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Israel Intercepts Missile over Tel Aviv; Zelenskyy to Address U.N. General Assembly; Polls on Net Favorability in the Presidential Race; Questions about Alcohol Answered. Aired 8:30-9a ET

Aired September 25, 2024 - 08:30   ET

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

[08:30:00]

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Some of the things that Styrene can do to people, well, it can cause serious headaches. It can cause nausea, respiratory issues and certainly there could be some long-term issues like organ damage. So, no joke. Officials taking this, obviously, very seriously.

Once that was reported yesterday, there was about a half a mile radius around that area of homes, of schools, as you mentioned, that were evacuated. I just looked at the schools in that area. There's three schools that are not going to be open today, but they did say at about 1:00 today they're going to decide if they can do after school activities. So, you can see that that whole area sort of in a waiting pattern, trying to get an update about the air quality and about what officials think the, you know, the solution is at this moment. But they did warn this could take quite a bit of people not being able to return to their homes in that area. So, we'll wait and see, Sara.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: I am sure an investigation also underway there.

GINGRAS: Absolutely.

SIDNER: Brynn Gingras, thank you so much. Appreciate your reporting this morning.

Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking overnight, Israel intercepts and ballistic missile near Tel Aviv. The first time Hezbollah has ever gotten so close to that major city. So, how does this now further escalate the conflict?

And Ukrainian President Zelenskyy addressing the United Nations today, and responding to Donald Trump, who just said we have to get out of Ukraine.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:35:38]

BOLDUAN: New overnight, Israel's military said it intercepted a Hezbollah missile near Tel Aviv. The first time a rocket has made its way that far into Israel from Lebanon. Hezbollah said it was targeting the headquarters of the Mossad, Israel's intelligence service.

Also put out today, the IDF released this video. What they say this shows is a strike destroying the Hezbollah missile launcher that was used in that attack.

Plus, that was sirens over Israel today. And then there is this. New footage showing the moment an Israeli airstrike hit Lebanon. You can see the explosion in the distance.

CNN's Nic Robertson tracking all of this in Tel Aviv. And there is a lot going on this morning.

What's the latest, Nic?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, that incoming missile this morning towards Tel Aviv, Hezbollah said it was a ballistic missile fired at the Mossad, the intelligence headquarters just north of Tel Aviv. It was intercepted quite easily, it appears, by a new or rather not the usual interceptor system. And there are several reasons for that.

This missile, this ballistic missile, represents an escalation by Hezbollah. Not a massive escalation as they could have used if they'd fired a lot of these ballistic missiles. Why is it an escalation? The ballistic missiles carry a much bigger payload, hundreds of kilograms, pounds of explosives. They can fly much further, much faster than any of the missiles that Hezbollah has used so far. It's used short range just across the border in the north, it has used medium range, which fly about 30 miles. This missile had the capability to fly hundreds of miles. It flies high in an ark. And it was intercepted by David's Sling, which is Israel's more sophisticated - packs a harder punch, flies at a higher altitude, an interceptor system this morning.

Those sirens that you heard, by the way, there as that ballistic missile was intercepted woke about a million people up in Israel today because the threat was so widespread, the area was so widespread that the alarms went off in more than 370 different communities in Israel.

So, this represents an escalation. Israel intercepted it. There were no immediate casualties. However, it does represent, if you will, from the way the IDF views the situation right now, that Hezbollah is at a - is at a junction here. It can either ratchet up further with more of these ballistic missiles or back down. And there's no indication at the moment that they're backing down. And Israel had a strong round wave, if you will, of strikes into Lebanon today, hitting ammunition stores and other places where they say Hezbollah has got - has got weapons. So, that's - that really is the sort of limit of the escalation, if you will, today.

Having said that, we've heard from the head of the northern command of the IDF on the northern border here, telling troops they need to be ready for maneuver and action. It's not saying they are going across the border, but it's telling them that they need to be ready for it. And that's the strongest signal that they could be about to cross the border that we've seen so far.

