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Inflation in the U.S. Cools for the Twelfth Straight Month; Iowa Legislature Passes Six-Week Abortion Ban; Manchin Going to New Hampshire Raises Speculation of Third-Party Run; Biden Speaks at High- Stakes NATO Summit and Reaffirms Support to Ukraine. Aired 12:30-1p ET

Aired July 12, 2023 - 12:30   ET

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

[12:30:00]

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT AND ANCHOR OF 'INSIDE POLITICS': ...check every month. But overall, this is a very welcome report for the president's re-election team, talking Bidenomics as a reason for another term. CNN's Jeremy Diamond is at the White House. The markets like the news as well. The White House, I'm sure, is racing to as many microphones as they can find when a president is abroad on the world stage.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: They certainly are happy with this report, Dana, and there's good reason for it. I mean, this is just objectively good news for the White House and for the country as well. When you see inflation falling 12 months in a row, the White House is going to be seizing on that. And it comes with this broader Bidenomics pitch that we have been hearing from the president over the last several weeks.

The president today putting out a statement calling this new and encouraging evidence that inflation is falling and that the economy at the same time remains strong. And this is all an indication that as I reported a couple weeks ago on this show, that this White House is increasingly confident in the prospects of that elusive soft landing, having inflation come down, jobs market remaining strong, and avoiding the prospect of a recession.

Now to be clear, they are not entirely out of the woods. When you look at the fact that housing, for example, still accounts for 70 percent of inflation, the flip side of that though is that housing tends to be a lagging indicator of inflation. So everything seems to be headed in the right direction. The core inflation metric is at 4.8 percent, which is the lowest since October 2021. Now, the broader question, Dana, can -- will public sentiment catch up with this good economic news because, even as we have seen good economic news building over the last couple months, the public still remains so, so negative on the economy and on the president's handling of the economy.

And the White House needs those numbers to change for the president's re-election campaign. Of course, Dana?

BASH: That is the question politically about public sentiment when it comes to people's everyday lives. As you said, you used the objectively good, that's very true. Jeremy, thank you so much for that report.

And Iowa's state legislature passed a six-week abortion ban, making it the latest Republican-led state to limit the procedure in the wake of Roe's reversal. But it's not just any state, it is Iowa, the 'first- in-the-nation' caucus state. Republican Governor Kim Reynolds, who convened a special legislative session specifically to take up the abortion ban, says she will sign the bill on Friday. That's the same day GOP presidential hopefuls flock to Iowa for a major gathering of evangelicals.

Protesters from both sides of the abortion debate flooded the state capital as lawmakers debated the bill, eventually, passing it largely along party lines. Now, it would go into effect immediately and will provide some exceptions for life of the mother, fetal abnormalities, rape and incest.

And my panel is back with me now. Mike Pence is -- was maybe the first out of the gate to tweet a thank you to Kim Reynolds, the Republican governor. "Grateful to see Iowa Republicans and Governor Kim Reynolds standing for life. Pro-life Americans are cheering you on!" I mean, he is going hard for the evangelical vote. This is something that clearly is important when it comes to the lives and how people deal with this issue inside Iowa, but also to the campaign trail.

NIA-MALIKA HENDERSON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Politically, what does this mean? Does this mean if you're Donald Trump, if you're Nikki Haley, if you're any of these other folks who have been a little fuzzy in terms of what they think the actual time limit should be, does this force them to name a time period, a sort of number of weeks? That's the big question. You see, Donald Trump has moved on this a little bit, saying that there is some sort of role for the federal government. Well, is he going to get to the point where he has to say it has to be six weeks or ten weeks or whatever? Because you're right, I mean, the evangelical vote there is so strong.

Somebody like Mike Pence, obviously, has a following among evangelicals. Ron DeSantis is doing what he did in Florida. You've had some folks kind of criticize Ron DeSantis saying this is going to -- this would make him a weak candidate in general, and Donald Trump certainly mindful of the politics of abortion. So where does this move folks on the campaign trail?

MARGARET TALEV, SENIOR CONTRIBUTOR, AXIOS: We have been talking a lot in recent days about the alignment of the governor in Iowa with Ron DeSantis, even if she is choosing not to officially endorse whatever that means. Trump's mad and DeSantis is happy and Casey DeSantis is happy. So I think by furthering that alignment, what you're seeing is the important role that the abortion debate may play in raising the stakes in terms of appeasing the base of the party.

