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CNN This Morning

Harris And Trump Focus On Battleground States Entering Final Weekend Of Campaign; Trump Legal Fate Hangs In Balance As Election Looms; Trump, Harris Make Each Make A Southern Swing In Final Weekend. Trump, Harris Campaign Today Across Southern States; Speaker Mike Johnson Works to Keep Republican Control of the House; Israel at High Level Readiness for Iran's Response. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired November 02, 2024 - 06:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning and welcome to CNN This Morning. It is Saturday, November 2nd. You know what the music means. Good to have you with us. I'm Victor Blackwell.

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Amara Walker. Thanks for being with us. This is a last weekend for presidential candidates to campaign and they are crisscrossing the map to hit as many battleground states as possible.

Vice President Kamala Harris will be in Atlanta and Charlotte. Her running mate Tim Walz is in Arizona. And former President Trump will be in North Carolina and Virginia this weekend. His running mate J.D. Vance will be in Vegas and then Arizona.

BLACKWELL: Harris and Trump held dueling rallies just miles from one another in the Milwaukee area last night with very different messages as you'd expect. Wisconsin is a key state for them both. Our latest polling shows Harris is leading Trump by about six points there. And Harris's star studded rally, she zeroed in on union workers and promised to create good paying jobs. Meanwhile, Trump rallied against the Green New Deal.

WALKER: Former President Trump had the battleground states of Michigan and Wisconsin in focus as he makes his case to voters to send him back to the White House.

BLACKWELL: He also spent Russia's time in the last two hours of the campaign clarifying and then doubling, tripling down on the controversial comments he made about former Wyoming Congressman Liz Cheney. CNN national correspondent Kristen Holmes takes us on the campaign trail for President Trump's closing remarks.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Former President Donald Trump spending Friday in two critical battleground states, Michigan and Wisconsin, as his team seeks to drive out any single vote they can. Now in between his attempts to try and stick to his closing message, which they believe the campaign should be focused on, the economy, immigration, crime.

He spent a lot of the day trying to clarify those comments that he made about Liz Cheney the night before in Nevada. First he posted on Truth Social. Then during multiple stops throughout the day, he brought up those comments or they were. He was asked about those comments and here's what he said.

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I think that Liz Cheney is a disaster. All she wants to do is blow people up. She's a war hawk and a dumb one to that. And if you ever put her into the field of battle, she'd be the first. She wouldn't fight.

HOLMES: Now it's rare we hear Donald Trump trying to clarify anything that he says. Generally, if he says something and there's an enormous amount of backlash, he allows his campaign or his surrogates try and clean it up. But there is clearly something about these remarks, particularly so close to the election, that either he or his campaign thought it was important for him to continue to try and clarify what exactly he was saying during that rally in Nevada.

Now his last stop in Milwaukee, very clearly, this was his second time in the state in just a week. They were trying to come here to try to drive out early voters to take some of the pressure off of that November 5th election day of get those votes out.

Both sides that I have spoken to have said there's a little bit of a lack of transparency in the state, particularly of Wisconsin, but they're not sure what's going to happen. It was so close the last time around. They are both working as fast as they can and as hard as they can to try and drive out voters because as we have repeatedly reported, this election is going to be determined in the margins and they need every single vote they can get. Kristen Holmes, CNN, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: Kristen, thanks so much. Vice President Kamala Harris heads to the critical swing state of Georgia, also to Wisconsin, another critical state, as she tries to get out the vote for Election Day Tuesday.

WALKER: She capped off a whirlwind week of celebrity endorsements with a star set at rally last night which included an appearance by hip hop artist Cardi B. CNN White House correspondent MJ Lee has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MJ LEE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Vice President Kamala Harris capping off a multi stop visit through Wisconsin the final Friday before Election Day with a rally here in the Milwaukee area featuring celebrities like Cardi B, the vice president telling voters here that she sees next week's election as the most consequential election of our lifetime. She also said that it is time for the country to turn the page on Donald Trump.

