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Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) Blames Democrat Loss On Biden Not Leaving Race Sooner; Sources Say, More Trump Roles Could Be Announced As Early As Today; Justice Department Announces Charges In Iranian Plot To Kill Trump; Pelosi Blames Dem Loss On Biden Not Leaving Race Sooner; African Americans Receive Racist Texts About Slavery & "Pickling Cotton" After U.S. Election; Israel Soccer Fans Begin Arriving In Tel Aviv After Being Targeted By Antisemitic Attacks In Amsterdam. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired November 08, 2024 - 18:00   ET

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

[18:00:00]

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Happening now, breaking news, the Democratic blame game is reaching new heights after Donald Trump's stunning victory. The former House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, pointing the finger at President Biden for not dropping out of the race sooner and and thereby he would have allowed for a competitive primary.

Meanwhile, sources telling CNN, critical White House positions could be announced as soon as today, as Trump races to fill out his next administration. One person likely to play a major, if unofficial, role, Elon Musk, who joined a post-election phone call between Trump and the Ukrainian president.

Also tonight, another Iranian plot against Donald Trump's life thwarted by U.S. authorities. The U.S. Justice Department just unveiled charges in an alleged scheme to kill Trump in the weeks before the election.

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

We begin tonight with new finger pointing inside the Democratic Party, and it's ugly, including from former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who helped orchestrate President Biden's removal from the top of the ticket. Our Senior White House Correspondent M.J. Lee is joining us right now with the latest.

M.J., it sounds like Pelosi had enough blame to go around.

M.J. LEE, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, there has been a lot of finger pointing going around inside the Democratic Party, certainly a lot of second guessing of various points of the Harris campaign's actual strategy. But based on all of our reporting this week, more than even the vice president, the nominee herself, the person that is getting most of the blame from various Democrats is probably President Joe Biden.

And it is specifically his decision to seek a second term after having promised to be a transition president, a bridge president and basically denying the party an opportunity to have a full and robust primary process that is making Democrats incredibly angry right now as they were looking back on the last few years. And former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is adding her voice to all of this.

This is what she told The New York Times. She said, had the president gotten out sooner, there may have been other candidates in the race. The anticipation was that if the president were to step aside that there would be an open primary. Kamala may have, I think she would have done well in that and been stronger going forward, but we don't know that. That didn't happen. We live with what happened.

And as you'll recall, over the summer, Pelosi was somebody who made clear her real reservations about the president continuing to seek a second term. And we actually reported at the time that in a private conversation she had actually bluntly told the president that she did not believe that he could win.

So, this is just one more addition that gives us a clearer picture of how strong those reservations had been. We also know, of course, that this has been a tough week for the Kamala Harris campaign. We know that there was a campaign call even last night where senior leaders actually told other campaign officials to please stop criticizing the campaign to members of the press that they do not believe that this is a constructive thing to do. Wolf?

BLITZER: M.J. Lee over at the White House for us, thanks, M.J., very much.

Our political experts are joining me now for some serious analysis. Maria Cardona, do you agree with Speaker Emerita Pelosi?

MARIA CARDONA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: You know, Wolf, so many people are going to have their take on what happened, on what didn't happen, on what should have happened, on what could have happened. I just don't think that's helpful. It might very well be the case what Speaker Pelosi said. It might very well not have been the case.

And so I don't think this kind of recrimination done in public is helpful at all for what the party really needs to engage in, which is a real in-depth analysis of postmortem of what happened. Was it our messaging? Was it our technology? Was it our organization? Was it the timing? And maybe it was a combination of all of the above. Maybe the die had already been cast for any Democrat where it would have been difficult to run on a political environment where the inflation and cost of living post-pandemic was going to be such that no Democrat could have gotten away from that.

[18:05:02]

We don't know.

Vice President Harris ran a near flawless campaign in the time constraint that she was given with the impossible situation that she was given. I think she did the best that anyone could have in her situation. And so I think it's unfair to blame the president or blame the vice president for something that I believe at this point was out of their control.

I think the party would serve itself best and serve the voters best for what we want to do moving forward. If we actually move forward, if we figure out what happened, if we then put in place new mechanisms, new modernizations, new tactics, new organizations, new leadership, so that we can move forward and make sure that our message, which I still believe is the message that will resonate with voters when we do it right and when we communicate correctly for the next two years and the next four years.

BLITZER: Biden Biographer Evan Osnos is with us as well. Evan, how do you read this postmortem from Pelosi after her almost singular role in tanking Joe Biden's candidacy?

