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Latino Group Calls On U.S. Justice Department To Investigate Texas Attorney General Paxton; McMaster: I Would Not Work In Another Trump Administration; One American Died, One Injured After Ice Cave Collapses In Iceland. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired August 27, 2024 - 07:30   ET

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

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[07:30:05]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: New this morning, a Latino civil rights groups is calling on the Justice Department to open an investigation into Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton who oversaw a series of raids targeting Latino voting activists. Now, no charges have been filed since the raids in three counties last week. The attorney general's office says they were all tied to allegations of voter fraud. The League of Latin American Citizens says it was a direct attempt to suppress the Latino vote.

Let's get right to CNN's Ed Lavandera in Dallas with the latest on this. What are you learning this morning, Ed?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is a situation that has really startled many residents here in this South Texas district. And we should point out John, that all of this is happening in a statehouse district that is a highly -- will be highly competitive here come this fall.

So, what LULAC officials are saying is that the Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton has engaged in voter intimidation by executing these search warrants at the -- at least the home of six different LULAC members last week. The attorney general says that this is part of an effort to secure elections. That it was part of a voter harvesting fraud investigation. And that is something that LULAC officials say is simply not the case. That this has everything to do with voter intimidation.

One of those people who had their home raided last week was 87-year- old Lidia Martinez. She says the whole episode left her embarrassed and that she is not guilty of any election fraud.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LIDIA MARTINEZ, MEMBER, LEAGUE OF UNITED LATIN AMERICAN CITIZENS: They came in and they -- two of them went into my bedroom and started searching everything. They searched all my house, my storeroom, my refrigerator, my kitchen cabinets, everything. And I said, "Can I help you? What are you looking for?" And they said, "Anything to do with voter registration."

They questioned me for three hours. And at one point, they had me outside in front of all my neighbors while they searched the living room. And they never let me get dressed. And it was just very embarrassing intimidating harassment. They searched everything in my house.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAVANDERA: John, we should point out that Attorney General Ken Paxton has made a point over the last several years of touting what he -- his election integrity unit as part of the attorney general's office. But his critics point out that it's had a very checkered past in the last few years, actually proving very few results compared to the amount of money that has been spent in these election integrity investigations -- John.

BERMAN: All right, Ed Lavandera for us in Dallas. Ed, keep us posted on this.

So in a blistering new account of what it was like working for former President Trump while he was in office, retired Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster says his most challenging tour -- and this is a guy who served decades in the military. He says his most challenging tour was the one he served as national security adviser for Donald Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LT. GEN. H.R. MCMASTER (RET.), FORMER TRUMP NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: He's an extremely disruptive person. I saw it as my job, you know, not to try to constrain him but to help him disrupt what needed to be disrupted.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Would you work in a Trump White House again?

MCMASTER: No. I think -- Anderson, I will work in any administration where I feel like I can make a difference, but I'm kind of used up with Donald Trump.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: All right, with me now, the former deputy communications director for Vice President Harris, Rachel Palermo. And former Trump administration official, Matt Mowers.

Rachel, I just want to start with you because add McMaster to his list of people who say they won't either work for Trump, haven't endorsed him, are endorsing Harris. I mean, it's a long list.

You've got former Defense Sec. Esper. You've got former Defense Sec. Mattis. You've got former chief of staff Kelly. You've got Anthony Scaramucci. Stephanie Grisham, who spoke at the Democratic Convention. Alyssa Farah Griffin, who is against Donald Trump. I don't think Mike Pence -- Mike Pence hasn't come out in support of Donald Trump yet.

So Rachel, what does this tell you about Trump?

RACHEL PALERMO, FORMER DEPUTY COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR AND ASSOCIATE COUNSEL TO VICE PRESIDENT HARRIS: This is incredibly concerning. I worry almost at this point that people are desensitized to the number of former Trump aides who are coming out and saying that they don't endorse him for president, or that they're revealing new details that are really concerning.

For example, Gen. McMaster talked about how Donald Trump wanted to surround himself with people who only uplifted his opinions and didn't give him unvarnished assessment. He also said he had to remind Donald Trump that he's not friends with Vladimir Putin.

These are all things that are really concerning, and it builds on the fact that a historic number of Republicans are endorsing Vice President Harris. There were six Republican speakers on the stage of the Democratic National Convention last week -- even more in videos. And what's really powerful here is that a lot of them are coming around to saying that what is on the line here is democracy, and they don't believe that if Donald Trump wins that won't be a concern.

