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Trump Rants During Closing Arguments In $370 Million Fraud Trial; U.S-Led Coalition Strikes Iran-Backed Houthi Targets In Yemen; Class Action Suit Filed Against Boeing After Alaska Airlines Incident. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired January 12, 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]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's all a conspiracy to try and get Biden, who can't put two sentences together -- try to get him into office.

LETITIA JAMES, (D) NEW YORK ATTORNEY GENERAL: This case has never been about politics, a personal vendetta, or about name-calling. This case is about the facts and the law. I trust that justice will be done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And look, Trump's defense team also went after the attorney general in their closing arguments, essentially saying that if the judge rules in her favor then business isn't going to do -- real estate isn't going to do business in New York. Companies aren't going to do business. So that was also part of their strategy, guys.

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: So in terms of that -- closing arguments yesterday -- when are we expected to hear from the judge?

GINGRAS: Yeah. So the judge says that they -- he is going to write a written ruling by January 31 -- by the end of this month. He has outstanding claims that he needs to address and also any sort of ill- gotten gains that Trump may have to owe back. Of course, he's already ruled in that summary judgment that Trump and his sons are liable for fraud. Of course, that is in the appeals process. And we know that there is going to be multiple appeals. We've seen a record of that throughout this trial.

But listen, there's something even before that. Trump's going to be back in court for the E. Jean Carroll defamation trial next week, guys.

HILL: Yeah. It never stops over there on the Trump legal beat.

Brynn, appreciate it. Thank you. PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN ANCHOR: Well, let's bring in former Obama administration official Sarah Feinberg, and former White House communications director under Trump, Alyssa Farah-Griffin.

Alyssa, to that point, it never ends. There's something every single week. He made clear to our colleague Kristen Holmes yesterday that he wants to attend -- he plans to attend the E. Jean Carroll proceedings as well.

What's the durability of this from a political success standpoint?

ALYSSA FARAH GRIFFIN, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR, FORMER WHITE HOUSE COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: Well listen, it's hard to measure because any other candidate, if they were in the courtroom and not in Iowa on the stump or New Hampshire on the stump, that would affect them with voters. But we haven't seen that breakthrough.

Donald Trump has been in Iowa less than any of the top-tier candidates by a -- by a mile. Ron DeSantis has done the full Grassley and gone to all counties. Nikki Haley has done over 100 stops. He is actually prioritizing his court cases over running for president.

And think about this. Post-Super Tuesday, if he's the nominee, going into and leading up to the convention, he is going to be spending that core campaigning time in courtrooms. And how that hasn't broken through to the Republican electorate that wants to beat Joe Biden is beyond me.

MATTINGLY: Just really quick, though --

HILL: Yeah, go ahead.

MATTINGLY: -- can we play the -- because this is the point that Ron DeSantis has actually been making. Take a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. RON DESANTIS, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think the reality is if Trump is the candidate you have -- the election will be about legal issues, criminal trials, convict -- maybe he's convicted. I mean, there's all kinds of stuff that we don't know is going to happen -- January 6 -- all this stuff.

The Democrats -- that's their terrain to fight on. They win with Independent voters when that's -- my nomination makes it a referendum on Biden and the Democrats, which we will win. Trump's nomination makes the election a referendum on Donald Trump.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FARAH-GRIFFIN: He's not wrong but it's also a little rich coming from Ron DeSantis because he defended him after all of his prior indictments, including for mishandling classified documents. He even said that his one regret was that Donald Trump was indicted.

How do you litigate it, let's say, six-nine months ago that this makes him unfit? That it's going to take him off the campaign trail. He shouldn't be the nominee. The race could be in a very different place.

HILL: And look, he's not wrong. I mean, this is --

MATTINGLY: Yeah.

HILL: -- exactly what it's going to be about because this is what Donald Trump's campaign has been about.

But we know, too, that this is part of the strategy, right, for him to choose to be in these courtrooms where he does not need to be. And then he gets all this airtime when he comes out afterwards and he speaks on the steps outside the courthouse and spews tons of misinformation, right, but then we as media organizations spend all this time debunking. But the reality is he's still getting that airtime.

It's a win-win for Donald Trump. There's no reason for him to do otherwise.

SARAH FEINBERG, FORMER OBAMA ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL, FORMER INTERIM PRESIDENT, NEW YORK CITY TRANSIT AUTHORITY, FORMER NEW YORK STATE OFFICIAL: That's exactly right. I mean, this is someone who -- this is a man who is desperate to stay out of jail, right? And the way he stays out of jail is -- his only hope is to try to win the presidency again. And so, this is someone who is going to do anything he can to get as much attention as he can to keep himself out of jail.

