Return to Transcripts main page

The Situation Room

Dana Bash On Her Exclusive Interview With Harris And Walz; Harris: "Yes, I Would Appoint A Republican To My Cabinet"; Harris Defends Shifts On Policy: "My Values Have Not Changed". Harris Rallies In Savannah As She Caps Georgia Bus Tour; Trump Campaigns In Battleground Of Wisconsin & Michigan; Army Rebukes Trump Campaign Over Arlington Cemetery Altercation. Aired 5-6p ET

Aired August 29, 2024 - 17:00   ET

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

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Dana Bash's full exclusive interview with Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz airs tonight at 9:00 Eastern right here on CNN. The first interview as the Democratic ticket and Harris' first interview since Joe Biden dropped out of the race. We're just moments away from Dana sharing another piece of that interview. That's next in the "Situation Room." It starts to go now.

[17:00:27]

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Happening now,

breaking news, a brand new excerpt from CNN's exclusive interview with Kamala Harris and Tim Walz, a pivotal test of the new Democratic ticket. Our colleague Dana Bash is standing by. She is the first journalist to question Vice President Harris and Governor Walz at length.

Also this hour, we're awaiting a Harris campaign rally in Georgia, as a new poll shows the Democrats are making gains against Donald Trump in that critical battleground state, we will go there live.

Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. Wolf Blitzer is off today. I'm Alex Marquardt. You're in the Situation Room.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN breaking news.

MARQUARDT: Let's get right to the breaking news on CNN's exclusive interview with Kamala Harris and Tim Walz. We're rolling out a brand new excerpt right now. CNN Anchor and Chief Political Correspondent Dana Bash is joining us live from Savannah, Georgia, where she sat down with Vice President Harris and Governor Walz a short while ago.

Dana, so what stood out to you about Harris's answers?

DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Alex. Well, we talked about a range of issues, including what is happening here domestically, particularly with the crisis of people not feeling that they can afford basic things, groceries, housing, and also the idea of what is happening abroad. And in addition to that, I asked her about one of the main themes from her convention, which was just last week, and she discussed there the desire to be the president for all Americans. Obviously, that includes not just her party, not just potentially swing voters who vote for her, but Republicans who don't vote for her. So I wanted to know how that would translate into the kind of people that she puts in her administration if she wins.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: You had a lot of Republican speakers at the convention. Will you appoint a Republican to your cabinet?

KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Yes, I would.

BASH: Anyone in mind?

HARRIS: No one in particular mine. I got -- we got 68 days to go with this election, so I'm not putting the cart before the horse, but I would. I think it's really important. I have spent my career inviting diversity of opinion. I think it's important to have people at the table when some of the most important decisions are being made that haves different views, different experiences.

And I think it would be to the benefit of the American public to have a member of my cabinet who was a Republican.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, Alex, we have seen Democratic presidents put Republicans in their cabinet. Ray LaHood, who was a Republican congressman from Illinois, he became Transportation Secretary for George W. Bush. We saw Chuck Hagel, who was a Democratic senator go into the Bush administration. But the question obviously is, if she wins, which is still an if in this neck and neck race, what is she talking about? Is she talking about somebody like defense secretary or Secretary of State, somebody with a very, very important job when it comes to explaining the policies that she has? Or would it be somebody who, not to say that all members of the cabinet aren't important, but maybe has something that is more acceptable to the people who, if she wins, believe that they brought her to the dance, Alex.

MARQUARDT: And then, Dana, on the policy front, you asked Harris as well to explain her change of position, which she has been attacked for on some key issues like fracking. What did she tell you?

BASH: Yes. I mean, that is the number one or one of the top attacks on her from Donald Trump and his campaign, they call her a chameleon because she has changed her position on a couple of big issues, particularly since she first ran for president, which was in the 2020 cycle. And so I talked to her about some of the sort of big ones, energy, as you mentioned, fracking, which is a huge issue in the must win state for her of Pennsylvania and immigration as well. Some of the things that she said during that campaign have changed and shifted as she has spent the past three and a half, more than three and a half years as vice president under Joe Biden. I talked more broadly to her, Alex, about how that should be perceived by voters who want to be sure that if they're going to vote for her, that the policies that she is saying that she would put in place now, if she becomes president, are not going to be changed again.

[17:05:13]

And effectively, her answer was, I might have changed some of the ideas, but the core values of who I am, my core beliefs have not changed.