Earlier in the day, we had heard the vice president strongly rebuking the incendiary comment from Donald Trump where he said that he would like to see guns pointed at Liz Cheney's face. This is what she said.

KAMALA HARRIS, U.S. DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: This must be disqualifying.

[06:05:00]

Anyone who wants to be president of the United States who uses that kind of violent rhetoric is clearly disqualified and unqualified qualify to be president.

LEE: Now, the Harris campaign certainly continues to see this as a very close race that is likely going to be determined by the margins in a number of the most competitive states. But we have been seeing a little bit of bullishness coming from the Harris campaign recently as well as they have pointed to their own data related to early voting and also some of the voting who recently decided who exactly to vote for in the last week or so.

And the campaign has been pointing to some of the offensive and incendiary rhetoric coming out of the Trump campaign as having the effect of turning some voters off. We should also note this is the second time that the vice president had come to Wisconsin in as many days. Just goes to show you how important this battleground state is, this blue wall state is for the Harris campaign in these final days. MJ Lee, CNN in the Milwaukee area.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: All right, M.J. Thank you. And President Biden will be campaigning for his vice president in his hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania today.

BLACKWELL: The president's campaign appearances on behalf of Harris, they've been limited. Now it's notable, particularly after Biden's most recent gaffe. Tuesday while speaking to voter Latino, he tried to denounce Trump for calling Puerto Rico garbage. Actually, a supporter at the Trump Madison Square Garden event said that not the former president ended up making a garbage reference that offended Trump supporters. CNN senior White House producer Betsy Klein joins us now from Washington, D.C. What are the president's plans for today?

BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE PRODUCER: Rallying union workers in Scranton today, which could very well be one of his final appearances on the campaign trail of the 2024 cycle. And it comes, as you mentioned, as he has really emerged as somewhat of a liability for the Harris campaign. He remains unpopular at about 38 percent approval rating according to CNN's latest Poll of Polls.

And he also has become prone to gaffes, as we saw this week when he appeared to call supporters of former President Donald Trump garbage and certainly an unwelcome distraction for the Harris campaign as they spent quite some time cleaning that up.

But you know, sources are telling us that in these final days, it's so crucial for President Biden to be in, quote, do no harm mode. Victor and Amara. WALKER: Look like then this do no harm mode for Biden?

KLEIN: Well, I mean, if you just look at his schedule in the last few days and weeks since he dropped out of this race in July, he has made five appearances alongside Vice President Harris. He's made six political appearances on the road. He's made 19 official White House events, mostly touting his own accomplishments.

And on the road, he's had nine trips to Pennsylvania. Today will be his 10th, two trips to Wisconsin and one trip apiece to Michigan, Georg, Arizona and North Carolina. But certainly Pennsylvania is such a critical battleground where Biden still enjoys some popularity, particularly among blue collar voters and also older voters.

And it is a place where the race is so deadlocked. The latest polling puts both Trump and Harris at about 48 percent apiece. So the Harris campaign lately has been really expressing some optimism.

As MJ mentioned, they say they are winning undecided voters by a margin of double digits as they make up their minds in these final days and certainly a few for President Biden in his hometown of Scranton later today.

BLACKWELL: Betsy Klein for us in Washington. Thank you so much, Betsy. Joining us now, national politics reporter Meg Kinnard with the Associated Press and NOTUS political reporter Reese Gorman. Welcome to you both. Reese, let me start with you.

The clarification from the former president about his remarks about training guns on Liz Cheney's face, is this resonating with voters in a way that the other rhetoric from the former president has or has not? Because it's interesting that Kristen Holmes points out that typically he doesn't make these types of clarifications.

REESE GORMAN, POLITICAL REPORTER, NOTUS: No, he usually doesn't. He usually just kind of lets us go out and lets it play its course. Something I'm hearing a lot definitely from strategists that are down on the ground in some of these states as well, is that this is just kind of quintessential Trump, where he tries to make an argument, but he takes it way too far that it muddies his argument and then it ends up just being a controversial message.

And that's what they're worried about, that he just continually does this on a lot of issues. And they're also worried about what's going to happen between now and Election Day if talk about Liz Cheney. He takes message that far, then doubles down on it a little bit.

