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Former Trump Rivals Take State At Republican Convention; Trump Security Enhanced Ahead Of Shooting; Trump Pick Sen. J.D. Vance Of Ohio As His Running Mate; Former Trump Rivals Pivot to Offer Their Support at RNC; Republican Senate Candidates Take Spotlight at Convention; Bob Menendez Found Guilty in Corruption Trial; Iran Denies Any Plot to Kill Criminal Donald Trump; Elon Musk Pledges $45 Million Per Month to Trump's Campaign; Police and Protesters Clash in Kenya; Cyanide Poisoning Likely Cause of Six Deaths in Bangkok Hotel; at Least Six Dead After Shooting Near Mosque in Oman; Macron Accepts Pm's Resignation Despite No Clear Successor; Labour Vows to Take Brakes Off Britain With King's Speech; Tenacious D Band Member Apologizes for Trump Comment. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired July 17, 2024 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[02:00:34]
JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR ANALYST: Ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM. And on day two, those defeated and humiliated by Donald Trump took to the seats to pledge their loyalty and support to the Republican nominee for president.
New questions over Secret Service protection for Donald Trump, which had been elevated before the weekend shooting after intelligence revealed a possible separate plot by Iran to kill the former U.S. president.
And Joe Biden goes off to the Supreme Court using a code of ethics and term limits for the nine justices.
ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta, this is CNN Newsroom with John Vause.
VAUSE: Day two of the Republican National Convention was a showcase of party unity, with Donald Trump's former primary rivals and critics giving their full-throated endorsement for relating the four times indicted, twice impeached, convicted felon. Notably, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, nicknamed Ron Desanctimonious Trump praised the former president for his economic and border policies.
There was also a strong endorsement from former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley. The last challenger left standing in the race for the Republican nomination. The same Nikki Haley who described Trump as unhinged, diminished and unfit for office during the Republican primary race.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) NIKKI HALEY, FORMER SOUTH CAROLINA GOVERNOR: We should acknowledge that there are some Americans who don't agree with Donald Trump 100 percent of the time. I happen to know some of them. And I want to speak to them tonight. My message to them is simple. You don't have to agree with Trump 100 percent of the time to vote for him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Trump and his V.P. pick, Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio seemed joined at the hip Tuesday night with the theme there Make America Safe Again. Thanks. We'll take center stage Wednesday with a speech to delegates which one source says will emphasize his life story. Another former rival and one-time V.P. contender Florida Senator Marco Rubio referenced the answers personal story in his remarks today, saying this election is about putting Americans first.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R-FL): These are the Americans who wear the red hats and wait for hours under a blazing sun to hear Trump speak. And what they want, what they asked for, it is not hateful or extreme. What they want is good jobs and lower prices. They want borders that are secure. And for those who come here to do so legally. They want to be safe from criminals and from terrorists.
And they want for our leaders to care more about our problems here at home than about the problems of other countries far away. There is absolutely nothing dangerous or anything divisive about putting Americans first. Anyone who was offended about putting America first has forgotten what American is and what American means. American isn't the color of our skin, or our ethnicity.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: CNN's Kristen Holmes has more details now on day two of the RNC reporting in from Milwaukee in Wisconsin.
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The second day of the Republican Convention could have been called Donald Trump's rival night. We saw a number of Donald Trump's previous rivals in various elections and Senator Marco Rubio who now of course, this cycle was a V.P. contender as well. Senator Ted Cruz and Donald Trump face down in 2016. But perhaps the most critical rivals that spoke tonight in support of Donald Trump were those he faced in the primaries this cycle.
Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis backed the former president emphatically.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HALEY: I'll start by making one thing perfectly clear. Donald Trump has my strong endorsement period.
GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FL): Let's send Donald Trump back to the White House. (END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: I asked a number of Trump advisors what they thought about that speech. One of them talking about Nikki Haley specifically said I stopped listening after I heard the word endorse. Now Haley's endorsement was critical for a number of reasons. Despite the fact that Haley only won two primaries during the cycle.
[02:05:02]
She continued to win tens of thousands of voters in critical battleground states like Pennsylvania and Arizona even after she had dropped out of the presidential race. Those are voters who purposely did not vote for the former president. Tonight, Haley reached out to them specifically called on them to back the former president in this election in November to not sit on the sidelines and to not vote for President Joe Biden.
Something the Trump campaign was not only hoping she would do but was thrilled that she did on that Tuesday night.
Kristen Holmes, CNN, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
VAUSE: Live now to Los Angeles and Ron Brownstein, CNN, senior political analyst and senior editor for The Atlantic. Good to see, Ron. Thanks for staying up.
RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Hey, John.
VAUSE: So, day two is all about Unity Day at the RNC. And what better way to show unity than a public display of sucking up from some of your defeated rivals like Nikki Haley, who said the race for the party's nomination longer than anyone else? Because he says she saw Donald Trump back in January.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HALEY: I do think that he is in decline. And I think that he needs to know to step away. I do think that he surrounds himself in chaos, and we can't be a country in disarray and have a world on fire being chaos. I do think that these court cases are distracting, not just to the American people, but to him himself, which is keeping him from talking about what really matters. That's exactly why I don't think he should be president.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Despite all that, here is Governor Haley speaking just a few hours ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HALEY: We'll start by making one thing perfectly clear. Donald Trump has my strong endorsement period.
