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Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI) is Interviewed about Congress and Democrats. Mark McKinnon is Interviewed about Politics and the Holidays; Warning on AI Impacts on Kids; Biden Pardons Turkeys. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired November 25, 2024 - 06:30   ET

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

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[06:32:43]

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

The fight over transgender rights is now spilling into the halls of Congress. More specifically, into the bathrooms. The issue centers around Delaware Congresswoman-elect Sarah McBride. McBride is set to become the first openly transgender lawmaker to serve in Congress when the new term begins in January. But just two weeks after her election, Republican Congresswoman Nancy Mace introduced a new rule effectively banning McBride from using women's restrooms on Capitol Hill. Mace posting about the topic more than 300 times on social media in a span of a couple of days.

This weekend, McBride pushed back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP.-ELECT SARAH MCBRIDE (D-DE): I didn't run for the United States House of Representatives to talk about what bathroom I use. I didn't run to talk about myself. I ran to deliver for Delawareans. And while Republicans in Congress seem focused on bathrooms and trans people and specifically me, I'm focused on rolling up my sleeves, diving into the details, setting up my office, and beginning the hard work of delivering for Delawareans on the issues that I know keep them up at night.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Congresswoman Mace standing by her position after House Speaker Mike Johnson signed off on her proposed rule.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY MACE (R-SC): And so I'm going to keep calling out these folks on the left. They don't - they don't - they don't get a say. I mean this is - it's just ludicrous to me that women who are victims of abuse should be forced to undress or go to the bathroom next to a man.

(END VIDEO CLIP) HUNT: All right, joining us now to discuss this and all things on Capitol Hill, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell of Michigan.

Congresswoman, thank you for being with us. I really appreciate it.

I know that you've called this a hateful and divisive political sideshow. I - I am interested to know a little bit more about what you make of why Nancy Mace is doing this, how she's doing this. I mean, I have to say, I remember covering - there wasn't even a women's bathroom at all near the Senate floor as recently as the 1990s. It - you know, there was a long line there. They had to expand it because actually, oh, wait, women started getting elected to Congress.

What do you make of it all?

[06:35:00]

REP. DEBBIE DINGELL (D-MI): So, first of all, I think it's a total distraction. You - you heard Sarah. Sarah has been very clear with her colleagues, she's going to abide by the rules that Mike Johnson has put out, period. She's not going to try to go in the ladies bathroom off the floor. She doesn't want it to be the story. She's tired of Nancy Mace making it a story every day. She came to Washington to deliver for the people of Delaware and to worry about those kitchen table issues. And she has been very strong with all of us, as her colleagues, to please not talk about it, make it more of an issue. She's going to abide by what Speaker Johnson said and do the job she's supposed to do.

So, I do think this is a non-issue. As Nancy keeps saying, she's going to fight for it, when it's been made very clear, she's going to abide by the rules that Speaker Johnson has put out there.

But, you know, I do wish we had some compassion, a little empathy for families who have a child who is struggling. I think that we need to be supporting the families so they've got the ability to go with their parents, the doctors, the experts and government should not be making the lives miserable of - or complicating a - just a really tough situation further. And as far as Nancy Mace goes, for where Sarah's going to use a bathroom on Capitol Hill, it's a non-story and I wish she'd abandoned trying to make it headlines every day and do the job she was elected to do.

HUNT: Congresswoman, let's talk about the big picture of the losses that Democrats suffered in this election from the top of the ticket, of course, down to the Senate majority and, honestly, not taking back the House when that, of course, was something that was potentially on the table.

You and I, obviously, talked so many times ahead of the election about Michigan, about what was going on there. Your sort of big picture takeaway from, you know, why Democrats suffered these losses. If you could describe it in, you know, a single phrase or in a - in - in a - a straightforward way, I mean, how would you put it?

DINGELL: I think Democrats and I don't - I'm not into the finger pointing game, quite frankly. I don't think it gets us anything. I think every Democrat's got to do some soul searching. I don't think Democratic losses are as big as everybody wants to make them out to be because normally when you see this kind of presidential election, Republicans would have had far stronger coattails, and they did not. They have a very slim majority in the House and in the Senate, which is going to make it difficult, I fear - or not I fear, because we're going to stop them on - if they're doing bad legislation.

