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CNN This Morning

Congress Under Pressure After Key Ukrainian City Falls; Trump Rips Judge After $355 Million Civil Fraud Ruling; Man in Custody as Police Search for Missing Girl. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired February 19, 2024 - 07:00   ET

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

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ADAM TRUJILLO, UCCS STUDENT: Saying that there was a lockdown and to just be safe, lock the door.

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LUCY KAFANOV, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Now, classes have been canceled since Friday. They remain canceled today, but the campus is going to be open for students as a healing day where they can process the tragedy of what happened. Back to you.

AUDIE CORNISH, CNN ANCHOR: Lucy, thank you so much for your reporting.

And CNN This Morning continues right now.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Russia has made some significant gains on the southeastern front as the Ukrainians are starved for ammunition waiting for Congress to pass possible further aid.

FMR. REP. LIZ CHENEY (R-WY): History will look back at this moment and ask what did Mike Johnson do?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Trump has told the U.S. not to move forward on aid to Ukraine. What is he doing during all of this? He's selling sneakers in Pennsylvania.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Democracies around the world are mourning Navalny's death.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As many 400 detained for simply offering sympathy for this late opposition leader.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Navalny's supporters are calling on the government to immediately release his body.

JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: Make no mistake, Putin is responsible for Navalny's death. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The NBA's brightest stars descending on Indianapolis for All-Star Weekend. The East would win the highest scoring All-Star game ever.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dame shooting from half court.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've been here quite a few times. So, to be able to have this type of accomplishment is special.

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JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning everyone, I'm John Berman with T.V. Pro Audie Cornish here in New York. It's great to see you all. Poppy and Phil are off this morning.

A key Ukrainian city has fallen to Russian forces while the U.S. House of Representatives is on vacation for two weeks and desperately needed aid hangs in limbo. President Biden blames congressional inaction after Ukrainian troops were forced to withdraw from Avdiivka. And he is warning that more towns could fall as Russia presses the attack on multiple fronts. There is board of a huge Russian troop buildup in the south.

CORNISH: And Congress is also under renewed pressure to act after the death of Alexei Navalny in a Siberian prison. New this morning, Navalny's wife has posted a defiant video message online. She's vowing to continue her husband's work and to find out how he was killed.

In the video, she says the Russian government is hiding his body and she's suggesting he may have been poisoned with a nerve agent again. Listen.

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YULIA NAVALNAYA, ALEXEI NAVALNY'S WIFE: In a cowardly way, they're hiding his body, not showing to his mother, not giving to his mother. They're lying and they're waiting for the traces of another of Putin's Novichok to disappear.

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CORNISH: CNN's Fred Pleitgen is live in Berlin. Give us a little more of the reaction so far.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Audie. Well, there's been obviously massive reaction coming from around the world. Of course, one of the things that this news really burst into over the weekend was the Munich Security Conference, that big meeting with leaders from around the world where there was widespread condemnation, again, Vladimir Putin, by a lot of those leaders, being made responsible for the death of Alexei Navalny, even though many of them did not say that they said that he was directly involved in all of this. However, they did say that, in any case, he's responsible for the circumstances that Alexei Navalny was being kept under and therefore directly responsible for his death. So, we have that side of things. And then we have what's going on right now. We saw that clip from Yulia Navalnaya, where she's saying that she believes that the Russian authorities are hiding Alexei Navalny's body indirectly, claiming that he was poisoned by the Russians, of course, impossible to provide any evidence for that.

The big thing that's been going on over the weekend is that his relatives, specifically his mother, had been trying to get access to the body. I've been down at the morgue near where that jail is in the very north of Russia, above the Arctic Circle. So far, the authorities not allowing access to the body, not handing the body over.

It was interesting because there was a call with journalists, with the Kremlin earlier this morning, and Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that they were not involved at all, the Kremlin, he says, of getting the body back to the relatives of Alexei Navalny. They did say that there was an investigation going on into the death of Alexei Navalny, but that it was open-ended and that so far the outcome was also open as well. Of course, the family of Alexei Navalny, those close to Alexei Navalny, and the folks from his anti-corruption foundation not buying that at all, holding Vladimir Putin responsible as do many leaders around the world, including, of course, the U.S. president, guys.

BERMAN: Yes, it is peculiar not turning the body over, to say the least.

Fred, you've been up and down the front lines in Ukraine as the Ukrainian troops battle Russia. Now, we have word that Avdiivka, that town which had been holding up for so long, has fallen to the Russians. How significant do you think that is?