BOLDUAN: Yes, John Kirby, from the White House, on with us last hour saying that that kind of movement could indicate they've kind of past the point of no return in terms of trying to keep it contained.

Nic, thank you very much for your reporting, as always.

John.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, and we are moments away from hearing from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. He will address the U.N. General Assembly. This comes as the U.S. prepares to announce billions of dollars in new aid to Ukraine.

Let's get right to CNN's senior White House correspondent Kayla Tausche for the latest on this.

Good morning.

KAYLA TAUSCHE, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John.

We are expecting to hear Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy once again outline what he sees as the formula for peace in his country, and the resources that he needs to get there.

We also expect him to issue some demands to the global community not to recognize Russian President Vladimir Putin and to enforce the U.N. charter as a way to bring about the end of the war.

[08:40:10]

Zelenskyy giving something of a preview of today's speech yesterday when he addressed the U.N. Security Council. And he issued a very stark warning for a third winter at war. He said that there's the potential for Russia to strike what he says are three specific nuclear targets, raising the specter for the impact across Europe and in that region. And essentially suggesting that this war could take a very different turn in just a few months.

He also called for a second peace summit with a variety of countries to come to the table and essentially force Russia to the negotiating table. So far, Vladimir Putin has not been willing to participate in these conversations. And it's unclear that anything has changed since then.

One of the most formative conversations during the course of this week, though, that Zelenskyy will have will not take place in New York. It will take place tomorrow at the White House with both President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, to talk about what additional aid is needed and what additional aid the U.S. is expected to provide. We understand that Zelenskyy will also be briefing Biden and Harris on his so-called victory plan that he's been teasing publicly for weeks, and that U.S. officials had been clamoring for details on.

But exactly how the White House will respond to that and whether they see it as a viable plan is unknown at this time, John.

BERMAN: On a different front, Kate was just speaking with Nic Robertson in - Nic Robertson in Tel Aviv about this apparent Hezbollah attempted missile strike on Tel Aviv, the likes of which we really haven't seen before. What is the White House saying about that?

TAUSCHE: Well, the White House is calling it deeply concerning, noting that it's aware of the situation and understanding that this is, obviously, an escalation that it was trying to prevent.

That being said, publicly the administration is taking the position that it believes a ceasefire is the only way to tamp down on this escalation. And in at least two instances this morning suggesting that the onus remains on Hamas to accept that deal. Both John Kirby, on your program earlier this morning, saying that the - that responsibility lays solely with Sinwar, the leader of Hamas. And Secretary of State Tony Blinken also saying that the two parties, Israel and Hamas, have agreed to 15 out of 18 paragraphs of the ceasefire deal. And that it's the fine print that remains to be agreed to. And that it's Hamas who won't agree to that.

So, trying to frame this situation as one where Israel has political will, which there have been questions about among U.S. officials behind the scenes, and trying to put the onus squarely on Hamas.

BERMAN: All right, Kayla Tausche, great to have you on this morning. Thank you very much.

So, a presidential election is not a popularity contest, or is it? A look at some surprising numbers on candidate likability.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:47:34]

BOLDUAN: The race is tight between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. What does popularity have to do with it? The choice for the president and being well-liked, do they go hand in hand? Is there a connection?

CNN's Harry Enten's been looking into that.

HARRY ENTEN, CNN SENIOR DATA REPORTER: Hand in hand.

BOLDUAN: I didn't mean - let's - we don't need to be literal.

ENTEN: OK, fine.

BOLDUAN: Except - except literally trying to explain what you're looking into today. Explain it.

ENTEN: All right, so, you know, this, to me, is one of the most fascinating dynamics throughout this presidential campaign. We have spoken about Kamala Harris' popularity and how it has taken off, right? So, this is the net favorability rating. And look, Harris is more popular than Donald Trump, right? If we're looking across an average of polls, Harris' net favorability is plus one point in positive territory. Donald Trump is still in negative territory when it comes to his net favorability at minus nine points.

