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Republicans Worry About Lasting Impact of the China Trade War; Trump Considering Blocking Military Aid to Ukraine; Mattis: I Wanted People to Understand Why I Couldn't Stay; 10 Democrats Make Next DNC Debate; What's the Strategy for Candidates Who Failed to Make Debate?; Do-Over Election Next Month in North Carolina's 9th District. Aired 12:30-1p ET

Aired August 29, 2019 - 12:30   ET

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

[12:30:07] DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: How's hearing that, Carl?

CARL HULSE, CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT, THE NEW YORK TIMES: Well, I think what you have is these senators are looking -- they're looking at their electoral map right now and this is really tough for them because they really want to hold on to the Senate. It's going to be tough, they probably have a little advantage right now, the Republicans. But the states where this -- where it's going to be played out, you know, Colorado, Iowa, North Carolina, this is the kind of stuff that has hurting them. So they really want to back out of this. So if not now, they want not now, you know, they want later.

And the farmers especially, you know, you're starting to hear more and more from the farm states. You know, this is really hurting us. They're worried. Plus, they're by nature free traders. Pat Toomey certainly. I think Pat Toomey is probably pretty happy, though, that that's how the president talked about him. You know, that was fairly (INAUDIBLE).

BASH: Yes, exactly. I was waiting for -- I was listening and I'm waiting for --

HULSE: That was actually good but I think they're looking down -- I mean when they say what's it going to be a year from now? Or what's a year from now? The real election. So I think that's on their minds.

BASH: Go ahead.

JOSHUA JAMERSON, NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: And I think what's also interesting too is like the Republicans on the Hill, one of the things that, you know, they can look past the tweets sometimes, they can look past the rhetoric as long as the economy is doing well, as long as they feel like they're getting the things, their priorities like tax cuts and conservative judges. But when we see things like just today the economy, the GDP being revised down for the last quarter, consumers are still spending, corporate profits are still doing fine but the exports are down and weighing on the economy. So when does the trade war start to impact how the Republicans on the Hill are willing to look past some of the other stuff. BASH: Yes. And you mentioned exports are down. And this is something that the president said which is a fair point which is China knows what it's doing with this trade war and targeting the key areas that matter to the president and to Republicans electorally. Listen to what he said.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: What I did is I gave the farmers $12 billion the previous year, $16 billion this year to make up because the farmers have been targeted. That's how vicious they play the game, they actually target because they know that the farmers like Trump and Trump love the farmers actually. I love what they do, they're incredible people. They don't want any subsidies, they don't want handouts, but they also know something has to be done with China and they're with me all the way.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

TARINI PARTI, WHITE HOUSE REPORTER, BUZZFEED NEWS: I thought the president's defense was very interesting because when I was in Iowa talking to farmers, the ones who are still supporting the president, what they pointed out was, you know, he said he's going to take on China and he's doing it for us. We're going to have some, you know, negative impact in the short term but in the long term, he's doing what he said and that's what -- that's exactly what he said in the radio interview that I'm the one taking on China. If not me, who else? And that's something that his base at least feels very comfortable with.

BASH: And there's another issue that is really splitting the president from most Republicans on Capitol Hill and elsewhere, and that is the Ukraine. Sources say the White House is considering blocking $250 million in military assistance earmarked for that country. Now most Republicans view a strong Ukraine as a big check on Russia and Vladimir Putin's influence in the investment as a deterrent for Putin expanding power to Ukraine.

So that is another issue. And the president said today on other issues that it's pretty clear that he has taken Putin's side maybe not today as much as at the G7 on the issue of the Ukraine.

MARGARET TALEV, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes. And I think on this issue we're going to need to hear more from the president or perhaps even better John Bolton or both of them on their thinking as this goes forward. There may be some China implications to this foreign policy kind of calculus here, but as it relates to Russia, and it clearly does, whether that's the intent or not, there are a lot of Republicans in Congress as well as the American people as well as the national security advisor who were not particularly comfortable with a stance that is too generous towards Russia right now.

BASH: Can you imagine if a Democratic president said I'm just going to, you know, think about taking military assistance away from Ukraine which effectively means empowering Vladimir Putin, what Republicans would do? HULSE: Yes. I mean, I think people on the Hill would go again with the Russians, what is the deal? And I think this is an issue where they have consistently pushed back against the president. Mitch McConnell doesn't like the Moscow Mitch nickname and part of his pushback against that is look at how hard I've been on Russia over the years. I think the president is going to run into real trouble.

TALEV: They have put him in a box already, I read about that.

HULSE: On this, yes.

BASH: Yes.

All right, everybody, stand by. Up next, General James Mattis is providing details on why he couldn't stay as President Trump's defense secretary. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:39:12] BASH: Topping our political radar today, 2020 hopeful Senator Kamala Harris unveiled a plan for Americans with disabilities. It focuses on employment through access to education and social programs. The proposal comes soon after a drop in polls for her campaign. Now, CNN's latest national poll shows her tied for fourth at five percent after clocking in at second place with 17 percent in June. Harris' campaign says on this plan that she is the only candidate with a proposal focused exclusively on people with disabilities.

