Return to Transcripts main page

The Situation Room

Trump Attacks Harris Ahead Of Her Economic Plan Rollout; Gaza Ceasefire Talks About Resume As Israel On Alert For Iran Attack; Ukraine Hits Russian Airfields As Cross-Border Attack Advances; Ukrainian Forces Advance Deeper Into Russia; Hurricane Watch Issued For Bermuda As Ernesto Gains Strength. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired August 14, 2024 - 18:00   ET

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

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now, Donald Trump preemptively attacks Kamala Harris' economic agenda as she prepares for the big rollout of her plan.

[18:00:03]

This, as new polls drive home the burst of enthusiasm among Democrats for their new presidential campaign.

Also tonight, a potential ceasefire in Gaza is on the line as mediators are getting ready to return to the bargaining table here in the Middle East. We'll have the latest on all the developments and how they may impact Iran's threatened revenge attack on Israel.

Plus, Ukraine unleashes drone strikes on Russian airfields as its ground forces keep advancing inside of Russia a week into their surprise cross-border attack. We'll have a live report from Kyiv.

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

Let's go right to one of the pivotal 2024 battleground states. We're talking about North Carolina. It's the backdrop for intensifying and intensifying clash between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris on the issue of the U.S. economy.

CNN's Kristen Holmes is joining us live from the site of the Trump rally in Asheville, North Carolina. Kristen, what is Trump's economic message?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, one of the things that Donald Trump sought out to do and his team sought out to do was to point to the fact that Americans who are still feeling some crunch with their wallet in terms of paying for gas, paying for groceries because of inflation, that they were reminded of inflation rates when he was in office, as well as interest rates, et cetera.

Now, the reason why Donald Trump's team wanted to do this is for a couple of different reasons. One of them being the fact that they believe Donald Trump can still win in November, but that he has to focus on several issues in particular, one of them being the economy, the others being immigration and crime. And obviously, as we have seen, Donald Trump has had a hard time focusing on any of these issues since Kamala Harris became the top of the Democratic ticket.

So, one of the reasons they did this event exactly was not only to talk about the economy, but also to link Kamala Harris to Joe Biden's policies. Remember, they're looking at these policies on immigration, on the economy, and they're looking at polling that showed that when Joe Biden was at the top of the ticket, that Trump polled ahead of him on these issues. So, they now want to link Harris to those same policies and say that those are her policies as well, hoping that Trump will poll ahead of Harris on those issues.

Now, did he stay on message? Somewhat, yes. Here's what he said about the economy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT, 2024 PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Does anyone here feel richer under Kamala Harris than Crooked Joe than you were? During the Trump administration, is anything less expensive under Kamala Harris and Crooked Joe?

Kamala has declared that tackling inflation will be a day one priority. Just think of it, for her, but day one for Kamala was three and a half years ago. Why hasn't she done it?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Now, obviously, you can hear, Wolf, that's exactly what he was trying to do there, link Kamala Harris to Joe Biden, to those policies, especially around the economy.

BLITZER: But did Trump veer off message, Kristen?

HOLMES: Of course he did, because it's Donald Trump. Even though he was provided a script, we were told it was roughly going to be 45 minutes. He spoke for an hour and ten minutes. He made fun of Kamala Harris' laugh and he fixated on his previous rival as well. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Joe Biden is a very angry man, you know that, right, because they took it away from him.

They put in a candidate and we beat him badly. How did he do in the debate?

We beat him and they said, well, instead of letting it go, who knows what happens, right? It's the world of politics. They say, we want him out. Joe, you're getting out now, Joe. Well, I don't want to get out I have 14 -- you're getting out now, Joe. We can do it the nice way or we can do it the hard way. And he's getting out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Now, to be clear, while Donald Trump did veer off message at various points, I've spoken to a number of allies who are very happy with this speech overall. Remember, one of the things they've been most concerned about is the unnecessary steps that Donald Trump has been taking, like attacking the governor of Georgia, the Republican governor, who's wildly popular in that swing state, like promoting fringe conspiracy theories. We saw none of that today. So, for them, they believe this was on message and expect to see more of these kind of smaller venue policy focus speeches in the future.

