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Colorado State Supreme Court Disqualifies Former President Trump from Being on State Primary Ballot Due to His Actions During January 6th Capitol Riot; U.S. Supreme Court Likely to Rule on Colorado State Supreme Court's Decision Disqualifying Former President Trump from State Primary Ballot; Today: Biden Visits Milwaukee to Tout Economic Policies; White House Sees Greater Chances for Economic Soft Landing. Aired 8-8:30a ET

Aired December 20, 2023 - 08:00   ET

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

[08:00:00]

KARA SCANNELL, CNN REPORTER: Days to appeal this decision, but if not, these names will be public just right around January 2nd, just about the first of the year.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN ANCHOR: Fascinating story that's been long running. Kara Scannell, thanks so much.

And CNN THIS MORNING continues right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JENA GRISWOLD, COLORADO SECRETARY OF STATE: The fact of the matter is the Colorado Supreme Court has determined that Donald Trump did engage in insurrection and that his actions have disqualified him from being president. And I just think that the gravity of that in itself is just remarkable. We've never had a president inside an insurrection and then try to run for the presidency again. We'll see if the United States Supreme Court weighs in, and I, of course, will follow whatever court order or decision is in place by the time that we certify the ballot.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. What a night if you're just waking up. There is a lot of news to get to. I'm Poppy Harlow with Phil Mattingly. It is 8:00 a.m. here on the east coast. And that was Colorado secretary of state reacting to the unprecedented decision by the State Supreme Court that disqualifies President Trump from appearing on the ballot of that state because of his role in the insurrection. This morning Trump is vowing to appeal to the Supreme Court.

MATTINGLY: Also new this morning, brand-new CNN reporting finds that recent negative polls about President Biden's handling of the economy may be frustrating. And sources say he is growing inpatient over the struggle to change public opinion despite positive economic news and major legislative wins in recent months. How the White House plans to change that perception, ahead.

HARLOW: And developing now, Israel back at the negotiating table, putting out a new proposal for another pause in fighting in exchange for Hamas releasing hostages.

This hour of CNN THIS MORNING starts now.

All right, take a look at the front page of newspapers across America this morning. "The Denver Post" gets right to the point, "Trump off the '24 ballot." In a historic and, yes, unprecedented ruling, Colorado Supreme Court has decided that Trump engaged in an insurrection on January 6th and is, therefore, disqualified from being anywhere on the state's primary ballot.

MATTINGLY: And what that brings forth is a potentially epic legal showdown that could have huge implications for the 2024 presidential election. Trump is vowing to take this case all the way to the court just weeks before the primary season kicks off. His campaign wasting no time fundraising off the ruling, blasting out emails asking for money to, quote, fight back. Colorado is the first state where a challenge like this has succeeded. Similar attempts to remove Trump from the ballot have already been rejected in Arizona, New Hampshire, Minnesota, and Michigan. A lawsuit is still pending in Oregon, and the rejection in Michigan is being appealed.

HARLOW: Joining us now, former Homeland Security Secretary under President Obama, Jeh Johnson. He is now a partner at Paul Weiss. And former federal appeals court judge J. Michael Luttig, one of the country's best known conservative jurists. You will remember him. He advised Vice President Pence and his legal team in the days ahead of January 6th to reject the fraudulent claims by Trump allies. Early in his career he worked in the Reagan White House and served as a law clerk to the late Justice Antonin Scalia. They are both co-chairs of the American Bar Association's Taskforce for American Democracy. And democracy is at the core of this. Gentlemen, thank you for being here. Let me start with you, Judge Luttig. In the simplest of terms, what does this really mean?

JUDGE J. MICHAEL LUTTIG, U.S. COURT OF APPEALS FOR FOURTH CIRCUIT (RET.): Good morning, Poppy and Phil. Thank you for having the secretary and I on this morning. As our country's preeminent Constitutional scholar, Professor Laurence Tribe and I said in our article in August in "The Atlantic," this decision will test whether America is committed to America's democracy, to its Constitution, and to the rule of law. This historic decision was a model of judicial decision-making. It is unassailable in every respect. It was a masterful interpretation of section 14 -- of 14th Amendment, Section 3, of the Constitution, and the disqualification of the former president for his insurrection or rebellion against the Constitution of the United States.

