Return to Transcripts main page

The Situation Room

Trump Stokes Anti-Immigrant Fears As Harris Courts Latinos; Harris Holds Campaign Event In Battleground Arizona; Trump Seeks Access To Military Aircraft, Other Security Measures; Death Toll Climbs Again As Rivers Swell After Milton's Rains. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired October 11, 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]

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now. Donald Trump stokes anti- immigrant fears in Colorado, while Kamala Harris courts Latinos and other voters in Arizona. Both sides ramping up their appeals to key voting groups. The presidential race remains neck-and-neck with just 25 days to go.

Also this hour, new reporting on Trump's efforts to tighten his security ahead of the election and after attempts on his life, why he's asking for access to travel on military aircraft with anti- missile systems instead of on his own plane.

Plus, in Florida, new rescues of hurricane survivors trapped by dangerous floodwaters and wreckage, CNN is in the disaster zone where the death toll is still rising and people are suffering two days after Milton's onslaught.

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

And we begin with Donald Trump's newest efforts to win votes by spreading debunked claims about the actions of undocumented immigrants. First, it was in Springfield, Ohio. Now, it's Aurora, Colorado, where he's been holding a rally and playing up local fears about gang violence.

CNN's Kristen Holmes is in Aurora. So, Kristen, tell us about Trump's message and why he's chosen Aurora, Colorado, as his backdrop.

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Alex, Aurora has really been the epicenter of this sort of disinformation campaign we have seen from the former president when it comes to immigration. Now, one thing to note is that Colorado is a very blue state. It is not a state in which he is speaking to swing voters. That's not why he's here. Instead, he is here to perpetuate this rhetoric around immigration.

He has been saying for months that Aurora was taken over by Venezuelan gangs. Now, this is despite the fact that the governor of Colorado has said that is untrue, that the mayor has said that these comments have been blown out of proportion, that that is not what's happening in Aurora? In fact, the mayor actually said that he hoped that Donald Trump's visit today would shine light on the fact that Aurora wasn't overrun by Venezuelan gangs.

But it was a very dark speech, Alex. Just take a listen to part of what Donald Trump said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT, 2024 PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: She has had them resettled beautifully into your community to prey upon innocent American citizens. That's what they're doing. And no place is it more evident than right here. Because in Aurora, multiple apartment complexes have been taken over by the savage Venezuela prison gang known as Tren de Aragua.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Now, again, just to note, we have heard from local officials, state officials, who all say that this is going out of proportion, that this is not what is happening in Aurora, Colorado. But I will tell you again, this rhetoric is really fear-based. At one point, he called our country occupied America. He was surrounded by posters of what his team said were Venezuelan gang members or gang members that were migrants. They've had different labels on them of where they were from. And one said illegal immigrant. At one point, they had an image that looked to be A.I. that had hooded figures with guns that said, your apartment complex is under Kamala Harris' presidency. The next slide said, you know, things were better under President Trump or will be better under a former President Trump.

Now, the other thing to note, I just want to put this out there, he did announce a new policy for if he was reelected, where he said he would essentially create a federal program that would expedite the process of getting rid of deporting migrant gang members, undocumented migrant gang members. Again, he is clearly appealing to his base here. But we saw today a crowd of thousands of people who were relishing in this messaging.

MARQUARDT: Yes, appealing to his base there with a very dark message. Kristen Holmes covering the Trump campaign, thanks very much.

Now, Kamala Harris has also been out campaigning in the western part of the country. She wrapped up an event in Arizona just a short time ago, and that's where you find our Eva McKend. She's been covering the Harris campaign.

So, Eva, how is Harris talking about immigration as she campaigns on the trail?

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Alex, she mostly leans into an enforcement message when she talks about immigration, Democrats, arguably out of political fear. You don't hear them making an affirmative case for immigration. It isn't anything like we heard from the former president, but they're not exactly making an affirmative case.

Harris reiterates there was a bipartisan border enforcement bill the former president encouraged Republicans to walk away from.