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PLEITGEN: Well, I think it's quite significant because I think it does show several things. I think it shows that right now the Russians certainly are on the offensive in many places. For them, Avdiivka has been exceptionally important over the past couple of months. They've wanted to take it back because it's so close to one of the Russian strongholds, the main town of Donetsk Oblast, which is also called Donetsk as well. The Russians have been throwing a lot of soldiers and a lot of armor at that town.

The Ukrainians had said that the Russians were taking massive casualties trying to take it. Now, the Ukrainians pulling back, and we did get some reaction from the Ukrainians about that. The Ukrainian general staff saying that it was a decision to save the lives of their soldiers to get out of there because they were under such immense pressure in that town. The president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, he also came out and said it was a logical decision to give that town up.

Of course, one of the things that's also happened is that there's been a change in the general staff of Ukraine with a new commanding general now making that decision. The Ukrainians said they needed to move back to more fortified positions. But, of course, into all this plays, the shortage of ammunition that the Ukrainians have as well, of course, looking or hoping that the U.S. will give for their military aid, that very much in question, as you guys know, of course.

BERMAN: Look, you can't shoot if you don't have bullets. Frederik Pleitgen for us this morning, Fred, great to see you.

And at the White House this morning, President Biden has made his position clear. He is blaming Vladimir Putin for Navalny's death.

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BIDEN: Make no mistake, Putin is responsible for Navalny's death. Putin is responsible. What has happened in Navalny is yet more proof of Putin's brutality.

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CORNISH: The president also says the U.S. is looking at a number of options to punish Russia. He's also calling on Republican lawmakers to do more to help Ukraine.

CNN's M.J. Lee is at the White House. M.J., what more details are you learning about how the White House is talking about Navalny's death and also Ukraine's need for aid?

M.J. LEE, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President Biden certainly repeatedly making clear that there's no question in his mind that it is Vladimir Putin that is directly responsible for Alexei Navalny's death, and that it is just one more sign of the Putin regime's brutality.

And here in Washington, the news of Navalny's death has injected even more urgency to the debate that is ongoing over U.S.' support for Ukraine. As you know, for months and months, the Biden administration has warned that if additional funding is not approved for Ukraine, that the money -- that the pot of money that the U.S. has currently to support Ukraine is going to run out. And U.S. officials now say that that, in fact, has happened, that money has run out, and that we are already seeing some detrimental effects on the battlefield for Ukrainian forces with them running out of ammunition and other important equipment.

And over the weekend, the president made clear that he is worried that additional towns could fall in Ukraine if additional money is not approved. This is a little more of what he had to say over the weekend.

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BIDEN: And the idea that now, if you run out of ammunition and walk away, I find it absurd, I find it unethical, I find it just the contrary of everything we are is the country. So, I'm going to fight until we get them the ammunition they need and the capacity they need to defend themselves. (END VIDEO CLIP)

LEE: We are now less than a week away from the two-year mark of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and we know that the president spoke again with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy over the weekend. And, interestingly, if you look at the readout of that call between the two leaders, the president told his Ukrainian counterpart that he does believe that there is strong bipartisan support in the U.S. government for Ukrainian sovereignty.

But, of course, we've heard the president sort of blaming that small faction of what he calls extremists among House Republicans for the inaction right now. That may be the case, but the reality is that that funding that has some $60 billion for Ukraine, that remains stubbornly stalled on Capitol Hill right now. Guys?

CORNISH: M.J. Lee, thanks.

BERMAN: All right. Donald Trump railing against the New York judge the order to pay almost $355 million in penalties, actually more than $400 with interest, on his civil fraud ruling on Friday. Trump has been campaigning in Michigan trying to spin the ruling.

CNN's Kristen Holmes is in Washington. It's a good thing having to pay more than $400 million, that's not counting the 80 million dollars that he owes in the defamation case.

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John and Audie. Well, that's absolutely right. It's now roughly about $450 million that he owes, and Donald Trump's messaging has remained the same, that he himself did nothing wrong, that all of these various trials, these cases against him are linked, they are political persecution, election interference, despite the fact that they are not linked, just a reminder that you're talking about specifically a New York civil fraud case, the other one was a defamation case.

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We also have cases brought by the Department of Justice, a case by the state in Georgia. So, clearly, again, not all linked, but that has been his messaging. And he continued that in Michigan. Take a listen.

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DONALD TRUMP, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: Our court system is a mess. What's happening in our country, they have to straighten it out. All you see is bitterness and revenge and hatred. Judge Engoron just fined me $355 million for doing everything right.