And that means a couple of things. It means Chris Christie is probably not going to win Iowa for the Republican Party. And it's more evidence of the GOP base kind of doubling down that the 2024 election could be a very big bet. If they are going to voters in the general election with whoever the nominee is and saying, six-week abortion ban or anything close to it, culture war stuff, and let Biden own the Bidenomics argument.

BASH: Yeah. That's so true. First of all, you know who doesn't think he's going to win Iowa? Chris Christie.

(LAUGHTER)

(CROSSTALK)

(Inaudible) he's been there.

BASH: No, exactly. But I'm so glad you brought up the general election question because this is so fascinating.

[12:35:00]

If it you look at a Des Moines Register poll about abortion, this is from back in March. But the reason we wanted to put it up there is because 61 percent, it's remarkable. Almost every poll that we have seen, state polls, national polls, the number is around -- hovering around 60 percent. Six in 10 Americans want abortion to be legal in most cases.

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Which is why, as Nia was saying earlier, this is a blinking red light for Republican candidates, which Donald Trump has got at several times.

HENDERSON: Yeah.

ZELENY: He is one of the few Republican candidates who has sort of strategically not talked about this as much. But look, now, this is part of the DNA of the party now. The law was passed in 2018 before the Supreme Court ruling there. But the state Supreme Court to rule it unconstitutional, so they wanted this legislature to vote on it again, so that is what sort of led this to.

But I was talking to a Republican in Iowa last week, she is a County Chair and she said I wonder why Governor Reynolds is doing this. She is pro-life, self-identified, but wonders why this is necessary politically. So this is a bit risky...

BASH: Is that a rhetorical wonder?

ZELENY: ...in terms of -- it was not.

BASH: Or she really...

ZELENY: She wonders...

BASH: ...wanted to know?

ZELENY: ...why they are doing this. Why not just like leave it alone in that respect. So even across the Republican landscape, which is why that six in 10, there are a lot of Republicans...

BASH: Yeah. ZELENY: ...who make up that number, of course. So look, she's going to sign it into law on Friday, but short-term politically, it's good for the base of the party. Long-term, I'm not sure. But what you were saying, is this going to put some of the other candidates in a box here in terms of how many weeks? I think it will.

BASH: Manu Raju is on Capitol Hill and he just caught up with Joe Manchin who says nothing is off the table. What's he talking about? We're going to go to Manu and get the latest after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:41:20]

BASH: Well, this certainly won't quite (ph) talk of a third-party challenge that could do harm to Joe Biden's re-election bid. That talk is growing more among Democratic strategists. Now, Senator Joe Manchin is going to New Hampshire and, moments ago, he spoke with our Manu Raju. I'm going to get straight to Capitol Hill and to Manu. What did Senator Manchin tell you?

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, he down played the fact that he's going to New Hampshire on Monday evening with the third-party group, "No Labels." Remember, "No Labels" is pushing for a third-party candidate, a centrist candidate, someone like Senator Joe Manchin. But, he contended that this is not about running as a third- party candidate, but he also would not rule out a possible independent bid. And when I asked about concerns from Democrats that if he did win run as an independent, that could be a spoiler for Joe Biden, he seemed to down play that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOE MANCHIN (D-WV): No, not at all.

RAJU: Are you cognizant of the concerns that if you did mount a third- party bid, it could hurt Joe Biden -- it could hurt Joe Biden. That's what the Democrats say. Are you...

MANCHIN: Here's the thing. The most important thing is how do we help democracy do what it's supposed to do. How do we help the process, the legal process that we have do what it's supposed to. I still have (ph) common sense discussions to find out what the American people would like to see accomplished, not just basically the toxic atmosphere we have because of political parties. That's all I think about.

RAJU: So, you are not -- are you ruling out a third-party bid?

MANCHIN: Well, I have never ruled out anything or rule in anything. I'm just -- this is just strictly a conference that we're having (inaudible).

RAJU: And the fact that he's going to New Hampshire also causing some concern in the Democratic ranks. He said that he's going to New Hampshire simply because he's friends with the -- one of the founders of that group and that he will plan to go to other states as well. But as you can see, being very coy, Dana, about his intentions and also major questions too about whether he would run for re-election.