BLITZER: All right. Kristen Holmes reporting for us, thank you very much, Kristen, for that report.

I want to bring in our team of political experts for some analysis right now. David Chalian, let me start with you. Were you surprised that in a speech billed as being about the U.S. economy, Trump did veer off into so many other topics, even spending a lot of time talking about his former opponent, President Biden?

[18:05:08]

DAVID CHALIAN, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: No. I don't think surprised would be a word I would use for that. And as Kristen said, for the most part, he did talk about economic matters, all the signage of the event that will get replayed as people see the clips are about his proposals about, you know, no taxes on tips and on Social Security and the like. Clearly, it is getting to him that Kamala Harris has signed on to that no taxes on tips policy.

I mean, here's the reality of what Trump did today, Wolf, which is sort of, you know, pre-butt what we are going to get from Kamala Harris on Friday when she is in that very same now very clear battleground state, North Carolina. Republicans thought they had really taken that off the map. With Kamala Harris back on the ticket, that has snapped back into battleground status in a pretty substantial way. Just look at the visits from the candidates and the money being spent. So, he's trying to pre-butt that a little bit and to lean into an issue where he has an advantage right now.

And there was a new A.P. poll today that shows him with a seven percentage point advantage, 45 percent to 38 percent, over Harris about who can better handle the economy. Now, that's a better deficit for Harris than it was with Joe Biden on the issue of the economy. But, clearly, issue number one for voters is still an advantage category for Donald Trump.

BLITZER: And, Scott Jennings, Trump does hold an advantage over Kamala Harris on the issue of the economy. Another poll shows this, 53 percent of Americans in this poll say Trump would do a better job with the economy compared to just 44 percent for Harris. So, how much is he hurting himself when he loses focus on that specific issue?

SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, he wouldn't be hurting himself, but it sounds like today he kept his focus. I mean, this is obviously one of two issues that he has to win on. It's the economy and it's immigration. And all of it has to be tied back to Biden. I know we talked about Biden a lot today. He has to continue to do that because people cannot allow Harris to run as a disconnected figure. They can't believe that she just fell out of a coconut tree, as it were, and has nothing to do with Joe Biden, his policies, his results, because she is his number two. She has been billed as an influential adviser and policymaker in this administration.

So, there has to be some Biden in this campaign. The less Biden there is, the better off she's going to be. That's why Trump's got to keep bringing it up. So, more economy is good, veering off is bad, but I think today was a step in the right direction.

BLITZER: Interesting. Alyssa Farah Griffin, Nikki Haley was on Fox last night with some advice for Trump. And I want to play that along with what we heard from the former president earlier today. Watch and listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NIKKI HALEY, FORMER REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: One thing Republicans have to stop doing, quit whining about her. We knew it was going to be her. She's not going to give an interview. They're going to hold out as long as they can. That's their right. They can do it. It's not going to win talking about whether she's dumb. It's not. You can't win on those things.

TRUMP: That's the laugh of a crazy person, that I will tell you. If you haven't done it, it's crazy. She's crazy.

You know why she hasn't done an interview? Because she's not smart, she's not intelligent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: All right. So, Alyssa, can Trump win launching these kinds of very, very personal attacks against Kamala Harris?

ALYSSA FARAH GRIFFIN, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Simply put, no. Look, Wolf, this election could very well be decided by which candidate better articulates an economic message. And I watched the speech in full, and there was some policy in there. There was a lot of contrasting of were better off four years ago, which you could argue we're in the midst of a pandemic then, but there was so much veering off. He was talking about her TIME Magazine cover. He was personally insulting her.

And I think what Nikki Haley's hitting on, which is so important, is swing voters will decide this election. This election will be decided in the suburbs. Women are going to play a big role in that. And the name calling and the nastiness does not help Donald Trump. If he could merely stick to a teleprompter for 60-plus days, he could win the whole thing. But he's proven himself time and time again just incapable of that baseline level of discipline.