MARQUARDT: Yes, essentially, focus on the values. Dana, we've been showing some video of you on Air Force Two with the vice president and with the ticket earlier today. Take us behind the scenes. Of course, this was the first joint interview that the Democratic ticket has done. What was their dynamic like? What were the interactions like between Harris and Walz in the interview and on the trail that you observed?

BASH: They're starting -- or they are getting to know each other. These are not two individuals who served together in any real capacity. They obviously spent time together when she was interviewing for her running mate, they clearly clicked, because she said that she wanted him to do the job. But there is a little bit of a new relationship vibe, since vibe is the word of the summer, going on between the two of them. But they clearly have a good connection.

And that was obvious, not just in the interview today, Alex, but I was with them on the trail here in Georgia. They're on a bus tour and -- in and around Savannah, watching them interact with students in high school and also with voters at a local barbecue shop.

MARQUARDT: And certainly, a bus tour will put a new relationship to the test. Dana, I know that this is going to be --

BASH: Yes.

MARQUARDT: -- a wide ranging interview hitting on all kinds of domestic and foreign policy issues, really looking forward to it. So thank you so much for joining us.

And you all can see all of Dana's --

BASH: Thanks, Alex.

MARQUARDT: -- exclusive interview with Kamala Harris and Tim Walz tonight at 9:00 p.m. Eastern only here on CNN.

Let's talk more about the Harris-Walz interview that Dana just wrapped up with our team of political experts. Thank you all for joining me.

Laura Barron-Lopez, I want to start with you. That pledge that Harris made to have a Republican in her cabinet, talking about the diversity of opinion that is necessary, do you see this as another example of Harris trying to reach out to many of those disaffected Republican voters?

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes, I think that's exactly what it is, to reach out to those voters that voted for Nikki Haley in the primaries, even after she dropped out. And I was actually just talking to one such voter in Arizona, and I asked them what they thought about that -- those comments that Harris made, this was a two time Trump voter, a voter that no longer says that she's going to vote for Trump, she's a suburban woman in Arizona, and she said that she liked that Harris said that. That she thought that she wants to see Harris talk to moderate Republicans and make policy with moderate Republicans and show that she'll work in a bipartisan way with Republicans. But that voter also said that they still want to see more on Harris' economic policy.

MARQUARDT: And Alex Thompson, we did see at the GNC in Chicago several Republicans speaking on behalf of Harris, Adam Kinzinger, Olivia Troye, among others. When you take that with this promise that she made today, what does it say to you about this outreach to the Republican Party?

ALEX THOMPSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: That's a key part of her campaign strategy. Maybe essentially, she's being able to run only a general election campaign without a primary. And last time she ran the presidential primary, she ran to the left in order to try to consolidate the base. Now she feels very confident that she has the base the Democratic Party, and polling shows very much the same, that Democrats are energized, that she's unified the Democratic Party. Well, if the Democratic Party is unified, especially because she's going against Donald Trump, then the next step then is to try to pick people that aren't part of the Democratic base, that are Republicans, that are basically people that maybe were like fine with the Trump presidency, but do not like him, do not think he's a good person, and don't want to see him as president again, and don't want to just frankly argue about him for another four years.

MARQUARDT: And Michael Hardaway, you heard Dana there talking about Republicans who Obama had in his cabinet and, you know, presidents who have chosen Cabinet members from the other party, and yet, President Biden doesn't have Republican in his cabinet. Trump did not have Democrats in his. Why do you think the vice president is now making this pledge?

MICHAEL HARDAWAY, DEMOCRAT STRATEGIST: Well, there's some serious issues that we have to address together in a bipartisan way as a country in the next five to 10 years, you got a $35 trillion national debt that we have to deal with that has to be in bipartisan way. You've got these international threats from North Korea and Russia and China, you've got Sudan and Venezuela and the Congo, all of those things have to be done in a bipartisan way, and Republicans are half of this country. And so it's brilliant that she's decided to move this way, because we have to come together, regardless of who wins on November the fifth, and really govern together in a meaningful way.