[18:05:06]

And I can tell you, Alex, independently, I hear voters raise this. I met a Republican voter just today who told me, well, there was a bipartisan bill, but it's Trump's fault it didn't pass. So, this message is evidently coming across.

But what was remarkable is that this Univision town hall in Vegas, we saw Harris empathize in a way we don't often see her do publicly on this issue in this political moment with the plight of undocumented folks, mixed status families, a woman whose mother was undocumented and passed away recently because she couldn't get proper healthcare. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAMALA HARRIS, U.S. VICE PRESIDENT, DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I'm so sorry for you. You must remember your mother as she lived. I have enough of a feeling about your strength that it probably comes from her.

The first bill we offered within hours of taking the oath was a bill to fix the immigration system, including creating a comprehensive, earned pathway to citizenship for hardworking people, and it was not taken up. There are real people who are suffering because of an inability to put solutions in front of politics.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKEND: And, Alex, we saw the vice president today in Arizona talk about if elected, she would create a bipartisan council of advisers in effort to reach Republicans, a big country over party push from her as well. Alex?

MARQUARDT: All right. Eva McKend covering the Harris campaign, thank you very much.

Let's bring in our team of political experts to discuss that and more. Gloria Borger, I want to start with you. Like Springfield, Ohio, Aurora, Colorado, is at the center of this disinformation campaign about immigrants fueled by Trump and his surrogates, which even the city's Republican mayor says is not true. So, how stark do you think the contrast is between the two candidates, Trump and Harris, on this issue?

GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, it couldn't be more stark. I mean, you know, what Trump did today was, again, talking about this issue in apocalyptic terms, as if the entire country is overrun by immigrant gangs. And I hearken back to another election where he was talking about the caravans coming in over the border. This is another version of that. And he clearly believes that this is the issue that will get him over the top, that is the most salient. And we know that he's leading on this issue with voters, poll after poll shows that. Now, Kamala Harris understands that this is not her best issue. And instead of talking about the problem, she is trying to focus more, as Eva was saying, on the solution. How do we fix it? And Donald Trump told Republicans not to vote for this bill that was pending in the Senate that would have fixed it. So, she's focusing on it in a different way. I mean, she understands this isn't her best issue and Donald Trump, on the other hand, is trying to embellish it and make it more of an issue for him. He prefers, it seems to me, to talk about this more than the economy, which is a better issue for him.

MARQUARDT: And, Maria Cardona, when you look at the polling numbers, what does it say to you that Trump is seeing some of his best ever figures with Latino voters despite this rhetoric and this disinformation on immigration?

MARIA CARDONA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Look, Alex. I think we need to level set. Trump certainly has grown his support among some within the Latino community, but it certainly is not what the media and some others make it out to be. And, in fact, if you look at polling that is done by actual pollsters who know how to poll the Latino community, she is consolidating her support at two thirds of Latinos around the country and in swing states that are supporting her.

She's going to do more. She's going to continue to do more. She's got to do more with Latino men. They just announced Hombres con Kamala and she's going to continue to reach out to Latino men where they are and talk about the issues that they care about most.

But, look, I think what's important, in last night's town hall, she hit it out of the park. Latino families are looking for somebody that is going to fight for them every single day. There's only one candidate in this race that wakes up every day and will fight for the issues that Latino families care about most. You have another candidate in Donald Trump that will only seek to separate families, to rip babies from the arms of their mother and do absolutely nothing to help Latino families do better in this country.

MARQUARDT: In terms of where Trump is choosing to be, Scott Jennings, you just heard Kristen Holmes talking about how blue Colorado is, tomorrow, he's going to be in California, he has events scheduled in Illinois and New York. These are all staunchly Democratic states. None of them are the crucial swing states.

[18:10:01]

Do you think, Scott, that Trump is making a similar mistake to Hillary Clinton back in 2016 when she didn't campaign enough in the Midwest?

SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, I think they're crucial to the overall success of the party in the -- I mean, there are things going on down ballot in the Senate and also in the House. And if I were Donald Trump and I thought I had a good chance to be elected president, I'd certainly like to bring along Republican majorities in both chambers, specifically in the House, which is very close. I think the Senate's already done, but I think the House is really a tossup. And so if Trump can help in some house races out there and help drag a couple of Republicans along with them, that's a very good thing.