EVAN OSNOS, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, as you know, Wolf, their relationship has more or less collapsed since this summer when she played that role in pushing him from the race. But I think it's also worth noting that it was really the crucial period was in the fall of 2022, right around the time of the midterm elections, that's what historians are going to be looking back at. Because going into those elections, there was an assumption among a lot of Democrats that they would have a conversation afterward, assuming Democrats wouldn't do well, they would figure out who would come next, perhaps have that open process.

But when Democrats perform better than they expected, they took the wrong political lesson from it. They came away saying, okay, we can talk about democracy. We can talk about the overturning of Roe v. Wade. And perhaps Joe Biden has, as people said at the time, earned the chance to run again. And one of the people at the time who was saying that publicly was Nancy Pelosi in November of 2022.

So, I think now there are a lot of Democrats who say this process should have happened at the time. Perhaps he should have clearly stepped out and avoided the catastrophe that followed. But they weren't saying it publicly at the time.

BLITZER: Back in September, Scott Jennings, Pelosi actually did say it was a blessing to avoid an open primary. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You have reportedly said you wanted a sort of an open primary when if Joe Biden stepped down. Did you change your mind because you saw all the excitement around Kamala Harris?

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): No, I didn't change my mind. We had an open primary and she won it. Nobody else got in the race.

Yes, people could have jumped in. There were some people who were sort of preparing, but she just took off with it. And actually it was a blessing because there isn't that much time, there wasn't that much time between then and the election and it sort of saved time. So, it wasn't that we didn't have an open process. It's just that nobody got in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: So, Scott, what do you make of Pelosi's about-face?

SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes, pretty wild stuff, actually, Wolf. I actually think Democrats don't have anybody to blame but themselves, and not just in the near term thinking about this but the charade that was Joe Biden running for a second term at all, ever. I mean, the idea that we were all supposed to go along with this idea that he was up to the job or up to running for a second term until that debate in June. Remember, Pelosi, Harris, every single major Democrat in this country sat on this network and every other network and in front of T.V. cameras and said, oh, he's vigorous, he's great, he's going to do well, until it wasn't politically viable anymore.

So, I have very little sympathy for all this. I'm kind of, you know, watching it with my popcorn box, like the rest of the Republicans, but they have no one to blame but themselves for constructing a charade around Joe Biden that he was up to this. He never was. The American people found out about it, and that's part of why I think Harris lost.

BLITZER: Jasmine, Senator Bernie Sanders says Democrats have abandoned the working class, something Pelosi took issue with in this new interview that she gave. Just how split are Democrats on this? And what are the competing schools of thought about the future of the party?

JASMINE WRIGHT, REPORTER, NOTUS: Yes. Well, I think Democrats are incredibly split on this in that interview with the New York Times Pelosi said, while I respect Bernie Sanders, I don't respect that opinion. And she said basically that Bernie has never won nationally, which I think is a fair point. But the fact is, is that Democrats on both sides, if you're a center left or if you're far left, feel that the messaging of the party is not what is impacting the people. It's not recognizing the folks who are struggling economically, recognizing the folks who are struggling with what's happening on the border.

And so they feel that maybe some of them feel that there's not enough attention paid to the working class, that too much attention is paid to higher educated people, that too much attention is not paid to the base of voters.

[18:10:01]

I reported a lot about the fact that the black political class was concerned about the way that the vice president's campaign was concerned about the way that the vice president's campaign was spending money, and the fact that they weren't spending money, not just with the black political class, but that they weren't spending enough money on actually attracting black voters. The same with Latino voters, and, obviously, we saw that kind of come to roost in the exit polls.

And so I think that there's thoughts about they are not just not talking to people based on race or gender, but certainly not talking to people based on class and the differences in their educational experience, the differences in what they do.

And so I think that the folks who I've been talking to in the last 48, 72 hours really say that the Democratic Party should burn it all down and think about reimagining itself and who it aims to reach out to and the messages that they try to use to reach those voters.

BLITZER: Let me get Maria to react to that. Go ahead, Maria.

CARDONA: I think there's a lot of truth to that. There's no question that the Democratic Party needs to go back to our roots. We have historically been the party that understands organically and authentically and connects with the issues and the struggles and everything that the working class and the middle class go through in this country. And that's what we need to get back to.