Now, in response to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's announcement of a five-week suspension of parliament, opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn says the government is trying to, quote, undermine and damage our democracy. And another Labour leader says many peers in the House of Lords are prepared to work through the night to block a no-deal Brexit.

[12:40:07] And former defense secretary James Mattis is explaining in stark terms why he left his post in the Trump administration but stopped short of criticizing the president. Here's what he told the Atlantic. He said, "You don't endanger the country by attacking the elected commander-in-chief. I may not like the commander-in-chief one fricking bit but our system puts the commander-in-chief there and I want people to understand why I couldn't stay."

Interesting. Carl, I will tell people what you were saying in the break about the subtly of James Mattis and whether you think that's going to breakthrough in the Trump era.

HULSE: Yes, I think, you know, he was trying to say a lot without saying a lot. And I think people get it. But obviously, I also think people wish he'd been -- be a lot more forceful. He commands huge respect in Washington and in the military and in that establishment. And I think people -- you know, they know he was very unhappy, did not trust the president to make proper decisions. In that story, it says that he was worried that if Trump even got away from him for a minute or so on North Korea. So, I think people would -- you know, as I said, it's a little bit like the Mueller report that, you know, they expect you to read between the lines and this is not particularly a line between era.

BASH: Yes. And this is not just a government report -- this is not a government report, this is a book he wants people to buy.

JAMERSON: Yes, exactly. I do wonder how, you know -- if I'm him and I'm looking at the people who have come out and done similar things, you know, where -- how far it would even go in making a dent in -- you know, what's the purpose of doing it? I'm sure his calculus on that is probably all over the place.

BASH: I don't know if I've seen anything as strong as the statement that he put out when he actually left, but.

JAMERSON: Exactly. Which is now printed in a book. He quotes that in the book again.

PARTI: He doesn't seem to be the type of person who doesn't want to get into a Twitter war necessarily with the president.

BASH: Definitely now. OK, everybody, stand by because up next, the stage, singular, is set with more than half of the candidates for 2020 on the Democratic side are missing. Some of them are crying foul, but is it really fair? We'll talk about it next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:46:52] BASH: The Houston debate for September is officially set, and with that, a clarifying moment for at least one candidate. Kirsten Gillibrand announced the end of her presidential campaign last night after failing to qualify for the next debate and facing a rapidly dwindling war chest. The New York senator acknowledged, quote, it's important to know how you can best serve. Adding, let's go beat Donald Trump and win back the Senate.

Now, little more than half of the Democratic field missed the cut to be on the debate stage two weeks from tonight. And explaining that to voters will be important, probably as important to this campaign for them as it enters a new phase. Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard responded by blaming the Democratic National Committee.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. TULSI GABBARD (D-HI): There's a lot of questions that have been and are continuing to be raised around those qualifications. There's no explanation or transparency around why certain polls are qualifying while other very credible, recognized polls are somehow not qualifying.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now before we discuss this, I just want to show what a spokesperson for the DNC, Xochitl Hinojosa, said. She said, "The DNC is asking candidates to reach two percent in four polls. That is not high at all. There have been 21 qualifying polls, that is 21 opportunities to reach two percent in four polls. That's not hard."

I just want to also show you what a former DNC spokesperson Mo Elleithee has said. "If you are a few months before the Iowa caucuses and you can't get 130,000 donors and can't crack two percent in a couple of polls, that's on you. There's an appetite to start being able to focus on the candidates who have demonstrated the most movement in this race.

PARTI: I think the big thing that Democratic voters want to see is electability whether or not whoever they nominate can beat Donald Trump. And if you're not on that debate stage, how do you make that electability argument. It gets very tough if you can't get those numbers up in the polls, if you can't cross those donor thresholds, it gets harder and harder to make that argument. And I think we'll start seeing some candidates make the same calculation like Kirsten Gillibrand did, which is to drop out now rather than, you know, keep trying to make it on the debate stage when you really can't hit those thresholds.

JAMERSON: And clearly she didn't drop out for like lack of money or anything, she had like $8 million in the bank or something like that. So I think whether the party, you know, wanted to win on the field or not like that's what they're -- that's the practical effect they're having. And, you know, when we talked to Tom Perez before the first set of debates, you know, he said that he was kind of comfortable in the referee role. That in this very crowded field someone was going to have to call balls and strikes and he's --

BASH: At one point she did have, Kirsten Gillibrand did have a pretty good war chest. I think she burned through a lot of it. But the point is that there are other candidates, Michael Bennet and others who are facing the same issue, who are not making the debate stage, who have a little bit more money. And money buys you time to somehow find a way to catch fire.

TALEV: Yes, I think for Bennet and Bullock in particular, because they kind of -- they hold sort of special roles in this contest. They were late to enter but they're also from the west.

