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Crucial Vote Process Begins Today On Democrats' Economic Bill; Biden Gets Agenda Boost As Sinema Agrees To Economic Bill; Economy Adds 528,000 Jobs In July, Surpassing Expectations; Chinese Embassy Official Warns Against "War" With U.S.. Aired 7-8a ET

Aired August 06, 2022 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone, and welcome to your NEW DAY. I'm Amara Walker.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Phil Mattingly, and today all eyes are on Capitol Hill. After days of deal making, Democrats get ready to vote on a critical part of President Biden's economic agenda. We'll tell you what's in the bill and what it means for millions of Americans.

WALKER: Plus, it was a week of twists and turns in the courtroom. Now, a jury has ordered conspiracy theorist, Alex Jones, to pay up to the parents of the Sandy Hook shooting victim.

MATTINGLY: And a war of words, tensions heat up between the U.S. and China after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's trip to Taiwan. Now, Secretary of State Antony Blinken is warning that China's decision to suspend cooperation with the U.S. could have major consequences.

Good morning, and welcome to your NEW DAY. It's August 6th. And Amara, we did it in the last hour and I'm going to do it again, because we're not sitting next to each other. What's the status on the family? Three of my four kids are awake, my wife has coffee.

WALKER: Are they really?

MATTINGLY: I feel like we're on track right now if there was an early start.

WALKER: You know, the bath, and good thing is I have access to all the cameras like the nest cams in the house, and I am doing my best not to check because I don't want to get involved. You know, I don't want to get involved. So, I don't know, that's the answer.

MATTINGLY: They'll be there when you get home. Your husband's got it right now.

WALKER: Exactly. He's holding it down. Well, Phil, it's great to be with you. A lot of news to get to. Up first, the Biden agenda facing a crucial test today on Capitol Hill. The voting process is set to begin in the Senate on the Democrat's major economic and climate build. Now, the bill has the support of Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema, who

demanded several changes to the tax provisions. Sinema's support is essential as Democrats push for passage of the bill under a convoluted procedural process which allows passage with a simple majority.

MATTINGLY: Now, here's a snapshot of what's actually in the legislation. It includes $369 billion to combat climate change. That is the largest investment in U.S. history. It also gives Medicare the power to negotiate some drug prices and it caps Medicare's out of pocket expenses for drug prices at $2,000. And it extends the Affordable Care Act subsidies for three years.

WALKER: CNN Capitol Hill Reporter Melanie Zanona joining us now with more. Good morning to you, Melanie. So, there has been some progress toward moving the bill forward. Can you update us on where things stand right now?

MELANIE ZANONA, CNN CAPITOL HILL REPORTER: Yes, so the timing of all of this is still very much in flux. We are still waiting for a final ruling from the Senate parliamentarian who's going to determine whether this package complies with special budget rules that are required to pass this bill along strictly party lines.

We did learn early this morning that a piece of the package, the clean energy tax portion of that bill does comply with the rules, but we are still waiting for key rulings on the Medicare and prescription drug pieces of the bill. Once we do get that ruling, we are expecting the Senate to move to the first procedural vote that only requires a simple majority to move forward, then there is a maximum of 20 hours of debate.

Both sides don't have to use their time. So, again, it's really unclear how long that process will take. And once that happens, then they will move to the unlimited amendment process known as the voter- a-rama. There's no time limit on that. Any senator can offer amendments. This is where the other side usually tries to craft politically difficult votes.

So, things could get interesting. But the hope here is that they're going to be able to push this bill over the finish line by the end of this weekend, teeing up passage in the House on Friday.

MATTINGLY: Mel, I'm going to try and briefly pivot away from where the procedural nerds love to be for a moment. Much of your week was spent waiting for kind of the white smoke as to where Kyrsten Sinema stood on everything. What did negotiators actually do to get her in line with this bill?

