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Harris Defends Economic Record, Says "There's More To Do"; Trump Promises Free IVF Treatments, Softens Abortion Stance; 44-Year- Old Rich Hill Takes The Mound For Red Sox. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired August 30, 2024 - 05:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL)

[05:31:00]

MANU RAJU, CNN ANCHOR: Five-thirty a.m. here in Washington. Well, here's a live look at Miami. Good morning, everyone. I'm Manu Raju in for Kasie Hunt. It is so great to be with you this morning.

So in poll after poll voters continue to list the economy as one of their biggest issues ahead of the November election. And during her first interview as the Democratic nominee right here on CNN, Kamala Harris defending what the administration has done over the last 3 1/2 years.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR: So you have been vice president for 3 1/2 years.

KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Yeah.

BASH: The steps that you're talking about now, why haven't you done them already?

HARRIS: Well, first of all, we had to recover as an economy, and we have done that. And I'm very proud of the work that we have done that has brought inflation down to less than three percent as (INAUDIBLE).

BASH: So you maintain Bidenomics is a success.

HARRIS: I maintain that when we do the work of bringing down prescription medication for the American people, including capping the cost of the annual cost of prescription medication for seniors at $2,000 -- what we have done to improve the supply chain so we're not relying on foreign governments to supply American families with their basic needs, I'll say that that's good work. There's more to do but that's good work.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: So Meghan, is the Democrat here at the table. Is that where she wants to be to be essentially in line with everything that has happened on the Biden economy over the past several years? I mean, a lot of voters are still struggling with inflation and high prices.

MEGHAN HAYS, FORMER BIDEN WHITE HOUSE DIRECTOR OF MESSAGE PLANNING: Yeah. I mean, I think she's laying out what they've done. I think the -- pointing out that the recovery during COVID and where we're taking the economy is a good thing to do. And I also think she -- her acknowledging, like, I understand you are -- you still are suffering, and gas prices and grocery prices are still high.

So I think she's acknowledging people's pain and acknowledging that there is more steps to take. But I think that that's what the voters need to decide. She's still laying out policies and having different -- she said she was going to be something for small businesses next week. She did something over housing last week. So she's still laying out these policies for voters to decide.

But I think she -- pointing out that where we were when they took office and where we are now -- I think that's important for -- to -- for people to remember.

RAJU: And the reason why is that the economy is list -- looking at The Wall Street Journal poll that just came out about who would better handle the economy -- this according to -- from registered voters, a recent poll taken after the convention -- The Wall Street Journal poll -- 51-43, Trump over Harris. Eight-point advantage here.

She is narrowing the gap, according to some polls, on the economy but she is still struggling on this issue even as some Democrats wants to keep this an issue about character, about Trump. At the end of the day, the economy is what dominates and that's going to be her challenge going forward.

MATT BROWN, NATIONAL RACE AND POLITICS REPORTER, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS: Yeah. This is one of the places where I think Harris entering the race has really reset the conversation that we're having because Harris both in terms of tone but also in terms of policy.

I mean, you saw her trying to address some of these concerns very clearly and directly with her first policy rollout where she said I'm going to be addressing the cost of housing, the cost of childcare, the cost of living, in a lot of different ways. And I think that shows, honestly, some kind of change with having a California Democrat, in some ways, at the top of the ticket. She's talked about -- more about entrepreneurship, small businesses, and whatnot than you ever heard Joe Biden speak about.

And just, frankly, I think having just a more youthful person prosecuting the case in this way is something that Democrats have really shifted to try and make the case here that you weren't seeing even just a month ago in the party.

RAJU: So last night, Dana Bash also asked her about what she would do on day one and made it clear that the economy is front and center as she tries to convince voters that she's better than Trump on this issue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) HARRIS: Day one, it's going to be about 1) implementing my plan for what I call an opportunity economy. I've already laid out a number of proposals in that regard, which include what we're going to do to bring down the cost of everyday goods. What we're going to do to invest in America's small businesses.

What we're going to do to invest in families. For example, extending the child tax credit to $6,000 for families for the first year of their child's life to help them buy a car seat. To help them buy baby clothes, a crib.