(END VIDEO CLIP) VAUSE: It happens all the time on both sides of the -- of the major parties, but it seems especially hypocritical given the low blows and personal attacks from both Haley and Trump during that primary campaign. So, how important is it for Trump to have his vanquish rivals, you know, turn up on stage and publicly kiss the ring?
BROWNSTEIN: Yes. Well, as you -- as you know, in fairness to Haley, the tradition of having to eat your words at the convention after running a losing primary campaign against the eventual nominee is a long and storied bipartisan tradition. But it does feel like there is something more here, especially when seen in context of all of the Republican big donors who said they would never give to Trump again after January 6, kind of crawling back into the fold.
And, you know, the broad silencing of any dissent in Congress, this is Trump's party, and anyone who wants to ascend in the party has to essentially not only preach loyalty to him, but largely adopt the agenda. J.D. Vance, another great example. Someone who was, you know, more of an -- more of a Trump critic than Nikki Haley in 2016 and is now the vice president. I look at this convention and the choice of Vance as a real indication that win or lose Trump has reset the direction of the Republican Party for the foreseeable future. And those Haley-type voters who are uncertain whether they belong in this party are being given a clear message that they are the subordinate wing.
And the future belongs to kind of Vance-like -- Trump-like national -- nationalist populism.
VAUSE: You mentioned J.D. Vance, a former never-Trumper who has seen the light. Here's how Politico described Vance. He is the embodiment and one of the most articulate defenders of a belief system that has gradually taken hold of the Republican Party. One that prizes cultural and ideological warfare and rewards the warriors who are most effective and taking the fight to non-believers.
It goes on to add that Vance doesn't deliver a lot in terms of electoral advantage, it's more about a plan for the future. You know, I guess the dreamer vision, it's four years from now could be Vance- Trump, as in Trump, Jr. You know, eight years after that Trump and Trump, who knows? This is what the ultimate plan could be?
BROWNSTEIN: Yes. Well, I think -- I totally agree. Vance brings very little in conventional political gains. In fact, he is a target rich environment, for Democrats with things he has said of an authoritarian nature, praising authoritarians abroad, support for a national abortion ban, and doesn't really, you know, add a geography that they know Ohio is a safe state for Trump. But this is all about sending a message about the direction of the party.
And as I said, I mean everything we are seeing this week, really kind of confirming what we saw during the primaries and really, you know, the kind of tottering the -- falling of the walls that the people tried to put up after January 6. It all points in the same direction. This is a Trumpian party at this point. It depends on the voters but Trump excites. It has driven away the voters who are most uneasy with him.
And if you want to succeed in the Republican party going forward, you mostly have to cater to that new coalition that Trump has built.
[02:10:03]
And the obvious opportunity that creates for Democrats is what we saw with the Haley race. What we saw in 2022 where it was the Democrats residual strength in white collar communities that largely blunted the expectations of a red wave.
And certainly, if Biden is going to -- or a successor Democrat is going to have any shot in November, it's going to be by expanding margins. And a lot of those white-collar places that feel left out of this new party, even after Haley kind of, you know, bent the knee.
VAUSE: Well, day two was also image makeover for Donald Trump, a speaker after speaker insisting going from cares. Cares a lot about everyone. Here's his daughter, Lara Trump.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LARA TRUMP, REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE CO-CHAIR: But when I look at Donald Trump, I see a wonderful father, father-in-law, and of course, grandfather to my two young children, Luke and Carolina. Through that lens that I sometimes wish more people could see him. This is a man who has sacrificed for his family and a man who has truly sacrificed for his country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: We had this sort of speaker after speaker, how do you get to meet the real Donald Trump? If only people could sit down and find out who he really is? Who are they talking to?
BROWNSTEIN: Well, you know, Donald Trump leads Biden on most personal attributes, you know, who you think is tougher, more energetic, better record of accomplishment, empathy and compassion is one where Trump trails, you know, and this is a guy who -- whose personal life is kind of littered with stories of him stepping over people both, you know, in his immediate circle and beyond loyalty being a one-way street.
You know, the picture they painted of him there, you know, I don't -- I don't know what his relationship is like with his kids or grandkids. So, it may be true, you know, in that sense but it has not been his persona or modus, you know, his modus operandi, either in business or in politics that kind of gives selfless loyalty or sacrifice. I was struck by all of that language as you were.
I also thought the quote that you ran from Marco Rubio may have been the most interesting of the night and it was in the same vein, it was basically saying, you know, to all those voters, whose communities have a kind of a real antipathy toward Trumpism and the MAGA movement that is really OK, you know, that you can -- you can come over and not be seen as a racist or as, you know, a nativist. That all was part of the same messaging that, you know, kind of softening the edges of Trumpism from what has been understood to be to this point in American politics without really softening the policy.
