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Biden And Trump Become Presumptive Nominees After Nikki Haley Exits Race; Ukrainian President Zelenskyy Narrowly Escapes Russian Strike In Odessa; Mitch McConnell Endorses Trump For President Amid Strained Relationship; Hamas Vows To Remove Israel From Gaza As Aid Crisis Worsens. Aired 2-2:30p ET

Aired March 06, 2024 - 14:00   ET

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

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[14:00:15]

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Oh no, it's not deja vu, it's real. The 2020 rematch, now effectively a done deal. President Joe Biden, former President Donald Trump going head-to-head, made official after Nikki Haley exits the race. So where are those Haley voters gonna go? How both sides are now trying to pick them up.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Plus, an extremely close call for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the Prime Minister of Greece, who is with him. At least five people dead after a Russian strike in Odessa nearly hit their convoy. The president's delegation says they felt the impact of the strike, they saw the smoke from it. How this could escalate the war, Zelenskyy says they must have more aid. We're following these major developing stories and many more, all coming in right here to CNN News Central.

SANCHEZ: Then there were two. President Biden and former President Trump are now the presumptive nominees of their respective parties. It's the 2020 sequel that, according to many polls, Americans don't want. The first official day of this rematch feels like history repeating. Trump is slamming his latest vanquished opponent, Nikki Haley, then calling President Biden an enemy of the United States.

While Biden is making an appeal to disenchanted Republicans and arguing that Donald Trump is a threat to democracy. Let's get the view from Florida and CNN's Kristen Holmes tracking this new phase of the campaign with the Trump campaign. So, Kristen, what is Donald Trump saying about this now becoming official?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, so let's go back to Nikki Haley's dropout speech because it was during that speech in which she said that she was not going to endorse Donald Trump, but really called on him to unite the party, to bring people in, saying that he needed to earn the votes of these Republicans who were choosing not to support him, but instead endorsing her. Now, he responded halfway through that speech, not even when she had finished, and said this. Nikki Haley got trounced last night in record-setting fashion, despite the fact that Democrats, for reasons unknown, are allowed to vote in Vermont and various other Republican primaries. Much of her money came from radical left Democrats, as did many of her voters, almost 50%, according to the polls. At this point, I hope she stays in the race and fights it out until the end. I'd like to thank my family, friends, and the great Republican Party for helping me to produce, by far, the most successful Super Tuesday in history, and would further like to invite all of the Haley supporters to join the greatest movement in the history of our nation. Then he goes on to say Biden is the enemy, he's destroying our country, make America great again.

Okay, so, just to break this down, he attacks Nikki Haley, or goes after Nikki Haley, then says all of her supporters are Democrats or funded by radical left Democrats, then invites them to join the fold. I do want to make one thing very clear. Donald Trump, his team has been working for months on a general election strategy, on a strategy to siphon off voters from traditionally Democratic voting blocs. That includes working class voters, black voters. It also includes people who voted for Nikki Haley, Nikki Haley supporters.

Obviously, that's a different message than this was sending. Now, we also heard from President Biden, who reached out to those Haley supporters, because, again, in a rematch, both sides expect this to be incredibly close. Both sides have said every vote, and that counts. This is what President Biden had to say. He said, Donald Trump made it clear he doesn't want Nikki Haley supporters. I want to be clear. There's a place for them in my campaign.

I know there is a lot we won't agree on, but on the fundamental issues of preserving American democracy, on standing up for the rule of law, on treating each other with decency and dignity and respect, on preserving NATO, and standing up to America's adversaries, I hope and believe we can find common ground. Obviously, those are all things that Donald Trump has said he wants to get rid of, in terms of NATO, but clearly here, two very different messages when it came to Haley supporters.

SANCHEZ: And, Kristen, you and others have done reporting about the kind of penny-pinching that's been happening with the Trump campaign. There's obviously a serious urgency when it comes to money, but now the RNC is backing Trump as the presumptive nominee, so will that alleviate that squeeze?

HOLMES: Yeah, there are about two things that are going to happen here with Haley dropping out that are going to alleviate the squeeze. One of them is the fact that there were donors who essentially said that they wanted an alternative to Donald Trump. Likely they're going to back Trump now and give that money. The other part is, as you mentioned, the RNC. And this is really a total Trump takeover of the Republican Party, because what he now gets access to as the presumptive nominee, and they put out a statement declaring him the presumptive nominee, congratulating him today, he gets access to all of their resources, their fundraising tools, their donor lists.