BLACKWELL: Meg, you write for the ground game at AP. So let's talk about ground game. Most of what we're seeing over the last several days are the expected states on the route, except former President Trump's going to be in Salem, Virginia, today. What's that about?

[06:10:02]

MEG KINNARD, NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER: It is always interesting to see, especially in the closing days, these candidates going to places outside the battlegrounds. We've seen both of them do it. And today Trump is bookending this trip to Virginia within trips to North Carolina. So that's one thing interesting to point out, the geography here allows him to do that. He's going to be early in North Carolina, go to Salem, Virginia and then back to North Carolina.

But let's also not forget that Virginia, especially Salem, where he's going, is just about half an hour from Blacksburg, West Virginia. That's clearly a state that has a super active Senate race in which Donald Trump has endorsed a candidate. But also that's one of those areas where he expects to do well.

And in these moments where these candidates go to these non- battleground states, sometimes what they're looking for is a lot of media attention, which we're talking about it. So he's going to get that. But also being in close proximity to a state that very much supports him as well as a one -- as one where he's really trying to campaign heavily, that battleground of North Carolina, that gives Donald Trump the ability to potentially bring together a lot of people in an area that's not densely populated. But it may give him one of those appearances of a really big rally, which is what he's trying to do to show an appearance of support in these closing days.

BLACKWELL: Yes, you make a point that he's bookending this with trips to North Carolina. Trump has four events in North Carolina in three days. Looking ahead, Reese, Harris has her event in Georgia today. Early voting ended last night more than 4 million people have cast their ballots, either in person, early or absentee. What's the ground game and optimism about Georgia from the Harris side?

GORMAN: Yes, they're obviously feeling extremely confident right now in Georgia. They think that they can recreate kind of what Biden did in 2020 and win that state. And I mean, arguably, if she doesn't hold the blue wall, she lose something like Pennsylvania. She'll need a state like Georgia to kind of get her over the finish line. And that's what they're really hoping. They've really been putting a lot of effort here. They've been focusing on it.

I think one of her first rallies was in Georgia, actually. And that's kind of. And that's something the campaign has extremely been focused on because they know that's a state that they will need to win if that, if one of the states in the blue ball doesn't hold.

BLACKWELL: Meg, the President Biden is in Scranton today. He was in Pennsylvania yesterday. Before the, I mean, we got really into the 2024 campaign. President Biden was in Pennsylvania so regularly that it was really obvious that was the golden coin for him in his reelection before he ended his campaign.

But considering the gaffes, considering the right track number, how much of a valuable surrogate is the president now? How much of a utility player can he be at this late hour?

KINNARD: As was just mentioned a little bit earlier, they are, I think, from the Harris campaign point of view, sort of in that do no harm space with Joe Biden. It is nice to have a current president and somebody who has been very popular within his own party, certainly out stumping for the current nominee and clearly somebody who serves with him as well.

But if he's having a great day, if he's on point, that is going to be something that Kamala Harris and her supporters are going to really like to see. But it is a little different than having someone like Barack Obama or Michelle Obama or even Bill Clinton who have all been campaigning for Harris.

And there's a little bit less of a concern, I think, among the Harris supporters and campaign officials that there's going to be a gaffe moment, that there's going to be something that slips up and then takes over the next news cycle or two when we only have less than a handful of days until Election Day itself. So it could be a great moment. He loves Pennsylvania. He clearly comes from there.

As you note, he has spent a heck of a lot of time there during his time also in the White House. But it is a moment, I would imagine that the Harris campaign is also on a bit of pins and needles, just hoping that they don't have another moment that kind of overtakes things like happened earlier after the remarks about Donald Trump's Madison Square Garden event.