What I really want to see us do is work on the problems that Americans care about every single day. And I will work across the aisle with them.

But we - it's not one little thing, Kasie, it's many things. I mean, we clearly have - the Democratic Party's got to talk to men better. And I'm not just talking white men. I'm talking African American men, Hispanic men, working people. Grocery store prices matter. You heard me tell you that all fall. I go to Kroger every Sunday, and always somebody wants to talk to me about the price of groceries. And we have to do a better job of communicating to voters on the platforms they are on, where they are getting the news. A better understanding of where they're getting their information and be there, be present and be where the voters are.

HUNT: Congressman, how do you think Democrats should approach Trump in this second term of his differently than the way he was approached in his first term?

DINGELL: I'm going to do it the exact same way that I did do it in the first term, if you'll recall it, Kasie, in that I said I'd work with him. I respect the office of the presidency. People have elected him. And he and I did very well because, one, I said he was going to get elected, and I was like one of the few Republicans or Democrats in the country that saw it coming. Then he got very angry at me about my voting for impeachment. But I worked with him on trade. And I will work with him on trade again. I think it's a huge issue. I think there are common ground issues that we can work on.

But - and we can't react every day to whatever it is that, you know, has everybody in a - in a tizzy. We have to pick our battles where they really matter, where it could hurt people, the people that we represent. I want to make sure that we don't destroy our vaccination system so that people are still able to get flu shots and we're prepared on public health. I could go through a different list of many things. I don't want to see Social Security and Medicare cut. But I think we're going to have to pick our battles.

He's going to be president for four years, and the American people have things that they want to see get done.

[06:40:03]

And I hope there are things we can work together on to get things done. If he does horrific things, if he targets people in unfair ways and terrorizes them, I'm going to stand up to hate whenever and wherever I see it. HUNT: Briefly, Congresswoman, "Politico" is reporting that Vice

President Kamala Harris wants - she's been telling her advisers and allies she wants to keep her options open, whether that's to run for president in 2028 or run for governor in California. Would you like to see Vice President Harris be the Democratic standard bearer going forward?

DINGELL: What I want to see, and I'm already working on it, is an open primary in '28 that includes battleground states, like - it doesn't have to be Michigan, there shouldn't be a lock. But we need a very competitive '28 presidential primary where the issues that matter in November and are going to determine who is president are part of the early primary system. And, you know, she would certainly be a strong contender to be a candidate. We need a strong primary.

HUNT: All right, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell, thank you very much for being with us this morning. I really appreciate it.

DINGELL: Thank you.

HUNT: All right, coming up next here on CNN THIS MORNING, an age old White House Thanksgiving tradition returns today. We're going to rewind and show you some of the most memorable turkey pardon moments of years past. They are quite something.

Plus, holiday meals with a side of politics. How Americans are trying to put a stressful election cycle in the rear-view mirror for their family get-togethers.

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[06:46:05]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE, ACTRESS, "HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS": You don't know how I feel, and, in my opinion, you don't even care.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE, ACTOR, "HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS": Well, opinions are like (EXPLETIVE DELETED), honey, everybody's got one and everybody thinks everybody else's stinks.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE, ACTRESS, "HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS": Henry, for Christ's sake.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: It is that time of year again. In just a few days, millions of Americans will be sitting down with family and friends over turkey and the trimmings after an incredibly divisive and contentious political season.

Here was one noted comedian's advice. Take it or leave it before you grab your seat at your table.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BILL MAHER, HOST, "REAL TIME WITH BILL MAHER": Can we please not let politics (EXPLETIVE DELETED) up the holidays? Anybody with me on this?

If we're going to remain a viable society, there must be some things that transcend politics, like disaster relief and law enforcement and helping neighbors and (EXPLETIVE DELETED) Christmas.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Joining us now to discuss, Mark McKinnon, former adviser to George W. Bush and John McCain, the creator of Paramount's "The Circus."

Mark, good morning.

Do you agree with -

MARK MCKINNON, CREATOR, "THE CIRCUS": Good morning.

HUNT: Are you going to take Bill Maher's advice?

MCKINNON: A hundred percent. I was thinking, what we ought to do instead of just pardoning turkeys is just pardon all the relatives who haven't talked to each other over the last eight years so we can all just get together to be civil again.