[14:05:09] He also gets access to their infrastructure within various states. That's important because it means that he doesn't have to have a huge team in every state. He can rely on the RNC, rely on their funding to go through that process. The other part of this, I do want to note, it's not just about money. It's also about this takeover. Donna McDaniel, the current chair of the RNC, has said she would step down after clashing with Donald Trump when he became the nominee. He has now promoted Michael Watley to be the chairman, someone who had supported his claims about the 2020 election.

He also supported his daughter-in-law, Laura Trump, to be the co-chair of the RNC. Also, campaign manager Chris LaCivita, co-campaign manager, is going to serve in a chief operating role in the RNC. So, you're seeing a full merge here of control and alignment between the Republican Party and Donald Trump.

SANCHEZ: Kristen Holmes, live for us in West Palm Beach, Florida. Thanks so much, Kristen. Brianna.

KEILAR: Republican Senate candidate Carrie Lake talking to CNN about her plan to try to win the support of all Republicans in her home state of Arizona, including those who backed Nikki Haley for president, staunch Trump supporters like herself, and independents. Lake spoke with CNN's Melanie Zanona here a short time ago, and Mel is live for us now from Capitol Hill. Tell us about this conversation and how she expects to appeal as an election denier to a lot of people who have very much rejected that bill.

MELANIE ZANONA, CNN CAPITOL HILL REPORTER: Yeah, this is going to be one of the most important Senate races in the country because it really could determine who controls the chamber next year. And with independent Senator Kyrsten Sinema announcing yesterday that she is not going to run, it now becomes a two-way contest with a whole pool of moderate and independent voters up for grab. Carrie Lake really recognizes that. She says she wants to court all voters, not just the MAGA wing.

And she also said she wants to appeal to Nikki Haley voters that might be in her home state of Arizona. But at the same time, she also mocked Nikki Haley's birth name on Twitter this morning. And she also, in her interview with me, attacked Nikki Haley for not lining up behind Donald Trump. Take a listen.

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KARI LAKE, REPUBLICAN U.S. SENATE CANDIDATE: She has continued along, continued along, hundreds of millions of dollars being poured into a vanity project. It's time for people to get behind President Trump. He's opening his arms, saying, come on in, and it's time for the people who haven't been with him to take some steps toward him. We have way too much on the line. And I'm saddened that she didn't come out today and endorse him. I think that's unfortunate.

(END VIDEO CLIP) ZANONA: Now, she ran for governor in the last election cycle and lost. But there are some signs that she's trying to do things a little bit differently. She's been here in Washington trying to line up endorsements from Senate Republicans, including from the establishment wing. I'm told that she's meeting with GOP leader Mitch McConnell later this afternoon. And she's also tried to moderate her position on things like abortion.

But at the same time, she is still peddling false lies about the 2020 election as well as the 2022 election. So even as she tries to shed her image as a MAGA firebrand, she is still holding on to some of those same positions that voters rejected in 2022. Something, no doubt, her Democratic opponents are going to seize on this fall.

KEILAR: Yeah, those are things that are very hard to moderate, indeed. Melanie Zanona, thank you so much. Boris.

SANCHEZ: Let's discuss the politics of the day with pollster and communications strategist Frank Luntz. Frank, thanks so much for being with us this afternoon. I actually want to start where we just left off with Melanie Zanona and Carrie Lake and ask you about your conversations with Republican voters and how that sort of election denialism might inform some of their votes when it comes to a candidate like Carrie Lake, who's been an unrepentant election denier.

FRANK LUNTZ, POLLSTER: Well, it's there. I in the focus groups we do. They bring it up. It is not a majority of the Republicans, but it's a very large minority of them. And it is passionate and they are determined not only to make their case, but determined to that this becomes a significant part of who they are as candidates. And the reason why this is important and make no mistake, I think it's actually narrowly more likely that Republicans take the Senate in 2024. And so a race like Arizona is going to be absolutely critical.

Similarly, for everyone who's all upset over that projection, I think it's likely that the Democrats win the House based on the chaos that's been happening there. So, every race matters. Every issue matters. And the three top issues right now, inflation, immigration and abortion. The Republicans have a double-digit lead on inflation, immigration. Democrats have a double digit lead on abortion. And it's frankly too close. They're close to a call.