[17:10:18]

MARQUARDT: And Bryan Lanza, how did you hear that line when she's talking about valuing the diversity of opinion and how this would add to a cabinet by having a Republican join it? What did you make of that? BRYAN LANZA, FORMER DEPUTY COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR, TRUMP 2016 CAMPAIGN: Yes, listen, I make that it's still foundational to who she is, and that's being a San Francisco liberal. So finding a Republican that sort of marries with those San Francisco values, which she herself said she's not shied away from, she's continues to embrace, is going to be rather hard. I mean, if you look at what those values are, they support banning fracking, you know, in Pennsylvania. They support sanctuary cities. They support seizing guns from, you know, law abiding citizens.

You know, those are the values that she's not walking away from, that she's doubling down that just disconnect with the Midwest and actually disconnect with Republicans. So it's great that she's standing by her San Francisco values, which are dangerously liberal, but they're completely out of touch with the Midwest and most of America.

MARQUARDT: Yes, I do want to talk about that other answer that we have played on CNN where she talks about some of the policy or policy positions that have changed, telling voters essentially to focus more on the values. Laura, what did you make of that answer where she kind of didn't quite dismiss that change on fracking, but she brought it back to her values?

BARRON-LOPEZ: Yes, I think that's an attempt by Harris to make this about character, which is something that we saw a lot at the Democratic National Convention, that she's someone that will listen to opposite viewpoints. I mean, we saw they featured a number of Republicans from Congress -- former Congressman Adam Kinzinger to Stephanie Grisham, the former spokesperson in the Trump administration. And it's her trying to say that, yes, her values are ultimately still the same, but that she is also moving in a way that is required of legislators. I mean, she and President Biden may not have liked everything that was in that bipartisan border deal that they passed, in fact, a lot of Democrats didn't necessarily like it, but they -- but President Biden was prepared to sign it, and vice president Harris has said that she would sign it as well.

MARQUARDT: All right, everyone, stay with me. We have a lot more discuss. I want to bring in the Republican governor of New Hampshire, Chris Sununu.

Governor, thanks so much for being with us. We have just released a new clip from this exclusive interview, the first one that Kamala Harris and Tim Walz have done together. The first of the Vice President has done since becoming the nominee, and she said, notably, that she will appoint a Republican to her cabinet. Would you serve if she asked you? And do you think that president -- that former President Trump --

GOV. CHRIS SUNUNU, (R) NEW HAMPSHIRE: No.

MARQUARDT: -- that you now support, should make a similar pledge?

SUNUNU: Yes. Well, look, I'm not looking to serve in any administration. I'm not looking to go down to Washington. So thanks, but no thanks. Look, when the vice president talks about, you know, being open to other ideas, again, I'd go back and say, you've had the job for three and a half, four years here, right? What other ideas has she truly brought in?

MARQUARDT: Well, she's not the president.

SUNUNU: Definitely not on economics, right?

MARQUARDT: She's the vice president.

SUNUNU: Yes. But she's part of the administration. This idea that she's not part of this White House is just absolutely crazy. She's been given responsibility. She has a voice.

She's the second most powerful person in the free world to act like she's just sitting there, you know, waiting to see if something happens to President Biden over four years is silly. She's had a huge role, a huge voice. So either she's actively chosen not to do it, to stay under the radar, to protect herself politically. But that's not leadership, right? And so she has not reached out to other folks.

When she was given responsibilities on the border, did she ever go down to Texas and sit with the governor say, look, we disagree on a lot of this, but let's find the common ground. She never did, never even tried, right? So, she's had this job for four years, she's been in this administration, has shown no ability to do it. And now, when she talks about economic policy, it's the most left wing stuff and liberals policy any presidential candidate has ever proposed, right? She's not listening to anybody in the middle.

She's not, you know, being more centrist. Her vice presidential pick wasn't a centrist type governor. He was one of those liberal governors there was. So, you know, you --she can say --

MARQUARDT: Right.

SUNUNU: -- what she wants, but her actions speak absolute volumes.

MARQUARDT: Governor Chris Sununu, we do have to leave it there. Thank you so much for joining us on the program.

The Vice President Kamala Harris is speaking right now at a campaign rally in Savannah, Georgia, after capping off a bus tour in the battleground state. Let's listen in.

HARRIS: Because we are running as the underdog. OK? And we have some hard work ahead of us, but we like hard work. Hard work is good work. Hard work is good work.

And with your help, we are going to win this November. We are going to win this November. Yes, we will.