BLITZER: Ameshia Cross is with us as well. Ameshia, Kamala Harris will follow Trump to North Carolina on Friday. It's a state Democrats hope to win. One reason they are hopeful is how they've surpassed the GOP in the issue of enthusiasm. Look at this. Enthusiasm among Democrats is now at 85 percent. That's up from 46 percent in June, while Republicans are steady at 71 percent. Is that a state, North Carolina, we're talking about, that Kamala Harris can really win?

AMESHIA CROSS, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: It's a state that's definitely in play, and that's something that we couldn't have said a month-and- a-half ago. Kamala Harris has shown to not only bolster excitement amongst the Democratic coalition, she's also shown to expand that base and its reach, particularly with Gen Z, a lot of younger, diverse voters.

[18:10:06]

We're seeing the attacks on women's reproductive rights that have fallen flat for the right, and they consistently continue to do so.

I think that for Kamala Harris, her lane is not only being the younger, fresher candidate out here, but it's also being able to galvanize voters who, in all honesty, had stepped outside of politics, who didn't want to hear the bickering, who did not want to see two super seniors running against each other, who wanted to see a path to a future, not a look back to the past. And all that we're seeing from Donald Trump time and time again, no matter where he's speaking, be it whether it's the press, whether it's on Twitter, it is always attacks on things of the past and bringing up taking America back.

America doesn't want to go back. Americans want to move forward. And the acknowledgement that the Harris-Walz ticket is that forward path is what's really moving people.

BLITZER: Important point. David Chalian, Republicans, as you and I well know, have won 10 of the last 11 elections in North Carolina. Why has it been so hard for Democrats to get over the hump in North Carolina?

CHALIAN: Well, yes, the Democrats have not won it since 2008, and they have constantly poured money in there to see if they can, you know, utilize the demographic changes and the makeup of the electorate similar to what they were able to accomplish in Georgia. It's been a tougher nut to crack, obviously, for Republicans here.

What gives Democrats a bit of hope here is not only the work that Kamala Harris has instantly done over the three weeks in terms of all of the polling out there about bringing the pieces of the Democratic coalition back into an enthusiastic support of her candidacy, but they also point to the gubernatorial race in North Carolina, where the current lieutenant governor, Mark Robinson, who is a very controversial figure, is somebody that Democrats believe they can paint as far to the extreme in a way to also bring in those critical independent voters, the suburban voters that Alyssa was talking about earlier and the suburbs, of course, have been expanding there.

So, geographically, demographically and with a Republican at the top of the ticket for governor that they think they can sort of demonize, they think they have a chance here to make North Carolina competitive. We'll see.

BLITZER: That's why the vice president is going to be there on Friday. Alyssa, we also have a brand new poll from the key battleground state of Pennsylvania. And it shows that Kamala Harris has a slight lead over Trump in Pennsylvania, 50 percent to 47 percent. How big of a warning sign is this for Republicans right now?

GRIFFIN: It should be a wakeup call. Kamala Harris is winning right now. And I think Donald Trump is just waking up to that, which is why you're seeing some of the attacks and, you know, his return to X and the sort of meltdown of an interview with Elon Musk. But the Harris campaign cannot get overconfident. She needs to be running multiple points ahead. She does have a deficit in some states that are key to win.

But what I do think is interesting, both North Carolina and Arizona are similar in that they're battlegrounds where the Republican is favored, but they have unpopular candidates on the ticket. So, to the point that Mark Robinson could actually help Democrats in North Carolina, Kari Lake could do the same in Arizona by turning out people who see her as polarizing and extremist.

The bottom line being, there are states in play for Kamala Harris that weren't even a dream to Biden, and this race is a dead heat right now.

BLITZER: We shall see. All right, everybody stand by. We're going to be back to you a little bit later as well.

There's more news just ahead. We'll break down the new report showing a slowdown in inflation here in the United States. What it means for you and your money.

Plus, is there any hope for a deal as the Gaza ceasefire and hostage talks are about to resume in the coming hours here in the Middle East.

We are live in Tel Aviv and you're in The Situation Room.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:15:00]

BLITZER: We're coming to you live from the Middle East at another pivotal moment in this very tense and volatile region. High stakes negotiations on a Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal are about to get underway in Doha, Qatar, as the military here in Israel remains very much on high alert for a potential attack by Iran.