[05:35:

There's the work that we're going to do that is about investing in the American family around affordable housing -- a big issue in our country right now.

So there are a number of things on day one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: So how does that sell?

MATT GORMAN, FORMER SENIOR ADVISER, TIM SCOTT'S PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: I mean, look, I have said this whole time that interview prep is really the best debate prep you can get, right?

RAJU: Um-hum.

GORMAN: So I think of it in the context of the -- as I said before, these are questions she needs to know for not just the debate but also, she should have been ready for this a month ago. There wasn't specific executive orders. There wasn't specific policies. It was a regurgitation of what we'd heard from the economic plan.

So I'm curious if that answer evolves at all over the course of between now and the debate because likely, she's going to get that in the debate as well. There wasn't anything immediate, like what would be separate from that --

RAJU: Yeah, because you need to pass legislation to do something like that.

GORMAN: Exactly. What would be different from that answer if you said day one or your first 100 days? It would be essentially the same answer.

RAJU: Yeah. Were you surprised by that? I mean, didn't have to say oh, executive action A, B, C, D, but --

HAYS: No. I mean, she's been at -- she's been at the top of the ticket for, what, four or five weeks now. This takes time to do the research to understand the policies here. I think she's laying out things she wants to do.

She's under -- she wants people to understand that she's going to fight for the middle class, which is on the contrary of what former President Trump is going to do. And I think those are the things that are important. She's understanding that people need -- these are the things people need to pay for, and she wants to help people get there. And that's what she's trying to make people understand and get people to understand.

And I think her answers will evolve over time. I mean, she has, what, 60-something --

RAJU: Yeah.

HAYS: -- 68 days until the -- until the election. We have a debate. We'll have more interviews. So I think that these answers will become more substantive over time, but you have to start somewhere.

RAJU: Yeah, and that's part of the reason why having these -- doing these interviews are important. If you hear what they have to say then you refine your answers --

GORMAN: Yeah.

RAJU: -- and you become a better candidate along the way.

I want to turn to this though. Kamala Harris' running mate Tim Walz defending his record after being accused of mischaracterizing his military service and the type of fertility treatments he and his wife used to conceive. The governor says he simply misspoke.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. TIM WALZ, (D) VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: First of all, I'm incredibly proud to have done 24 years of the uniform of this country. I'm equally proud of my service in a public school classroom. Whether it's Congress or the governor, my record speaks for itself.

I said -- we were talking about -- in this case, this was after a school shooting -- the ideas of carrying these weapons of war. And my wife -- English -- she told my grammar is not always correct.

But again, if it's not this it's an attack on my children for showing love for me, or it's an attack on my dog.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: What do you make of that answer? Because look, I mean, he has been criticized really since he got into the race about some of these things and this is the first time we're hearing from him. And him -- you know, some Republicans are jumping on him saying if you're (INAUDIBLE) in a second that he was better prepared for this.

What did you think of how he responded to that?

BROWN: Well, he definitely sidestepped I think the core of question, which is did he misstate when he said that he used weapons of war in combat or in -- or himself. And this is something that obviously we've seen on the campaign trail

where J.D. Vance and Tim Walz are both seen as, by their campaigns, as potentially overtures, envoys, messengers for the white working class communities in the Midwest who -- that both campaigns see as essential to winning. And both of their records as veterans or serving in the National Guard are very important to part of that message.

So whichever side believes that they can undermine that narrative is going to be seen as potentially stronger with those swing voters in the Midwest.

RAJU: Yeah.

BROWN: So that's the conversation that the campaigns are apparently lobbing at each other when we debate this.

RAJU: And just to remind viewers about what this controversy is about, this is what Tim Walz said back in 2018 about -- and during his time in the service, about carrying weapons of war.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WALZ: I'll take my kick in the butt for the NRA. I spent 25 years in the Army, and I hunt. And I gave the money back. And I'll tell you what I have been doing. I've been voting for common-sense legislation that protects the Second Amendment, but we can do background checks. We can do CDC research. We can make sure we don't have reciprocal carry amongst states, and we can make sure that those weapons of war that I carried in war is the only place where those weapons are at.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: And Dana asked him about that very comment in the aftermath of questions about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: And the idea that you said that you were in war.

