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Harris And Walz Sit Down For First Interview As Democratic Ticket; Labor Day Gas Prices Are Heading To Three-Year Low; Kyiv Seek U.S. Go-Ahead For Strikes Deeper Inside Russia. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired August 30, 2024 - 07:30   ET

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

[07:30:00]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Breaking overnight, attorneys for Donald Trump asked a federal court to take over his New York hush money case and delay the upcoming sentencing.

CNN's correspondent Zach Cohen is with us now. What's going on here, Zach?

ZACHARY COHEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yeah, John. Donald Trump is looking to establish another pathway to get his conviction in the New York hush money case overturned and also indefinitely delay sentencing in that case. It's scheduled for next month.

Now, like you said, he's asking a federal court to take this case from the state court level, and he's also asking the federal court to confirm that if they do take the case will that indefinitely delay sentencing in the state court level until the matter is resolved.

Now look, this argue -- they're arguing that the prosecution in New York conflicts with the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision on presidential immunity. And specifically, that prosecutors presented evidence that qualify as evidence related to Donald Trump's official act. You'll remember that was the distinction the U.S. Supreme Court said that Donald Trump enjoyed immunity from prosecution for.

I want to read a little bit of this filing by Trump's legal team. It says, "The presidential immunity doctrine recognized in Trump v. the United States pertains to all criminal proceedings, including grand jury proceedings. The Manhattan D.A. violated the doctrine by presenting evidence of President Trump's official acts. The Manhattan district attorney's office violated the doctrine by presenting evidence of President Trump's officials acts in grand jury proceedings and at trial."

And it goes on to say that essentially, this prosecution amounts to election interference, and that's something we've heard a lot from Donald Trump publicly.

But in his filing, it says, "The impending election cannot be redone. The currently unaddressed harm to the presidency resulting from this improper prosecution will adversely impact the operations of the federal government for generations. Sentencing is currently scheduled to occur on September 18, 2024, which could result in President Trump's immediate and unconstitutional incarceration and prevent him from continuing his groundbreaking campaign."

So they're drawing a direct line to the upcoming 2024 election as they're trying to create a second option for getting this conviction overturned.

You'll remember Judge Merchan is already weighing a proposal by Donald Trump's legal team to overturn the conviction and to delay sentencing until after the election.

BERMAN: All right, that's the New York case.

There's also a filing deadline today in the federal election subversion case. What's going on there?

COHEN: Yeah, Jack Smith appears to still be trying to keep his power dry. And we're told by sources that he is moving forward with the federal election subversion case but albeit a more slow and incremental pace than he was before the Supreme Court's immunity ruling -- the one that -- the same one that we just talked about as it relates to the New York case.

But in Jack Smith's case we're told that he decided not to hold what has been referred to as a mini trial where he could potentially put up witnesses like former Vice President Mike Pence and former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows to try to present some of that evidence he's collected before the election. We're told that he's not going to do that.

Instead, he's going to try to chart a path forward with the idea that even if a trial happens after the 2024 election that the case would still be intact and the evidence would still be preserved to present that to a jury if and when a trial ever happens.

Now, obviously, the biggest threat to Jack Smith's case remains a political one, and if Donald Trump wins the 2024 election that case all but goes away.

BERMAN: All right, Zach Cohen. Thank you very much -- Rahel.

RAHEL SOLOMON, CNN ANCHOR: All right, John. Thank you.

And breaking overnight, Vice President Kamala Harris is now putting the spotlight on reproductive rights after sitting down with CNN for her first interview as the Democratic nominee.

Her campaign says that it's launching a new bus tour next week in Florida, warning about the high stakes for women and families in the upcoming election.

CNN's Eva McKend joins us now. So, Eva, Donald Trump announcing yesterday that he wants to make the government or insurance companies pay for IVF. How is the Harris campaign framing their message now considering that Trump announcement? EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Rahel, the fight for reproductive justice has always been a central focus of the campaign. She's running under the mantra of freedom. And one of those pillars is reproductive freedom or specifically, the freedom to make decisions about your own body, is how she says it on the campaign trail.

But the former president raising IVF is an acknowledgment that they feel vulnerable in this space, and it's an issue Democrats very much want to run.

