Return to Transcripts main page

New Day

Control of Senate, House Uncertain 4 Weeks ahead of Midterms; Deadly Blasts Rock Kyiv After Crimea-Russia Bridge Explosion; Human Rights Group: 185 Dead in Iran Protests, Including 19 Children; LA City Council President Apologizes For Alleged Racist Remarks; Kayne West Suspended From Instagram& Twitter for Anti-Semitic Posts. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired October 10, 2022 - 07:30   ET

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

[07:30:00]

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: In Arizona, Senator Mark Kelly, he's polling ahead of Republican Blake Masters. In Nevada there is no clear leaders. So why do you think one race appears to be so much closer than another?

JONATHAN MARTIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, Mark Kelly is a, frankly, stronger incumbent than Catherine Cortez Masto. He's got a biography. People in Arizona are pretty familiar with who is astronaut, who is married to Gabby Giffords.

He's somebody who is an extraordinary fundraiser. And he's running, frankly, against a weaker opponent than Senator Masto is in Nevada. He's been able to stake out a little bit more of a lead. Whereas the Nevada race is much, much, much more competitive.

Look, I think Nevada, especially in non-presidential years, is just a harder state, frankly, for Democrats. And we've seen this before. Certainly, 2014 was a really good year for the GOP in Nevada. So I think Nevada could be the hardest state in the country for a Democratic incumbent.

And this is why Pennsylvania becomes so important too guys, because if Nevada does flip, then the question becomes can Republicans still hold Pennsylvania? And if they can, they have a one seat majority in all likelihood. If Pennsylvania, though, flips to the Democrats, it's going to be the same split that it is today.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR AND SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: It is an interesting election season for sure. J. Martin, thank you for being with us.

MARTIN: Thank you. Appreciate it.

MARQUARDT: Appreciate it.

KEILAR: A barrage of deadly large explosions rocking Ukraine, including a missile strike near this pedestrian bridge, this morning. MARQUARDT: And a human rights group is saying that more than 180 people have been killed in protests across Iran. What government officials are saying about those that they've arrested, we will discuss that with Christiane Amanpour. That's coming up next. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:35:00]

KEILAR: Multiple explosions this morning in Kyiv. Officials say at least five people have been killed and all of them are civilians. Multiple blasts have also been reported in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv, as well as other locations in Ukraine.

Now, all of this is coming as Russian President Vladimir Putin is holding a meeting with his National Security Council, after declaring that explosion on a Kyiv bridge, the only bridge that links mainland Russia to Crimea, which it illegally annexed, he's calling this a terrorist attack that was orchestrated by Ukraine. So let's discuss this now with CNN Chief International Anchor, Christiane Amanpour.

Christiane what do you make of what you are seeing and just the breadth of these missile attacks, the likes of which we haven't seen in so many months?

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Well, in a word, unsurprising. It is clear that President Putin is under great pressure. The attack on the bridge from Crimea is very symbolic, as well as sub as substantial. He was the one who oversaw the opening of this bridge, as you say, to connect illegally annexed Crimea to Russia itself. And it does play a large role in the resupply of the troops, as you know, personnel and material for the war in Ukraine. So those are two issues.

He's under huge pressure from so-called bloggers and even supporters in Russia for the rather dismal way this war is proceeding. And he, according to military analysts, and those who have been speaking out since this attack today, he needed to punish Ukraine. He needed to do what he did at the beginning, lash out with all these missiles, create a sort of environment of terror, and stop the euphoria.

You've seen the Ukrainians have been euphoric, really, given their hard won and legitimate wins in their counter offensives in the northeast, in the south, et cetera. So what he's done, he's targeted the capital Kyiv, again, as a message to Zelenskyy, and the and the power really there. He's targeted Lviv, which these two cities to the West have been basically, you know, peaceful for the last many months. So he's sending a clear message.

KEILAR: Yes, and it's a show of force, but is it strength as you see it? Is it really a show of strength on his part?

