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Today: Trump Surrenders To Face Federal Charges; Ramped-Up Security In Miami For Trump Arraignment; Trump Flying Back To NJ After Arraignment, Will Make Statement & Attend Fundraiser Tonight; Today: Trump To Be Arrested & Arraignment In Miami. Aired 12-12:30p ET

Aired June 13, 2023 - 12:00   ET

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

[12:00:00]

ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, I'm Erin Burnett in New York.

DANA BASH, CNN HOST, INSIDE POLITICS: And I'm Dana Bash in Washington. Welcome to a special edition of Inside Politics, the federal indictment of Donald Trump. In just a few hours, a former president will be arrested on federal charges for the first time in U.S. history.

Donald Trump is set to face a judge in Miami this afternoon for an unprecedented arraignment on 37 felony charges tied to his alleged mishandling of classified documents after leaving office. Outside the courthouse right now, we can see some ramped-up security and already crowds of Trump supporters and protesters have gathered.

BURNETT: Right, of course, Dana. So far, so peaceful. One thing we won't get though, and everyone should understand this is we're not going to get to see inside the courthouse where Trump will actually be taken into custody by U.S. marshals. So, there aren't going to be handcuffs. They'll have his fingerprints taken digitally. At the arraignment, he is expected, of course, to enter a not guilty plea.

And then after what is anticipated to be a very brief court appearance, Trump then will go back to the very friendly confines of his golf club in New Jersey, where he's going to speak to supporters and have a big fundraiser capping off a whirlwind two days. Frankly, Dana, I think it's fair to say right could shape national politics for the next two years and even beyond.

BASH: Absolutely. And it is vintage Donald Trump to leave this go home and hold a fundraiser in a rally. But let's deal with what's happening before we get to that point right in Miami. I want to begin with Shimon Prokupecz who is outside that federal courthouse. Shimon, tell us about the scene at this moment as Donald Trump gets closer to where you're standing?

SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN SENIOR CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is where Dana where most of the Trump supporters have been gathering is probably like an altogether just a couple of hundred out here. This street was actually closed just for a short time because police are out here, investigating a suspicious package. They've pushed everyone back. They've now reopened it. But this is generally where all of the Trump supporters have been gathering just outside the perimeter of the courthouse, many of them coming here with flags, voicing their support for the former president saying, what's happening to him is unfair.

And then just on the other side here, Dana, I want to show you the security situation. What police have done here, and the federal law enforcement officials is they've put these SUVs around the perimeter here, instead of what we're used to seeing in cases like this metal barricades, other items. You're just seeing a lot of SUVs that police are using to harden the perimeter.

If you look over this way, you could see here the front door of the courthouse, that's where all those SUVs are. And that's generally what we're seeing. We're not seeing any of those metal barriers, or we're not really seeing a lot of police officers out here on the outside, things have been peaceful.

I want to show you the other side of the courthouse that's on the other street here from our drone that's over. That is the street that we believe the former president, his motorcade is going to drive through as they enter into the courthouse and then he will go up to the 13th floor. And you can see from that shot, all of the law enforcement cars there and the presence there.

So that is the security situation here. You know, there was a little situation here earlier with that suspicious item, they've now cleared it. And this is the other thing that we're seeing out here down and we're seeing cars drive. These streets are open. You could see the cars driving through here on the front, showing their support for the former president. And that's generally what it's been like out here.

We're not really seeing any counter protesters. There are a few, but so far there have not been any clashes as really law enforcement is just allowing everyone to kind of do their thing, be out here. You can see there's a lot of media out here and just generally been a no interruption. There have been no problems as people wait for the former president to arrive here, Dana.

BASH: Shimon, so interesting. We spoke this time yesterday and it was like crickets out there. You saw just the police tape. Obviously, that's changed a lot. It is fascinating that they put the SUVs there instead of the bike racks. You know, at this point, unfortunately, when we think of major event and we think bike rack, we saw what happened on January 6, when things get really, really bad. The bike racks are only so powerful.

[12:05:00]

What are you hearing from your sources, they're in law enforcement about their decision to take the steps that they did now particularly, after you were asking some pretty tough questions there yesterday?