[07:35:15]

And if you think about the statement from Donald Trump's former White House press secretary, what she said is that she said that she saw the lengths that Donald Trump was going to stay in power, and she saw the lies that he told the American people the entire time that he was in office. Hearing those kinds of comments from Trump's closest aides is extremely concerning.

BERMAN: I just want to be clear Gen. McMaster also said he would not work at a Harris administration. But that aside, Matt, the list of officials -- the former Trump officials who are either against him, not for him, or not endorsing him -- I mean, why do you think it's so long?

MATT MOWERS, FORMER TRUMP ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, you know, you've got to go back to 2016 in a lot of ways when you had a lot of these same folks including, by the way, some who ended up going into the administration who didn't really support him then either.

You know, I remember there was a big national security letter. It was hyped up by the media. It was hyped up by, at the time, the Clinton campaign saying look at all these foreign policy experts who oppose Donald Trump. Well, you know, Donald Trump ended up winning because the American people said those are the people who got us into these problems in the first place.

And so, you know, I'm not saying that's the scenario for every single one of the former officials or something like that, but for a lot of them.

And politically speaking, the American people say these are the people who are in the bubble in D.C. These are the people who are used to the status quo and the way things work, and the traditional procedures, and everything else. Trump obviously was not elected to accommodate that style. He was elected to essentially be a big middle finger to the system in a lot of ways in Washington, D.C., and that's what a lot of voters are looking for from him.

And so, when folks come out, whether they are -- work for him or not, a lot of them just see it as kind of part of this D.C. bubble and D.C. blob that they say great -- if they don't support him, no problem. We'll find some other people to take those jobs.

BERMAN: You say a lot of people. What do you see when you see all these people who worked very closely with Donald Trump, some of whom --

MOWERS: Yeah. I --

BERMAN: -- supported him not coming -- I mean, Mike Pence -- I mean, who will not, have not supported him now.

MOWERS: Well look, Mike Pence obviously has detailed out his reasons for not doing so and done so in great elaborate length.

But for some of them, I'll tell you it -- and I've served in the State Department, so especially in the area of foreign policy and national security you did see a difference of opinion from Donald Trump versus the traditional Republican orthodoxies of national security and foreign policy.

You know, a lot of folks had come in and out of the Bush administration. Back then it was all about how do we nation build, and foreign intervention, and some democracy promotion, and things like that.

Donald Trump changed the playbook on national security and foreign policy issues for Republicans. There was always this consternation between some of the more hawkish conservative figures in the administration and Donald Trump's more real politic instincts so to speak. And so you're seeing some of that play out.

And look, when someone first gets elected as an outsider you don't really know how they're going to govern. I think a lot of folks went into the administration thinking well maybe this will actually be closer to a traditional neoconservative foreign policy thinking when realistically, Donald Trump wanted to govern the way he campaigned on.

BERMAN: Rachel, I want to talk about the debates, which are now scheduled -- a debate is scheduled to happen two weeks from now. I'm not sure it will. I'll leave the debate about the debates aside and talk instead with you about what you think Vice President Harris needs out of a debate against Donald Trump.

PALERMO: I think that for the debate it's going to be another platform, just like the Democratic National Convention was last week, to really share her story and to share her vision. And what's a great opportunity about the debate is that she will be on a stage standing next to Donald Trump and she will really be able to paint the contrast.

Of course, she's a career prosecutor and he's a convicted felon, but they also have vastly different images for how they want to govern this country. The vice president wants to move us forward and not back. She's fighting for the middle class, and Donald Trump is in it for himself and his billionaire friends.

And I think when they're on this stage she will really be able to show the leader that she is and the vision that she has, and that people who are already excited about her can feel more galvanized about helping her win in November. And then people on the fence will also be motivated to support her on the ticket.

BERMAN: Matt, what does Donald Trump want or not want at -- of a debate or a non-debate?

MOWERS: Sure. Well, a couple of things.

One, he is wanting more debates. It's really a shame that Vice President Harris didn't accept the three debates that Donald Trump offered to do. I mean, fortunately -- hopefully, we at least get two.

And those are going to be important moments because up to this point, Kamala Harris -- Vice President Harris has not had to engage with anyone who disagrees with her viewpoint. Has not engaged in a setting that does not have a teleprompter.

[07:40:05]

And so the American people -- yes, there is some interest in her right now. She can't close that sell though unless she starts trying to really detail out who she is as a person, what is her actual vision for the country, and actually answer questions about why does she longer support ripping away good quality private health insurance for Americans when her campaign now says she doesn't.