AMANPOUR: Well, yes, and no. I mean, probably not so much as far as Kyiv and Lviv are concerned, but he's also sending missiles into targets in, you know, as we've been reporting Zaporizhzhia and elsewhere.

Now, these the Ukrainian government have been labeling terrorist attacks, because these are up until now, we've seen no military targets, nothing of military value that had been struck in those areas. It is rather civilian targets. That is illegitimate under the laws of war. It amounts to a war crime, whether or not you call it terrorism or not. But both sides now counter accusing each other of terrorist attacks.

But what's happening is clear that Putin is lashing out to try to establish some kind of punitive measure to the Ukrainians for the successes they're having on the battlefield.

KEILAR: I want to turn to Iran now, because we are watching as they are entering the fourth week of protests there, and women are fronting this movement here. We saw over the weekend, female university students who are shouting down a paramilitary group. Are women seen as potentially the key to opposing Iran's regime? Are they seen by the opposition to the regime as the key to that?

AMANPOUR: Well, frankly, yes. And because it started over the death of a woman, as they said the Iranians for not properly wearing the required, you know, costume of the head garb and the loose body covering. So Mahsa Amini, and her death is what has sparked this.

And don't forget, it's two female Iranian journalists who broke the news, who spread the picture of Mahsa Amini in her hospital bed with blood and with a bruised and battered face. And that is what caused these protests. So in the interim, extraordinarily, you've had women really take front and center, but also men now.

There are images of men wearing chador, wearing the headscarf, going out with women, showing their hands - certainly overseas as well - covered in a red paint to symbolize blood and to symbolize support.

You've also seen something absolutely new and extraordinary and that is young girls are now in the forefront of this. And we're talking 15, 14, 13 year old girls who have already had their high schools entered by members of the regime to tell them to tow the line, but are now on the streets and are being arrested.

[07:40:00]

So it is very, very clear that this has a whole different dimension than previous protests. That the longevity is not accidental, that it's going to continue. And I did speak to the Iranian Nobel Laureate, a woman, Shirin Ebadi, who had this to say about Iranian women's role in this particular uprising.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHIRIN EBADI, IRANIAN LAWYER (via translator): Iranian men have come to understand that they have to support women. They have understood that democracy will only come to Iran if we women succeed. In fact, it's the women who will open the gates to democracy in Iran.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

AMANPOUR: So that's a really profound statement. And she, of course, is a very, very prominent human rights lawyer. She fled after the so- called Green Revolution. But she has prosecuted a lot of these cases that are brought against women for trying to protest and stand up for their rights. And she was the first female judge in Iran before the revolution. They demoted her. She became a human rights lawyer, won the Nobel Peace Prize. And she knows exactly what she's talking about.

And furthermore, she says that if indeed this protest is squashed, and crushed, it'll just be a few more months before the next one and the next one and the next one. That's her view from inside.

KEILAR: Really interesting. I mean, it is entering its fourth week and so we continue to watch. Christiane, great to have you. Thank you so much.

AMANPOUR: Thanks Brianna.

KEILAR: Growing calls for the President of Los Angeles' City Council to resign after audio leaked of her allegedly making racist comments about a fellow council member's Black son.

MARQUARDT: And Kanye West getting his Twitter and Instagram accounts restricted after really shocking posts. We'll have those details ahead. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:45:00]

MARQUARDT: Los Angeles City Council President, Nury Martinez is now apologizing after allegedly making racist remarks towards a fellow council member and his Black child. The audio of the comments was posted anonymously on Reddit news later obtained by the Los Angeles Times Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NURY MARTINEZ, LA COUNCIL CITY PRESIDENT: And there's this White guy with this little Black kid who's misbehaved. They're raising him like a little White kid. I was like, this kid needs a beatdown. Let me take him around the corner and then I'll bring him back.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALE: This kid needs a beat down. Joining us now is CNN's Camila Bernal. Camilla, what is the latest?