HUNT: Just a blanket, you know what, we're going to let the past be the past? That's fair enough.

MCKINNON: Yes, let's - let's just start - start over here.

HUNT: But, I mean, look, in seriousness, there are a lot of people who, you know, have - you can just tell, politics is obviously - we'll say, don't talk about politics and religion in these settings, right? It's not like this has never come up before. There seems to be an added level of, I don't know if it's just - it's animosity, it's division, it's feelings that are deeper in their opposition than in past election cycles, or certainly it seems that way to me. What is it - you know, how can we move forward from the divisive nature of the election in a way that lets people, you know, rebuild - I do know people who have broken off relationships because of politics.

MCKINNON: I don't know, Kasie. I think that there's an exhaustion factor now. People are just worn out by it. They're worn out by the divisiveness, the debates. And, yes, sure, people feel passionately about these things and are disappointed or excited about the election, but I think that there's just a feeling of, OK, you know what, it was a - it was a clear victory. Let's, you know, let's stand back. Let's, you know, elections have consequences, as Obama said, and let's let this roll on.

And I think that this appointment process with Trump has been an interesting example. I mean, it's - I think it's surprising a lot of people. There's - you know, no matter what side of the aisle you're on, when you look at his appointments, there's something for everybody to love and something for everybody to hate. And what I'm really struck by is the speed. You know, we talked before about how Trump was really an accidental candidate in 2016. And it reminds me of the movie "The Candidate." During the last scene you remember Robert Redford turns around after he surprisingly wins and goes, what do we do now?

Well, that's not the case this time for Trump. And what I'm really struck by is the speed with which, you know, all the appointments are already made. We're two and a half weeks in, and the major appointments are made, which is surprising. And to some degree, the Gaetz thing really kind of worked for them because it just became that shiny object. It's like, OK, you know, we got that out of the way. We got the big controversy out of the way. And, sort of, you know, made a few people mad, made a few people happy. But it's out of the way. Let's move on.

And so, I think it's - again, I - and trying not to be political about it. This objective, I think, has been a very successful appointment process so far.

HUNT: So, speaking of that process, I mean, do you think there is going to be an appetite to oppose some of these other nominees who, as you point out, it did not have to - because Matt Gaetz was taking up so much of the oxygen, sort of continued as, you know, lesser in a way that if they had been kind of at the forefront?

[06:50:10]

Pete Hegseth, for example, with this, you know, accusation, the police report against him. Tulsi Gabbard is another example. Of all of the rest of them, do you think any others face potentially not getting confirmed by the Senate? And if so, who's at the top of the list?

MCKINNON: Well, I think at the top of the list are Hegseth and Gabbard, probably just because they're such - they're so important to our national defense and security. And - and I - so - and I do think that they're - the Senate has reasserted itself and just to say, listen, we get the deliberative process. We advise and consent here. But it will be really interesting, particularly with people like Gabbard.

I mean, I spent a lot of time with her during our show. I think she's a really interesting, very smart person. And I think that, you know, I think that senators have legitimate questions about, you know, her trips and relationship with Assad and those sort of things. And - and I think that they just want to hear from her. And I - you know, I assume that she has a, you know, a story to tell. And that they'll want to hear it. And it may be a very legitimate one.

But, you know, it's one that I think is - is - there's a - there's a weird narrative out there about her, right, that relates to national security. And - and so they will have an opportunity - she will have an opportunity to address that.

HUNT: Mark, I mean, big picture here. You mentioned kind of national security and that is one area where I have seen, you know, old guard Republicans be willing to buck Donald Trump and in no small part that's about Americas role in the world. The sort of post-World War II pax (ph) americana, the system, this international system that was built basically by America and has, you know, sustained through now.

When you look at the cabinet picks and you think about the way Trump has been conducting himself so far with world leaders, do you see a dramatic departure from the status quo from him in that arena? I mean how - how is the sort of broad posture position of America in the world going to change based on what we know?

MCKINNON: Well, I'd say two things. One is, when Trump was president before, the one thing that I saw in, you know, the limited international travel that I did is a lot of international people, even if they were opposed to Trump, kind of liked his foreign policy chaos just because it kept people off balance. And they like the fact that they sort of, you know, that foreign leaders, including autocrats, were left thinking, you know, what in the hell is this guy doing?

