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CNN This Morning

Biden to Netanyahu: Protect Civilians or Face Consequences; Rep. Boebert's Battle to Hold onto Her House Seat; Today: 18 Million Under Freeze and Frost Alerts. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired April 05, 2024 - 06:00   ET

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

[06:00:48]

KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR: It's Friday, April 5, right now on CNN THIS MORNING.

We are waiting for the release of a highly anticipated report from the Israeli military on the killing of seven aid workers in Gaza.

Plus, motion denied twice. Two judges rejecting Donald Trump's attempts to have his trials thrown out.

And the important lesson that Donald Trump says he learned from Richard Nixon.

All right, 6 a.m. here in Washington and in New York as the sun rises here on the East Coast. Beautiful sunrise in New York City this morning. Good morning to you.

I'm Kasie Hunt. It's wonderful to have you with us. Happy Friday. We made it.

This story this morning, President Biden demanded it, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears to be responding this morning. The Israelis agreeing to open the Erez Crossing to allow aid into Northern Gaza from Jordan, as well as Israel's Southern port of Ashdod.

On Thursday, the president told the Israeli prime minister there will be consequences if he doesn't come up with a concrete plan for protecting civilians in Gaza.

Here's what White House official John Kirby told CNN about that Thursday phone call.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KIRBY, SPOKESMAN, NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL: We have to see a measurable increase, for instance, of trucks of aid getting in. We want to see additional crossings opened up. And the ones that are already opened up, increasing the flow.

And we want to make sure that we can see real civilian harm mitigation measures put in place by the IDF so that we can have a measure of security. And frankly, aid organizations can have the measure of security that they can operate it on the ground safely, and they won't be targeted, or they won't be accidentally struck.

And then lastly -- and I talked about this earlier -- we need to see a pause in the fighting. We want to see a ceasefire tied to getting the hostages out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: A senior administration official telling CNN Netanyahu admitted to Biden that the IDF was to blame for the deaths of seven aid workers in Gaza.

The prime minister also commented -- committed to improving the tracking of non-profit workers.

Also this morning, the IDF is expected to release its initial report on the strike that killed seven aid workers from the World Central Kitchen. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, a short time ago, calling for an independent investigation.

Our panel is here. Let's bring in Evan Osnos, staff writer for "The New Yorker" and Biden's biographer. Republican strategist Sarah Longwell is here. And CNN political commentator Karen Finney joins us, as well.

Thank you, guys, for being here on a Friday morning. Evan, I want to start with you, because this has been very every much about Biden, the man, in his decision making around how to try and influence the Israeli prime minister to do more, especially in the wake of the killing of these seven aid workers. The World Central Kitchen workers.

And we are, of course, waiting for this report we expect this morning from the IDF.

How do you see what -- and how do you understand Biden's personal feelings, U.S. policy, and what we've seen as a result of this phone call, which is this claim that they are going to open more avenues for getting humanitarian aid in?

EVAN OSNOS, STAFF WRITER, "THE NEW YORKER": Yes, it's been a pretty remarkable week. I mean, really on Monday, the attack on World Central Kitchen, on this convoy, has had a galvanizing effect on the politics of this war in a way that really almost nothing has before over the last six months.

There are people who are concerned about that. They say, why is it that we have 32,000 deaths in Gaza, but it was ultimately the death of seven aid workers that changed things. But that's the nature of moral sympathy is a fickle and sometimes cruel thing.

And the truth is, Joe Biden responded to this moment in a way that was different than what had happened before. And he responded, I think, partly because he sensed that this moment was ultimately different.

This was a time now when Benjamin Netanyahu would acknowledge that it was so clearly the IDF's fault in this case; that this was a mistake. This was wrong, and that that was an indisputable opportunity to change the nature of how the United States was pressuring Israel.

For a long time he hasn't been willing to do it. He believes there is a moment. And when you take it, then you strike and that's what Biden did now.

HUNT: Karen Finney, what's your view of this?

[06:05:01]

KAREN FINNEY, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: A couple of things.

No. 1, it also matters that it was Jose Andres and someone who has a real platform and was able to not just speak about the pain of losing seven people, but his own perspective.

First of all, he was supposed to be in that convoy. He's talked about that. And second of all, his own -- the measures that they thought they had gone to to keep people --

HUNT: Can you imagine if he had been in that convoy? I can't.

FINNEY: Right. I mean, think about the conversation we would be having today.

HUNT: Not to diminish the lives that were -- were actually lost, but --

FINNEY: Correct. Correct. But also, he talked about the measures that they thought they had gone through to keep their people safe.

And I think that revealed some of the -- once again, we've heard some of these criticisms before from aid organizations. But again, when you have someone like Jose Andres out there saying it, it has a much, you know, broader audience who's actually tuning in.

And the second thing I'll just say briefly is I want to give credit to those Americans who had been voting -- the administration may not like this, but who'd been voting uncommitted. Because I think it also says their voices are being heard.

Netanyahu is a political animal. He understands that the politics here in the United States are shifting for President Biden. And I'm sure that's part of what President Biden conveyed to him yesterday. And understanding that his own leverage and ability to kind of just let this go is very much diminishing.