VAUSE: Yes. It just, you know, it seems at this point, you know, images of Trump are pretty much locked in in any way, you know, whether you're Trumper or not. Ron Brownstein, as always. Good to have you with us, sir. Thank you.
BROWNSTEIN: Thanks for having me, John.
VAUSE: Most pleasure. Well, the first Trump rally since this past weekend's assassination attempt will be held indoors. campaign officials say Trump will appear on stage with his running mate J.D. Vance in Grand Rapids, Michigan Saturday, a week after a 20-year-old father Trump gracing his right ear. Authorities are investigating possible security lapses at that outdoor event and Pennsylvania last Saturday.
The FBI and U.S. Department of Homeland Security a warning of possible follow up attacks after the assassination attempt on Trump. And a joint bulletin, the agencies noted chatter in some online communities either threatening or encouraging violent follow up attacks. Officials fear further violence could target other campaign events throughout the election season. Authorities are also concerned about hoax bomb threats.
Reports of fake crimes could trigger a law enforcement response or doxing of election officials in an attempt to disrupt political rallies as well as other events. And the director of the Secret Service tells CNN they are solely responsible for security at Donald Trump's rally last week. Still questions are being asked over how the shooter gained access to the roof of a nearby building. And from there tried to kill the former president.
CNN's Danny Freeman has more now on the details of the investigation.
DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: On Tuesday, we started to get some answers to some of the biggest questions that we've been wondering about this investigation and this attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump but there are still many things that we don't know. But let me walk through what we do know at this point. Let's start first with Thomas Matthew Crooks. That's the 20-year-old shooter from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania.
We do know that on Friday before the shooting, we believe that he went to his sportsman's club and actually practice shooting on that rifle range at the sportsman club not too far from his home. We then know on Saturday morning, the shooter went to Home Depot and purchased a ladder. Not long after that we know that the shooter then went to a gun shop and purchase 50 rounds of ammunition.
Then law enforcement sources have been telling CNN the shooter drove to Butler, Pennsylvania to the Trump rally that occurred behind me back on Saturday, and the shooter actually was spotted by law enforcement at one point looking suspicious near the metal detectors but then went relatively undetected as far as we understand until later on when he ultimately fired those shots towards a former President Donald Trump.
[02:15:07]
But here's what we still don't know. We still are no closer to understanding what may have motivated this particular shooting, the FBI saying that it has done over 100 interviews of witnesses at the scene, law enforcement officers, family and friends of Mr. Crooks. They also searched the home and the car of the shooter. They also looked at the past internet search history of the shooter, and they actually were able to crack into the shooters phone.
Still, though no evidence pointing to any ideological reasons that would have led him up to that rooftop to fire those shots at the former president. And now I want to turn to the investigation and this back and forth between U.S. Secret Service and local law enforcement agencies that were on the ground here as well. We have learned from law enforcement sources that there was a sniper team actually inside of the complex where the shooter Crooks was on top of the roof.
But these snipers, they were actually looking through second-storey windows towards the crowd, not actually on what was happening above them on the roof. This comes a Secret Service told us that they were not responsible for sweeping and clearing the area that contain this particular building because it was outside of the perimeter that they were focused on where the Trump campaign event was happening.
The Secret Service said that was law enforcement responsibility. However, we have heard from a number of local law enforcement agencies here in this particular area, including the Pennsylvania State Police, who not only said that they gave Secret Service, all of the resources that they asked for, but specifically said in these types of situations during these types of events, Secret Service is the lead agency.
Then 48 hours after the shooting on Saturday evening, we finally heard the first comments on the record in immediate interview from the director of the Secret Service who said explicitly, the buck stops with me. So, it's unclear if we're going to see more back and forth between local law enforcement and between secret service but we still don't have an answer to the question of why that particular roof was left unattended.
Danny Freeman, CNN, Butler, Pennsylvania.
VAUSE: It seems security for the former president was already elevated before last weekend, after intelligence revealed an alleged Iranian plot to assassinate Donald Trump a separate plot altogether. CNN's Kylie Atwood has details reporting and mail from the State Department.
KYLIE ATWOOD, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: In recent weeks, U.S. authorities obtained intelligence from a human source of Iranian assassination plot attempt against former President Trump. Now we are told that there is no connection between this threat and what occurred over the weekend with that assassination attempt against the former president in Pennsylvania.
But, of course, this raises questions as to the security footprint that was around the former president on that day. Now national security official said that when this threat came into the U.S. government, they shared it with Secret Service, we shared it with Trump's detail and of course shared it with the Trump campaign. And that official also said that in response, Secret Service, "surge resources and assets for the protection of former President Trump."
Now the Trump campaign for their part is not commenting on this saying they don't comment on Trump's protective detail. The Iranian Mission to the United Nations is denying it calling accusations unsubstantiated and malicious. And the NSA spokesperson is making very clear what I've said previously that there is no connection at this moment between what occurred over the weekend and this threat from Iran saying at the time, there has not been identified ties between the shooter and any accomplished or co-conspirator foreign or domestic.