[17:15:08]

So look Georgia, let me say, I'm no stranger to tough fights. Before I was elected vice president, before I was elected a United States senator, I was an elected attorney general, and before that, an elected district attorney. And before that, I was a courtroom prosecutor. So every day in the courtroom, I stood proudly before a judge and I spoke five words, Kamala Harris for the people.

My entire career, I've only had one client, the people. I stood for women and children against predators who abused them. I took on the big banks and delivered $20 billion for middle class families who faced foreclosure. I fought against cartels who traffic in guns, drugs and human beings, and I stood up for veterans and students being scammed by big for profit colleges, for workers who were being cheated out of the wages they were due, and for seniors facing elder abuse. And I will tell you, those fights were not easy, and neither were the elections that put me in those offices.

But we never gave up, because the future is always worth fighting for, always. And that is the fight we are in right now, a fight for America's future. We, we fight for a future with affordable childcare, paid leave and affordable healthcare. And on that last subject, let's finally expand Medicaid in Georgia so people can take their child to a doctor or go to an emergency room without going into medical debt. We, we fight for a future where we build what I call an opportunity economy so that every American has the opportunity to own a home, to start a business and to build wealth and intergenerational wealth.

And a future where we lower the cost of living for America's families. So when I was attorney general, I went after price fixing schemes and -- love you back, love you back. And I will tell you when we get this done together, my friend, and when I am president, I will take on the bad actors who exploit a crisis, to rip off consumers on everyday items, to rip off consumers on everyday items like groceries. I will take on big pharma and cap the cost of prescription drugs and insulin for all Americans. I will take on the high cost of housing and work with developers to cut the red tape and build millions of new homes.

And I will give 100 million Americans a tax cut, including $6,000 to families during the first year of their child's life, understanding folks just need a little help from time to time. And it's not about just getting by, it's about getting ahead, $6,000 in the first year of a child's life to help pay for that car seat or the crib or the baby clothes.

And unlike Donald Trump, I will always put the middle class and working class families first. Always.

[17:20:08]

I come from the middle class, I know what I'm talking about.

MULTIPLE SPEAKERS (CHANTING): Kamala. Kamala. Kamala. Kamala. Kamala. Kamala.

HARRIS: And Savannah, so, but we have some work to do. OK?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

HARRIS: We got some work to do because we know Donald Trump has a very different plan. He has a very different plan.

MULTIPLE SPEAKERS: Boo. Boo.

HARRIS: Just look at his Project 2025 agenda.

MULTIPLE SPEAKERS: Boo.

HARRIS: Right. If he is elected, Donald Trump intends to give tax breaks to billionaires and big corporations.

MULTIPLE SPEAKERS: Boo.

HARRIS: He intends, he intends to cut Social Security and Medicare.

MULTIPLE SPEAKERS: Boo.

HARRIS: And he wants to impose what in effect is a national sales tax on everyday products and basic necessities. And it will cost, the economist will tell you, it will cost a typical American family nearly $4,000 a year. So Georgia, on top of all of this, if Donald Trump wins in November, he intends to end the Affordable Care Act --

MULTIPLE SPEAKERS: Boo.

HARRIS: -- to take us back to a time when insurance companies.

MULTIPLE SPEAKERS (CHANTING): We're not going back. We're not going back.

HARRIS: We're not going back.

MULTIPLE SPEAKERS (CHANTING): We're not going back. We're not going back. We're not going back.

HARRIS: We are not -- we're going forward.

MULTIPLE SPEAKERS (CHANTING): We're not going back. We're not going back.

HARRIS: And the reason we know we can't go back, to your point, the reason we know we can't go back on the issue of the Affordable Care Act, remember what that was like before we had the Affordable Care Act?

MULTIPLE SPEAKERS: Yes.

HARRIS: Remember when insurance companies had the power to deny people with pre-existing conditions?

MULTIPLE SPEAKERS: Yes.

HARRIS: Remember what that was like children with asthma --

MULTIPLE SPEAKERS: Yes.

HARRIS: -- breast cancer survivors, grandparents with diabetes. So yes, we're not going back. We're not going back. We're not going back. And we will move forward.

Ours is a fight for the future.

MULTIPLE SPEAKERS: Yes.

HARRIS: And it is a fight for freedom.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How many (inaudible).

HARRIS: Like the freedom of a woman to make decisions about her own body and not have her government tell her what to do. And understand how we got here. When he was president, Donald Trump handpicked three members of the United States Supreme Court.