Most Americans say they trust the vice president and Democrats at large more when it comes to this issue of abortion. And every time the former president raises this issue, they remind voters that he is responsible for elevating the three Supreme Court justices that ultimately were responsible for overturning Roe versus Wade, making abortion inaccessible in many states across the country.

But she has had some other policy inconsistencies, and our colleague Dana Bash asked her about this during last night's interview. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I made very clear where I stand. We are in 2024, and I've not changed that position or will I going forward. I kept my word, and I will keep my word.

DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR: What made you change that position at the time?

HARRIS: Well, let's be clear. My values have not changed. I believe it is very important that we take seriously what we must do to guard against what is a clear crisis in terms of the climate. And to do that we can do what we have accomplished thus far -- the Inflation Reduction Act. What we have done to invest, by my calculation, over probably a trillion dollars over the next 10 years.

[07:35:13]

Investing in a clean energy economy. What we have already done, creating over 300,000 new clean energy jobs, that tells me from my experience as vice president we can do it without banning fracking. In fact, Dana -- Dana, excuse me -- I cast the tiebreaking vote that actually increased leases for fracking --

BASH: Yeah.

HARRIS: -- as vice president.

So I'm very clear about where I stand.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKEND: So, Rahel, you heard her there explaining some of her policy evolution. SOLOMON: And Eva, back to the reproductive rights issue. What more have we learned and what more are they sharing about this bus tour? I mean, what do we know about how long it will be and who we can expect to be on the tour?

MCKEND: So it starts on Tuesday. And I think it's telling that the bus tour is beginning in Florida, which means Democrats are feeling confident they can even compete there, especially on this issue. It will begin in Palm Beach with Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Harris campaign manager Julia Chavez Rodriguez, among others.

The bus tour is going to make at least 50 stops in key battleground states. And it also seems like they're using this tour to serve as a recruitment tool to mobilize volunteers.

SOLOMON: OK. Eva McKend live for us there. Eva, thank you.

BERMAN: All right, with us now, Democratic strategist Julie Roginsky, and founder and principal of Bluestack Strategies and former press adviser to then-House Speaker John Boehner, Maura Gillespie.

Since we were just talking about reproductive rights and abortion, I want to play a little bit of sound from Donald Trump yesterday. He was interviewed and he was asked about amendment four in Florida, which would mandate abortion rights to viability -- essentially, 24 weeks. There's a six-week abortion ban on the books in Florida. Listen to what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, I think the six week is too short. It has to be more time. And so, that's -- and I've told them that I want more weeks.

REPORTER: So you'll vote in favor of the amendment?

TRUMP: I'm voting that -- I am going to be voting that we need more than six weeks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: All right. The campaign then released a statement saying no, no, no, no, no. Donald Trump isn't saying how he will vote on the amendment.

So how do you explain this? There's no other vote in Florida that would allow for more than six weeks than this amendment four. So what kind of position is Donald Trump now in?

MAURA GILLESPIE, FOUNDER AND PRINCIPAL, BLUESTACK STRATEGIES, FORMER PRESS ADVISER TO FORMER HOUSE SPEAKER JOHN BOEHNER: He, again, has bucked his campaign at every turn and they cannot keep him on message.

So while I agree that six weeks is ridiculous and it is not going to ever fly in this country and nor should it, his inability to stay on message for this campaign in what his far-right supporters want is just a sign to me that Donald Trump is just testing the boundaries constantly about how far he can push his supporters and see how they'll come along with him. It's about ego for him. I don't think he's actually thinking through as far as policy stances go.

SOLOMON: And let's just stick on reproductive rights for a moment, Julie. Were you surprised or what were your thoughts about the fact that reproductive rights didn't really come up that much last night? Was that a missed opportunity or how are you feeling this morning?

JULIE ROGINSKY, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: I don't think it's a missed opportunity. Look, she's going on this bus tour. She's been very clear about reproductive rights. It's a motivating force not just for Democrats but for actually, Republican women -- a lot of Republican women in the suburbs.

But I will also say that she tried to position herself as a moderate. That's how Democrats win. That's how Joe Biden won. That's how Bill Clinton won. That's how Barack Obama won. You can't focus just on the base. You have to expand it out.