That's according to NSC spokesperson Adrienne Watson, of course the investigation into that assassination attempt against the former president continues on.
Kylie Atwood, CNN, the State Department.
VAUSE: We'll take a short break. When we come back, U.S. President Joe Biden goes after the untouchables pushing for major reform of the U.S. Supreme Court.
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[02:21:11]
VAUSE: U.S. President Joe Biden looks set to back major reforms of the Supreme Court, which would make him the first sitting president in generations to do so. Sources tell CNN that term limits for the nine justices who currently serve lifetime appointments is top of the list. Also under consideration is the new ethics code, which would contain an enforcement mechanism. The court has been under intense scrutiny following a series of controversies surrounding some of the justices, including conservatives, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito.
That along with several highly charged rulings have led to dismal public approval ratings. Present Biden has this warning about the future of the Supreme Court should Donald Trump be reelected?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There's going to probably be two more appointments to the court. There's probably two people who are going to resign, resign, retire. Just imagine quarter of course if he has two more appointments on that, what that means forever.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: During that interview, President Biden also talked about the growing calls need to step aside from the race following his dismal debate performance last month. He says he's reluctant to walk away because there's more to do for the country and only a medical condition diagnosis might convince him to drop out. This comes as a growing faction of the House Democrats are calling on the Democratic National Committee to ditch plans to virtually nominate Mr. Biden before the party convention in Chicago next month.
A clear sign some are concerned about the President staying at the top of the ticket. The NAACP convention, President Biden spoke about the need to address political violence following the assassination attempt on Donald Trump.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: Our politics has gotten too heated. I've said the Oval Office on Sunday night, as it made clear throughout my presidency, we all have a responsibility to lower the temperature and condemn violence in any form. Just because we must lower the temperature in our politics is very divisive doesn't mean we should stop telling the truth. Who you are, what you done, what you all do. That's fair game.
Where's the truth about why Donald Trump's presidency was held for black America. He tried to repeal Obamacare to kick millions. I mean, millions of black Americans off their health insurance. And a $2 trillion tax cut overwhelmingly benefited the super wealthy, the biggest corporation and exploded the federal debt larger than any one president has been one term. He left no room for us to do what we should be doing.
Invest in things that affect people's lives, like child care, elder care, and so much more that grow the economy and help people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Live down to Los Angeles and Caroline Heldman, democratic strategist and professor at Occidental College. Good to see you.
CAROLINE HELDMAN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Great to see you, John.
VAUSE: So, I want you to listen to President Biden talking about why he is now pushing for a code of ethics for the Supreme Court as well as term limits for the nine justices. The he who he refers to is Donald Trump. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: The next president is likely to have two new Supreme Court nominees. Two more. Two more. He's already appointed to that or been very negative in terms of the rights of individuals. The idea that if he's reelected, he's going to appoint two more flying flags upside down. The Supreme Court has never been as out of kilter as it is today. Look, the fact of the matter is that this has never been a court that has been this far out of step.
(END VIDEO CLIP) VAUSE: In many ways, it seems to have come out of nowhere. It's been described as Biden pandering to progressives, a desperate move at a low point of the campaign. Well, this is clearly political. But anyways, does that matter? Reforming the Supreme Court is really badly needed right now.
HELDMAN: It absolutely is needed. But the odds of either of these getting through is slim to none. So even getting, you know, an ethical requirement are some actual mechanisms of accountability in place was dead on arrival.
[02:25:04]
It -- earlier this year when allegations came out, right, against Clarence Thomas and Justice Alito, because Republicans in the House put a stop to that. And then if he wants term limits, the Constitution says these are lifetime appointments. That's a really intensive multiyear process to get a constitutional amendment. So, this is sort of kind of smoke and mirrors, and it doesn't actually address the two major concerns that are really dragging on Biden, which are the economy and his age or his fitness for office.
VAUSE: And the attempted assassination of Trump seems to have taken some of the focus away from those calls to replace Biden as a Democrat nominee. But behind the scenes, CNN is reporting the calls from within the party continue to grow, for him to step down and get out of the race. So, it seems to stand in really stark contrast to what we saw at the RNC in Milwaukee, especially on Tuesday, Trump ratings defeated rivals on stage.
Pledging their loyalty to the new King. So, if Democrats cannot unite at this moment, either for or against Biden, then what hope do they have holding on to the White House and the Senate?
HELDMAN: Well, not much of a shot at this point in time. So Biden, just looking at the polls and the evidence here. Since that disastrous debate, he's lost ground in 14 states, he is behind in all seven swing states now according to the latest CNN polls. No president, incumbent president in our lifetime has been able to overcome the challenges of Biden has in front of him as numbers look like Carter in 1980, George Herbert-Walker Bush in 92 and Trump in 2020.
Only 23 percent of Americans think he has the fitness and mental and physical fitness for the office. So, looking at all of that Biden appears to be digging in his heels. But my thought would be that whatever is -- Biden is saying he's going to say that until he steps out if he chooses to do that. And power doesn't give up power. But wow, Donald Trump, I mean, that assassination attempt to be crass about the politics here, it's that visual images.