WALZ: Yeah.

BASH: Did you misspeak as the campaign has said?

WALZ: Yeah. I said -- we were talking about -- in this case, this was after a school shooting -- the ideas of carrying these weapons of war. And my wife, English, she told me my grammar is not always correct.

But again, if it's not this it's an attack on my children for showing love for me, or it's an attack on my dog. I'm not going to do that. And the one thing I'll never do is I'll never demean another member's service in any way. I never have and I never will.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: I suspect I know the answer to this, but enough to deter the GOP attacks? GORMAN: Well, I mean, again, it's -- I think it goes to -- they're letting this fester, right? Like, you can just align with what your spokesperson said, say you misspoke, and then if you keep badgering -- if the reporter keeps badgering Manu, it's easier to put away.

Because again, it's not just this. He also said that he retired a different rank than he actually did. They had to change his bio on his website. And that's, I assume -- is that a question of grammar as well?

[05:40:02]

So you can -- you can kind of concede what your spokesman said initially and put it to bed. He's just leaving more questions on the table here. And I'm curious what Vance will say.

RAJU: Yeah.

HAYS: I mean, I kind of -- I understand what you're saying, and he said just that I misspoke. I understand his point though. Like, he was trained with these weapons to go into war. Just because he didn't actually go into a combat zone doesn't mean he wasn't trained with these -- in the military with these types of weapons that again, should not be at the hands of people who can use them in a school shooting.

So I think we're losing the thread a little bit on what he was actually talking about and what he was talking -- you know, the point he was trying to make writ large. So I just think that where -- it is grammar, but he should just say I misspoke and here is what I was saying.

RAJU: Yeah. And actually, the grammar thing will probably continue to point to that, I'm sure. We'll expect to hear J.D. Vance, who is talking --

GORMAN: Oh, yeah.

RAJU: -- later this morning about that. That's my -- that's my educated guess that he will.

All right, coming up on CNN THIS MORNING, Donald Trump offering free IVF treatments for all if he wins, and taking a stance on abortion rights. Well, that doesn't quite align with a key part of his base.

Plus, a stunning upset at the U.S. Open. The Bleacher Report, next.

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[05:45:35]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm announcing today in a major statement that under the Trump administration, your government will pay for or your insurance company will be mandated to pay for all costs associated with IVF treatment -- fertilization for women -- IVF treatment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: Well, Donald Trump, who boasted about his role overturning Roe v. Wade, now turning a little bit more moderate on the issue of reproductive rights.

In addition to promising free IVF treatment and tax deductions for newborn expenses without exactly mentioning how he will pay for it, the former president is also softening his stance on abortion rights, signaling he is leery about Florida's six-week abortion ban.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: It has to be more time. And so that's -- and I've told them that I want more weeks.

REPORTER: So you'll vote in favor of the amendment?

TRUMP: I'm voting that -- I am going to be voting that we need more than six weeks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: I mean, clearly, he recognizes --

GORMAN: Yeah.

RAJU: -- this is a problem for him, which is why he's doing it. But, I mean, I saw some of the reaction from the right last night and there's a lot of folks not happy about this.

GORMAN: No. There was certainly contention both online and people I've talked to -- conservatives who aren't thrilled about his comments on Florida.

On the IVF stuff -- you know, it reminds me, Manu, of remember 2014? Cory Gardner and a lot of other folks were running for Senate. Contraception was a big issue, so they came out in favor of over-the- counter contraception, over-the-counter plan B, and it kind of was a little bit of an end-around around some of this stuff. I think what he's trying to do is something similar there.

But you're right. There's not a small contingent of conservatives. I don't think at the end of the day they're going to vote for somebody else or not vote. However, they're a little dissatisfied right now.

RAJU: They're making -- he's making the calculation they're going to end up voting for me anyway.

GORMAN: Exactly. Look -- and he understands I think more than anybody in the party how big of an issue this is and how well -- how it polls. So then he needs to be -- he knows he needs to be careful how he talks about it.

RAJU: In the meantime, Harris is making -- announcing this morning that they are doing a battleground tour with 50 stops in key battleground states to talk about reproductive rights. So clearly, they see this as a central issue.