Look, Ron DeSantis' message is correct. The problem is the messenger. He has not resonated with voters. This is -- we've seen months of him trying to get momentum and make progress and he's not resonating. And so, the issue is less the message and more the messenger.

MATTINGLY: When it comes to the message, though, just -- if you were advising the Biden campaign -- I ask you this every single time and I'm sure you'd answer it the same -- but over the course of the last 10 days, Trump has said he wants an economic collapse in the course of the next year.

He has talked about repealing Obamacare. He has talked about how he's proud about Roe versus Wade. There's like 15 things he's talked about publicly from a policy political perspective that if you polled the things it would be like plus-30 on.

How do you decide how to attack and what to attack on if you're the Biden team? It's like a fire hose.

FEINBERG: Right. The stuff that's resonating with the American people, though, is health care and it's the economy, and I would be talking about that stuff relentlessly. I would be talking about I am going to go fight for you.

This is -- I'm not only going to preserve what I've done because I'm not going to win an election based on things I've already done. I'm going to make sure you know that I'm going to fight for you. I'm going to improve the economy. This is what I'm going to do on health care. I've seen Biden improve on that in the last couple of days -- last

couple of months or last couple of weeks. But the issue is, like, there's so much else in the news. Like, it's hard to get attention -- even for the President of the United States to get --

[07:35:06]

MATTINGLY: Right.

FEINBERG: -- attention on what he's saying on health care.

We've got Trump having a press conference outside his own courtroom.

HILL: So, I'm fascinated by, too -- going back to Trump. So, Chris Sununu, right, said on CNN, yes, if he was a convicted felon I would still be voting for Donald Trump. So, Wolf Blitzer pushed him on that a little bit yesterday after he had said that.

Take a listen to this exchange.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR, "THE SITUATION ROOM WITH WOLF BLITZER": Why should anyone take either of your criticisms of Trump seriously?

GOV. CHRIS SUNUNU, (R) NEW HAMPSHIRE: Well, look, the issue around the voting as a convicted felon, that's a complete hypothetical, right? It's a complete hypothetical. So I get that it's fodder and all that, but my point there is more don't worry about long-term hypotheticals that you think may or may not affect the race. You've got to -- you've got to win the votes here. If you want Trump out -- if you want to defeat Trump, it happens in Iowa and New Hampshire.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Quite a dodge there, right? This is oh, it happens in Iowa and New Hampshire. That's a hypothetical. Don't worry about it if it impacts the race.

It's already impacting the race, right? We spent the first part of this segment talking about what a critical part of the race and the message this is.

Is he really trying to have it both ways here?

FARAH-GRIFFIN: So, listen -- love Chris Sununu. He's one of the most popular governors in the country. He's always outperformed Donald Trump in his home state of New Hampshire. He's also Nikki Haley's most vocal and visible surrogate.

I have to imagine that they're testing this to say, like, for his voice to resonate with Republicans -- they need to turn out in New Hampshire -- he has to at least say he's going to be with the nominee, whoever it is. I disagree with the strategy but I know Chris Sununu well enough to know I'd be stunned if he actually checks a box for a convicted felon, Donald Trump, on Election Day. HILL: Right. But if he says he's going to do it, right, that message

is still out there. Yes, you want all of these people, right? And to your point, there are a lot of people in this country who look at him and say you know, Chris Sununu -- that's a guy who I think I could trust. He seems a little bit more moderate. He is now saying I will vote for a convicted felon.

FARAH-GRIFFIN: Well, also in the point in the primary where you've also got to reach the voters like me -- the voters like the Chris Christie followers who want somebody who is actually going to take on Trump and actually take about his unfitness and his character.

I understand the strategy perhaps of not doing that six months ago, while I disagree with it. Now there's no excuse for not saying this is why you need Nikki Haley. She's fit, she has the character, she has the integrity, and they're not really doing that.

MATTINGLY: He's always so smooth and that wasn't smooth, which is --

HILL: That was not --

MATTINGLY: That's the tell. That's the tell.

FEINBERG: That was an embarrassment.

MATTINGLY: Alyssa Farah-Griffin, Sarah Feinberg, thanks, guys -- appreciate it.

Well, growing tension in the Middle East. The U.S. and the U.K. carrying out strikes against Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen. The press secretary at the Department of Defense will join us with the latest details next.

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:41:00]

HILL: We are monitoring the escalating tensions in the Middle East just one day after the U.S. -- and actually, just hours, we should say -- after the U.S. and the United Kingdom carried out strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen.

A British Armed Forces official saying earlier today there are no more U.K. missions immediately planned following those joint strikes. According to that same British official, all 14 targets were successfully hit, comprised of 12 U.S. strikes and two British strikes against multiple Houthi targets.

The U.S., for its part, claims 16 locations were hit.