So, no, I don't think he should be criticized for trying to do what's best for his overall party. And if he's going to have four more years in the White House, he'll have a lot easier time getting his agenda passed if he's got Republicans out there in the majorities in the Congress.

MARQUARDT: And, Mandela Barnes, I mean, to that point about choosing to do a rally like this in Colorado, why do you think immigration is such a big issue in a state like Wisconsin, a critical swing state like that, which is more than a thousand miles away from the southern border.

MANDELA BARNES, SENIOR FELLOW, PEOPLE FOR THE AMERICAN WAY: Well, I will say that it's important because Wisconsin is a critical battleground state. Our presidential races have been decided by 30,000 votes or fewer. Most of our statewide races have been 30,000 votes or fewer. My race, unfortunately, was 26,000 votes. So, he's picking these little wedge issues. He knows that there's an opportunity or else he wouldn't continue to repeat this dangerous rhetoric.

But what he's doing is not just to advance his political cause. This is talk that is putting the lives of immigrants and non-immigrants alike. It's not like folks are able to just discern who was born here and who wasn't born here. He is putting people's lives at risk when he talks this way. But he does see that he has the edge when it comes to immigration, unfortunately. And what he's doing is talking to folks in communities, just trying to pull off those two to three votes per ward that decides elections in Wisconsin.

MARQUARDT: And that does appear to resonate with his voters, even if they are very far away from that southern border.

Gloria, Trump did campaign in Michigan yesterday. He made some very disparaging comments about the city of Detroit. Those comments have dominated local news coverage. You can see right there. And now the Harris campaign has released an ad about his comments as well. Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We believe in free. We don't bow down to nobody and we never will.

And so what Donald Trump doesn't understand or care to learn is that when he said --

TRUMP: Our whole country will end up being like Detroit if she's your president.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- that he should be so goddamn lucky.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUARDT: Gloria, our whole country will end up like Detroit if she's president, saying that in Detroit. What's the impact of that? BORGER: Well, first of all, it's remarkable that he said it to the Detroit Economic Club and told them what a lousy city they had. And I don't think it was very-well received. And it's a battleground state, it's an important city in the state, and he's going to alienate a lot of voters there. And, remember, he did the same thing with Milwaukee, in Wisconsin, and then he had to sort of take it back.

And, you know, this is Donald Trump being Donald Trump. It doesn't help them that he did this. And, of course, the Harris campaign was lightning quick and putting this ad together. You got to give him some kudos. I don't think it took them five hours to do it. So, you know, I mean, they're taking advantage of it.

These are the voters that they need, including those black men in urban areas that they're not doing as well with as they'd like to do. So, I think it was a real faux pas.

MARQUARDT: Lightning quick, and they're going to be airing it in high profile venues during the Detroit Tigers and Detroit Lions games this weekend.

Scott, do you think, to Gloria's point, this could hurt Trump in Michigan?

JENNINGS: No, not really. I mean, look, Detroit, I mean, if you guys want to argue or the Democrats want to argue that this is like the model of excellent local governance, go ahead. But I don't think a lot of people would agree with you. The massive population decline over decades, massive crime issues, school issues. I mean, you know, this has not been the greatest run city. And his point was it's been run by Democrats.

And it could be better and manufacturing could be better and you could do better if you're willing to vote for somebody else who has different ideas, that's why he was speaking at the Detroit Economic Club. So, what everybody's calling an insult, I think he was just being honest and saying there may be a better path here, and that's part of his blunt appeal.

CARDONA: But there was no truth in it. Crime is actually going down in Detroit. Populations are actually coming back in Detroit, and all of that happened and is happening under the Biden-Harris administration. And people who live in Detroit actually know that. So, facts matter. And that's why I think Donald Trump is going to be in trouble, not just in Detroit, but everywhere.

