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High-Profile Democrats Urge Biden To Exit Race As He Stays Firmly In; Biden Busy At NATO Summit And Under Scrutiny Amid Campaign Crisis; Trump Weighs In On Potential V.P. Picks As GOP Convention Nears; 2020 Trump Fake Electors Tapped As GOP Convention Delegates; Deadly Israeli Strike Hits As Displaced Gazans Watch Soccer Match. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired July 10, 2024 - 18:00   ET

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

[18:00:00]

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Happening now, actor and mega donor George Clooney tops an expanding list of high-profile Democrats urging President Biden to stand down from his re-election bid. The Biden camp says there is zero chance of that happening despite the building anxiety within the Democratic Party.

Tonight, President Biden is busy hosting NATO leaders as the crisis surrounding his campaign threatens to overshadow the summit and the urgent international issues on the agenda. I'll ask key White House official John Kirby about the global scrutiny of the president and the challenges he's facing right now.

Plus, Donald Trump is offering a potential clue about his choice of a running mate with the Republican National Convention now only five days away. Trump revealing he has an issue, his words, an issue with one vice presidential contender.

Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in The Situation Room.

We begin this hour with very fast moving developments as more Democrats are now pressuring President Biden to end his re-election bid. The actor, George Clooney, dropping his bombshell call for the president to step aside, and that's only intensifying the angst among Democrats in Congress who are publicly sounding the alarm.

CNN's Manu Raju is standing by for us up on Capitol Hill. But, first, let's go to CNN's Kayla Tausche. She reports on the president facing these new defections as he hosts the NATO summit.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAYLA TAUSCHE, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice over): With world leaders at hand, President Biden eager to get back to business as usual.

JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: Stronger supply chains, stronger economy, stronger military and a stronger nation. TAUSCHE: And the White House wants to move on from speculation about the president's political future. But for Democrats, the domino effect continues. Actor George Clooney penning an op-ed in the New York Times calling on Biden to step aside, writing, it's devastating to say it, but the Joe Biden I was with three weeks ago at the fundraiser was not the Joe big F-ing deal Biden of 2010. He wasn't even the Joe Biden of 2020. Filmmaker Rob Reiner joining Clooney writing on X democracy is facing an existential threat. We need someone younger to fight back. Joe Biden must step aside, and House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi noncommittal.

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): It's up to the president to decide if he is going to run. We're all encouraging him to make that decision because time is running short.

TAUSCHE: And Colorado Senator Michael Bennet on CNN became the first Senate Democrat to break with Biden publicly, Bennet calling the state of the race very worrisome.

SEN. MICHAEL BENNET (D-CO): Donald Trump is on track, I think, to win this election and maybe win it by a landslide. And the White House in the time since that disastrous debate, I think, has done nothing to really demonstrate that they have a plan to win this election.

An adviser to the president said few in Biden's inner circle are concerned enough to pierce Biden's firm position, only family could do that, and only if there's hard data. The adviser telling CNN of his wife and sister, Jill and Valerie won't let him go down in flames.

Since the debate, CNN's poll of polls shows Trump leading Biden by five points, the first time this year the candidates are separated by a margin of more than three points. And some donors planning events in Chicago and Florida say they're now up in the air.

But for Biden, it's full steam ahead for now.

BIDEN: Every NATO member is committed to doing their part to keep the alliance strong.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TAUSCHE: And Biden aides point to a grueling travel schedule across battleground states in the coming weeks, as well as several high- profile fundraisers in Texas and Bennet's home state of Colorado, as well as two in California as proof that President Biden is not going anywhere.

But all eyes in the party are on a high-stakes press conference. President Biden will be helming solo tomorrow evening. Wolf?

BLITZER: Kayla, I want you to stand by as we bring in CNN's Manu Raju up on Capitol Hill. He's got some breaking news. Manu, Republicans, I take it, are now piling on with the House Oversight Committee issuing subpoenas related to the president's health.

[18:05:06] What's going on?

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, three White House aides have now been hit with a subpoena from the House Oversight Committee. The Republican-led committee calling on those aides to come and be deposed behind closed doors and accusing them of what they're saying is, quote, running interference to try to cover up President Biden's cognitive state.

Now, the White House fired back and called this all a political stunt. But this is all part of an effort, of course, by the chairman of the committee, James Comer, to target the president. He's tried to go over questions about his ability to run the country. They've pushed for an interview with the president's physician as well, have not gone that, in addition to that. So, we'll see, Wolf, how they ultimately decide to respond and what the Republicans do if the White House decides to defy those subpoenas.