PROKUPECZ: I was talking to someone early yesterday morning, a senior law enforcement official who raised concern over the fact that the way in which the local police department was preparing for this. And in part, the concern was, they use words like hardening, why isn't the perimeter here where we are standing? Why aren't there items being used like a fence, those metal barricades, to sort of harden the facility?

And actually, what our colleague, John Miller is hearing that there's actually been some tension between the secret service and the local police department because the secret service obviously wants more security. They want a hardening of the perimeter. Like we saw when the former president appeared at that courthouse in Manhattan. It was metal barriers all around. You saw a massive law enforcement presence just on the perimeter on the outside. We're not really seeing that here, which has raised some concern with law enforcement officials.

BASH: All right, Shimon, thank you so much. We obviously will be checking back with you. Now for some of the legal threads, let's go to CNN's Paula Reid, who was also at the courthouse. Paula, you have been all over ahead of every twist and turn on what has been happening with this case. What do you hear from your sources about what to expect today?

PAULA REID, CNN SENIOR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: It's just such a contrast. Because right now, as you just saw, with Shimon, it's quite carnival like out here. We have people hacking Trump, merchandise impersonating Trump here to support or oppose the former president. And it's such a contrast to the serious and solemn moments that is about to occur later this afternoon, not only for former President Trump, but also for the country.

In just a few short hours, former President Trump will arrive here at federal court in Miami. The first former leader of the free world to be arraigned on federal criminal charges. Now he's expected to arrive here by car. So, we don't think we will see him. But once he arrives here to surrender, he enters the building. He's under arrest.

And the process that he'll go through, it'll look more or less like it would for any other defendant. He'll have some paperwork to fill out. They'll take his fingerprints. But we don't expect at this point that they will take a mug shot because certainly they don't need a reference picture for one of the most famous men in the world.

Then you have a hearing before a magistrate judge. At the defense table with former President Trump, we expect two attorneys, Todd Blanche, and former Florida Solicitor General Chris Kise. That is unlikely to be his final legal team.

We know that he's been speaking to potential lawyers to help represent him in this case. Even last night, he met with at least one at his golf club. But so far, they haven't been able to finalize the team. But this is just the first step in what is likely to be a very long, and of course, very historic case.

BASH: Yes. And we should remind our viewers that two of his attorneys on this case, quit the morning that this indictment was unsealed. We'll be getting back to you of course, as well. Thank you so much for that reporting, Paula. Erin? BURNETT: All right, Dana. So, let's get straight to this Paula (Ph) walking through, what this is going to look like, Karen, that the table, Todd Blanche and Chris Kise will be sitting at the table as she points out unlikely to be the final team, but that's who will be there today sitting with him, going through the process.

Does all this make sense to you? It's interesting, you know, some have said, OK, there's no mugshot. Paula giving the logic being, everybody knows who he is. And so, there isn't a need for a mugshot, even though it would be standard operating procedure. Does that make sense?

KAREN FRIEDMAN AGNIFILO, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: I think it makes sense here. I mean, there's other parts of the process that we wonder is he going to have to go through. So, everybody who gets arrested federally goes to something called pretrial services, which makes a recommendation to the judge, for example, whether or not bail should be set. You know, we haven't even talked about that at the arraignment.

Normally, if somebody was charged with what he's being charged with, bail would be a factor. And so, it'll be interesting to see if that will happen here. If pretrial services, they interview and they take certain questions, like your name, your address, have you been arrested before. And they do an assessment of both risk of flight and dangerousness, and then they make a recommendation to the court, but we'll see. This is so unprecedented.

BURNETT: I mean, it's fascinating. OK, so you mentioned that. So, John Miller, has the DOJ Marshal Service Southern District of Florida new arrest booking form. You just didn't use pass it over to me. So, everyone can understand what's on it. It mentioned some of this, right? Do you have -- are you suicidal, violent criminal record, escape risk? I mean, all of these details in addition to, you know, his social security number and all those things that he's going to have to provide.

JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: I mean, Erin, the irony is that this is the Southern District of Florida United States marshal arrest for him. But the marshal in the Southern District of Florida is appointed by President Trump when he was in office, and is still there. So, you're basically booking somebody who appointed you to the job, which is you know, neither here nor there. I mean it's still -- there's still a process and they'll go through the process.