MULTIPLE SPEAKERS: Boo.

HARRIS: With the intention that they would undo the protections of Roe v Wade, and they did just as he intended. And then 20 states have a Trump abortion. In fact, every state in the south except for Virginia, has a Trump abortion ban. And think about that, many with no exceptions, even for rape and incest, that is immoral, immoral. And let us all agree, one does not have to abandon their faith.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Amen.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

HARRIS: Or do deeply held beliefs to agree that government should not be telling her what to do. And if he wins, Donald Trump will go further. He will sign a national abortion ban. You best believe. And he would create a national anti-abortion coordinator and force states to report on women's miscarriages and abortions.

It's right there in Project 2025. Obsessed with law (inaudible). And I'll say it again simply put, they are out of their minds.

[17:25:01]

Why don't they trust women? Will we trust women?

MULTIPLE SPEAKERS: Yes.

HARRIS: And when Congress passes a bill to restore reproductive freedom as president of the United States, I will proudly sign it into law, proudly. And across our nation, in addition to that, we are witnessing a full on assault on other, hard fought, hard won fundamental freedom.

OK. Let me just -- let me just say something. Hold on. Hold up. Hold up for a second. Hold up for a second.

Let me just say something. Let me just say something. We are fighting for a democracy. Everyone has a right and should have their voices heard. I am speaking now, but on the subject, I will say this, the president and I are working around the clock. We've got to get a hostage deal done and get a cease fire done now. So back to this election and Donald Trump. So, in addition to the fight on the fundamental freedom to make decisions about one's own body, I have been traveling our country and the people of Georgia know what I know, there is a full on assault on hard fought, hard won freedoms and rights, including the freedom to vote, the freedom to be safe from gun violence. And an attack on the freedom to love who you love openly and with pride. And we will fight against all of that, including the freedom to live free from the pollution that fuels the climate crisis.

Here's the thing. Generations of Americans before us led the fight for freedom. Now, Savannah, the baton is in our hands. So we who believe in the sacred freedom to vote will finally pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Freedom to Vote Act. We who believe in the freedom to live safe from gun violence will finally pass universal background checks and red flag law. So much is on the line in this election.

So much is on the line. And understand this is not 2016 or 2020, things are different. A lot is the same when we think about the issues and then there is significant differences. The stakes in 2024 even higher, because consider that the United States Supreme Court recently just basically told the former president that going forward he will be effectively immune no matter what he does in the White House.

Now just imagine, well, the courts are going to take care of that. We're going to get them out of -- we're going to elect ourselves and everybody here in November. But I mentioned the Supreme Court ruling because understand what this means. Just imagine before there was at least the threat of consequence, understand what it now means, and imagine Donald Trump with no guardrails.

(CHANTING)

HARRIS: Imagine what that means when you consider he has openly vowed that if reelected on day one, he will be a dictator.

(CHANTING)

HARRIS: That he would end -- that he would end the independence of the Department of Justice so he could have unchecked power and seek vengeance against people who disagree with him.

(CHANTING)

(BOOING)

HARRIS: He even called for termination of the United States Supreme -- the co -- the -- the supreme land of our nation, the United States Constitution. Think about what that means. And let us be very clear, someone who suggests we should terminate the Constitution of the United States --

(CHANTING)

(BOOING) HARRIS: -- should never again stand behind the seal of the President of the United States of America.

(CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

HARRIS: Never again. So it all comes down to this, we are all here together, spending this time together because we love our country, we love our country, we love our country.

(CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

HARRIS: And we know the privilege and pride, the privilege and pride that comes with being American.

(CHEERING)

HARRIS: And I do believe it is the highest form of patriotism to fight for the ideals of our country.

(CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

HARRIS: That is how we realize the promise of America. Georgia, for the past two election cycles, voters in this very state, you, who are here, have delivered, you sent two extraordinary senators to Washington, D.C.

(CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

HARRIS: You sent President Biden and me to the White House.

(CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

HARRIS: You showed up, you knocked on doors, you registered folks to vote, and you made it happen. You did that. You did that. And so now we are asking you to do it again.

(CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

HARRIS: Let's do it again. Let's do it again.

(CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

HARRIS: So Savannah, are you ready to make your voices heard?

(CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

CROWD: Yes.