BLITZER: And amidst all of this, Manu, as you know, we've seen more Democratic lawmakers express doubts about President Biden. Update us on that.

RAJU: Yes. There's an eighth Democrat now who has come out and called publicly for Joe Biden to step aside and no longer be a candidate for president. That congressman, Pat Ryan of New York, was someone who represents a swing district. In fact, most of the concerns that have been voiced by members of Congress represent those either swing districts in the House or swing states in the Senate concerned that they're seeing from the polling that some of their voters who may come to the Democratic side are now going to the Republican side in the aftermath of the debate performance and concerns about Joe Biden at the top of the ticket.

This all comes as the White House is trying to tamp down those concerns, as the Biden campaign is as well. Tomorrow afternoon on the Senate side of the Capitol, there will be a briefing, a key briefing where members of the campaign will come and try to answer the many concerns that Democratic senators are raising behind the scenes, concerned about whether Joe Biden can actually keep the White House and whether he may go down and bring down their chances of keeping control of Congress as well.

And talking to Democratic senators today, they're making clear that they need the campaign to do more to alleviate those concerns.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: Do you think there should be a change at the top of the ticket?

SEN. RAPHAEL WARNOCK (D-GA): I think that I've already stated that I support the president, very proud of the work that we've been able to do together. But there is a conversation that's clearly happening, right, in the public. And part of the process of democracy is you listen, which the president is doing, and responding in kind.

RAJU: But, I mean, you have to be concerned about his viability, aren't you?

SEN. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (D-CT): I am deeply concerned about Joe Biden winning this November because it is an existential threat to the country if Donald Trump wins. So, I think that we have to reach a conclusion as soon as possible.

RAJU: Do you think Joe Biden is going to cause --

SEN. SHERROD BROWN (D-OH): I'm hearing similar concerns from Ohio voters. My job is to listen to them. My job is to go to hearings like this, to fight for lower drug prices, to fight for workers.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: And that last comment coming from Sherrod Brown, who is an Ohio Democrat and one of three Democrats who went behind the scenes yesterday in a closed door meeting and said that Joe Biden will lose, believe that Joe Biden was going to lose in November. Another vulnerable Democrat, Jon Tester, also echoed those concerns behind closed doors. Neither of them would say so publicly. A third member, though, did, Michael Bennet of Colorado, who is not up for re election this year.

But, Wolf, I can tell you, in talking to Democratic senators, they may not want to say it publicly, but privately, there are those fears that Joe Biden could bring them down with him at the top of the ticket. Wolf?

BLITZER: Manu Raju reporting from Capitol Hill, Kayla Tausche over at the White House, thanks to both of you.

Meanwhile, there's breaking news right now. We're getting a look at President Biden's first in-person meeting with the new British prime minister, Keir Starmer, the bilateral talks happening at the White House on this, the sidelines of the NATO summit that's unfolding here in Washington. Let's listen to this tape that's just coming in. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BIDEN: By the way, I heard --

REPORTER: Good news.

BIDEN: Good news is right. I tell you what, that's all because of the prime minister.

KEIR STARMER, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: Not lost a game on to the Labour government.

REPORTER: (INAUDIBLE)?

STARMER: It looks like it.

BIDEN: Well, welcome. And it's good that we had a long conversation on the phone when you won. Give me your hand there, pal. And we're the best of allies in the whole world. And we really need to continue to cooperate and a lot we can talk about. And I think that start off, we can talk about what we call football, what we call soccer.

[18:10:00]

By the way, you know soccer has become incredibly popular here in the United States. It really is growing. But at any rate, there's a lot going on. I think you're seeking closer ties in Europe. It's good for all of us, the transatlantic alliance. I think it's a great idea that we're going to be working together on.

I thought we had a good meeting today in NATO.

STARMER: Very good.

BIDEN: I thought we had a good meeting. And I think things are moving in the right direction. I'm feeling really optimistic about the way things are moving. Welcome, welcome, welcome.

STARMER: Thank you very much, Mr. President. And, firstly, congratulations on a really successful summit. It's been an incredibly important moment, 75 years of bigger NATO, a stronger NATO, and a NATO with the results that we need. I thought the medal, the honor for Jens Stoltenberg yesterday was a very special moment. I don't think he was expecting it.