And what I found very fascinating is the first thing she said she was going to do is increase economic opportunity for the middle class. That's something very Clintonesque that I heard, I remember, back in 1992. That's kind of putting her marker down that she's not going to just run to the base, which is what Trump is doing, but she's going to appeal just to much more than just her base.

BERMAN: Well -- go ahead.

SOLOMON: Do you think she was specific enough in that answer?

ROGINSKY: I think she did what she had to do. I think she understood the assignment, which was to get this over with. And I think now she can go and do the interviews that she wants to do, which is not this huge broad global interview that there's been so much pressure on. You know, she wants to go do the daily shows she can, and she wants to do these podcasts that she can because she got this done.

So think she did what she had to do in the 45 minutes that she allotted Dana yesterday.

GILLESPIE: Yeah. Oh, I'll just say I think on the point that Trump playing to his base, like, when it comes to reproductive rights, I feel as though yesterday and this week we heard him say IVF free for everyone. I feel like he is really focused on just putting his message out there to whoever he's talking to.

So in that interview it was -- in that town hall it was Tulsi Gabbard who explained IVF is the only way I could have children. So he then said well, then IVF for all. And when he was asked that question, he goes uh -- you know, he did say I am going to vote that six weeks is too short. He answered the question because again, bucking his campaign. He is not focused on the message there.

BERMAN: What about Vice President Harris last night? What do you think she did well, and what was wanting, Maura? [07:40:00]

GILLESPIE: I think that she did what she needed to do to answer in a calm and confident way. Whereas I think in the past interviews we've watched of her she did seem defensive, which is something that really was important for her not to show that she -- you know, she could answer the questions.

I think on policy, we're not going to really hear that during an interview like that to be concrete and have a flushed out plan. But on the flip side, people are saying that she switched policies and all that. It's hard for anyone I think to stand here with a straight face and say -- you know, criticize Harris for having shifting policies when again, Trump went off and said IVF for all. So it's really -- you know, you've got to be kind of cognizant there.

ROGINSKY: And by the way, way to step on your own message. I mean, the point the Republicans were trying to make yesterday is that she flip-flopped on fracking. She flip-flopped on all these issues.

And what does Trump do? He comes out and immediately starts flip- flopping on abortion within the same day. I mean, makes one announcement and his campaign walks it back. We don't know where he stands.

And the news focus is away from what they want it to be on, as Maura points it out, which is her flip-flops and focusing entirely on his. And that's -- you know, if I were running Donald Trump's campaign I'd be bashing my head against the wall every day because these are the kinds of unforced errors --

GILLESPIE: Right.

ROGINSKY: -- that devastate a campaign.

GILLESPIE: But it's why Republicans down-ballot have to be focused on their own messaging and not on the top of the ticket. They cannot rely at all, and they really should be distancing themselves from Trump.

SOLOMON: Tim Walz, last night -- there was so much attention on the fact that he was even there sitting with her for this interview. Did his presence -- did his being there -- did that help her or hurt her, or net neutral?

ROGINSKY: I think it was a net neutral. I think he introduced himself to the nation the same way that she did in that interview yesterday - same thing. Got it over with.

But ultimately, the attention was really not on Tim Walz. The attention was really on her. And he didn't get much time and rightly should not have gotten much time because this was her big opportunity.

He answered the questions that he was asked and then let her speak for most of the time that he had to. So I think it was just a -- you know, a nothing burger for him being there. BERMAN: Kind of answered the questions he was asked, right? He chalked up some of the confusion of statements that he has made to grammar. He also said well, people know what I meant even if that's not what he said.

Is that enough?

GILLESPIE: No. I don't think that was a good answer. I don't think that he answered it -- it's not going to put that issue to rest. That will come up again.

And again, I think because people are -- whether -- again, we should always respect and appreciate anyone who has served in our military -- our armed forces no matter what. But I do think that it becomes a question of trust, and can we trust you? You know, you're exaggerating here and then you're saying it's a grammar issue. Either just admit something or take responsibility for any issues that happened in that space.