You'd look at this and you'd say to yourself, oh, Kamala Harris should be well ahead in this race. But that CNN poll out yesterday had Harris up by just a point. The Quinnipiac University poll that was out yesterday showed something very similar. So, the bottom line here is that Kamala Harris is in positive territory. She's clearly better liked by Donald Trump. But yet we have a very close horse race on our hands.

BOLDUAN: So, popularity can mean different things.

ENTEN: Yes. All right, so Donald Trump, personally, not very beloved, right? This is something we've heard from a lot of his supporters that maybe they don't love him personally, but they liked the job that he did as president.

So, we talk about popularity. We're often talking about favorability ratings. But how about approval ratings? How about approval ratings, thinking that he did a good job in his presidency?

BOLDUAN: I think people - I think people confuse that often.

ENTEN: I think people confuse it very often.

BOLDUAN: Yes.

ENTEN: Look at this. Think his presidency was a success. Donald Trump, 51 percent. The majority think his presidency was a success despite his personal popularity being meh. Look at this for Joe Biden, way down at 37 percent. I think that this is a real drag on Kamala Harris despite her own personal popularity, while Donald Trump, with thinking his presidency is a success, I think the net favorability ratings don't actually get into the fact that there are a lot of folks who liked the job he did as president, but don't necessarily like him personally.

BOLDUAN: OK, Joe Biden no longer on the ballot, but what does history show about his unpopularity and the impact it can have?

ENTEN: Exactly. So, take a look here. There's only three examples going back. The successor -- was the success of the same party when the net favor - when the net approval rating was negative at this point in the cycle, right, as Joe Biden was.

BOLDUAN: So, maybe I misstated, not popularity, approval.

[08:50:01]

ENTEN: Approval.

BOLDUAN: OK.

ENTEN: So, here we go. George W. Bush, obviously a Republican didn't succeed him. Lyndon Johnson, there was no Democrat who succeeded him. Harry Truman, no Democrat who succeeded him. Now we're looking at Joe Biden. Could a Democrat succeed him despite his net approval rating being as low as it is? History isn't so kind.

But again, we're really just looking at a sample size of three. But the bottom line is, I think we can say Joe Biden is a drag on Kamala Harris despite her own popularity, at least measured through net favorability ratings (ph).

BOLDUAN: So, going forward, we can make a distinction or - and should dig into it when we're talking about popularity. Are we talking about approval, job performance, or favorability -

ENTEN: Yes.

BOLDUAN: How you feel about - how people feel about them personally.

ENTEN: Exactly. One favors Kamala Harris, the net favorability ratings. The approval ratings, I think, favor Donald Trump given that you have 51 percent who think his presidency was a success.

BOLDUAN: Let's see what this story tells us as we go forward.

Cool, Harry. Thanks.

ENTEN: Thank you.

BOLDUAN: Sara.

SIDNER: All right, thank you.

New this hour, a high-speed chase of a hijacked bus with hostages on board. How police were able to stop the hijackers.

And this morning we're standing by for the first court appearance by a sheriff accused of shooting a judge inside his chambers at the courthouse.

Those stories and more ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:55:30]

BERMAN: This morning, cocktails, mocktails, and you. CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta answers your burning questions in this week's "Dr. Sanjay Gupta On-Call." Sanjay is with us right now.

And, Sanjay, Lisa writes, "I turned 60 recently" - happy birthday, Lisa, "and I have noticed that when I drink I lose my balance and get tired more quickly even though I haven't drunk that much. What's going on?"

What do you think?

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, you know, we - we got a lot of question - surprisingly, a lot of questions just like this one. And as someone who's getting closer to Lisa's age than not, I can - I can sort of relate to this. Yes is the short answer to the question. Your bodies do change as you

get older in terms of how you process alcohol. Three main reasons. One is, you have less muscle mass. So, that's going to decrease your overall metabolism.