BIDEN: No, he wasn't. He was leaving. And I intervened when he was going to leave. And I sort of got my knees and begged him to say, no, I'm only kidding. But he said, I talked him into staying. His wife still talked to me. She spoke to me yesterday.

STARMER: I had lunch with him when he was just about to go to the Central Bank. I must say, I'm free. And then you spoke to him. And he's still in the job.

BIDEN: He's done a great job. He's done a great job.

STARMER: But the special relationship is so important. It's forged in difficult circumstances, endured for so long and stronger now than ever. So, we're very pleased to be able to come so early, the government, to recommit to NATO, to recommit to the special relationship and to have the opportunity to discuss these affairs with you is really important.

BIDEN: Well, speaking of (INAUDIBLE), I kind of see you guys as the knot tying the transatlantic alliance together. The closer you are with Europe, the more you're engaged, the more -- because we know where you are, and we know what we are. (INAUDIBLE).

STARMER: No, I think that's absolutely right. And now we go into a cup final on Sunday, on top of all of that. I actually watched the -- I began to watch the game with the Netherlands prime minister, but we left one on.

BIDEN: Well, you guys are still talking about it?

STARMER: No, we haven't seen each other since, so we'll have to see.

BIDEN: Anyway, well, we got a lot to talk about. Thank you all for coming.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: As you can see, the President of the United States in the Oval Office with the new British prime minister, Keir Starmer, ignoring shouted questions from the reporters who are there.

I want to discuss what's going on right now with our political experts. And, John King, as you know, President Biden has already said repeatedly that he's staying in this race, he's not leaving. So, why are so many Democrats now suggesting he should drop out?

JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Because they want him to reconsider because they're looking at the data. And the White House keeps saying things are leveling off or things will level off. I'm talking to people all day, asking, have you seen any of this data, and they say no to the contrary.

You have an incumbent president who was in trouble before the debate, struggling before the debate. Don't lose that fact, struggling before the debate, with an approval rating in the mid 30s, almost impossible for an incumbent to get re elected with numbers like that. The numbers have gone down since. It's not about the past. He keeps talking about the past. Democrats are grateful for what he has done, first kicking Donald Trump out of the White House, and then the legislative achievements.

But the American people, the voters, disapprove of his handling of the job, and now have even more doubts that he's up to it for four and a half more years. And the combination of that, Democrats are convinced means he will lose, and he will lose by a margin that will definitely cost them the Senate and most likely kill their chances of taking back the House. And they say the data was overwhelming and they keep looking for, you know, silver linings in it and they can't find it and they're hoping he reconsiders. He is, you know, defiantly saying no, but they keep trying.

Former Speaker Pelosi today, that's as close a nudge as you can get to saying, just please change your mind. She essentially said, please change your mind without saying it.

GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: She said, let's give him time. And he had answered the question, right?

BLITZER: Repeatedly.

BORGER: Repeatedly answered the question. And she said, well, let's give him time because she wants to give him time, presumably to reconsider. I mean, it seemed very clear to anybody listening.

KING: Right. And you know how much she loves him and how loyal she is to him. This is not an accident. She has seen the data. And she knows a lot of her members, former members, she's not the speaker anymore, but she's still a senior Democrat, a lot of them can't say it. So, there's kind of couching what they're saying. She's trying to say it for them.

BORGER: The question is, would she say it directly to him?

BLITZER: Meghan, let me read to you what the Democratic mega donor, George Clooney, wrote in this op-ed, very critical piece about this 2024 presidential contest.

[18:15:03]

This is a direct quote. We are not going to win in November with this president. On top of that, we won't win the House and we're going to lose the Senate. This isn't only my opinion, this is the opinion of every senator and Congress member and governor that I've spoken with in private, every single one, irrespective of what he or she is saying publicly.

How much do statements like that, do you think, eventually wind up impacting the president of the United States?

MEGHAN HAYS, DNC CONVENTION CONSULTANT: So, I think that they impact the apparatus around him, and the donors, and the electorate, but I don't actually think they impact him. I think that his family impacts him, the people around him, but the president has said he is not going to step down or step aside, so I'm not sure that he's going to do that.

I think that one thing to look at here is George Clooney is not voting in Michigan. I don't know the last time he's been to Michigan. He is not a member of the union. None of the unions have said for the president to step aside. And those are the people who really matter in these battleground states. So, I think we need to take in context. Yes, it's important that these donors are saying this and their opinion is important as well, but I also think we need to look at where this election is going to be won in these battleground states. And we need to look at those people and how they're impacted.