BLACKWELL: Yes, Reese, we've also been talking about the former president's comments about Liz Cheney. Liz Cheney, in a conversation that was just posted by the New Yorker. It was recorded before the former president said what he did about training guns in her face. I want you to listen to what she says here about former President George W. Bush getting off the sidelines.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LIZ CHENEY, FORMER REPUBLICAN REPRESENTATIVE: It was not a difficult decision at all for my dad. He has been absolutely, I would say, as concerned for maybe even longer than I have been about the danger that Donald Trump poses. And I can't explain why George W. Bush hasn't spoken out. But I think it's time and I wish that he would.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Now, he's been hands off and pretty silent when it comes to politics since he left office. How much sway does he have still in the party?

[06:15:00]

What would be the significance even at this late hour if he were to come off the sideline?

GORMAN: Yes, I think the significance would really just be that former Republican president would be endorsing a Democratic candidate against a Republican candidate. I think it would basically stop there. I don't think that it would sway too many voters, especially at this point with early voting. As you mentioned, millions of people have already voted at this point.

And so I think that it's already so late in the game that it wouldn't really sway a lot of voters. And in the same sense, it's like Donald Trump has recreated the Republican Party. He's recreated his image, he's recreated it all. Members of Congress do what he wants on a whim and everyone is. The republic is basically now built to please Donald Trump. That's how he's created it. I don't really see the former President Bush being able to sway that many voters that Donald Trump is.

I mean the Republican Party has really just kind of moved on from that right now. And will it go back? Maybe that's a possibility. We'll have to see. But at this point, all the elected officials of the vast majority of Republicans, at least at the base, are supportive of Donald Trump.

BLACKWELL: Yes, we should not hold our collective breath waiting for George W. Bush to come out and make a political statement three days out before the election. Reese Gorman, Meg Kinnard, thank you both and be sure to tune in for CNN's special coverage of Election Night in America starts Tuesday at 4:00 p.m. right here on CNN.

WALKER: Winning the White House could be a legal lifeline former President Trump. White legal experts say an election win will give him a so called get out of jail free card. And a CNN exclusive, House Speaker Mike Johnson goes on the record about the Republicans razor thin balance of power in Congress and why he thinks his party should stay in control.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:21:23]

WALKER: Former President Trump's freedom could hinge on whether he wins or loses the 2024 presidential election. He is set to be sentenced on November 26, that is exactly three weeks after the election, for falsifying business records to cover up a hush money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels. He's also facing a federal trial in Washington, D.C. for his alleged efforts in trying to overturn the 2020 election. CNN's Kara Scannell takes a closer look at Trump's legal future if he returns to the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KARA SCANNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Victor and Amara. So the outcome of the presidential election is not just about politics. It will have a significant impact on all of Donald Trump's criminal cases and most urgently, his sentencing in the New York hush money case, which is currently scheduled for three weeks from Election Day.

So if Trump loses the election, legal experts say his sentencing will likely happen within the next few months. If he wins the Oval Office, those experts say they don't expect Trump to be sentenced for four years, if at all. The reason is Trump's attorneys will likely ask judges to stay step in to stop the sentencing of the future president just weeks before he would assume office. It starts one week after election day on November 12th.

The judge overseeing the New York case will rule on Trump's motion to throw out his conviction based on the Supreme Court's decision on presidential immunity. If Trump wins, then the case is over. But if he loses his attorneys are expected to launch several legal challenges and race to courthouses to ask judges to delay the sentencing.

They're expected to challenge the immunity decision, potentially taking it to the Supreme Court, and likely argue that a state court judge could sentence a president elect. One lawyer said winning the election is Trump's get out of jail free card. But nothing here is certain. There is no legal playbook for this unprecedented moment in American history. Amara, Victor.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: All right. Kara Scannell, thank you.

BLACKWELL: Here's some of the top stories we're following this morning. A former Louisville, Kentucky, police officer has been convicted on a federal charge of using excessive force during the 2020 raid that ended with the death of Breonna Taylor. Brett Hankison fired 10 shots into her apartment with some bullets reaching her neighbor's apartments, though no one was hit.