Also, your liver function, which actually processes alcohol, that's also a bit diminished as you get older. So, alcohol is going to stick around, be stronger and it's going to last longer.

And finally, you know, people, they take medications more as they get older. Sometimes those medications can have an interaction.

So, you know, you're not a kid anymore. And again, I say this as someone who's getting closer to your age, Lisa, you can't drink like you're a kid anymore. Really important.

One thing I'll say, on a serious note is that 65 percent of falls that result in death are somehow alcohol related. So, as you get older, you're more at risk of falls, and alcohol can exacerbate that. So, you've got to pay more attention to how much you're drinking.

BERMAN: That is really interesting and important data. And I will say, I feel it more quickly too. As you get older, you know, one or two beers makes much more of a difference than it did 10 or 20 years ago.

GUPTA: Yes.

BERMAN: So, Sanjay, Nadeem asks, "what does 0 percent alcohol in volume mean? Does it contain any amount of alcohol? Was the drink made with alcohol, then the alcohol was extracted out/"

GUPTA: Yes, I'm so glad this question was asked. And, John, you know, one thing I'll just ask you, non-alcoholic drink, what does that mean to you?

BERMAN: No alcohol. It means alcohol-free. At least that's what I think it means.

GUPTA: No alcohol, right.

BERMAN: Right.

GUPTA: But it's not exactly right. And the terms matter here. So, zero alcohol, that's this, zero alcohol, says 0.0 percent alcohol on it. That has no alcohol in it. But if it says non-alcohol, it could have some alcohol in it. This Athletic beer, for example, up to 0.5 percent alcohol.

It's just something to keep in mind. I mean, if you're trying to be completely alcohol-free, no alcohol at all, you want zero alcohol instead of non-alcohol. An important point.

One thing I'll say is that it's very interesting, the process. Sometimes they make the drink exactly the way they used to, and then they just remove the alcohol. They inject steam into it and they sort of let the alcohol distill off. Another way that they do that is they ferment the beer just like they would with the four ingredients, water, hops - water, hops, yeast, and barley, right?

BERMAN: Barley.

GUPTA: OK, you - I think isn't it? Anyways, water, hops, yeast, and then they get to that specific point of fermentation and they stop before the alcohol is actually made. So, you - you're getting to that point. You get the same flavors and stuff of the ingredients, but you don't necessarily get the alcohol. And that's how they get to that sort of 0.5 percent alcohol. A little bit of alcohol in there, but not zero alcohol, again, to keep in mind.

BERMAN: Sanjay, I've got to say, these segments are so interesting and I feel like people learn so much information that really matters. I mean stuff that really matters. It's good to know what you're getting when you buy what you think is non-alcoholic drinks.

GUPTA: Yes. I totally agree, John. I thought that would be good for you in particular.

BERMAN: Yes, I appreciate it. I know your concern. Thank you very much, Sanjay.

GUPTA: You got it.

BERMAN: Sara.

SIDNER: I have an honest question, but this is for you, John. What's the point in drinking beer with no alcohol? I - it's honest (ph).

BERMAN: The taste. You like the taste. Some people like the taste.

SIDNER: Really?

BERMAN: Some people do like the taste. And if you've tried some of those beers, and I'm not going to name brand any of them, actually you really can't tell the difference between the non-alcoholic and the regular brands. So, if you like the taste, they're an option.

SIDNER: Learn something every day from you, John Berman. Every day.

On our radar tonight, a high-speed chase - did I say tonight? I - clearly I have been drinking alcoholic beer.

A high-speed chase across Los Angeles. But this one involved a metro bus. Our affiliate KABC reporting a suspect hijacked the bus at gunpoint with the driver and two passengers on board. You see it going there. At the demand of the armed suspect, the driver continued to drive as police pursued that vehicle. At one point during the chase, officers used a spike strip to slow the bus down.

[09:00:02]

It did eventually come to a stop. The suspect was arrested. And the driver then climbed from the window of the bus. A victim was found