BORGER: But what was so stunning about this op-ed was that George Clooney is somebody who just hosted this fundraiser for Joe Biden and made the point of saying this isn't the Joe Biden I knew in 2010. This isn't the Joe Biden I knew even in 2020. And so it was heartbreaking to read. And you could tell that it came from a place of real sorrow. And, you know, it was very direct, which is we're going to lose. We're going to lose if we stick with this man whom he said he loves.

BLITZER: Only a few weeks ago, he hosted a Democratic fundraiser for the president out in Los Angeles.

Alyssa Farah Griffin is with us as well. You're someone who's spoken out against the nominee for your party's presidential ticket, Alyssa. Why do you say -- what do you say to those Democrats out there who are on the fence now about doing that?

ALYSSA FARAH GRIFFIN, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Listen, I think that it Democrats are undermining their own true message that Donald Trump is an existential threat to democracy by not considering putting up someone more competitive to defeat him. Fundamentally, I mean, I saw it with myself when I spoke out against Trump. It is much easier for career politicians to protect their ambitions to stay in office, to not get crosswise with those in power. But the reality is the data here is overwhelming. In the very battleground states that Joe Biden needs to win, he is losing to Donald Trump outside of the margin of error four months out. There is not a historic example that we can point to in modern history of someone overcoming the hurdle that he's facing right now.

So, Democrats need to have a real come to Jesus moment of, do we actually believe and mean what we've been saying that Donald Trump is such a threat and that we're risking the house, the Senate by extension, the Supreme Court and the White House by keeping Joe Biden on the ticket at this point?

BLITZER: It's interesting, John King, the House leader, Hakeem Jeffries, is telling his colleagues he will relay their concerns directly to the president, his concerns about the 2024 race. How significant, potentially, could that be?

KING: Hakeem Jeffries asking the president to leave the race would be more significant if he would actually say, Mr. President, I stood with you after the debate. I stood with you for -- it's been 13 days now. I tried to stay with you. The data is overwhelming and the incoming from my members is overwhelming. He's not at that point. There's no evidence he's going to get to that point.

But just relaying the concerns from dozens, George Clooney is right in the sense -- I did speak to -- I don't know who he spoke to, but every Democrat I've spoken to privately, even though it's publicly saying with Joe Biden, look at the data, Wolf, and say, you know, it's never been. Now, who knows if the rules apply, right? You have an incumbent president running against a former president. That's never happened in our lifetime. But he is behind in six or seven of the battleground states. He's behind around the margin of error or outside the margin of error. His approval rating is low. Doubts about him are high. Doubts about the economy are still there. You know, and the president hasn't been able to change that data.

So, Hakeem Jeffries going down and saying, you know, all of my frontline members who are in those districts where they need you to help pull them across the finish line, they don't think you're pulling them across anymore. They think you're dragging them down. Will that convince the president? You hear our White House reporters. They keep saying it's family. But I can tell you, the distrust, the anger at the president's inner circle is off the charts. Because they say, if Joe Biden is up for the next four years, why aren't those people on television? Why isn't the president's doctor on television? Why aren't the people who are as close as we are right at this table to Joe Biden, 15, 16, 18 hours a day on the big days, why aren't they going on television and explaining the days? They think there's a reason they're not.

BORGER: You know, the only reservation that I hear from some Democrats is that this would be messy, right, that it's not easy to change candidates four months before an election.

KING: It's not.

BORGER: And what would that, and what would that turn into, and how would that play itself out? I mean, we don't know the answer. There have been lots of proposals about having debates, collegial debates, or anointing Kamala Harris, or whatever. But that is a concern. But when I say how much of a concern, not as much of a concern as losing the Congress and losing the White House.

[18:20:05]

That is the bigger concern. And there's a sense that we're smart people, we can work that out.

KING: In their view, it's definitely lose versus maybe lose.

BORGER: Maybe lose, right.

KING: Or take the maybe, take the chance.

BLITZER: Because we know the stakes right now are enormous, as we always say. All right, guys, thank you very, very much.

And just ahead, do Democrats think that there is any actual chance of persuading President Biden to exit the race? I'll ask one of the House members publicly urging him to step aside. Congressman Adam Smith is standing by live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: On Capitol Hill tonight, the number of House Democrats calling for President Biden to exit the race for the White House is now up to eight.

