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Erin Burnett Outfront
New Poll: Harris Wipes Out Trump's Lead; Fact Check: Trump Attacks; FBI Wants To Talk To Trump. Aired 7-8p ET
Aired July 26, 2024 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[19:00:43]
ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: OUTFRONT next:
The breaking news, Harris closing the gap with Trump, erasing the lead he once had over Biden. Two brand new polls out tonight show Harris with the momentum right now.
Plus, trial and error. Trump unloading a series of new attacks against Kamala Harris. Which ones are real? Which ones are lies? We go through them.
And breaking news, the FBI tonight revealing what hit Trump's ear during his attempted assassination.
Let's go OUTFRONT.
And good evening. I'm Erin Burnett on this Friday.
OUTFRONT tonight, breaking news on Kamala Harris. She is surging. A brand new poll out just moments ago showing Harris is now in a statistical dead heat with Donald Trump, surging ahead of where Biden was just before he dropped out of the race.
Earlier this month, Trump had a six-point lead over Biden, six points in electoral politics in this country is a chasm. "The Wall Street Journals" numbers now though tracking with the trend we've been seeing from other polls from CNN and "The New York Times".
And when it comes to the all-important indicator of voter enthusiasm, 81 percent of Harris voters say they're enthusiastic about her. It was 37 percent for Biden.
And there's another poll that came out just before we came on the air. This one from Fox News, and it's in the battleground states, very important, showing Harris slightly ahead or tied with Trump in four all important battleground states.
We'll tick through them. Michigan, 49, 49. Trump was up by seven against Biden in the last Michigan poll. Minnesota, Harris leads 50 to 46. In Pennsylvania, again, it is now tied 49-49. Biden had been slipping there behind Trump in the must-win state of Pennsylvania as well. And in Wisconsin tonight, just one percentage points separates the two in the Fox News poll. And it all comes in the context of the eyes on Trump's ticket, Trump's
running mate, J.D. Vance, making another unforced error tonight, as he looks to tamp down criticism over his disparaging remarks about, quote, childless cat ladies. Instead, when he tried to dampen it down, he has created a new front firestorm. Tonight, making it clear that, quote, I've gotten nothing against cats. But going on to say that the left has become anti-family and the Democrats want to replace American children with immigrants.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. J.D. VANCE (R-OH), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I've got nothing against cats, have got nothing dogs. I've got one dog.
People are focusing so much on the sarcasm and not on the substance of what I actually said. And the substance of what I said, Meghan, I'm sorry, it's true.
It is true that we become anti-family. It is true that the left has become anti-child, but the simple point that I made is that having children becoming a father, becoming a mother, I really do think it changes your perspective and it pretty profound way.
This is about criticizing the Democratic Party for becoming anti- family and anti-child. A lot of liberals and a lot of people on the left will say, well, we can just replace American children with immigrants.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: All right. Well, the clarification as he thinks it is stems from this interview that Vance did all the way back in 2021 with Tucker Carlson.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VANCE: We're effectively run in this country via the Democrats, via our corporate oligarchs by a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they've made.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: All right. At the time and even at that time in 2021, those comments did get a lot of attention and they got a lot of criticism. So, back in 2021, Vance actually tried to clarify what he meant. Here's what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VANCE: Look, a lot of people are unable to have kids for very complicated and important reasons. There -- I know, you know, good friends of mine who has struggled to find the right girl, find the right guy. There are people, of course, for biological reasons, medical reasons, they can't have children.
The target of these remarks is not them. It's important to point that out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: All right. So, the Trump campaign and Vance himself say that those comments say that he's not going after people who can't have children. Rather, he is going after people who choose not to have children.
But is that really a distinction when his fundamental conclusion is completely and change, which is that people who have children see the world differently and are invested in the future of their country in a way that people who don't have children aren't.
I mean, just listen to what Vance said in that same speech.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VANCE: Think about all those people. The names are obvious, they're well-known people. Kamala Harris, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who is now the secretary of transportation, Cory Booker, AOC, think all these people.
[19:05:08]
They're different. They come from different walks of life, different parts of the country. What is the one thing that unites every single one of them? Not a single one of them has any children. Why is this just a normal fact of American life that the leaders of our country should be people who don't have a personal and direct stake in it via their own offspring, via their own children, and grandchildren?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Right. So, there's the bottom line. It's not about whether you weren't able to have children or you couldn't or you chose not to. It's about that if you don't, you are lesser.
And the reality of it is, of course, if he was trying to make the point that his party is pro-family and the Democrats aren't, there are a lot of policy ways you could choose to do that, not this way.
And this could come at a cost because according to a new Pew Research Center survey, nearly half of adults under the age of 50 say they don't want kids. That's a lot of people, a lot of voters, and we're going to much more on this in just a moment.
