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Harris Vows To "Earn And Win" Nomination; Sources: West Virginia Sen. Manchin Considering Run For President; Rep. Dan Kilde (D-MI) Discusses Biden Stepping Down. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired July 22, 2024 - 05:30   ET

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

[05:30:00]

KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR: This person was basically like well, if Trump was able to kind of life rise above the fray, which we saw him sort of fail to do in his nomination speech.

JACKIE KUCINICH, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST, WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF, THE BOSTON GLOBE: Right.

HUNT: For example --

KUCINICH: All signs point to no.

HUNT: Right. That Kamala Harris would make that even less likely.

KUCINICH: Right.

HUNT: All right, it -- 29 minutes past the hour -- just before 5:30 here. Here is your morning roundup.

"On July 13, we failed." That's part of the message that Secret Service Dir. Kimberly Cheatle is going to deliver to the House Oversight Committee later today. Cheatle is testifying for the first time since the assassination attempt against Donald Trump.

The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, will meet with President Biden at the White House on Tuesday. This all, of course, at an incredibly momentous time -- a day after the decision that the president made to withdraw from the race and amid stalls in a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas.

More travel headaches. Thousands of flights were canceled Sunday in the wake of Friday's global tech outage. About two-thirds of those were Delta Airlines flights. More than 600 flights already canceled in the U.S. today according to flightaware.com. So check it out before you head to the airport.

All right. Still ahead here on CNN THIS MORNING, Kamala Harris is stacking up critical endorsements as she looks to solidify her spot as the new Democratic nominee. But could one outspoken centrist senator throw his hat into the ring? Senator Joe Manchin joins us live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:35:52]

HUNT: Five-thirty-five a.m. here in Washington. A live look at the White House on the morning after the race to have the right to live there come next year just completely changed as we have all lived a remarkable amount of history in the last 24-25 days.

Good morning, everyone. I'm Kasie Hunt. It's wonderful to have you with us.

With President Biden now out of the presidential race, Vice President Harris is trying to stack up as many possible endorsements as she can as she tries to solidify her bid to be the nominee. President Biden was the first to endorse Harris, leading to flood of elected Democrats also throwing in their support as they do try to coalesce around someone as quickly as possible.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. AMY KLOBUCHAR (D-MN): There's going to be a lot of speculation about the vice president, and this is going to be a bit of a speed dating situation because there's not going to be a lot of time.

And I think that the fact that Vice President Harris has shown her stuff as a world leader -- she brings receipts to this campaign. She's a fierce debater. She's going to be able to take on Donald Trump and prosecute the case. She was a prosecutor.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Harris also making her first White House appearance after all of this today, although the appearance, of course, was prescheduled sometime ago. She is hosting a White House ceremony honoring college championship teams as President Biden is still resting after his COVID diagnosis.

The panel is now joined by Tyler Pager. He's White House reporter at The Washington Post. Tyler, welcome. You have covered Joe Biden for quite some time. This is kind of earth-shattering for you.

Can you kind of take us behind the scenes and explain how we got here after weeks, quite frankly, of the president's stubbornness winning out?

TYLER PAGER, WHITE HOUSE REPORTER, THE WASHINGTON POST: Yeah. With most politicians, they are in the race and full steam ahead until the moment they are not in the race. We've seen this play out in many campaign cycles over the years.

And so that was the case that happened over the last few weeks. Any sign that he was thinking or considering withdrawing would have been enough for his potential rivals or people that want to get into the nomination to jump in. And so, they made it very clear that he was not going to do so until the very moment he did.

And I think there was just a lot of factors that made it increasingly clear that there was not a tenable path forward for him. And we look across the board from people publicly calling for him to step aside, to donors withholding money, to the polls showing a huge erosion among support in the key battleground states. There was just this flood of signs that the party was no longer going to be standing by -- with him.

And ultimately, it came down to just over the weekend, Joe Biden and his closest aides, in his Rehoboth beach house as he is recovering from COVID, making this remarkable decision that has upended American politics in the race for the presidency with, as you just said, just over 100 days left until the campaign. Truly a remarkable moment in American politics.