MARQUARDT: Can I ask Mandela. Can you -- what are your thoughts, because, as Gloria just pointed out, Donald Trump made similar comments in the lead up to the Milwaukee convention?

[18:15:00]

BARNES: He did make similar comments, but we also had our former Governor Scott Walker say the same thing that he didn't the state to turn into Milwaukee, as he was Milwaukee County executive at one point. And so this is what happens all the time. People lament about these cities that are run by Democrats, but they wholly forget that a lot of times these states are run by Republicans who continue to hamstring, sabotage and suffocate cities like Milwaukee, suffocate cities like Detroit in order to use them as a political punching bag, while the people of these communities continue to suffer from a lack of investment in education and housing and other critical issues that would improve quality of life.

MARQUARDT: Okay, everyone, lots more to discuss, stay with me.

Is Donald Trump afraid that his private plane could be attacked? We'll discuss his request to fly on military aircraft in the final run up to Election Day.

But up next, the dire situation in Gaza after a year of war, details on the latest death toll and a damning new report from the United Nations.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:20:00]

MARQUARDT: In Gaza tonight, a disturbing new report from the United Nations has found no food, none, has entered the northern part of the Gaza Strip since the beginning of October, putting 1 million people at risk of starvation. This comes as new Israeli strikes add fresh misery to an already extraordinarily dire situation there.

CNN's Nic Robertson has this story for us. And we want to warn our viewers that some of this footage is disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice over): Across a hospital floor, a Gazan hellscape. Leyan Hamadine (ph), a 13- year-old girl has third degree burns, is in shock. She tells the medic her name, asked for his, then reaches out to hug him, asking, will I die? You won't die, you'll be fine, he reassures her. What happened, she asks, there is nothing wrong with you, he says. What happened, she asks again. He tells her, there's nothing wrong with your body, except a few wounds, and then you'll heal.

Leyan is one of the lucky ones. A survivor from an Israeli strike Thursday on a school turned shelter to thousands, which according to Gazan health officials, killed at least 28 people. This day, those same officials announcing more than 42,000 Palestinians killed since October 7th last year. The IDF said they were targeting a terrorist command and control center at the school compound.

Displaced like the school they were sheltering in reduced, mentally broken. This man with an angry message for Hamas. We don't want them and we don't want their solutions. They sold us out long ago. Let their leaders come and watch us as we search for bodies with our bare hands.

The unlucky this day, disgorged from overstuffed ambulances. This death cycle, repeated beyond anyone's wildest nightmare day by day, sometimes hour by hour.

My husband's name is Ahmed Abdel Hamouda (ph). Show me where he is. They killed him. He was my support, the support of his disabled daughters. God is great. God is great. Her final goodbye here at the hospital, a starting point for a pain and suffering already dreaded and endured for more than a year.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MARQUARDT: And, Nic Robertson joins us now from Tel Aviv. Nic, it is a desperate situation everywhere in Gaza, but the misery is mounting acutely in the northern part of Gaza with no food getting in and these ramped up Israeli military operations. What more can you tell us?

ROBERTSON (on camera): Yes. U.N. agencies say that hunger is rampant, that the threat of famine persists there. They paint a very dire picture that they haven't been able to get any aid into the north of Gaza since the 1st of October. So, they paint this picture to give us an understanding of how much that aid they're talking about. In August, rather, 700 trucks of humanitarian aid went into Northern Gaza. In September, it was ramping down. 400 trucks of aid got in.

This is large quantities, about 400,000 people there, and now nothing. The U.S. is so concerned that officials have been in touch with Israeli counterparts, reminding them of their obligations under international humanitarian law in war, and that is, as the force on the ground there, they need to make sure that food is getting in, fuel is getting in, water is getting in. Hospitals there right now say they don't have enough fuel, the ICUs will be shut down, the people in them will die and all of this while the war is raging around them. It is a very dire humanitarian situation there right now, Alex.

MARQUARDT: And we've heard time and time again from Israeli officials about everything that they are doing to get that aid in, and that just is not the case in Northern Gaza. Nic Robertson in Tel Aviv, thanks very much.