I want to begin though with MJ Lee because she's OUTFRONT live outside the White House on these new poll numbers -- all of which just sort of came out, MJ, fast and furious. A lot for the Harris campaign to be optimistic about at this hour.
MJ LEE, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's totally right. We have a new poll tonight from "The Wall Street Journal" that shows a very close two-way matchup between Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, 49 to 47 percent.
But this is yet another survey that seems to suggest that the vice president is outperforming President Biden with traditionally Democratic leaning group groups including younger voters and voters of color, which had become a trouble spots for the president before, of course, he dropped out over the weekend.
And when you dig more into the details of this journal poll, you also see that there has been a spike in enthusiasm among Democrats for their presumptive nominee. You see 76 percent now say they feel enthusiastic about their preferred candidate. That is up from 46 percent. That said the same previously. Again, when President Biden was at the top of the ticket. One issue where Harris seems to outperform Donald Trump is the issue of abortion issues where Trump outperforms Harrison this pool or immigration and the economy.
And I should just note on stepping back from all of the data on the polls that are coming up. Of course the new Harris campaign is very closely watching Donald Trump. They are also very closely watching his running mate, J.D. Vance, including this childless cat, ladies comments.
They said in a rapid response X account for the camera the pain that his response to the backlash amounts to an apology to cats and doubling down on attacking women. Very separately, the campaign also sent an email describing J.D. Vance as a creep and weird.
I mean, this is clearly the campaign as it is gearing up, trying to paint a specific image of Donald Trump's running mate -- Erin.
BURNETT: MJ, thank you very much.
And were -- words like creep and weird just not words, one would have associated with the Biden campaign using about Vance. I mean, there's a shift, there's a shift in tone and attitude for sure.
OUTFRONT now, the Democratic mayor of Montgomery, Alabama, Steven Reed, Lulu Garcia-Navarro of "The New York Times", Anna Navarro, CNN senior political commentator, and Bill Kristol, editor at large of "The Bulwark".
Mayor, let me just start with you and it's great to have you here, you know, in-person in New York.
All these polls just coming out, "The Wall Street Journal" poll specifically though on the enthusiasm numbers and there's a range here, MJ was talking about one at 76 percent, this poll, 81 percent say Harris voters say they're enthusiastic about her. It was 37 percent for Biden, just a few weeks ago.
That's a 44-point jump on enthusiasm. What's happening right now inside your party?
MAYOR STEVEN REED (D), MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA; HARRIS SUPPORTER: Well, I think that there's a level of energy, level of excitement behind the vice president does needed to make this a competitive race? I think what we see are Black voters, women voters, and younger voters, very energetic and very interested invigorated, if you will, to support the vice president. And that's what's needed to consolidate the base of the Democratic Party, and that's what's needed to make this a competitive race.
BURNETT: Now, that enthusiasm, of course, I know its a national poll, certainly that's what were seeing in the rallies, Lulu, but the battleground polls, there -- you've got dead heats and you had other than one state, those were dead heats prior as well.
And obviously those battleground states are crucial. There's others as well, but these are crucial ones.
LULU GARCIA-NAVARRO, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: These are crucial. I mean, that is what the election is going to be decided on. And this is great news for the Harris campaign. You've got thought to be cheering if you're in that campaign right now because what it shows is that she really has been able to flip the script the people who support her are now feeling really enthusiastic. Those enthusiasm numbers -- I mean, look at that before it was like third -- in the 30s for President Biden. And now it's like in the 80s.
But the number that really interested me where the double haters. Do remember I was talking about the double-haters so much?
BURNETT: Yeah.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: Because they hated Trump and hated Biden. Well, guess what? Biden is no longer on the ticket and they are breaking for Kamala Harris. And so being able to move the margins little by little, it means a lot in this race.
BURNETT: Right, and those double-haters, right? Him and that was a thing right?
GARCIA-NAVARRO: It's a thing.
BURNETT: Now, it's a completely, completely different world.
[19:10:03]
GARCIA-NAVARRO: And so, Anna, enter into to the tickets mattering, we don't know the full ticket, obviously, in Kamala Harris's side but J.D. Vance now says he's being sarcastic when he said the country was being run by a bunch of childless cat ladies and says this is not about criticizing people who, for various reasons didn't have kids, even though he fundamentally says, if you don't have kids, you're not vested in the future of the country the way the people who have kids are, yep.
ANNA NAVARRO, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yep. Yeah. I'm talking to you as a childless dog lady and Cha-cha and I take great offense at those remarks where J.D. Vance seems to indicate and its not just one thing. Taken out of out-of-context.
It's not just sarcasm. He has said it in different places and he has said it with different intentions. He's talked about people without children should have less votes, that people with children should be able to have more votes. He's talked about it when it comes to tax policy. He's talked about it in such despective (ph) way and I think it's really angering a lot of people.