CNN's Jeremy Diamond is following all of this for us. He's up in Northern Israel in Haifa. Jeremy, what are the expectations for tomorrow's talks in Qatar?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, the expectations are not particularly high, but there is certainly a possibility in the air, possibility for these talks actually make progress towards a ceasefire deal, and with that, of course, the possibility that it could lower the temperature in this very volatile region. That also means, of course, that there's the potential for a lack of progress, one that could potentially hasten a potential Iranian response that we've been waiting for now for over the course of the last.

What we do know about the talks tomorrow, all of the major players are going to be there. The CIA director, the Qatari prime minister, the head of Egyptian intelligence, all sitting in a room meeting with the director of the Mossad, David Barnea, the head of Israeli intelligence.

And Hamas, for its part, says that they won't be participating in these talks. But, that being said, they're still saying that they're willing to hear out the mediators after these discussions. And then so while that may signal a shift in rhetoric, it doesn't actually change too much how these talks have actually been conducted in the past. Israel and Hamas have never actually sat down together. It's the mediators passing along messages. So, in that respect, it is not all that different.

The question is, will the talk center on this framework agreement that was reached early last month? That's what Hamas wants to see. They want to see progress based off of that framework, not progress that includes the demands that the Israeli prime minister has been making over the course of the last month.

[18:20:00]

Now, we understand that the Israeli prime minister has given an expanded mandate to his delegation that is headed to Doha, Qatar, tomorrow, but my sources are telling me that it's still uncertain whether that mandate will be enough to bridge the differences between Israel and Hamas. If they can make progress towards a deal, Wolf, it certainly would lower the temperature in this region.

Amos Hochstein, a special envoy for President Biden, he was in Beirut earlier today. And he talked about the fact that not only is this an opportunity to reach a ceasefire in Gaza, but that it also presents a window of opportunity for a diplomatic solution between Israel and Hezbollah as well. Wolf?

BLITZER: All right. Jeremy Diamond reporting from Haifa for us, Jeremy, thank you very much.

Joining us now from Beirut, Lebanon, a veteran of the reporting on the Middle East, the journalist, Kim Ghattas. Kim, thanks very much for joining us.

In Beirut earlier today, as you just heard in Jeremy's report, the special U.S. envoy to Lebanon, Amos Hochstein, said there's, quote, no more valid excuses for any party for delaying a ceasefire. Was he calling out both Sinwar and Netanyahu?

KIM GHATTAS, CONTRIBUTING WRITER, THE ATLANTIC: That's the message that the Lebanese got. That's the message that they heard that he was saying the Biden administration is serious about putting pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to make this happen.

But the choreography of how things are unfolding in the region, when I speak to Lebanese officials, when I speak to Gulf officials, when I speak to Arab officials and diplomats, they feel that most of the pressure they're seeing is mostly directly or indirectly on Iran and Hezbollah not to retaliate.

And the complaint is that they don't feel that there's enough pressure on Netanyahu to sign on the dotted line. I know there isn't an actual dotted line and it's not going to happen that quickly, but they feel that there's not enough pressure on Israel to do the deal. And they're also, of course, pointing to the fact that the U.S. has just, you know, announced $20 billion more military aid to Israel, and they feel that does not look good when it comes to how the parties come to the negotiating table tomorrow in Doha.

This looks like a make-or-break moment. It will hopefully make something positive, and it can defer any retaliation, but I always worry about the break of civility, that if these don't lead to positive momentum, that we could find ourselves looking again at some kind of escalation.

But I hear a lot of complaints from Arab officials that I speak to that all they're getting from their American counterparts in terms of whether they can put enough pressure on Israel or also on Hamas, the complaint is all we hear are hopes and prayers. And we're really at this point where there needs to be more than that.

BLITZER: You've covered, Kim, Iran very closely over the years. What are Iran's calculations right now when it comes to a possible retaliatory attack on Israel? Why have they delayed at least up until now?

GHATTAS: Their options are not actually great, and that's why they've said that they will not do anything that would come to the detriment of any ceasefire talks. That buys them time. That also means they're saying, get us a ceasefire or there will be a retaliation. And it was interesting to hear President Biden say something to the same effect that a ceasefire could indeed avert an Iranian retaliation.