Coming up, J.D. Vance refuses over and over again to say if he thinks that his running mate, Donald Trump, lost the 2020 election.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:25:00]

MARQUARDT: Three more states are making mail-in and absentee ballots available to voters today, Montana, Arkansas, and Alaska. Voting by mail is now underway across most of the country. And in some key battleground states, the process is being challenged by Republicans.

CNN's Paula Reid went to North Carolina to take a closer look at those lawsuits and how mail-in voting works.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA REID, CNN CHIEF LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: We're here at the Wake County Board of Elections Operations Center, where in just a few minutes, they're going to begin processing mail-in ballots that have already arrived. This process is open to the public. It's open to the media. So, let's head inside and see how it works.

This box contains one of the first batches of mail-in ballots to be processed in the county.

[18:30:01]

Officials review each envelope to make sure it's properly sealed and signed.

ANGELA HAWKINS (R), WAKE COUNTY BOARD OF ELECTIONS: Look at those instructions, follow them carefully.

GREG FLYNN (D), WAKE COUNTY BOARD OF ELECTIONS: Sometimes there's missing witness information or missing notary information or the voted in sign. So, there's a little -- these are things that we catch.

REID: You can see behind me, the committee is hard at work. They are processing ballots that have already been mailed in. This is a bipartisan committee, two Democrats, two Republicans and a chair appointed by the governor.

Roughly a dozen members of the public came to watch the proceedings.

So, once ballots are reviewed and approved by the Board of Elections, they come back here to the sort of goldfish bowl situation where they are then further processed. And I'm whispering here because this is very quiet.

This work may seem mundane, but these envelopes and whether they have been accurately filled out could decide the election. As Democrats have traditionally been more likely to use mail-in ballots, Republicans have already made this the subject of litigation in multiple battleground states.

In Pennsylvania, a pivotal state in the 2024 race, the RNC has sued to challenge procedures that allow voters to vote to fix issues, like missing signatures or incorrect dates, so their ballots can be counted, concerned the Harris-Walz campaign backed the DNC and state Democratic Party quickly intervening.

Ultimately, the state Supreme Court rejected this challenge and another over counting ballots that arrive in envelopes without handwritten dates or have incorrect dates.

But these types of issues could be revived after the election.

GOV. JOSH SHAPIRO (D-PA): We knew that he would try his same old tactics again. And, in fact, we've already begun to see some litigation to try and make it harder for certain people's votes to count.

REID (on camera): Officials are working to educate voters about how to properly fill in their mail and ballot through videos.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Make sure you sign it and write the current date in the right spots on the larger envelope.

REID: Back in North Carolina, election officials are preparing for the litigation over these ballots to ramp up, especially if former President Trump is behind in the vote count.

PAUL COX, GENERAL COUNSEL, NORTH CAROLINA STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS: If you have close elections, I think both major parties are lawyered up and they're ready to go to court if they feel like there's something to be gained strategically from it.

REID: How likely do you think it is that this, the election, anything related to North Carolina will end up in court?

COX: I think it depends on how close it is. That's always the case.

REID: Paula Reid, CNN, Raleigh, North Carolina.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MARQUARDT: Our thanks to Paula Reed for that report. I'm back now with our political panel. And, guys, there's a new interview in the New York Times with our CNN Contributor Lulu Garcia-Navarro, in which she talks to J.D. Vance and she asks him five times whether Trump lost the 2020 election. And he repeatedly dodged that question from Lulu. Let's take a listen to some of that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LULU GARCIA-NAVARRO, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Do you believe he lost the 2020 election?

SEN. J.D. VANCE (R-OH), VICE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I think that Donald Trump and I have both raised a number of issues with the 2020 election, but we're focused on the future.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Senator, yes or no? Okay. Did Donald Trump lose the 2020 election?

VANCE: Let me ask you a question. Is it okay that big technology companies censored the Hunter Biden laptop story?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUARDT: Gloria, that exchange went on like that for two more minutes. So, what does that say to you?