Why did she flip-flop on fracking -- a fracking ban? Was it just to win Pennsylvania voters or is that truly what she believes?

Why is she changing her opinion about whether it's illegal to be in the country? Is it because border security is one of the number one issues ranked by Americans. They don't trust the job she did when she was supposed to oversee the border. And yes, also root causes of migration, which she was unable to handle, or is this just political opportunism?

Those are the things and opportunities Donald Trump has to question her on those things. They are questions she has not had to answer at this point because she's had a light campaign schedule that has not had to engage with reporters or adversaries, or voters, to be honest. And that's the opportunity that presents itself on September 10.

BERMAN: We will see if it happens.

Matt Mowers, Rachel Palermo, thanks both so much. Great to see you this morning -- Sara. SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: All right, thank you, John.

MOWERS: Thanks so much.

SIDNER: A vacation turns tragic. An American tourist died and another is injured after a cave inside a glacier collapsed on them in Iceland. They were part of a tour group of 23 people who were exploring at the time.

CNN's Max Foster is joining us now with more on this. It is so beautiful. It looks like a moonscape. But this incident happened when they're inside a cave. What more are you learning about this?

MAX FOSTER, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: Well, anyone that's been to Iceland will know that it's all about those natural experiences going out and seeing the lagoons, the waterfalls, the volcanic landscapes, but also the glaciers. And there are these caves within them in which tour operators can take you into, and they are absolutely magical. You see this blue light coming through, particularly if you go during the sunlight and you can actually see the shape of the glacier.

And this was a group of 23 people who went on an organized tour. They would have got a package. And this absolute tragedy unfolds where some of the ice falls down and kills someone and injures someone else. Everyone else has been accounted for.

But a big shock to Iceland. Obviously, to the tourism industry as well. Because this part of the beaten path, if you like, Sara, of these excursions.

SIDNER: Yeah, I mean this is why people go to Iceland to see this incredible, incredible environment.

Was there, though, any indication of potential danger going with global warming obviously? Was there anything that the tour should have known?

FOSTER: Well, global warming certainly because over the last 100 years this glacier has been shrinking, so it's naturally going to become weaker. There have also been experts in Iceland for some time warning that you shouldn't go into these caves in the summer because it's off -- you know, it's a bit warmer and there's a bigger risk of the ice falling away.

But a lot of pressure on the tourism industry to keep the tourist numbers up. And it's very dark in Iceland over the winter so they try to make the most of the summer months. But a lot of experts would say you should never be carrying out tours in any of these caves any time during the summer. So that's the big debate in Iceland today.

SIDNER: That is good to know for the tourists themselves to do some research, too, to understand, even though want to see this beauty.

Thank you so much, Max Foster. I appreciate it -- John. BERMAN: All right. So humans have been playing baseball for a long time, and last night something happened that has never happened before, ever, in the history of Major League Baseball.

One player, Red Sox catcher -- now-Red Sox catcher Danny Jansen -- he played for both teams in a single game. How did that happen?

CNN's Andy Scholes has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Well John, there was Blue Jays-Red Sox game back in June that got halted due to rain in the second inning. And they said you know what -- well, we'll pick this game back up when the Blue Jays come back to town in August. Well, in between then, there was a trade deadline and on July 27, Danny Jansen was traded from the Blue Jays to the Red Sox.

In that game back in June, Jansen was actually at the plate. He fouled off a pitch before they stopped the game due to rain. And when they resumed the game yesterday, Jansen was supposed to be at the plate for Toronto. But instead, he was catching for the Red Sox.

Jansen is the first player ever to appear for two teams in the same game, and it's likely he will forever be the only person to catch the at-bat that he started.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANNY JANSEN, CATCHER, BOSTON RED SOX: I guess it hasn't fully hit me yet. I don't know. It's -- I'll tell you what, I was surprised when I found out I was the first one to do it a little bit. So it's cool. It's -- you know, it's -- you know, leaving a stamp like that on the game, it's interesting and it's strange, and I'm grateful for the opportunity to have that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[07:45:02]

SCHOLES: And the Baseball Hall of Fame grabbed the jersey and Jansen's gear for a display in Cooperstown. They also got the score card from the official scorer to illustrate this.

All right. Elsewhere, Berman's favorite player Aaron Judge surprisingly did not hit a home run last night, but he did rob one in the fourth inning. Check Judge out here skying in the air to rob this home run, then he fired it back to the infield for the double play.