SANCHEZ: I'm curious to get your perspective on what you saw unfold on Super Tuesday, what you were watching for and what your impressions are generally.

[14:10:09]

LUNTZ: Well, I hate to undermine the question, but I wasn't watching for too much because it didn't really matter. The election for president on the Democratic and Republican sides have been over before they began. Donald Trump has a hold on the Republican Party that's even greater than Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. And there is no one who's going to dethrone Joe Biden. Even here, however, you still have about 20 percent of the Republicans who are not happy with Donald Trump and may consider an alternative, whether that be Joe Biden or an independent candidate.

And you have 30 percent of Democrats who are not happy with Joe Biden and will also be looking for an alternative. I don't know a time in modern American history where the two presidential candidates have tremendous base support but glaring weaknesses. Trump and his indictments. Biden and his age (ph) that you can't escape. That you can't message, that you can't get around. And so, this is going to be a hard fought, vicious, mean campaign for the next eight months.

SANCHEZ: I'm curious about what you're alluding to there. It pulls back up what you're saying. A majority of Americans did not want this rematch. How does that affect turnout in November?

LUNTZ: Well, I actually think we're going to have the highest turnout ever. And everyone who can get into a car, who can walk, who can bicycle to a polling place is going to vote. Here's the problem. And we haven't talked about this on CNN. They're going to be voting against rather than voting for. Joe Biden does not excite Democrats, but Donald Trump makes them scared. And they're willing to do whatever it takes to get up and go out and vote against him.

On the Republican side, Trump has a base of about 35 percent of the electorate. But for him to get that 50 percent to win the Electoral College, all he has to do is alienate, is turn people against Joe Biden. I don't believe they're going to be voting for a candidate. I believe in November of this year, the vast majority of Americans will be saying, I don't want that individual. So, I'm voting against them rather than voting in favor of the candidate that they support.

SANCHEZ: So given the way that primaries have played out so fast. And given the Electoral College map, would you say that there's geographically an area that's given you an indicator of where things stand right now that is perhaps truest to what we'll see on November 5th?

LUNTZ: That's a great question. I'm going to answer it twofold. I'm actually looking at Arizona and Nevada. They're not the biggest states. You combine them and you basically equal one Pennsylvania. But Arizona and Nevada have a very high Latino Hispanic vote. That vote normally votes Democrat by about 15 percent. Donald Trump is pulled even with them.

And if that stays, it means that Arizona will switch sides. Nevada will switch sides. And it tells you that the Latino vote, 20 percent, can be 20 percent of the electorate. To me, that's a deciding vote. And if they switch in Arizona and Nevada, I would expect it to be happening nationwide. So watching those two states are my indicator as to what's going to happen on Election Day 2024.

SANCHEZ: Frank Luntz, very much appreciate you sharing your perspective with us. Thanks.

LUNTZ: It's a privilege.

SANCHEZ: We do have breaking news into CNN. We now have a date for Donald Trump's immunity case before the Supreme Court. Justices saying they will hear arguments on April 25th, just a little less than two months from now. Obviously, this blockbuster case deals with whether a former President Trump is immune from prosecution in the federal election subversion case. The court's decision could not only determine Trump's immunity, but whether he'll even face trial over his efforts to overturn the 2020 election before voters cast their ballots in the November general election.

Still ahead, Super Tuesday isn't just about presidential politics. We're taking a look at some of the down-ballot races that could have a huge impact on Congress and on governors' mansions across the country. Plus, a deadly strike in Ukraine landing near President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's convoy. The impact points so close. The president said he could feel it and see it. And the humanitarian crisis in Gaza worsening. Health workers now warning thousands of babies could die as the U.N. claims Israel is blocking nearly half of their aid missions.

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[14:15:09]

SANCHEZ: We have breaking news into CNN. We are expecting remarks from Senate Minority Leader Chuck -- goodness. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who is getting set to speak just hours after he endorsed Donald Trump for president, obviously one day after Trump's sweeping victories on Super Tuesday. It is significant given the history between those two, the comments made by Donald Trump, very personal about McConnell, McConnell responding to the way that Donald Trump was involved in January 6th. We'll, of course, monitor when McConnell takes the podium there. It looks like a podium. What do you think?

KEILAR: It is a little dais there.

SANCHEZ: A lectern.