ZANONA: Yes, so she was the last remaining Democratic holdout. And what Democrats did was offer her a number of concessions. They agreed to remove the Carried Interest Provision. They added some drought funding, which was really important to her home state in Arizona. And they also added a one percent excise tax on stock buybacks.

[07:05:18] And so, with that, the final bill has taken shape, and includes a historic investment in climate and energy. As you mentioned, nearly $370 billion worth it's going to allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices. It's going to cap out of pocket costs for prescription drug prices at $2,000. And it's going to expand -- and these expiring Obamacare subsidies which we're expect, set to expire this fall. So, that was a huge priority for Democrats.

And look, I think it's important to remember that Democrats did have to scale back their ambitions quite significantly from where they started. But this is still a huge, significant victory. And it could be on President Joe Biden's desk by the end of next week. Phil and Amara.

MATTINGLY: Yes, it's a remarkable turn of events. Mel, I hope you have coffee, protein bars, whatever you need, we're going to have to send some up there.

ZANONA: We're ready.

MATTINGLY: It's going to be a long couple of days ahead. Melanie Zanona on Capitol Hill. Thanks so much.

Now, the White House is celebrating a blockbuster jobs report.

WALKER: Yes, the U.S. added more than a half a million jobs in July, defying fears that the economy had entered a recession.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're almost at 10 million jobs, almost at 10 million jobs since I took office. That's the fastest job growth in history. Today, there are more people working in America than before the pandemic began. In fact, there are more people working in America at any point in American history.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: CNN, Matt Egan breaks down those numbers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATT EGAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Amara and Phil, the American economy just hit a huge milestone, one that should quiet those recession fears, for now, at least.

In a huge surprise, hiring ramped up to 528,000 jobs in July. Not only is that double the consensus estimate, it's 200,000 jobs stronger than even the most optimistic forecaster has predicted. And after this blockbuster growth, payrolls have now returned to their February 2020 levels. That means all jobs lost during COVID have now been recovered. And the unemployment rate dropped to three and a half percent. To get a lower figure, you got to go back to 1969 when Richard Nixon was in the White House.

Now, these numbers seriously undercut the argument that the U.S. economy is already in recession. Yes, GDP contracted in back-to-back quarters to start this year. But no, economies that are in recession don't add half a million jobs in a single month. That doesn't mean there aren't obstacles ahead. Remember, the economy doesn't have a jobs problem. It has an inflation problem. And there's nothing about the July jobs report that changes the fact that consumer prices are rising at the fastest pace in 40 years.

In fact, this unexpected surge of hiring will only make it harder for the Federal Reserve to tame inflation. The Fed has been trying to slow the jobs market down to a more sustainable pace. Instead, the exact opposite has happened. Amara and Phil, all of this suggests the Fed may need to continue to aggressively raise interest rates in the month ahead. And the more the Fed does, the greater the risk it eventually slows the economy into a recession.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: Joining us now is Heidi Shierholz, the President of the Economic Policy Institute, she also served as the Chief Economist at the Department of Labor in President Obama's administration. And Heidi, I want to start with where Matt kind of finish. I'll dig in on the jobs report in a minute, but I think this is one of the big questions right now, given the dynamics. I think they're little bit fluid. We've seen some Democrats start to push back on how aggressive the Fed has been, but we saw the market response to a wow jobs report. Is it your sense that this new jobs' report is going to put new pressure on the Fed to be either as aggressive or even more aggressive in its next few meetings?

HEIDI SHIERHOLZ, PRESIDENT, ECONOMIC POLICY INSTITUTE: I hope not. One, one piece of good news is that the Fed isn't going to, they're not going to meet again until September, we'll get more data before they meet again, to really see the trends. So, I think that, it's good news that the Fed isn't saying meeting tomorrow, because then the very strong jobs report may have, may have had more influence than I think it should.

We did get a really strong jobs report. But the longer run trends are towards you know, we're seeing slowly, like there was an, there was an acceleration of wage growth in July. But if you look over the course of 2022, we see wage growth moderate.

