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Trump Appeals Maine Removal from Primary Ballot; Biden to Make Pitch for 2024 with Speeches at Historical Sites; Fears of Wider Conflict after Top Hamas Leader Killed in Beirut; Haley, DeSantis Step Up Attacks on Trump But Not on January 6th. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired January 03, 2024 - 06:00   ET

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

[06:00:20]

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN ANCHOR: Well, good morning, everyone and welcome.

This morning, former President Trump appeals a decision that kicked him off the Maine ballot for engaging in an insurrection. He claims the process was, quote, "infected by bias," as President Biden prepares to do what primary competitors won't: attack him over January 6th.

AUDIE CORNISH, CNN ANCHOR: Plus, new corruption allegations against Senator Bob Menendez. Hear who offered him fancy watches and Grand Prix tickets.

MATTINGLY: And happening today, House Speaker Mike Johnson heading to the Southern border, putting pressure on the White House over immigration. Next hour we'll talk to the homeland security secretary about what the president plans to do about it.

CNN THIS MORNING starts right now.

And a good Wednesday morning, everyone. I'm Phil Mattingly. Audie Cornish joins me, live in New York. Poppy Harlow is off today.

Donald Trump is now fighting in court to keep his name on the ballot in Maine, insisting that he did not engage in an insurrection on January 6th.

Now, in Trump's appeal, he's accusing the Maine secretary of state, a Democrat, of being biassed for disqualifying him under the Constitution's insurrectionist ban.

CORNISH: We're also expecting Trump's lawyers to appeal the ruling in Colorado as soon as today.

Now, this all comes as new polling shows fewer and fewer GOP voters believe Trump was responsible for January 6th. And a new "Washington Post" poll found only 14 percent of Republicans think Trump bears a great deal or good amount of responsibility for the riot. That's a sharp drop from 27 percent just 2 years ago.

MATTINGLY: That reality will serve as the backdrop for a major moment in President Biden's struggling reelection campaign.

New this morning, we are learning the president plans to mark the third anniversary of January 6th attack on the Capitol with a major speech near Valley Forge, a deeply symbolic site, where the American Revolution was on the brink of defeat and then turned around.

He'll be laying out the huge stakes for the election and for the country's democracy.

Let's start, though, this morning with Zachary Cohen and Trump's appeal in Maine. Zach, we've been waiting for the appeal. We saw at least one appeal. What happens next?

ZACHARY COHEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Phil. Maine Superior Court now has 20 days to weigh in on whether or not Trump should be removed from the ballot in that state.

And if that decision ultimately is appealed again on January 17, after the Superior Court makes its ruling, it will then go to Maine's Supreme Court, which will have until January 31st to make its decision.

Now, in a vacuum, right, this would dictate what the final decision of whether or not Trump will appear on Maine's ballot, but as we know, this process, this 14th Amendment argument process, has been very messy.

And we are still waiting for Donald Trump to appeal the ruling in Colorado that would essentially supersede the Maine decision. It would because it's going to the Supreme Court, and the Supreme Court will ultimately have the final say on this issue if it decides to take up the case. And honestly, if Trump does finally appeal that -- or that decision in Colorado,

But in Maine, it's really interesting, because we do get a glimpse into some of not just the legal arguments that Trump is making but also, it's a hybrid of the political arguments he's making.

He's been railing on Maine's secretary of state as being biassed against him, saying that she is a liberal and that this is all, you know, a political witch hunt against him.

The filing last night reflects some of that undertone. And it also accuses, essentially, the process itself of being tainted by bias itself.

Now, we're going to have to wait and see what ultimately happens with the Supreme Court, but as we are waiting, we see multiple other states that are also trying to figure out this issue for themselves.

Oregon has pushed back its deadline to make a decision on whether or not Trump should be removed from the ballot in that state. It wants more information from both sides that have filed a legal challenge there.

So a lot of moving pieces, but we do finally have an appeal in Maine. And now the countdown clock of January 17th, when the Superior Court has to weigh in, starts.

CORNISH: And then looking at that federal election subversion case, we see the former president basically leaning into this immunity claim. Can you explain a bit more about it?