Really going to help them in November. And also, this ruling from Aileen Cannon that dismisses his documents case, it'll be appealed. But he's -- Biden -- the calls for him to step down, are likely growing louder behind the scenes, given the advantage that Trump has right now. VAUSE: We saw on Tuesday from President Biden, he seemed a lot more alert, he seemed much more engaged. You know, the speaking wasn't so slurred. He was sort of very articulate. If he has more days like that, you know, in the coming weeks or in the coming months. You know, can he pull this campaign out? Turn it around?
HELDMAN: Well, John, that's a great question. And Nancy Pelosi brought this up, right? She said, Is it episodic or is it a condition? I think for a lot of voters, regardless of whether it's episodic, or a condition, if you know, Carl Bernstein's reporting on this, if he has 15 to 20 of these episodes a year is accurate, or at least the perception is that that's what's happening with Biden, I think it's a hard sell.
Again, three out of four Americans think that he is does not have the mental and physical fitness for the office. So this is a really difficult time for the Democratic Party. But one silver lining perhaps is every other major top Democrat polls higher than Biden against Trump at this point in time.
VAUSE: He's a little more down from President Biden on why he decided to run for a second time, despite giving every indication back in 2020, that he would not.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: Look, when I originally ran, you may remember it. I said I was going to be a transitional candidate. I thought that I'd be able to move from this just pass it on to someone else. But I didn't anticipate things getting so, so, so divided.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: You mentioned this. The poll saw that, you know, other Democrats would be Trump. And one reason for the division that Biden is talking about is Biden.
HELDMAN: Well, the fact of the matter is, the man has a huge ego. Anybody getting into that office has a huge ego, and they hold on to power, they want to hold on to power. So, the idea that, OK, so let's say it is more divided which we know that it is and that division really started in 2016. That's when we started to see massive partisan division under Donald Trump's presidency that continued into Biden's presidency.
But even if that's the case, why does Biden think he's the only one who can address that? I mean, this is -- this is an office that really attracts people who love power. That's why Donald Trump is trying to get back into this office. That's why we have two candidates 178, 181 years old who have not stepped aside. You know, it really is about ego and power. And of course, that's what the presidency is about for many people.
VAUSE: It's blinding at times. It seems, Caroline, thank you for being with us (INAUDIBLE) Caroline Heldman there in Los Angeles.
HELDMAN: Thanks, John.
VAUSE: But Iran was outraged when Donald Trump ordered the killing of the top general Qasem Soleimani back in 2020 and then went on to brag about it. Now alluding to Iran maybe flooding his own revenge. The response from Iran ahead on CNN.
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[02:32:20]
VAUSE: The U.S. Republican Party was in a very different place six months ago, which would have made a for a very different Tuesday night at the Republican National Convention. Still one-time rivals, outspoken critics, direct competitors for the party's nomination, all took to the stage, including former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. They threw their support behind Donald Trump, now the official nominee of the party.
And the choice of J.D. Vance as Trump's running mate has given the party a chance to show unity, a united front. Tuesday's speakers also found common ground on something else, the disapproval of President Joe Biden.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KARI LAKE, (R-AZ) U.S. SENATE CANDIDATE: Americans are waking up to the truth about the disastrous Democrat policies pushed by Joe Biden.
REP. ELISE STEFANIK, (R-NY): Under Joe Biden, the American people have suffered crisis after crisis.
REP. STEVE SCALISE, (R-LA) MAJORITY LEADER OF THE U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES: Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have spent your tax dollars trashing America's finances in ways no sane or sober-minded person ever would.
SEN. TED CRUZ, (R-TX): As a result of Joe Biden's presidency, your family is less safe.
GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FL): Joe Biden has failed this nation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: And the battle to control the U.S. Senate is also featuring highly at this year's Republican Convention. The GOP needs either one or two seats to flip the chamber. We have CNN's John King break down the state of the race and how Republicans are thinking about the fight for control of the U.S. Senate.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN KING, CNN U.S. CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Republicans believe this is a great map for them anyway, they've believed this for months, and they think with Trump's strength in the election right now, the Senate map is improving for them even more. So, 51/49 for the Democrats. Now, come forward to this map here. You see Mansion's state, West Virginia; we've already turned it red. He's not running for re-election. That's a big state for Donald Trump. That seat is almost guaranteed to go Republican and to go red.
So then you see why are Ohio and Montana -- why are they yellow? Well, these are big Trump states. Ohio, Sherrod Brown, the Democratic incumbent, great personal brand back home. But Donald Trump's going to win that state or at least he has in the past by six or eight points. He just picked Republican Senator J.D. Vance as his running mate, so Democrats think they are in more trouble. You see Sherrod Brown raising money all the time. So what if that happened? What if this went over to red? We'll try to click it over. There you go; that would give right there.