Then Judge would come up to the plate in the ninth with a single to right field. That was the 1,000th hit of his career.

The Yankees win for the fifth time in six games 5-2 over the Nationals.

And it was another night, another record for Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark. She tied the all-time WNBA rookie three-point record last night with a step-back three in the fourth quarter over the Dream's Rhyne Howard. Fun fact: Howard was the previous recordholder with 85 back in 2022.

Clark would finish the game with 19 points. The Fever would win 84-79 in front of a crowd of more than 17,000 there in Atlanta.

That was the 14th win of the season for the Fever, their most since 2016.

John, it's going to be fun to see if Clark and the Fever can make a run come playoffs next month.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: Our thanks to Andy Scholes. What a season there.

All right, artificial intelligence in your pocket. What the new iPhone will be able to do. And the Foo Fighters issue a warning to Donald Trump's campaign. Stop playing our music or the royalties will go to your opponent.

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[07:51:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FOO FIGHTERS, ROCK BAND: Singing "The Pretender."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: They have some real bangers. I like them.

All right. This morning, there is, though, a battle between the Foo Fighters and Donald Trump's campaign that could actually end up helping Kamala Harris. How? It all stems from this moment at a Trump rally last week in Arizona when the campaign used the band's song "My Hero" to introduce Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FOO FIGHTERS: "My Hero" playing during introduction of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at Trump rally in Arizona.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: Trump's big campaign moment there with RFK, but the band says it did not give the campaign permission to use the song. But the Trump team insists it did have a license. Regardless, a spokesperson for the Foo Fighters now says the band will donate any royalties from Trump's unauthorized use of their song to the Harris-Walz campaign.

The musical drama for the Trump team doesn't end there. Also this week, the estate of Isaac Hayes was granted an emergency hearing in its lawsuit against Donald Trump for repeatedly using the song "Hold On, I'm Comin'" without authorization.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ISAAC HAYES, SINGER-SONGWRITER-COMPOSER: Singing Hold On, I'm Comin'.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: You see that? That's -- anyway, Hayes co-wrote the Sam and Dave classic. His estate's lawyers say Trump has been using it at rallies since 2022.

This is what Isaac Hayes' son told CNN.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ISAAC HAYES III, SON OF SINGER ISAAC HAYES: I don't want that song associated with Donald Trump. I don't want people to hear "Hold On, I'm Comin'" and think of Donald Trump because of the nature and the character of the person that he is.

I'm the brother to seven sisters -- seven Black women. Donald Trump has been found liable of sexual abuse. He says horrible things about women. He says horrible things about Vice President Harris. And I know my father would not want Donald Trump, a man that speaks like that about women and especially Black women, using his music to run a campaign.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: Since Trump first ran in 2015, dozens of musicians have sent his campaign cease and desist orders demanding he stop using their songs, including Adele, Beyonce, Pharrell Williams, Phil Collins, and the estate of Prince and George Harrison.

Hold on, I'm comin', John.

BERMAN: If I had known there would be dancing --

SIDNER: I'm comin'.

BERMAN: I mean, you know, I'm just not going to talk and make you dance more. I don't have a story coming up. There's nothing I need to do now.

SIDNER: Nothing.

BERMAN: More dancing?

SIDNER: So let's boog dance -- hey.

BERMAN: All right, see?

SIDNER: Hey.

BERMAN: I knew I could make that happen.

All right, in even bigger music news, Oasis is getting back together after 15 years.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OASIS, ROCK BAND: Singing "Wonderwall."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: It's kind of a reminder that the '90s happened.

Oasis will have multiple concert dates across the United Kingdom in 2025. Brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher -- they didn't seem to like each other much. They had been fighting for years. But they posted a message that said "This is it. This is happening."

Two-time WWE champion known as Sid Vicious has passed away at the age of 63. His family said he was battling cancer for years. His real name was Sid Eudy. He was big in the wrestling world in the '90s.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WWE ANNOUNCER: Hits it. It's over. We've got a new champion.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: The WWE called him one of the most imposing and terrifying competitors of his generation.

SpaceX has pushed the launch of the Polaris Dawn mission to tomorrow because of a helium leak. This mission is expected to include the first spacewalk by private astronauts. The launch is now set for 3:38 a.m. Eastern at the Kennedy Space Center -- Sara.

[07:55:08]

SIDNER: John, you and I -- we -- would you go? Would you jump on that and go and hang out in space a bit with me?

BERMAN: If it sweeps.

SIDNER: Wow. Wow. It was a no. OK, thanks. Good to know.