This is the first conviction in the case. Taylor's mother celebrated the verdict.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TAMIKA PALMER, BREONNA TAYLOR'S MOTHER: Thank God that we covered 12 jurors who chose to do the right thing, who took their time to understand what was really going on, and that Breonna deserved justice.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Hankison faces a maximum life sentence. The officers who shot Taylor were not charged. Prosecutors said they acted in self- defense after Taylor's boyfriend fired first.

In Serbia, mourners lit hundreds of candles for the victims of a roof collapse that killed at least 14 people. It happened Friday around midday at a train station in the city of Novi Sad. This is just northwest of Belgrade. As of last night, rescuers were still working to reach people trapped under the rubble. According to local affiliates, the station's roof was renovated in 2021 and the building was officially reopened on July 5th of this year.

The road to the White House rolls through two southern swing states among the other swing states. We're going in depth into what's at stake in Georgia and North Carolina.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:29:11]

WALKER: Can you believe it? Three days until Election Day and both the Harris and Trump campaigns are focusing on the South. Today, Trump has events in North Carolina, several of them in North Carolina and Virginia, while Harris will hold events in Atlanta and Charlotte. According to a news CNN poll, both states are showing incredibly razor thin close races.

In North Carolina, former President Donald Trump has 48 percent, Vice President Kamala Harris at 47 percent. And in Georgia, Trump with 48 percent and Harris with 47 percent.

Joining me now to discuss, Washington correspondent for the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Tia Mitchell, and Julian Burger, race and equity reporter for WFAE and NPR in Charlotte, North Carolina. Good morning to you both. Thank you so much for being.

[06:30:00]

Tia, let's start with you. And as you know, Georgia is a state that the Democrats narrowly flipped in 2020. It was the first time since 1992 when we see -- when we saw Biden narrowly win. As we said, Harris is making another repeated trip here to Georgia along with North Carolina this weekend.

She's been focused on the black voters here, which represent I think what? 30 percent of all registered voters in the state. What have you been hearing in terms of the progress that she's been making?

TIA MITCHELL, WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT, ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION: Yes, I think Harris' campaign believe she's made progress, they believe the polls are underestimating her support among black voters. They think she's going to get close to where Biden was. They also understand that there's some differences though.

The fact that Trump in a lot of ways is an incumbent means he spends a lot of time courting black and brown voters, particularly men. And there also is a gender gap, just period between Trump and Harris when it comes to men. So, they know there will be some bleed, but they feel really confident that they're going to get more black men voting for them in particular than they're getting credit for.

WALKER: So, there -- is anything to make of this comparison of Biden and black voter support in 2020 versus where Harris is today in both Georgia and North Carolina? She doesn't have the same lead according to the latest polls that Biden had in 2020 with black voters compared to Trump. Harris has an average lead of 65 points versus Trump, Biden had an 80-point lead. Anything to make of that? Why are we seeing her trailing Biden?

MITCHELL: Yes, I think it's two things, again, I think it's -- Trump is a known entity --

WALKER: Yes --

MITCHELL: And so, just like with any other incumbent on the ballot, it's just harder to -- they have a built-in constituency that I think is really not comparable to his previous selections. The other thing is he's been courting black and brown men voters. And so, I think there is -- he's picked up some new votes. I think that's true. I think what the Harris campaign is saying is, it won't be as dire,

maybe, as some of the polling shows. Now, in a state like Georgia, it doesn't have to be dire to be impactful on the --

WALKER: Yes --

MITCHELL: Outcome of the race.

WALKER: Yes, because it will come down to just a few thousand votes --

MITCHELL: Exactly --

WALKER: Around states. Julian, let's talk about early voter-turnout in North Carolina, which wraps up today, early voting does, I think at 3:00 p.m. local. You say in Mecklenburg County, which has the highest number of registered Democrats in the state, voters are not turning out as the party would like to see?

JULIAN BERGER, RACE & EQUITY REPORTER, WFAE/NPR CHARLOTTE: No, not at all. This year, Mecklenburg Democrats, they're really trying to get the turn out a little bit higher, and they really think that here in Mecklenburg County which Alice located, that they can really get more Democrats out to vote and that can possibly make North Carolina turn blue in the presidential campaign.