So, it, even though this jobs report was very strong, it does show signs that we are seeing some moderation if you dig in, dig in one more layer. And so, I think it's good that the Fed isn't waiting until September. We'll get more data reads before that to give a clearer picture of what they need to move forward. And what I think, Phil, we'll see is that they do not need to take additional aggressive action to slow the economy down.

MATTINGLY: Can I ask, you know, one of the things -- I covered the White House in my day job, and we hear a lot about steady and stable growth, the transition they expected over the course of the next few months away from the really robust, gangbusters jobs numbers and economic growth of the recovery into a kind of a different phase. When you looked at this report, when you dig into the numbers, when, when you got the BLS released, what were you seeing in terms of whether or not that's actually happening below the top line? And how do you explain that to people right now?

SHIERHOLZ: Yes, so one thing -- if this gets a little bit wonky, but one thing that's true is when those numbers are released on the first Friday of every month, there's two surveys that come up, there's the establishment survey, where the Bureau of Labor Statistics, asked businesses: how many people you have on payroll? That is a huge survey. That's the one we put a lot of states in month to month.

And then there's another survey -- household survey -- where they asked individuals, are you working? If you're not working or you're looking for work. Those kinds of questions, and that's where we get the unemployment rate from. That the smaller (INAUDIBLE). We get an employment measure out of both of those surveys. And it's that establishment survey that we usually put more stake in that showing these very strong jobs numbers.

One, one, like rule of thumb, however, is that during inflection points in the economy, when things may be going from really strong growth to slowing down, like I believe we're in right now. The establishment survey, sometimes can be less reliable. So, in times like this, you want to put more weight on that household survey. And that household survey really shows moderating employment growth. So, I think that the whole picture is strong growth, but likely moderate.

MATTINGLY: So, you know, one of the questions like it's been a very odd semantic debate in Washington about whether it's a recession, what the meaning of a recession is, the NBR hasn't weighed in yet. So, we don't actually have a true ruling on this issue. But, but I do want to ask, you know, what's your sense right now, you have Fed officials, you've got Bank of England officials talking about globally and also domestically, a recession seems either inevitable, or very likely; Wall Street's obviously pushed up their expectations for one right now. This jobs report is confusing. It's a very weird economy right now. What's your sense of how the next six to 12 months play out?

SHIERHOLZ: I think that there's, there's very little doubt in my mind that we are not in a recession right now. So, I think the, and the jobs numbers that just came out really, really underscore that. This question, the real question is, whether we're going to move into a recession in coming months. I think we are undoubtedly going to see substantial moderation.

We already see some signs of that in the data that are coming out. And it remains an open question whether the Feds aggressive moves have already secured a recession in coming months. I hope that, that is not the case. But that is, you know, that's something that's on the table, given how aggressively they have moved.

MATTINGLY: Yes, and soft-landing sounds great in theory, a little bit harder in practice. Heidi Shierholz, really appreciate your expertise. Thanks so much.

SHIERHOLZ: Thank you for having me. WALKER: Indiana has become the first state to pass an abortion ban since Roe versus Wade was overturned. The bill would provide exceptions for when the life of the mother is at risk and for fatal fetal anomalies. It would also allow exceptions for some abortions if the pregnancy was a result of rape or incest. Now, Indiana currently allows abortions up to 20 weeks after fertilization. Protestors filled the halls of Indiana's state capitol as lawmakers voted on the measure. The new law goes into effect on September 15th.

Still to come this morning tensions at a tipping point between the U.S. and China as a Chinese embassy official warns Taiwan could push China into war with the U.S. That it could, it could push China into the war with the U.S. We'll have the latest reaction from Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

[07:14:14]

MATTINGLY: Plus, Appalachian history washed away. We'll hear from a group looking to preserve what they can as Eastern Kentucky braces for even more rain.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALKER: China is pushing back after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi made a stop in Taiwan on her trip to Asia this week.