COHEN: Absolutely. Donald Trump has claimed that he deserves absolute immunity for any potential crimes that he committed while in office. And even though he denies committing any crimes, he thinks that presidents should enjoy this broad-sweeping immunity protection and this right.

Jack Smith has very forcefully pushed back on that claim. He says, actually, that that claim itself threatens the foundation of our republic, the Democratic principles of our republic.

So two very different arguments over whether or not Donald Trump should be immune from criminal prosecution.

[06:05:03]

But again, this is one of those tactics, one of those legal strategies that Trump's team has employed. It has already resulted in speculation and the potential that his March trial date could be pushed back.

And take a look at this part from the most recent filing from Trump's legal team. Because it does kind of put into context where they're coming from.

They say, "The Constitution's text, history, and policy support this conclusion. The 234-year unbroken tradition of not prosecuting presidents for official acts, despite vociferous calls to do so from across the political spectrum, provides powerful evidence of it."

So Trump is obviously arguing that anything he did to try to overturn the 2020 election he was doing in his official capacity as president. Jack Smith very strongly disagrees with that.

MATTINGLY: All right. Jack Cohen with the latest. Thank you.

CORNISH: Joining us now is CNN senior legal analyst and former federal prosecutor, Elie Honig. Welcome back.

ELIE HONIG, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Good to see you.

CORNISH: So just to set this up, I think. You know, the president [SIC] -- the former president and his legal team have tried a lot of different arguments in a lot of different places. Which is most likely to be compelling in terms of something actually reaching a high court?

HONIG: So if we're talking about the 14th Amendment, this qualification case, what Donald Trump does in his brief that he submitted yesterday, challenging the Maine disqualification, is he gives himself a lot of different ways to win.

Let me sort of lay out how he structures his argument.

First, he says, well, I did not engage in insurrection. It's just one line, but I think he feels duty-bound to deny it.

But then, really, what he does is focus on the procedural side. And I think that's where this is going to be decided.

First, he says it's up to Congress, not the states, to tell us how the 14th Amendment works. Congress has not done that, other than passing the criminal law. Hence, the states are out of business.

But then he says, Well, even if it is up to the states, Maine did not follow its own procedures. The secretary of state was biased against me, et cetera.

Then he goes on to say, Well, even if they did properly follow their own procedures, that didn't give me enough due process. They had this one-day hearing. There was only one witness. It was a law professor. It doesn't comport even with minimum due process protections.

And then, he says, Even if all those other arguments fail, the president does not qualify as an officer of the United States under the Constitution.

And the -- the beauty of this approach --

CORNISH: Does not qualify?

HONIG: Does not qualify. That's what Donald Trump is arguing. In fact, the Colorado trial-level judge found that, found that the president does not qualify as an official. That was a reverse by the Colorado Supreme Court. It gets into the whole linguistic dance that lawyers do.

But what Trump is doing is giving himself four or five different ways to win. And lawyers like to do that. They like -- like in any competitive endeavor, if you can give yourself more ways to win, you up your chances.

MATTINGLY: Do they see -- As you read it, can you pinpoint what they think the most effective?

HONIG: I think --

MATTINGLY: Of the four or five is?

HONIG: Yes. I -- I think they understand that the Supreme Court, the appeals courts are not going to say, No, we find you did not engage in insurrection. I think he understands that is up to the fact finder.

I think he is looking for an argument that's going to take this out of the state's hands altogether, which is really one of two arguments.

One is it's up to Congress. And in their absence to act, state's, you're out of business. And by the way, the U.S. Supreme Court finds that, all these claims go away.

MATTINGLY: Right. HONIG: And then the second one, I think, is that the president does not count as an officer argument. I'm not compelled by that myself if I were the judge. No one's given me a black robe. But it has gotten some traction.

And again, it's a way for the Supreme Court to dispose of all of these cases in one shot.

CORNISH: Have they shown any actual appetite to reach down and get involved?

HONIG: The Supreme Court?

CORNISH: Yes.

HONIG: Well, I think they're going to have to get involved in the Colorado matter. And here's the thing if you're the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court can rule on this, if they take the Colorado case, one of two ways.

They can rule in a very narrow way that will invite 50 of these challenges. For example, if they say, yes, it's up to the states, and we find that Colorado did or did not follow its own processes. OK, then Colorado will stand or fall. But then you're going to have 49 other challenges.