MATTINGLY: Mr. Secretary, to that point, it's been striking the kind of divide within conservative legal circles over this issue. Judge Luttig calls it unassailable, a model. A lot of other conservative lawyers are saying 9-0, the Supreme Court knocks this down, no questions asked. Why? Why do you think the split is? [08:05:01]

JEH JOHNSON, FORMER HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: Well, first of all, I think this decision is simply a plain reading of the U.S. Constitution. It's a plain reading of Section 3 of 14th Amendment. And the Supreme Court simply has to take this case. And I'm sure Judge Luttig would agree. It meets all the criteria for when the Supreme Court takes the case. You have got conflicting decisions of the highest courts of several different states on an issue of the interpretation of the U.S. Constitution. There is a matter of national importance and there is a lot of urgency to this. The Supreme Court has to take this. I'd be stunned if they didn't take this.

And I read the decision. It is a very methodical, thoughtful, point- by-point interpretation and reading of the Constitution. And to those who say that the decision is anti-democratic, the provision is an eligibility provision. It's an eligibility provision for office just like you have is to be 35 to be president, just like you have to have been born in the United States to be president. It's an eligibility requirement. So if this stands, you can't vote for Donald Trump because he won't be on the ballot, like you can't vote for Arnold Schwarzenegger who was not born in the United States. So this is a time for judicial courage, obviously. There will be a huge amount of political pressure coming from both sides. But the Colorado Supreme Court stood up and adhered to its oath to support and defend the Constitution.

HARLOW: But Judge Luttig, Trump has not been charged nor convicted of inciting an insurrection. In fact, the special counsel didn't go that route. So there are a number of people this morning who are saying he hasn't even been convicted of this. How can you use this to disqualify him. How do you respond to that argument?

LUTTIG: Poppy, the 14th Amendment Section 3 is what we call self- executing. By that is meant that neither a finding by the Congress of the United States nor a conviction for the crime of insurrection or rebellion against the United States is required. That's very, very clear. Those who would characterize this decision as political or politics from a liberal state Supreme Court are misguided. That's, of course, what the former president and his supporters will say. There could be nothing further from the truth. This was a straightforward application of the 14th Amendment's plain terms. Those plain terms were supported, are supported by the ratification and the debate history of the 14th Amendment and Section 3 in particular.

As I said earlier, the opinion is unassailable as a matter of Constitutional interpretation of the 14th Amendment. I agree with the secretary that the Supreme Court will be obliged to take this case at some point or another, and that we should expect the Supreme Court to affirm the Colorado Supreme Court based upon the plain language and meaning of the 14th Amendment.

MATTINGLY: Mr. Secretary, I was struck by the number of Democrats who were texting back and forth and said, you can agree on the merits and still agree that this a dangerous path to go down based on January 6th, based on what we've seen with Trump supporters, with kind of the direction of politics in this country. Are they wrong?

JOHNSON: Oh, the concern from a political point of view is that the decision and the provision in the Constitution is somehow anti- democratic. In one sense, all eligibility requirements are anti- democratic because it means there are certain people who you might like to be president are ineligible to be president. And this was a duly enacted Constitutional amendment. It is still valid. It is still a valid provision of the Constitution. And it has to remain in force. And we have to enforce it. We have to adhere to the U.S. Constitution. And that's what the judges in the Colorado Supreme Court have done.

HARLOW: So that would then, playing this out, Judge Luttig, let's say that you're right on this and that the Supreme Court does rule that, indeed, and affirm the Colorado Supreme Court decision. What does that mean for all of those other states that rejected it and other states where this case may be brought?

[08:10:09]

LUTTIG: Poppy, let me just first add that it is not the former president's disqualification that is anti-democratic. The Constitution itself tells us that it is the conduct that gives rise to disqualification under the 14th Amendment that is anti-democratic.

As to the dangerousness that's being alleged by the politicians, that, of course, is to be expected. It is a serious matter, nonpolitical matter, though, to this extent. We live under the rule of law in this country. And it's imperative that all Americans accept the decisions of our courts, including the Supreme Court of the United States. It is not an option in the United States of America to protest in the streets decisions of our courts, state or federal.

