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Erin Burnett Outfront

Candidates Make Final Pitch With Just 4 Days Until Election; Biden 4 Days to Election: "Optimistic" Dems Will Hold House, Senate; Trump Aide Testifies With Immunity In Mar-a-Lago Docs Case; Video Indicates Explosions Rock Ukraine Near Kherson City; Jan. 6 Panel: Trump Must Produce Records by Next Week, Remains Under Subpoena For Testimony Starting Nov 14. Aired 7-8p ET

Aired November 04, 2022 - 19:00   ET

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

[19:00:31]

ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: And good evening. I'm Erin Burnett.

OUTFRONT tonight, down to the wire. We are now just four days from Election Day. Control of the Senate and the House up for grabs as Republicans and Democrats are now vying for every vote. The candidates and their surrogates right now as we speak fanned out across the country. Right behind me, pictures of rallies in battleground states, Wisconsin, Georgia, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

The Republican Pennsylvania Senate candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz is just wrapping up a rally, as you can see right there in your screen. He's neck and neck with his Democratic opponent John Fetterman. And the winner of that race in Pennsylvania could literally determine control of the entire U.S. Senate.

So, as of tonight, let's just show you two maps. First, the Senate races in Georgia, Nevada, and Pennsylvania. All of these considered total toss-ups, anybody's game.

Four others, Arizona, New Hampshire, Wisconsin and North Carolina tilt slightly, just ever so slightly in terms of one party or another. There is an incredible amount of uncertainty in these final hours of campaigning and there is no room for error for Democrats.

You see this, one. That's how many seats Republicans need to pick up to win the majority, one seat.

And President Biden who has been busy campaigning said he is optimistic, though, that Democrats will come out ahead in the House and the Senate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I know you always ask me how are we doing. We're going to win this time around. I feel really good about our chances.

(END VIDEO CLIP) BURNETT: Well, this is an extraordinary moment in history. And voters seem to know it. Look at this number, 34.6. That's 34.6 million Americans have already voted. That is more than this time four years ago.

I want to start in Wexford, Pennsylvania, where Jessica Dean is out front at the Oz rally.

And, Jessica, as I said, where you are in Pennsylvania, this race that you're watching could determine control of the U.S. Senate.

JESSICA DEAN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's absolutely right, Erin. And that's why it is the most expensive Senate race in the country. That's why if you turn on the TV now, it's flooded with ads.

And we're here at the Oz rally in Wexford that just let out, where he pitched himself to voters once again, really at this point, they're trying to make sure they're motivating their bases, both the Oz and the John Fetterman campaign, and also trying to get those independent voters.

Now, look, polling has come out since the debate in the last couple of weeks shows this is an ever-tightening race. Both candidates looking for any edge they can possibly get here. For John Fetterman's campaign, it came in the last 24 hours with an endorsement from Oprah Winfrey.

Now, typically, celebrity endorsements don't move the needle in huge ways. But in this case, it is certainly of interest because of Oprah Winfrey's connection to Mehmet Oz. Of course, she is the person who made him a household name. He appeared on her show many, many times. She backed his television show.

So for him to endorse Fetterman and say that she would have already voted for him is significant and is something that people have been talking about. Will it actually sway any voters? That remains to be seen. We're going to have to wait until Tuesday to figure that out.

Dr. Oz saying he respects Oprah but then pivoting back to this message about being not an extreme candidate, about bringing bipartisan to Washington, about being a moderate. And so I talked to people as they were looking into this rally just a little bit ago. I asked why they were here, why they support Dr. Oz, and it kind of range.

But some people did tell us, because they see him as a moderate. One man told me that that was it, that was the reason he was here. Other people said it was because he was a doctor. They felt that he could really get a handle on the economy. Those are some of the things that were on people's minds. Others were here as solid Republican voters who were never going to vote for John Fetterman and are essentially the base.

So we're going to see big surrogates coming to the commonwealth over the weekend. We're going to have former President Donald Trump coming tomorrow. We're also going to have former President Barack Obama and President Joe Biden all coming here to the commonwealth of Pennsylvania just days before Election Day.

BURNETT: All right. Jessica, thank you very much. He's there at that rally.

And, you know, Jessica saying, we won't know until Tuesday, really lucky to know on Tuesday. In fact, we aren't going to know overall probably the answer to who won, who is in control.

Jeff Zeleny is OUTFRONT now.