In 2020, when Joe Biden was elected, we saw that 72 percent of Democrats here in Mecklenburg County had voted, that was compared to 80 percent in Wake County, which is where Raleigh is located as well as 74 percent in Foster County where Winston Salem is located. So, although we do have the highest number of Democrats registered here in our county, we have seen the turnout turn to be a little bit lower.

WALKER: Why do you think that is, and do you think perhaps, you know, the trauma and the loss that people are still dealing with from Hurricane Helene, that might be impacting voter turnout, obviously, this is a worrying sign for Democrats.

BERGER: Yes, I think we haven't seen with the hurricane, that there's been a large turnout for early voting, I think here in the state. The state has been very flexible in terms of letting voters vote without an ID if they've lost their ID, they've been letting Board of Elections in different counties change their polling places for buildings that were damaged, for example.

So, we have seen a lot of flexibility in terms of the hurricane, and there has been a large turnout, you know, with -- from victims who were affected by the Hurricane Helene.

WALKER: Here in Georgia, Tia, I mean, the early voting numbers turnout has been remarkable. I think Gabe Sterling tweeted out or X-ed out, I don't know what the term is, that more than 4 million early votes have been cast including, I think absentee ballots. Also, the Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, he said that voters -- active voters exceeded 50 percent statewide turnout, and that there's a list that the Georgia Secretary of State put out of eight counties with the highest in-person early voting turnout.

It was interesting, though, because I looked up all these counties, they all went for Trump in 2020. What's your take on that? The fact that they're turning out despite --

MITCHELL: Yes --

[06:35:00]

WALKER: You know, Trump has been out there repeatedly, you know, making these basis -- claims of fraud, and obviously, you know, sowing mistrust in our election --

MITCHELL: Yes --

WALKER: System.

MITCHELL: It shows that this year, Trump and his party more widely has changed their tune on how they talked about, particularly about early voting. They started to embrace early in-person voting. There's still a little bit of skepticism about voting by mail, and quite frankly, that's coming on both sides of the aisle.

This particular election season for multiple reasons, but we see Republicans more than they have in the past encouraging early voting, saying go ahead, make your plan, get out there early, because they saw the advantages Democrats were able to have in the last couple of election cycles by voting early.

Now, Democrats are saying that a lot of -- as a result, a lot of Republicans who normally would vote on election day voted early so that this great turnout, although it's good that people are voting, it doesn't necessarily mean Trump is banking more votes this -- just that he's banking more votes early --

WALKER: Early, yes --

MITCHELL: But we'll see, again, we won't know until election day really how all of this shakes out.

WALKER: We won't know until we know, absolutely. And Julian, talking about low turnout, you're also seeing that in the Hispanic community there in North Carolina compared to other groups. Why do you think that is, and does that surprise you given the fallout and then controversy from Trump's Madison Square rally where you had that port -- you know, that comedian referring to Puerto Rico as an island of garbage.

You would think that this would mobilize the Latino community as we saw with celebrities coming out and throwing their support behind Harris.

BERGER: Yes, there's been a big push, especially this election cycle to really get Latinos out to vote. We see Democrat organizations, GOP organizations, even non-partisan organizations really knocking on doors of Latino households to get people out to vote as well as to persuade them one way or another.

And to your point about the Puerto Rico comment, the Puerto Rico joke, there has been protests yesterday, there's going to be protests today to really get people out there and show support for Kamala Harris instead of Donald Trump. So, we'll see what happens when early voting finishes today.

WALKER: Julian Berger and Tia Mitchell, thank you both for talking about these very important southern battleground states with me. Appreciate it.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CO-ANCHOR, CNN THIS MORNING WEEKEND: All right, let's look down ballot because a hand full of states will decide the balance of power in Congress. What House Speaker Mike Johnson is saying about the high stakes races that's ahead in a CNN exclusive.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:40:00]

BLACKWELL: Well, of course, it's more than Vice President Harris and former President Trump who are sweeping states to rally voters before election day. Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson is also rallying Republican voters in an attempt to keep the GOP majority in the House. He's actually trying to expand it.

