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DeSantis, Haley Try To Catch Trump As Iowa Caucuses Near; Today: Names Of 170 Epstein Associates And Victims To Be Released; Biden Enters Election Year Facing Major Challenges. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired January 02, 2024 - 07:30   ET

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

[07:30:00]

AUDIE CORNISH, CNN ANCHOR: CNN's Steve Contorno is live in Des Moines. And Steve, of course, it's the final sprint. What's the strategy?

STEVE CONTORNO, CNN REPORTER: Well, Audie, one thing they're not doing is attacking Donald Trump over these 14th Amendment challenges that were just discussed. In fact, they've actually defended the former president in light of what's happened in Maine and Colorado. But they have been focused on attacking each other and we have seen that consistently in the weeks leading up to the end of 2023 and as the calendar turns to 2024.

For DeSantis and Haley, neither one of them were able to come out of 2023 as the clear alternative to Donald Trump and so now their mission in 2024 is to push the other out of the race or at least neutralize them in some way so they can start to solidify a coalition of the non- Trump supporters going into these caucuses and early nominating states.

DeSantis -- that means focusing heavily on Iowa. This is a state that he put a lot of money, time, and attention into. And I think short of a close second-place finish would be disappointing for his team and leave a lot of questions about his viability going forward.

For Haley, she doesn't necessarily need a great showing in Iowa. A strong surprising finish to this there would show that she has some momentum going into New Hampshire, which is a state that she has put a lot more effort into.

And then, of course, the frontrunner, Donald Trump -- he will be in Iowa all this weekend, Friday and Saturday, with multiple stops as he continues to ramp up his appearances and give a sense to voters that yes, it's time to vote. It's time to pay attention. It's time to do what you need to do to get me the nomination in 2024.

CORNISH: Steve Contorno, stay warm in Des Moines.

Now, Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley take questions directly from Iowa voters in back-to-back events. The CNN Republican presidential town halls moderated by Kaitlan Collins and Erin Burnett air live Thursday night starting at 9:00 Eastern. PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN ANCHOR: Well, new images this morning show just how destructive Monday's 7.5 earthquake was in Japan. Our crews are standing by in one of the hardest hit areas next.

CORNISH: Plus, an election, a migrant crisis, and two foreign wars. What is President Biden's plan to handle all of it? White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre joins us live next.

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:35:57]

MATTINGLY: Well, this morning we are also following breaking news out of South Korea. The leader of the country's main opposition party is in the hospital after being stabbed in the neck during a brazen daytime attack. Disturbing video shows Lee Jae-myung walking through a crowd of journalists -- you can see it right there -- when a man posing as a supporter approaches for an autograph and then suddenly strikes him in the left side of the neck.

CORNISH: Lee is then seen on the ground with his eyes closed and looking pale, with a handkerchief pressed against his neck. Doctors say Lee suffered suspect damage to his jugular vein but the wound is not life-threatening.

Police say the attacker -- a man in his 60s -- was immediately overpowered and arrested. The motive for the attack is unclear.

MATTINGLY: Well, also happening right now, a massive rescue operation is underway in Japan after that powerful and devastating 7.5 earthquake. The prime minister says it's a battle against time to rescue people trapped under the rubble. Officials say the death toll right now is at 48 with dozens more injured. Tens of thousands of people are still without electricity.

CORNISH: And CNN's Hanako Montgomery joins us from an evacuation center in Nanao, Japan. Tell us a little bit about what you've seen today.

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Audie -- sure. As you mentioned, we're at an evacuation center in Nanao City, one of the hardest-hit areas in Ishikawa prefecture. I'm just speaking in a slightly quieter voice than usual because there are dozens of people here -- survivors of that very powerful earthquake -- sleeping. They're taking shelter here because their homes have collapsed. They have nowhere to go but to sleep in their cars or this shelter.

They're using very thick blankets and mats to stay warm because there's no central heating in this building. There is also no running water. People are taking water from these self-defense forces who are just outside providing this very essential human need to the locals here.

We spoke to a couple of people inside the shelter who are just visibly very frightened about the aftershocks that are following after that powerful earthquake. We experienced a couple ourselves just 10 minutes ago when the entire building was shaking. There is also rubble near some of these cement pillars.