And, Jeff, that is the big question tonight, right, which is when will we actually know the results of this election? Because, in so many cases, because of all the ways that people are voting, early voting, day-of voting, absentee voting. The candidate who appears to be the leader on election night may not be the winner. How long could this take?

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Erin, the honest answer is we don't know. That does not mean anything is wrong with the election. That does not mean anything has going to gone afoul. It is simply how Americans are voting has changed, how we vote in America is drastically different than it was a decade ago, and it changes cycle by cycle.

And here's what I mean by that. Of course, almost 30 million people have already cast ballots. But those ballots, by and large, have not been counted. The counting varies state by state by state. If we take a look at some top battlegrounds here, you'll understand what I mean by why we may not know exactly.

The mail ballot processing begins meaning they are opened and counted in different way in different states, in Pennsylvania, in Wisconsin, for example, top battlegrounds, those ballots cannot be opened until election day because of a state law. And in Michigan also a top battleground, there's been a new law.

So in many counties they can begin processing these ballots two days before the election. But some cannot also be done until Election Day. So there is this huge amount of ballots coming in that election officials have to deal with on election day. So, yes, 35 million ballots, if we look at this state by state, some extraordinary numbers here in terms of how the early vote is coming in.

Look at Georgia, for example. A prime battleground, 2.2 million votes. In Georgia actually, they can start counting ballots two weeks before. So that processing is already beginning. That's why we're likely to know the Georgia results, at least in part on election night.

But look at Michigan, 1.2 million. Pennsylvania, a million votes already cast but not counted. So, on election night, we are going to see likely in many of these places Republicans, we know, like to vote on election day.

That is their habit, that's what we saw in 2020. So, a Republican candidate may appear to be ahead. But the other votes may be coming in, in the overnight hours or the next day. And early votes count the exact same as election day votes.

So that is why we don't know. We have to just sort of sit down, have a cup of coffee, have a soda, be patient on election night. You may not know for a couple days.

BURNETT: Yeah, and it is incredible because of the way elections are run in this country, it's different in each state. Fascinating when you're talking about some states, you could count two days ahead in parts of the state but not in others.

I mean, it is incredibly complex. Now, you mentioned Georgia. So the good news would be, hey, look, Georgia's going to give us an early result because they've been able to count the early votes two weeks early and then, boom, we're going to know Georgia. Except for we probably won't know Georgia.

ZELENY: Likely not and here's why. Georgia is one of the handful of states in the country largely in the south that does not have a runoff. If the candidate does not get 50 percent of the vote, it goes to a runoff, and a tight race between Raphael Warnock and Republican challenger Herschel Walker.

There is also a libertarian candidate who is running. So, he is likely to get at least a sliver of the vote there that is going to complicate the effort of getting more than 50 percent. So, in Georgia, we're likely to know the result early, but it is likely to be a runoff, which means the runoff election is four weeks from election day on the 6th of December.

And you'll remember back in 2020, the control of the U.S. Senate hinged upon Georgia. So if that's the case next week, if control of the Senate is hinging upon Georgia, which we don't know if it will be or not, that of course is going to send all this into overtime for four weeks. Certainly we should all take a collective deep breath, it does not mean anything is wrong with the votes if they're not accounted on election night, because how we're voting and how votes are counted have changed in America -- Erin.

BURNETT: Jeff, thank you very much. So important, I hope everyone hears that because if it looks one way one day and it changes, that's when conspiracy theories have filled that gap. And we're hoping that putting the facts out there, everyone will understand how this works.

OUTFRONT now, Doug Heye, the former Republican National Committee communications director, along with Ashley Allison, who is the National Coalitions director for the Biden-Harris campaign in 2020 and worked in the Obama White House.

All right. Thanks to both of you.

So, Doug, I want to start with President Biden tonight saying, I feel really good about our chances, I think we're going to keep the Senate, pick up a seat, and saying Democrats have a chance of winning the House.

What do you say to that? DOUG HEYE, FORMER REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE COMMUNICATIONS

DIRECTOR: Well, two things. One, that is what President Biden is supposed to say. That's what, if you're in that position, you're supposed to say, what he's being advised to say. It's not what I advise politicians to say.

I go back to Bol Durham and how Kevin Costner advised Crash Davis, what he told Meat to say. And it's basic platitudes -- but it's also platitudes that are true. You take it one day at a time, you do the best that you can, and Good Lord willing, you're going to win the game or you're going to win on Election Day.