I think it was not so much an issue of policies, and this is where I think the Democrats need that vice president Harris did well, and perhaps the timing issue was the issue, but I also think organization and the ways that we communicate it, the Republican Party ran circles around us in terms of the infrastructure that they put together from the moment that Joe Biden became president in terms of the grassroots, in terms of the far right wing media, the podcast, the social influencers that they invested in, invested millions in them, gave them money, gave them content, gave them platforms that all resonated and that all grew right under our nose. And we had no idea until it happened that we were so far behind in terms of how to communicate with key demographics in this country that did include working class voters.

So, I think all of that has got to be part of our postmortem, part of our analysis to figure out messaging, yes, how do we better message what I believe is our true values and our policies that are the ones that reflect and connect with the working class. We just need to do it in a way where that actually communicates where they are and how they are and listens to them as opposed to making them listen to us.

BLITZER: Scott, I want you to weigh in as well. What do you think?

JENNINGS: Well, I think if you look at the results of this election and conclude that our policies are really popular, we just don't talk about them well, your way off track. I mean, I think I think the only group that Harris increased support for over Biden in 2020 was people who make more than a hundred thousand dollars a year. And this election was really about the working class in this country how crushed they have felt through COVID, through inflation, how they felt ignored, and, frankly, how they have felt insulted and condescended too.

And so, you know, those are values and policy problems with the Democratic Party that has nothing to do with comms and everything to do with, what do we actually believe, what do we actually stand for. So, I'm not usually the business, Wolf, of giving advice to Democrats, but I don't think this is a comms or a tactics issue. It's not a podcast issue. It is, who are we? What do we represent? What are our values? And they have gotten way, way off track from the Democratic Party that my grandfather and my father were in for years when I was growing up.

BLITZER: Evan, where Pelosi and Biden go from here as Democrats look presumably for a new generation of leadership?

OSNOS: Well, you know, Joe Biden has always believe that what he says is your epitaph in politics is written in the last battle you fight. And right now, as we all know, he's contending with the legacy of having helped Donald Trump, in effect, come back to the White House. And I think the last battle that he can fight is to help this party begin to figure out its next chapter, to begin to sort out some of these big questions about how do you reclaim some of that populist energy, the kinds of things Bernie Sanders is so good at tapping into, while also recognizing there may be cultural issues that do not resonate with the public.

So, he has 70-some days, as he said yesterday in the Rose Garden to finish his term. And I think people going to be looking closely to see how he writes that part of the epitaph.

BLITZER: We'll see what happens. Everybody stand by. There's more we need to discuss.

Just ahead, we're learning about when Donald Trump could name more members of his incoming White House staff. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:15:00]

BLITZER: Turning now to the Trump transition picking up steam tonight as the President elect plans for his return to the White House.

CNN's Kristen Holmes is joining us now. She's outside the Trump transition headquarters in West Palm Beach, Florida. What are you learning, Kristen?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, I'd have originally been told by senior advisors that there could be more announcements coming as early as today for those White House jobs. Now, of course, it's 6:15. We have not heard anything yet. It's been relatively quiet out of Trump world. The former president and president-elect himself has been almost completely out of the public eye. Not only is he not speaking, he's not on Truth Social. He's posted once or twice. But I'm told that's because he is holed up behind closed doors, having meetings, taking a series of phone calls.

And I will note, of course, while 6:15 might seem like the day is over yesterday, Susie Wiles, chief of staff was announced at 5:55, so the day is not yet over.

Now, one of the other things he is still doing behind closed doors is taking those calls from foreign leaders. One of the things that I was told is that he has been reveling in the attention that he is getting. Donald Trump believes that he deserves a certain level of recognition and respect, and the fact that he's been getting these calls from these foreign leaders, many of them praising him, a lot of flattery, I am told, in a number of these conversations, that is something that he is really delighting.

And now one of the most notable calls that we have heard of was with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy, who called to congratulate him, and Elon Musk was on the call. So, that itself was very notable. Now, Zelenskyy, it was just a congratulatory call, a short call.

[18:20:01]

But given the high stakes that are out there for Zelenskyy right now, this could be a very critical call.

And I just asked a source about whether or not Donald Trump had spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin. They said they did not believe that that call had taken place yet. But just one reminder, I mean, Donald Trump has promised over and over and over again that he would be able to solve the war in Ukraine, the Russian-Ukrainian war within one day. We'll obviously see how that plays out, Wolf.

BLITZER: We'll see how that one day plays out, indeed. Kristen Holmes in West Palm Beach, Florida, for us, thanks very much.

Scott Jennings and Maria Cardona are back with me right now.