What this decision does mean, to your question, is that there will never be a time when the former president is qualified or disqualified by the various states. That's why the Supreme Court will take this case. It will decide it and it will -- and that will be a uniform rule nationwide for at least the 2024 election. I caveat it that way because it is possible that the Supreme Court would decline to take this case because this case only disqualifies the former president from a state primary. It would be a legitimate interpretation of the Constitution that the states have the prerogative under the federal Constitution to conduct their primaries as they see fit without federal interference by the United States Constitution and Supreme Court.

MATTINGLY: The number of moving parts here are difficult to get your head around. You did a great job of kind of walking us through it. Jeh Johnson and Judge Michael Luttig, thank you guys very much. A lot more to come in a historic moment, a precedent, if any.

President Biden hits the road today to talk up the growing economy despite polls that say most Americans think it's actually getting work. We're going to ask his economic advisors if Biden can change the perception.

HARLOW: And this volcano in Iceland continuing to spew lava and toxic gas. Look at those images. What officials are saying on the ground ahead.

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[08:16:29]

MATTINGLY: President Biden is set to hit the road in the next couple of hours taking his economic message to Milwaukee. He is set to speak to the Wisconsin Black Chamber of Commerce and will highlight how his economic investments have led to the White House says is a boom for Black small businesses. He is also expected to announce new efforts to support underserved communities.

Now, this comes as new CNN reporting details how the president is getting more impatient with the White House's failure to change the public perception of his economic record.

CNN's Arlette Saenz is live for us at the White House.

This has been a problem that they have been grappling with for almost the entire time they've been in office. Do they have a solution?

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Phil, President Biden has started to show some signs of that frustration and impatience with the fact that some of these infrastructure and other pieces of legislation, that he won't be able to physically show off some of these funding projects, because they will take time to be implemented.

Three sources who are familiar with the president's comments said that he has been frustrated that even while he is traveling the country to try to promote these projects, these pieces of legislation, many of the projects won't even start being built for several years, really weighing on the possibility of whether voters will feel the impact of these projects.

We've seen the president traveling the country, trying to promote his initiatives. They're putting up these signs trying to highlight the fact that projects are being funded by the infrastructure law, but it really speaks to one of the challenges President Biden is facing heading into this election, as Americans' views of the economy still remain sour.

If you take a look at recent polling, a CNN polling has found that only 33 percent of registered voters approve of Biden's handling of the economy; when it comes to economic conditions, 71 percent said that they believe the economics conditions in the US are poor; 38 percent of those saying that they are very poor.

And then if you drill down into the battleground states, a poll from "The New York Times" last month found that voters trusted former President Donald Trump to handle the economy more than President Biden.

Now officials have been hoping that even as there are some bright spots in the economy, things like lower inflation, things like low unemployment, that that will start to resonate with voters as they're starting to feel the real-world impact of things like lower gas prices and food prices.

But for the president, it is one of the challenges he is facing heading into 2024. Today, he will be in the battleground state of Wisconsin trying to promote how the federal government has been helping Black businesses. Black voters, of course, are a very key constituency in his coalition that he is trying to keep together heading into 2024.

But the administration is facing an uphill battle at this time as they're trying to change these views, Americans' views on the economy, especially at a time where they are arguing that there are these bright spots, that so far haven't been resonating with Americans. They've argued this will take some time, but of course 2024 is now a year away.

MATTINGLY: Yes, connecting the numbers to help people feel an election may depend on it.

Arlette Saenz, thanks so much.

POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: Joining us now is Lael Brainard, the director of the National Economic Council. That's the team that advises the president on domestic and global economic policy.

It's great to have you, Lael. I appreciate it very much and let's start with the headline you made on Friday when you said the width of the runway for a soft landing has gotten much bigger. Is it too early to declare victory?

[08:20:01]

LAEL BRAINARD, DIRECTOR, WHITE HOUSE NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL: Well, I think we just need to keep working, but it is certainly the case that as 2023 comes to a close, it is a good moment to reflect how much better the economy is today than it was a year ago, two years ago, three years ago, and also how much better it was, it is today than what so many people have been saying a year ago.

Inflation is down more than two-thirds, and we've had the longest stretch of unemployment, below four percent in years, but of course, for the president, he always wants to know, well, what does that mean for middle class families? What does it mean, for workers? For wages? For their wallets? And there to, it does mean a much better end of the year than we saw one year ago or two years ago.