But how do you think about -- what do you think about Trump -- about how -- is this going to be effective do you think with some of the voters who may be concerned about his issue -- his handling of abortion rights? Well, they say maybe he's not as, you know, extreme as we thought.

HAYS: I mean, people -- voters are not dumb, and he has been taking credit for Roe v. Wade. He has, like, gone out time and time again and talked about flip-flopping on issues. He is doing that. And also talked about not having specifics in how to pay for something. He's now going to mandate private insurance companies to pay for this. How is the government going to pay for this?

Like, it's just -- there's so many questions. There's more questions than answers. And it's interesting that they asked Kamala Harris for specifics on certain things when he can't give specifics on something. It's just like oh, this is the issue du jour. Let me just throw it out there and see where it lands because he knows how important it is in these battleground states with these Independent voters and suburban women who are going to decide this election.

So, I mean, I give him credit for trying. I just don't think that voters are dumb enough to fall for it.

RAJU: Yeah, and there are polls that show that Trump is losing women by about roughly 20 points to Harris. But it's also about just -- about who can handle the issue of abortion better. The Wall Street Journal poll just out, 54 to 34. Harris up -- a 20-point advantage on the issue of abortion.

And where does that rank among the top issues among registered voters? The same poll shows that it is third. It's not the number one issue but it's still a significant number of voters.

But I guess the question is are those voters who say that it is their top issue -- are they already in Harris' camp or are they persuadable?

BROWN: Well, this is the interesting thing about all the polls that we've been seeing recently where abortion does rank oftentimes as the number one issue for women in this country, whereas it ranks -- it's usually number four or five usually for men.

So the question here at the moment is with Harris at the top of the ticket and with her being the Democrats' -- one of the best -- one of their better messengers on reproductive rights -- as a question, does that really continue to bring especially, for instance, younger women over to her side and whatnot.

So the question here for Trump is not necessarily is he going to win Americans on this -- on this issue because so many -- for instance, as we consistently see in the polls, women do side with Harris on this question. It's going to be is he going to alienate voters who -- I mean, voters

don't like thinking about abortion. They don't like thinking about IVF and these questions. But if you remind them of it -- if you're thinking about it and if you're associated with a position that they don't like, they do run away from you. And that's the thing that Trump is trying to stop here.

RAJU: How concerned then should the Trump campaign be about suburban women, specifically? If you are the Trump campaign, are you sounding the alarm about that (INAUDIBLE)?

GORMAN: You could ask that question the last 10 years, you know? I mean, no.

[05:50:00]

RAJU: But is it worse now, I guess?

GORMAN: I mean, look, it's -- I think it's -- the question is can you win men more by -- than by when you lose by how you lose women, right? I think that's like the -- they have to make up for it.

RAJU: Offset the loss.

GORMAN: Offset the loss, and that's the key here because you're right. In a place like Pennsylvania and places like, say, North Carolina and Georgia, that is going to be the central question here. Can you stem some of the losses you talk about, Matt, and build the margins up with men?

RAJU: And it's can you -- if you're Harris on the other side, you need to make sure you don't lose men by a sizable margin.

HAYS: And I think a lot of men will vote with this issue -- will side with women on this issue because they have moms, and sisters, and daughters that they don't want their reproductive freedoms taken from them, and they see this is a freedom being taken away.

So, I mean, I think that this is just going to -- every vote counts in this when you're winning states by 10,000-15,000 votes. So it's like what Matt says -- like, how do you measure the peeling off of women versus men here?

RAJU: Yeah. All right. That's going to be a key question.

Matt, Meghan, thank you guys for joining me.

GORMAN: You got it.

RAJU: Matt Brown, you'll be back with us next hour. Don't go too far.

And now to sports. Week one of the college football season -- I'm very excited. The Wisconsin Badgers -- watch out for them -- kicking off last night with Deion Sanders and Colorado squeaking by North Dakota State.

Andy Scholes has this morning's Bleacher Report.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yeah, good morning, Manu.

So Coach Prime and the Buffs here -- they're looking to get their second season together off to a good start, but it will not be easy against North Dakota State, a team that is routinely one of the best in the FCS, which is the second-highest level in the sport.