And, Scott, should Elon Musk be on major calls like this one with President Zelenskyy, especially after The Wall Street Journal reported that Musk has been in regular contact with Vladimir Putin since 2022?

JENNINGS: Yes. I don't know how to answer that to be honest with you, Wolf, because I'm not sure of the nature of the call. I assume it was a congratulatory call. And, look, Donald Trump's the president-elect and he can really have anybody around and on the phone that he wants.

So, I don't know how to answer it other than to say, Trump's won the election, and he's going to construct his administration and his advisory team however he sees fit, so if that happens to include Elon Musk, well, it's going to include Elon Musk, and I'm sure that other national security officials and other diplomatic officials will be included as time goes on, as they get past the series of time when it's more than just congratulatory, you know, when they're actually discussing a real policy between the United States and Ukraine.

BLITZER: Well, we don't know what they discussed on that phone conversation. They could have been discussing some real policy, but we haven't been told, at least not yet.

Maria, Elon Musk isn't expected by most observers to have an official government position under Trump. How much is there going to be, though, a shadow government in this second Trump administration?

CARDONA: I think that's one of the biggest concerns, Wolf, because even if Elon Musk doesn't have an official role, I think being like an amorphous senior adviser type of thing is probably more concerning because he's not going to have to be vetted by anyone, doesn't have to be Senate confirmed, but he's going to be in Donald Trump's ear.

I think, you know, Scott's right, Donald Trump can have whoever he wants on his calls, but I think it's concerning when you have somebody like Elon Musk, who has so much sway because of what he offers, Ukraine, for example, Starlink is something that we know that he put up there, and the fact that he's been having these secret conversations with Vladimir Putin for the last two years, and that we know, it's no secret that Trump and many current Republicans do not want to give more money to Ukraine for the war. So, what were they talking about?

You know, you could imagine that they were talking about a scenario where they were, you know, putting the screws on Zelenskyy or putting, putting forward a scenario, a possible scenario that they would talk about after he takes office, where he's saying, look, you're going to need to give up some percentage of your country or else. And the fact that we can all imagine that that's a possibility is really concerning.

I hope that's not the case. I hope that Donald Trump actually focuses on, you know, not just uniting the country, but uniting the free world. So far, he does not give confidence that that's what his goals are, but let's give him a chance.

BLITZER: You know, Scott, we're also learning that senior Pentagon officials are discussing how respond if Trump issues controversial orders, like deploying active duty troops for domestic law enforcement purposes. How concerning is that to you?

JENNINGS: Well, I am a little concerned, honestly, if the federal bureaucracy, whether it's in the Pentagon or any other agency, is already having discussions about how to counterman the commander-in- chief. I mean, let's remember how this works. He got elected president. He's the commander-in-chief. He gives the orders, they follow them, and so I don't like the idea, candidly, Wolf, of non- elected government people, at any level, having meetings with each other about how to thwart the duly elected president of the United States.

So, I'm really hoping that when Donald Trump names his nominee for the Pentagon and then they take office, and you have your National Security Council in place, that we have a much better working relationship between the White House and the Pentagon than what I'm reading tonight, which is one part of the federal government already having some kinds of meetings about what it would look like to thwart the president. That's not a good way to start this administration.

BLITZER: But let me follow up, Scott. Let me follow up with you. Because Trump as president will be the commander-in-chief, but what these Pentagon officials are considering right now in discussing among themselves, what if he gives the Pentagon, the U.S. military Illegal orders to do certain things. What do they do then?

JENNINGS: My advice to them would be instead of talking to each other, talk to the president and talk to his senior staff. Because this -- look what's happened.

[18:25:01] They're having these meetings now. It's out in the open. I mean, what is Donald Trump supposed to think now? You've already got the government and the bureaucracy, you know, plotting against you or thinking the worst of you.

So, look, to me, the best thing that could happen here is for them to talk to each other, meaning the Pentagon people and the president and his team. That that's what really ought to happen. So, I hope these like secret meetings that now somehow find them their way into the press, that that really needs to stop. And we need more communication between the incoming government and the people who are already in the building.

BLITZER: Yes. I remember Trump during these final weeks of the campaign was talking about potentially activating the U.S. military or the National Guard to deal with the enemies within, as he was calling it out there. So, that's one of the reasons of concern for these Pentagon officials, to be sure.

Everyone, thank you very, very much for that important analysis.

Coming up, inside the stunning announcement today from the U S Justice Department, alleging a new plot by Iran to kill Donald Trump.