MATTINGLY: China's foreign ministry issued new sanctions against Pelosi and China is almost halting cooperation with the U.S. on a variety of key issues including addressing climate change. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is calling those actions "irresponsible."

WALKER: CNN's Selina Wang has the latest now on the escalating tensions from Beijing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Rockets from China launched towards the Taiwan Strait. Chinese fighter jets approach the island. Beijing ramps up its intimidation of Taiwan over U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit. China says, it's staging a blockade around the island. On Thursday, Chinese state media reported missiles flew over Taiwan for the first time before falling into nearby waters. Beijing then announced it is suspending cooperation with the U.S. on key issues including talks between defense leaders and coordination over immigration, international crime, illegal drugs, and climate talks.

JUDE BLANCHETTE, FREEMAN CHAIR IN CHINA STUDIES, CSIS: -- as China is lobbing missiles all around Taiwan, they've, they've decided that they're going to cut off communications with the U.S., which just adds to the possibility of a miscommunication by, by either side.

WANG: The U.S. and China are blaming each other.

ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: China has chosen to overreact and use Speaker Pelosi's visit as a pretext to increase provocative military activity. There is no justification for this extreme, disproportionate, and escalatory military response.

[07:20:05]

HUA CHUNYING, CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESPERSON (through translation): The U.S. and some of its lackeys jumped out to accuse China of overreacting. If they really worry about the regional peace and stability, why didn't they send out earlier to prevent Pelosi from paying the provocative visit to Taiwan?

WANG: China flew an unprecedented number of fighter jets across the median line of the Taiwan Strait. PLA pilots said they were excited to get so close to the island.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When I overlook the coastline of the Taiwan Island, my determination to safeguard the territorial integrity of the motherland became more firm.

WANG: All of this rage just over a two day visit. Pelosi's presence in Taiwan, a slap in the face to Beijing, which insists the self-governed island is a rebel Chinese province. Pelosi is out of Taiwan but left a crisis behind her. Many in the region fear that Beijing's retaliation is just getting started.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: That was Selina Wang with that report. Heightened tensions in the region. Now, as the Justice Department's criminal probe into January 6th focuses on former President Trump's West Wing, CNN has learned his legal team is now in direct talks with DOJ officials.

WALKER: Yes, CNN Justice Correspondent Jessica Schneider takes a closer look at the former president's attempts to cloak conversations behind executive privilege.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Pressure continues to build on the Justice Department to charge Trump. At the same time prosecutors have ramped up their investigation in recent days, with subpoenas issued to several former top White House officials, all while CNN has exclusively learned Trump's legal team is in talks with DOJ officials about Trump wanting to shield the conversations he had as president from investigators.

REP. LIZ CHENEY (R-WY): I've been very clear. I think he's guilty of the most serious dereliction of duty of any president in our nation's history.

SCHNEIDER: In an exclusive interview with CNN's Casey Hunt, Liz Cheney indicating DOJ must indict if they uncover sufficient evidence.

CHENEY: We're going to continue to follow the facts. I think the Department of Justice will do that, but they have to make decisions about prosecution, understanding what it means if the facts and the evidence are there, and they decide not to prosecute. How do we then call ourselves a nation of laws? SCHNEIDER: The Attorney General has refused to divulge what prosecutors are planning.

MERRICK GARLAND, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: No person is above the law in this country. Nothing stops us.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Even if former president --

GARLAND: No, I don't know how to -- I'm going to say that again: no person is above the law in this country. I can't say it any more clearly than that.

SCHNEIDER: And sources tell CNN, Trump's legal defense team has warned him indictments are possible. While the former president has grilled his attorneys about whether they actually believe he will face formal charges. Trump's lawyers have even advised him to cut off ties with his former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, who has defied a subpoena from the January 6th committee.

Though, Trump and meadows have still spoken a number of times according to sources, sources also tell CNN the Justice Department is priming for a fight over executive privilege, which if they win, could open the door to revealing testimony from Trump's top aides.