HUNT: Well -- and Jackie, some of that data showed just the collapse --

KUCINICH: Um-hum.

HUNT: -- of Biden's support in swing states to the point that the map was starting to change. I mean, people were talking about Minnesota, New Mexico --

KUCINICH: Yeah.

HUNT: -- New Hampshire. Some even Virginia potentially being in play for Donald Trump moving not from just a situation where the president was behind but from where he was facing a potential landslide against Donald Trump.

KUCINICH: Well, and you saw Biden's language started to change in some of those later interviews. He started talking about if it looks like I can't win -- if the data shows I can't win. And when you see that start shifting in swing states, those look like dollar signs to Democrats, right? Like, they did not -- they didn't think they were going to have to spend in those places.

And with Democrats, particularly in the House but also in the Senate, they're hoping to keep -- the Senate wants to keep their very, very tiny majority. And the House really -- for months, they've thought that would -- they would be able -- Democrats would be able to take the House. So, down-ballot Democrats were really starting to get nervous in these -- in some of these swing states that you're seeing, not to mention those in the -- in those districts in traditional swing states.

[05:40:00]

HUNT: Yeah.

Reese, let's talk about the effort from Kamala Harris' team to kind of bring the various coalitions and partners together. I mean, some of the people that we're going to be watching in the coming days -- President Obama, but also unions, and kind of other corners of support in terms of the party. So far, there doesn't seem to be another -- I mean, we're kind of going to wait on Joe Manchin. We're going to talk about him in a second. But in terms of someone inside the party apparatus -- I mean, you have

seen all of the governors that were -- most of the governors, anyway, that were plausible potential people to step up. Josh Shapiro, Andy Beshear, and, you know, others endorse Harris.

REESE GORMAN, POLITICAL REPORTER, NOTUS: Yeah. And I think a lot of this kind of plays to the fact that -- I mean, who else could it. I mean, Harris already has the Biden-Kamala kind of apparatus -- campaign apparatus and the money that's already kind of locked up. You saw the kind of transfer of Biden's funds and campaign accounts into her name already. And it would have been extremely difficult for anybody, even if they have a -- kind of a war chest in their state to kind of come home, make a team, and then run a race with just over 100 days to go.

And so, I think that's why you're seeing a lot of these people kind of coalesce around her. I mean, Gov. Wes Moore, as we reported yesterday, is going to be endorsing her later this morning.

And so, I mean, there's really not a kind of prominent challenger outside maybe Joe Manchin. But even then -- I mean, you were hearing names kind of like -- kind of like Gretchen Whitmer and Gavin Newsom -- those kind of people. And they're all kind of coming to the forefront and endorsing Harris.

HUNT: Yeah. All right.

So speaking of Manchin, sources close to the West Virginia senator, now an Independent, told CNN's Jake Tapper he's considering registering as a Democrat -- re-registering as a Democrat to run for president. Manchin notably split from the Biden White House over the past two years. He is retiring from the Senate when his terms ends in January.

Here's a little bit of what he said on "STATE OF THE UNION" as recently as Sunday about President Biden's possible exit. Again, this was before what we saw yesterday from the 2024 race.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR, "STATE OF THE UNION": You would not run? You would not pursue if the -- if Joe Biden said he was not running for re-election, would you run?

SEN. JOE MANCHIN (I-WV): No. I want to support a new generation. I think it's time.

TAPPER: A new generation.

MANCHIN: A new generation.

TAPPER: Shapiro, Beshear?

MANCHIN: And I'm -- and I'm talking about people that I know have the ability because they've shown their skillsets --

TAPPER: Um-hum.

MANCHIN: -- under fire.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: So that was Sunday morning. We are going to be joined shortly in our next hour by Sen. Joe Manchin to talk a little bit more about what he is considering and what he is thinking about. Because clearly, it has evolved and changed since he did that interview with my colleague Jake Tapper.

Shelby Talcott, what impact do you think a Manchin attempt to win this nomination would look like?