[12:10:00]

On the mugshot, you know, the concern was the leak, but you know, they'll upload, there are plenty of pictures of Donald Trump. They will upload one into the system, so it's not blank, but it won't be the form of mugshot.

BURNETT: Right.

MILLER: DNA is taken from all federal arrestees.

BURNETT: But not in his case.

MILLER: So, in this case, there has to be a why. I get the leaking of the mugshot, you know, is the DNA some national security thing with, you know, the missile codes if he got reelected, that, you know, there's an identification factor there. Is it just a courtesy? Do they already have it on file? But for the most part, he will go through the process that feels like you're being booked like a regular prisoner.

When he's delivered there, he will be, the marshals not arresting, the marshals just facilitating the booking process for the sole reason. So, that the former president doesn't have to be brought to the local FBI office, book there and then transported to court, you know, by the FBI. This is just to smooth out the system.

BURNETT: I mean, wait, he's got to put in things. He doesn't want to put in. I mean, I'm just saying, I mean, for this person, scars, marks, tattoos. I mean, I'm saying this just to make the point that, that this is a really serious thing. And most people don't come in contact with this because most people do not get indicted on 37 criminal counts for doing this.

LAURA COATES, CNN CHIEF LEGAL ANALYST: Well, those that do don't have people protesting, talking about the system of justice being irrevocably problematic. But you also have the distinction of, I wonder what's going to happen with Trump versus his co-defendant, right? Some of the perhaps courtesy that might be extended out of just pragmatism might be evident here.

But we're talking about his co-defendant, I wouldn't expect any of those same factors to be -- -

BURNETT: So, he's going to be treated differently?

COATES: Likely and mugshot, right, the DNA aspects of it if it's not already there. But what's not going to happen at this arraignment, everyone is clear, we're not going to have the full-blown motion practice about whether they're going to try to sever if they won't do so or about, arguments about the attorney client privilege data or evidentiary motions. And all that is down the line.

This is really about the dotting of the eyes, crossing at the t's and about the schedule. We will likely hear whether they will set on that speedy trial right to 70 days from now trial day, that can be moved even if it is because of matters of the court efficiency, whatever his prep time will be with the Manhattan D.A. and Reitman as well and other factors.

But normally, the idea of having new counsel would not be impactful here, every most of the defendants in our country who are arraigned and indicted, don't have time to get up to speed and allow you a lot of time with new counsel. This is the moment people actually do have that clock ticking. So, he did have a new counsel is not going to be very impactful about setting a date far out.

BURNETT: And then here's the thing, he turns around after this, gets on a plane and comes back. Now, Kristen Holmes has been reporting from Bedminster on this this fundraiser tonight, that there's the open remarks that will be on camera where of course, he's going to, you know, want to do his usual. And then the closed meeting with donors.

And I was saying, Scott, we were all talking. I want to know who those are. You know, at this point, if you're going to be giving a lot of money, you're going to be a big dollar donor. People want to know, specifically because some of the biggest donors that did get in line last time and support Trump have been publicly, this time that they're looking elsewhere or have already found another candidate to back.

SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, there is disclosure on federal campaigns for donors, and I believe at the presidential level bundlers as well. So, you will know what's noteworthy about this event tonight, is they're expecting I think, based on some reporting I read to raise about $2 million. Now, Trump is known sort of as the king of the low dollar fundraising. Maybe his average contribution to his campaign is around $30.

But the people they're meeting with tonight, these are big money donors. These are people who can write large checks and get other people to write large checks. This is a new dimension to Trump fundraising, to some degree, adding on the high dollar piece to what's already really the most prolific low dollar piece in American politics.

BURNETT: $2 million on the day, you get indicted, but you make history for being indicted.

MONDAIRE JONES, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: That is the nature of our politics today, at least Republican politics, where, you know, through grievance, you can raise a ton of money. And we see some of the best fundraisers and the House of Representatives, where I used to serve as some of the most controversial people, right?

Lauren Boebert, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Matt Gaetz, Jim Jordan. I mean, there is a formula to this, and you have to seize on the opportunity, in this case, this grievance that people feel that he's been criminally prosecuted unfairly, and you raise as much as you can. I want to see a small dollar fundraising.

