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Clooney and Douglas Call for Biden to Exit Race; Rep. Greg Landsman (D-OH) is Interviewed about Biden; Debate over Biden's Re- election Run. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired July 11, 2024 - 06:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:33:12]

KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR: All right, welcome back.

The stars not currently aligning for President Biden. By stars we mean the Hollywood heavyweights who, one by one, seem to be starting to bail on the president. The actor, George Clooney, calling on Biden to step aside just weeks after headlining a star-studded fundraiser for his re-election campaign. And it was that fundraiser the gave him this. Clooney wrote in an op-ed in "The New York Times." It reads in part, quote, "it is devastating to say it, but the Joe Biden I was with three weeks ago at that fundraiser was not the Joe 'big f-ing deal' Biden of 2010. He wasn't even the Joe Biden of 2020. He was the same man we all witnessed at the debate."

Clooney apparently not alone. The actor Michael Douglas says he agrees with Clooney that it is time for Democrats to do something different.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL DOUGLAS, ACTOR: And I think it's a valid point. I mean, I'm - I'm - I'm deeply, deeply concerned. I mean especially it's difficult because the Democrats have a big bench. I mean they've got a lot of heavy hitters.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: All right, the panel is back.

And, of course, this is the cover of "The New York Post" this morning, "Doesn't' Have A Clooney." Lots of fodder there. "Politico" now reporting this morning, Jeff Zeleny, that George Clooney ran this op- ed by President Barack Obama, who you will know, we can put that photo back up on the screen, was in that photo with George Clooney and Julia Roberts. And the interesting detail they say is that, "Obama didn't encourage or advise Clooney to say what he said, but he also didn't object to it," which is remarkable.

It does feel like there is something coordinated here.

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: And there's gambling at the casino, yes. This is something that is - absolutely makes sense because things do not happen this week in a vacuum. The fact that - that Nancy Pelosi said her very calibrated words yesterday.

[06:35:03]

And what's - remember what she said last week that really framed the discussion, if this is an episode or a condition. She intentionally kept the discussion open yesterday morning. A couple hours later, this op-ed came from George Clooney. Is all of this coordinated? It's no coincidence, I'm told.

And the Obama things specifically, look, former President Barack Obama is - has been very loyal to his vice president and his current president, but he also has not come out this week and said anything supportive in terms of, guys, back off, he said he's running, he's running. He has not said that. He is waiting on the sidelines, in the wings, like many others, to allow this conversation to percolate and things. If he wanted to stop George Clooney from doing this, I'm guessing he could have done that. They are friends. The Obamas have vacationed at their house in Italy with them in years gone by. But the thought of Obama sort of orchestrating this through Clooney, I don't believe that.

HUNT: Sure.

ZELENY: But I do believe that this is something that conversations are happening at these high levels.

And look, I think the root of all of this is, someone talked to me yesterday that President Biden could go from sort of villain in the party, villain is probably strong, to hero immediately if he sort of took this off-ramp. The question is, how difficult is it for him to take this off ramp, and has any of this changed his mind? He has wrapped himself with the pillars of the party, the CBC and black voters, labor yesterday. So, in the internal structures of the party, he's still like fairly strong. But clearly he's losing support externally.

KATE BEDINGFIELD, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: On the Obama peace, also don't forget, there's - there's history here, 2015, 2016, President Obama and his team want - discouraged Joe Biden from getting into the race. Joe Biden wrote about this in quite - in a lot of detail in his book. You know, and there's lingering - there are lingering feelings about that. You know, Biden felt like he had a good lane. Look, ultimately, he decided not to run because he was not emotionally in a place after his son Beau's death where he felt like he could give it his all. But there were lingering scars from President Obama and his team really trying to dissuade Biden from getting into the race. So that's another - that's another layer here in terms of, as people are thinking about how best to kind of, you know, try - try to influence Joe Biden's decision here. And I would have to imagine that's in the back of President Obama's mind as well.

HUNT: Yes.