On the other hand, I think people were reassured, I was, by appointments by like Rubio, Senator Rubio to secretary of State, because, you know, he's a guy who's been very deep in these issues for a long time and I, you know, I - it would be unfair to comment on an establishment figure, but - but he's - but he is somebody who's familiar with this territory. He's not like just somebody who's coming in there to - like a lot of others to just break stuff. You know, he knows - I think he will come in and bring some order. And I think he's respected within the State Department. So, I think you get a balance of those things.

HUNT: All right, Mark McKinnon for us this morning. Mark, always grateful to have you. Thank you for being here. See you soon.

MCKINNON: Thanks, Kasie. Kick it.

HUNT: All right, 52 minutes past the hour. Here's a morning roundup.

The United Arab Emirates has arrested three Uzbek nationals suspected in the death of a missing Israeli rabbi whose body was discovered on Sunday. Israel says Rabbi Zvi Kogan was killed in an anti-Semitic act of terror and is vowing to bring the killers to justice.

The Menendez brothers are expected to appear virtually from prison at a court hearing today. Defense lawyers making a plea for their release. It's going to be their first public appearance in nearly 30 years. The brothers are serving life without parole for the 1989 murder of their parents.

Ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt says this, quote, "normal people are not ready for AI." During a talk at Princeton University, Schmidt says that in the near future a child's best friend might be AI generated, and raised questions about guardrails going forward.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ERIC SCHMIDT, FORMER GOOGLE CEO: What are the rules? Is it OK that that child is, you know, is the equivalent of Mark Zuckerberg, the surrogate parent, who gets to decide what your kid learns and doesn't learn. Playing with the way people think is really powerful. So, if you think

about state sponsored misinformation, that's trivial compared to having your best friend be state sponsored and the sort of daily interaction and shape someone's identity, their cultural values.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Yes, so our panel's back.

I have to say, I mean, this side of the table, we have other fellow parents. What he had to say in this entire kind of talk that he gave was really interesting. But it is pretty alarming. I mean there's a recent story out of Florida of a young boy who, you know, who tragically, you know, took his own life is my understanding because he was friends with an AI chat bot and it went south.

[06:55:03]

I mean, this warning seems really stark.

LULU GARCIA-NAVARRO, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: And it should be heeded. I mean, this is coming from someone who isn't just a crank. This is coming from someone who used to lead Google And I think, you know, what we've seen is the - I mean I hate to use these words, but we have been experimented on, humans, with all this technology.

If we think about when the iPhone came out and everything that's happened subsequently, what has happened is that there are no real laws around this stuff, there are very little guardrails. And so what we learn about it, we kind of learned through experiencing it.

We see our own children, how they react over time, how their brains are being changed by what they - how they look at information through scrolling. They have trouble concentrating. They have trouble actually engaging with information. I mean, our children are already struggling with reading. Are they going to struggle with writing just because of the fact of AI? I mean this is really changing the very nature of how we process information. And so, I think that warning is actually pretty, pretty important.

HUNT: All right, well, certainly something to keep an eye on.

All right, let's turn now to this. A Thanksgiving tradition returns to the White House. In just a few hours, Joe Biden will pardon his last pair of turkeys as president. The lame duck president sparing two 40- pound turkeys from the Kitchen Table, Peace and - Peach, I'm sorry, and Blossom from Minnesota. The light-hearted and, let's be honest, very strange presidential event stretches back 77 years. Plenty of jokes along the way.

Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL CLINTON, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT (November 1994): I'm glad I can make at least one turkey happy this year. GEORGE W. BUSH, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT (November 2004): Make sure they

have plenty to eat for their Thanksgiving dinner. For the sake of our feathered guests, I'm not going to elaborate on the contents of those baskets.

BARACK OBAMA, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT (November 2016): I want to take a moment to recognize the brave turkeys who weren't so lucky, who didn't get to ride the gravy train to freedom, who met their faith - fate with courage and sacrifice and proved that they weren't chicken. Ah, it's not that bad now. Come on.

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND 2024 PRESIDENT-ELECT (November 2020): Thanksgiving is a special day for turkeys. I guess probably, for the most part, not a very good one when you think about it.