DANIEL GOLDMAN, FORMER HOUSE IMPEACHMENT LEAD COUNSEL: Can the DOJ pierce that privilege by saying and perhaps go into court to get a ruling that Donald Trump's -- the conversations are misconduct and therefore not shielded by executive privilege?

SCHNEIDER: Trump's spokesperson firing back that Trump will fiercely fight any moves to strike down his executive privilege claims.

"How can any future president ever have private conversations with his attorneys, counselors and other senior advisors if any such advisor is forced either during or after the presidency in front of an unselect committee or other entity and be forced to reveal those privileged confidential discussions?"

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: And that was our Jessica Schneider reporting. And a quick programming note, watch this week's episode of "PATAGONIA: LIFE ON THE EDGE OF THE WORLD," tomorrow at 9:00. Here's a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Twice old man tree, old lady tree. Nuts are going to be gathered from you for food. Hoping there will be more next year, father.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Patagonia's forests are magical places. Here, age- old relationships between animals, people, and trees still survive. These bonds are needed like never before. As these ancient forests face unprecedented threats.

(END VIDEO CLIP) [07:25:05]

WALKER: Beautiful images. You can watch that tomorrow night at 9:00 right here on CNN. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALKER: It could take years to know the true impact of the historic flooding that ravaged the eastern part of Kentucky last week. In Whitesburg, employees of a cultural center that documents Appalachian life and traditions are working to preserve the one-of-a-kind items that were damaged in the storms. The fear is that photo collections, oral histories, and other historic records of Appalachia will be lost forever.

With me now is the Executive Director of Appalshop, Alex Gibson. Alex, good morning to you. And first off, I'm so sorry for what you've lost and what you're going through. Can you first start out with the damage that you understand happened at the Appalshop and what the recovery efforts will look like?

[07:30:09

ALEXANDER GIBSON, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, APPALSHOP: Yes. I think full recovery is going to take a long time. We just gained access to the building a couple of days ago. And so, we are just beginning serious restoration and recovery efforts.

Prioritizing the archival materials is there still sitting in the -- in the muck, but based on water lines in the building, and we have a 6'4" employee and it's about an inch above his head. So, you know, it was about 6'5" on average through the building.

WALKER: Yes.

GIBSON: You know, a 20 foot -- 20.9 feet of rain, when 15.7, I believe was the highest ever recorded back in 1957. So, we are prepared for flooding, but not seven feet above historic levels.

WALKER: Right.

GIBSON: It was an incredible amount of rain.

WALKER: Yes, that just seems unimaginable. I have to ask you about then, what was salvaged if anything? And before you go into that, could you talk a little bit about Appalshop for those of us who are not familiar with it? Because this is a cultural center that's been around for, what, 50-plus years. And it's really given Kentuckians a voice. And because it chronicles the history of Appalachia, and you know, some of the painful history as well.

GIBSON: Yes, yes. I think you described it very well. It started -- it started in 1969 as part of the war on poverty. And the idea was to give some young folks in different parts of the country cameras.

They were -- in 1969, you know, television equipment, film equipment was the most advanced equipment that we were making. And so, dropping those in different parts of the country, Appalshop was one that was chosen. In one of two rural places that were chosen, all the rest were urban.

Now, Appalshop and a film workshop in Chicago still exist of those original seven grantees. And since that time, as you said, Appalshops been telling difficult stories, nuanced stories about the identity of Appalachia, and its -- and its -- and its, and its -- the struggles.

So, for example, someone like me, I grew up in a very complicated relationship with Appalachia. I was the only black kid in my school. I didn't really identify with the region. I had a lot of hatred towards the region, because so much anxiety and conflict.

It took me going to college and being introduced to Appalshop films that help contextualize Appalachia for me and help me understand the systems and structures and the mentalities that go into a people who have so consistently been hurt by outsiders, by large government forces, by large companies, et cetera. And the flood is another example of that sort of suffering continuing.