Remember, Iran is going through difficult times. They have a succession with a supreme leader, you know, on the horizon. They don't really want a regional war which will potentially draw in the United States. And particularly, they would like to make sure that they can preserve their key asset in the region, their first line of defense, which is Hezbollah in Lebanon, which is also why I think that Hezbollah has been fairly pragmatic in how it's handled, not just the last ten months, but also the two, three weeks since the assassination of Fuad Shukr in Beirut.

BLITZER: Because there's some speculation here among Israeli sources, Kim, that Hezbollah this weekend, maybe on Saturday, could launch some major airstrikes against various targets inside Israel, even if Iran doesn't do anything itself. Would Hezbollah take that kind of action without approval from Iran?

GHATTAS: Well, they wouldn't launch actual airstrikes, of course, right, because so far they don't have that capacity except with drones. But we're looking at the potential of drone attacks and missile attacks. I do think that if the ceasefire talks in Doha don't produce the impression of positive momentum, that you could see a bit of an escalation.

[18:25:03]

But, again, I do think that Hezbollah remains very concerned about all-out war, what it would mean for Lebanon and what it would mean for its key partner in Iran. I don't think they will go for a large escalation without close coordination with Iran.

BLITZER: Kim Ghattas, thank you very much for your expertise. I really appreciate it.

And coming up, inflation reaches its lowest level in the United States in more than three years. What it means for consumers and potentially interest rates, as the Fed looks to back off its years-long battle against price hikes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:30:00]

BLITZER: A better than expected inflation report is fueling hopes the Federal Reserve will finally cut interest rates after a year's long battle against soaring prices.

CNN's Brian Todd is on the story for us. Brian, inflation is now at the lowest level since March of 2021.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is, Wolf, and analysts say this adds to the broader economic news that's trending in the right direction. But the White House says we shouldn't take any victory laps here because too many American families are still facing too many high costs.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARIANNA DAVIS, MANAGES GIFT BOUTIGUE IN ATLANTA: Hey there, welcome to the Beehive.

TODD (voice over): Mariama Davis manages an Atlanta gift boutique and recently expressed to CNN her keen sense of how her customers were dealing with inflation.

DAVIS: If people have a choice to buy eggs or food and gifts, we still expect them to buy food for their families. But like I said, our doors are still open, so we're grateful for that.

TODD: Davis and her customers could be breathing a little easier tonight. According to the U.S. government, price hikes slowed down in July. The Consumer Price Index, a key barometer of inflation, rose just 2.9 percent for the 12 months ending in July, the first time prices have gone up less than 3 percent in more than three years.

JUSTIN WOLFERS, PROFESSOR OF ECONOMICS AND PUBLIC POLICY, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN: This is the first time I think economists can look you in the eye and say, it looks like that inflation surge is behind us.

DAVID WILCOX, PETERSON INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL ECONOMICS: Pay increases are outpacing price increases. So, the ability of American consumers to pay for their necessities, their rent, their groceries, their transportation, that's improving and being restored after having taken a hit during the heat of the pandemic.

TODD: Maybe the most important news for consumers, prices for groceries continue to grow very slowly.

RANA FOROOHAR, CNN GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: You've got flat prices at the grocery store. Restaurants, you still see a little bit higher levels of inflation, but, again, everything coming down.

TODD: But housing remains a big impediment to the lowering of inflation. The cost of owning and renting a home went up 0.4 percent in July and have gone up more than 5 percent since the end of July of last year. The remnants, analysts say, of the disruption in the housing market caused by the COVID pandemic.

FOROOHAR: We had this huge migration that we haven't seen in a while, again, bolstering housing prices. Then you get mortgage rates being so high because inflation rose and the Fed had to raise interest rates.

TODD: But now, the good news on slowing inflation, coupled with a weaker than expected jobs report for July, tees things up, analysts say, for the Federal Reserve to finally cut interest rates at its meeting next month.

FOROOHAR: These are the two key factors that would make the Fed cut rates. It's hard for me to see what at this point would stop them from doing that.

TODD: In the meantime, some practical advice for us consumers.