[12:50:01] They have executive experience. So (INAUDIBLE) have different segments of the Democratic Party. They'll probably hang in there a little bit longer.

But even when you talk about the coverage of this contest now, you talk about it in terms of three candidates or maybe five candidates, right? It's Biden, it's Warren, it's Bernie Sanders, it's Buttigieg, and it's Kamala Harris, and then you talk about the rest of the field. Maybe that isn't fair but I think the life isn't fair argument doesn't like -- I don't know -- what does it get you? You're trying to win the nomination for president so that you can run for president in the general election. Like, you got to just put on your big kid pants and do it.

BASH: What do you think about Kirsten Gillibrand dropping out? The fact that she's a sitting United States senator from a state that has a lot of people with a lot of money. HULSE: I do think and we've talked about this, her position on Al Franken I think hurt her with the segment of the party and I think she had to overcome that with some donors and some people who are just like, you know, Al Franken, no matter what happened was beloved in some of that progressive community. And I do think -- I agree with Margaret, I think you're going to see Bennet and Bullock, they're going to focus on Iowa. They want to prove that they can say, hey, Iowa is the first big test. But when you're not on the stage you're literally being defined as a second-tier candidate and I think that's just hard to overcome.

PARTI: I think the problem with someone like Bennet or Bullock is that they are hoping to be the alternative, the moderate alternative to Joe Biden. And what we're seeing in polls, and if you look at the cross-outs the voters who are not supporting Joe Biden, who are going to other candidates, they're moving to an Elizabeth Warren or even a Bernie Sanders rather than a more moderate option.

BASH: He's got the more moderate Democratic voters. That's a really good point.

OK, everybody, stand by because a redo election is going on, at least the campaign, in North Carolina.

But first look at this, Joe Biden just moments ago might have found a new running mate if he gets the nomination. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As president, how will you fix the damage Donald Trump has caused?

JOE BIDEN (D-DE), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: By making you vice president.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[12:56:59] BASH: There is still an undecided election from the 2018 midterms last year, and now very much a preview of 2020. North Carolina's ninth district has a do-over election next month after November's results were thrown out after allegations of election fraud by a GOP operative. Now, it's a traditionally red district. The president won there by 11 points in 2016, but that margin has practically disappeared. At least that's what it looked like in November of last year.

Now, Republicans are increasingly looking at this as a must-win election because of how much it portends for 2020. They flooded the state with nearly $4 million to boost the Republican candidate, Dan Bishop, and they're pulling out the big guns, the Trumps.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT TRUMP'S SON: We're here to prove that we can keep winning, that we can keep fighting, that we can keep instilling American values for Americans, for the people of North Carolina, because those are things we hold dear. This is a winning track record that we need to perpetuate. OK? That's why we need more people who are willing to fight. That's why I need you out there fighting for Dan.

BASH: This is going to sound crazy, but it's not that they really need to win, they just really need to not lose.

JAMERSON: Exactly. And, you know, it's both sides too. I mean, like obviously, I think if the Democrats walk away with that seat, that's a huge loss for Republicans.

BASH: Exactly.

JAMERSON: At the same time, if the Democrats can't get turnout near to where it was in 2018, what does that say about their electorate heading into 2020. Are Democrats in the suburbs as excited as they or voters in the suburbs as likely to vote Democrat as they were in '18?

BASH: And it's not just the numbers and this sort of psychological question of whether this big Trump district will go Dem. It's also the subjects that they're talking about and the messaging that's going on. It's very much --

TALEV: Gun violence, health insurance.

BASH: Our Dianne Gallagher has been down there and she talked to the Republican candidate, Dan Bishop. And here's how that went.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Is a vote for Dan Bishop, a vote for Donald Trump?

DAN BISHOP (R-NC), CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: I certainly will go to Washington and work very aggressively to help President Trump.

GALLAGHER: Do you feel like you're running against Dan Bishop or do you feel like you're running against Donald Trump?

DAN MCCREADY (D-NC), CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: Well, I'm running against Dan Bishop. Unfortunately for him, he's not running against a socialist, he's running against a capitalist who's built a business from scratch.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: That was Dan McCready, the Democrat there.

HULSE: He's also a veteran which is what Democrats are really emphasizing this time. This is a big race. We always over-interpret these special elections but this one has real potential. If the Democrats can win that, it shows that the suburban voters, Trump has lost them. He has really pushed healthcare, which was their winning issue in 2018, and we'll see if that still has the power that it did back then. BASH: I think -- I don't know, I'm going to disagree with you there. I think more times than not we interpret the special election the right way because it portends. Sometimes it doesn't always go that way.

HULSE: I've blown a few personally.

BASH: Never, never.

PARTI: I mean, it will have some impact, you know, based on how Republicans down-ballot decide to campaign, how much they nationalize their races and how much they distance themselves --

[13:00:00]