BORGER: Well, it says to me that he is speaking for one person mainly, and that's Donald Trump. His vice presidential candidate cannot admit that Donald Trump lost the election. We saw this in the vice presidential debate where he refused to tell Tim Walz that Trump had lost, and he's going to continue doing this. I mean, that's a perfect example of stonewalling. And, you know, he's not going to budge. He's trying to pivot and turn the question back on her and the media and Hunter Biden's laptop. But it's a simple question that deserves a simple answer, and she didn't get it. MARQUARDT: And actually, there have actually been a couple moments when Trump himself has admitted that he lost by a whisper, and then he would walk that back later.

Mandela, there was this long awaited moment on the campaign trail when President Obama would actually start getting out there for Kamala Harris, and we saw that yesterday in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. But there was also another moment where he essentially scolded black men who were hesitant about supporting Kamala Harris. Let's take a listen to some of that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: I'm speaking to men directly. Part of it makes me think that, well, you just aren't feeling the idea of having a woman as president. And so now you're thinking about sitting out or even supporting somebody who has a history of denigrating you?

[18:35:00]

That's not acceptable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUARDT: Mandela, do you think there's truth to what Obama was saying there and do you think that that message will have an effect?

BARNES: I think President Obama is answering his America's dad era, especially as it relates to talking to the voting population and people who might be hesitant. This is a real lesson for folks who are thinking about voting for Donald Trump or for whatever reason are considering not showing up for Kamala Harris as they would for somebody else.

The reality is Donald Trump has been not just a threat in act. In service, he has been completely against everything that the people that I represented as a state legislator and the communities that I represented as lieutenant governor, everything we stand for, everything that will help improve our quality of life, he stood for no less than undermining our democracy itself.

So, I'm grateful that President Obama, as the messenger he is, said what he said about this issue, someone who has served as president, someone who has seen his successor completely tried to not just destroy his legacy but destroy everything that he sought to do to help people in this country.

And with Kamala Harris and all her qualifications and achievements, it is unfortunately a little bit harder for her to make the case with just a sliver of men. It's not to say not all men, but, unfortunately, we're at a point where it is enough where this could be mission critical.

MARQUARDT: Yes. Obama saying this because he's seeing some trend lines and Trump has been trying to appeal to young black men in particular in this campaign. But a Pew researcher told the Philadelphia Enquirer, quote, black people under 50 are no more likely to vote Republican in 2024 than they were 30 years ago. So, Scott, is this less about Trump and more about those voters staying home?

JENNINGS: Well, I do think the Republicans and the Trump campaign specifically believe they are going to make inroads with a lot of men, male voters of all races, white, black, Hispanic, you name it. And so I think the Democrats, quite obviously, when you look at their campaign activity and their spending activity, are pretty freaked out about it.

I don't know that Barack Obama's message was particularly inspiring. I mean, you know, when Democrats get upset that they can't convince you of something, or they're disappointed in you, they begin to insult you. You know, you're stupid, or you're a misogynist, or you're racist, or you're a knuckle dragger, or whatever. I mean, that's essentially what Obama was saying to these people, like why aren't you on board with Kamala Harris? You know, and I'm so disappointed in you. I'm here to scold you. And there are good reasons why they may not be on board with Harris or the Democratic Party.

And so I don't really see them as having a conversation with a persuasion conversation with them. I see them as saying, you know, shut up and show up. And I'm just not certain that's going to be persuasive this time around. So, if Trump can cut into some of those margins with male voters that are black or Hispanic or working class all over the country, good for him.

MARQUARDT: And we've never heard Trump insult anyone either. I mean, he's out there calling Kamala Harris dumb and questioning her intelligence every single day.

But to your point, Scott, and at least the first part of your point, there is data to back that back. Republican Pollster Sarah Longwell did confirm that to Politico that Trump is making inroads with all male voters across the board. She said that the more bro-iy (ph) male dominated campaign that he's running does seem to be resonating. So, Gloria, what's the impact of that?