Jon Tester, again, a Democrat with a great personal brand back home. Donald Trump won by 16 points last time in Montana. If Joe Biden's numbers are down even more, can Jon Tester hang on? So, this is what Democrats have been thinking about for months, that these would be the two suffer seats (ph). But as you see these speakers come to the stage tonight, here's what they're worried about now, let's just come back and make those toss-up. They're also worried about Pennsylvania. They're worried about Michigan. They're worried about here in Wisconsin. You just heard Kari Lake; she's losing in the polls right now, but they're worried about Arizona.
[02:35:00]
They are worried about Nevada as well. You can make a scenario here, a reasonable scenario, the Republicans not only get 50 in a majority, but they get 51, 52, 53. Now, Democrats watching are saying, you know, you're being overly pessimistic. Most of the Democratic candidates -- I want to make this clear -- most of the Democratic candidates right now are leading in these races, narrowly in most of them, but they're leading in these races. The Democratic Senate candidates are outperforming Joe Biden in these states, but ticket-splitting in presidential elections, one party for president, the other party for Senate has become almost non-existent.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Hungary's prime minister says Donald Trump is ready to act as a peace broker between Russia and Ukraine if he is re-elected. Role of Trump the peacemaker comes amid concerns that if president, he might try and force Kyiv to cede territory to Moscow in return to some kind of peace deal. European Council President Charles Michel hit back with a letter to Viktor Orban saying this, "The most direct way to peace is for Russia to withdraw all of its forces from Ukraine and respect Ukraine's territorial integrity and the U.N. Charter."
Meantime, Ukraine and dozens of other nations accused Russia of hypocrisy on Tuesday, presiding over a U.N. meeting on global cooperation. CNN has learned that U.S. authorities obtained intelligence in recent weeks, about alleged plot by Iran to try to assassinate Donald Trump. There's no sign of any link between Iran and Saturday's shooting at the Trump rally in Pennsylvania. Iran is denying the allegations altogether.
CNN's Fareed Zakaria sat down with Iran's foreign -- acting foreign minister on Tuesday and pressed him about those claims.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN HOST, "FAREED ZAKARIA GPS": My first question to you is relating to the news that CNN has broken about information that the U.S. government received, the national security council and passed on to the secret service, of a plot, an Iranian plot to assassinate the former President Donald Trump in retaliation for the assassination of Qasem Soleimani, the senior Iranian general that happened during the Trump Administration. What can you tell us about this?
ALI BAGHERI KANI, ACTING IRANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER (through translator): As you know, the Islamic Republic of Iran immediately following the assassination of General Soleimani tried to judicially and legally follow the assassination at Iranian courts and at the same time, we have tried to make use of the international judicial and legal procedures in order to prosecute the perpetrator and advisers who helped this assassination. Accordingly, the Islamic Republic of Iran will make use of all legal potentials inside the country or at the international level in order to bring the perpetrators to the justice.
ZAKARIA: Let me just be sure I understand what you're saying. Are you categorically denying that Iran had any plans or any element of Iran, the Revolutionary Guard and Iranian-backed militia had any plans to try to assassinate Donald Trump?
BAGHERI KANI (through translator): As I put it very blatantly and openly, I told you explicitly that we will resort to legal and judicial procedures and frameworks at the domestic level and international level in order to bring the perpetrators and military advisers of General Soleimani's assassination to justice.
ZAKARIA: But, that means not violent measures? When you say legal and judicial measures, you are talking about international courts and things like that?
BAGHERI KANI (through translator): As I told you, we will only resort to Iranian and international legal and judicial procedures. Till now, we have done it, and this is our right and of course, we will continue. And the Americans openly said that they assassinated the senior Iranian military commander, so it is our natural right in order to follow these issues and those who are accused in this case, they should be brought to justice in a just court.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: For a full interview with Iran's Acting Foreign Minister, Ali Bagheri Kani, coming up this Sunday on "Fareed Zakaria GPS" at 10:00 a.m. in New York, 3:00 p.m. in London. When we come back, Elon Musk betting big on Donald Trump, the head of Tesla and SpaceX announcing a massive donation to the former president's re-election campaign. Details on that when we come back.
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[02:42:15]
VAUSE: Attorney for U.S. Senator Bob Menendez vowing to appeal his conviction in federal corruption trial. Jurors found Menendez guilty of bribery, acting as a foreign agent to Egypt, obstruction of justice, extortion, and conspiracy. CNN's Kara Scannell has more.
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KARA SCANNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Senator Bob Menendez is defiant as he left court after being convicted of 16 criminal charges, including bribery and extortion. He said he was deeply disappointed and would appeal. Here's what he said.
SEN. BOB MENENDEZ, (D-NJ): Obviously, I'm deeply, deeply disappointed by the jury's decision. I have every faith that the law and the facts did not sustain that decision, and that we will be successful upon appeal. I have never violated my public oath. I have never been anything but a patriot of my country and for my country. I have never ever been a foreign agent and the decision rendered by the jury today would put at risk every member of the United States Senate in terms of what they think a foreign agent would be.