KEILAR: A lectern. I think that's a good word. Yeah.

SANCHEZ: So, we'll keep an eye on that, and we'll bring you his remarks as they happen.

[14:20:09]

SANCHEZ: It was a very close call today for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after a source says that a Russian missile landed just 500 yards away from his convoy. At the time, Zelenskyy was in the port city of Odessa with the Prime Minister of Greece, who said the two leaders were getting into their cars when the explosion happened. Ukrainian officials say at least five people were killed; multiple others injured. The strike prompting Zelenskyy to once again plea for a stronger air defense system.

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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We saw this strike today. You can see who we are dealing with. They don't care where they strike. I know that there are victims today. I don't know all the details yet, but I know that there are dead and wounded. We need to defend ourselves first and foremost. The best way to do that is with an air defense system.

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KEILAR: So, Russia has since acknowledged this attack, but it's claiming in a statement that it hit a facility that contained unmanned boats Ukraine was planning to use in combat. Joining us now, we have CNN contributor and former Moscow bureau chief Jill Dougherty. She's also an adjunct professor at Georgetown University. Jill, I wonder what you think of this strike, and it's also, of course, so tricky to understand the veracity or, -- here of what the Kremlin is saying. Do you think that it's possible at all that this was a targeted attack against Zelenskyy because he had been coming from the port area? We don't know if it was exactly where he was previous to getting in the cars to leave this port area, but he had been coming from a tour of the port area when this strike happened.

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, you know, Odessa has been hit numerous times. It really is almost constant. So even the fact of going in there is dangerous. That said, you know, I was looking at the Russian reaction and saying, you know, a high-precision strike, etc., on another location. I don't think it really adds up because, you know, Russian intelligence has to know that Zelenskyy is there, and they have to know, importantly, that the Prime Minister of Greece was with him. So, you're dealing with, you know, a NATO official from a NATO country as well as Zelenskyy. So, to even carry out an airstrike close to that, I think is really playing with fire.

And it could be, you know, Putin again testing that red line. You know, how close can he get and send a message to Zelenskyy that, you know, we can strike anywhere, anytime, that type of thing. I really, of course, we never know, but more what was going on.

SANCHEZ: I want to dig into the idea of how they could have carried out an attack like this. It would have required, Jill, some kind of knowledge beforehand that the president was going to be there, right?

DOUGHERTY: True. But I mean, they have a lot of eyes on Ukraine. I'm sure they must be tracking where Zelenskyy goes. And previously, you know, he has, Zelenskyy has taken officials from Europe, from the United States, you know, Biden was in Kiev, etc. But there was, I think, one close call also in Odessa with another official about a year ago. But basically, they have been able to go through the country without trouble. That said, I think we're at the point where, you know, Putin on a number of different levels is sending the message, I think, of impunity.

He's done it before. But I think now, we're really at the point where he's basically saying he can do what he wants to do. That's why I would tend to think that that was what he was doing here. It's always a possibility, of course, that this high-precision strike wasn't high precision. And although they say that they hit what the target that they wanted to hit. But, you know, overall, it's very risky for Zelenskyy to travel around the country. And the Russians, I am sure, would like, tell him. So, this is the, you know, danger that he's in as he tries to take people around and show them the reality of that war. KEILAR: Yeah, he said a while back, he'd lost track of how many times

there had been assassination attempts, attempts on his life. He said it was five or six or something, but he'd forgotten exactly how many. He did take this moment, Jill, where the attention was on him to call for more air defense. What does Ukraine need at this moment? And what happens in this war if they don't get it?

[14:25:19]

DOUGHERTY: Well, he said it, as you pointed out, more air defenses and more weapons, more weapons, more ammunition, more actually of everything. And the context of this, of course, is in Washington, D.C., you have the Congress still not approving aid for Ukraine. There's great worry. CNN has been reporting numerous times about how serious the fight right now is that Ukraine does not have adequate weapons to be able to fight it. So, the context of this is the reality is that Ukraine needs these weapons and it's stalled in Congress. So that's, you know, whether that will penetrate politicians, unclear, but that's certainly the message.

KEILAR: Jill Dougherty, always great to have you. Thank you so much for being with us. And still ahead, Hamas telling Israel, we want you gone from every inch in Gaza. This as one health worker tells CNN, thousands of babies could starve if Israel's severe restrictions on aid continue.

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