RONALD REAGAN, FORMER U.S. P RESIDENT (November 1988): January 20th I'll come to the farm to see you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: OK, it was actually pretty bad, Barack Obama, sorry. That's a pretty bad joke.

This is a - OK, I shouldn't let my personal biases thinking - I find this event to be deeply uncomfortable and sad, but we keep doing it.

EDWARD-ISAAC DOVERE, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: We do keep - I have never been to one in person. I went last year to just like see what it was. It is stranger in person than it is on TV.

MEGHAN HAYS, FORMER BIDEN WHITE HOUSE DIRECTOR OF MESSAGE PLANNING: I agree with you. Yes, it's odd.

DOVERE: Yes, it's -

HUNT: You've been.

HAYS: Yes, I've been a couple times. It's very odd. Its' very odd. They like walk over - they bring them over from the Willard. They stay the night at the Willard. They have like a red carpet arrival the night before. Then they bring them over to the - the - we did it in the Rose Garden because it was during Covid. And it's just a very odd event. And they're like running around and they're like walking, they're trying to keep them contained, and the little kids want to take photos with them. It's very bizarre. But it's fun. People like it.

DOVERE: And the point of it is that we are pardoning the turkeys so that on Thursday we eat all the other turkey. It's just - it's a strange thing.

HAYS: We eat all their (INAUDIBLE).

GARCIA-NAVARRO: I mean I think its history is actually rooted in the poultry industry and the turkey industry. DOVERE: Right.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: I mean actually think this is like a sort of a special interest.

HAYS: Yes, the Turkey Federation is very involved.

MATT GORMAN, : The hotel is (INAUDIBLE).

GARCIA-NAVARRO: The Turkey Federation is very involved.

HAYS: They spend the night with them at the - the Turkey Federation spends the night with them at the Willard.

GORMAN: Yes. Like, it's like the eagles in the '70s trashing the hotel room.

HUNT: I will say - oh, my God.

Anyway, the pictures from inside the Willard are - like there's like wood chips on the floor. It's like - it's very strange.

GORMAN: It's just - yes, it's - what the hell is this? Yes.

DOVERE: Who gets the room at the Willard the day after (INAUDIBLE).

HAYS: All their (INAUDIBLE).

GORMAN: The poor house cleaners.

HUNT: Oh my God. OK.

HAYS: (INAUDIBLE).

DOVERE: Hopefully tip them well.

HUNT: All right, from turkeys to this. I'll leave you with this.

Matt Gaetz's time as President-elect Trump's pick for attorney general lasted just eight days. Many have noted that that's less than one Scaramucci. But the former congressman already apparently has a new gig. Gaetz now on Cameo. You may know it as the site where people can pay celebrities to record custom video messages.

So, if you want the Florida Republican to wish you a happy birthday, it will cost you apparently, over $500. Gaetz's bio reads quote, "Trump nominated me to be U.S. attorney general. That didn't work out. And once I fired the House speaker." He was, of course, referring to former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

Gaetz is just the latest on a growing list of former politicos on the platform.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUDY GIULIANI, FORMER NEW YORK MAYOR: I'm a little teapot, short and stout.

ROD BLAGOJEVICH, FORMER ILLINOIS GOVERNOR: I used to be the governor of Illinois, and inmate number 40892424. Needless to say, it was way better being governor.

ANTHONY SCARAMUCCI, FORMER WHITE HOUSE COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: I'm here to tell you that you are absolutely terrible, and I mean totally terrible at a college pick 'em football league.

GEORGE SANOTS (R), FORMER NEW YORK REPRESENTATIVE: My favorite TS (ph) song is definitely going to be "Trouble."

[07:00:03]

SANTOS (singing): I knew you were trouble when you walked in.

KITARA REVACHE, GEORGE SANTOS' DRAG PERSONA: Hey, club condo, it's your favorite, Kitara. After 18 years in the closet, George Santos pulled me back out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: OK. Uh, again, Matt Gaetz available on - to wish you a happy birthday on Cameo.

DOVERE: And the price has gone up, I think, actually, from the original.

HUNT: Oh, has it really? OK.

HAYS: Probably for the turkey pardon.

HUNT: Thanks to you guys for being here. Thanks to all of you at home for joining us as well.

I'm Kasie Hunt. Don't go anywhere. CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.

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