Apple is promising the launch of its next iPhone and says it will change the future of smartphones. While the company is being mysterious, as they tend to be, about the new iPhone 16, we know artificial intelligence is going to be a key feature.

CNN's Clare Duffy is joining me now. OK, so it makes me nervous, I'm not going to lie, when I hear artificial intelligence is going to be a part of the way that your phone functions, although can obviously go to it online.

What do you know about this launch?

CLARE DUFFY, CNN BUSINESS WRITER: Well, we know -- you know, we get a new iPhone every year but we're expecting this to a be a real step up in functionality with the iPhone 16 because of the Apple intelligence -- artificial intelligence features that the company announced earlier this year. But we're going to get more information about what that is going to look like. And this is really going to be the first iPhone that is built specifically with generative artificial intelligence features in mind.

Some of the things that we do know we're likely to see from this artificial intelligence Apple intelligence launch, things like an improved version of Siri that can answer questions in a more natural way. You could ask it what your day is going to be like, and it could pull information from your calendar and your email to give you a sense of what to expect.

You can also search through old photos and ask really natural questions, like when did my kid learn how to swim, and it will find you that date based on your photos.

So those are some of the things that we're expecting to see. And then we'll also see -- be some things that will likely be kind of behind the scenes that users won't see, like an improved processing chip so that it can process all of this data that will be needed for these AI features.

SIDNER: OK. Maybe I'll -- maybe I'll do it. I don't know. I'll have to figure it out.

Do you have anything -- idea about some of the other things like the walkarounds -- the things that you can -- well, maybe I should just ask about cost. Let's just ask about cost. How much? How much is the darn phone going to be?

DUFFY: We don't know just yet. Over the last few years we actually haven't seen a huge increase --

SIDNER: Yeah.

DUFFY: -- in iPhone costs.

And it will be interesting to see because on one hand, you could picture them raising the cost because this AI stuff will be a big improvement from earlier versions of the iPhone. But Apple has also seen pretty sluggish iPhone sales over the past few years. They need to create some momentum here. So I also think it's possible that we don't see them increase prices because they're trying to get this to be a big upgrade cycle for people.

SIDNER: The iPhone 15 -- I know you're -- that was the one that people were sort of like, meh.

DUFFY: There haven't been big improvements.

SIDNER: Yeah.

DUFFY: Exactly.

SIDNER: Yeah. It will be interesting to see. Maybe, Clare, you'll try the iPhone 16 and then I will benefit from your experience. DUFFY: Yes. We can have this conversation in a month and see what it's like.

SIDNER: And John will pay for it.

DUFFY: Thank you so much. Appreciate it -- John.

BERMAN: I don't like where this is going.

All right. This morning, a new study that finds your brain could be filled with microplastics, which is just what you want to hear before breakfast.

CNN's Jacqueline Howard is with us now. So I have that in my brain, too?

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: I know, John, it is concerning. But what we're talking about here -- we know that microplastics are found in some of the foods and beverages that we consume. So if you ingest microplastics they can actually take up residence in ourselves, particularly our fat cells, and then travel to our organs. And the brain itself is 60 percent fat, so think about that.

Now, in this new study, it is a preprint paper. It's early research. But scientists looked at tissue samples taken from autopsies performed in 2016 and autopsies performed earlier this year in 2024. They looked particularly at brain tissue, liver tissue, and kidney tissue.

Here is what they found, John. They found that the brain tissue contained seven to 30 times more plastic than the tissue samples taken from those other organs. And they found more plastic in the 2016 samples compared with the 2024 samples, which suggests our exposure to microplastics has been increasing over time.

And when I say microplastics, they are less than the width of a human hair. So that's what I'm talking about being present in our bodies, John.

BERMAN: What can it do to you if you have plastics all over your body?

HOWARD: The concern is it could disrupt cellular processes. And previous studies suggest that if microplastics are found in our artery tissue that may actually increase our risk of heart attack or stroke.

But what we can do in our everyday lives to really limit our exposure to microplastics -- don't heat foods in plastic containers. Avoid plastic water bottles. In your general home environment dust and vacuum often. These are things we can all do in our everyday lives, John.

BERMAN: Yeah. I mean, it gives new meaning to the phrase "impure thoughts" if there are microplastics in your brain also.

HOWARD: It does. BERMAN: All right, Jacqueline Howard. Thank you very much.

A brand new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.

SIDNER: A terrible president. That's what Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said about Donald Trump just months before he did an about-face and endorse the Trump campaign.