ZELENY: Scars with Jill Biden too, I'm told, over President Obama. BEDINGFIELD: Yes. Yes.

HUNT: Yes. No, it's - it's all - all very, very layered.

Can we just remind - I just want to play it because I want to take a look back but also reference what George Clooney was talking about, that big f-ing deal, Joe Biden moment with - with Obama. We have that. Let's just look at it. This is, again, when these two men were serving together in the White House, Joe Biden was vice president, and before what Kate describes when Obama thinks that Joe Biden is not the right person to basically succeed him and gives that nod to Hillary Clinton instead.

Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES (March 23, 2010): Ladies and gentlemen, the president of United States of America, Barack Obama.

This is a big f-ing deal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: The passage of the ACA 14 years ago now, 2010, was when that happened. And you can see the difference, Sarah. I mean it's - you just can.

SARAH LONGWELL, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Oh, well, you could see the difference if you go back and watch Joe Biden debate Donald Trump in 2020.

HUNT: Yes.

LONGWELL: It is startling. Anytime you look back at Joe Biden, there's - I know people say, well, you know, he's always sort of had this stutter or, you know, hasn't always found the correct word quickly, but his energy, the ability to understand what he is saying, all of that's different from four years ago. And people who talk about, is it a condition or, you know, is something wrong with him? No, he's just 81-years-old. Like, the reason that George Clooney is writing this, the reason that Barack Obama is not stopping him, is everybody's going, he's 81-years-old.

But like one of the things that focus group voters say is they say, somebody's got to take the car keys from him because people understand what it's like to have an aging parent and how they get stubborn. And so, the taking the car keys is a theme we're starting to hear throughout the groups.

HUNT: Yes. Yes, it's - it's tough. It's a tough conversation to have, which I think is - is why this is so - this is so difficult, especially for people who do, you know, love Joe Biden, right?

So, let's put up - we've got some new polling data that came in this morning from ABC News. If we want to kind of cycle through what we have there. I think the top line number here, this is all adults, it's not registered voters or likely voters, it's the number of people that think Joe Biden should step aside. And that stands - or actually here this is the choice for president, so this is very tight. Donald Trump, 47. Joe Biden, 46. This is plus or minus two points. I'm not sure if that's a registered voters or likely voters.

But look at that, is the candidate too old for a second term? Biden, 85 percent yes. Trump, 60 percent yes. We should acknowledge, these men are three years apart in age.

[06:40:03]

But then here's the should Biden step aside number. And this, again, is all adults. Yes, 67 percent. No, 30 percent.

Are these the kind of numbers that are going to make a difference to Biden -

ZELENY: No, this is not going to -

HUNT: Or go ahead and say what you see here.

ZELENY: This is not going to drive his decision. These polls are basically - are tracking what our poll said after the debate and others. The bottom - the polls that I think, the data that could be sort of persuasive, certainly the Democrats are, what is this whole situation doing to the ticket? Look at House races. Look at some Senate races. And without question, the Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, those Senate races are harder for Democrats to hold those seats than they were just two weeks ago. It was never easy necessarily, but those are the numbers. If any numbers or data are going to drive this decision, it will be those.

But I think one thing that does, the Biden team can point to that. Look, he is still neck and neck within the margin of error with Donald Trump. The overall number hasn't changed for him. But down-ballot, that's where the worry is.

HUNT: Yes. Quickly.

LONGWELL: In the states it is changing though. I mean like - to - a lot of these national polls, it's incredibly misleading because right now like in a place like Wisconsin, there's a massive gap between Senator Tammy Baldwin and how she is polling and where Biden is polling. He's like ten points behind her. You can't argue with gaps like that.

HUNT: Yes. No. They're humungous. And they were big before the debate. But like from what I understand from talking to -

ZELENY: Bigger (ph).

HUNT: My sources on The Hill, they have just ballooned.

All right, coming up next here, a Boeing plane forced to abort its takeoff because of multiple blown tires. We're going to bring you that in our morning round-up.