SOLOMON: Who --

BERMAN: Just specifically, just so people know, was he said --

GILLESPIE: Oh, sorry.

BERMAN: -- was that he -- no, no -- my bad for not explaining it -- was that in an interview -- well, in a -- in a -- he was on stage years ago and he was talking about weapons of war.

SOLOMON: In war.

BERMAN: And he said he carried assault weapons in war, and he didn't. He never was in a war. And now he's saying it was just a matter of grammar.

SOLOMON: Julie, I'm fascinated that you keep saying that she got it over with. She got the interview over with.

Does the debate now become even more important for her now that she, to borrow a phrase, got it over with? And as a strategist, do you sometimes advise contenders to hold back and sort of use maybe some of their lines for a debate audience?

ROGINSKY: Well, first of all, she's been prepping for this debate for a very long time, and I know some of the people who have been prepping her and they're excellent. And so I would just say that she -- this is not something that was akin to what she did yesterday.

There was an interview with Dana and then there was a debate where Donald Trump is mumbling next to you with the mic potentially on, potentially off, that you have to prep for. And that is an incredibly difficult tactile thing to be able to accomplish regardless of who your opponent is.

Look, if I were in her shoes I would have done this much earlier because as I said, I would have gotten it over with because there was so much pressure yesterday. She did it. She got the assignment. She checked it off with the boxes checked. But it's not something that she necessarily needed to put so much pressure on herself to do.

SOLOMON: Um-hum.

ROGINSKY: And the debate was always going to be important because the debate is the first time the nation will really tune in to see the two of them together.

It's -- I was shocked to find that she actually had never met him before. But, of course, she never met him before because he refused to accept the election and refused to show up to the inauguration.

So this was going to be something that was always going to be important for her to be able to accomplish.

BERMAN: I think it's a really good question about the debate. If -- is this performance -- how she did in the interview last night good enough for the debate on September 10?

GILLESPIE: If the goal is to show the stability versus the chaos, then yes. Biden tried to do it but again, he also tended to get defensive and emotional and take things personally. And as long as she can stay kind of calm against the erratic comments of Donald Trump in that debate, but also confident, she'll do really well.

I mean, again, I think -- I've said this a couple of times, but I do think that Donald Trump, in some ways, is trying to lose. I think he -- this is about ego for him. And if he can bring his supporters to where he decides to go next, he'll feel good about himself. But I don't think he actually wants to be in the White House again. I think he just wants to complain about it all being corrupt.

BERMAN: Well, we'll see. He is running right now so it looks like he's trying to win.

[07:45:00]

Thank you both for being here. Appreciate it very much -- Rahel.

SOLOMON: And with the recent deaths of three teenage football players, there is a new push to make guardian caps mandatory for kids. They're the protective softshell helmet coverings used by players in the NFL.

CNN sports anchor and former NFL star Coy Wire has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Each football season, sporting cathedrals like this, Mercedes-Benz Stadium, are full of excitement about the game. But each season also brings concerns for families and players about the dangers that come with it.

There's been a recent uptick in efforts to make the game safer. One of them, these protective helmet covers called guardian caps. But do they work? The Georgia-based company aims to reduce damage that can be caused to the brain by the sudden stopping or rotation of the head.

The NFL's research led them to make these caps mandatory for all players during practices, aside from kickers and quarterbacks who are off limits for contact. Players can also choose to wear the caps during the games.

NFL executive vice president Jeff Miller says the statistics show the caps increase safety.

JEFF MILLER, EXECTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE: As a result, in the last two seasons we saw about a 50 percent decrease in concussions in the positions that were mandated to wear them. So, of course, we said OK, all positions will not wear them in this preseason.

WIRE: Now, NFL rule changes and advancements in the helmets themselves could also be leading to a decrease in concussions.

The company says that more than 3,000 high schools and more than 750 youth programs currently use the caps. One question is if the NFL is making them mandatory for the pros, why aren't they mandatory for kids?

One potential drawback could be cost. Each one of these runs about $70.00; $56.00 when bought in bulk for a team. Many schools are already struggling with funding.

And the National Athletic Trainers Association has said that such products come with little to no independent scientific evidence showing that they actually work.