It's angering people who are childless because of choice or because of nature, or because they couldn't do it. Its angering people like Jennifer Aniston who don't come out and do politics often. And it's, you know, it touched a nerve. It has touched a nerve.
And, look, I was what Kamala Harris last night, I was at her residence and a meeting of Latino leaders that have been scheduled before Joe Biden dropped out. I sense a level of enthusiasm. This is beginning to feel more like a movement and less like a traditional campaign.
And I think that Democrats had been in the doldrums for a long time. They were feeling defeated even before the elections, and they were going through the motions. And this is now a campaign unburdened by the age issue and full of energy, and just the fact that J.D. Vance is proving to be quite the catastrophe is icing on the cake.
BURNETT: And don't think I don't -- I didn't hear the emphasis on cat and catastrophe, Anna. Don't think I didn't hear it.
NAVARRO: I couldn't -- I couldn't help myself.
BURNETT: I just want to make sure that didn't go by anybody.
Okay, Bill, when you hear though Anna talking about that, its starting to feel more like a movement than a traditional campaign, do you also see that?
BILL KRISTOL, EDITOR AT LARGE OF THE BULWARK: No, very much so. I mean, the big question when Biden dropped out driving for quite a long time was, would it really make a difference? And there are two ways to look at that in the short term, would there be a bump for while -- three things. I think would there be a bump for Vice President Harris just because the age issue was gone? Answer. Yes.
Two, would Vice President Harris looked like a compelling candidate? She was not great in 2019. Let's not forget that. And so people were nervous about that. She's done excellently in the first week.
And then the third question, which is unresolved, is, can she sustain it? And that's a little more complicated than getting that initial rush of enthusiasm. That involves addressing a couple of issues that she's being attacked on, the Trump people off with tens of billions of dollars of ads attacking her as a California liberal, replaying some of her comments from 2019, which are a little bit to the left to the mainstream, attacking her for being soft on crime.
She needs to deal with those in a defensive way, I think. But then stay on the offensive very much and I do think -- I agree with what people have been saying, Vance, normally, the V.P. pick doesn't matter much. The vice presidential pick doesn't matter much.
But Vance is so out of the mainstream, so weird, so self-consciously so. You know, normally, the scandals and we've been through this so many times, I mean, you know, about someone who's picked this, quote, scandal is something someone said 15 years ago or some law enforcement brush, 25 five years ago when they were in college or something.
Okay. People look at it for a day or two, they decide this person has been in public life for 20 years. This isn't decisive. No one knows anything about Vance. He's been a senator for 18 months these things he said were three years ago when you introduced an error and you said he said way back three years ago.
BURNETT: Yeah, 2021, right.
KRISTOL: Three years ago is current. This is his current view. This is not something he said in 2007 that is moved on from. And I think -- I think it's very -- this has a kind of resonance and a kind of seriousness about what it says about Vance that isn't the case in these normal kind of brouhaha.
BURNETT: Yeah, it doesn't feel and I mean, it's hard because were in the moments that this is the week that is coming out, Lulu, but there's other -- I'll leave people to social media to see other stuff about J.D. Vance right now.
But those things come and go. This does feel because it is personal to every single person, every single human, that it could be more significant.
GARCIA-NAVARRO: I think it is more significant because what you're hearing from the Republicans is that they're having buyer's remorse. I mean, this is what happened happens when you let Don Jr. choose your vice presidential candidate, which is apparently what happened here, and not when you're letting pure raw politics.
J.D. Vance is used to speaking to the far right of the Republican base.
[19:15:03]
He is not used to trying to, you know, put a message that is going to appeal to the kinds of people that Donald Trump needs. He has been running behind with women. The GOP in general has a problem with women, specifically when they're talking about reproductive rights, et cetera.
And instead, what you have is another white man talking about the way women should be he having children, who is a mother, who isn't, who is a parent, who isn't? That they should be having more voting rights.
I mean, that's kind of crazy, that really puts this, this debate on a completely different footing.
BURNETT: And when you talk about voting rights and children, I mean, there was a report in ABC today, Mayor, that says that Vance wants had argued for higher tax rate for people who don't have children at 2021, ancient history.
Reportedly, he said, I'm going to quote, if you're making $100,000, $400,000 a year and you have three kids? Three kids, right?
REED: I do.
BURNETT: Okay. You should pay a different lower tax rate than if you're making the same amount of money and you don't have any kids, it's that simple.
Now, Vance's team says this is basically a child tax credit, but the Democrats say, and that's semantics.
REED: Not disagree with that. I don't know where you come up with that type of logic. But then again, I'm not a supporter of J.D. Vance, nor of his policies. I think this is why the vice president is in such a strong position, right? Now, I think that she has a vision for the future. I think that people understand what she has done in her life and public service and what she has done as vice president.
