR CRIME AND JUSTICE REPORTER: Well, Phil, that's exactly right. When Giuliani walked outside of court, and said those statements on camera after the first day of trial, the judge heard them, the plaintiff's lawyers heard them, and they were addressed in court.

The judge brought it up yesterday morning and she talked to his attorney about it, saying, you know this is very unfair to the plaintiffs. He can't be doubling down on these things. Can't you control what's going on here? He should be able to follow the court orders here.

And his attorney essentially says, I can't control everything he does, he knows what defamation is. And so there was that rebuke in court from the judge, essentially warning Giuliani, don't continue doing this. You have already been found liable here.

We know that these statements are false. You're on trial, it's very unfair to keep repeating these things publicly. Now, we are waiting to see what happens in this trial over the next couple of days because Giuliani, at the end of those remarks, says, stay tuned.

And he and his attorney have already pledged that he's going to be taking the stand in this case in his defense. And so, he is very likely to be put under oath and have to testify to this jury after days of quite emotional testimony that we're already into from the plaintiff's side.

The side of Shaye Moss and Ruby Freeman, those two Georgia election workers who were just lied about, and those lies were spread all over the country after the election.

MATTINGLY: Can I get at that for a minute, Katelyn? Because the jurors heard some of these awful, horrific voicemails that the election workers received, take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WOMEN: We're going to burn your store down.

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MATTINGLY: There were hundreds of these messages, according to these two women. Do we have any sense Giuliani says he's going to take the stand, and so does the lawyer? Do we have any sense of where this is going to end in terms of how much money he may have to pay here?

POLANTZ: Well, these two women, Ruby Freeman, and Shaye Moss, are asking for between 15.5 and $43 million for reputational damage alone. They're also asking for the jury to award them money for the emotional distress that they're going through and also to punish Giuliani.

So that could be an astronomical amount if the jury agrees with them. And yesterday, Phil, I was in court for several hours. Shaye Moss's testimony was gripping and emotional, and she was quite emotional.

She spoke quite a bit about how she feared for her safety, for her family's safety, how when she tried to get an additional job, she went after she was an election worker, she went and interviewed at Chick- fil-A.

The interviewer showed her one of these false stories in the news about her where the word fraud was written across her picture and her mother's picture, and she just left the interview, she hasn't been working since and it just has been a very, very gripping testimony.

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One of the things she said on the stand as she was being questioned by Giuliani's attorney yesterday about the amount that he may have to pay. She essentially said, my reputation can't be repaired because your client continues to make false statements.

MATTINGLY: I hope everybody listens to that. Two, remember the testimony from the January 6 committee, and the deposition as well. You want to talk about real people, the real impact of lies these two women demonstrated. Katelyn Polantz, please keep us posted on this trial as it plays out, thank you.

HARLOW: A Polish lawmaker took a fire extinguisher to a menorah in the country's parliament while Jewish community members were inside celebrating Hanukkah. Why he says he did it and his punishment ahead.

MATTINGLY: CNN's Fareed Zakaria offers strong criticism of the state of American universities.

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FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN ANCHOR "GPS": America's top colleges are no longer seen as bastions of excellence, but partisan outfits.

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MATTINGLY: His comments picked up a lot of steam online. He caught the attention of Elon Musk; we're going to talk to him about his take and what it means next.

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