We're joined now by one of those lawmakers, Congressman Adam Smith of Washington State. Congressman, thanks for joining us. As you probably heard, the House minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries, is telling your fellow Democrats he will relay the concerns he's hearing from members like you directly to President Biden. Is this a moment that could potentially convince the president to step aside?

[18:25:00]

REP. ADAM SMITH (D-WA): So, I think you're going to see a big shift at the end of this week. And one of the things that hasn't been that widely reported is there was a sentiment amongst some that we should get through the NATO summit before we have this conversation.

But, look, John King said it a few moments ago as well as I can, that the data is undeniable. We are in a deep, deep hole. And furthermore, given the president's limitations on the debate stage, on the campaign trail, he's not in a position to dig out of this hole. We have a clear choice. We can either head towards near certain defeat, or we can choose a different path and give ourselves a chance to be successful in November. BLITZER: But only 8 of the more than 200 House Democrats, as you know, Congressman, have publicly called on the president to step aside. That's a relatively small number, 8 out of more than 200.

SMITH: Yes. But I think people are misreading the data, okay? I think that if you wanted to ask, if you were to do a blind poll, frankly, of Democrats all across the country, because that's what's a part of this story that I don't think is widely reported, I'm hearing from Democrats back home. From the moment I made my statement, I can't even count the emails, the texts, the phone calls from people saying, thank God, somebody had to say something. We have to do something about this. So, if you add up all the Democrats I would conservatively say 80, probably close to 90 percent of them want to see us have a different candidate.

But do they want to say so publicly? That's a different thing. Some people have had trouble doing that. Some have felt like, well, gosh, if he's going to run anyway, what choice do we have? We have a choice. He is the presumptive nominee, not the nominee. And until he is, given the level of a disaster that we're headed towards, we have to speak up. And people are getting there. I just hope they get there fast enough.

BLITZER: The former House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, says President Biden needs to decide whether he's going to stay in the race. But as you know, President Biden has repeatedly in recent days insisted he is staying in the race, that he's running. So, what's the message she's trying to send here?

SMITH: Well, I think it would be the absolute height of irresponsibility for President Biden, that his advisers, and, by the way, I got to say his family, like keep family out of it, but the family are apparently a key part of his advisers. It would be the height of irresponsibility to not take seriously.

Their message, shut up and move on, the American people aren't going to move on. The polls show that 80 percent of the American people think he shouldn't run. You can't overcome that. You can't. It's an utter impossibility. You owe us to consider this.

I've never personally been that close to Joe Biden. There's nothing in particular. It just hasn't happened. So, I don't know his particular thinking. But come on, I mean, you have been a great president, you have been a great leader, you stepped up and saved the country from Donald Trump in 2020. Don't let this be your legacy, that you refused to step down and got him back in the White House. Don't do that.

BLITZER: The Democratic senator, Michael Bennet, of Colorado warned that Democrats are on track to lose in a landslide in the election, along with losing the House and the Senate if President Biden remains the nominee. Do you agree with him?

SMITH: Yes. I mean, look, the future, as I like to say, is notoriously hard to predict. I don't like to say absolutes, but as the numbers look right now, the one absolute I will give you, if we had a different nominee, we would have a far greater chance of being successful. No guarantees, but it would be better.

And, by the way, on the process, it's not that hard. We've got the delegates. The delegates would pick a different candidate. The idea that we don't have the talent in the Democratic Party, that we're in some situation where Joe Biden is the only person in the world that could do this job, is ridiculous. We've got a ton of talent.

And, furthermore, the American people have been screaming for two years, give us a different choice. If the Democratic Party gives them that different choice at this point, the boost we would get from that, would be unbelievable. This is a great opportunity. And I'm just doing everything I can to try to make sure that we don't miss it.

BLITZER: Congressman Adam Smith of Washington State, thanks very much for joining us.

SMITH: Thanks, Wolf.

BLITZER: And coming up, Donald Trump says he has an issue with one of his top vice presidential contenders. That's coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:33:42]

BLITZER: Tonight, Donald Trump is keeping the suspense going about his choice for a vice presidential running mate with only five days to go before the Republican convention in Milwaukee.

CNN's Kristen Holmes has the latest on all of that for us. Kristen, the former president is weighing in on his V.P. contenders.

