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Soon, Harris Announces V.P. After Officially Winning Democratic Nomination; Five Dead as Tropical Storm Debby Lashes Southeastern U.S.; U.S. Markets Look to Rebound from Monday Losses. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired August 06, 2024 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: Maybe down to two, all eyes on Kamala Harris as she is set to name her running mate at any moment before taking the stage with her new vice presidential pick in their first joint rally tonight, then putting on their running shoes for a joint sprint across all the crucial swing states.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: flooded streets, tornadoes and now new warnings of historic rain, Tropical Storm Debby wreaking havoc on millions.

Breaking news, historic market gains overseas after historic losses. U.S. futures pointing up following huge drops yesterday. We are standing by now for a big positive opening.

Kate is out. I'm John Berman with Sara Sidner. A big morning right here on CNN News Central.

SIDNER: Happening right now, on the brink of the biggest political decision of Kamala Harris' life. Any moment, Harris in her first major move as an official presidential nominee could reveal the name of her running mate and complete the 2024 Democratic ticket. It's a historic wait-and-see moment in America like no other. And this morning, new details are dropping about who and when and how we will all find out.

We've just learned Minnesota Governor Tim Walz has no public events scheduled today. To be clear, anything anyone reads into that would be pure speculation. But overnight, sources told us the race has narrowed to him and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro.

We have live cameras staked out right now outside each governor's home, watching every move. But first, let's get right to CNN's M.J. Lee, who is in Philadelphia for us this morning for all of the new details that we are learning this morning. Good morning.

M.J. LEE, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Sara. You are right that we are moments away from history being made. Sometime later this morning, we should be finding out Vice President Kamala Harris' choice for her vice presidential running mate. And nothing about this process has been typical. For one, the vice president has really only had a few days to deliberate seriously over this important choice. And in the end, it did appear that it came down to three names in particular. Those are, of course, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, Minnesota Tim Walz and Arizona Senator Mark Kelly. All three of them did in person interviews with the vice president in Washington D.C. over the weekend. But in the final hours of this election process, we did learn that the vice president was focusing more on the first two names, Josh Shapiro and Tim Walz.

Now, the vice president, of course, has been weighing some really important questions throughout this process, including who could help her win, who could help her govern, and also just the question of who does she have a strong personal chemistry with. That question in particular, of course, is only one that she could answer.

And to that end, you know, she has been really armed with a lot of information from her betting team polling numbers, to information about the personal lives of the three final contenders, as she has tried to make an informed and best decision for her political campaign.

Now, it is anyone's guess, Sara, whether the vice president actually went to bed last night with this decision having been made, or if she felt like she needed that one final extra evening really to sleep on this decision and if that decision is actually being made this morning. But either way, some very important phone calls are being made or perhaps some of them have been already been made to first and foremost, the running mate that she has chosen to the finalists who did not actually end up getting the job, and then informing some of the staff around her who will now have to execute the public announcement of this choice.

Now, as far as the announcement goes, of course, we don't know yet the exact timing, but what they are trying to model this after is Joe Biden's choice of Kamala Harris some four years ago as his running mate, when they made this announcement online via social media in a message to supporters. And the hope is that they can keep this really under wraps as close to that Philadelphia rally this evening when the two are going to appear on stage for the first time together.

[07:05:07]

Of course, so far, as of 7:00 A.M., if they have been successful, we will see how long this news holds. Sara?

And we're seeing that picture here that Kamala talked about her biggest day politically of her life, where she accepted the vice presidential nomination. Thank you so much, M.J. Lee. I appreciate your time this morning. John?

BERMAN: You know, we have live shots up of both the houses where Governor Tim Walz lives and Governor Josh Shapiro. One thing I will say, well-manicured lawns, very bucolic, but no signs as so far as we can tell of any movement inside.

Let's get right to see it in Chief National Affairs Correspondent Jeff Zeleny. Jeff, I saw you looking at your phone right before coming to air. It got me excited. Any new information this morning? JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: John, always checking for new information, but as of yet, there is not. And this is by design. As M.J. was just saying there, the campaign is intentionally doing a bit of a slow roll out this morning. I am told that this decision is likely to be in a matter of a few hours, more than a few minutes. We will see if that holds. But this is why they're trying to build anticipation and they're trying to allow supporters to get the news first through their list, through their emails and through that video phone call.