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Alex. So first of all, this is a conversation between a number of Latino political leaders here in Los Angeles. And they're initially talking about redistricting. But then they go on to talk about Mike Bonin, he is a White member of the city council with a Black son.

As you heard in that audio, it is part of the reason why so many here in Los Angeles are shocked and they're angry. You hear the president of the council saying that,, Bonin thinks that he is black. He then or she then goes to talk about his son and says that he used his son as an accessory. And then even describes the child as a monkey. So of course, all of these comments causing a little bit of chaos here in Los Angeles. And she is apologizing for these comments.

I want to read part of the statement that her office sent me where she says. "In a moment of intense frustration and anger I let the situation get the best of me and I hold myself accountable for these comments. And for that, I am sorry." But despite this apology, people here are extremely upset and demanding her resignation. Alex?

MARQUARDT: Yes, very understandably. Camilla have we heard from the council and from councilmember Bonin?

BERNAL: We have. And of course again, he too is frustrated and upset and furious. Both he and his husband released a statement. They and other members of the council calling for every single person who was on this audio to resign from their posts. And here is part of the statement that Mike Bonin and his husband released.

"They say we are appalled and angry and absolutely disgusted that Nury Martinez attacked their son with horrific racist slurs and talked about her desire to physically harmed him. It is vile, abhorrent and utterly disgraceful."

In that statement, they went on to talk about just the fact that there is a movement as they call it, or an effort for just the lack or to weaken the Black political power here in Los Angeles. Of course, this happens just weeks before an election here that will determine the next mayor and a number of council seats. Alex?

MARQUARDT: Yes, really despicable comments and - about a child. Camila Bernal, thank you very much for that report.

BERNAL: Thank you.

KEILAR: Twitter has locked rapper Kanye West's account over an anti- Semitic tweet that he posted on Saturday. In a sense removed tweet West said, "he was going death con 3 on Jewish people." He added, quote, "You guys have toyed with me and tried to black ball anyone whoever opposes your agenda." So this is coming after his Instagram account was also restricted for violating that company's policies.

Joining me now is CNN Entertainment Reporter Chloe Melas. Chloe tell us what's happening here and what the real action has been like.

CHLOE MELAS, CNN ENTERTAINMENT REPORTER: Look, I mean this has been a buildup, Brianna, over the last I would say, week or so with Kanye taking to social media and just posting, you know, incredibly offensive things.

[07:50:00]

And it really hit a breaking point this weekend, like you said. Essentially, he's de-platformed. He can't tweet. He can't post on any of Meta's platforms because of the offensive things that he has said, particularly about Jewish people. So it first started on Instagram where he was sharing screenshots of a conversation that he was having with fellow rapper Diddy, in which he said really offensive things about Jewish people. And then that's when his Instagram account where he was suspended.

Then he went on to Twitter to call out Mark Zuckerberg, the owner of Meta, saying you have just kicked me off Instagram. And shared a picture of the two of them previously insinuating that they were good friends, Brianna. And then he went on to tweet something incredibly offensive that you read part of that the Anti-Defamation League has come out, condemned, and tons of people in Hollywood and in the music community have called Kanye West out for his behavior, for the things that he that he has said.

But we haven't heard anything else from him, but he really doesn't have a place to go, say anything else right now.

KEILAR: So this all started, what, because of his "White Lives Matter" shirt?

MELAS: So during Paris Fashion Week, he caused so much controversy, Brianna, by wearing a shirt that said "White Lives Matter." And he was posing, as you see, there with Candace Owens, a very well-known conservative talk show host and political commentator.

And then he went on Fox News. He sits down with Tucker Carlson, and he says, I thought the shirt was funny. My dad thought it was funny. It's funny that a Black man is wearing a shirt that says "White Lives Matter." And that is just not good enough for his fans, for people in the music community, people all over the world who feel as though he is just perpetuating stereotypes and, you know, being incredibly controversial.