Because ultimately if we look at all the polls -- and polls can be wrong, sure -- but if we look at the changing momentum that's constantly moving in Republicans' favor and not just all in the races that we've been looking at for six months or longer. But if we look at races that we thought were unwinnable for Republicans three or six months ago that are all of a sudden winnable, it means that Biden is going to be wrong and he has to explain it.

Just take this very simply one day at a time, we're doing everything we can to win, and we're going to try and do our best.

[19:10:06]

Voters will understand that.

BURNETT: All right. Now, polls, they have had their problems, even pollsters have their hesitation and nervousness about polls.

But, Ashley, are -- Doug is right, that is what the polls show, they have shown the shift in momentum. It has been consistent. It has been across many different areas.

Are the polls all wrong?

ASHLEY ALLISON, FORMER NATIONAL COALITIONS DIRECTOR, BIDEN-HARRIS 2020: They're not all wrong. But they're not all right. I look at polls -- I'm a grassroots organizer. That's how I started in politics, and grassroots organizing is about people. Not all people talk to pollsters and not all pollsters talk to every person.

And so, when I look at this -- I don't think anyone knows what's going to happen including the president. I think Democrats are going to do better than we expected a year ago. Do I know if we're going to hold both chambers? I'm not sure. But actually, you know who will know is the people, because on election night and on election day and even for weeks now, people have been able to go and cast their ballots.

I think polls are about a fourth of the equation if you're looking at this as a whole pie. I think another fourth is the campaign that folks are running. I think another fourth is this unexpected thing. And then I think the final fourth is that grassroots people power that I believe that voter will show up and elect the right people. And sometimes, it will weigh for the Democrats and sometimes it will weigh for the Republicans. But I think Dems are going to be okay of this November, better than

anyone had expected.

BURNETT: Well, it's going to be fascinating to see. I mean, you know, you're sitting in Washington, both of you. I'm sitting in New York where you have a governor's race that should be 30 percentage points and seems to be neck and neck, and it's kind of stunning to sit here as a New Yorker and say there's something going on here, what is it? I mean, it is -- it is a crucially important election.

Now, Doug, in New York, people are -- crime is a driving issue. But our latest CNN poll shows the economy when you look across the country trumps everything else, the top issue by a mile, okay? Biden said in a statement today, one thing is clear, while comments by Republican leadership sure seem to indicate they are rooting for a recession, the U.S. economy continues to grow and add jobs even as gas prices continue to come on. He then -- come down, I'm sorry.

And he says that inflation is his top economic challenge but he has a plan to fix it, which, of course, he does in detail and no president truly can have. But is this the biggest issue to most Americans, the biggest one? And yet earlier, this week primetime 20-minute address on democracy in America. That is what he did on the same day the Fed upped interest rates by another three-quarters of a percentage point.

Are Democrats missing the mark on their closing message, Doug? Or is he getting it right by talking to his base on democracy?

HEYE: I think he is getting it wrong. I'll say two things that might surprise you. One, I agreed with a lot of what Joe Biden said in his speech. And, two, I actually thought he delivered the speech pretty well.

But the reality is voters will tell you what they are concerned about and what their priorities are.

And so what Biden did the other night just a few blocks from here at union station was he told America, let me tell you what I think should be important to you. When voters are saying here is what's important to me, and it's inflation, number one, crime may be number two.

And we see the impact that this has on politics, because Joe Biden, whose time is finite as a president of the United States, as any president would be, is having to campaign in New York. That tells you the Democrats aren't on offense, they're on defense. And we're already seeing -- CNN's reported that Democrats are already starting to try and put blame at the New York City mayor.

If you're blaming people before the election day, you're not set setting yourself up for success.

BURNETT: So, Ashley, should Biden be giving some sort of last-minute big speech on the economy? Because it's sort of interesting that he's saying democracy is on one hand, but the Republicans are saying the economy's in the other and it's the top issue. Even though what Republicans have said what they're going to do if they win is not about the economy, it's been about investigating Hunter Biden and things like that.

Should he be stepping up now and saying I'm going to focus on the economy and giving some sort of address on that?

ALLISON: I think it's an "and." We literally -- Nancy Pelosi was under attack, and her husband actually caught the worst part of that attack just a week ago. He is the president of the free world. We have got to take the temperature down.

When politicians and their spouses and their families are under attack, when our Capitol is under attack, we need leadership. I think it's interesting because a lot -- why I think that speech that Joe Biden gave was super important is because when you talk to a lot of people, particularly Republicans who don't align with Trump and you say what are you looking for, they say I don't want extremism.