Plus, Democratic Congressman Greg Landsman of Ohio is here. We're going to talk to him about Joe Biden's future. That's ahead.

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[06:46:16]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST, "THE LATE SHOW": Most Democrats, even those with serious doubts, are falling in line for now, while reportedly they're hoping Biden makes another major public misstep.

Mr. President, thank you for touring my district's new banana peel and mop bucket factory. Now, just for safety sake, wear these roller skates.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: President Biden's political future in the balance this morning as the number of Democrats publicly calling on him to step aside has reached ten.

And one of Biden's closest allies on Capitol Hill stunning allies and colleagues with this equivocating answer on the president's political future.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): It's up to the president to decide if he is going to run. We're all encouraging him to - to make that decision because time is running short.

I want him to do whatever he decides to do. And that's - that's the way it is.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: All right, joining me now to discuss, Democratic Congressman Greg Landsman of Ohio.

Congressman, thank you very much for being here this morning.

REP. GREG LANDSMAN (D-OH): Thanks for having me.

HUNT: What the former House speaker said yesterday, what did it mean to you as you weigh whether or not you think you're going to call on - for Biden to step aside?

LANDSMAN: You know, she is a - just a giant. And we all have an enormous amount of respect for her. So, that was a - that was a big deal, though not surprising. I think she - and I feel very similar, which is that everything's on the line here. The stakes are so high that, you know, Trump, in a second term, would be dangerous to our democracy. He'll upend our lives. And the only thing worse than that would be if he was in control of all three branches of government, which is becoming more and more likely to happen. I mean that's - that's where we're headed. And I think that's why she did what she did. And she's - she's saying the right thing, which is it's - it's his decision. I mean President Biden has to make this decision, and he's got to make it very soon. He doesn't have much time. And the idea that he'll come back and keep saying, well, I've already made a decision. This is it. I'm staying in. I think what she's saying there - or at least what I would be hoping he would read from that is, well, there's time to change that decision if you can't pull this off.

HUNT: It really sounds like you feel like she opened the door for him, and you want him to walk through it?

LANDSMAN: Yes, I mean, I - I'm getting closer and closer to appreciating that - that as much as I respect Joe Biden and what he's done, that what - what Clooney said yesterday was really powerful in that he saved democracy in 2020. He's got to do it again in 2024.

Now, I had hoped, and still do to some extent, that he can go out and make the case that Donald Trump is unfit to be president. That he is going to undermine, if not destroy our democracy. But I think that's becoming more and more less likely, I'm sorry. And he could be - and this is a Sorkin line, you know, an American hero, Joe Biden and say, look, I've got to - I've got to step down.

Now, for me, I represent a district that is, in my mind, almost perfect. It's - it's an equal number of Democrats, independents, Republicans and it is a place, just like most of America, where the anti-Trump coalition is big.

[06:50:01]

It is a majority of voters. And my hope is that Biden appreciates that and either, you know, uses these last few days or, you know, weeks, I guess, before the convention to prove us all wrong. Those of us who think, hey, this is a - maybe too big of a challenge for them. But then to say if that's not the case, if he can't pull this off, that he's not going to allow that to happen. He's not going to allow Trump and the rise of fascism and authoritarianism to take root here and to allow Trump to become president and control all three branches of government.

HUNT: Do you think that there is any way that President Biden, at this point, could regain that trust and confidence that you are talking about? Is that even possible now?

LANDSMAN: I think it's possible. I'd like to go home. We're all general, you know, when we're all in D.C. we like to go home.

HUNT: Yes.

LANDSMAN: But I - I, you know, I - we all leave today to go back home. I want to go back home and check in with folks, you know, maybe one last time. But yes, he could. And as the nominee, I hope he does. However, you know, it's becoming increasingly likely that - that this is - this may be just too high of a hill for him to climb. And, by the way, this isn't about being president as much as it is making the case that Donald Trump is unfit to be president of the United States. He tried to overturn an election. He, you know, stole reproductive freedom away from tens of millions of women and girls, including my daughter, who's less free now. He gave trillions of dollars to billionaires at the expense of the rest of us. And that's why the economy is the way it is, in my opinion. He will upend democracy and up end our lives. And so everything - everything is on the line.