WILCOX: Be prudent with your spending decisions. Keep a good rainy day fund available in case something does go wrong. Know that borrowing rates are going to come down six months from now, a year from now, that house that you may have had your eye on is probably going to become a little more affordable. Pay off your credit card bills.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (on camera): Some analysts say it's also possible that the Federal Reserve may not stop with a September interest rate cut, that it may also cut rates at its meetings in November and December. Although this year, that November meeting is the same week as the presidential election and the fed usually likes to avoid making any decision that might affect politics. Wolf?

BLITZER: Yes, good point. That's absolutely true. Brian Todd reporting for us, thank you very much.

I want to bring back our political experts for some more analysis right now. And, Ameshia Cross, prices are still much higher than they were just a few years ago. So, even if prices are coming down for some things right now, will voters actually feel it?

CROSS: I think they absolutely will. We have to understand, and I think that one of the smart things that Kamala Harris is doing on the campaign trail, which is a shifted narrative, is meeting the people where they are, talking about stubborn costs, specifically as it relates to housing, as it relates to groceries, talking about also the moves and the policy plans that she has around attacking corporations that are price gouging, which is affecting consumers a lot more than inflation, to be honest. I think that those things matter.

But we are going to see as time goes by, remember, we still have a few months before the election, we're going to see these prices tinker down. Is it going to be something that is going to take us back to 1993 prices? Probably not. But I do think that people are going to be able to feel the savings in their pockets.

BLITZER: Alyssa Farah Griffin, how much does Kamala Harris need to distance herself from Biden and Bidenomics, as it's called, in this election?

GRIFFIN: Quite a bit. Listen, Joe Biden, one of his biggest struggles was the fact that he really wanted to take credit for the U.S. economy. And he was right on many of the macro trends, but to go out and to say, you know, the U.S. is the envy of the world, our economy is the envy of the world, when people are struggling to pay their bills, to buy groceries, continually fell flat.

[18:35:06]

I think that was one of the most significant reasons that he was trailing Donald Trump.

The vice president has an opportunity here to really re-shift the narrative and she's leaning into more of a rebuilding the middle class message. She's talking about understanding the struggle. She has this ad where she's talking about, you know, she worked at McDonald's to pay her way through college. I think leaning into acknowledging people's actual real hardship is critical.

And Donald Trump keeps teeing up a really easy attack line for the Harris campaign, which is saying he's going to introduce tariffs, which ultimately would be a massive, essentially, tax on American consumers. Amazon, anything that's offshore that's coming in from other parts of the world, that would have a massive effect on consumers. So it is, she needs to create this distance.

BLITZER: Interesting. Scott Jennings, the Trump campaign, as you know, is now coining a new phrase, Kamalanomics, they're calling it in a press release about the latest inflation report, which reads in part, and I'm quoting, under Kamala Harris, everything costs 20 percent more than it did under President Trump. America cannot afford another four years of Kamala's failed economic policies. They're branding the report with her name, but most economic experts considered it to be pretty good news that was released today. So why do that? JENNINGS: Well, because economic experts aren't going to decide the election. Actual working class American voters are, and they know full well how much more expensive their life is today than it was under Donald Trump. She's going to have a very difficult time, the vice president, getting any separation from President Biden on this because she cast the tie breaking vote in the U.S. Senate to put a $1.9 trillion stimulus into the U.S. economy. It was at that point that inflation took off back in 2021. And that was one of two key issues that Biden and Harris' approval ratings under 40 percent for most of this presidency.

So, I don't think she's going to be able to get away from Biden on it. She had a direct hand in it. And people well remember how they felt economically under Trump and how they have felt economically for four years under Biden and Harris. And that comparison looms large. Trump has to make the case. But it's right there. People haven't forgotten that things were better economically under Trump. And it shows up in all the polling when you ask people if they approve of the job Trump did on the economy when he was president.

BLITZER: And, Ameshia, that Trump statement blames Kamala Harris for the economic policies of the last four years. How big of a vulnerability is that potentially for her?

