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Interview With Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC); South Carolina Set to Hold Republican Presidential Primary; Person of Interest in Custody Following Georgia Student's Death; Interview With Former U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta; Netanyahu Reveals Postwar Plan For Gaza; President Biden Imposes 500 New Sanctions on Russia; Moon Landing. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired February 23, 2024 - 13:00   ET

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

[13:01:97]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Crackdown on the Kremlin, the White House hitting Russia with 500 new sanctions, marking the second anniversary of what President Biden calls Vladimir Putin's vicious onslaught on Ukraine.

And a historic return to the moon, Odysseus landing on the lunar surface, a giant leap for the company behind the mission in what the CEO of Intuitive Machines is calling a nail-biter.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: And tragic diagnosis for former talk show host Wendy Williams, a new documentary peeling apart the health issues that she's been dealing with. CNN spoke with her niece about what she saw firsthand.

We're following these major developing stories and many more all coming in right here to CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

KEILAR: The Biden administration just unleashing the largest single- day package of sanctions targeting Russia, more than 500 new sanctions, just one day before the two-year mark in the Russian war against Ukraine.

This morning, President Biden explaining the move:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You can't walk away now. And that's what Putin's betting on it. That's why I'm announcing more than 500 new sanctions in response...

(APPLAUSE)

BIDEN: ... in response to Putin's brutal war of conquest, in response to Alexei Navalny's death.

We in the United States are going to continue to ensure that Putin pays the price for his aggression abroad and repression at home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: The White House says this is just the start of the response to Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny's death.

Before today, the West had already imposed sanctions on more than 15,000 Russian entities and individuals. Despite this unprecedented economic pressure, the Russian economy has actually grown by 1 percent since Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine and the IMF just upgraded its forecast for Moscow's economic growth in 2024.

CNN's Priscilla Alvarez is at the White House for us on this.

Priscilla, tell us about this sanctions announcement that has just been made.

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, Brianna, President Biden is forcefully responding to the death of Alexei Navalny and to that two-year mark of Russia's invasion of Ukraine through this fresh slate of sanctions.

Now, we had known going into this two-year anniversary that U.S. officials were preparing a heavy sanctions package, and it got supplemented after the death of Alexei Navalny. And that is what we are seeing reflected today.

So, to break it down for you, this includes hundreds of entities involved in Russia's military industrial base, as well as 26 third- country entities facilitating Russian sanctions evasions. That includes firms in China, Serbia and the United Arab Emirates.

We're also learning that the State Department is imposing sanctions as well on three Russian prison officials in connection to the death of Navalny. Now, U.S. officials have described this as a way of choking off Russia, in essence, slowing down their ability to build weapons and gain access to certain goods.

But all the same, it's only one tool in the toolbox, the White House today keeping up their pressure on Congress, which still has that $60 billion in funding for Ukraine before it, a package that, while it passed the Senate, remains stalled in the House. And in his gathering with governors earlier today, President Biden taking a moment to talk about that and keep that drumbeat going.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: They have to come back. They have to come back and get this done, because failure to support Ukraine in this critical moment will never be forgotten in history. It will be measured, and it will have impact for decades to come.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALVAREZ: So, again, that is a message that we will continue to hear from the White House as it tries to get Congress to pass this funding.

[13:05:06] I will also note that the U.S. has levied multiple sanctions against Russia since its invasion on Ukraine. There has been skepticism about how effective they are. But U.S. officials maintain confidence that this is hampering their economy and will affect them in the long term.

KEILAR: All right, Priscilla Alvarez, live for us from the White House -- Boris.

SANCHEZ: Now to some new developments in the Israel-Hamas war.

Today, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is for the first time revealing his postwar plan for Gaza. He's calling for a complete demilitarization of the enclave and wants Israel to control entry and exit points in and out of the Palestinian territory.

At the same time, critical hostage talks are under way in Paris, as families of those held captive stage more protests in Tel Aviv. An Israeli delegation is meeting with CIA Director Bill Burns and negotiators from Egypt and Qatar.