One of the women we spoke to -- a survivor of the earthquake -- recalled how she thought she was going to die. She was in the middle of celebrating New Year's Day with her family who had come from southern Japan in Osaka to visit her and her mother and they all -- she told me how she would just go under the table to try to essentially just survive this earthquake because she had absolutely no idea what was going on.

The Japanese prime minister has said that 48 people -- at least 48 people have died in this very powerful earthquake and 120 people are still being rescued from under their collapsed homes, Audie.

CORNISH: Hanako Montgomery, thank you.

MATTINGLY: Well, after 2023 filled with headlines involving the Supreme Court, Chief Justice John Roberts focused his year-end report on the potential promise and dangers of artificial intelligence, warning that AI will dramatically alter the way the court operates.

Roberts writing, quote, "AI obviously has great potential to dramatically increase access to key information from lawyers and non- lawyers alike. But just as obviously, it risks invading privacy interests and dehumanizing the law."

The 15-page report did not address the court's newly installed Code of Conduct -- the ethics controversy that plagued the justices over the past year -- or the issues tied to the 2024 election.

Joining us now to break it all down is CNN senior Supreme Court analyst Joan Biskupic who I hope got a little bit of a break over the course of the last week because she doesn't get one pretty much for eternity from here on out.

The end-of-the-year report from the chief justice has at times delved into the politically sensitive issues where kind of public opinion has gone, trying to cast some warnings about this wasn't that on the issues of the day, but the AI notice was fascinating to me.

JOAN BISKUPIC, CNN SENIOR SUPREME COURT ANALYST: It was. And you know, Phil and Audie, this is the time that the chief is allowed to speak to the public with his own agenda completely.

[07:40:00]

These annual year-end reports -- I have to say, Phil, they do not tend to be super newsy. In fact, he often sidesteps controversy. But this time he did -- at least weighed in on a topic that is so prevalent in the American mind. You know, artificial intelligence has become like electricity, like air. It's everywhere. We're all talking about it and how it affects things.

And he wanted to make the point that there's a benefit here. You know, there's parts of the law that can be -- are standardized. You know, there's boilerplate language that come in filings. There's ways that artificial intelligence can help the administration -- the operations of the courts. But he wanted to stress that there's a human element -- a very strong human element in judging and he would not want artificial intelligence to encroach on that or to manipulate the courts.

One thing that John Roberts is all about is the integrity of the federal judiciary, especially the Supreme Court itself. And artificial intelligence, as we've seen, could be manipulated. It can mislead. And he wanted to warn that it could happen right there in the nation's courts.

CORNISH: Joan, what I hear you saying though is that this is something that lawyers are using for everyday paperwork, right?

Michael Cohen filed a court document --

BISKUPIC: Right.

CORNISH: -- last week and he unwittingly sent non-existent case citations because they had been generated by a chatbot well-known as Google Bard. I don't know if I want my lawyer using Google Bard.

BISKUPIC: No.

CORNISH: But it sounds like there are enough of them that the Supreme Court chief --

BISKUPIC: Yeah.

CORNISH: -- is worried.

BISKUPIC: You don't. And what that was all about -- let me tell you why citations are important, Audie and Phil. The law is based on precedent and when you make an argument to any court you have to cite past cases, and you want those cases to support your argument. You can't just throw in anything that's like, you know, Audie versus Phil. You have to have a real case there.

And a good judge and good staff, they go back and they look to see is that case -- well, they used to not have to act like is that case for real. They used to act -- they used to look at does that case really stand for the proposition that the advocate is making here. Is it really central to this new argument being made here?

And in Michael Cohen's case, they weren't even -- you know, they weren't real. They were non-existent. A U.S. District Court Judge Jesse Furman looked up man of them and found that they did not stand for the proposition that Cohen was arguing. And I think in one of them there was, like, not even any case there.

So that's really serious because again, it's not just naming -- it's not just something you litter throughout an argument for flourish. It's what the law is built on is precedent.

CORNISH: Well, thank you for reminding everyone about the case Audie versus Phil.

MATTINGLY: Yeah.