Plus, Republicans appear closer to keeping control of the House of Representatives. We'll talk with a lawmaker who will be a key player, no matter which party is in charge. The California Democratic, congressman, Ro Khanna, there you see him, he's standing by live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:30:00]

BLITZER: Breaking news we're following, the U.S. Justice Department just announced charges in an alleged plot to assassinate Donald Trump in the weeks before the presidential election.

Let's get some more from our Senior Justice Correspondent Evan Perez. Evan, how did Iran attempt, according to the U.S. Justice Department, to carry out this thwarted plot?

EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, according to the FBI, this plot against the former president and the incoming president actually took place very, very close to the election. According to the information filed in federal court in Manhattan on October 7th, Farhad Shakeri, 51 years old, he lives in Tehran, said that he was tasked by the IRGC to try to find a way to carry out an attack in short-term against Donald Trump, the idea being that they thought he might lose and they wanted to try to get it done before the U.S. election.

Now, this is just one of multiple plots that, according to the FBI and according to the prosecutors in Manhattan, Shakeri Shaqiri was involved in. The biggest one was one where he was trying to coordinate the surveillance and an assassination o of a prominent critic of the Iranian regime, somebody -- her name is Mahsi Alinejad, and she has been the subject of plots by the Iranian regime over the number of years.

Now, according to these documents, he reached out to a couple of people that he knew from serving time in prison in the United States. He was deported back a number of years ago. And they, over a period of months, followed Alinejad as she went to do speeches in Connecticut, as she came and went from her home. They have pictures of her -- the front door of her home in Brooklyn. No attack actually ever happened, but it gives you a sense of the level of planning that went into this.

Now, according to these documents, Wolf, these plots went beyond Trump and Alinejad. They also were seeking to carry out an assassination against a couple of U.S. Jewish businessmen in New York, as well as trying to coordinate attacks on Israeli tourists in Sri Lanka. That led to a number of warnings.

Now, Wolf, this is obviously not the first time that Iran has been trying to carry out attacks against Trump or dissidents here in the United States. Of course, just this summer, there was a Pakistani man who was arrested for trying to find people who were going to be tasked with carrying out attacks on Trump and other officials, political figures here in the United States. Wolf?

BLITZER: Evan Perez thank you very much for that update, very disturbing information indeed.

Now, let's discuss what's going on with Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna of California. Congressman, thanks so much for joining us.

How concerning is this Iranian plot that the Justice Department has unveiled and how do you think it potentially could shape Trump's hardline policies against Iran?

REP. RO KHANNA (D-CA): Well, it's atrocious and very disturbing. I think all Americans should be reassured that the Biden administration got to these terrorists, and that they were foiled, and that they're being held accountable. And then when it comes to America's national security, protecting our presidents, our former presidents, our candidates, we all as Americans speak with one voice and any nation that makes threats on them or tries this is going to face extraordinary repercussions.

Now, I believe that President Trump will take appropriate action against people who are responsible for this terrorism and with sanctions, but I also know that he doesn't want a war with Iran and will be hopefully prudent in avoiding a war in the Middle East.

BLITZER: Yes, it's going to be tense, indeed. I want to turn to the election, Congressman, while I have you. I know you call it a colossal defeat for Democrats and say there needs to be what you call a cleaning of the house. What exactly are you calling for?

KHANNA: Well, the political class, the governing consultant class, the political operative class, I think they need to go, make way for new people. I mean, we spent a billion dollars. We had concerts all over the country and yet people can't afford a house. They can't afford a car. We were not speaking to the economic needs of a lot of working and middle class Americans. And there needs to be a much more bottom- up approach. I think we should spend six months outside Washington, going to communities, listening to voters in factory towns in rural America and really then building up a positive agenda. But we need to be honest that it was a failure in terms of the campaign.

BLITZER: It was a real failure, indeed. In a new interview, as I'm sure you know by now, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi suggests President Biden should have withdrawn from the race sooner to allow for a competitive primary to take place. Could this have helped Democrats? What do you think?

[18:35:00]

KHANNA: I think it was Monday morning quarterbacking. I mean, look, people didn't like how that whole thing went down, actors and party elites trying to engineer a process. But 107 days with a good campaign and a strong economic message could have won. I mean, we were up in the polls end of August. So, now to say, oh, there was not enough time, I don't think that's the root cause. The root cause is we simply did not have a strong economic message to convince working and middle class Americans that we were on their side. And we weren't able to convince people that on cultural issues, you could reasonably disagree without shaming them or making them feel isolated.