And what Joe Biden was trying to say the other night was that you have a choice now. We might not always agree on policy, but you can pick an extreme part of your party like a Dr. Oz who wants Donald Trump to come and campaign for him this weekend.

[19:15:08]

Or you can pick someone else, because our democracy is at risk. And if you pick the person that will protect our democracy, we will also work to bring your costs down for rent, for groceries, and increase your wages.

And I think he can do an "and". I think he started and I think he's going to continue to do it in this final stretch.

BURNETT: Doug, Ashley, thank you both very much.

DOUG HEYE, FORMER REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: Thank you.

BURNETT: And next, a top Trump aide testifying before the grand jury investigating the Mar-a-Lago documents with immunity. So, how bad is this for Trump?

Plus, Putin warning civilians to get out of Kherson even as his government sends mixed signals whether they already pulled out of the city or whether this is some sort of a trap. Our Christiane Amanpour is in Ukraine for us tonight.

And Speaker Nancy Pelosi opening up about the violent attack on her husband.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): It's just so tragic how it happened. But, nonetheless, we have to be optimistic.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BURNETT: New tonight, CNN learning that Trump adviser Kash Patel testified yesterday about the classified documents found at Mar-a- Lago.

Now, the important thing here is that he did this with immunity, right? He answered the questions, he did it with immunity. He had initially declined to answer questions from the grand jury by taking the Fifth. Then a judge granted him immunity. So that's what we actually saw yesterday.

[19:20:02]

Today, though, Patel is now downplaying his testimony saying, quote, via a spokesperson, Mr. Patel categorically denies reaching any immunity deal with the government. Rather, his testimony was compelled over his objection through the only legal means available to the government, a grant of limited immunity.

OUTRONT now, Ryan Goodman, co-editor-in-chief of Just Security, and the former special counsel to the Defense Department, and long time conservative attorney George Conway. And it's great to have both of you with me here tonight.

OK. So, George, Kash Patel was a national security and defense official during the Trump administration. He's important here in the final day, he was important. He's important with Mar-a-Lago. He goes in today and testifies, and he's making a big stink about how it was compelled, it still wasn't friendly.

But you usually don't give immunity unless you know somebody has something you need. What do you read into all this?

GEORGE CONWAY, CONSERVATIVE ATTORNEY: Well, you know, I think he's trying to make it -- he was compelled, there's no question. And I think he just wants to make sure that people don't think he's just ratting out Trump. In terms of the significance of the immunity, I mean, it forces him to testify.

He will go to jail, if he says, I'm not answering your questions. And so it forces him to answer questions under oath to questions like, did Donald Trump really do the brain wave declassification?

BURNETT: Right, you can just think about it and it happens.

CONWAY: And it's one thing to say that on "Newsmax" or "Breitbart" or some news outlet or right-wing news outlet that this happened. It's another thing to say to a federal grand jury under oath.

BURNETT: Right, because there is a serious penalty for lying.

So, Ryan, obviously the statement that came out was defense of Trump, I was forced to be there, I was forced to be there.

But here's the thing -- Patel has, to your point, he's spoken to a lot of media outlets. He has become a very fierce defender pretty much of anything Trump did on the documents investigation. Here are just a couple of examples.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)

KASH PATEL, ADVISER TO FORMER PRESIDENT TRUMP: This entire raid on his house, I believe, was to prevent the disclosure now that the government gangsters are back in charge of their corrupt activities from Russia-gate on down.

What they have done is a shock and awe campaign based on what "Vogue" magazine would've done by a pictorial display of splashing around papers on a floor.

(END VIDEO CLIPS)

BURNETT: OK. So, that's what he said. Now, he's compelled. He goes in. He's under oath. How much can they expect to get out of him, though, if that's clearly the attitude that he has?

RYAN GOODMAN, FORMER SPECIAL COUNSEL AT DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE: Right. So, he is not a cooperative witness. And he might say I don't remember, I don't recall. But it's going to be hard. Is he going to say I don't remember, I don't recall a declassification order? But that's actually getting something out of him.

So I do think that they'll get that kind of information. And then he obviously seems to be very close to Trump. Trump makes him a formal representative to the National Archives in the midst of all of this.

BURNETT: Right.

GOODMAN: So he is a key person to ask some key questions, including you've spoken a lot about what was held in these documents at Mar-a- Lago. Did Trump ever give you access?

BURNETT: Well, here's the thing, he can't say so much, I don't recall, because he did say he recalled that Trump magically did it by thinking about it, right? So, he recalls.