CROSS: I think the Trump campaign is hoping that it's a huge vulnerability. What we're seeing amongst working class Americans, what we're seeing amongst union groups is a very strong resonance with Harris, with Walz. I think that because she's able to tell her story of somebody who worked a low wage job, because you have Walz who served in the military, then took a low wage job in becoming a teacher and then a principal.

These are people who understand, you know, what the cost of the pump is. These are people who understand what it means to actually pay attention to the price tag when you go to the grocery store. They are able to have this conversation a much different way than Donald J. Trump is.

And I think that, you know, for this campaign, they've been very strategic about how they have shifted the narrative and the language because I think that what we heard a few moments ago, it is actually right. This is not in people's heads. They understand that the cost of things has risen. But I also think that they are looking forward to what actual plans can happen that can reduce those to make things more affordable. And that's what matters the most.

So, this policy plan and agenda that Kamala Harris is laying out, I think, is really touching people. But more importantly, she is reaching working class people where they are, and they are a key element of her campaign.

BLITZER: We shall see. All right, everyone, thank you very, very much.

And just ahead, there's more news we're following. CNN is live in Ukraine, as Ukrainian troops make even more progress inside Russian borders.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:40:00]

BLITZER: Tonight, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is calling on allies to send long range missiles to Kyiv, as Ukrainian forces advance even deeper and deeper into Russian territory.

CNN's Nick Paton Walsh is in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv for us right now. Nick, President Zelenskyy also says they've already captured dozens of Russian soldiers. Update our viewers.

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Look, it doesn't really seem to be stopping at all, Wolf. Quite remarkable how we are now in day eight or nine of this offensive, and still, Volodymyr Zelenskyy today saying they advanced one or two kilometers, over a mile, deeper inside of Russia.

Now, what part of the Ukrainian tactic here is not to give us play by play of exactly where they're going, but we're certainly hearing this intensification of their movements, another Russian region, suggesting that they need an emergency situation to be called, essentially appealing for more extensive help.

Overnight, Ukraine hitting airfields deeper inside Russia, four of them, they said, a Russian SU-34 attack jet taken out too, and an indication as well that Russia is potentially preparing for some worse news here. We've seen satellite images suggesting they're digging trenches and fortifications near towns called Lgov and Rylsk, which are pretty further far inside, away from the border area where the majority of Ukraine's offensives have been.

There have also been remarkable bits of video released showing how essentially Ukraine has turned the tables on Russia here, providing humanitarian assistance and some sense of relief or a place of shelter for Russian citizens who they say have been left behind by Moscow, a kind of flip from what we saw in the early days of the war when Russia broadcast similar scenes.

Make no mistake, this is playing well in the information sphere internationally for President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

[18:45:04]

It is showing that Kyiv is nimble, has been able to catch Russia off guard. There are some suggestions from Ukrainian officials that the wider goal perhaps forcing Russia to reallocate troops from other parts of his frontlines around occupied Ukraine towards Kursk, that that might be paying off, that we could be seeing some Russian forces from Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv, and maybe Crimea being pulled back to stop essentially, the Ukrainian spread across Kursk.

But it's taking a lot of time and it's allowing Ukraine it seems to get more comfortable in these border areas to push into other settlements and to start thinking about what comes next, because, Wolf, that's ultimately the question here. They can continue to push into border areas. They can see the number of Russian citizens being evacuated reaching higher into the hundreds of thousands.

But ultimately, they need to be clear about why they're taking this ground. Can they hold it? They've said today, Ukraine but they don't intend to annex it, but they also appear to be looking at creating a buffer zone. They said essentially using exactly the same rhetoric, Russia use when in April, it pushed into the areas around Kharkiv saying it to needed a buffer zone to protect Russia's territory.

So, Ukraine, very much on the front foot here, but questions increasingly loud here in Kyiv as to exactly what the longer-term goal of this offensive is, how much its cost Ukraine militarily in terms of precious manpower and equipment, a lot of Western supplied equipment seen on the battlefield in this border area, too, and then, of course, just tonight the capital again, I think wary, cautious about the possibility of some larger Russian retaliation with missiles hitting the city here.

So, a lot still moving very fast over the weekend now, Wolf.

BLITZER: Nick Paton Walsh live in Kyiv, thank you very much.