STEVE ROWSON, VIRGINIA TECH HELMET LAB: The helmet and head protection is really the last line of defense. The first thing to do is minimize the number of head impacts that kids and other athletes are experiencing.

WIRE: One other potential drawback is the way it feels. Some NFL players say it makes them feel top heavy at times.

Well, the research will continue to be done and the push to make the game safer continues.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: Our thanks to Coy Wire for that.

So expect a nice surprise at the gas pump this Labor Day weekend. What is driving the prices down?

And airline passengers fed up with a toddler's nonstop crying on a flight lock her in the bathroom. This morning, their actions are causing a lot of discussion.

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:52:00] BERMAN: Fresh off his gold medal Olympic performance, Steph Curry has signed a huge one-year extension with the Golden State Warriors worth more than $62 million. This deal makes his contract $178 million over the next three seasons. And when it's up he will have earned more than half a billion dollars from NBA deals, putting him second on the all- time list behind LeBron James.

New video this morning shows the flooding that destroyed a library in Long Island up in New York. Floodwaters burst through a wall and rushed through the entire bottom floor of the building, destroying books, equipment, and much more. This library is the home to some historical documents, including the Long Island town deed and letters signed by Thomas Jefferson.

So a toddler on a flight with her grandparents in China was crying nonstop on a three-hour flight. It happens. Anyone who has flown with a toddler knows it happens.

Two strangers locked the child in a bathroom to "educate her." They said they had the grandmother's consent. They even posted video of it, which has been taken down, saying they just wanted a quiet flight.

The airline has since apologized for the incident and condemned the passengers' behavior -- Rahel.

SOLOMON: All right, John.

This holiday weekend drivers are in for a treat even if they get stuck in traffic -- but hopefully, they don't get stuck in traffic. Gas prices are expected to hit a three-year low just in time for Labor Day.

Let's bring in CNN's Matt Egan who joins us now. So talk to us about why -- not that we care, but why are prices easing up?

MATT EGAN, CNN REPORTER: Well, Rahel, you mentioned stuck in traffic. Let me just say you haven't truly experienced being stuck in traffic until you've done that in New Jersey with two kids under the age of five.

SOLOMON: Fair enough. Fair enough.

EGAN: But listen, I'm here with good news on this summer Friday -- yes, falling gas prices. GasBuddy projecting the national average on Labor Day will be $3.27 a gallon.

SOLOMON: Wow.

EGAN: That is down 50 cents from a year ago; 52 cents from two years ago. This would be just above the level in 2021.

Now, it is true that gas prices were even lower in 2019 and, of course, during 2020 when it was COVID. But still, this is moving in the right direction, a far cry from that spike to $5.00 a gallon two years ago. And look, some drivers in some states are seeing even bigger drops. Nearly a dollar cheaper over the last year in Oregon, Washington State. Eighty-eight cents in the battleground state of Arizona. Sixty- eight cents in Utah. That is a big change.

As far as why it's happening -- well, on the supply side, oil prices have been low in part because the U.S. is producing record amounts of oil. Refineries are doing really well. They haven't been sidelined by extreme heat, so that means gas supplies have been up. And on the demand side, it's actually been a little bit soft in the U.S. as far as the demand for gasoline.

But not matter the reason --

SOLOMON: Um-hum.

EGAN: -- this is all really good news.

SOLOMON: Yeah. So being helped both on the supply and the demand side --

EGAN: Yes.

SOLOMON: -- it seems.

I should point out we do care. We do care. We do want to know why.

EGAN: We do.

SOLOMON: So good to have you explain it.

[07:55:00]

And talk to us a little bit about the impact this is having for people's wallet, and is it possible to know how long this will last?

EGAN: Well, Rahel, this is real savings. GasBuddy is projecting that Americans are going to spend $750 million less this Labor Day weekend than they did last.

Now, as far as how long this lasts it's always a little hard to say because, as you know, so much of it depends on what happens in the oil market.

SOLOMON: Yeah.

EGAN: And that can swing on a dime in either direction.

SOLOMON: Yeah.

EGAN: But one of the big x-factors here is what OPEC does next. OPEC is scheduled to actually add more supply in the coming months.