And I think that's why the Democratic Party has united around vice president. It really feels that jolt of adrenaline, if you will.
BURNETT: Yeah.
REED: That is carrying us right now, will carry us forward over these next 100 plus days.
BURNETT: Anna, can I just ask you, you know, I'm sure you had many conversations, same as I had that say ten days ago prior to July 6 when the assassination -- assassination attempt happened and the Democratic donors, it was a massive freak out. They had to get Biden off and they had to not just get him off, but get anybody but Kamala Harris to be at the top of the ticket, right? That was the situation.
And now, here we are. Do you have -- are you yourself surprised by what has happened so quickly in this country?
NAVARRO: Yes, I am. I mean, it's been less than a week and it feels like it's been forever. There are people calling an asking, what can I do? Where do I sign up? How do I donate money? How do I get on one of those phone calls?
Yesterday, there was a Zoom call with -- it started with a black women Zoom call that were there were 44,000 plus Black women who raised over who raised $2 then it was the black men call that people like Roland Martin, our former colleague and Bakari Sellers, our current colleague, were on. Also broke the Internet.
And then yesterday, the white women were here too, and they broke the Internet with over 160,000 white women who have now raised over $8.5 million. Oh, and I'm forgetting the Latina women. I don't know how I could have forgotten that.
And so, they're everybody wants to be part of this. But listen, I want to talk to you about this J.D. Vance thing, because I went back and I read the speech and I saw him. I saw the remarks that he was making.
He does it when he talks about childless people, he does it in a hateful way, and he categorically specifically said that we should punish things that are bad, i.e., having no children, and reward things that are good.
That is why he is suggesting things like giving folks with children more votes and giving people without children more taxes, right?
So it is -- it is from that it is not sarcasm and it is not about child tax credit. It is about punishing people who don't have children and I have to inform Mr. Vance that we are not handmaids' tale, we don't live under a society where adults in this country are forced to have children.
It is a free choice and for some of us its not even a free choice. Some of us tried and couldn't do it. And for -- the cruelty of that man to suggest that because I couldn't have a child, I should be punished by having less votes and paying more taxes. And being derided as a childless cat lady, and then he's going to talk to me about family values and Christian values? Shame on you, shame on you.
And it is angering all sorts of people. It is angering women across the United States because we also have the abortion rights issue. We also have the IVF issue that is being affected by the Dobbs decision.
BURNETT: Right. So --
NAVARRO: I mean, it's just added to the pot.
BURNETT: So, Bill, I want to give you a quick final word on the point though, Anna is making, because you -- Anna, you're talking about obviously your personal story, but also for Harris, Latina women, Black women, white women.
[19:20:03]
Obviously Bill, she didn't mention white men. But when it comes to winning this race, white men also are going to be very important. And on this very issue that and is talking about, about families, too.
KRISTOL: Yeah. And the cruelty I think is the point with Vance, he's pretty explicit about that. And I don't think most white men want that and they don't want to be divided in this way and they know women who have kids and women who don't have kids when we've tried to have kids, but I think Vice President Harris and others and making this point should not just make it a women's point. Obviously, fundamentally, he's attacking women so I understand that, but it's a point about what kind of country we want to live in, all of us.
BURNETT: All right. Well, all of you. Thank you very much. I appreciate.
NAVARRO: Erin, there's actually there -- Erin, there's going to be a -- there's already scheduled. There's going to be a white dudes call Monday, July 29th for Kamala Harris. I'll pose the information on my Twitter.
BURNETT: All right.
NAVARRO: Or X. BURNETT: Okay. Thank you. Thank you all.
And next, Trump trying out just about every line of attack on his side here when it comes to Kamala Harris, no doubt, surprise at all. They airtime is going to talk about his vice presidential candidate. Harris and her supporters are trying to flip the script.
(EGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT & 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Lyin' Kamala Harris. Lyin'.
(MUSIC)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Plus, the men who want to be Harris's vice president are now flooding the airwaves. So who does have the inside track? There's some new reporting this hour.
And the U.S. presidential race dominating the social media in China. So what are they talking about? Billion people when it comes to Harris.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:25:32]
BURNETT: Tonight, Trump using his visit with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to attack Kamala Harris after the vice president yesterday also used her meeting with Netanyahu to make a very public point about ending the Israel-Hamas war.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: I think her remarks were disrespectful. They weren't very nice, pertaining to Israel. I actually don't know how a person who's Jewish can vote for her, but that's up to them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Netanyahu also took aim at Harris.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: I think to the extent that Hamas understands that there's no daylight between Israel and the United States, that expedites the deal. And I would hope those comments don't change that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: This all comes as Trump is trying a number of different attack lines on Harris, trying to figure out what sticks here, now to new campaign.