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: He is, Wolf, and it's not all positive. As we have been reporting, there are three people who have really been at the top of the list for the last several weeks. That's North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, Senator Marco Rubio of Florida and Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio.

Now, behind the scenes, Donald Trump has privately talked about Burgum's near ban, near total ban on abortion in his home state of North Dakota, saying that it could be an issue. We also know that advocates of Rubio's and Vance have seized on that, saying that they don't want that issue to be back in the spotlight. As we know, obviously, Donald Trump himself has tried to shy away from that when it comes to campaigning on the issue. However, now we are hearing Donald Trump weigh in on it publicly. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT, 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's a little bit of an issue. It's a pretty strong ban. You know, I think Doug is great. But it is a strong -- he's taken a very strong stance or the state has.

(END VIDEO CLIP) HOLMES: And, obviously, it was Burgum who took that stance. Now, he had some praise for Senator J.D. Vance after reports that he didn't like his facial hair, he said that he actually did like it.

[18:35:01]

It made him look like a young Abraham Lincoln. And when it came to Rubio, he talked about that residency issue, both of them being from Florida, saying it does make things more complicated, but that it was easily fixed. Still no word on when that announcement is coming or who that pick is going to be, but, Wolf, he has until Monday to make up his mind.

BLITZER: We'll see what he decides. Kristen Holmes reporting for us, thank you very much.

I want to get back to the Biden campaign now and the defection of a very famous Democrat. Brian Todd is working the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A stunning rebuke of the president from a star actor who raised $28 million at a fundraiser for Joe Biden less than a month ago. George Clooney writing in a New York Times op-ed, quote, we are not going to win in November with this president. Analysts say it's significantly damaging to Biden because Clooney is more than a celebrity endorser.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: He is someone who has spent time with President Joe Biden. George Clooney is someone who has long trafficked in Democratic circles. He's someone who consistently is a solid fundraiser for Democrats and contributes to Democratic campaigns. And he's known the world over.

TODD: Filmmaker and actor Rob Reiner also called today for Biden to step out of the race. Actor Michael Douglas said this about Biden on ABC's The View.

MICHAEL DOUGLAS, ACTOR: I'm deeply, deeply concerned. I mean, especially it's difficult because the Democrats have a big bench.

TODD: It's called into question whether some other major celebrities, people who can move votes, like Taylor Swift, will be weighing in one way or another. Swift endorsed Joe Biden in 2020.

MARC MALKIN, SENIOR EDITOR, VARIETY: I would be surprised if she dipped her toe in to say that Joe Biden should leave the race. Whether or not she endorses Joe Biden right now, that's, of course, a huge question, especially after the debate.

TODD: Historically, it's Democrats who many of Hollywood's biggest players have gravitated to for decades, with endorsements, money, or simple cache.

MALKIN: Go back to, obviously, JFK and Frank Sinatra, Marilyn Monroe. You look at Obama, you know, he had Oprah Winfrey, Beyonce, Jay Z, you had Bill Clinton, Barbra Streisand. I remember Melissa Etheridge was a big Bill Clinton supporter.

TODD: The Obamas were such magnets for celebrities that stars like Mariah Carey and Denzel Washington came to their inaugural balls. Beyonce sang the national anthem at Barack Obama's second inauguration. And videos were posted on social media showing the Obamas dancing at a Beyonce and Jay Z concert in 2018.

Sometimes, the celebrity endorsement has lapsed into the downright bizarre, like when Mitt Romney supporter Clint Eastwood, at the 2012 Republican convention, spoke to a chair who he pretended was Barack Obama.

CLINT EASTWOOD, ACTOR: What do you want me to tell Romney? I can't tell him to do that, can't do that to himself.

TODD: Republicans Ronald Reagan and Arnold Schwarzenegger came from Hollywood to win major office and were attractive to celebrity endorsers. Donald Trump, despite his previous success on The Apprentice, has received mostly support from non-A list celebrities, like Dennis Quaid, Roseanne Barr, and Scott Baio.

MALKIN: With Donald Trump, there's only one celebrity that matters, and that's Donald Trump.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD: Marc Malkin from Variety points out sometimes celebrity involvement in politics can backfire on the celebrity. Robert De Niro, he says, has gotten some serious brushback for speaking out so forcefully against Donald Trump. Wolf?

BLITZER: Very interesting. Brian Todd, thank you very, very much. And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:42:09]

BLITZER: President Biden is preparing to host a dinner for NATO leaders tonight as he faces intense scrutiny worldwide, as well as pressure right here at home to quit the 2024 presidential race.