I think they're going to be looking, the Supreme Court -- U.S. Supreme Court, for a way to make one ruling and say, that's the end of this nationwide. That's my guess.

By the way, I have to say, we're all guessing here. Uncharted territory.

CORNISH: Who knows? Can't project anything (ph),

MATTINGLY: Important to point out.

HONIG: Yes.

CORNISH: Yes. Well, Elie, thanks so much.

HONIG: Thanks.

MATTINGLY: See you in a bit.

CORNISH: Breaking this morning, President Biden is set to kick off his 2024 campaign push with big speeches. One near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, on January 6th; and another on Monday at Mother Emmanuel AME in Charleston.

Phil is going to break down the significance of message and the location.

MATTINGLY: Look, the location is obvious, right? This is an important location. It's indelibly embedded inside the country's psyche for what it represents. But I think what's more important right here, and it's less than a political and campaign message. It's the fact that they're doing it and what it connects to.

We're learning, as Audie laid out, that President Biden will travel to Valley Forge on Saturday. It's set to level increasingly sharp political attacks on his likely GOP opponent, Donald Trump.

This Saturday, of course, will mark three years since the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol. And that's the backdrop for a moment Biden and Biden's advisors see as critical to laying out the stakes of the bare-knuckle political battle ahead.

[06:10:05]

And I think that's important context here, because when you think about how this is all supposed to work, it is kind of a final battle for Biden. When you talk to his advisers, they acknowledge that point.

Now, as I noted, that location of Valley Forge, it's something that everybody is aware of in terms of how it represents the country, the turning point in the Revolutionary War. It's a critical component of George Washington and his legacy.

And it marks the latest in a series of intentional efforts to connect a nation currently ripped apart by division, standing on the brink, to past moments like that and figures that saw trials lead to triumph.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The core values of this nation, our standing in the world, our very democracy, everything that has made America America is at stake.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: That's from Joe Biden's 2019 campaign launch video. And if that message sounds familiar, it is. It is quite literally the animating feature, from the start of his 2020 campaign straight through to today.

I think that's also important to understand. These aren't just political messages for him. It's kind of a gut feeling when you talk to his advisers.

Biden's weekend speech set to build off a series of cornerstone moments that have defined his view of a very tenuous national moment and have grown increasingly sharp and dire in their view of Trump.

If you look at these maps, these are all places where these speeches have occurred over the course of the last several weeks. Start in October of 2020, in Gettysburg. Obviously, the backdrop of the Civil War battle. An effort to draw parallel to a president staring down a ruptured nation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BIDEN: Here on this sacred ground, Abraham Lincoln reimagined America itself. Here, a president of the United States spoke of the price of division and the meaning of sacrifice. And he taught us this. A house divided could not stand. That is a great and timeless truth.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: Now a few weeks later, just days before voters went to the polls in 2020, a second speech, this time in Warm Springs, Georgia. Franklin Delano Roosevelt's retreat as he sought to steer a nation through a world on fire.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: This place represented a way forward, a way of restoration, of resilience, of healing. In the years that followed, FDR would come back to Warm Springs often to think about how to heal the nation and the world, and that's exactly what he did, lifting us out of a Great Depression, defeating tyranny, saving democracy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: Now, one year after the January 6th insurrection after Biden was elected, Biden standing at the scene of that shocking violence in the U.S. Capitol building with an unequivocal message.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: The former president, who lies about this election, and the mob that attacked this Capitol, could not be further away from the core American values.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: That message is one he then took to Philadelphia's Independence Hall just as the midterm elections were starting to kick into high gear, in a clear recognition that Trump's sway had not actually ebbed. The speech underscoring that Biden's initial campaign predictions in 2020 that the fever would break with Trump's hold on the GOP, hadn't actually been borne out.

But one that also elevated a political message that would resonate with voters just a few months later in the midterms.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: As I stand here tonight, equality and democracy are under assault. We do ourselves no favor to pretend otherwise.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: Now, each of these speeches, each of these moments, and the backdrops that go along with them, designed not for Biden to compare himself to his predecessors, but instead, to emphasize a nation, in his view, that has faced dark moments and overcome them. Now, as Trump continues to dominate the GOP field, it's a message that

Biden's advisers say will become increasingly central in the months ahead as Biden tries to dig out of what are historically low approval numbers.