HARRIS: Do we believe in freedom?

(CHEERING)

CROWD: Yes.

HARRIS: Do we believe in opportunity?

(CHEERING)

CROWD: Yes.

HARRIS: Do we believe in the promise of America?

(CHEERING)

CROWD: Yes.

HARRIS: And are we ready to fight for it?

(CHEERING)

CROWD: Yes.

HARRIS: And when we fight --

CROWD: We win.

HARRIS: God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.

(CHEERING)

(APPLAUSE)

(MUSIC)

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN HOST: Vice President Kamala Harris there speaking in Savannah, Georgia, making her case to the voters in the Peach State, as well as the American public, talking about affordable living here in this country, drawing a stark contrast with her Republican rival, former President Donald Trump, particularly when it comes to reproductive rights, saying that he would impose a -- a national abortion ban.

At one point, she was interrupted by what we understand to be a pro- Palestinian protester, dispatching with that person by talking about the emphasis that the Biden administration has placed on finding reaching a -- a ceasefire and hostage deal in Gaza, and then concluding there by saying, let's do it again in terms of the -- the state of Georgia, going for Democrats as it has, as it did in 2020 for Joe Biden and for Georgia's Democratic senators in 2022.

I want to bring back in our political panel and CNN national politics correspondent Eva McKend is joining us as well. Eva, I want to start with you. You've been covering the Harris campaign. When you listen to the Vice President there at the end of this two day bus tour in Georgia, what stood out to you from -- from what she just said?

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Alex, she's telling supporters, don't take all of this momentum for granted, that essentially they still need to run scared. She still sees herself as the underdog. She told that group that -- that she continues to live by this mantra, really her grounding principle that she is for the people as she tried to contrast herself with the former president.

[17:35:15]

A lot of this was her stump speech, but with some Georgia specific tweaks, like she talked specifically about expanding Medicaid coverage in Georgia, the opportunity economy, building affordable housing. And ultimately said, listen, if former President Donald Trump is reelected, he is going to have a second presidency without some of the guardrails that were there during his first term, all in effort to sort of rally the base and then also bring in new supporters. Alex?

MARQUARDT: Yes -- yes, the -- Michael Hardaway, of all the subjects that she tackled there, and she really did run through quite a -- a comprehensive list. I -- I think she probably spent the most time talking about the issue of -- of reproductive rights. How much is that going to resonate with -- with voters, specifically in the state of Georgia?

MICHAEL HARDAWAY, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: It'll work because she framed it under freedom, this larger frame of freedom for control over your personal body, and that includes abortion and freedom over a number of other things. And so she framed it in a way that resonates with moderates, really moderate Republicans as well, in terms of the state government or the federal government, should be able to tell you what to do -- what to do with your body. I think that was a smart way to go about it.

As long as she keeps that frame and keeps it under that umbrella, that will be incredibly effective with moderates and with suburban women who care about this issue deeply.

MARQUARDT: Yes. We -- we've certainly seen that issue resonating all across the country, and expected to not just in this election, but we did see that in the midterm elections in 2022. Bryan Lanza, back to the CNN exclusive interview that Dana Bash just carried out with the Vice President and her running mate, Tim Walz, one of the clips that we have put out so far is Harris explaining why she has shifted positions on certain issues, bringing it back to her values, and saying that her values have not changed. What did you make of that answer?

BRYAN LANZA, FORMER DEPUTY COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR, TRUMP 2016 CAMPAIGN: You know, truthfully, I actually didn't hear her shift her positions. I mean, Dana didn't ask her where she stood under the death penalty, because when she was --

MARQUARDT: Well, specifically about the change in fracking was one of the examples that Dana gave.

LANZA: Yes, well, let's go to fracking. I mean, you know -- you know, she has a lifetime career of banning fracking to one of the first times when she ran for District Attorney of -- of San Francisco, which is a very liberal sort of outside the mainstream of America city. You know, she was -- she was, you know, of -- of forces for banning fracking. You know, she's trying to switch it here. We view it as lies. We know what her true core is. We know her values, because all we have to do is look at her record in San Francisco. Her values are to prioritize the environment over people's jobs, and that has a direct impact in everything that happens in Pennsylvania.