And we'll be right back with more news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Tonight, a hurricane watch has been issued for Bermuda as Ernesto continues to gain strength after lashing Puerto Rico.

CNN meteorologist Chad Myers is here with us.

Chad, give us the latest.

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, I don't think the restoration work will be as long as it took for, Maria, because we don't have to put power poles backup in most spots, but yes, with half the island, with -- without power and even some of the water treatment facilities offline.

It was a windy day, without a doubt, winds were gusting to almost 80 miles per hour at times, just east of Puerto Rico, in the islands there, 86 miles per hour, was the gust.

The real problem as we talked about yesterday was the flooding hours and hours of tropical rain flooding up to 10 inches likely in some areas, still adding this up. But as you said now, hurricane watch for Bermuda. Bermuda, you have a big storm coming thank to you somewhere between 115 miles per hour, category three major hurricane, and maybe lessening do 105 upon approach.

But this will be a big event. The water is warm. The storm is going to get bigger. This storm is still going to make this storm surge, big waves and big waves even along the east coast this weekend, Wolf. There could be five to ten foot waves along the East Coast.

Stay out of the water -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Yeah, very, very serious situation.

Chad Myers, thanks very much. And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:56:50]

BLITZER: Finally, tonight, we want to share some powerful harrowing photographs from the morning of the October 7th Hamas attack taken by well-known Israeli photographer Ziv Koren.

I had the chance to speak with Koren about his work and what he saw. And we want to warn our viewers the images you are about to see are disturbing, but are documentation of what happened on October 7 and are currently being shown at a public art display here in Tel Aviv.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: This is a award-winning Israeli photojournalist Ziv Koren pinned down by Hamas gunfire on October 7 in southern Israel.

ZIV KOREN, ISRAELI PHOTOJOURNALIST: We've got out of Sderot, trying to get to the Gaza envelope, and this is where we were confronted with Hamas terrorists started shooting at us, it was madness.

BLITZER: As you can hear, as these bullets flying over your head.

KOREN: I think it was a very long 20 minutes that the bullets were flying all over until the soldiers arrived.

BLITZER: On that Saturday morning, according grabbed his camera, his protective gear, and headed south from Tel Aviv with little information.

What he captured shows the horrific aftermath of the October 7 terror attack.

KOREN: I didn't really shoot well a lot of people that were alive, most scenes I photographed, were from dead Israelis, exactly. Thirteen people standing here on the way to travel to the Dead Sea and one of the pickup trucks of Hamas went through and just kill them all.

And I think it's part of my responsibility to tell the story even though it's something that most people just want to look away from.

BLITZER: He's taken over 350,000 photos since the attack.

KOREN: I never stopped since.

BLITZER: Today, Koren's images hanging the Shimon Peres Center for Peace and Innovation in Jaffa, as part of an exhibit meant to be a reminder and a reckoning for the world.

KOREN: It's a huge tragedy. I mean -- BLITZER: The kibbutz.

KOREN: Yeah, it's a kibbutz. Kibbutz Nir Oz, 25 percent of the members of the kibbutz are either dead or kidnapped.

But not only that, I think the worst thing about what happened in Nir Oz is that nobody came to save them, just imagine that in every single car here, there was Israelis that died, most of them from the Nova party or youngsters that came to dance and found themselves running away from bullets.

BLITZER: This exhibit is also about speaking for the hostages who still may be alive in Gaza.

KOREN: The hostages should be everything we think about.

BLITZER: So important to bring them home.

KOREN: Exactly.

BLITZER: Koren stayed in touch with the people whose lives were permanently altered on October 7, documenting it all.

KOREN: Now, a couple that I've been covering for six, seven or eight months now, even bit more, they were both in the Nova festival. They ran to one of these shelters on the main road, like the other shelters, there were -- the Hamas threw grenades inside this shelter.

They were both severely wounded, 20 people died in this shelter. And they were both they got elected cut off and since then I've been covering their rehabilitation and they just got married last week.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: In addition to the exhibit, Koren has published a book in Hebrew, "The October 7 War" with his photos and English edition to the book comes out mid September.

"ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT" starts right now.