So, we need to have introspection as a Democratic party, rebuild, have a new generation of leaders. And I think that the establishment needs to make way. There are a lot of talented people in their 40s and 50s across America and a lot of new political operatives who now need to lead the Democratic Party.

BLITZER: And you make an important point. They raised what the Democrats something like a billion dollars in this campaign. It did really didn't help. They got crushed when all was said and done.

As you know, Congressman, Republicans will control the Senate, the new Senate. They're bullish on their chances to retain the House of Representatives. Assuming they do, what levers will Democrats have to try to constrain a Trump presidency?

KHANNA: Well, the biggest lever is public opinion. If you remember, and I know you do, Wolf, when Donald Trump had all the control of both branches, and he tried to separate kids from their families, there was outcry in this country, from the media, from people, and he changed within a few weeks. And we saw that when he tried other policies as well in his first term that went too far.

But Democrats will use the bully pulpit. We will use committee hearings to be able to constrain him for making terrible choices. And then the House is going to be one or two seats, three seats difference. And so I think that also will give us an opportunity to block any extreme positions that he takes.

BLITZER: We shall see. Congressman Ro Khanna, thanks so much for joining us.

KHANNA: Thank you, Wolf. BLITZER: And just ahead, we'll have more on what we know about Donald Trump's second term as president with someone who's covered the American presidency for decades. The veteran journalist, Carl Bernstein, is standing by live. He'll join us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:40:00]

BLITZER: Tonight, we have more on what sources are telling CNN about Donald Trump's congratulatory post election phone conversation with the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. He was joined by the tech tycoon, as we noted, Elon Musk.

Our Brian Todd has more on that for us. Brian, what does the billionaire's presence on this important phone conversation tell us about Trump's approach to foreign policy in his second term?

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, it tells us that Donald Trump will be about as unpredictable with foreign leaders this time as he was in his first term. And that's put Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his country on edge.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (voice over): More than two months before he even steps back into the Oval Office, Donald Trump has already thrown a controversial wrinkle into his foreign policy, having billionaire Elon Musk join a call between the president-elect and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy the day after the election. That's according to a source with knowledge of the situation who spoke to CNN.

SUSAN GLASSER, STAFF WRITER, THE NEW YORKER: It's an extraordinary breach of what we might consider to be any kind of normal protocol.

I really find it to be an indicator also of who it is that Donald Trump is listening to as he prepares potentially to abandon this partner of the United States, Ukraine.

TODD: The Ukrainians have been concerned that Trump, when he becomes president, will dramatically cut back America's aid to Ukraine, or maybe cut it off all together.

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: It would be really very, very difficult. And that's a nightmare scenario for Zelenskyy.

TODD: Musk, as the head of SpaceX, has a security clearance that gives him access to some classified information. He has allowed Ukrainian forces to use his crucial Starlink satellite communications network on the battlefield.

GLASSER: And so he has enormous power over Ukraine.

TODD: Musk posted a proposal to end the war in 2022. He wrote, quote, Crimea, formerly part of Russia, Ukraine remains neutral, redo elections of annexed regions under U.N. supervision, Russia leaves if that is the will of the people. It was welcomed by the Kremlin, while the Ukrainian ambassador to Germany said, F off.

Musk has been in regular contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin since late 2022, according to The Wall Street Journal, a report denied by the Kremlin.

Trump has campaigned on ending the war in 24 hours, without much specificity. But his running mate described a deal where Russia keeps the parts of Ukraine that it has already taken.

SEN. J.D. VANCE (R-OH), VICE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: What it probably looks like is something like the current line of demarcation between Russia and Ukraine that becomes like a demilitarized zone.

DOUGHERTY: In other words, the Ukrainians would have to give up, probably Donbas, that eastern region, and Crimea. This would not be to the advantage of Ukraine at all.

TODD: Trump has also blamed Zelenskyy for Russia's invasion.

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT, 2024 PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: He should never have let that war start. That war's a loser.

TODD: Then there's the personal friction, going back to when, as president, Trump pressured Zelenskyy to investigate Hunter Biden during a call about U.S. aid to Ukraine. Democrats alleged a quid pro quo, and Trump was impeached, but acquitted. And more recent tensions, such as Zelenskyy telling CNN this.