He's running in a state that's heavily Republican, a big Trump state. And if he were to retire, that could be -- certainly be a Republican pickup. Even if he runs, it could be a Republican pickup. He has not said whether he would run for re-election. But just a lot of questions in the senate about what Joe Manchin plans to do. And as you can see there, he says everything is on the table. The question is what is he actually considering. He's not saying whether or not it's a third- party candidate, at least not yet.

BASH: What -- how big is that table?

(LAUGHTER)

Manu Raju, everywhere, all the time, no matter what is happening, you're there. Thank you for that.

RAJU: Thanks, Dana.

BASH: Appreciate it. And the panelists that we were talking to are back. This is one of the most fascinating political stories that is brewing right now. And Jeff Zeleny, I know you're already doing a lot of reporting on this. The fact that this group, "No Labels," this didn't just happen. I mean, they are really courting Joe Manchin. In the event that they decide to run a third-party presidential candidate, my understanding is they would really like it to be him.

ZELENY: They would. Look, because he's recognizable first and foremost. I mean they need someone who has a popular name, if you will. But this is -- so many layers to this story. But the biggest headline is, it does worry the Biden re-election campaign. It worries the White House because they believe that more of the votes would be siphoned away from him opposed to Trump loyalists. We're getting ahead of ourselves in many steps. First, they are not on the ballot in a lot of states. So they are raising money, $70 million to try to get on the ballot. So that's one of the issues.

BASH: OK. Everybody, standby, because I want to go back to Lithuania. That's where Wolf Blitzer is. Wolf?

WOLF BLITZER, CNN REPORTER: Very important what's about to unfold here in Lithuania. We're standing by here in the Vilnius, the capital, where any minute now, Dana, we expect to hear directly from the President of the United States.

[12:45:00]

CNN's Natasha Bertrand is here with me. We're watching all of this unfold. This is a critically important speech by the president. He has got various audiences he's addressing.

NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN WHITE HOUSE AND NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yeah, that's exactly right. He has to strike this very delicate balance obviously between showing Ukraine that the U.S., obviously, robustly supports them in their war against Ukraine, but also reiterating that now is not the time for them to join NATO. And so, he has to really strike this delicate balance between empathizing, of course, with what Zelenskyy is going through and with what his country needs, but also of course explaining why now is not the right time for Ukraine to be a member of that alliance.

I think what we're going to hear today is very similar to what we heard in his remarks with President Zelenskyy earlier before their bilateral meeting, which is that the U.S. is not going anywhere. Just because they don't have membership in NATO right now does not mean that the U.S. is going to abandon Ukraine. That's the message that he's going to send as he tries to reiterate here that the NATO Alliance, they are united. They first and foremost are thinking about their defense and their deterrence, but they are also thinking about of course supporting Ukraine in any way that they can possibly can.

And so, he's going to reaffirm that unwavering support. He's going to talk about the value and having this unified alliance in the face of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who of course thought that he could divide the alliance, when in fact he has actually made it bigger. Of course, we saw that Sweden just joined the alliance. And so, I think that that's really going to be the message that Biden sends, especially given that he has such a trans-Atlantic (ph), right, he values the partnerships that he has with the European allies and of course, that now includes President Zelenskyy and Ukraine.

BLITZER: And there's no doubt, and Natasha, you've covered this for a long time. One audience that will be watching this very closely and the president appreciates will be watching it very closely is Putin and the Russians. He's sending a message to them.

BERTRAND: Absolutely. And this is something that he sought to drive home from the very beginning of this war, right, that NATO has been more united in its -- now, during this war in Ukraine than it has been in many, many years. And that actually what Putin's war did was bring them closer together and expand the alliance. Finland and Sweden have both joined and that has expanded NATO's border with Russia really exponentially, dramatically in a way that Vladimir Putin likely did not anticipate.

And so, the message that he will be sending is that we are not backing down from supporting Ukraine. We will continue to do what we can to support them, even if we can't allow them into the NATO alliance while there is of course this war going on inside Ukraine.

BLITZER: Arlette Saenz is over at the University of Vilnius where the president is about to address the world right now, what's going on in Ukraine, the stakes are enormous. Arlette, set the scene.