SHELBY TALCOTT, POLITICS REPORTER, SEMAFOR: Like Joe Manchin has been for a long time. He's sort of been a thorn in this administration's side. And I think it would certainly complicate Harris' run. But in terms of how much support he has, this would be an uphill battle for Joe Manchin because of all the things that you just noted. She already has the money. She already has a ton of the support.

In order for Joe Manchin to become the nominee, it would throw Democrats into a new level of disarray that I just don't think a lot of the party leaders and a lot of the folks are interested in, quite frankly.

HUNT: Yeah.

Tyler Pager -- I mean, what are you hearing from your White House sources and campaign sources about the possibility that there could be a real kind of scramble with Manchin or someone else?

PAGER: Yeah. I don't think they're all that concerned about that possibility. If you look at just what happened shortly after Biden dropped out and endorsed Kamala Harris, many of these state delegations have already pledged their support to Kamala Harris. So that process is well underway and there's no serious formidable candidate getting into the race at this point or officially declared.

And also, let's remember Joe Manchin is not even registered as a Democrat at this point.

So, for these delegates who have already been selected based on their pledged support to Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as the ticket, it's going to be nearly impossible for anyone else to come in and rally enough support to really pose a serious threat.

And I think part of what we saw yesterday was this scramble. There was rumors and reporting that Biden was considering dropping out, but he did it in a way that I think most people did not expect -- just putting that statement out on social media. Most of his closest aides and almost no one on the campaign knew it was coming.

So it didn't give any other potential challengers time to prepare a bid against Kamala Harris, making her path much easier than it could have been had there been some time -- a leak that he was going to do it and before he officially went out and did it -- put it out on social media and sort of shortly after endorsed Harris really preventing other people from organizing a real bid to challenge Harris.

HUNT: Yeah. And I will just say, too, that if you're one of these people -- if you're a Josh Shapiro, for example, who has ambitions, does it make sense to cut in line in a way that's going to anger a third of your party out of the gate.

PAGER: And also, for many of these people, they see their best chance as being her running mate.

HUNT: Right.

PAGER: So we saw the people that are rumored to be top contenders very quickly fall in line and support her. And we're seeing all -- you know, we just finished a veepstakes on the Republican side and we're starting a new one here on the Democratic side. And we're seeing those same sort of processes play out, doing T.V. interviews -- you know, doing some surrogate work.

[05:45:00]

HUNT: Yeah.

PAGER: So it'll be interesting to see, especially on this compressed timeline. Usually, a vetting process takes months and months. And so, Harris, should she secure the nomination, has to move quite quickly.

HUNT: We've got weeks and weeks. Just weeks, really. OK

Guys, thank you very much for being up early with us today. I really appreciate it.

All right. Coming up next here, inside President Biden's decision to drop out. Plus, how Democrats are responding and what's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HUNT: President Biden making the toughest decision of his long political career. CNN reporting Biden decided to end his campaign within the last day and half, consulting with family and top advisers by phone while he recovered from COVID. A source telling CNN he came to the decision after meeting with two of his closest advisers on Saturday and seeing data that showed no clear path to victory.

Following his Sunday afternoon announcement, Biden was met with overwhelming support and gratitude from fellow Democrats.

[05:50:03]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHRIS MURPHY (D-CT): This is a president who has a remarkable record of achievement. In the end, he decided to put his country first. JAIME HARRISON, CHAIR, DNC: I am emotional about the president's decision because this president, Joe Biden, has been a transformational president.

SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN (D-MA): He's got amazing accomplishments -- truly transformative. But today is about what Joe Biden did. He gave America a lesson in patriotism.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: All right. Joining me now is Democratic Congressman Dan Kildee. Congressman, good morning.

REP. DAN KILDEE (D-MI): Good morning.

HUNT: Thank you so much for being here.

KILDEE: Thanks.

HUNT: A momentous day. You have endorsed Kamala Harris to succeed President Biden in the nominating fight. What was your reaction when you heard what the president was doing, and what do you want to see happen next?