WALKER: Yes, Johnson has been campaigning through blue districts central to the fight for the House and aligning himself closely with Donald Trump. CNN's Manu Raju spoke with Speaker Johnson on his fight for control of Congress.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The office of Speaker of the House declared vacant.

MANU RAJU, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's been a chaotic two years in the GOP-led House.

(CROSSTALK)

RAJU: An ousted speaker in rampant in-fighting. Now, Speaker Mike Johnson is trying to do what once seemed improbable, hang on to power and even grow their razor-thin majority.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. President, I'm here in New York.

(CHEERS)

RAJU: As he barnstormed more than 20 states in October alone. Johnson is hoping to turn out the MAGA base even in Democratically-leaning districts and making a pitch for unified GOP control of Washington.

REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA): Everybody in the world is watching what happens on Long Island and in the state of New York. That's not an exact place -- (APPLAUSE)

RAJU: Trump meanwhile relying on Johnson and saying this last week at Madison Square Garden.

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: He and I have a secret, we'll tell you what it is when the race is over.

RAJU: But Johnson now says that simply meant getting out the vote even if Democrats fear he and Trump will try to block a Harris victory.

(on camera): Well, I know you said that this is get-out-the-vote I've heard.

JOHNSON: Yes.

RAJU: But have you and him talked about not accepting the election results if Harris wins?

JOHNSON: Of course not, I've taken an oath to uphold the constitution. We are going to do our job. This not -- it shouldn't even be a question of controversy.

RAJU: So, if Harris wins, you would accept the results?

JOHNSON: Yes, look, I'm going to qualify this, and this is going to make everybody freak out again. If it's a free and fair election, I am saying the exact same thing that Jamie Raskin is saying.

RAJU (voice-over): But it's Trump who once again is pushing unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud.

(on camera): Trump is already sowing doubts about the election about Pennsylvania, does that concern you?

JOHNSON: Trump is not sowing doubts. What he and all of us are trying to do is have accountability, to ensure that we don't have hi-jinks and irregularities.

RAJU (voice-over): To keep power in the House, Republicans had to defend 16 seats in districts Joe Biden won including in California and New York, as they target five Democratic districts that Trump carried in 2020. That means the next House majority would likely be narrow once again, and another recipe for gridlock.

(on camera): So, why do you guys deserve another two years in power?

JOHNSON: Well, we did pass a lot of legislation, it died on Chuck Schumer's desk, you mentioned --

[06:45:00]

RAJU: You had trouble passing your own legislation of the House too.

JOHNSON: On occasion, but we also had some big landmark legislation sent over there and it died because the Democrats controlled the Senate.

RAJU: But you have a narrow majority no matter what, and you had a difficult time with this last narrow majority --

JOHNSON: Well, I had the most narrow majority in U.S. history, I'm convinced we're going to have a larger majority this time. And if we have unified government, I think everybody on my side is going to be in a much better mood, and I think they will want to be part of the reform agenda and not a speed bump in a way.

RAJU (voice-over): The race for the House poised to be the most expensive ever with Democrats spending over 476 million on the air, outpacing the GOP by more than $100 million. But Democrats fear that a unified GOP Washington will leave Trump unchecked, including to target his enemies.

TRUMP: It's the enemy from within. All the scam that we have to deal with.

RAJU (on camera): If he wins, he's talked about going after his enemies. Would you dissuade him from doing that?

JOHNSON: He's not going to go after his enemies, OK?

RAJU: He said that repeatedly.

JOHNSON: Listen, the Democrats have engaged in law fair. So, all this hyperbole trying to scare people, it's nonsense. That's not going to happen. We're going to follow the law.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: All right, Manu Raju, thank you. Major storms moving across the central and eastern U.S. will bring heavy rain this weekend and early next week, going right into election day.

BLACKWELL: CNN's Allison Chinchar is tracking the storms for us. All right, Allison, which states are at risk?