CORNISH: I won that case --

MATTINGLY: It was a crushing defeat for me --

CORNISH: -- precedent, indeed.

MATTINGLY: -- which I'm assuming everybody knows.

CORNISH: Joan Biskupic, thank you.

MATTINGLY: Thanks, buddy.

BISKUPIC: Thank you.

CORNISH: Hundreds of court filings from a lawsuit brought by one of Jeffrey Epstein's accusers are set to be unsealed starting today. The documents are expected to include some high-profile names. Former President Bill Clinton and Britain's Prince Andrew, for example.

A U.S. district judge in New York ruled that there was no legal justification for continuing to conceal the more than 150 names said to be included in the filings.

Following Epstein's arrest in 2019, a spokesman for Bill Clinton put out a statement saying, quote, "President Clinton knows nothing about the terrible crimes Jeffrey Epstein pleaded guilty to in Florida some years ago or those with which he has been recently charged in New York. In 2002 and 2003, President Clinton took a total of four trips on Jeffrey Epstein's airplane: one to Europe, one to Asia, and two to Africa, which included stops in connection with the work of the Clinton Foundation."

MATTINGLY: Prince Andrew settled a lawsuit with Epstein and accuser Virgnia Giuffre in 2022. His legal team said in that statement, quote, "It is known that Jeffrey Epstein trafficked countless young girls over many years. Prince Andrew regrets his association with Epstein, and commends the bravery of Ms. Giuffre and other survivors in standing up for themselves and others."

Of course, Epstein died by suicide in a federal detention facility in August of 2019 while awaiting trial. His associate, Ghislaine Maxell, was convicted of trafficking women and girls for Epstein in 2021 and is serving a 20-year prison sentence.

Joining us now is Holly Baltz. She's an investigations editor at the Palm Beach Post and has been covering the Epstein case for years now.

The biggest question I have -- what are we going to learn? What new information are you looking for as somebody who has covered this case so closely -- who has covered kind of all of this story so closely? What are you looking for out of this?

HOLLY BALTZ, INVESTIGATIONS EDITOR, THE PALM BEACH POST (via Webex by Cisco): Details. You know, if you look at the judge's order in which she lists the Does and why she wants to release their names, a lot of them say that their association with Epstein and/or Maxwell are widely reported. So -- but the documents those names are associated with are sealed. I mean, normally, you might see redacted names, blacked out, but you can see what's around them. The documents I've looked at so far are completely sealed.

[07:45:14]

So while a lot of these names we may already know, we might get more details about their association with those two.

CORNISH: What are you hearing from victims? I don't know if they're speaking out in this moment when more information can be made public.

BALTZ: So far, we're not really hearing from victims yet -- not yet. We'll see. I'm sure they want to look at the documents themselves before they talk.

CORNISH: Is there a sense that there could be more arrests or charges with more names coming out? I mean, could this -- yeah, could this have further legal ramifications?

BALTZ: Well, it might in the civil courts are we've seen a number of people associated or companies are settling with the victims. I would imagine that there are problems with the statute of limitations on the crimes, especially the ones as long ago as the 2000s. And this case was filed in 2015. It was settled in 2017.

MATTINGLY: The Palm Beach Post has done so much great work and important work on this. I want to circle back -- I believe you guys filed a suit to secure the release of grand jury transcripts at some point. It was a long time ago.

Do you have any update on that? Is there a chance that those could be released?

BALTZ: Yes. We filed a suit in 2019 after we took a look and an investigation at the prosecution by our county state attorney. He was the first prosecutor against Epstein. And the police chiefs did not like how that was going and so we turned the case over to the FBI who then negotiated with our state attorney -- the famous non-prosecution agreement in which Epstein escaped a 60-count federal indictment.

We found out in our investigation that in 2006, the grand jury that (INAUDIBLE) convened -- he basically torpedoed the case. He had only one victim despite the fact that Palm Beach police had found nearly two dozen -- only one victim to testify. And then they brought out her Myspace pages, which like a lot of teenagers probably depicted simulation of drinking and so forth. So he appeared to undermine his own witness, which seems strange.

So we sued in 2019 to get those transcripts made public. And an appeals court has ordered the trial judge to take a look at them and release them. So we're eagerly awaiting that release.