Now, at its core, advisors say, is Biden: his belief, his deeply held views of the stakes of the moment.

But the political context here is also clear and important. Biden's path to victory is to make the race about Trump, not the incumbent and to remind the lagging coalition that sent Biden to the Oval Office, why they did so in 2020.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: When I ran for president four years ago, I said we're in a battle for the soul of America. And we still are.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: That was the reelection campaign launch video, which just happened to be the exact day, to the day, four years after he announced his 2020 election bid -- Audie.

CORNISH: Thank you for that context. That was really great.

We want to turn now to other news. A senior Hamas leader killed in Lebanon. What this means for the possibility of a wider conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in the region.

MATTINGLY: Plus, embattled Senator Bob Menendez facing new corruption allegations involving a second foreign country. The new details, including gold bars and luxury watches. That's ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:18:50]

CORNISH: New fears this morning of a wider conflict in the Middle East after a senior Hamas leader was killed in an attack in the Lebanese capital, Beirut. At least four people were killed in the blast, which targeted an office belonging to Hamas.

Israel has not taken responsibility for killing Saleh al-Arouri, but in a veiled reference to the attack, Israel's far-right finance minister said all of Israel's enemies will perish.

CNN's Nada Bashir is live in Beirut with more. Nada, can you talk a little bit more about this senior leader, what is known about him?

NADA BASHIR, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, look, Audie, we're talking about somebody who was No. 2 in Hamas's political bureau, somebody who was considered one of the founders of the Al-Qassam Brigade, Hamas' military wing.

And you can see behind me. The strike just happening last night. The authorities are still here, clearing the debris from this office of where it appears to have been a very precise strike and explosion.

The Lebanese national news agency reporting and describing this has been carried out by an aerial strike using three missiles.

And of course, we have since heard from the leader of Hamas's political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh. He has described this as a cowardly assassination, pointing the finger squarely at Israel.

[06:20:02]

And while the Israeli government has not yet claimed direct responsibility for the strike, we have since heard from a U.S. official, telling CNN that this was, indeed, a strike carried out by Israel, but the Biden administration was not informed ahead of the strike.

Now of course, important to remember that Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has previously vowed to target Hamas leaders, not just in Gaza, not just in the West Bank, but wherever they may be located.

And of course, there is mounting concern around the potential for this now to cause and trigger a spillover of this conflict in the broader region.

Saleh al-Arouri, of course, not just a senior Hamas leader, but somebody who was very well-connected with officials in Iran, very well-connected with officials in Hezbollah in Lebanon.

And of course, this comes off the back of mounting tensions between Hezbollah and Israel on that Southern Lebanese border over the course of this war.

We have continued to see exchanges of fire. Israel has repeatedly carried out strikes on that Southern border region in Lebanese villages. A number of civilians killed, as well as journalists who were reporting there.

Hezbollah, in turn, carrying out strikes on Israeli targets across the border. And of course, this evening, we are expecting to hear from Hezbollah's secretary-general, Hassan Nasrallah. He was scheduled to speak before this strike, but of course, all eyes will be waiting to see what he has to say later this evening -- Audie.

CORNISH: Nada Bashir, thank you.

MATTINGLY: Well, Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis taking shots at Trump on the campaign trail, but they're refusing to hit him on January 6th. What's behind that strategy? We'll discuss, next.

And we'll be breaking down new polling that shows fewer Republicans blame Trump for the riot on January 6th, and what it could mean for the upcoming caucuses and primaries. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:25:21]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NIKKI HALEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: In his commercials and in his (UNINTELLIGIBLE) routines, every single thing that he said has been a lie. Every single one. I looked. They're so cringey (ph). Every single one. So when when he's going to lie about me, I'm going to tell you the truth about him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Nikki Haley saying she's going to tell the truth about Donald Trump, calling him a liar when it comes to his attacks on her, and slamming him for not attending the debate.

But the truth has not included much about Trump's role in January 6th or his attempts to overthrow the 2020 election. Here's how Ron DeSantis answered, when asked about his tepid attacks on Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TERRY FITZGERALD, LEMARS, IOWA: Why do you protect Trump? What are you scared of? And we had a few questions like this. Basically, are you scared of Trump? Is that why you don't criticize him more? How do you address that?

GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, Terry, I -- I take -- take issue with that. I mean, I have rendered very sharp contrasts between Donald Trump and myself with respect to policy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: On policy, kind of key framing there.

The candidates' choice to let Trump slide on January 6th may have to do with this sentiment. And this is important to pay attention to. Captured in a new poll -- in new poll numbers from "The Washington Post," Republicans are now even more likely to clear Trump of responsibility for the attack on the Capitol.

Only 14 percent say now that he bears a, quote, "great deal" or "good amount" of responsibility. That's down from 27 percent two years ago.

Joining us now to discuss, executive committee chair of the New York state Democratic Party, Christine Quinn; former Republican strategist and pollster, Lee Carter; and Jason Osborne, former communication strategist for Ben Carson's 2016 presidential campaign.

Let's start with you, because when I saw these numbers, I thought back to many things you have said as we've discussed why Republican candidates are or aren't doing X or Y over the course of the last several months.

LEE CARTER, FORMER REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST AND POLLSTER: So this is like a fascinating change. It's less than half, right, fewer than half the people now in the Republican Party blame Donald Trump for January 6th. And I think this is a real reason why you're seeing people not -- not

address the issue. And I also see why -- I think this is why you're seeing so much blowback on the decisions in Colorado and Maine. Because Republicans are saying it's completely unfair. They don't believe that this happened.

And so it's -- it's a no-win issue for Nikki Haley. And the other thing -- or Ron DeSantis, for that matter.

The thing is, it is so hard to take down Donald Trump. The attacks on Donald Trump seem to backfire. Whatever you -- It's like he's rubber; they're glue. Whatever they say about him bounces -- you know, sticks back to them.

And it's, I think, in many ways, what they have to do is be making the case on why they would be the better candidate, why they would be the fighter that Americans are looking for, rather than them just trying to take down Donald Trump. I just don't think it's a strategy that works.

CORNISH: And to that end, Chris Christie is going to be missing in action next week, because he didn't meet the qualifications for the debate stage, and his whole campaign has been attacking Trump, right, and making that case. Is his campaign at a dead end, as New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu has put it?

JASON OSBORNE, FORMER SENIOR COMMUNICATIONS STRATEGIST, DR. BEN CARSON FOR PRESIDENT '16: Yes. I mean, I laughed when this topic was going to come up, because I'm like, I didn't realize he was really still in the race. Right? It's like Asa Hutchinson.

But I think the Chris Christie model for what he wanted to do in the campaign was reenact what he did in New Hampshire last time around with Marco Rubio and a little bit with Ted Cruz.

The only thing that Chris Christie came into this race to do was attack Donald Trump. And he felt like he was in the best position to do that, but he had no policy around it. He had no base to build on. He didn't have a base in 2016.

CORNISH: But you've been a campaign adviser. Why stick it out, then? Right? At a certain point?

OSBORNE: I love Chris Christie. I think he's great. But there's an ego there. It is, I'm trying to salvage a reputation from, you know, the damage that was done during the four years of the Trump administration. And really kind of set myself up for the next time.

But also, I think he took another tack, which is, I want to help the other candidates out there, and hopefully, somebody else can get in. I mean, I think --

CORNISH: So he's reached the limits of his help, it sounds like.

OSBORNE: Yes. I mean, I think the best thing he can do is step out before New Hampshire and help Nikki Haley or Ron DeSantis. MATTINGLY: Christine, isn't there -- not to not be cynical, because I

know that's not how we're supposed to operate here, but I think it's a very fair point that you're making about Christie. But maybe Christie just thinks that somebody needs to be saying these things about Donald Trump. And that's why he's staying in the race.

CHRISTINE QUINN, FORMER NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL SPEAKER: Well, I think that would be a higher political calling than I think we see in Chris Christie. Right?

As we said, there's a big ego there. I -- and although he may want to help some of his present opponents, I think at the end of the day, we've seen through Chris Christie's behavior when he was in office, his primary focus is himself.

So I don't see him out there running on a cause. I don't see him as a candidate who is pushing a cause over their own election. He's running because he wanted to win.

[06:30:00]