And these repulsive abuses of power are not just an attack on me. They're really an attack on you and all Americans. It's a disgusting thing.

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HOLMES: So, one thing to note here is that he was saying this in Michigan. Michigan is going to be a key battleground state in a general election. This messaging has worked with his supporters, with Republicans. But the big question is whether or not this kind of messaging is going to resonate in a general election when you're trying to siphon off voters and independent voters in particular.

Now, I do have to bring up one other thing from this weekend when it comes to the former president, and that is you mentioned the $400 million that he owes, he might have come up with a way to start chipping away at that cost.

Here we go. Let's pull it up right now. These are Trump sneakers. He released them at Sneaker Con in Philadelphia. They are $400 or $399 a pair, again, coming right after it turns out that he owes more than $355 million to the courts. Donald Trump, again, trying to make money off of his brand, but I will tell you, the website says that they already sold out.

So, John and Audie, next time you need to get on the pre-order list so that you can get them. You don't have to wait and go to Sneaker Con.

CORNISH: I'm going to leave it to the hardcore sneaker heads to collect a collector's item. Kristen Holmes, thanks so much.

Now, we also have new CNN reporting this morning on Vice President Kamala Harris stepping up her efforts in the re-election campaign. We're going to tell you what she's up to.

BERMAN: And authorities in Texas searching for a missing 11-year-old girl, the latest on the investigation.

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BERMAN: 11-year-old Audrii Cunningham left home last Thursday morning to catch the school bus, like she did every morning, but police say she never made it to the bus stop. The Texas girl has been missing ever since, and a man who was taken into custody on an unrelated charge is now a person of interest to authorities.

CNN's Rosa Flores live from Livingston, Texas. Rosa, what's the latest here?

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPODNENT: Well, state police is calling this a criminal investigation. I'll get to that in just a moment, John, because I'm in the neighborhood where this little girl was last seen. This is the neighborhood where she was supposed to take the bus, but she never made it to school. And then in the afternoon when she didn't get home, her father reported her missing.

Now, what you see behind me is Lake Livingston. Now, this is an area that has been searched by authorities. And just south of where I am on this lake, that is where Lake Livingston Dam is. That's where authorities say that they found the bright red backpack that belonged to Audrii Cunningham. Now, we have a map to show you a better sense of this area. Well, just downstream of that on the Trinity River where the Trinity River meets I-59, that's where authorities were searching on Sunday.

And Audrii Cunningham's mother making a plea to anyone with information to call authorities. Take a listen.

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CASSIE MATTHEWS, AUDRII CUNNINGHAM'S MOM: She has so many opportunities ahead of her, and she deserves every right to be able to reach those opportunities.

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FLORES: State police has identified a person of interest, but this individual is arrested on an unrelated charge, a charge for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. But they're not charging him yet with anything associated with Audrii Cunningham's disappearance.

Now, state police say that this is a criminal investigation and that they suspect foul play, but they won't go into the details of what that means. Take a listen.

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LT. CRAIG CUMMINGS, TEXAS DPS SPOKESMAN: Our primary focus and hope is that we bring Audrii safely home, but we also realize that foul play may be a factor.

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FLORES: Now, multiple law enforcement agencies are involved in this search. Multiple areas have been searched and there's a $7,000 reward.

John, Audie, back to you.

CORNISH: A rough week for that family. Rosa, thank you so much for sharing this.

Now, former Congresswoman Liz Cheney claiming there is a Putin wing in the GOP. More on her stark warning ahead.

BERMAN: The urgent calls for the USA to Ukraine, they grow louder after Alexei Navalny's deaths. We're joined by a Republican member of Congress ahead.

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CORNISH: As the world mourns the death of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, there are renewed calls for U.S. lawmakers to pass new aid for Ukraine. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called for House Republicans to take up a Senate-passed foreign aid bill. He wrote in a statement, nothing, nothing would make Putin happier right now than to see Congress waver in its support for Ukraine. Nothing would help him more on the battlefield.

Now, nearly 400 people have also been reportedly detained across Russia for honoring Navalny since his death was announced on Friday. The cause of his death remains unclear, but nearly 30,000 people have signed a petition to have Navalny's body released to his family. And as of this morning, Navalny's family says they are still being denied access to the morgue where his body is allegedly being held.

Joining us now is Congresswoman Victoria Spartz, a Republican from Indiana. She's also the first Ukrainian-born member of Congress. Congresswoman, welcome to the show.