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: I can't understand how. How Donald Trump can be on the side of Putin.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (on camera): This all comes at a very precarious moment for Ukraine. In the Eastern region of Donbas, Russian forces have been making gains and Vladimir Putin plans to capture the entire region. And as many as 11,000 North Korean troops are now bolstering Russian forces, resulting in deadly clashes, according to Zelenskyy. Wolf?

BLITZER: Brian Todd reporting. Brian, thanks for that report.

Right now, I'm joined by the veteran journalist, Carl Bernstein. Carl, thanks so much for joining us.

As you know, the former House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, is criticizing President Biden's late decision to drop out and endorse Harris, saying it prevented Democrats from having an open primary.

[18:45:10]

What do you make of the infighting that's rather ugly that's going on, the finger-pointing among Democrats right now?

CARL BERNSTEIN, JOURNALIST: I think there's a parsing of what happened finally, that eventually is going to result in our really knowing the truth about what happened during the Biden presidency in which there was a cover-up of the presidents real and deteriorating physical and cognitive condition.

There was a cover-up. We know parts of it, and I think what we know also, from what Speaker Pelosi is saying, is that these facts are going to come up, and we are going to learn an awful lot about lot about how the president of the United States was to a large extent, able to determine that Kamala Harris would be his chosen successor, as the candidate for president of the United States. It was not possible for there to be a real open convention, as Speaker Pelosi and others had hoped.

At the same time, I think we need to focus right now on Donald Trump, because here we have someone who has been an enemy of democracy, in his first term as president of the United States, has become the ultimate beneficiary of democracy, in a free and fair election, in which there were no complaints from his people about interference at the polls or anything at this sort once the night went on and he told us how he is planning to govern, with instruments that are anti- democratic, the idea of rounding up millions of people from mass deportation, using the military to arrest and put on court-martial, his former chief of staff, his head of the joint chiefs of staff.

He wants to see them court-martialed. He also wants to see the press, members of the press prosecuted, treason charges, brought against Speaker Pelosi, treason charges brought against Congressman Adam Schiff.

If he really goes through with this, here we have one of the greatest coalitions that a president-elect has ever put together, and he has the chance to use that coalition for the good of the people of this country. He has a record in which he has never put the good of the people of this country ahead of his own interest. But he's got an opportunity to do it now and I think that's what we ought to be looking at.

And Trump, indeed, was one of the first two -- you know, he understood this cover-up that was occurring about Joe Biden's condition, and it also helped him win.

BLITZER: It certainly did, you and Bob Woodward's reporting, amazing reporting years ago on Richard Nixon's illegal activity, certainly helped to bring down his presidency. Trump appears largely immune to all of this.

So why do you think that is, what has changed in our country over the years?

BERNSTEIN: Well, first of all, the nature of the Republican Party has changed. You've got to remember that the Republican Party and its leaders were ready to convict Richard Nixon, in a Senate trial. Barry Goldwater, the former nominee for president of his party, led a delegation of Republican senators and congressmen, to the Oval Office, to tell Richard Nixon he must resign or they would see that he would be convicted in the Senate of the United States.

You saw with Mitch McConnell, he did the exact opposite, and indeed, there was reason and a strong case against the president of the United States, really, the first seditious president of the United States, as Woodward and I wrote in the 50th anniversary edition of all the president's men.

And yet here, this formally seditious president of the United States has now been elected with this amazing coalition, that the press didn't see coming, that the Democrats didn't see coming, let's hope, maybe he will read the Constitution of the United States and say, this is an opportunity for me to do things, not my way, but the way of the law, the way of our traditions in a Democratic country.

But also, I think its really important that we remember, Donald Trump has shown great instincts, that's why he's in large measure the president of the United States again.

His instincts in this campaign, as dark as they were and as dark as he goes.

[18:50:09]

Those dark instincts, have served him because that's the way , he has a real feel for what and how to appeal to people in this country.

BLITZER: Yeah.

BERNSTEIN: And we've seen it and we said several times, now, he doesn't have those powers, he doesn't have that ability. In fact, he has shown us that he does and let's hope that he can find a way to use them for the good of the United States of America.

BLITZER: Always good to hear what you have to say. Carl Bernstein, thank you very, very much.

And coming up, the latest on a nationwide investigation into very disturbing and racist text messages sent to minorities and children following the presidential election.

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BLITZER: Right now, U.S. authorities are probing a hateful, racist digital attack on American citizens.

CNN's Gabe Cohen has details on the very disturbing messages being sent to people of color, all across the country.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GABE COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tonight, investigators are trying to track down whoever is behind a series of personalized racist text targeting people of color in roughly two dozen states, from New York to California.