And joining me now from the NATO summit here in Washington, D.C., the White House National Security communications adviser, John Kirby. John, thanks very much for joining us.

How do you accomplish what you need to at this really historic summit when the real concerns over the president's fitness seem to be overshadowing the substance?

JOHN KIRBY, WHITE HOUSE NATIONAL SECURITY COMMUNICATIONS ADVISER: I don't believe that it is overshadowing the substance. Not at all, Wolf. The conversations that we've been having here at the NATO summit are about the future of the alliance, and supporting Ukraine, making sure that we can stand up to Putin's aggression, making sure that we're putting in place across our alliance defense industrial base capability to really meet the burden-sharing demands of the alliance writ large. We're focused on the next 75 years of this alliance. Those are the conversations that the president has been having with his counterparts today.

BLITZER: Ahead of the 2024 U.S. presidential election, President Zelenskyy, as you know, said, and I'm quoting him now, everyone is waiting for November, including Putin. When Putin sees Biden in political crisis and a possible Trump re-election on the horizon, what do you think goes through his mind?

KIRBY: I can't begin to even want to get between the years of Vladimir Putin given the sick, twisted way now that he continues to punish the Ukrainian people. I would just say this, Wolf, Mr. Putin has proven in the past and we have every expectation, as the director of National Intelligence said yesterday, to expect that he's going to try to interfere in our democracy now and in the future, that he wants to sow discord and disunion here in the United States, that he wants to try to reshape the world order more akin to his selfish interests and, again, twisted ideology. We have to expect the worst out of Mr. Putin. He continues to demonstrate he's capable of that.

And that's why it's so important here at this NATO summit for the allies to make sure and send a strong signal to Vladimir Putin that he can't wait us out, that he can't sow that division, that we are going to stay united and resolved to push back on his aggression in Ukraine.

BLITZER: And as you point out, the NATO allies at this historic summit are sending or have announced that they're sending more air defense systems and long awaited F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine. Will these additional weapons break the apparent stalemate out there on the frontlines?

KIRBY: I would beg to differ with the term stalemate. I think this is a very dynamic front all the way from the northeast to the south, a lot of fighting. The Ukrainians are now beginning to push the Russians back.

[18:45:02]

They are failing in some of their attempts to take certain towns and villages, are moving back. So, it's a very dynamic front. I don't think that I would describe it as a stalemate.

But to the essence of your question, Wolf, the answer is yes. We do believe that these air defense capabilities, both strategic, longer- range and more tactical, medium to short range will start making a big -- a bigger difference on the Ukrainian battlefield, do a better job of helping them protect their infrastructure or schools or hospitals for individual civilians.

And we do think that the F-16s will also help contribute to a better air defense system across the whole skies of Ukraine.

BLITZER: While I have you, John, let me ask you a question about Gaza right now, the U.S. pier there is set to be permanently removed, as you know, as the U.N. says famine is spreading after at least three more children died of malnutrition.

Why is the U.S. failed at least so far to get more humanitarian aid -- desperately needed humanitarian aid, food, water, medicine, into Gaza?

KIRBY: Well, again, with respect, Wolf, if I think I would dispute that premise there that we haven't failed. I mean, the United States has been leading the world and trying to get humanitarian assistance into Gaza. And we've been trying all different ways to do it.

In fact, we want to get caught trying in this case, we tried the pier that temporary pier, we said from the beginning that that wasn't exactly what this pier was designed to do over a long period of time, and that it would be hard, complicated task. It proved to be that. It's also very susceptible to the weather.

But we've been conducting airdrops. We've been working with the Israelis through diplomacy to open up more crossings and get more trucks in and were going to continue to do that. We understand. And I don't want to diminish what you said in your question because you're right. We don't -- we don't underestimate the degree of hunger and need and the suffering bring of the people of Gaza.

And that's why the president is going to continue to work as he has worked very, very faithfully with our counterparts, and our Israeli friends in the region to do everything we can to get more aid in there.

One of the ways to do this, Wolf, if you'll allow me one more second is to get this ceasefire deal, because if we can get the ceasefire deal in place and we've gotten negotiators in Cairo right now talking about this, it would give us six weeks of calm in phase one, which would allow for a much more freedom of movement of that humanitarian assistance inside Gaza.

BLITZER: Are they close to a ceasefire deal?