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, they certainly are, Wolf. And President Biden is heading into the speech, trying to project this sense of unity around long-term support for Ukraine while also talking about a strengthened and reinvigorated NATO Alliance. That is something that the president and his advisors are trying to message throughout this summit, especially as they are trying to send some type of message to Putin that he did not make the NATO Alliance crack even as he has waged that campaign against Russia. And you saw today, these remarkable moments between President Biden and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy. They entered this summit with a lot of tensions. Zelenskyy really expressing his frustration with the fact that NATO would not outline a timeline for his country to join the alliance, but still what the U.S. and G7 allies have tried to focus on doing is showing how they are going to support Zelenskyy in the here and now, and also for the long haul. And that is why the president with G7 partners has rolled out this declaration of "unwavering support."

And what this is doing is it's providing a jump start to negotiations between each of these countries and Ukraine to establish long-term bilateral security commitments, that is in lieu of the fact that they can't join NATO at this moment. Of course, Biden has been very vocal in his belief that now is not the time for Ukraine to join due to the fact that Russia's war is raging in Ukraine and also that Article V of NATO Alliance saying that an attack on one would be an attack on all. Essentially, if they had allowed Ukraine into the alliance, that could bring these NATO countries into direct conflict with Russia.

But President Biden here is expected to take a wide-scale global view of his foreign policy, as he has tried to stress that it's imperative that U.S. leadership is needed on the world stage. They have tried to point to the fact that he has helped invigorate this NATO Alliance and in just a few moments, we're expecting to hear the president once again reaffirm that support for Ukraine and also send a message to Putin about the strength of democracy and freedom.

[12:50:00]

BLITZER: Important point indeed and we are standing by. He's going to be speaking where you are, Arlette, over at the university here in Lithuania. We're going to be watching it very, very closely. Natasha, remind our viewers why President Biden believes this is not the time for Ukraine to be a formal member of NATO.

BERTRAND: Well, Zelenskyy has also acknowledged that it is very unlikely and it was always very unlikely that they would ever get an invitation when this war is raging. Because as Arlette alluded to, NATO does have an Article V commitment which means that if there was an attack on a NATO country, then the full NATO Alliance has to come to that country's defense. And so, if they were to import this war into the alliance by allowing Ukraine to come in, then the argument is that America would perhaps have to send troops to Ukraine, to the front lines.

That is not something that Joe Biden wants to do. He does not want to send troops to defend Ukraine. He does not believe that this is the -- it is the right moment to do that. And so, that is the primary argument here. But the secondary argument is that he believes Ukraine still has certain reforms that it has to make in terms of legal, economic, diplomatic, political reforms before it can actually...

BLITZER: Hold on a second.

BERTRAND: ...be a member. BLITZER: The president is now walking up on the stage over at the University of Vilnius in Lithuania. He has got a very, very carefully drafted speech. Let's listen in to the President of the United States.

JOE BIDEN, (D) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: ...Holy Mackerel.

(LAUGHTER)

It's good to be back in Vilnius -- a nation and a region that knows better than anyone the transformational power of freedom.

(CROWD CHEERING)

It showed the world the strength (ph) when the people unite cannot be denied. And together with your brothers and sisters in Estonia and Latvia, you helped to end the era of division through the power of connection. The Baltic Way, not the Berlin Wall, became the symbol for Europe's future. And later when the Soviet tanks sought once more to deny your independence, the people of Vilnius said no. No, no, no.

In January of 1991, tens of thousands of citizens, unarmed and unyielding, came for their own, of their own accord, standing as one to protect the TV tower, to the shield the supreme council and defend freedom. 14 heroes tragically lost their lives, hundreds were wounded. But the whole world saw that decades of oppression had done nothing to dim the flame of liberty in this country.

(CROWN CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

I mean it. It is consequential. The light of Lithuania -- you kept it strong, you kept it bright, and you kept the light shining. Here in Vilnius and in Washington, D.C., where the yellow, green and red of your flag flew every day. This past year, we have celebrated 100 years of unbroken diplomatic relationship between the United States and the Baltic states. America -- America never recognized the Soviet occupation of Baltic. Never, never, never recognized.

(CROWN CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

Besides, you got a great president.