We have team coverage from Paris and the Middle East.

Let's start with Jeremy Diamond, who is live for us in Tel Aviv.

Jeremy, this day-after plan by Netanyahu, there are components in it that the United States and other members of the international community have said that they oppose.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, no question about it.

And there are no real new ideas in these proposal -- in this proposal from the Israeli prime minister. It is really a repackaging of what we have heard the prime minister say before, but it is notable that he is now putting it on paper. He has submitted it to his Cabinet for further discussion.

And he's also allowing the world to see what he envisions in a postwar Gaza. And what he envisions, as you said, is quite different from what the United States and other international partners are pushing for.

In this plan, the Israeli prime minister outlines a world in which the Israeli military could go in and out of Gaza, maintaining operational freedom to maneuver inside of Gaza, maintaining security control over the entirety of the Gaza Strip, including Gaza's borders, not only with Israel, but also with Egypt, including a buffer zone within Gaza that the United States has already rejected.

He would also envision local Palestinian officials having civil administration control of Gaza, and that Gaza would ultimately be rebuilt with foreign funding, but only once the complete demilitarization of the Gaza Strip has been completed.

And when you look at these ideas altogether, it makes it nearly impossible to envision a potential Palestinian state, at least in the short term, while that status quo that the Israeli prime minister is laying out would stand. And that's antithetical to what the United States and other allies are

trying to accomplish here, which is out of the rubble of this war to try and see if a Palestinian state can indeed be established, a two- state solution brokered between these two countries, instead, the Israeli prime minister very much rejecting the notion of any kind of international recognition, unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state, saying that it would only be through negotiations.

But nowhere in this plan does he actually talk about any kind of good- faith efforts that Israel would engage in to try and bring about that two-state solution -- Boris.

SANCHEZ: Jeremy Diamond live for us from Tel Aviv.

Thank you so much, Jeremy.

We want to go now to Paris and Melissa Bell.

Melissa, you have been monitoring the status of these hostage and cease-fire talks. Bring us up to speed on where they are.

MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Boris.

The fact that they're even having -- taking place this afternoon in Paris and encouraging sign. They're due to last possibly a few days. They involve Bill Burns, the CIA director, but also the heads of intelligence of Egypt, Qatar. The Israelis sent a delegation once they got the backing of the Cabinet overnight.

And I think that, in itself, is encouraging. You will remember that the last time these talks about finding not so much a cease-fire, Boris, but a pause to the fighting in Gaza and allowing some kind of swapping of hostages for Palestinian prisoners, the talks had been broken down last week in Cairo, with the Israelis describing the latest Hamas proposal as delusional.

They had been -- Hamas had been suggesting a four-and-a-half month pause in the fighting and a swap. I think a couple of things have happened since then, as Jeremy was just outlining, first of all, that fairly controversial proposal of what happens next after the war in Gaza from Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Israelis will be looking for support on that or at least the beginning of discussions on that. But, also -- and I think this is important -- the Israeli delegation only agreed to get on the plan -- on the plane once it had been established that, through French mediation, some of that much-needed medication for some of the most chronically ill Israeli hostages had been received; 45 of them are now believed to receive the medication they needed.

And that was one of the prerequisites from the Israeli side for these talks to resume. So, that is what's behind the resumption of the talks. But, this time, I think the encouraging sign, that the Israeli delegation, unlike last time in Cairo, when it had just turned up to listen, has this time been given negotiating powers by the Israeli Cabinet. [13:10:09]

So there is hope at least that something may emerge, not the four-and- a-half months, no doubt, that Hamas was looking for, but perhaps some kind of cessation of hostilities and some sort of even limited exchange of Palestinian prisoners for Israeli hostages, Boris.

SANCHEZ: Signs for cautious optimism coming out of Paris.

Melissa Bell, thank you so much for the update -- Brianna.

KEILAR: All right, let's bring in former CIA Director and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta.

Sir, thank you so much for being with us.