WALKER: And just to familiarize myself with Whitesburg, I mean, I was looking on the city's web site and I mean, what a beautiful town nestled in the hills.

Before we go, talk to us about some of the archival material that Appalshop has lost, because the center stored more than 20,000 items, right?

GIBSON: Yes, an incredible amount of items. And we had -- we had instruments, we had paintings, we had drawings, with photographs, and film, film of all different types, you know. The entire history of film, and all the different formats.

And a lot of B-roll and beautiful images that never made a film that were, you know, how a chairmakers putting a chair together? A chair maker who's no longer alive and that chair as well; and tables, et cetera.

So, right now, I'm giving you an exact number of what's damaged is isn't possible, because restoration luckily is advanced so far that we're really working with some of the best people that we can have access to, to help us figure out exactly what is salvageable and what's not.

WALKER: Yes. Well, we hope you can salvage as much as possible, and sadly, this flooding -- this deadly historic flooding is now part of the history of that you continue to chronicle. Alex Gibson, appreciate your time this morning. Thank you so much.

GIBSON: Thank you so much.

[07:34:11]

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (on camera): It's a great conversation. Now, in an exclusive interview, Liz Cheney sits down with our Kasie Hunt. She faces a primary with an election denier in her home state of Wyoming.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALKER: Republican congresswoman and January 6 committee vice chair is facing a tough battle in Wyoming's GOP primary later this month.

MATTINGLY: Yes, to say the least, former President Trump made defeating Cheney a top, if not the top political priority of his after she voted to impeach him last year.

In an exclusive interview with our Kasie Hunt, Cheney says Trump has lied to and betrayed the nation. And she believes her voters will see that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR: We're here in Wyoming where you are facing a really tough primary in no small part because of the role that you've taken on in the January 6 hearings.

Do you expect to lose on August 16th?

REP. LIZ CHENEY (R-WY): No, I don't expect to lose. I'm working hard to earn every single vote. And ultimately, I really -- I believe that the people of Wyoming, you know, fundamentally understand how important fidelity to the Constitution is. Understand how important it is that, you know, we fight for those fundamental principles on which everything else is based.

So, I certainly --

(CROSSTALK)

HUNT: But if you do lose, what does that say about that belief?

[07:40:02]

CHENEY: Look, I think that this -- we're in a situation where former President Trump has betrayed the patriotism of millions and millions of people across our country, and many people here in Wyoming.

He's lied to them, and it is a really dangerous situation. And what I know to do is to tell the truth and to make sure that people understand the truth about what happened and why it matters so much.

HUNT: Why do voters here believe Donald Trump?

CHENEY: You know, I think that it's the same thing that you see, you know, for 10s of millions of people across the country. It's just consistent, lying about what happened about the election, playing on people's patriotism, and he's so dangerous that, you know, my view is that at the end of the day, if defending the Constitution, against the threat that he poses, means losing a House seat, then that's a sacrifice that I'm willing to make.

I don't intend to lose. But some things are more important than any individual office or political campaign.

HUNT: So, the period, August 17th, to November of 2024, when it's very possible, Donald Trump could be the nominee -- the Republican nominee for president of the United States. What is Liz Cheney doing every day during that periods?

CHENEY: Look, I'm focused right now on August 16, and on my primary race here. And --

(CROSSTALK)

HUNT: But surely you've thought about it?

CHENEY: Well, look, I mean, I am very focused on my primary race. But again, you know, my work on the January 6 committee, the work that we've been able to do, I think, to help make sure people understand the truth about what happened. That's work that certainly will continue.

And, you know, I intend to continue to be very involved and engaged again, no matter what happens in these issues that are so fundamental to, I believe, the survival of our republic.

HUNT: You've said repeatedly in interviews that you'll make a decision about whether you're going to run for president in 2024 down the line, which makes sense.