JENNINGS: To be clear though, this fundraiser they're having tonight was in the works long before they knew this indictment was coming down. I haven't seen any totals, but what I suspect is happening is the low dollar fundraising in the wake of the indictment has probably gone crazy for him. And I guess part of the trick for the campaign is can you keep the large dollar donors engaged and believing that this is a viable campaign we're supporting. I guess that's the first test of that tonight.

[12:15:00]

COATES: Everything he says tonight, the prosecutors are going to be looking and leaning in. What it takes to entice maybe the big checks to be written and the idea of the charisma one would have to exude in order to get that level of support, might be precisely the kinds of statements that are made that can get you in deeper trouble in the court of law. So, I'll have to create a very difficult needle, but I'm assuming that the prosecutor will be salivating over what might be said the indictment includes 2016 statements as well but looking for this today.

BURNETT: And of course, everyone donating all that money, you know, should be aware, right, that big use of it is legal fees, right? I mean, that they're paying for that. All right, thank you all so very much. And of course, he's not known to pull any punches and in a CNN town hall last night, he threw a lot of that. Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie ripping into Trump over the indictment.

That and how other Republicans are responding, many not as clearly and firmly as Christie just ahead. And later the supporters standing by Trump. Why they say that they still are not fazed by this historic indictment. Our special coverage continues after this break.

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[12:20:00]

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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS CHRISTIE, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: They're playing political games with you. Because they think, if you're kind of like Trump a little bit, and I don't say anything bad about Trump, and then Trump kind of implodes and goes away, then you're more likely to vote for me. How about we do this? How about you decide who is the most honest forthright leader, who has common sense and will put you first? How about we stop these games?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: That was a CNN town hall last night. Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie, he went there. Are voters going to go there with him? Donald Trump is still the clear front runner. Let's talk about it with my panel here, Gloria Borger, I'll start with you.

You heard Chris Christie. He is kind of on an island. I think, with Asa Hutchinson they're on the island together. But there are some other Republicans swimming a little closer to that island today. And I want to play a couple of things for our viewers.

One is Paul Ryan, the former speaker of the House. He doesn't talk very much about anything. But he made a point of going out on television this morning. Listen to this?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL RYAN, (R) FORMER HOUSE SPEAKER: Paul Ryan: I've been a never again, Trump or for some time now. So, no, I'm not a Trump fan. I want to win. And if we nominate Trump, we're going to lose. We haven't won anything since 2016. I used to have the same documents myself as speaker of the House. So, I think this goes beyond just some heavy thing. Now, my guess is Trump will play this politically pretty well and make this weaponization argument and make this about Joe Biden's Justice Department. And that's going to have some political salience.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: OK. Let's just start there. Let's just sort of chew on that a little bit. And then I want to play the Lindsey Graham.

GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, he's right. It is going to have political sailing. And see what we've been hearing from lots of Republicans is about the weaponization of the Justice Department, have justice isn't being carried out equally, you know, what about Hunter Biden, what about Hillary Clinton, et cetera, et cetera.

But they weren't until just recently talking about this particular case and the question of obstruction that's kind of at the center of the case. And now the cement is cracking a little bit. So, while someone like Lindsey Graham was very vociferous in his defense of Donald Trump. He also added today, talked about Trump's self-inflicted wounds.

BASH: Hey, hang on. Let's actually just play that and then you'll finish, your thought.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Today, you've not just given back the documents to avoid all of this must to begin with?

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM, (R-SC): Most politicians get in trouble by self- inflicted wounds. Yes, I mean, he believes he had the right to possess these under the Presidential Records Act. I don't know whether that's accurate or not.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BORGER: Well, that's a little softening from where he was saying a lot out on Sunday, saying he's not a spy, he shouldn't be prosecuted under the Espionage Act. And then you had another Republican, Dan Crenshaw, who was running away from Manu as fast as he could. But then he said, look, I'm not defending him. So, we see sort of the people trying to navigate this, talking about the Justice Department on the one hand, and on the other hand, starting to pay a little bit more attention to the chargers.

BASH: I want to say, I don't want to bring you guys the legal side of this table in a second. But just staying on the politics of this. Our friend and colleague, Abby Phillip, is calling this the Bill Barr effect. That it seems as though since Bill Barr went really sort of deep in and unequivocally against what the former president is alleged to have done. You've seen either the other Republicans, particularly those running for office, some of them have almost felt compelled to move a little bit further away from the unequivocal defense.