SCANNELL: The jury deliberated for 13 hours before returning their verdict on Tuesday afternoon, finding the Senator guilty of 16 charges including bribery, extortion, obstruction of justice, and acting as a foreign agent for the government of Egypt. Prosecutors signed (ph) the jury that Menendez sold the power of his office in exchange for gold bars, nearly half $0.5 in cash, and a convertible that Menendez took steps to try to interfere in the prosecutions of a co-defendants and a business associate of another, and that he also tried to help the government of Egypt, including by giving them sensitive information about staffing levels at the U.S. embassy in Cairo.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams I spoke to reporters after the verdict. Here's what he said.
DAMIAN WILLIAMS, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY, SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK: This case has always been about shocking levels of corruption, hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes in the form of cash, gold bars, a Mercedes-Benz. This wasn't politics as usual; this was politics for profit. And now that a jury has convicted Bob Menendez, his years of selling his office to the highest bidder have finally come to an end.
SCANNELL: There are growing calls for Senator Menendez to resign his seat, including from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. There's no automatic expulsion from the Senate, even with a conviction, it would require a two-thirds vote by Senators in order to push him out. Senator has said he will appeal. He is expected to be sentenced in late October. The sentence will be up to the judge, but given that he's been convicted of numerous serious crimes, he could face up to 20 years in prison.
Kara Scannell, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE) VAUSE: Elon Musk is going all in on Donald Trump or so it seems. On Monday, "The Wall Street Journal" reported the head of X and Tesla plans to commit $45 million a month to Trump's re-election campaign.
[02:45:00]
Musk tweeted his endorsement of Trump shortly after Saturday's assassination attempt. Musk has given money to candidates from both parties in the past, including $5,000 to Barack Obama's campaign in 2011 -- $5,000/$45 million -- OK. For years, he was mainly a Democratic donor but those amounts pale in comparison to what he is now reportedly giving to Donald Trump.
Natasha Lindstaedt is a Professor of Government at the University of Essex. She joins us now from Colchester in England. Thank you for getting up early and taking time to be with us.
NATASHA LINDSTAEDT, PROFESSOR OF GOVERNMENT, UNIVERSITY OF ESSEX: Thanks for having me.
VAUSE: So, Musk didn't actually come up directly on that "Wall Street Journal" report and said he posted a meme suggesting it wasn't quite accurate. Either way, what do you make of this endorsement and his support for Trump, because it's where the rubber meets the road where your money goes, right?
LINDSTAEDT: Right. Well, there have been indications that Elon Musk and Donald Trump have become cozier, that they've gotten to be better friends, that Musk and Trump were talking about electric cars and Musk said that he's very persuasive and I think he feels that he'll have more political sway with Trump in the White House. Elon Musk was supposed to be this big crusader for fighting climate change. But just in December, we could see that he has been changing his tune a bit, talking about not demonizing oil and gas, and claiming that climate change is a little bit more of an exaggerated threat, at least in the short term.
I don't think he has liked the fact that Biden has offered subsidies for other car companies to support making electronic vehicles and he feels that he has a better chance of doing well under Trump. He has other friends in high places in the tech world that are getting on board with this, cryptocurrency entrepreneurs and other financial leads, and so he's going to likely support Trump threw this big Super PAC and the main goal of the Super PACs, of course, are to provide political ads that could be damaging to Biden who's already facing trying to the tacks from both sides.
VAUSE: You mentioned that Elon and Trump have had a history, not quite a bromance, but they do have sort of Venn diagram of overlapping interests in some ways. But, does that explain what will essentially be $180 million in political donations to get Trump re-elected?
LINDSTAEDT: It's a really good question, as to how someone would make such an extreme change to being sort of a small donor for Democratic Party to possibly being one of the biggest donors ever for a single candidate. And part of the mystery may just be Elon Musk is unpredictable; it's often hard to predict what he's going to do. But since he took over Twitter, he's been moving more to the right, and he just feels that his views are more in lockstep with Trump and the Republican Party at the moment.
VAUSE: And the big picture here is that Trump is being supported not only by Musk, there are other tech billionaires involved here. A prominent venture capitalist Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz reportedly intended to make to PACs supporting Trump. "New York Times" says this on (inaudible) donors to that Super PAC. (Inaudible) contributions include $1 million from Antonio Gracias, a private equity mogul and a board director at SpaceX; $1 million from Ken Howery, an early executive at PayPal; $500,000 for Shaun Maguire, an investor at Sequoia Capital who is close to Musk.
Silicon Valley was once a pro Democrat, so what's driving the sudden switch? Is it simply a case where Elon goes, others will follow?
LINDSTAEDT: It's hard to say. I think to some extent, once you start making a lot of money, you don't want to face taxation, you don't want to face regulations. And so, that would be the appeal of Trump to some of these billionaires. But of course, there have been billionaire supporters on both sides. There is big money behind both candidates, and it's kind of interesting to see whether or not it matters. I mean, in the past three election cycles, having the support of big donors hasn't necessarily mattered, I think with the exception of the case of Biden.