But the former President Donald Trump, there's reporting that he could announce he's -- in a matter of weeks, he could announce that he's running for president before the midterm elections.

How dangerous is it? Or how dangerous would it be to have former President Trump out there as the only voice campaigning for the Republican nomination? Would he need someone to stand up and oppose him?

CHENEY: Look, I think that he cannot be our nominee. And he certainly cannot ever be elected president again. And I think that I know that there are many, many Republicans who feel that way all across the country.

And, you know, whatever is necessary to make sure that he is not the nominee, and certainly that he's not elected. There are many of us who are going to fight to do everything necessary.

Because the prospect of him -- we know what he'll do. We know what he's willing and capable of, and he did it. And so, we can't ever let that happen again.

HUNT: Do you think there's anyone out there capable of beating Donald Trump for the Republican nomination?

CHENEY: I think so. But, I think that it's going to require Republicans to tell the truth. And it's going to require Republicans to stand up and say, no more. We're not going to do this anymore. We're not going to embrace this lie, we're not going to embrace this very dangerous man.

And, you know, I am hopeful that you will see more Republicans do that. That certainly I intend to be a big part of making sure that we protect the nation from the threat that he poses.

HUNT: What goes through your mind when you see election deniers get elected to important posts that could influence our next election, like the Arizona secretary of state, for example?

CHENEY: I don't think anybody should vote for any election denier. And I think that we have to do everything we can to make sure that people who say that you know, that they will support, you know, Donald Trump, no matter what the electoral count, actually is, next time, people who have bought into the big lie, that's a toxin to our democratic system. And I don't think anybody should support those people.

HUNT: How do we stop it if these people get elected?

CHENEY: Well, I think we have to make sure they don't, I think we have to make sure that, you know, we come together and form alliances across party lines, to make sure that the people that we are electing are not going to unravel the Republic.

And I think that's going to be a particular issue in '22, and certainly it will be again in '24.

HUNT: Speaking of that, Democrats spent a whole bunch of money trying to unseat Congressman Peter Meijer of Michigan who voted to impeach the former president. What do you think of that effort?

CHENEY: I think that was -- that was terrible. I think that, you know, Peter Meijer was one of 10 of us who stood up, who voted to impeach President Trump, who did it based on facts and evidence.

[07:45:02]

And I think that all of us, again, across party lines have got to make sure that we are supporting people who believe fundamentally in our democratic system.

And so, I think that it's, you know, it's inexplicable and wrong for the Democrats to be funding election deniers, particularly against one of the 10 Republicans, who so bravely stood up and did the right thing.

HUNT: Considering your past political career, your family, I mean, do you find it to be strange bedfellows to be working with Democrats the way you have on the committee across party lines when you've encouraged Democrats to vote here in Wyoming for you?

CHENEY: Well, I think there are separate things. I think that, certainly, when you look at what's happening on the select committee, you look what's happening in Congress, it is weird. It's, you know, I did not anticipate certainly that, you know, any of the things that have happened since January 6th would happen.

I think it's been a really important experience. And I think it's been really important, both, and mostly because of the work we've been able to do together for the country.

And I think it's been an important experience working together. And we talk about the fact that on our committee, you know, we don't have people that are politically grandstanding, or trying to score cheap shots, that we're very focused on the substance.

And we have vastly different views of many of the issues that the country is facing. But we're allies in terms of, you know, the fundamental constitutional issues.

And here in Wyoming, we know, we have same day registration, it is the right of people to register whatever party they want to register as.

And my message is one for all Wyomingites, I represent every single person in this state. And I believe that there are 1000s and 1000s of people across our state who fundamentally understand why it's so important to have somebody who's going to abide by her oath of office.

(CROSSTALK)

HUNT: They might be Democrats who would vote for a Cheney.

CHENEY: Yes.

HUNT: Pretty remarkable. You said in your Reagan Library speech, men are running the world, and it's really not going all that well. Do you think voters here in the U.S. are ready for a woman to run things?