There are roughly about 400,000 people involved in the fracking industry that will not vote for Kamala Harris because she wants to ban fracking respective of the current statement she made, because her values going back to San Francisco, DA when she's always wanted to ban fracking. She's -- she's against offshore drilling. The truly, you know, the worst answer she could have given that we're all talking about now is saying that her values didn't change, because it really doesn't explain her position changes.

You know, where are your values shift when you supported amnesty or you -- and supported sanctuary cities for illegal aliens, and now you're saying you don't. You know, it -- it's hard to sort of reconcile that, and she's going to struggle in the next, you know, 70 days to explain, you know, how she keeps her values, but her positions do a complete 180, that just doesn't exist in politics. And we'll see what she -- is she's successful, pulling it off.

MARQUARDT: All right, thank you all for -- for watching that Harris speech with me. We're -- we're seeing her working that rope line there in Savannah, Georgia again, at the end of this two day bus tour.

[17:38:46]

But coming up Donald Trump, he's also on the campaign trail today, where he just made some comments on abortion and reproductive rights. We'll be sharing that with you right after this quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MARQUARDT: Tonight as Kamala Harris rallies in Georgia, Donald Trump is campaigning in the battleground states of Michigan and Wisconsin, I want to bring in CNN's Omar Jimenez, who is traveling or has been at a Trump rally. So Omar, the Republican nominee, he just made some remarks about abortion. What do you say?

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we've heard some of these remarks before. For starters, he's been making remarks in Central Michigan. That's where he started a lot of the day today, as we understand, he just finished up some of those remarks. A lot of similar lines of attack that we've heard from him, against Democrats, railing against them, but also specifically on abortion, as you mentioned, take a listen to some of what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: The real problem and the real radicals on that issue are the Democrats, where you can have an abortion in the ninth month, and in six states, you're allowed to kill the baby after the baby is born. And you know, one of those states is Minnesota, where this tampon Tim comes from.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JIMENEZ: Now -- now it goes without saying there is no state that is passing, or has passed any law that allows anybody to kill a baby after it has been born. But we have seen that line of attack repeatedly from the former president and has come with repeated fact checks from CNN. But it gives sort of insight into how he's framing what will be a critical issue over the course of this election, we saw how it motivated voters over the 2022 midterms, for example, in states like Michigan and Wisconsin, where we are now, we spoke to many voters who are -- who are fired up about that particular issue, and in particular, reproductive rights.

And so hearing that line of attack, we'll watch if that continues, when he makes his way here to western Wisconsin. That's where we are now in La Crosse, Wisconsin. But again, it gives an indication into sort of the themes that he is playing out -- using over the course of these campaign speeches.

MARQUARDT: Yes. Both these -- these candidates know how -- how critical that issue is to their voters, to their bases. Omar, this will be Trump's first visit to Wisconsin since the Republican National Convention. What are you hearing about what we can expect tonight?

[17:45:16]

JIMENEZ: Well, one thing that we do know, just for context, is Wisconsin and -- and Michigan, where he's leaving now, they were all states that he won in 2016 but then states that Joe Biden was able to win in 2020. And that win, especially in Wisconsin, was by the slightest of margins. So coming here to Wisconsin, first visit, as you mentioned, since the RNC, to cement himself, if he hasn't already, among the supporters that we've seen come from all over this portion of the Midwest.

For perspective, we're essentially on the border of Wisconsin and Minnesota right now, so not everybody is coming from Wisconsin to this particular rally, and this area, this county, is one that Joe Biden took by a sizable margin. Regardless, a lot of people have showed up to see what the President has to say and what we expect to take place in a town hall type of format moderated by Tulsi Gabbard, obviously, she ran for president as a Democrat years back, now identifies as an Independent and has already endorsed the former president as well.

So we'll see how that actually plans out. We see the stage already behind us set up for, clearly, a conversation between two people and potentially others being brought in as well. When I spoke to one Trump voter outside of the rally, prior to coming in here, he said that he drove in from Southern Illinois and has been trying to go to as many events as possible.

And one of the things he said was he was excited, because he felt like Trump was taking on the, quote unquote, left. We'll see if those things play out in his speaking here.

MARQUARDT: We know you'll keep us posted on -- on what he says. Omar Jimenez at the Trump event in Mich -- in Wisconsin, thank you very much Omar.