BORGER: Well, look, I think we may see the largest gender gap we've ever seen in this election, particularly if you look at the numbers closely between young women and young men. When Donald Trump came out and said, I'm going to be your protector, I think there are a lot of young women in particular who were offended by that. They didn't need a protector. And I think that we're going to see a huge gender gap. I mean, the abortion issue, of course, plays into this. But as Scott says, I mean, Donald Trump has been going out of his way to appeal to men, from Hulk Hogan at the convention to, you know, young men.

And I think what Obama was doing, and yes, he was a little scolding about it, he did play the dad role there, was saying, wait a minute guys take a closer look. And it may work and it may not work. I mean, she's got a lot of work to do with men and she's trying both white and black.

MARQUARDT: All right. Well, thanks, everybody. I really appreciate your thoughts this evening.

Just ahead, is Donald Trump's new request for access to military aircraft and other added security measures extreme or is it appropriate?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:40:00]

MARQUARDT: We have new information about Donald Trump's security after two assassination attempts and an ongoing threat from Iran. Multiple sources are telling CNN that Trump is now asking for additional federal protective measures. That includes access to travel on military aircraft with the capability to defend against a surface-to- air missile attack.

We're told the former president has also requested more bullet resistant glass to be available to him to protect him at outdoor rallies in swing states. And he wants the ability to use what's being called Camp David vehicles for his primary motorcade, as well as access to other military assets, like drones with thermal monitoring.

Let's get more on this with CNN Senior National Security Analyst Juliette Kayyem. Juliette, good to see you.

Trump, of course, is facing a variety of serious threats. Do you think that these requests are unusual? Do you think that they're appropriate?

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: So, there's the request and then there's the, why do we know about the requests, and I think they're getting merged in this discussion. There are a number of things that have already been delivered to the Trump campaign that the Secret Service has done, more drones, ballistic weapons, more increased intelligence, more bodies, Secret Service bodies, around Donald Trump and also defense capabilities when he's speaking in public.

[18:45:12]

So that's -- some of those things are settled. Another series of requests seem militaristic. There's -- there's issues about whether some of them are viable for non-sitting president because we do have rules about the use of the military for a -- for a non-sitting president. That seems appropriate for them -- because of the Constitution. And those are being discussed.

And then you have request of the Trump campaign because he has an increased threat environment. We now are reporting that the Iranians seem to have some sort of hit list against some of his former members of his administration. We should take that seriously. And that requires activities by the Trump campaign to respond to the increased risk environment.

He doesn't like that. He wants bigger rallies. He wants outdoor rally. So, lots of things are getting merged, but -- but from the reporting that we're doing, those requests were made by email, they have to go through a process.

That process is now been fixed, but in the interim, Trump has made a public. I will say from safety and security purposes, do not make public your security request. This is -- this is -- this is a danger I'm saying this because its dangerous for Trump not because I think he's doing it politically dangerous for him.

MARQUARDT: All right. Juliette Kayyem, we have to leave it there. We'll see if these requests are fulfilled. Thanks very much for joining us.

And coming up our live report from Florida as officials warned that the danger is still has not passed for many residents who have been impacted by Hurricane Milton. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:50:55]

MARQUARDT: Two days after Hurricane Milton slammed into Florida, the danger still has not passed for many people living near flooded rivers.

This, as the White House confirms, that president Biden is set to visit the state on Sunday.

CNN's Brian Todd is joining us now from hard hit St. Lucie County.

So, Brian, the death toll from this storm is now 17. What's the latest?

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Alex, more than two days after tornadoes decimated these neighborhoods, search and rescue operations are still going on near here as residents like those who used to live in this house are wondering where to start try to rebuild their lives.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (voice-over): As rescue efforts continue across Florida, survivors still reeling from the destruction left by powerful Hurricane Milton.

In hard-hit St. Lucie County, Shane Ostrander his wife Nicole and their dog, had to scramble into a closet when a tornado hit them near Fort Pierce on Wednesday. He describes when the twisters slammed into their house.

SHANE OSTRANDER, ST. LUCIE COUNTY RESIDENT, LOST HOME IN TORNADO: Heard two bombs, boom, boom, hears ringing, insulation everywhere. It felt to me about like ten seconds, probably longer.