The reality of it is, is that some of the ones that he has tried are not true.
Tom Foreman is OUTFRONT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I say bring it on. Bring it on.
(CHEERING)
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I mean, cheers from fans and jeers from foes, Vice President Kamala Harris is being pelted by Republican claims about her life and career, many unfounded. At his first rally since Harris became the presumptive nominee, former President Donald Trump tore into what he said are her views on Social Security.
TRUMP: She's talking about re -- let's take the retirement age.
FOREMAN: On when abortion should be legal.
TRUMP: Even after birth, the execution of a baby.
FOREMAN: And on his own legal cases, which he long blamed on President Joe Biden.
TRUMP: There was all headed up by her.
FOREMAN: All three of those cases about his opponent are patently false, but never mind.
SEAN HANNITY, FOX NEWS HOST: By the way, on this show, our vetting has only begun.
FOREMAN: While some right-wing media stars are erupting over the new Democratic challenger, others are accusing Harris with no evidence of building her career primarily on race and gender. Some on the right in the past rebooted Trump's birther claims against former President Barack Obama by falsely saying Harris, who is born in California to immigrant parents, is not a U.S. citizen, now they say switching Biden to Harris on ballot this fall is illegal.
Listen to Trump's running mate.
VANCE: This was fundamentally illegitimate.
FOREMAN: And Republican speaker of the House, Mike Johnson.
REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: It would be wrong. And I think unlawful in accordance to some of these states rules for a handful of people to go in a back backroom and switch it out because they're -- they don't like candidate any longer.
FOREMAN: But that's false too. CNN contacted every state and aside from two which did not reply, they all said there are no obstacles to putting Harris on the ballot.
And on it goes.
SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX): Kamala can't have my gun. She can't have my gasoline engine and she sure as hell can't have my steaks and cheeseburgers.
FOREMAN: Suggestion that Harris wants to outright ban guns, gasoline, cars, and red meat, that she couldn't pass the bar exam, and is totally against Jewish people. All of those are false.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOREMAN (on camera): Republicans certainly have legitimate issues they can go after her on and she has suggested there should be some more controls on guns. We should get more alternative fuel. Maybe we should all be eating better.
But what they're doing, as you noted, Erin, right now is they're exaggerating Things. They're throwing everything at her just see if it sticks whether it's true or not.
BURNETT: All right. Tom, thanks very much.
I want to go straight to Marc Caputo of "The Bulwark", he has been reporting on Trump's inner circle for years.
So, Marc, you just heard Tom and there are plenty of things for Trump to try to go after Harris on. The question is, as he tries all these things is there any consensus or does he have a sense about what he thinks will work.
MARC CAPUTO, NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER, THE BULWARK: I think the main thing that they're going to go after on immigration and her record as a prosecutor to the degree that they frame her or attempt to frame room as being soft on crime. I think those are going to be the two through lines. You're going to see through about the race.
Recently, just in the past few hours, they began talking about transgender related issues, as regards California policy when she was attorney general there.
[19:30:02]
So I imagine that's going to crop up as well.
But as for a consensus? No. Right now, I think you said -- it was just said a second ago that this is sort of a kitchen sink strategy that could throw the kitchen sink at her, you know, the refrigerator, the oven, the microwave, everything.
BURNETT: All right. So here's the thing though. Some of these attacks have come out and then Harris's supporters campaign and then its kind of gotten traction on TikTok. Have sort of flipped it and said, oh, you're going to pick on us for this. We're going to take that very thing and it turns into like a meme or something that actually gained traction in her favor. Here's an example.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Lyin' Kamala Harris. Lyin'.
(MUSIC)
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Do they know how to react to the fact that something like that actually turn into a positive for her?
CAPUTO: I don't know how much of a possible turn into, but if you are going to absorb it attack and redirect it, that's the way to do it.
One of the strongest political attacks or defenses in politics is mockery. So if you're mocking your opponent and you're belittling your opponent and pretending it doesn't -- showing it doesn't hurt you, but that's pretty much a sweet spot for dealing with that.
BURNETT: So, some of the things they were picking on her for years saying she wanted to ban red meat, which isn't true, although I'd asked her about that at a town hall when she was running for president last time around and she talked about, oh, people should eat less of it and changing nutrition guidelines.
Enter plastic straws, okay? FOX News has gotten all-in on this, that she's trying to ban plastic straws. Colbert played a compilation of it. So let me just replay that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVE DOOCY, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: You know, a major liability for Kamala Harris, she wants to ban plastic straws.
SEAN HANNITY, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: She wants to ban plastic straws. I loved my plastic straws. I hate those paper straws.