And so if they do that, veteran analyst Tom Kloza -- he told me that we could see the national average, which is at $3.35 right now -- the national average go below $3.00 a gallon by the end of the year, which would mean, Rahel, that whoever wins in November could be starting their administration in January with relative cheap gas prices.

SOLOMON: Fascinating. When is the OPEC meeting?

EGAN: The OPEC meeting is -- I think that decision is at the end of September. So we're going to hear about that in the coming weeks.

SOLOMON: Stayed tuned for that.

EGAN: Yes.

SOLOMON: All right, Matt Egan. Thank you.

EGAN: Thanks, Rahel.

SOLOMON: John.

BERMAN: Smack in the middle of an election season.

This morning, Defense Sec. Lloyd Austin will meet with his Ukrainian counterpart at the Pentagon. This is to discuss Ukraine's current incursion into Russia's Kursk region.

CNN senior international correspondent Fred Pleitgen is in Kyiv this morning. What's the latest from there, Fred?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, good morning, John.

Of course, a pretty high-stake visit that's going on there by the Ukrainian defense minister there visiting with Lloyd Austin. And there's really one thing that the Ukrainians want to achieve in these meeting is they want to present the U.S. with a list of targets that they would like to hit with longer-distance weapons that are made in the United States.

I think it's important to point out that we're not only talking about surface-to-surface missiles -- not just those ATACMS missiles, of course, have a significant range, which right now the Ukrainians are using to strike places in occupied Crimea, but not yet allowed to use to strike deep into Russian territory. But we're also talking, for instance, about air launch missiles that could strike targets in Russia as well.

One of the main reasons why the Ukrainians want to do that John is because right now the Russians have become a lot more effective at using their own Air Force. And so the Ukrainians want to hit the air bases from where the Russians are taking off. Of course, also fuel depots and radar stations as well.

So far, the U.S. is only allowing the Ukrainians to use U.S.-made weapons in the immediate border area. The Ukrainians want further allowances to use the weapons deeper into Russian territory.

And, of course, all of this is part of a larger plan that the president of this country, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, wants to present to President Biden around the U.N. General Assembly in September -- what he calls a plan for a possible Ukrainian victory and to force Russia to the negotiating table, John.

BERMAN: So Fred, what is the current situation on the battlefield?

PLEITGEN: Yeah, it's difficult. It's a really interesting situation right now. In certain areas it is very difficult for the Ukrainians. You, of course, have that incursion into Russia -- into the Kursk area where the Ukrainians apparently are still making some gains even though that's slowed down significantly.

Nevertheless, we're more than three weeks into that incursion and the Ukrainians still making some progress. So that in itself is very significant.

On the eastern front inside of Ukraine a very difficult situation there for the Ukrainians, especially in the eastern city -- around the eastern city of Pokrovsk. The Russians there now making pretty significant progress I would say. It's not fast but it is certainly very steady.

The Ukrainians, first and foremost, have a big issue there with manpower. They're not able to bring enough soldiers into the fight. They're outmanned by the Russians. They say they're trying to stabilize that situation. But right now, that really is the focal point here in the east of the country as the Ukrainians try to stem that tide there while further advancing into Russia from the north in the Kursk area, John.

BERMAN: A pivotal moment. Great to have you there, Fred Pleitgen. Thank you so much.

So, a tragic loss for Ukraine. Pilot Oleksiy Mes, known as "Moonfish," one of the few Ukrainian pilots trained to fly the U.S.-made F-16 fighter jet, died Monday when his jet crashed. And a Ukrainian military source tells CNN he was repelling the biggest ever aerial attack on Ukraine by Russia.

Moonfish sought to get the F-16 jets to Ukraine and was trained to fly them, accomplishing it is just six months. It would typically take years.

I had a chance to speak with him in March of 2022 as he was working at that point to repel the Russian invasion.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OLEKSIY MES, UKRAINIAN STAR PILOT: Well, of course, it is heartbreaking to watch all of that. It is really hard to lose close friends. We are -- we are comparative with small Air Force and we know each other by names. And, of course, we know well all our -- all our fallen friends.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: It's the top of the hour. I'm Rahel Solomon with John Berman. Sara and Kate are out today.