We're all thinking back to four years ago when the video was released of Joe Biden then calling Senator Kamala Harris, it's actually four years ago this week, to make that offer through a Zoom phone call. I'm told to expect a similar type of arrangement.

But, look, all eyes are on Minnesota Governor Tim Walz this morning, as well as Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, talking to a variety of Democratic strategists, advisers, campaign officials overnight. And this morning there is a split among who would be the better choice. So, this is Vice President Harris' choice and hers alone.

There is no doubt that here in Pennsylvania, these 19 electoral votes are central to winning the White House. So, that is why Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro is seen as a leading contender. However, I'm told that he will be at this campaign rally tonight here in Philadelphia either way. And he is likely to campaign for this Democratic ticket either way.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz really was a late bloomer in this accelerated search for a running mate, coming on very strong with support from progressive groups and moderate groups as well. He was at a campaign fundraiser last night in Minneapolis. You know, showing that he too can help raise money for the campaign and be helpful.

So, John, at this hour, this is the vice president's choice to make. I am led to believe she has already made her choice. She has just not told many people about it. You need some time to set this into motion, of course. But it's the biggest decision she will make as a candidate, and we'll see what she does, I'm told, in likely a couple hours.

BERMAN: Well, that is something, at least, as Jeff Zeleny is reporting, he believes that she has made the decision. We're just all being kept in the dark right now. Jeff, very quickly, in about 30 seconds or less, she really didn't deal with a Democratic primary. In a way, the whole V.P. selection is something of a primary.

ZELENY: John. It has been something of a primary. We've really seen divisions in the left as well as across the spectrum of the Democratic Party coming out in favor of one of the candidates or actually against some of the others. In Pennsylvania, Governor Josh Shapiro has been at the center of a campaign, where progressive Democrats have been urging her to pick someone else. What we do not know is if that sort of encourages her to follow their lead or perhaps to show an independent streak and choose Governor Shapiro.

Again, thinking back to when in the summer of 2008, when Barack Obama made his choice of Joe Biden, he said it was a coin toss. There were a lot of good options. So, Vice President Harris, who's been talking with former President Obama, we know, in the last few weeks, seeking guidance on this, this could be a coin toss for her as well.

John, it will, though, say something about what she believes the future of the Democratic Party is and her electoral chances are, whichever governor she decides.

BERMAN: All right, Jeff Zeleny in Philadelphia, if something pops up on that phone, shout. We'll put you on immediately. Thank you very much. Sara?

SIDNER: Especially with his reporting that he believes that she has already made her decision. So, anytime, we might hear what that is.

All right, what is now Tropical Storm Debby, dumping record amounts of rain, spawning tornadoes and creating life threatening conditions for some folks on the ground. We are tracking that storm for you.

And just after the U.S. announces it's sending more military assets to the Middle East, a rocket attack injures U.S. troops in Iraq.

And gophers scramble to get out of the way. The small plane comes crashing down, yikes, on to the course. What the heck happened? We'll have that story and more coming up.

[07:10:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

This morning, Tropical Storm Debby is drowning the southeastern U.S. with heavy rain, winds and tornados. The storm has caused at least five deaths, four in Florida, one in Georgia. Overnight, two tornadoes were confirmed near Charleston, South Carolina. People in Charleston are preparing for potential record rainfall. Forecasters say Debby could dump up to 30 inches of rain there.

[07:15:01]

CNN's Ryan Young is in Charleston for us. Ryan, I see that it is raining right now where you are. Give us some sense of what this scene looks like there.

RYAN YOUNG, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It is. And, Sara, as you know, right before this live shot, the rain really gave us a break here so we could pull this off because before it was unrelenting, we're talking about 6:00 this morning, you can hear the rain here pounding and they're saying the worst is yet to come.

If you look at this area here, we are close to a waterway. So, people here are used to flooding. But when you think about the preparation for amounts of rain they're talking about, you can see the sandbags on the outside of someone's home right here. More than 50,000 sandbags were passed out just as an area that when you think about the tornado that hit Edisto Beach and Seabrook Isle, that's about 50 miles away from here, you know that people are taking precautions when it comes to this, because they obviously are worried about all the excess rain that will be coming this way.