ALLISON CHINCHAR, METEOROLOGIST: It's actually going to be a lot of them because while this is a very large storm, it's also not going to move all that much. This system right here in the central portion of the country, that's what we're talking about, but that slow movement is going to allow for multiple days in a row of a flood and from some of these cities will be in it every single day, including Oklahoma City under a slight risk for today, moderate risk on tomorrow and then a marginal risk on Monday.

You can see that gradual progression eastward, but because it's slow, it has a lot of time to dump a tremendous amount of rain. Some of these areas where you see the red, portions of Oklahoma, Arkansas, Texas and Missouri, you're talking 6 to 10 inches of rain before that system finally exits the area.

So, here's a look at today, a lot of those storms and, yes, even some strong to severe thunderstorms across Texas and Oklahoma today before that continues to spread eastward into portions of Arkansas, Missouri, as we head into Sunday. And then Monday, we start to see more of the focus shift into the Midwest, so by the time we get into election day, the real focus for all of the rain is going to stretch from Michigan all the way back down to the Gulf Coast.

Portions of eastern Texas and also into Louisiana, all looking at that very heavy rain, and yes, even the potential for some strong to severe thunderstorms as well.

WALKER: All right, Allison Chinchar, thank you. A high-ranking source tells CNN that Iran could retaliate against Israel before the U.S. presidential election. What we are learning about possible attacks ahead in a live report.

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[06:50:00]

BLACKWELL: This weekend, tensions are high in the Middle East. An Israeli military source told CNN the country was at a high level of readiness, and that's for a response from Iran after recent Israeli strikes.

WALKER: A high-ranking Israeli source told CNN, Iran would carry out a quote, "definitive and painful" response to Israel that will probably take place before the U.S. election. CNN's Paula Hancocks is in Abu Dhabi following this story. Paula, what's the latest you're hearing about a potential retaliation from Iran?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Amara, we've heard just today from the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, he was speaking with students and he said once again that Iran would respond, saying that both Israel and the U.S. would quote, "receive a teeth-breaking response for what they're doing against Iran and the resistance front."

Saying Iran has a right to respond after those -- the Israeli attack just about a week ago. So, we are expecting that there could be something and it could be imminent, considering that high-ranking source has told CNN that it could be before the U.S. election itself. Now, Israel is bracing itself for what could happen.

We have heard from one senior Israeli Intelligence official, a former official that it could be in the form of a response from Iraq this time around. It could be malicious that are based in Iraq and are funded and equipped by Iran that could take the lead in some kind of retaliation.

We've heard from the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu though, saying that Israel has proved that it can reach anywhere it wants to within Iran. So, at the same time is waiting for this potential retaliation, we are seeing the rhetoric being quite vocal on both sides.

And of course, what's different at this point is the fact that this is clearly no longer a shadow war, the fact that Israel admitted to its -- what it did, its launches against the defense mechanisms in Iran just a week ago. That's the first time that Israel has admitted striking on Iranian soil. So, that's not long as we all know to the U.S. election if this high-ranking source is accurate, this retaliation could be imminent. Victor --

WALKER: We shall see how Iran's rhetoric matches its response. Paula Hancocks, thank you. Well, the top five CNN Heroes of 2024 have been announced, one of them will be named the CNN Hero of the Year by you our viewers. So, we'll introduce each of our top five as you vote for your favorite over the next five weeks. Today, meet Payton McGriff.

[06:55:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAYTON MCGRIFF, CEO, STYLE HER EMPOWERED: When a girl enters our program, she not only receives some new school uniform, but she receives a full tuition scholarship, full-year school supplies, a reusable menstrual kit and a year-round tutoring from our local staff. After we provided our first round of uniforms, we realized our students were outgrowing them very quickly. So, that is where the uniforms that grows was born.

It grows 6 sizes and up to 12-inches in length and adjusting various parts of the body to provide a worthy-led fit to put their uniform on for the first time. That's one of the most joyous experiences that we see.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: Oh, aren't they beautiful? You can go to cnnheroes.com right now to vote for Payton for CNN Hero of the Year or any of your favorite top five heroes. You get ten votes per day everyday to help the heroes who inspire you the most.

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