We're seeing gas prices down to $3.00 in most parts of the country. Prices down on groceries like milk, eggs, cheese, bacon, and we are seeing that wages are up for all workers, up by more than prices, so that according to analysis from the Joint Economic Committee, wages for each household have outpaced price growth by about $3,500.00 since January 2021. Those are all things that people concretely benefit from.

HARLOW: One area where there's still a lot of pain, and you acknowledged this in a call you out with reporters on Friday, is in housing. It now takes 41 percent of someone's median household income to cover home costs. I mean, that is staggering.

And we just heard a couple of days ago from federal data that US homelessness hit a record high this year. It is up 12 percent from last year. For families with kids, homelessness is up 16 percent -- and a big reason for that is the soaring rent prices.

How do you explain to people that do not feel like Bidenomics is working for them, especially on that front?

BRAINARD: Yes, we are very focused on a few areas where affordability is still a challenge for many families. Housing is one of those areas where people who already have homes and that percentage has actually increased a great deal over the last few years. They are feeling pretty good.

But people who are not able yet to purchase homes, looking at high mortgage rates is a real challenge. We've seen the mortgage rate come down by about one-and-a-half percentage points just in recent weeks. But even so, the affordability challenge is very great. And as you said on the most affordable housing, we have a real supply shortfall.

And so the president is going to keep pushing for a set of policies that would go a long way in creating a much more affordable home supply through low-income housing tax credits, affordable tax credits, and down payment assistance.

HARLOW: The economy is still moving at a pretty steady clip. Do you need this economy to slow down markedly in order to get inflation down to two percent?

BRAINARD: Well, I think that is what has been so heartening about where we are relative to where forecasters thought we would be.

You look a year ago, lots of forecasts of recession. They thought to get where we are today on inflation, which is inflation moving now, it's three percent. I expect that it will move below three percent. In order to get there, a lot of forecast said unemployment would have to surge and the economy would have to slow a lot. We haven't seen that.

We've seen in particular the labor market coming back into balance because Americans are coming back into the labor force, another 3.3 million Americans getting jobs over the last year. That's because the job market has been very good. Wages have been strong, and we've seen those great union contracts.

HARLOW: Can I ask? Despite all these indicators, the polling is not good. None of the polls for the economy are strong for the president. You just heard Arlette's reporting that he is frustrated with that and I wonder when you look at polls, like "The New York Times" saying 34 percent of voters list the economy as the top issue, and CNN polling showed seven in 10 Americans rate the country's economic conditions as poor.

When you look at all of that polling compared with the facts you just laid out, Lael, are you personally disappointed by how the president is polling on the economy? BRAINARD: I just look back to where we were just two years ago or

when the president came to office, and I think how much Americans have been through in terms of seeing small businesses having to close their doors, people temporarily laid off.

[08:25:13]

Supply chains were so broken that it was hard for Americans to get a lot of goods. You could wait months for a washing machine when your washing machine broke down, and then with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, gas and food prices soared.

Where we are today is so much more secure with ample job opportunities, wages growing by more than prices.

HARLOW: But I guess, what I am asking is why is that not reflected?

BRAINARD: It takes a while, and it takes a while. I think it takes a while. And I -- it's also that there are a few areas that Americans are worried are not as affordable.

If you look at health care, in particular, two to three times more expensive on prescription drugs than other countries, that's just not right. And that's why we're fighting so hard to get prescription drug prices down, whether it be insulin for seniors at $35.00 a month down from $400.00. We're capping out-of-pocket costs for seniors at $2,000.00 per year.

We've got to chip away at some of these areas where Americans feel it's just not right or that they're tired of being ripped off like in the area of junk fees where we're fighting really hard to get rid of overdraft fees and bounced cheque fees, baggage fees, seating fees, all of those things add up.

HARLOW: Lael Brainard, thank you very much for joining us this morning. It's nice to have you.

BRAINARD: Nice to be here. Thank you.

MATTINGLY: We're going to share some video from this morning in Gaza. You see right there, the fighting continues as pressure grows for another temporary truce. We will take you live in Tel Aviv with news of a possible deal being negotiated to free more hostages.

HARLOW: Also, news helicopter crashed overnight in New Jersey. What the news station is saying this morning, ahead.

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