MITCH ROSCHELLE, FOX BUSINESS NEWS ANCHOR: Don't forget Kamala Harris is against plastic straws. So you didn't have to look beyond that as an economic policy okay.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: OK, I'm just going to go ding, ding, ding, Marc, on this one. It's actually true. She does want to ban plastic straws, at least that's what she told me back in 2019. I will play the original incident.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Do you ban plastic straws?
HARRIS: I think we should, yes. I mean, look, I'm going to be honest. It's really difficult to drink out of a paper straw when you had -- if you're just -- like if you don't gulp it down immediately, it starts to bend.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: That was before the agave straws out there that are much better.
Okay. But, you know, is this all just a silly thing or do they actually think that this matters?
CAPUTO: I presume they think it matters. You know, I'm here at Turning Point USA Conference that Trump's about to speak. Three speakers have separately mentioned the plastic straw thing. It's something at the very least that animates conservatives.
And let's face it, once in a while, if you happen at have a drink and you have a paper straws, it's not so good. Whether that actually translates into votes, I don't know. What they want to make this into a little part for the whole, that she supports the nanny state, that she supports ridiculous policies. Not sure it's going to be effective, but it's not going to be something you're going to dislodge from people, at least not these people here.
BURNETT: All right. It's fascinating where you said that two people have already come to you that specific one with plastic straws.
CAPUTO: Three, three.
BURNETT: Three, all right.
Well, hey, Marc, it's great to see you. I can't wait to hear about that tonight. And -
CAPUTO: Thanks.
BURNETT: -- of course, have a great weekend.
All right. And next, Kamala Harris's husband tonight revealing where he was when he got the news the Biden was dropping out.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
DOUG EMHOFF, SECOND GENTLEMAN: So I finally call, and she was, where the -- were you?
(END AUDIO CLIP)
BURNETT: Plus, 13 days after Trump's attempted assassination, the FBI tonight, just a moment ago, confirms that Trump was hit by a bullet. What took them so long?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:37:47]
BURNETT: Tonight, Pennsylvania governor and potential VP coming out swinging against Trump for refusing to commit to a debate with Harris until she's officially the Democratic nominee.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. JOSH SHAPIRO (D), PENNSYLVANIA: Let me tell you something, he's pretty afraid. You see, he's backing out of the debate now. He's afraid to stand toe to toe with the vice president.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Of course, he had agreed and actually debated Biden before Biden was the former nominee. So this is a complete change of where the bar is.
But what you just heard there from the Pennsylvania governor, Josh Shapiro, comes as other potential Democratic VPs have come on this show and have gone out on the airwaves to make their case.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. J.B. PRITZKER (D), ILLINOIS: Kamala Harris is going to prosecute the case against Donald Trump better than anybody I know.
GOV. TIM WALZ (D), MINNESOTA: The energy around the vice president was stunning yesterday.
PETE BUTTIGIEG, TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: I'm going to be doing everything in my power to make sure that she's our next president.
GOV. ANDY BESHEAR (D), KENTUCKY: I believe Vice President Harris is going to lead us to a better place.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Eva McKend is OUTFRONT.
So, Eva, where do things stand on the VP search for Kamala Harris?
EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: You know, Erin, we know that this process has to move with unprecedented speed and that she will announce her choice in less than two weeks. Her lawyers and advisers involved have until August 7. That's at least a date that we are hearing here.
And then, of course, the Democratic National Convention is not long after that, starting on August 19, Democrats close to the process, say the roster of leading contenders being vetted, still includes North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, Arizona Senator Mark Kelly, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, along with Kentucky's Governor Andy Beshear, and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.
And that this will all really boil down to the person's relationship with Harris, the skills that they bring and who she's comfortable with. We also know that her husband, Doug Emhoff, the second gentleman, is an advisor in this process. Well, tonight, we're hearing from him about how he learned President Biden withdrew from the race after being in an exercise class soon after this news broke. Let's listen.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
EMHOFF: I ran, ran. It was -- the car was a block or so away.
[19:40:00]
Secret Service running behind me. Got into the car, pulled out my phone. And, of course, it was a series of messages: call Kamala, call Kamala.
And I got them from the kids. Everyone in the family was like, where are you? Call Kamala. So I finally call, and she was: where the -- were you?
(END AUDIO CLIP)
MCKEND: And, Erin, on the VP pick, this really stuck out to me, at least one activist group, they say Harris should not be constrained to picking a straight white man. Latosha Brown, she is the co-founder of the voter outreach group, Black Voters Matter, and she's encouraging Democrats to think outside out of the box. She argues a bold choice will only extend the momentum, Democrats are currently enjoying, and that Americans are ready for something different -- Erin.
BURNETT: All right. Eva, thank you very much.
I want to go out from now to Mayor Victor Trevino, the mayor of Laredo, Texas, home to one of the largest border crossing points in the U.S.