Now, Deion's son, Shedeur Sanders -- he had a great opener. He threw for 445 yards and four touchdowns, and three of those TDs going to two-way star Travis Hunter. And on the last one -- look at this -- look at the grab Hunter made with the defender all over him. That TD put Colorado up 31-20.

The Bisons, though, had a chance to win the game on the final play. The Hail Mary attempt was caught but it was short down at the four- yard line.

Colorado survives 31-26. And here was Coach Prime on how he was feeling after the win.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEION SANDERS, COLORADO HEAD COACH: I'm pretty good. I go home, I'm going to sleep good -- really good -- really good tonight with that. So I'm cool with that. We would like to see a little more balance, but what is balance? Balance is wins, really. That's what balance is. Nobody says nothing when you win.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: All right. Meanwhile, at the U.S. Open, we had one of the biggest upsets of all time. Carlos Alcaraz, who won Wimbledon and the French Open, and got silver at the Paris Olympics, ousted by world number 74 Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands.

And to give you an idea of how big of an upset this was, if you bet $100 on Alcaraz to win this match, you would have only won a dollar. This match wasn't even close either. Van de Zandschulp winning it in straight sets.

This ended Alcaraz's 15-match winning streak at the Majors. And afterwards, the 21-year-old said he was lacking energy after a busy tennis schedule.

All right, Naomi Osaka, meanwhile, also suffering an early exit. The two-time U.S. Open champ beaten by Karolina Muchova in straight sets. Osaka, who had her daughter last year, hasn't reached the second week of the Grand Slam since winning the 2021 Australian Open.

All right. In Atlanta, Scottie Scheffler may just run away with the tour championship. He started the day with a two-shot lead thanks to the FedEx standings, and then he went out and shot a six-under to increase that lead to seven strokes.

Collin Morikawa and Xander Schauffele right now tied for second. Scheffler trying to become the first player since Tiger Woods in 2007 with seven wins in a single season. If he holds on, he will claim the $25 million prize.

All right, and finally, pitcher Rich Hill back on the mound for the Red Sox last night at the ripe old age of 44. Hill is the only active player in baseball to appear in each of the past 20 seasons. This is Hill's fourth stint with the Red Sox. He's played for 13 different teams.

Hill is the oldest pitcher to appear in a game since Bartolo Colon in 2018 when he was 45.

Hill pitched an inning and a third innings giving up no runs and striking out two in the loss to the Blue Jays.

And Manu, I'll tell you what. Hill -- he's been pitching in baseball longer than the iPhone has been around. Longer than YouTube has been around.

And I'm happy to see him Manu because I love it that there's still a couple of guys that are older than me that play baseball still. You've got Rich Hill and then Justin Verlander who is 41. I like to cover athletes that are older than me still.

RAJU: Hey, I'm 44, so maybe I still have a chance.

SCHOLES: There you go. You've got one, Manu -- you've got one guy.

RAJU: Exactly. There you go. All right -- someone to look out for you.

Thank you so much for this morning's --

SCHOLES: All right.

RAJU: -- Bleacher Report.

And coming up on CNN THIS MORNING, an update on the Arlington National Cemetery dispute. Donald Trump addressing the controversy over his visit with Gold Star families.

Plus, the vice president makes a surprising signal in her highly anticipated interview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: You had a lot of Republican speakers at the convention.

HARRIS: Yeah.

BASH: Will you appoint a Republican to your cabinet?

HARRIS: Yes, I would.

(END VIDEO CLIP) [07:55:00]

(COMMERCIAL)

RAJU: It's Friday, August 30. Right now on CNN THIS MORNING --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: I believe that I am the best person to do this job at this moment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: A critical moment in this campaign. Kamala Harris sits down and facing questions on where she would take the country in an exclusive interview with CNN.

Plus this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: She didn't want to go in alone. How do you think President Xi is going to --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: Donald Trump weighs in on Harris' interview while slamming her for not scheduling one sooner.

And this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: I think it would be to the benefit of the American public to have a member of my cabinet who was a Republican.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: Harris vowing to bring in diverse voices if elected, and that could include a Republican.