TODD: Shane says when he opened his closet door, he realized he had lost everything.

OSTRANDER: I walked the dog this morning and that's when it hits me like when I see the neighbors with terrible damage, this whole neighborhood has been devastated and I haven't even left the street yet.

TODD: Robin Longtin lives in the Spanish Lakes country club village neighborhood where at least six people died. She hunkered down and held on as a tornado tore off the roof of her mobile home.

ROBIN LONGTIN, SPANISH LAKES COUNTRY CLUB VILLAGE RESIDENT, LOST HOME IN TORNADO: I literally felt that lift up off the ground and jerked back down. And when I opened the door from the safe room, my roof was gone.

TODD: Robin was able to save her cats and to parakeets, but its still coming to grips with the loss of her home.

LONGTIN: Devastating, scary definitely life-changing.

TODD: Others in the same senior community could not escape.

Sixty-six-year-old Alejandro Alonzo's grandson tells CNN that Alejandro and his girlfriend were killed. The grandson describes Alejandro as an amazing grandfather and a motorcycle lover.

CRYSTAL COLEMAN, ST. LUCIE COUNTY RESIDENT, HOME DAMAGED BY TORNADO: It was literally a tornado was in my house.

TODD: For those who survived, it's still surreal. This woman hid in her bathroom as a tornado tore off her roof.

COLEMAN: It was very life-threatening. I feel like I was about to die.

TODD: Even the county sheriff's building was not spared.

SHERIFF KEITH PEARSON, ST. LUCIE COUNTY, FLORIDA: As you can see here, it destroyed this building, crumbled the red iron metal, destroyed lots of for vehicles.

TODD: St. Lucie County Sheriff Keith Pearson told us the focus now is on rescues.

PEARSON: We're not going to stop until we're able to, you know, rescue or recover as many people as we can.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where's everybody at?

TODD: East of Tampa, rescuers wade through knee-high waters to evacuate people inside homes in Dover, guiding them with a rope one- by-one to safety.

A 91-year-old woman carried out of floodwaters in Lithia. This 77- year-old rode out the hurricane in his mobile home in St. Petersburg.

JERALD GILCHRIST, ST. PETERSBURG RESIDENT, RODE OUT HURRICANE MILTON AT HOME: For a few years that I got left, I'd like to stay here.

TODD: And others slowly picking up the pieces.

RALPH GENITO, VALRICO RESIDENT: I mean, I know it's terrible things, but I got start all over again. Yeah. I just everything I had, there's no good.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (on camera): And to give you a stark illustration of how horribly fickle and temperamental tornadoes are, take a look at the scene behind me versus the house next to it. This is Shane Ostrander's house. You can see almost all of it has gone.

We pan over here to my left, to your right, only about 50 take a look at that house. There was some roof damage, but you can see it's basically structurally intact. That is the difference between having a house and having no house about 50 feet in a tornado -- Alex.

MARQUARDT: Just incredible.

Brian Todd, thanks for that report and all of your reporting this week.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:59:04]

MARQUARDT: Since 2020, roughly 12,000 Haitian immigrants have moved to Springfield, Ohio, a city that was once struggling to find workers. Donald Trump and his running mate J.D. Vance have been targeting these legal immigrants spreading disinformation and threatening to deport them if they're elected.

In this week's "THE WHOLE STORY," CNN's Omar Jimenez takes viewers inside this community.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You couldn't be here for her birthday?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.

JIMENEZ: Is that hard?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Very hard.

JIMENEZ: Why?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because she's represent my heart. She is my firstborn. She said to me, poppy, never leave me alone, never leave me alone. Stay with me. I miss you.

Sometimes when I remember that, I was too quiet, but I have to take power of two stay strong because I have to take care of them. I have to stay alive because I expect to meet them again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUARDT: You can see that whole new episode of "THE WHOLE STORY WITH ANDERSON COOPER" on Sunday night at 8:00 Eastern, only on CNN.

I'm Alex Marquardt in THE SITUATION ROOM. Thank you very much for watching.

"ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT" starts right now.