And I know, Mayor, you were just is that the Vice President Harris's residence in Washington for that event with Latino community leaders.
So I appreciate your time. You know, interesting what Eva was talking about that organization that's saying that she does not need to go with a straight white male in terms of her vice presidential selection. So far, we do know at least from the shortlist that we've reported, several governors are on it, a senator, a cabinet secretary -- they're not all straight. They are all white. They are all seen as the top contenders, at least that we understand to be on the vice presidents list.
Do you see anyone on this list or do you think that there's somebody outside of it who could be the best to understand what someone like you needs most as a mayor of a crucial border town?
MAYOR VICTOR TREVINO, LAREDO, TEXAS: Well, first of all, thank you for having me.
And yes, it was a privileged to be invited among the Latino community leaders around the country to hear the vice president speak and priority that important to our communities, and winning the Hispanic vote is crucial. I think this is a must to get to the White House.
But you know what? I had never seen her engaged in such a way like this and I think she's trying to get all that energy out of there.
BURNETT: So when you say you've never seen her engage in this way before, you know her, right? Because she was the point person for the White House addressing the migrant crisis at the southern border. And, obviously, she was criticized for only visiting the southern border once as vice president. At that time, I understand she spent about six hours there in El Paso.
So what's your perception, Mayor, and what you have seen from her in in-person? Do you think she fully understands what you're facing on the southern border?
TREVINO: Yeah, I think really I think she's trying to convince the country to vote for her, especially Hispanics, which are crucial for any candidate to win the White House. And I will be formally invited her to come to the border. I think its important to have any candidate that wants to be our president to understand our economic prosperity with Mexico, and some of the challenges we confront at the border when dealing with migration, immigration, human and drug trafficking.
These are all issues that are intertwined. So I think she has to come here and see it firsthand.
BURNETT: And let me just ask you and I know -- I know you support her and I know you're fully on board, so I don't say this to question that. But, when you're inviting her now, do you have a frustration that in those years that she was the point person that she did not make that visit?
TREVINO: Yes, and I wish you would have come before because that would -- that would exemplify that she has interest in our border. But it's never too late and I think she makes an effort to come after our invitation. I think it'll be a plus.
But, you know, as you know, I've met with President Biden when he visited the border with our border coalition and the mayors in Brownsville and changes when he had changes to asylum rules and that had a direct impact on the crossings.
So all this attention to our border is important to be here and be talking to people that live and work here. I think that's crucially important.
BURNETT: All right. Well, Mayor Trevino, I'm glad to speak to you. I remember speaking you on that day from Brownsville and it's good to see you tonight. Thank you.
TREVINO: Thank you. Thank you for the invite.
BURNETT: All right. And next, the breaking news, almost two weeks to the day that Trump was shot. The FBI has finally just confirm with within the past few minutes that Trump was indeed hit by a bullet.
Plus, Lisa Simpson is suddenly going viral in China, and its all because of Kamala Harris. We'll explain why.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:48:47]
BURNETT: Breaking news, 13 days after former President Trump's assassination attempt, the FBI confirming moments ago that Trump was struck by a bullet. The FBI just a few minutes ago, did release this sentence saying what struck former President Trump in the ear was a bullet but their whole or fragmented into smaller pieces, fired from the deceased subject's rifle.
Now, why the statement came out at this time is -- well, there was a debate and it was ignited by the Director of the FBI Christopher Wray, who just testified to Congress this week that it wasn't clear whether Trump was hit by a bullet.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTOPHER WRAY, FBI DIRECTOR: I think with respect to former President Trump, there's some question about whether or not it's bullet or shrapnel that hit his ear.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Trump responded to Wray today saying, quote: Perhaps FBI director Christopher Wray will notice there is no shrapnel or glass flying through the ear, only a bloodstain bullet. It's also damaging to the great people that work in the FBI.
Well, OUTFRONT now is the former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe.
So, Director McCabe, let me just read that statement from the FBI because, you know, obviously Wray testified that maybe it was unclear whether it was a bullet or not. And then they came out with a statement a moment ago and they said what struck former president Trump in the ear was a bullet whether holes or fragmented into smaller pieces, fired from the deceased subject's rifle.
[19:50:09]
So, they're being excruciatingly clear. There what really happened here? I mean, why would it take the FBI two weeks to release that?
ANDREW MCCABE, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, Erin, what happened here, unfortunately, it was a bit I think of a self-inflicted wound that the director brought on itself in the organization with his testimony there today.
And I should say that I thought the testimony was great. He put out a lot of information very deep, some details that we had not heard before, giving a lot of credit for that. But this was a bit of an off- handed reference. It may not have even been in his prepared talking points and it opened up all this speculation about whether or not Trump had actually been hit by a bullet or something else.