Joining us from the Pentagon is Major General Patrick Ryder, press secretary, of course, for the DOD. Good to have you with us this morning.

If we could just clarify those numbers really quickly. So we're hearing 14 targets from the U.K., 16 from the U.S. Which is it? MAJ. GEN. PATRICK RYDER, PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY: Sure. So last night, the U.S. and the United Kingdom -- with support from Australia, Bahrain, Canada, and the Netherlands -- conducted strikes at over 16 -- at 16 locations, rather, with multiple targets at each of those locations.

And those targets were things that included missile radar and UAV capabilities that the Houthis had been employing to attack commercial shipping in the Red Sea. And so, the intent of those strikes last night was to disrupt and degrade their ability to conduct attacks going --

HILL: Um-hum.

RYDER: -- ahead in the future.

HILL: So -- but 14 or 16 total?

RYDER: Sixteen locations --

HILL: OK.

RYDER: -- with multiple targets at those 16 locations.

HILL: OK, got it. Thanks for clearing that up for us.

So there's a lot of talk this morning about whether this will, in fact, lead to further escalation. I know Sec. Blinken said not long ago he doesn't think the conflict is escalating. There are just a lot of danger points.

You said a short time ago to CBS this is not part of the Israel-Hamas conflict. And yet, the Houthis have been clear from the very beginning that this is.

So how is this not an escalation at this point?

RYDER: Yeah. Well, it's a great point, right? And to Sec. Blinken's point and what we continue to see is that the conflict between Israel and Hamas does remain contained to Gaza. And really, that's a major focus for us is to deter that conflict from broadening into a wider regional conflict.

And so, what you had in the Red Sea -- what we've seen is the Houthis indiscriminately attacking commercial shipping and mariners transiting this vital waterway. And so, over 50 countries have been affected by this. So this is an international problem that required an international response.

And so, there had been multiple warnings to include, early in January, 14 countries plus the United States issuing a warning to the Houthis that this action -- this illegal, reckless, dangerous action must stop or there would be consequences. And last night there were consequences.

No one wants to see a wider regional conflict but again, we also cannot allow for this kind of dangerous, reckless, and illegal behavior to continue.

HILL: Is it really possible to separate all of this?

RYDER: Again, if you take a step back here and look at what Israel is doing and who they are fighting, they are fighting Hamas, which represents an existential threat to their country. And so, again, that's primarily contained to Gaza.

The Houthis can say whatever they want. The fact is since November they've conducted 27 attacks against countries from around the world -- their vessels operating in international waterways. And so, last night, our message was clear and also, more importantly, intended to disrupt and degrade their ability to conduct these kinds of attacks going into the future.

HILL: When we look at where things stand, my very wise colleague, with his analysis this morning, Stephen Collinson, wrote that the credibility of U.S. power was on the line here and it was imperative to reestablish some form of deterrence.

What will be the message to you that this, in fact, is a deterrent? We haven't seen retaliation yet but that's a big yet.

RYDER: No, it's -- that's exactly right. Our initial assessment is that we had good effects. We will continue to monitor -- and as the president and Sec. Austin have said, we will continue to take necessary action.

[07:45:00]

The thing here is that the United States, working very closely with the international community, are taking very responsible, deliberate methods here to try to ensure that we can deter these kinds of attacks in the future, but doing it in a way that prevents this from spiraling out of control into a broader regional conflict.

One cannot say the same for groups like the Houthis that are, again, indiscriminately targeting mariners, affecting the global economy, and putting mariners' lives at risk.

HILL: There are thousands of U.S. troops in the region right now. I think I know how this is going to go but I need to ask the question. Are there plans to move more into the region as you --

RYDER: Yeah, we -- yeah.

HILL: -- look at these danger points as they were referred to by Sec. Blinken?

RYDER: So we have -- we have nothing to announce right now in terms of additional U.S. forces going into the region. As you know, we did deploy some additional capabilities back in October to support our regional deterrence efforts. But one of the things about the U.S. military is that we are a highly flexible organization. We have the ability to surge forces anywhere in the world should we need them. But right now there's nothing new to announce in regard to any additional forces.

HILL: And just quickly, too, in terms of allies in the region. Saudi Arabia releasing a statement in response to the attacks urging for restraint in the region. They're not part of this coalition. We know about the discussions that have been going on between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, obviously.

How much did they know prior to these strikes?

RYDER: Yeah. So I can't get into the specifics in terms of private conversations between us and partners.

Clearly, Saudi Arabia is an important partner in the region. We do have U.S. forces that are -- that are deployed there.

But again, we're going to continue to work very closely as we have done all along --

HILL: Um-hum.

RYDER: -- with the international community -- with our allies and partners to work together to ensure regional security and stability.