CHENEY: Sure. Look, I think that one of the things that has been very moving for me over the course of the last year and a half has been the reaction of women.

And not just the women who've testified, although, you know, we've seen the incredible bravery of people like Cassidy Hutchinson and Sarah Matthews, and Ruby Freeman, and Shaye Moss, and Caroline Edwards. It takes real bravery to stand up and tell the truth, as those women have. And I think that's been really important.

HUNT: Based on that, you think your -- you think your father -- does Dick Cheney want Liz Cheney to run for president in 2024?

CHENEY: Dick Cheney is a big Liz Cheney supporter -- he said.

HUNT: Is he encouraging you to run?

CHENEY: Listen, I talked to him every day about many things. And certainly, you know, his concern, look like I am right now. He's really focused on this moment. And on what's happening and on --

Both of us have just this real sadness, frankly, about what's happening to our party. And a real despair about how could it be that so many Republicans would refuse to stand up and tell the truth, and it is a scary moment for the nation.

HUNT: Or just like the record to reflect that you did not say that Dick Cheney is not telling you to run for president in 2024.

Liz Cheney, thank you very much.

CHENEY: Thank you, Kasie.

HUNT: I really appreciate your time.

CHENEY: Great to be with you. Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: A fascinating interview there.

All right, developing in Israel, the IDF extending its operation against Islamic Jihad into the West Bank with raids overnight as airstrikes continue into Gaza.

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[07:50:12]

MATTINGLY: Overnight, Israel said it launched more airstrikes into Gaza, hitting several targets. Now, this follows Friday's airstrikes which Israel claimed were to prevent a terrorist attack.

WALKER: At least, 11 people were reportedly killed in the airstrikes, including a 5-year-old girl. Islamic Jihad retaliated by firing rockets back at Israel.

Neri Zilber, joining us now live from southern Israel with the latest developments. Neri.

NERI ZILBER, JOURNALIST AND ADJUNCT FELLOW, THE WASHINGTON INSTITUTE: That's right. Coming to you from the city of Sderot, in southern Israel on the --on the border with the Gaza Strip.

And if the past hour, is any indication that things are escalating, we've seen just in the past hour, four rocket launchers from just behind us being intercepted overhead by the Iron Dome battery right behind the city of Sderot.

During the course of this past afternoon, we've also seen Islamic Jihad extend the range of its rocket fire to central Israel, again, something that hadn't done since yesterday evening.

And then going the other way, Israeli airstrikes continue to hammer Islamic Jihad inside the Gaza Strip. Israel said it's targeting rocket launching crews and other military sites.

Really, over the past day we've seen a renewed hostilities between Israel and this Gaza-based militant group.

Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid said he will be convening the security Cabinet later this evening to assess where all this is heading. And Islamic Jihad told CNN earlier this morning, that no ceasefire really was on the horizon anytime soon, and that its group would continue the battle and to take the battle to Israel.

As you mentioned, the worst hostilities really, I think, since May 2021. That war lasted 11 days between Israel and the Hamas militant group. In the Gaza Strip, Hamas, the bigger and stronger militant group.

[07:55:01]

If there's any silver lining over the past day or so with these renewed hostilities, it's the fact that Hamas so far hasn't gotten involved.

WALKER: All right, Neri Zilber, we'll be watching this closely with you. Thank you for that.

And coming up in our next hour, it has taken over a year to get it on the floor. Well, now, lawmakers are gearing up for a marathon session on Capitol Hill over the infrastructure reduction act or inflation -- I should say, Inflation Reduction Act.

What this could mean for millions of Americans. That's next.

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[08:00:00]

WALKER: Good morning, everyone. And welcome to your NEW DAY. I'm Amara Walker.

MATTINGLY: And I'm Phil Mattingly.

And it is a crucial day on Capitol Hill here in Washington. Democrats were getting ready to advance President Biden's massive economic and climate bill.