By the way, he also was held liable by a court for rape. He also, Trump, was also held - was also convicted on 34 felony counts. I mean to be able to make the case against this - this - this person, the former president, should not be that hard. Biden has to do it. If he can't do it, then he's got to let somebody else do it.

HUNT: Do you feel like you can plausibly say to your constituents right now that the man that they saw on the debate stage is a better person to be in charge of the country? Is that a hard argument?

LANDSMAN: He's certainly better than Donald Trump.

HUNT: Sure.

LANDSMAN: I mean, the -

HUNT: But you get what I'm saying? Like, if you're trying to convince someone who had maybe voted for Trump in '16, Biden in 2020, trying to decide what to do now, how much harder did the president make that argument for you on the debate stage.

LANDSMAN: Much harder. And, quite frankly, I think he's made it even harder since the debate because instead of saying, look, you know, let me show you I can do this, he just kind of went at us. And I don't think that helped him.

HUNT: So you think he did more damage to himself beginning this week with that letter he put out on Monday, through the rest of the week?

LANDSMAN: The letter didn't help. No. But, you know, at the end of the day, we're all adults. So, you know, put the letter aside.

The question is about the future of the country. Truly, right? And, you know, he cares deeply about the country. He does. He cares deeply about our democracy. He cares deeply about freedom.

There are a lot of people who have a lot on the line right now. I mean, a lot. Millions and millions of people. And he cares deeply about, you know, an economy that works for working people. And we're not going to get any of that and we could lose, you know, a lot, if not everything, if Trump is re-elected and he has control of all three branches of government. That is a, I believe, a nightmare scenario. Not just for me, or the Democratic Party, but for the American people and those most vulnerable, or those who have everything on the line, which is millions and millions of people. And I know that the president deeply cares about that.

And so my hope is that, when I go home, back to Ohio, and listen to folks, that, you know, he - he's spending the next three or four days really listening to folks and either deciding, you know what, I can - I can make a turn here. I can - I can make this happen. I - I'm becoming increasing less convinced. Or to say, it's time.

HUNT: What would you like to see happen in the event that he does step aside? Would you like to see Kamala Harris? Would you like to see an open convention?

LANDSMAN: Either one. Yes. Either one.

HUNT: Either one. OK.

LANDSMAN: Either one.

HUNT: Congressman Landsman, thank you very much for being here.

I tell you what, come back Monday after you have talked to people back home, you know?

LANDSMAN: Sure. Yes, no problem. Yes.

HUNT: We'd love to hear your news first at the table.

[06:55:00]

Thank you very much for being here.

All right, 54 minutes past the hour. Let's do a quick morning roundup.

A jury will soon decide the fate of New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez. In just a few hours, closing arguments will wrap up in his corruption trial. The senator is accused of taking bribes in exchange for his influence.

An American Airlines flight from Tampa to Phoenix forced to abort its takeoff because of multiple blown tires. You can see this smoke billowing from the wheels. No injuries were reported. The twenty-five- year-old Boeing 737-800 had 174 passengers and six crew onboard. No one was injured.

And Costco hiking membership fees by five bucks. It's not going to cost you $65 to join. The increase impacts 52 million customers. Me among them, I will say. The good news, the hotdogs, still $1.50 for now.

And desperate times, desperate measures. I want to talk a little bit more about our big story this morning. A Democratic delegate from California tells CNN that he received a call from the Biden campaign that was designed to, quote, shut down talk of replacing the president at the top of the ticket. Listen to this superdelegate describe what happened after Biden's disastrous debate performance.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BART DAME, DEMOCRATIC SUPERDELEGATE: When 51, 52 million people watched that debate, and a lot of us were dumbfounded by what we saw, I started getting phone calls, text messages, emails. I get stopped on the street, or since I'm in Hawaii, stopped on the beach and people say, what can we do to save this situation? And I'm hearing a lot of people who want to at least discuss and a lot of people who are leaning towards trying to get Joe Biden to step aside.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Very interesting.