CORNISH: Holly Baltz, thanks so much for your supporting.

BALTZ: Thank you.

MATTINGLY: Well, two foreign wars and a migrant crisis at home. What's on the top of the president's agenda heading into 2024? White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre will join us live, next.

CORNISH: And we're following the breaking news out of Japan. Five Coast Guard crew members dead after their plane collided with a passenger jet. The passengers given just 90 seconds to evacuate. More the breaking details ahead.

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:52:43]

MATTINGLY: New this morning, about 10 buses from Texas and Louisiana carrying some 400 migrants are dropping them off at several New Jersey transit stations. It's apparently a move to avoid New York City Mayor Eric Adams' new restrictions on when they can arrive at the Port Authority bus terminal. The buses arrived at stations in Secaucus, Fanwood, Trenton, and Edison in the last two days. That is according to Jersey City's post on social media.

CORNISH: The migrant crisis and the wars in Gaza and Ukraine are all on the top of the president's to-do list in 2024.

AUDIE CORNISH, CNN ANCHOR: Joining us now to discuss the year ahead, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. Welcome to the program.

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Thank you so much, Audie. Thank you for having me. Happy New Year.

CORNISH: We want to talk both domestic and international, but I want to get a sense first from you what is the White House considering a priority in this first month of the year?

JEAN-PIERRE: So look, I want to take a step back for just a moment as we look at '24 and we're in '24, but just a step back. You know, this president has done more in three years than any other president has done in two terms.

And that is important here, Audie, if you think about the legislation that deals with infrastructure -- the roads and tunnels that are now -- are going to be really dealt with in a real way.

Think about CHIPS and Science Act.

You think about beating big pharma and lowering prescription drugs. When you think about how seniors and others were paying 35 bucks a month -- 35 -- are now paying 35 bucks -- our seniors are going to be paying that -- when they were paying 200 bucks a month. That matters. That is going to go a long way.

And so, as we head into the new year -- last year and at the State of the Union, the president talked about finishing the job. And so, the president is going to continue to work on the economy. He's going to continue making sure that we're lowering prescription drugs. Let's not forget making roads --

CORNISH: Karine, let me jump in here because --

JEAN-PIERRE: -- and the law of the land as well.

CORNISH: Karine --

JEAN-PIERRE: Yeah.

CORNISH: -- I want to jump in here because --

JEAN-PIERRE: There's a lot to do. There's a lot to do.

CORNISH: Absolutely, and you're making some excellent points about the macroeconomy. But you alluded --

JEAN-PIERRE: Yeah.

CORNISH: -- to some kitchen table issues -- drug prices --

JEAN-PIERRE: Yeah.

CORNISH: -- for one. Also, housing is another issue. Education is another issue.

JEAN-PIERRE: Yeah.

CORNISH: The student loan issue was not something addressed by the White House in the end in a comprehensive way, according to many young voters.

Are you going to try to finish those jobs, in particular?

JEAN-PIERRE: So, I'm just going to take a step -- let me just deal with the student loan issue for a second.

[07:55:00]

Look, the president put forth a plan. He wanted to keep this promise on dealing with the student loan debt that is really crushing families across the country. And he took steps even though the plan that he put forth was stopped certainly --

CORNISH: Do you think that --

JEAN-PIERRE: -- by folks in Congress.

CORNISH: Do you think that argument -- well, I want to just jump in here because --

JEAN-PIERRE: No, no, no. But I --

CORNISH: -- because there is an issue with young voters.

JEAN-PIERRE: No, I'm going to answer your question.

CORNISH: And I want to make -- because they have heard from you that essentially, this is something the president --

JEAN-PIERRE: Yeah.

CORNISH: -- has tried to do. And do you think that over time they start to feel like --

JEAN-PIERRE: Yeah.

CORNISH: -- trying isn't enough?

JEAN-PIERRE: No. But what I was going to say -- what I was going to finish and say is that the president -- even though his plan was stopped, he was able to take action. And we were able to -- we were able to get rid of about $130 billion of debt -- more than that -- for millions of -- millions of folks across the country. That matters. That matters.

So he still took action. He still action even though his hands were tied by the courts on moving forward with the plan that he originally wanted to do. So the president's going to continue to take that -- those actions.