Coming up, the army now says, an Arlington National Cemetery staffer was, quote, abruptly pushed aside during a dispute with the Trump campaign. The latest next. You're in The Situation Room.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:51:29]

MARQUARDT: Tonight, a rare and very public rebuke of the Trump campaign by the United States Army. It's the latest fallout from the former president's appearance this week at Arlington National Cemetery, which led to an altercation with a cemetery staffer. CNN Pentagon correspondent Oren Liebermann is here with all the details. So Oren, what's the army now saying, and -- and how significant is it that they're weighing in like this?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Alex, this is a remarkable statement from the army, specifically because the army, and for that matter, any other military service, tries not to get involved in what clearly has become a political issue. And yet the army felt it necessary to issue a fairly forceful statement here, as you point out, rebuking the Trump campaign for what it did at Arlington National Cemetery and then defending the Arlington employee who was attacked by the Trump campaign.

Now the statement doesn't explicitly mention former President Donald Trump or the Trump campaign, but it's clear that that's what they're referring to, because of the date and the event. Here is a part of the statement here. Participants in the August 26th ceremony and subsequent Section 60 visit were made aware of federal laws, Army regulations and DoD policies, which clearly prohibit political activities. An Arlington National Cemetery employee who attempted to ensure adherence to these rules was abruptly pushed aside. ANC is a national shrine to the honored dead of the armed forces and its dedicated staff will continue to ensure public ceremonies are conducted with dignity and respect.

The statement went on to point out that there are some 3,000 public ceremonies each year at Arlington National Cemeteries, and those are carried out without incident. Obviously this an exception to that rule, because of the altercation that the statement addresses. And then the army also pointing out that conducting political activities at Arlington National Cemetery, specifically in Section 60, where fallen service members from Iraq and Afghanistan are buried, that is prohibited and a violation of federal law. Now the army does go on to say they consider this matter closed because the employee in this case has decided not to press charges. The Trump campaign has, however, doubled down. Trump campaign man -- manager Chris LaCivita posted on Twitter this, he said, reposting this hoping to trigger the hacks at SEC army, a reference to the Office of the Secretary of the Army there. Alex?

MARQUARDT: All right, Oren Lieberman at the Pentagon, thanks so much.

Also, tonight, Ukraine is confirming the death of one of its top fighter pilots after the U.S. made F-16 fighter jet that he was flying in crashed while fending off the latest, one of the largest Russian aerial assaults of this entire war. Our chief international security correspondent, Nick Paton Walsh has the details for us. Nick?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY EDITOR: Alex, the loss of this F-16 deeply symbolic. That's true. Only six delivered so far to Ukraine, of 80 promised by Ukraine's European allies. Remember, the Biden administration had to sign off on the delivery of these, because these are all U.S. made. The first loss appears to have been during Monday's bid by Ukraine to fend off substantial, probably the biggest yet Russian onslaught, using over 200 missiles and drones to hit energy and infrastructure targets across the country.

The exact details of how what they call a crash happened unclear. One Ukrainian defense official suggesting that the pilot named as, Alexei Mes, call sign Moonfish, took out three missiles and a UAV, a drone, before this crash occurred. But they've invited Ukraine international experts in to probe the circumstances around this.

To some degree something like this expected given the horrific conditions on the battlefield that Ukraine is fighting in and the compressed training regimen of pilots and the complexity of maintaining Western aircraft like this in a war zone, but still a moment, certainly in which some of Ukraine's growing advantages appear to show some frailty. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy desperate to hold on to the narrative turn it in his favor in the past weeks, the incursion into Kursk, developing, it seems, into issues for the southern region to Kursk, Belgorod, where local officials are ordering evacuations in the border region as well.

[17:55:29]

And Zelenskyy too presenting, it seems, in the coming days, a list of targets inside Russia. He'd like to use U.S. supplied weapons to hit, if indeed the Biden administration authorized them. Same list has gone to Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, perhaps a bit by Kyiv to get being a hawk on Russia as part of a U.S. election campaign that is going to hang Kyiv's fate in the balance with it.

And I think this may be why we're seeing Ukraine throwing all it can into the battlefield right now inside Russia, with changes and developments happening at a pace we really haven't seen for months. Alex?

MARQUARDT: Ferocious battle. Our thanks to Nick Paton Walsh for that report.

And coming up, we'll get more on our top story, Kamala Harris wrapping up her bus tour of Georgia with a rally in Savannah and an exclusive interview with our own Dana -- Dana Bash.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)