If you look this direction here, you can see that waterway out there. That is not too bad in terms of where you can see the rain has not been falling in the last few hours or so. And on top of all this, what we've been told by emergency management, they want to make sure people don't try to drive through areas like this because we've seen people get stuck in the past. That's not happening right now.

Take a look at this video from overnight. You can see some of those tornado hit zones. People were talking about just how it sounded. That train sound coming through the area with that heavy rain, this unrelenting rain that could be hitting over the next few hours and something people are worried about. Sara?

SIDNER: Ryan, thank you so much. Yes, we're looking at some of that video right now from overnight, and we know that this has already been a deadly storm, but you are ready with that nifty hat and your crew. Thank you so much, Ryan. I appreciate you.

YOUNG: Absolutely.

SIDNER: All right. Market whiplash after yesterday's plunge. Global stocks are back in the green today. You're looking at futures on Wall Street, all pointing higher. So, what the heck happened? And what can you expect today?

And a staggering defeat for Google, a federal judge ruling it violated anti-trust laws, calling it a monopoly. How that could change the way you search. All those stories ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:20:00]

BERMAN: All right. This morning, record gains in the Japanese markets after a day of record losses. In the U.S., Futures are looking better with a little more than two hours to go before the open. You can see green, welcome green right there, following that drubbing the markets took yesterday.

Let's get right to CNN's Hanako Montgomery in Tokyo with the latest. What are you seeing there this morning, Hanako?

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, John. It's good to see you. As we know, in terms of the latest, Asia stock markets have recovered somewhat after the massive losses we saw just yesterday. But experts are warning that we could see a lot more volatility in the next couple of months until really September, when the U.S. Federal Reserve could cut rates.

Now, the reasons why the Japanese stock market in particular, which was the hardest hit, and the Asia stock markets have recovered so quickly are really twofold. The first reason is we received a better than expected service sector data for the month of July from the United States. That's alleviated some concerns about there being a possible recession in the world's largest economy. Now, the second reason is because the value of the yen depreciated just a bit, and the yen looks as though it's beginning to stabilize. On Monday, we saw the yen surge against the greenback, in large part because the Bank of Japan just last week raised interest rates for the second time in 14 years. Interest rates are now at 0. 25 percent, which doesn't sound very high, but the reason why Japan is raising rates and not cutting them, like many other countries are around the world, is because it looks to prop up its currency.

As you know, John, the yen has been depreciating significantly this past year, and that's been very costly for the country. So, again, the Bank of Japan looked to raise rates and therefore prop up the currency. And it's done exactly that. But the sudden surge on Monday really spooked investors and hedge funds, which is why we saw some of that panic selling spree. But, again, as the yen looks like it's beginning to stabilize, and now it's trading a bit lower at around 145 to 146 to the dollar, that has alleviated some of those concerns.

Now, we can expect the U.S. stock markets to open slightly higher. There is cautious optimism there, but we can expect to follow trends in Europe and in Asia. But, again, there is cautious optimism and all eyes are on the Federal Reserve come September to see if they will really cut rates. John?

BERMAN: I'm looking right now at futures U.S. futures right now. The Nasdaq up (INAUDIBLE) percent, the Dow a little bit less than a percent, the S&P about a percent here. These will be some ground regained today, welcome ground regained.

Hanako Montgomery in Tokyo, thank you very much.

All right, we are standing by outside the homes of Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. No movement inside. The camera just shook a little bit there. What does that tell us? And a bike rider went by the home of Tim Walz. Are those signs that a pick could be imminent? We'll have the very latest for you next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:25:00]

BERMAN: We are standing by right now in Minnesota and in Pennsylvania to see if we can see any signs of movement. The running mate for Vice President Kamala Harris will likely come from one of those two places, we are told, Governor Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota. We are trying to determine if a call has been made.

Our Jeff Zeleny reported moments ago that he thinks a decision has been made, but we don't know if the actual phone call has been placed.

CNN's Danny Freeman is in Montgomery County, outside the home of Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro. Whitney Wild is in Minnesota.

Danny, first to you, what are you seeing? Give us a sense of the lay of the land. DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, John, to be perfectly honest with you, so far, all is quiet.

[07:30:01]

All seems to be pretty much status quo here outside of the governor's house in Montgomery County. His security detail pretty much looks the same, looks normal, like.