GOODMAN: Absolutely. I think he has -- he has to answer some of these questions, and especially he seems to have a deep knowledge of Trump's even plans of what he wanted to do with the documents. He's talked about it time and time and time again. So he seems to have a pretty specific recollection.

CONWAY: But if he does have that recollection, prosecutors are going to drill down when did it happen? Is there a document? Who else saw this?

And they're going to ask all the questions they can think of to show that he can't document this and can't prove this. And that shows that the government is -- as much as anything, preparing for trial.

BURNETT: OK. So preparing for trial, you're talking about indictments. And there's one thing that Trump thinks he could do to stymie this, to complicate it. And that would be to announce his bid for the White House. So, sources telling CNN, George, that it's the third week of November

that Trump aides are vying for him to announce that he's running in 2024. Maybe 14, 6 days after election day. So, they even throwing a specific date out, which means he probably won't do it in that day because he likes to play games, but you get the point.

How does this play? If he announces, what happens then with the possible indictment?

CONWAY: Well, I think it's inevitable that he's going to announce, because he can't not -- he's put himself out there. But he was never not going to run because he can't deal with not being the center of attention, and he wants revenge. This whole psychology of the situation for him even apart from the criminal liability potential was driving him to run. But with the criminal liability potential, he wants to use the possibility of his becoming president again as a shield against prosecution the way he used the presidency as a shield for four years.

BURNETT: But is it a shield, Ryan? I mean, you're talking -- if they can prove, and I understand they would have to have it so buttoned up, right?

[19:25:02]

They can't take any -- can't have any sort of a real case to make. Is it a shield?

GOODMAN: So, it's a shield if he actually won the White House because then he gets four years of immunity. And it's a bit of a shield in a certain sense as a political candidate running for office.

We know the Justice Department wouldn't do anything 60 days before an election, but they also have procedures for political candidates. And I think it's about that norm. It's about the optics.

So I do think it is this question of does it create any hesitation on the part of Garland because does it appear as though he's political when what he's really doing is just applying a law to a private citizen.

BURNETT: So, then, what do they do? There's a special counsel, it's like tread water for the next, if they win, what do they do?

CONWAY: I think they have to go and prosecute him. I think there is so much evidence that we have seen, and we obviously have only seen the tip of the iceberg. I mean, he stole the stuff. The stuff -- they found the stuff in Mar-a-Lago. He didn't get some -- he jerked around the National Archives for a year plus.

He then -- he had people lie about it. He tried to get other people to lie about it. And, lo and behold, the documents were there.

BURNETT: Right. And just, you know, to put the exclamation point and we're just talking about the Mar-a-Lago documents. We're not talking about January 6th. We're not talking about anything criminal there. I mean, we're talking about one specific thing, and there's -- the Georgia case. There's the Georgia case. There's a lot of other things going on.

All right, thank you both very much.

And next new video into OUTFRONT of devastating Russian strikes inside Ukraine as we see firsthand the impact of Russia's attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure. We are live next, Christiane with a special report on that.

Plus, the D.A. investigating the attack on Nancy Pelosi, her husband. Speaker Pelosi speaks out now about her husband's condition.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): It's going to be a long haul, but he will be well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:30:42]

BURNETT: Tonight, new video into OUTFRONT of fires burning near Kherson in southern Ukraine. That huge plume of smoke that you see is coming from near an airfield just north of the city in an area occupied by Russian forces. This as Vladimir Putin today warns civilians should be evacuated from the region.

Now, Kherson was the first city to come under Russian control, Russia declared it was annexed back in December. Russian forces this week have been driven back by a Ukrainian counteroffensive.

And, you know, we showed you this bizarre image yesterday of a flagpole on the administrative building in Kherson City. A Russian flag had flown there for months. It was now bare, but they didn't destroy it on the way out, raising many questions about what Putin's intent is.

Christiane Amanpour is OUTFRONT. She is in Ukraine tonight.

And, Christiane, what have you learned about all of this?

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Well, Erin, exactly the status of Kherson we are still waiting to see whether Ukraine will make an offensive, what the Russians are actually doing. President Zelenskyy, in his nightly address, said that they have shot down eight of those Iranian supplied kamikaze drones that have been coming over here for the last few weeks along with Russian missiles to attack the civilian infrastructure, the energy infrastructure.