Let's not forget climate change. The president has done more on climate change than any other president has been able to do.

Those are the issues that young people care about and those are the issues that we're going to continue to work towards and make sure that we deliver on the promise that the president made to young people, but to Americans across the country.

So I talked about what the president has done -- more actions. He's taken more actions than any other president in two terms and he did that in three years.

So, look, we have a lot ahead of us. The president knows there's a lot more work to be done.

CORNISH: There is.

JEAN-PIERRE: And that's what 2024 is going to be able to -- we're going to be able to get done.

CORNISH: I want to talk more about the action you're discussing in the area of immigration and migration. Obviously, this has become a tremendous issue. The mayors of Chicago, Denver, New York collectively calling for federal support to manage the influx of migrants to their areas.

I'd like you to hear a little bit about what they had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR BRANDON JOHNSON, (D) CHICAGO: An international and federal crisis that local governments are being asked to subsidize, and this is unsustainable. MAYOR MIKE JOHNSTON, (D) DENVER: When you're talking about 10 percent of the budget to allocate for cities on this, that's unsustainable. When we have every single hotel room in the city full of migrants that have arrived, that's unsustainable.

MAYOR ERIC ADAMS, (D) NEW YORK: The federal government said to New York City we're not going to do our job. You do our job. You take care of 4,000 people a week, Eric.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: So, obviously, there have been many Republican governors and mayors who have talked about this issue. Now you're hearing it from within the party.

What's the response?

JEAN-PIERRE: So here's my response. It is shameful that a Republican governor -- Gov. Abbott in Texas -- is using migrants as a political stunt. That's what he's been doing --

CORNISH: So you're referring to the busing of migrants to northern cities?

JEAN-PIERRE: Absolutely, and the busing of migrants, the putting them on flights. It is shameful that is occurring. And instead of -- if the governor really, truly wants to deal with this issue he should talk to other senators in his state and actually ask them to work with us.

Look, what we're seeing right now is negotiations happening on the Senate side to talk about how do we come up with a bipartisan agreement to deal with border security. There's a reason why the president put that in his emergency ask, right -- in the national security supplemental ask because he thought it was incredibly important.

In a couple of weeks, we're about to hit three years -- three years since the president put forward an immigration comprehensive legislation -- put that forward to Congress and nothing was done on it. And the reason why he put that first --

CORNISH: But in the meantime, I do know that --

JEAN-PIERRE: But the reason -- let me just finish this last question.

CORNISH: I want to jump in here just because we have a short amount of time.

JEAN-PIERRE: OK. OK.

CORNISH: No, truly. No, I respect what you're trying to say.

JEAN-PIERRE: No, I hear you. I hear you. I hear you. I hear you.

CORNISH: I just want to add that the president has done some things in his capacity, right? He has -- JEAN-PIERRE: Yeah.

CORNISH: -- made extra effort to expand border -- if not wall, barriers. He has made some changes in policy.

Are there more things on the executive side you see as being an option in 2024?

JEAN-PIERRE: The president put forth a comprehensive immigration plan because he believed that the system is broken. The immigration system is broken and it's been broken for decades.

Now we are having, we believe, a very productive conversation in Congress with senators on how do we move forward in a bipartisan agreement to deal with the border security. That is important. Now, what we hope is that when Congress gets back we'll be able to act and get these things moving forward so we can deal with this issue.

We've been in touch with some of those mayors that you talked about -- governors in northern -- in the northern part of the country on dealing with the issue that they're dealing with on the ground. And we have provided resources to them and we're going to continue to have those conversations.

But again, Congress needs to act. The president took this very seriously on day one.

CORNISH: Karine Jean-Pierre, thank you so much for speaking with us.

JEAN-PIERRE: Thank you so much. I appreciate it. Thanks for having me. Happy New Year.

CORNISH: And CNN THIS MORNING continues right now.

MATTINGLY: And the breaking news this morning -- a deadly plane collision in Japan. A passenger jet carrying nearly 400 people collides with a Coast Guard plane. How those passengers were able to evacuate just seconds before the jet burst into flames.

This hour of CNN THIS MORNING.