When you are looking at this proposal from Netanyahu, no Palestinian state, potentially illegal buffer zones, Israel, rather than Egypt, controlling the southern border, cutting off funding of Gaza from countries like Qatar -- that's what it appears to say kind of vaguely -- working to shut down UNRWA, which is really the hub for providing humanitarian aid to Gazans, what do you think about this?

Is it realistic?

LEON PANETTA, FORMER U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Well, frankly, it raises additional concerns about just what exactly Israel is prepared to support.

I think -- I don't think there's any question that, if they eventually want peace in the Middle East, they are going to have to develop an approach to a Palestinian state. And that ought to be part and parcel of any proposal that they make.

I'm glad that they're -- that they want to obviously take some steps to try to secure Gaza. I understand that. But, in the end, the only way to resolve the constant issues that create war in the Middle East is to agree on some kind of Palestinian state.

KEILAR: And yet you have, instead, Netanyahu announcing thousands of new residences in the West Bank, settlements in the West Bank.

PANETTA: Yes.

No, that continues to be a thorn in any effort to try to develop some kind of approach to establishing some area for the Palestinians to be able to govern themselves. Look, we all understand it's not easy. It's tough. The Palestinians have not done a very good job getting their act together, particularly in the West Bank, in terms of governing.

But if we can work with the moderate Arab nations in that area, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and others, if we can work with them to try to develop leadership for the Palestinians so that, ultimately, they can lead themselves. That would be something that Israel, frankly, ought to be a part of. KEILAR: Are you hopeful at all about these hostage talks in Paris

today, which include the CIA director, along with the Qataris, Egyptians and Israelis?

PANETTA: Well, I have a lot of faith in Bill Burns and the other negotiators that are there.

And I do think progress is being made. Look, I think, ultimately, Netanyahu does have to agree to some kind of temporary cease-fire in order that the hostages can be released. That's a very important issue in Israel. It's an important issue to the world and also the ability to then provide humanitarian aid.

So I think we will get a deal. It may still take a few days to do it. But I really do trust that the negotiators can ultimately produce an approach that can provide at least some opportunity for peace in that area.

KEILAR: If we can turn now to Ukraine, you have the president unveiling some 500 new sanctions targeting Russia.

And yet Russia's economy is actually doing pretty well. The prognosis for the future here has been upgraded. Other sanctions haven't hurt them so much. They have found other markets, including with India. What can these sanctions really accomplish when it comes to undercutting Russia?

PANETTA: Well, it's important for the president to have announced these additional sanctions.

It is in many ways a way of making Putin pay a price for Navalny's death. But we also understand that Russia has been able to get around the thousands of sanctions that have been applied against them. Their economy is growing. They have made something like $99 billion in oil and gas revenues last year.

So they're continuing to find ways to get around these sanctions. So I think it's going to be very important for the United States to continue to squeeze Russia, not just on sanctions. I think they're going to have to squeeze them on oil supplies. I think we ought to be opening up LNG plants -- LNG ports to be able to deliver more natural gas to Europe.

[13:15:07]

I think we have to go after that $350 billion in Russian assets that are being held. We have got to find a way to basically unlock the economic value of those assets. There would be nothing better than to provide assistance to Ukraine with Russian money in order for them to kill Russians.

KEILAR: Yes, that would certainly send a message.

Secretary Panetta, always great to have you. Thank you so much.

PANETTA: Good to be with you. KEILAR: Boris.

SANCHEZ: We have breaking news now from the University of Georgia campus, where a college student was found dead.

CNN's Ryan Young is on the scene. He's been tracking this.

Ryan, what's the update on Laken Riley?

RYAN YOUNG, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Boris, in the last 15 minutes or so, we have been able to confirm from the university that a person of interest is now in custody.

And I want to show you this very active scene that we have been watching for the last hour. So, you can see here all the police officers, all the equipment that they brought here to this apartment complex that is very known throughout this university area.

It's here where they were told that someone who's a person of interest has been taken into custody. On the backside of this is that trail that everyone's been focused on. But I also want to show you something. We have been watching investigators actually work through this in real time.