(CROWN CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

Stand up. As your president can tell you, the bond between Lithuania and the American people has never faltered. And just seven months after the bloody January crackdown of the first foreign visitor to have their passport stamped here in Lithuania with visas of this -- to this new reborn state were a plane load of Lithuanian Americans from Chicago, Illinois. (CROWN CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

And their families are still proud of that. Los Angeles came after that.

(LAUGHTER)

(CROWN CHEERING)

A lot came after. Look, many aboard that plane had fled Lithuania during the early years of Soviet oppression and marveled at the return of this independent state. One of them told reporters, "This day is like a resurrection for us. This day, father, is like a resurrection for us." That's what the quote was, for real. That's the feeling and it was a resurrection that quickly became a revelation, and a nation which stands today as a stronghold of liberty and opportunity, a proud member of the European Union and of NATO.

(CROWN CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

[12:55:00]

I had the great honor as United States senator of championing Lithuania and other Baltic states to join NATO in 2004. Wasn't I brilliant doing that?

(LAUGH)

But all kidding aside, think about what it -- how it has changed things. Think about what has happened. Now, over the last few days as President of the United States, I had the honor of participating in an historic NATO Summit hosted by Lithuania where we welcome NATO's newest ally, Finland, and reached agreement to bring Sweden into the alliance as soon as possible.

(CROWN CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

President Erdogan kept his word. We witnessed your historic journey and I'm proud to call Lithuania friend, partner, and ally. Ally, ally.

(CROWN CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

Soon NATO will be the 32nd free-standing -- have 32 free-standing members.

(LAUGHTER)

Standing together to defend our people and our territory. Beyond all the rest, bound by democratic values to make us strong and by our sacred oath that an attack against -- it is a sacred oath. An attack against one is an attack against all, because each member of NATO knows that the strength of our people and the power of our unity cannot be denied.

(CROWN CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

If I sound optimistic, it's because I am. Today, our alliance remains a bulwark of global stability and security as it has been for more than seven decades. NATO is stronger, more energized and yes, more united than ever in its history, indeed, more vital to our shared future. It didn't happen by accident. It wasn't inevitable.

When Putin and his craven lust for land and power unleashed his brutal war on Ukraine, he was betting NATO would break apart. He was betting NATO would break. He thought our unity would shatter at the first testing. He thought democratic leaders would be weak. But he thought wrong. In face of the threat...

(CROWN CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

...faced with a threat, the peace and stability of the world to democratic values we hold dear, to freedom itself, we did what we always do. The United States stepped up; NATO stepped up; our partners in Europe and in the Indo-Pacific stepped up. All across the world, they stepped up. And we're ready -- we were ready because we stood together. In the months leading up to the war as Putin amassed his forces on the Ukrainian border and laid the groundwork for his brutal invasion, I was in constant contact with my fellow leaders in the G7, in the European Union and NATO, constantly.

We warned the world what Putin was planning. Even some in Ukraine didn't believe what we had our intelligence community found. We made sure NATO was prepared to deter any aggression against any member state. We pursued intense diplomacy with Russia, seeking to avert this terrible war. And when Russian bombs began to fall, we did not hesitate to act. We rallied the world to support the brave people of Ukraine as they defend their liberty and their sovereignty with incredible dignity.

(CROWN CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

I mean that from the bottom of my heart. Think about it. Think about what they're doing. After nearly a year and a half of Russia's forces committing terrible atrocities, including crimes against humanity, the people of Ukraine remain unbroken -- unbroken.

(CROWN CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE) Ukraine remains independent. It remains free. And the United States has built a coalition of more than 50 nations to make sure Ukraine defends itself, both now and is able to do it in the future as well. Since this war began, I've stood with President Zelenskyy, I just spent about an hour with him, both in Washington and Kyiv and Hiroshima and now Vilnius to declare to the world what I say again. We will not waver. We will not waver.

(CROWN CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

I mean that. Our commitment to Ukraine will not weaken. We will stand for liberty and freedom today, tomorrow, and for as long as it takes.

(CROWN CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

We all want this war to end on just terms, terms of all the basic principles of the United Nations Charter that we all signed up to. Sovereignty, territorial integrity -- these are two pillars of peaceful relations among nations.

[13:00:00]