NIA-MALIKA HENDERSON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: I think that's right. I mean, he was the kind of permission structure that Bill Barr gave some of these are Republicans and I think you even see them sort of adopt some of his language that he used about this, Nikki Haley. I think he's in that group, somebody who seemed to be firmly in the Donald Trump camp.

Now, using some of Bill Barr's language saying that this was reckless saying that she has a military spouse, this kind of thing that he's alleged to have, Dana, puts up folks in the military at risk, puts on national security at risk. We'll see, right, we hadn't heard from a lot of senators, they were away. They're back on the hill.

Now, we'll see what they said. We're just trying to see what Mitch McConnell is going to say, he is no, you know, a big fan of Donald Trump. You know, so we'll see. This will be allegations in here or so damning. They're so easy to understand. He was keeping allegedly military secrets national secrets in a bathroom right, and you've got Kevin McCarthy who says, oh, well, at least the bathroom locks. Well, the bathroom locks from the inside, right? It doesn't lock from outside.

[12:25:00]

BASH: Do you like maybe you just carry the indictment (crosstalk)?

HENDERSON: I do. This is, you know, necessarily reading, I think for all Americans, it is good to see what the allegations and all the folks who are saying, well, Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden and Mike Pence also, you know, had incidents with classified documents, read this, and you'll get a very different picture.

ELLIOT WILLIAMS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: You know, what's interesting about the Republicans who are coming out thus far, you have Christie Barr, Asa Hutchinson, Lindsey Graham, they all have backgrounds in some way, either as lawyers or prosecutors. Graham and Asa Hutchinson back in 1999, where Bill Clinton, impeachment managers, obviously Barr's background and Chris Christie's.

But now look, I'm not saying that every Republican former federal prosecutor or former attorney general is going to come to Jesus and suddenly see the merits in this -- of this document. But I do really believe that it's hard for someone with a legal background to read what's in here, knowing the history of it, and not think that at least on the face of what's here and hasn't been challenged yet by Trump's attorneys, we don't know how would we picked apart but not read this document. I think, wow, this is quite a damning legal document.

BASH: Juliette?

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: I would agree with that. And I think it's a damning non-legal document too. So, I mean, I read it as a non-lawyer, and this is a really easy story to tell. It's a story not about Trump, it's about our intelligence agents in our military and what they're doing to collect this information. And then it's also a story about our allies.

There's often mentions of five eyes, NATO, this intelligence sharing apparatus that has been built around sort of the post-World War II apparatus, which is we all need to share information. And there's a reliance interest -- -

BASH: And you've been there. This is actually been in who we had to rely on this intelligence?

KAYYEM: Whatever is being hidden behind in the politics and the law, and however you, like, you just, -- this is so indefensible, just from a five-year olds perspective. We know even if they're not classified, they're secret, because they weren't classified at one stage. So, it's not like you go from classified to unclassified, and all of a sudden, you want everyone to know.

So, even buying the argument by Trump, right, that he'd somehow declassified them. At one stage, these were the crown jewels of America secrets. It cannot possibly be under any rational theory, that all of a sudden, now it's, you know, now it's just like, you know, gossip, right?

And so, I think what's important is the story that Jack Smith is telling that it's -- this is not illegal story. This is a story about the men and women who sacrificed their lives to get this information. And the obligation that people like I used to be have.

BORGER: This is so uncharted, that that people, politicians, citizens, journalists, everybody's just -- journalists or citizens, just trying to figure out how to get your arms around exactly what occurred, and whether it was bad, how bad it was.

And I was just talking to a Republican or texting with a Republican who said to me, it's not good, we just don't know how bad it is. And that's a sort of a feeling privately among Republicans, which is look, they know it's not good. They're trying to figure out, can they defend it? Should they defend it? How can they defend it? And it's not easy because it was so reckless.

BASH: All right, guys, we have to take a quick break. The good news is we're going to be here for the next 12 hours -- 10 days. No, we'll be here all day. And up next, the former president just ripped into the Justice Department and special counsel right before his arraignment. Details on that ahead.

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