Not only did they take that person into custody, but across the street here at this Chevron, as you can see, this is a really busy road. There is a dump stir over there, and officers were working inside that dumpster. We will show you the video here.

GBI investigators who are with the state started going through that dumpster, trying to look for any sort of evidence that's connected to this case. And we saw them gathering things out of that can.

But you can think about how this has really impacted this community. Laken Hope Riley, 22, a nursing student, was found dead at 12:38 on a trail that's so close to here. This community has been hit so very hard by this. In fact, we were talking to the spokesperson for the university, and they said the outpouring from around Georgia has been unbelievable.

But, right now, everyone's focused on trying to figure out exactly what happened here. That trail is something that everyone uses. So, to take you back this direction, you can see how they have this set up. There's the GBI here. There's the Athens-Clarke County Police Department, and there's the university police department all out here.

So, right now, what they have given us, the only bit of news they have given us is a person of interest is in custody. And that, of course, is connected with the death of that young nursing student who was just 22 years old.

We're hoping to find out within the next few hours or so about some sort of motive. This is where they have us kind of put right now Boris until we get some more information from them. But, obviously, this university system and the people in this community are hurting, especially at the tragic loss of life just on a trail that's on the other side of this apartment complex -- Boris.

SANCHEZ: Yes, an important update in that story, as you're watching some of the investigation unfold right in front of you.

Ryan Young with the update from Athens, Georgia.

Thanks so much, Ryan.

Coming up: Conservatives spent decades working to overturn Roe v. Wade. And now that they have, some unexpected side effects have the Republicans worried their Supreme Court win could be a loser at the polls.

Also ahead, Odie, the lunar lander, sending info back to Earth after a successful landing on the moon. When are we going to get to see those first selfies that this thing has taken?

We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:22:45]

KEILAR: It's the final countdown, fewer than 24 hours until the pivotal South Carolina Republican presidential primary.

Today, Nikki Haley and former President Trump making stops across the state to deliver their final pitches to voters. But there is one issue the candidates seem to be scrambling to respond to, and that is Alabama's unprecedented Supreme Court decision.

The ruling that frozen embryos are children, have the same rights as children, has landed smack dab on the campaign trail.

We have CNN's Kristen Holmes live for us in Rock Hill, South Carolina, where Trump is set to speak here in just a few hours.

What's the former president saying about this, Kristen?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Brianna, when it comes to the Alabama ruling, he's saying nothing at all. Neither is the campaign, even as Democrats, even as President Joe Biden has worked to link the Alabama ruling to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, which, of course, as we know, Donald Trump is technically the architect of, given his appointment of three federal justices to the Supreme Court.

But it's not surprising, given Donald Trump's feelings about talking about the issue of abortion. We have seen him try to do a delicate dance in which he takes credit for the overturning of Roe v. Wade, while still not wanting to talk about abortion, which he thinks is a political loser.

This is him walking that fine line last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES (R) AND CURRENT U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We also have to remember that we have to have people elected. So some things that you feel and you have to go with your heart, you have to stay with that. You have to stay with your heart. But you have to get elected. You have to get people elected.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: So, obviously, there, Brianna, walking that fine line, saying people have to get elected, which, of course, is his way of saying Republicans should not be talking about abortion.

But this is going to be big general election messaging, particularly if Donald Trump is the Republican nominee, which it looks like he is poised to do. We're talking about South Carolina. The vote is tomorrow. Every recent poll that we have seen for this primary has Donald Trump up by roughly 30 points.

And it's not just in South Carolina. It's also in those Super Tuesday stage, which is just in about a week-and-a-half. Now, as you noted, Nikki Haley says she is staying in the race. Donald Trump has said behind the scenes that this is very annoying and frustrating, although, in public, he has dismissed her candidacy.

KEILAR: All right, yes, walking that line, a little line dancing there, too, I think.

Kristen Holmes, live for us from South Carolina, thank you -- Boris.