[18:55:09]

Some of them, children. TALAYA JONES, RECEIVED RACIST TEXT: It's disgusting. It's really -- it

doesn't even seem like something that a human with a heart and soul would even do.

COHEN: Talaya Jones, one of many who received the text personally addressed referencing picking cotton and slave catchers. And today, she received an email calling her the N-word.

When you saw yet another message, what went through your mind?

JONES: That was insane, so that's what I was thinking like, somebody hacked my phone, like you don't feel safe in anything that you do, because you don't know who is doing it.

COHEN: Some of the messages specifically referred to President-elect Donald Trump.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am one of Donald Trump's associates and your cotton picking starts from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. You will drop out of school and become a full time cotton picker, making 75 cents an hour, sounds good.

COHEN: The Trump campaign denouncing those texts in a statement, saying the campaign has absolutely nothing to do with them.

But the president of the NAACP says, quote, these messages represent an alarming increase in vile and abhorrent rhetoric from racist groups across the country who now feel emboldened to spread hate and stoke the flames of fear that many of us are feeling after Tuesday's election results.

JENNIFER GREEN, RECEIVED RACIST TEXT: It's very scary for a lot of individuals, the fact that it happened the day after Election Day, it really speaks to what I think is going on here.

COHEN: At least some of the messages were sent using text now, a service that allows users to create phone numbers for free and the company says it believes this is a widespread, coordinated attack.

LIZ MURRILL, LOUISIANA ATTORNEY GENERAL: Don't click on it, delete it.

COHEN: Louisiana's attorney general telling CNN that the people behind this are using software that obscures their location, writing the messages through Poland, though the senders could be anywhere.

MURRILL: We have no way of knowing where the individual is that is sending the mills but we will continue to investigate it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COHEN (on camera): And, Wolf, tonight, we've learned the FCC is conducting an investigation. We are working with federal and state law enforcement to find out who is behind this and how to stop this.

BLITZER: Very disturbing, indeed. Dave Cohen, thanks very much. We're also following another disturbing story, an antisemitic attack on Israeli soccer fans in Amsterdam. Dutch authorities say the visitors were targeted by criminals on scooters and 63 people have been arrested so far.

CNN's Matthew Chance has our report. Just warning to our viewers, some of the images are disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These were some of the appalling acts of violence against Israeli soccer fans.

I'm not Jewish, this man screams, as hooded attackers kick and beat him to the ground. One person is mowed down by a car. Another lies motionless on the street as he is rudely kicked.

Israeli and Dutch officials expressing their shock .

FEMKE HALSEMA, MAYOR OF AMSTERDAM: Amsterdam looks bad on a pitch black night and it is still dark today. Hateful antisemitic rioters and criminals attacked and beat up Jewish Israeli visitors to our city last night. My heart goes out to the victims, to their families, here and in Israel.

CHANCE: These were the scenes ahead of the match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and the Dutch team Ajax on Thursday night. Some Israeli fans can be heard supporting the Israeli military, chanting, let the IDF win -- and cursing Arabs.

One is really fan is reported putting down a Palestinian flag.

Later, there were clashes with pro-Palestinian protesters, Dutch police deploying extra personnel but Israeli officials tell CNN, more should have been done by police to protect the fans amid prior warnings of anti-Israel protests.

JONI POGREBETSY, ISRAELI SOCCER FAN: They came when a lot of people were already hurt, injured, some of them probably got to the hospital.

MICHAEL ASUSS, ISRAELI SOCCER FAN: We have nothing to do with the war, we come to support Maccabi Tel Aviv and we got (EXPLETIVE DELETED).

CHANCE: But Israeli officials tell CNN they see this rampage in Amsterdam as part of a broader upsurge in antisemitic violence, and are now reviewing security for all Israeli sports fixtures abroad.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where are you from? Where are you from?

CHANCE: Making sure that Israeli fans are not targeted like this, ever again.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHANCE (on camera): Well, Wolf, tonight, Israel is continuing to evacuate its soccer fans from Amsterdam with another eight planes expected to arrive here over the course of the next day by Israeli officials. This, as that situation in Amsterdam continues to unfold, the authority say they are banning protests for the next three days.

BLITZER: Matthew Chance at Ben-Gurion Airport, outside Tel Aviv, thanks very much.

And to our viewers, thanks for watching. I'm Wolf Blitzer in THE SITUATION ROOM.

"ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT" starts right now.