The panel is back.

Jeff Zeleny, can I first just get your reaction, what the congressman said here, because he did say he was getting closer to calling for the president to step aside and really didn't leave a lot of room for the - didn't - there didn't seem to be a lot of space, in his mind, for the president to recover.

ZELENY: Look, really echoing the sentiment, I think, of what many members of Congress have said privately, a few have said publicly. There's not much difference between the ten Democrats who have come out versus others who have said he can't win, they don't see a path, et cetera. So, I think at this point members are being a little bit I guess hesitant to go all the way because if the president does not make the decision himself, why be on the record saying that?

But despite all of this, I think the question still remains, has any of this changed President Biden's mind, changed the mind of First Lady Jill Biden? We don't know that. So that is something that I think is really the only question we need answered over the next 72 hours or so.

HUNT: Fair.

ZELENY: And that's - we have little visibility on it.

HUNT: Fair. Absolutely true. But, still, Kate, it's very interesting to me that they are calling delegates, the convention? I mean that would imply that they are concerned about that on some level.

BEDINGFIELD: Well, I think you would expect to see them do that. There was, obviously, an enormous amount of concern following the debate. They are trying to help people stay on board. I'll say it that way. They're trying to - they are trying to help people stay on board. So, I don't - I - look, I don't think it's that surprising that you would see the campaign reaching out to try to shore up the people who are -

HUNT: But doesn't that suggest that they have some power over the president?

BEDINGFIELD: That the delegates have power over the president or -

HUNT: Yes.

BEDINGFIELD: Well, I mean, ultimately they determine whether the president becomes the official nominee. Although Joe Biden has enough committed delegates at this point from the primary process to become the nominee on the first - on the first ballot. But if you're the Biden campaign, you don't want superdelegates out there saying, I'm not sure I can back him. So, I don't - you know, I don't think it's an unreasonable thing for the campaign to do their legwork, to try to ensure that the people who aren't currently committed remain committed.

LONGWELL: You know, what was interesting to me about what the congressman said was this idea of, Joe Biden has the opportunity to save democracy a second time. He was quoting George Clooney. I think this is really true. This - Joe Biden - look, I've been a Republican my entire career who then went to bat really hard for Joe Biden in 2020. I thought he was the best person to take on Donald Trump. I think he has been a good president and I think he is a decent person.

I also have been totally flabbergasted by the way that, in light of the debate, they have decided to attack people, to put a ton of pressure on people in Congress to try to hold the line, as opposed to sort of reckoning with what's in front of us. And I think that Joe Biden could do the country what is just an enormous service by recognizing what the voters recognize and giving Democrats in his party and opportunity to re-energize things, to turn this whole thing around. And he would go down in history as a selfless champion of democracy. And I think he risks his entire legacy by holding on as tightly as he's trying to hold on right now.

It is interesting - was interesting to me, Jeff, that the congressman said that the - the full court pressure campaign from Biden has, in some ways, backfired.

ZELENY: I think with some members it has. But I think also important to keep in mind, is seems to have worked with other members, like the Congressional Black Caucus and others.

[07:00:01]

So, that potentially is the more complicated step here going forward. How does the unwind some of that support should that happen?

But again, I know I'm repeating myself, this is still President Biden's decision to make.

HUNT: Yes.

ZELENY: And we can talk about it until we're blue in the face.

HUNT: Well, we're going to do that.

ZELENY: And members of Congress don't get that decision.

HUNT: Guys, thank you very much for - for doing just that this morning with all of us.

ZELENY: For sure.

HUNT: And thanks to all of you, of course, for joining us this morning as well. I'm Kasie Hunt. Don't go anywhere. "CNN NEWS CENTRAL" starts right

now.