[13:25:03]

SANCHEZ: Tomorrow is going to be a big test for Nikki Haley. She's facing an uphill battle in her home state, but she is vowing to stay in the presidential race until all votes are counted.

With us now to discuss is South Carolina Republican Congressman and Haley campaign surrogate Ralph Norman.

Sir, thank you so much for being with us this afternoon.

Since you're here in your capacity as a surrogate, we want to focus on questions about the primary tomorrow. Your candidate is in a tough position here. Polls recently have had her down by about 30 points. So, in your mind, what does success look like tomorrow if she loses by 30-plus?

REP. RALPH NORMAN (R-SC): Well, Boris, she's going to do real well in South Carolina.

Who knows if the polls are accurate, but a hour in politics is a lifetime. We have got 24 hours roughly before the polls close. She's optimistic. I have been with her for the last two weeks. And she's got the courage to keep campaigning and bringing her message, which is resonating with the people in South Carolina. We will see how it turns out. She's committed to stay in the race.

It's February. You have got Super Tuesday coming up. You got 50 delegates here in South Carolina at stake. You got 874. It's way too early for her to get out, particularly when there's two people left in the race.

And she's done very well. She's got the money, and she's got support, as it's been solid for so far.

SANCHEZ: There are many within your party that are calling for her to get out, and specifically top members of the RNC that want to see this essentially go to President Trump, even if the race in South Carolina seems like a foregone conclusion.

What's your response to those Republicans that are calling for her to get out?

NORMAN: Well, my question is, why? Why this early?

If she gets out, what kind of chance does she have? By staying in, letting the American people decide -- competition is what made this country what it is today. And it's interesting, those who are calling for her to get out. They're not doing the hard work that she's doing. They're not campaigning from early morning until late at night.

They're not raising money. It's tough running a race. The fact that she's got the courage and determination to keep on shows what she will do for the country. And America is at stake here. As she's shown in every poll, she beats Biden or whoever ends up running by the biggest margin. We cannot take a chance on this, and we need somebody with youth, which she has.

We need somebody with eight years to serve, which she can do.

SANCHEZ: Congressman, you mentioned what is resonating with voters.

There's this issue, the IVF decision in Alabama. She has spoken from experience on this. She personally believes that an embryo is a baby, though she has said that she takes issue with the law that the court in Alabama based their decision on.

So far, Donald Trump hasn't weighed in on this at all, despite multiple attempts to get him to comment. I'm wondering how you think Haley's response on this lands with voters in your state, compared to the silence that we have heard from Donald Trump.

NORMAN: Look, here's what is the priorities that Nikki Haley and any -- Donald Trump, any candidate that leads the free world, has to face. cyberattacks, crime in the streets, inflation, gas and oil prices through the roof.

Now, the Dobbs decision was the right decision, the 10th Amendment, let the states decide. Beyond that, it's focusing on what means a lot to this country. She's not going to get mired down. She probably will comment it at the proper time. But this country is in danger, and we're in danger of losing our

republic. And Nikki Haley's one to bring us out of it. And it couldn't happen any quicker than putting -- nominating her and letting her face off against a man who's got a failed administration, which is the Biden administration.

SANCHEZ: Respectfully, sir, it may not seem like a top issue to you or maybe to folks that you have been speaking with, but people vote on the issue of abortion restrictions across the country, and more so after the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

South Carolina has a six-week abortion ban in place. And outside of cheering for the Supreme Court when they overturned Roe, Trump historically hasn't really been specific on giving his precise answer to the issue of when abortion restrictions should kick in. He defended that ambiguity, as we just played a sound bite of, last night.

Do you think Republicans have a problem with this issue? You're saying that we should focus on things like gas prices, et cetera, but for a lot of women out there, this is issue number one.

NORMAN: Well, look, it's -- that issue will be debated, I assume.

But, again, leave -- let's leave it to the states. And if you go on Main Street USA and tell them to name the top 10 troubling spots that the country faces, I doubt embryos.