KIRBY: Well, look, I -- we're -- we're cautiously optimistic that things are moving in a good direction, but look but we also don't want to underestimate the challenges. There are still gaps remaining between the two sides. We believe those gaps can be narrowed, and that's what Brett McGurk and CIA director Bill Burns are trying to do right now.

BLITZER: Let's hope there is a deal.

John Kirby, as usual, thank you very much for joining us.

KIRBY: You bet, Wolf. Thanks for having me.

BLITZER: And, coming up, CNN is now learning several 2020 election deniers now have key roles at next week's Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

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[18:51:39] BLITZER: We have breaking news now on some of the Republicans tap to be delegates at the Republican National Convention next week in Milwaukee.

CNN's Sara Murray has been digging on this story for us.

Sara, what have you found and how does this potentially shape the future of the GOP?

SARA MURRAY, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, we took a close look at the seven states that we're so hotly contested after the 2020 election, places like Arizona and Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and we looked at the delegations that they are sending to the convention in Milwaukee, and we found that those delegations include people who served as fake electors after the 2020 election and others the people who were involved in efforts to try to upend the 2020 election results.

And I want to give you a snapshot of who some of those people are. They include people like Arizona State Senator Jake Hoffman. He's someone who is facing charges as part of the fake elector plot in Arizona, and has been chosen to be a member of the Republican National Committee.

People like Amy Kramer in Georgia. She is not facing any criminal charges, but she did help organize the rally on January 6 at the ellipse.

In Michigan, we have two people who are facing criminal charges. Meshawn Maddock, who's charged for being a fake elector, and Matthew DePerno, who is charged in an alleged plot to seize voting machines.

And then we have a handful of other fake electors not facing criminal charges from places like Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

And, Wolf, the overall picture here is just one of a Republican Party where election denialism has really become woven into the GOP platform. What we're seeing here are delegations that are a manifestation representation of Donald Trump and his continuing lies about the 2020 election -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Sara Murray, excellent reporting. Thank you very much.

Coming up, the terrifying moment when an Israeli strike hit Gaza during a pick-up soccer games. Standby for this very disturbing video.

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[18:57:08]

BLITZER: Tonight, disturbing new video from a deadly Israeli strike in Gaza.

A warning, this report from CNN Jerusalem correspondent Jeremy Diamond contains graphic images.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Amid the cheers and whistles of a summertime soccer match, the war seems far away in this Gazan school yard, until another bomb jolts everyone back to reality.

The sights and sounds of war fill the air once again, people running for their lives. The cries of women and children growing louder and louder, and bodies strewn on the ground and Israeli airstrike has hit the other side of the aisle out of school near Khan Younis, where thousands of displaced Palestinians were sheltering.

In the backs of pickup trucks and crowded ambulances, the dead and the injured arrive at al-Nasr hospital. Among them are the bodies of children limp, bloodied, and blackened. They are rushed inside a quickly overwhelmed emergency room. At least 27 people were killed and 53 injured in the strike, according to the Palestinian ministry of health.

The Israeli military said its target was a Hamas militant who took part in the October 7th terrorist attack, but provided no additional details, but said it is looking in two reports that civilians were harmed. It doesn't take long to find evidence of civilian harm amid the wreckage, where these women are inconsolable over the loss of their father.

Your death broke me, father, one of them cries, as she looks at a photo of him on her phone.

At the site of the strike, Um Mohamad (ph) explains that everyone here was simply trying to make a living. This was Bilal's area, she says. He was operating a charging point. He had a stall here and he tried to make a living from charging batteries and cell phones.

His body was torn to pieces by the blast, alongside the outlets he used to make a living.

Look at what is happening in Gaza. Every country is asleep and the whole world is asleep. And we die here.

The strike is part of a troubling trend. It is the fourth strike on or near a school sheltering displaced Palestinians in the last four days, killing 47 people and injuring many others.

It is also the latest in a series of strikes to use this American-made munition, the GBU-39, small diameter bomb identified by two weapons experts who reviewed this footage. It is intended to minimize casualties this is the aftermath when it is dropped on a densely populated area, body bag after body bag, as relatives mourn.

Life is gone. Mohammad (ph) is gone, this mother wails, another mother's unbearable grief.

Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE) BLITZER: Thanks to Jeremy for that report.

I'm Wolf Blitzer in THE SITUATION ROOM. Thanks very much for watching.

"ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT" starts right now.