And I found going into people's homes, going into a business over the last several hours that it has not broken their spirit, but people are concerned.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AMANPOUR (voice-over): Week four of Ukraine's new struggle against the cold and the dark. Rolling blackouts, blanket Kyiv, nighttime is spooky. And we are entering this high-rise apartment complex to see how the residents are coping with Russia's constant attacks on key infrastructure.

Hello.

Up to the 12th floor, no light in the stairwell, but our cameras, and no elevator.

Iuliia Mendel us, hobbling down on crutches and the foot she fractured by tripping over the steps the first night of the blackouts. She's a journalist and a former press secretary to President Zelenskyy.

Together, we visit her neighbor Natalia with her 18-month-old daughter Lina, just one of a whole generation of war-traumatized Kyiv kids, especially with the constant air ride sirens.

Is she stressed?

NATALIA HORBAN, KYIV RESIDENT: She is, like, oh, oh! She's poring into the window so that she knows something goes wrong.

AMANPOUR: The two of them are recovering from a two-hour ordeal trapped in their tiny elevator when the power went out. Now all over Kyiv, residents are putting small care boxes inside with water, snacks, and anti-anxiety medicines.

By the time we sat down to talk, the power popped back on again after nine hours on this day.

Do you feel demoralized? Do you feel like okay, all right, enough already, it's time to surrender and negotiate?

IULIIA MENDEL, JOURNALIST: No way. Look, we have passed through the hardships of '90s, and we didn't have light, water, and heating for hours and hours every day. That then was desperate because we knew it was about poverty. Now it's about war, and we know that we must win.

AMANPOUR: Winning this phase of the war comes with weapons like these to charge phones and any other emergency equipment.

HORBAN: It's the most important thing here to have in Ukraine. It's a power bank. Without it, you don't have any connection. And it's the most important now to know that your relatives are okay.

AMANPOUR: They tell us generators are almost all sold out and super expensive now, as well as candles, torches, and head lamps. Natalia has improvised light from a water bottle and her iPhone.

Downtown, it's dire for businesses too. Every beauty salon operates on hair dryers for that blowout, and of course water to wash out the shampoo and the dye. Olena is taking her chances today.

OLENA (through translator): After we finished dyeing it, I might have to go home to dry it, but it's fine.

AMANPOUR: Just one floor here has power, and the others are dark.

[19:35:00]

Before the war, Hair House had 150 clients a day. Now it's more like 50. And the salon has lost 60 percent of its revenue.

But as Dmitry, the commercial manager tells me, they keep calm and carry on.

DMITRY MEDVEDEV, COMMERCIAL MANAGER, HAIRHOUSE: I believe that we should work even without light, even without electricity, we should help our army, we should help our people. And we will do our job until the end. And I believe that sooner or later, the light will come.

AMANPOUR: Like so many civilians, they say, enduring these hardships on the home front is part of their war effort supporting their troops on the front lines who are fighting to keep Ukraine independent, fighting for their homeland.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BURNETT: Christiane, it's just amazing to see that. You know, you're bringing it to life and making it so tangible what it's like to live in a high-rise with young children knowing that you're going to be out of power for ten hours a day. We can't sit in there all day with them. You have to take the elevator and be prepared. I mean, just really incredible.

And the toll that this is taking on civilians, in the context of what we heard today from Putin, he said Russia has always treated the Ukrainian people with respect. That's what he said. But that, quote, a clash with neo-Nazis was inevitable. And he's saying he treats the Ukrainian people with respect. It is even now remarkable to hear such a thing, isn't it?

AMANPOUR: I mean, it really is nearly nine months into this war, which started with not just this canard really, this fake narrative that he was here in a special military operation fighting neo-Nazis. At the same time, the Kremlin and the Kremlin-sponsored media, especially the state media, was really using dehumanizing language against not just the Ukrainian leadership but also the Ukrainian people. So that is really hard to swallow what he said in that speech.

He also said, though, that it was their duty and their existential need to, quote, fight against the West. And he said that Ukraine's closeness to the West has been, quote, deadly for Russia and suicidal for Ukraine. So that was all that was in his speech today. So it was quite heated language.

We've had the U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan meeting with Zelenskyy today, the Ukrainian president promising hundreds of millions dollars more of U.S. aid including vitally needed air defense systems and the like to try to defend against these weapons that are attacking the infrastructure -- Erin. BURNETT: Infrastructure and all those families that you so poignantly showed. Christiane, thank you so much.

And, next, Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaking for the first time on camera about the attack on her husband. A district attorney on that case is next.