SARAH LONGWELL, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: I just want to say with voters, you know, the things with our international wars, like those are very abstract to voters. It's something that happens far away.

Jose Andres is a thing that Americans understand and feels personal to them. And so while it shouldn't -- we don't want to diminish the lives that were lost by saying this is about him. But the fact is when Americans have an attachment to something, it

changes the politics very quickly, because its suddenly hits people where they are in a different way.

HUNT: Well, and speaking of, let's show a little bit of how -- of Jose Andres, who spoke to international media earlier on this week. And I think it helps underscore the point Sarah is making. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSE ANDRES, CHEF, FOUNDER, WORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN: This was not just a bad lag situation where, oops, we dropped the bomb in the wrong place or -- or not. This was over 1.51, 1.8 kilometers with a very defined humanitarian convoy that had signs in the top, in the roof. A very colorful logo that we are obviously very proud of, but that's very clear who we are and what we do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: So I mean, he is clearly just very skilled at, at talking to -- directly to people, the supporters that I'm sure he knows he has.

And Sarah, I'm curious. So the lead "Wall Street Journal" editorial this morning is critical of Biden. It says, "Biden exploits a tragic Israeli mistake." They say that what -- the pressure they've been putting on is the worst thing the president could do to free the hostages, for example. They describe it as Biden taking on-- you know, taking this opportunity to address his own kind of political challenges here in the U.S.

I'm really interested in how you understand this in terms of Republicans' support for Israel has been very unwavering and, frankly, Democratic support has been, too, until this war has started to unfold.

But now you have President Trump. There's been some reporting that he thinks that this war should be over, because there is this kind of isolationist wing inside the Republican Party that really -- you know, they're very focused on not having Americans be involved in overseas conflicts.

"The Journal" editorial page is kind of like the old-school conservative way of looking at the world, right? How is that intention and what does it mean for us policy toward Israel?

LONGWELL: Oh, yes, this is such a big question.

HUNT: Thanks

LONGWELL: You are right, That that is the old-school weighing of the Republican Party that still sounds like people that I remember.

However, what they have done is basically taken every opportunity to attack Joe Biden, even though Joe Biden has been much more like the editorial page of "The Wall Street Journal" --

HUNT: Yes.

LONGWELL: -- in terms of his foreign policy, much more. And because it's not just an isolationist wing in the Republican Party now. More than half of the Republican Party doesn't support aid to Ukraine. They absolutely do -- if it required American involvement in Israel beyond what we were doing now, they'd be absolutely against it.

And so yes, look, I just -- I think that Joe Biden, I think he's in a really tough situation, because he's not going to get support from Republicans for standing by Israel. And he's losing his progressive flank.

And with things like this, with the Jose Andres piece, part of what happens is the way, to your larger question, how it impacts American foreign policy is, is that Americans are sort of like, yes, we stand with Israel. There's kind of a broad sense of that. They were attacked by terrorists, and it was brutal. And Israel has the right to prosecute a war or try to root out Hamas.

At some point, though, Americans start to lose confidence in the way that Israel is prosecuting this war, especially when it's making a mistake that is so big as to attack an aid convoy who has somebody who is -- they are attached to as, like, an angel of, you know, philanthropy and taking care of people.

[06:10:07]

HUNT: Who is so very clearly good.

LONGWELL: Good, yes.

HUNT: Right? Just -- it's impossible to miss. All right.

Up next here, two judges denying Donald Trump's attempts to have his cases thrown out.

Plus, a deadly crane collapse on a busy bridge in Fort Lauderdale. We'll tell you about this lucky driver.

And Congresswoman Lauren Boebert at face seeing a tough reelection campaign after the resignation of a Republican colleague.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:15:04]

HUNT: Welcome back. Now to some new CNN reporting.

Congresswoman Lauren Boebert, the firebrand representing Colorado's 3rd Congressional District, is now facing a tough race in November, thanks to a series of personal controversies -- also an undersell -- an unexpected retirement, and a new redistricting map.

CNN Capitol Hill reporter Melanie Zanona is here. She joins our panel.

Mel, great to have you. This is a rich topic. Walk us through why Lauren Boebert, who has

become, you know, one of these sort of MAGA faces, although not entirely. I mean, some of this is just personal controversy. It's not even around her politics, necessarily. Why she potentially may not be returning to Congress.

MELANIE ZANONA, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: She definitely is in the fight of her political life right now. Remember, she almost lost to a Democrat last cycle. So she has opted to run in a new district which is more conservative leaning. But she has still got to prevail in a primary.

And this is a very rural district made up with ranchers and farmers who care about agriculture policy. And she has been facing really pointed questions about her personal behavior and her conduct.

But there are signs that she has not changed or tried to tone down her behavior, at least behind closed doors. I'm told that she attended a December gala in New York City. It was a Republican event. Donald Trump was headlining. And that the server who was coming to bring alcohol refused to bring her any more alcohol, because they thought that she was overserved.

HUNT: Uh-huh.

ZANONA: She also was trying to take pictures with Donald Trump. And eventually, Donald Trump's security detail stepped in and asked her to stop doing that, according to witnesses who witnessed it and that I spoke to.