And to your point about restraint, exactly -- this is exactly what we're telling the Houthis that they need to do -- is they need to stop these attacks and they need to stop putting innocent mariners' lives at risk.

HILL: Secretary Austin is still recovering in the hospital. Can you give us a sense of his level of involvement with these strikes, and also an update on his health this morning?

RYDER: Sure, absolutely.

Well, the secretary is in good condition. He's recovering well. He's in good spirits. And he's been actively engaged in overseeing and directing these strikes.

On Tuesday, when the Houthis conducted their complex attack in the southern Red Sea, the secretary was -- participated in a meeting with the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, the U.S. Central Command commander to monitor that.

And then over the course of the last two days, he's had two conversations with the president, multiple daily calls with the national security adviser, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the U.S. Central Command commander to look at response options and then execution once the president authorized those strikes.

And then yesterday afternoon, the secretary gave the order to Central Command to initiate those strikes and then monitored in real time with a full communication -- a full suite of secure communications. And then post-strike, he conducted a phone call with the national security adviser, the chairman, and the CENTCOM commander to do an initial assessment.

So he's been actively engaged throughout and continues to monitor.

HILL: Major General Patrick Ryder, appreciate it. Thank you.

RYDER: Thank you.

MATTINGLY: Well, a winter storm warning in Chicago has the city scrambling to provide shelter for hundreds of migrants that have been sent there. What they're doing to stay warm.

And a class action lawsuit has been filed against Boeing after a chunk of its plane ripped off mid-flight last week. We've got more on that and the quality control investigation that's now underway. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:52:20]

MATTINGLY: New overnight, a class action lawsuit has been filed against Boeing on behalf of the passengers aboard last week's Alaska Airlines flight that had part of the plane blow off mid-air. This comes as the FAA is now investigating -- has an investigation into Boeing's quality control.

CNN's aviation correspondent Pete Muntean joins us now. Pete, what are you learning about what this probe will actually entail?

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: Well, this FAA investigation is significant and it means the probe of Friday's in- flight blowout is getting bigger, now going beyond the incident itself and asking what a lot of people want to know: Is there a bigger problem at Boeing?

The FAA is opening this investigation to see if Boeing's manufacturing and quality control meet safety standards. Boeing now has 10 days to submit a response to the FAA. This kind of investigation is pretty rare. And in the meantime, the Max 9 remains grounded in the U.S.

Here is what the FAA said in its announcement of this investigation. "This incident should have never happened and it cannot happen again. Boeing's manufacturing practices need to comply with the high safety standards they're legally accountable to meet."

Remember, this investigation is focusing on the Boeing 737 Max 9 door plug. That is the part of Alaska 1282 that blew out a week ago. And since then, Alaska Airlines and United Airlines both found issues with their door plugs. United said it found loose bolts related to possible installation issues.

Now, the bolts are really key. Four bolts keep the door plug snug against 12 fittings. And without those, the door can essentially shoot off like a rocket -- exactly what happened last week.

Still, a very controlled message from Boeing. CEO Dave Calhoun has done one interview since this incident. He told CNBC the cause of that incident was a horrible escape when it came to Boeing's quality control. He insists that Boeing is taking a hard look at its own processes and the processes of its contractors.

By the way, this lawsuit -- this class action suit filed in Washington State, home of Boeing -- the lawsuit alleges physical injuries, emotional trauma, passengers bruised, and they were thrust into a walking nightmare -- something the woman leading this investigation, NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy, says that passengers and flight crew were extremely traumatized by this. Even the cabin crew could not communicate with the flight crew in the cockpit, Phil.

MATTINGLY: How could you not be?

Pete Muntean, keep us posted, please. Thank you.

And we are just three days away from the Iowa caucuses. Donald Trump, fresh out of the courtroom, will be back in the Hawkeye State today. His plans ahead of a big day on the trail.

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:59:05]

HILL: This morning, Chicago's O'Hare experiencing a ground stop as the city braces for a brutal winter storm that could bring eight inches of snow and 45-mile-per-hour winds. The city is scrambling as well to shelter migrants as hundreds more have been forced to live on warming buses for days now.

CNN's Whitney Wild is live in Chicago with more for us. This weather -- also we're talking to some of the most vulnerable people in Chicago. Plus, a political crisis. This is quite the Friday.

WHITNEY WILD, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. It is just challenge after challenge after challenge for city officials here.

Let's first talk about the migrants who are at the landing zone here in the city. As of yesterday, there were 239 migrants living at this landing zone. When the weather turns like this at night, the Chicago Transit Authority offers up these warming buses for migrants to shelter overnight. It is certainly not ideal but regardless, there are dozens of Chicago Transit Authority buses here to try to give these migrants some reprieve from this winter storm that has been rolling in.