The statement that we got just a few a few minutes ago, I think is really artfully drafted because it essentially says the same thing he said in his testimony. It says whether he was hit, he was definitely hit by a bullet whether whole or in part, that's what he said in his testimony slightly differently. He said were not sure if he was hit by a bullet or some shrapnel. All part of a bullet, you can describe as shrapnel.
So they're really being very artful here. But clearly they're trying to put a wet blanket on this fire, which is kind of consuming the agency's attention at a time when they don't need that, right?
BURNETT: Right. No, absolutely not although and I understand you're saying artful, I do think it is because the implication had been from that offhanded comment that maybe it wasn't a bullet at all right. That it was a piece of the teleprompter or something like that, and that obviously incensed -- incensed Trump's.
Now, they're another been clear, it was indeed a bullet or part of a bullet.
You know, "The New York Times", they had published its own investigation actually, and they had some pretty compelling analysis of the bullet's trajectory. They have that incredible picture, right, that when you slow down, you see the vapor trail of the bullet seeming to go by his head. And they had concluded it was likely a bullet that grazed his ear.
I guess I'm just wondering, do you think that the FBI didn't think that it was their role to say what hit him or what? It's odd that we're just two weeks here. We haven't obviously heard from his doctors or anything like that either.
MCCABE: Yeah. So you can count on the fact that the FBI is doing a similar sort of investigation. They have all sorts of technology that enables them to essentially recreate the trajectory of every bullet fired in a -- in a situation like this, I'm sure they've probably done that when you look at that stuff as in the times interviews for the times investigation is pretty clear that that's likely how he was injured.
But the bureau is never going to conclude that positively until they've seen all the evidence in this case, one of the pieces of evidence that would be helpful would be the impressions of the surgeons and the doctors who treated him in Pennsylvania. And, of course, Mr. Trump has not released the records of that treatment and is not authorized those doctors to speak about how they treated him.
So, until that happens, there's really that one the key piece of evidence. That they haven't been able to review, and I would guess that that is impacting their desire not to be 100 percent sure, publicly at this point.
BURNETT: Yeah, that's interesting when we saw him today for the first time without is his bandaged. But as you point out, even though we saw that we don't yet have and may never get anything, you can see him here, that from the doctors on the scene that they have not been authorized.
Well, Deputy Director McCabe, I appreciate your time. Thanks so much.
MCCABE: Sure. Thanks. Good to see you.
BURNETT: All right. And next, Kamala Harris right now the focus of what many are posting on social media in the biggest social media market in the world. That is China. So what are they saying? You might be surprised by this, and we've got a special report right after.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:58:01]
BURNETT: Tonight, the Chinese have a lot to say about Kamala Harris and Will Ripley is OUTFRONT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Who is Kamala Harris? A common question on Chinese social media.
In a nation ruled almost entirely by men, many are shocked to learn the vice president of the United States is a woman. Some calling Harris are female Obama.
But online polls show most Chinese don't think she has a chance against former President Donald Trump.
WESLEY JIANG, BEIJING RESIDENT: I don't know too much about her. Yes, I think a lot of people don't know a lot about her in China. Everyone knows about Trump.
RIPLEY: The drama surrounding Trump and U.S. President Joe Biden trending on Chinas Internet for weeks untouched by Beijing's usually heavy-handed government censors. A flood of comments criticizing the U.S. political system as a circus, saying whoever becomes the next president, he or she is going to target China.
Officially, Beijing has no comment on Biden dropping out of the race and endorsing Harris, calling it a U.S. domestic affair. Harris met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2022, signaling how a future president Harris would handle one of Americas biggest adversaries.
HARRIS: We do not invite conflict, but we absolutely are prepared to and engaged in what is necessary to compete.
RIPLEY: People in China are posting pics of the presumptive Democratic nominee alongside cartoon character Lisa Simpson from that episode when she became president.
LISA SIMPSON: As you know, we've been had to quite a budget crunch from President Trump.
RIPLEY: Some are calling the Simpsons episode from 24 years ago, a presidential prophecy. And for all the doubters in China about a woman beating a man, Allen in Beijing says, all bets are off.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think Kamala Harris has a better chance at winning this election.
RIPLEY: The most talked about thing, the way Harris laughs.
(LAUGHTER)
RIPLEY: Chinese social media users nicknamed Harris "Sister Haha". Some call her dramatic laughter crazy and cringe. Others say it's enduring and even a sign of good fortune.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
RIPLEY: This is actually China allowing this, their censors allowing this as an effort to kind of dismiss Kamala's candidacy is weak. And state media has described her White House performance as mediocre. Interesting also, the Simpsons are so popular in China that people went back and found that episode aired to point to the similarities.
BURNETT: It's pretty amazing, hasn't it?
All right. Will, thanks so much.
And thanks so much to all of you for joining us.
"AC360" starts now.