Now, Donald Trump still did endorse her, so clearly, he wasn't maybe that bothered by this incident. But a Trump endorsement alone is not going to be enough to put her over the finish line.

So she is facing a very tough challenge in that June primary.

HUNT: So Mel, just to be clear, basically, she went to a fundraiser in New York City with Donald Trump and got so drunk they had to cut her off and then tried to take repeated pictures with Trump. And then they had to tell her, hey lady, like tone it down?

ZANONA: According to the witnesses, this is how it went down and remind viewers here that this came a few months after, that she got in trouble and had to apologize for her conduct at a Denver theater, where she was watching a performance, a musical performance of "Beetlejuice." And she got kicked out for vaping and being loud. And there's security footage of it.

And so this is just an example --

HUNT: It was much more than vaping and being loud, although I do -- I appreciate your attempt at --

ZANONA: Keep the P.G. morning.

HUNT: At 6 in the morning. Yes. There was a lot more going on, like people don't do that. It was a family theater.

I will say, Mel, there's also some undertones here with those who have been kind of working to undermine Lauren Boebert. I talked to Tim Burchett, Congressman Burchett a little while ago. He's tight with Ken Buck, who is leaving Congress in possibly no small part to prevent Boebert from winning.

Here's what Burchett told me.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: So you think he is retiring or leaving Congress early, specifically to prevent Lauren Boebert from being in Congress?

REP. TIM BURCHETT (R-TN): I don't know if that's his intention, but there's a lot of talk of that. This is a made-for-TV movie, ma'am.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Made for -- he's not wrong, because basically, Buck peacing out here denied her an opportunity to use a kind of a different mechanism to get -- get this seat, right?

ZANONA: Well, Boebert herself believes that Buck did this move on purpose to try to kneecap -- kneecap her.

Now, I will say that last week there was a development that was a big boost for her, because instead of selecting one of her primary opponents to fill out the rest of that term, they did select someone who's going to be more of a caretaker role.

So that person is not going to be running in the fall. So that was a big boost for her. She got a big break in that development.

But like I said, she's still got to go up against these other very pro-Trump Republican candidates in this district who are actually from the district and who don't have as much baggage.

HUNT: Yes. Let's remember, she is actually a carpetbagger here. Something her opponents are leveling at her, but it's very obvious.

Melanie Zanona, love having you. Great reporting. Thank you.

Coming up next, No Labels abandons its bid to mount a third-party presidential ticket. The panel will discuss. Karen Finney is over there making a "yes, we did it" sign.

Plus, a high-speed chase along the U.S.-Mexico border results in a dramatic arrest. We'll show you that dash cam footage ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:223:37]

HUNT: All right. Twenty-three minutes past the hour, five things you have to see this morning. A construction worker is dead and three other people injured after part of a crane collapsed on a bridge in Fort Lauderdale yesterday. The three injury victims are expected to recover.

New dash cam video shows a high-speed chase near the U.S.-Mexico border on Sunday. The Kinney County Sheriff's Office says a Texas National Guard member was arrested and charged with human smuggling.

Search-and-rescue operations continue this morning at a scenic tunnel in Taiwan after Wednesday's devastating earthquake. At least ten people have died.

Rescuers are planning to airlift a killer whale calf that's been stranded for more than two -- for two weeks at a remote lagoon off Vancouver Island. How they're actually going to capture the calf still being worked out.

And parts of Ohio and West Virginia facing the threat of more rain after the Ohio River flooded Thursday, sending water rushing into neighboring communities.

Speaking of weather, we've got a big chill in the forecast today that could impact millions in the upper Midwest and the Northeast. Let's get to meteorologist Elisa Raffa.

Elisa, good morning. What are we seeing?

Good morning. We're seeing the aftereffects of that Nor'easter and that, yes, will bring in that colder air, prompting some of those freeze alerts.

Still have more than 400,000 customers without power this morning in New England; 350,000 of those customers are in Maine and New Hampshire this morning. Because we still have this storm swirling.

[06:25:05]

Now it's got much less snow. You've got some lighter snow showers around Maine, getting into Boston, even Cleveland and Toronto. Most of the warnings have been dropped. We're left with just a few more inches of snow left. But we'll still find some of these wind gusts still coming around as snow totals have been upwards of a foot across parts of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and upstate New York there. Some of these totals up to two feet in some communities in Vermont, 20 inches in New Hampshire, eight inches in Massachusetts.

So we'll keep the snow swirling with some wind gusts, not as hefty as yesterday, but still on the order of 20 to 30 miles per hour. That will start to unleash some cooler air that will slide in. And that's where we've got these freeze alerts for this morning. And then going into tomorrow morning, as well, where the growing season has started.

And any cold-sensitive vegetation or sensitive vegetation could be at risk to frost or freeze damage.

HUNT: I keep saying this. Happy spring to all of us. Elisa Raffa, thank you very much for that. I appreciate it. Have a good weekend.

All right. President Biden heading to Baltimore today to visit the site of the Key Bridge collapse.

Plus former President Trump taking life lessons from Richard Nixon?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)