KILDEE: Well, I wasn't overly surprised because we knew that this was in discussion inside the White House. I was not one who called for the president to step down, but I'd had conversations with them. So it wasn't a big surprise.

My reaction -- look, I love Joe Biden as a president and personally. He's the third U.S. senator I ever met besides Don Riegle and Carl Levin. He came to the University of Michigan when I was, I think, a freshman. This was more than a decade ago.

HUNT: Go, Blue!

KILDEE: And I -- go, Blue! And I got to know him, and we've spent a lot of time together over the years, especially during his time as vice president and then president.

So my reaction is more about Joe in this incredible legacy. In the 3 1/2 years that he's served as president, he's accomplished more than most two-term presidents could ever hope to. But he saw that it was time to pass the torch, and I think that was the right call for him. And I do think the country now has a chance to go to the next generation of leaders.

And Kamala Harris is a talented person who we know. We've seen her as a senator. We've seen her as vice president. We have confidence in her that she can lead this country, and I'm enthusiastic about her candidacy.

HUNT: Do you think she can beat Donald Trump?

KILDEE: Absolutely, no question about it.

HUNT: What do you think is going to be her biggest challenge in doing that?

KILDEE: Well, I mean, the challenge is the timing. We've got four months. We've got four weeks until the convention. First, we have to get through that.

It will be an open convention. People are debating well, what will this be? The delegates get to choose who they want to choose. A lot of us are coalescing around Kamala Harris. I think that will be the choice.

But the challenge will be obviously, the layout and vision for this country. She isn't Joe Biden. She's been close to him and she's been his partner, but she's a candidate with her own record and has a definition unto herself. And she'll have to make sure to present herself to the American people in a way that they can have the same confidence in her that so many of us that have known her and have worked with her have in her.

HUNT: I mean, this was a big part of the president's decision, right? I mean, we reported here at CNN late last week that the president, Biden, behind the scenes had been saying Kamala can't win. That evolved and late last week he started asking people, can she win? Did it just get to the point where everyone saw that things were so bad for Joe Biden that worry stopped becoming an issue?

KILDEE: Well, I think, first of all, Joe Biden selected her because he knew that she could be the President of the United States. He helped -- she helped him win the White House in the first place. So I don't know the internal machinations.

But I do think when it became obvious that it was time for the president to pass the torch, it was clear that this was the best choice for this country and that he -- I believe he and the people around him absolutely have the confidence that she can win. Otherwise, I don't think he would have made this decision.

HUNT: Republicans are going to use the line of attack that she was aware that President Biden had health challenges. They're already calling it a coverup. That she was complicit in covering up his health problems.

What's your response to that?

KILDEE: The Republicans have no credibility on the issue of covering anything up. First of all, Joe Biden has been our president. We have seen him and we've worked with him. We know him. That's a talking point for them. I get it.

They're covering up a record of criminal activity. A record of failed businesses. A record of racism and xenophobia. A record of a former president who doesn't really believe in the principles of democracy. Who insults his way around the world and will essentially, if he is elected president, exact revenge on the people who he does not like.

If they want to have a conversation about the dynamics between Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, let's have a conversation about the dynamics between the sycophants in the Congress who have pledged fealty to a guy who has no moral center. We'll have that debate.

HUNT: All right.

Congressman Dan Kildee, very grateful for your time this morning. Thank you so much --

KILDEE: Thank you.

HUNT: -- for coming in.

[05:55:00]

All right. Coming up next here, the fallout from President Biden's decision to become the first incumbent president in more than 50 years to not seek re-election.

Plus, the Independent Sen. Joe Manchin joins us live for his first T.V. interview since CNN reported that he may be considering throwing his hat in the ring to run for president after Biden left the race.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HUNT: It's Monday, July 22. Right now, on CNN THIS MORNING, a difficult and historic decision. President Joe Biden is not seeking re-election, becoming the first president to do so in over 50 years and upending the 2024 race.

Now, Vice President Kamala Harris hoping to make the move into the Oval Office. How she plans to earn and win the vote of the people.

Plus, this.