And we'll take you to one school district that has lost more than half its student teachers in one year. Why?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's about critical race theory. Why do they feel the need to teach it?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: New tonight, Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaking out tonight for the first time since her husband was released from the hospital after he was attacked with a hammer by an intruder who repeatedly asked "Where's Nancy?"

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): Thank you, thank you, thank you for your kind words, your prayers, and your good wishes for Paul. It's going to be a long haul, but he will be well. And it's just so tragic how it happened.

But, nonetheless, we have to be optimistic. He's surrounded by family, so that's a wonderful thing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: This is David Depape, the man accused of the assault, who waived his appearance in court today.

OUTFRONT now, the San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins.

Let me just start by asking, obviously the speaker talking to cameras for the first time since her husband was released from the hospital. Have you or anyone in your office been able to speak to Mr. Pelosi, to interview him since the attack?

BROOKE JENKINS, SAN FRANCISCO DISTRICT ATTORNEY: Yes. So he was interviewed over the weekend last weekend by the San Francisco police department as well as the FBI. I did have an assistant district attorney who assisted in preparing for that interview. So he was interviewed prior to his discharge.

BURNETT: And do you feel like you were able to get all of the answers and all of the details that you needed in that first interview?

JENKINS: I will say that it was a successful interview. He does have memories of the event. And so, we were able to successfully conduct that interview to gain more insight into what happened.

BURNETT: That's good. So he does have -- when you say memories, does he have -- obviously he has a skull injury. But does he have a full memory of what happened?

JENKINS: I won't -- I can't comment on whether it's full or not. But what I can say is that he was able to answer many of the questions that he was asked about how the event proceeded.

BURNETT: So, the affidavit says, when we try to understand what happened there, that Depape didn't leave the house after the 9-1-1 call was made, even though it was made and he knew that. And he didn't do so.

He tells investigators in the affidavit it says "because," and I'm quoting what he said. Much like the American founding fathers with the British, DePape was fighting against tyranny without the option of surrender.

Okay, that doesn't sound sane in the colloquial sense of the term. Depape's attorney says that he will be looking into Depape's mental state. Do you think they're going to try to seek an insanity defense?

JENKINS: You know, that's unclear at this point. Defense lawyers often explore what avenues of defense that they might have. And so I don't think that there is anything unusual going on here that we don't see frequently in this line of work. But I don't think that we can definitively say at this point that he didn't know what he was doing.

BURNETT: Right. Well, I mean -- once he had counsel, obviously you weren't able to speak to him. But if I understand from the conversations you and I have had, you did speak to him at one point before he had counsel, you were able to interact with him.

[19:45:05]

Did he seem, you know, cogent or not at that time?

JENKINS: So, I know that the affidavit as well as our motion to detain spelled out quite a number of statements that he made during the course of his police interview. He did submit himself and voluntarily agreed to speak with the police after this incident. That was a significantly long interview that he gave where he spelled out exactly what he did and why.

So he was very clear about what his intentions were about why he had those intentions, and what exactly he had planned to do.

BURNETT: So, what you're saying is it was long and it was detailed. He didn't seem -- again, I'm using the word colloquially, but he didn't seem insane to you?

JENKINS: So I don't want to at this point try to opine on his mental state whatsoever. Of course, this investigation has to continue. I don't want to do anything to prejudice the case. What I will say is that he certainly appeared to have goal-oriented behavior throughout the course of this incident. And, so, for that reason, we have charged him with these crimes.

BURNETT: Right, including attempted murder.

Well, Brooke, thank you very much. I appreciate your time.

JENKINS: No problem.

BURNETT: And next we're going to take you inside the fierce debate that is dividing a school district and causing dozens of student teachers to leave. Wait until you hear why.

Plus, the situation in Iran deteriorating and quickly. Security forces opening fire on protesters.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:50:23]

BURNETT: Tonight critical race theory, it is a debate dividing schools across the United States and Republicans like former president Trump have been seizing on the issue in final campaign pitches.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: One of the first things we must do is stand up for parents' rights and parental rights. We will get critical race theory out of our schools. Every parent in America must be empowered to opt-out of forced indoctrination in the classroom.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: One school district in California losing half its student teachers over this very issue. Wait until you hear this story from Natasha Chen OUTFRONT.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NATASHA CHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There were 84 teachers in the Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified school district last year.

This fall, there are 38. In late October, California State University Fullerton said it will pause the placement of new student teachers in this K-12 district citing lack of clarity about teaching ethnic and cultural differences and the school board's April resolution banning critical race theory.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All those in favor.