But again, we haven't heard much more from him. And it'll be interesting to see what happens. And we also don't know how long he's suspended from Twitter or Meta for they haven't specified.

KEILAR: All right, we'll be watching this. Chloe Melas, thank you.

MELAS: Thank you.

KEILAR: So ahead, more on the overnight missile strikes all across Ukraine, including this one here in Kyiv. President Zelenskyy and international leaders are responding.

MARQUARDT: And imagine a car that won't let you drive faster than the speed limit. Well, the federal government is recommending just that. We'll have the details, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:55:00]

KEILAR: The Biden Administration calls deadly car crashes an epidemic on our roads. And now there's a new push to force you to drive the speed limit. We're not talking about police radars or speed cameras. This is a system that will go inside your car and it's among the latest key recommendations by the country's top safety body.

So let's figure out what this is with CNN's Pete Muntean. He got to see it in action. He's joining us live overlooking 395 here in Washington, DC. What is this thing, Pete?

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Really interesting technology, Brianna. It's called Intelligent Speed Assistance. Essentially, it will not let you go above the speed limit. Limit here on 395 in DC in, 45 miles an hour. You get to the limit, the accelerator simply goes limp. There is this big push to get this in your next new car to tackle these fatal crashes that are on the rise.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MUNTEAN (on camera): Here we go.

MUNTEAN (voice over): In this electric car, a lead foot can only get you so far. It's equipped with Intelligent Speed Assistance. That means the car knows the speed limit here is 20 miles per hour, and it won't let you go above it.

MEERA JOSHI, DEPUTY MAYOR FOR OPERATIONS, NEW YORK CITY: So I'm pressing the pedal. but you see actually the number is going down.

MUNTEAN (voice over): Driving me is New York City Deputy Mayor Meera Joshi. This city is the first in the U.S. to try speed limiter technology in 50 of its fleet vehicles.

JOSHI: We need to be at the forefront. There's no reason today with so much technology, and so much awareness that anybody should die at the hands of an automobile.

MUNTEAN (voice over): Federal data shows more than 20,000 deaths on our roads in the first half of this year. It is one reason why in its latest safety recommendation, the National Transportation Safety Board is calling on the federal government to start incentivizing carmakers to put speed limiter systems in new cars.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have to remember these aren't just numbers. These are people who have lost their lives.

MUNTEAN (voice over): New York's speed limiter program works through something called Telematics. Stored data on local speed limits is cross referenced with a car's GPS position. Software in New York's cars gives the driver an alarm.

JOSHI: Yes, there's the beep.

MUNTEAN (voice over): Or simply just cuts off the accelerator when you reach the speed limit.

JOSHI: It's called a dead pedal.

MUNTEAN (on camera): This system does have an override. If you press this button, you can accelerate beyond the speed limit for 15 seconds, in case you need to merge or speed up to meet the flow of traffic.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If somebody is in the fast lane driving too slow, then to me that cause more accidents than driving faster.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It feels kind of intrusive and invasive.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm thinking from a regulatory standpoint, I think it might be overstepping some bounds.

KARL BRAUER, EXECUTIVE ANALYST, ISEECARS.COM: I think the average consumer is going to see this as an overreach by the government.

MUNTEAN (voice over): Industry expert Karl Brauer says it will be up to car makers to accelerate safety without putting the brakes on sales.

BRAUER: I think a move like this is certainly a sign of the future. It's a preview of coming attractions and probably an unavoidable one.

MUNTEAN (voice over): A change can't come soon enough for Juan Pulido (ph).

I'm very hopeful they take it serious and they actually do make the changes.

MUNTEAN (voice over): His wife and kids were killed by an oncoming speeding, drunk driver, a crash that served as inspiration for the NTSB calling for speed limiter systems.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's going to save lives. It's going to prevent more accidents from happening and less families having to go through what I'm going through.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MUNTEAN: A lot of opinions on this, and a lot of action needs to take place here, Brianna, before this is in your next new car.

[08:00:00]