If you look back to the Obama-Mitt Romney matchup in 2012, Mitt Romney had $145 million in support from big donors compared to only $75 million for Obama. But Obama outraised Romney almost two-to-one with small donors. So, it's often these small donors that matter a lot more because it's evidenced a real grassroots court and that's something that of course, Biden needs, but I'm not sure that he has this. He's really running a party that is incredibly fractured, not very motivated, not energized, and that's going to be one of the issues, in addition to the fact that he is not funding as well as Trump was when he had a huge the advantage back in earlier this year.
[02:50:00]
VAUSE: It seems (inaudible) where he had the Koch Brothers who've been hesitant about supporting Trump and they are traditional Republican big donors, where they (ph) now have these -- the new money, if you like, the tech billionaires jumping in to almost replacing the traditional Republican donors.
LINDSTAEDT: Exactly. And I think that's also just the way the Republican Party looks, if you were to look at the national -- the Republican Convention last night, you don't see any of the old figures in the Republican Party. You don't see Dick Cheney; you don't see George Bush Jr. You see these newer Republicans and they really molded the party around Trump, and he has attracted newer types of wealth as well. So, this is all part of a huge shift, I think taking place in the Republican Party that has become firmly under Trump.
VAUSE: Natasha, thank you for being with us. We really appreciate your time and your insights on a very early morning there in London. Have a good day, thank you.
LINDSTAEDT: Thanks for having me.
VAUSE: Always a pleasure. Thank you.
When we come back, more violence on the streets of Kenya, protesters calling for their president to step down. In a moment, how crowds reacted to forceful efforts by police to end the protest.
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VAUSE: Authorities in Thailand say six people found dead in a hotel room in Bangkok were likely poisoned with cyanide. The victims include three men, three women, including two Vietnamese Americans, and a married couple. Investigators say the room was locked from the inside, cyanide was found in mugs and teacups inside the room. Police believe the killer is also among the dead. They say the incident was linked to a personal matter and a dispute over money.
At least six people, including one police officer, are dead after a shooting near a mosque in Oman. This happened at the Imam Ali Mosque during Ashura, the tenth day of the Islamic month of Muharram, which holds particular significance for Shiite Muslims. More than two dozen people of various nationalities were wounded in the attack, among them, four Omani first responders. Police say three gunmen were identified and killed during the exchange of gunfire.
Clashes continue on the streets of Kenya as police confront protesters demanding that President William Ruto step down. CNN's Larry Madowo has details.
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LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kenyan President William Ruto is a man under siege. These young people don't want him leading them anymore. They are shouting right now, Ruto to must go. They have largely organized on social media, many of them are Gen Z, young people, as young as 18, protesting for the first time, disillusioned with his government.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are in a mess, so we are trying to straighten up things.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't have the (inaudible), it is just Gen Z power and power for the people.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ruto, you must resign. You must resign.
MADOWO: Protesters want Ruto to go and the police want them to go from the streets. So they have been using water cannon trucks all day to clear them from the streets, and they keep coming back.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Police are not here to protect us. They are here to actually cause violence. We are here to peacefully protest. But the police are here to fight us. MADOWO: They are -- they are throwing water cannon at us. We are clearly marked -- we are clearly marked as journalists. But they're doing this indiscriminately.
[02:55:00]
This is not responsible.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stop killing the youth. That is the information we are sending to the government. You can't kill us, at the same time, lead us. That is something we are not going to accept.
MADOWO: There is tear gas everywhere. These young people getting pushed back by police, just keep saying they want Ruto to go. They are tired of corruption; they are tired of the high cost of living. Many of these people are also out here on the streets to honor those dozens who have been killed in protests in the last few weeks, that they feel the government has not fully acknowledged.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: France is in political limbo following the results of the snap parliamentary elections earlier this month. President Emmanuel Macron has accepted Prime Minister Gabriel Attal's resignation. But with no clear successor in line, Macron has asked Attal to stay on until a new cabinet is appointed. In a stunning result, the left-wing New Popular Front alliance won the most seats in the election. But the alliance consists of several parties and still has not put forward a candidate for prime minister, more than a week after the vote.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says his government will take the brakes off Britain, with details unveiled in the first King's Speech when King Charles will read out the new Labour government's plans, marking the state opening of parliament for the year. The government is set to introduce more than 35 bills and draft bills aimed at improving living standards and driving economic growth.
Well, Kyle Gass, part of the comedy rock band Tenacious D, has issued an apology for comments he made about Donald Trump at a concert in Australia. Video from the Sunday show in Sydney shows Gass blowing out the candles on a birthday cake and wishing "Don't miss Trump next time." He posted on Instagram in part, "The line I improvised was highly inappropriate, dangerous and a terrible mistake. I don't condone violence of any kind, in any form, against anyone."
Gass has been dropped by his Hollywood talent agent. As a result, his bandmate actor Jack Black has also canceled the remainder of their tour and put further creative plans on hold (inaudible).
Thank you for watching. I'm John Vause. Please stay with us. Our Newsroom continues with our friend and colleague, Rosemary Church, after a short break.
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