CROWD: Aye.

LEANDRA BLADES, PLACENTIA-YORBA LINDA SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER: What is it about critical race theory? Why do they feel a need to teach it?

CHEN: Leandra Blades is one of three school board trustees who voted in favor of the ban. The two board members who voted against it are up for re-election in

just days and face fierce opposition from conservative candidates. The term critical race theory refers to a framework taught in colleges, stating that U.S. social institutions are laced with racism in their laws, regulations, and procedures, which lead to different outcomes by race. But CRT has become a shorthand for conservative complaints about way the social justice issues are presented in K-12 classrooms.

Since January 2021, 42 states have tried to either ban critical race theory or limit how teachers can discuss racism and sexism, according to an education week analysis. Seventeen of those states have imposed these bans and restrictions prompting contentious debate coast to coast.

BLADES: If you want to speak about what could possibly be systemic racism, then that's fine, but don't say that it's factual that there is systemic racism in the United States.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The idea that systemic racism is not real shouldn't be up for debate. My little elementary school kids deserve to learn the truth about history and that is not going to be on the table.

CHEN: Both Blades and Brook Harper say they moved to the district in part because of the good schools. PYL USD high schools have been ranked among the top public high schools in America by "U.S. News and World Report" and other publications. The district has more than 24,000 students, 70 percent of whom are non-white.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have friends who have been harassed in the apartment afterschool board meetings. One of the cross town games in a predominantly white school, against a predominantly Latino school, and one of the signs that was made is your dad is my gardener.

CHEN: The superintendent, Dr. Michael Matthews, told CNN in the statement that the process leading to the CRT ban was extremely contentious and divisive. He says his schools have and will continue to use state adopted curriculum frameworks.

RANDI SIMMS, PLACENTIA-YORBA LINDA TEACHER: Understanding, empathy, compassion, and teaching that with a level of respect for groups of people. That's not critical race theory. That's teaching understanding, kindness, and respect.

CHEN: Randi Simms was a student teacher aid from Fullerton 21 years ago before she started her teaching career. She says losing more than half the student teachers this year is detrimental. It's a real world impact of the CRT ban, but Blade says the university's move is political.

BLADES: I am Republican and I'm conservative. However, I don't want my Republican and my conservative values into the classroom. Just please teach our kids.

CHEN: You don't feel like banning CRT is part of a Republican value? BLADES: Well, it could be. You know, there's some Democrats who don't

believe CRT should be in our school as well. We need to just remove all this noise. There's so much nice in these classrooms right now.

CHEN: But Harper hears a different kind of noise. She says the opponents of CRT have created an atmosphere that makes her feel unwelcome.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can't go anywhere. I don't have that as an option. So my last question is always what is the end game?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHEN (on camera): In our interview with the school board member Leandra Blades, we talked about a lot more than critical race theory. We discussed the issue of an ethnic studies course, social emotional learning, and other social justice issues presented in the classroom.

[19:55:05]

And behind all of that, for her was the importance of the issue of parental rights, and we have seen that refrain from other conservative candidates across the country this political season, whether they're running for school board or they're running for a governor's seat. So, it's all up and down the ballot that this is discussed, Erin.

BURNETT: All right. Natasha, thank you very much.

And next breaking news, the January 6th select Committee just releasing a statement about Trump and his deadline to hand over documents to the committee.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: Breaking news, the January 6th Select Committee just releasing a statement about former President Trump and his deadline to hand over documents to the committee.

Katelyn Polantz is OUTFRONT live in Washington.

And, Katelyn, what are you learning?

KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN SENIOR REPORTER, CRIME AND JUSTICE: There was an original ted line for Donald Trump to turn over documents to the House Select Committee by 10:00 a.m. this morning. He has missed that deadline and the committee says there's a new deadline. It's next week.

Here's their statement tonight. We have received correspondence from the former president and his counsel in connection with the Select Committee subpoena. We have informed the president's counsel he must begin producing records no later than next week, and he remains under subpoena for deposition testimony starting on November 14th.

That is also the date CNN has reported that Trump may be announcing his run for president next. We do know that these congressional subpoena dates can shift. It does look like there is some conversation between the two, but here's the update next week. There is a deadline -- Erin.

BURNETT: Right. It sounds like to Katelyn's point, there's conversations, maybe that's why they extend that. A very significant date coming up.

Katelyn Polantz, thank you very much.

And thanks to all of you for joining us.

Anderson starts now.