You have said that Navalny's death looks suspicious, but not surprising. What are you hearing about his death in Munich?

REP. VICTORIA SPARTZ (R-IN): Well, it's definitely, you know, and you can see, you know, that Russia is now ran by pretty much criminals, mafia and FSB. It's a bended country and, unfortunately, they got away with a lot. It's kind of, you know, for Putin to do it, obviously doesn't happen there by accident. But to do what he did when his wife was in Munich with a lot of western leaders, it shows that he doesn't care in the past few weeks with him.

And I think that's why it's important for us to start thinking about it what we're doing and not learn from history and mistakes we've done. And kind of we've been in Nuremberg today and going to have some hearings in courtroom, 600, about war crimes that's happening right now. But it's sad for us that we're repeating the history and millions of people are going to be destroyed again in Europe, and we as the west failing again.

CORNISH: Congresswoman, former representative Liz Cheney warned about what she called a Putin wing of the Republican Party.

[07:25:04]

If you can, I want you to listen to this.

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CHENEY: When you think about Donald Trump, for example, pledging retribution, what Vladimir Putin did to Navalny is what retribution looks like in a country where the leader is not subject to the rule of law. We have to take seriously the extent to which, you know, you've now got a Putin wing in the Republican Party.

I believe the issue this election cycle is making sure the Putin wing of the Republican Party does not take over the West Wing of the White House.

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CORNISH: How do you speak to your colleagues who are sort of supportive of Russia? How do you speak to voters who don't see Russia as a threat?

SPARTZ: Well, Listen, I think, you know, before, I think Congresswoman Cheney maybe should talk about why both parties and presidents, you know, even before President Trump, you know, did actually nothing to deter Putin. He invaded Crimea, Eastern Ukraine, Obama, Biden administration gave blanket. Actually, Trump was the first one who gave weapons, you know.

And my side of the party is frustrated with President Biden with his domestic issues and not having strategy to deter aggression, not have never-ending wars.

And it's very interesting. I'll tell you, something, you know, it seems to me that President Biden was slow-working aid, wanted to have a 20-year war, but we didn't actually increase manufacturing, productions of weapons. So, we didn't even align us to put industry in a warm mode (ph), but Russia did.

So, I think that's a fair question that my party is asking. Our strategy, our actions, we don't want never-ending wars and we want to deal with domestic issues at the border. We have to have these conversations. And a lot of people, you know, including Vice President Cheney, when they were in charge, they folded under Putin when they were talking about Ukraine joining NATO. President Bush and you know, Vice President Cheney did nothing about that and kept holding Putin, and he said before the strike (ph).

CORNISH: Right now, you do have the opportunity to talk about aid to Ukraine and the House is not taking it, Republican leadership is not taking it. They are on recess. President Biden has talked about this as well but also President Zelenskyy talked about this in Munich on Saturday.

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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: Dictators do not go on vacation. Hatred knows no pause. Enemy artillery does not fall silent due to procedural issues.

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CORNISH: You said these conversations need to be had. Do you think Speaker Mike Johnson should have it sooner than he's planning to?

SPARTZ: Well, listen, we've been actually -- this is already, we'll be -- unfortunately, it will be the two-year anniversary of this war. So, I'm glad that now everyone talking about, I think we need actions more than conversations right now. And I was very frustrated what was happening before the war, including President Zelenskyy did nothing to prepare his country, how President Biden slow-walked his aid. I think that's a big challenge right now. And we have to unite in our strategy to deter further aggression, which happened right now in Middle East and Africa.

But I think, actually, that is kind of disingenuous to say that right now, this is somehow where we are, it was actually because Republicans were in charge. Democrats and Biden were in charge when the war started. And right now, I hope more Republicans will put pressure on Democrats to do better on this war.

So, the Senate didn't pass anything on the border security. It's a challenge. The money that they requested, we also have to rethink and realign how we can do better with lethal aid. And also, if you remember, (INAUDIBLE) lend lease, and President Biden decided not to do it. And why? Because that's a question we should ask. I think it would be more fair if we cannot have said this better to actually give it as a loan, have better oversight and increase manufacturing capabilities. We don't have them right now.

So, I think when we come back, but right now, we have in this discussion, including (INAUDIBLE) with the speaker too.

CORNISH: Congresswoman Victoria Spartz, thank you.

SPARTZ: Thank you for having me.

BERMAN: So, court is getting expensive for Donald Trump. He owes more than $400 million. So, this morning, how close is he to paying? And what's next in his multiple legal fights?

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