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New Polling Shows Harris Gaining Momentum In Key States; Interview With Representative Steven Horsford (D-NV) About Hamas-Walz Ticket; Dozens Of Civilians Killed In Gaza By Israeli Airstrike; Israel Bracing For Potential Iran, Hezbollah Attacks; Brazil Investigators Search For Cause Of Deadly Plane Crash; Dozens Of Civilians Killed In Gaza By Israeli Airstrike; Life And Times Of Coach Walz At Mankato West High School; Feds Concerned About Potential Attack At DNC In Chicago; Jordan Chile's Floor Exercise Bronze Challenged By Romania; U.S. Women's Soccer Wins Gold After Defeating Brazil 1-0. Aired 4-5p ET

Aired August 10, 2024 - 16:00   ET

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

[16:00:17]

JESSICA DEAN, CNN ANCHOR: You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. Hi, everyone. Jessica Dean in New York.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Wolf Blitzer in Tel Aviv.

Tonight, outrage spreading around the world as officials in Gaza report a deadly Israeli strike at a school and mosque killing at least 90 people, including children. Israel's military says it was targeting Hamas members, but has not offered any evidence to back up that claim.

And we're also keeping up a very close eye on Israel's borders right now as Iran and its proxy group Hezbollah in Lebanon vowed to strike Israel.

We've got reporters covering all angles throughout the Middle East.

DEAN: But we start here in the U.S. tonight with Vice President Kamala Harris wrapping up a five-day swing through some of the most critical battleground states of this election. Tonight, Harris and her running mate Governor Tim Walz conclude their blitz with a rally in Las Vegas, hoping to hold on to that crucial state of Nevada where Biden narrowly beat out Trump in 2020. Former president Trump also out west today at fundraisers in Wyoming and Colorado after speaking at his first rally in a week last night in Montana.

Today, new signs of strength for the Harris campaign. New polling showing her gaining momentum in three battleground states, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Still no clear leader, but a big sign that Harris is energizing American voters in a way President Biden has not been before he exited the race three weeks ago.

Let's go now to CNN's Eva McKend, who is in Las Vegas where dozens of Harris supporters are lining up for the rally. It's going to be a big one.

Eva, what is the message we expect tonight?

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Jess, you know, on the policy front, I hear them talking about reproductive rights and immigration among other issues. And I'm really interested to hear how she continues to thread this needle in talking about immigration. She's sort of tacked to the right, really emphasizing enforcement policies and she has to do that in a way in which she doesn't alienate immigrants' rights activists in that community.

You know, so many undocumented immigrants have citizen family members. And historically they have supported Democrats. So she is trying to thread that needle. She spoke last night in Arizona about supporting that bipartisan border bill that former president Donald Trump encouraged Republicans to squash and at the same time she encourages an earned pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. This is such a key issue in the southwest -- Jess.

DEAN: And Eva, obviously these rallies have been pretty big, especially that one in Arizona last night. I'm looking at what looks to be a very large venue behind you as well. We're getting this polling showing that she is making steady gains with people in battleground states. What are you feeling on the ground, though, as you're talking to these voters, as you're watching people who are now coming out for this Harris-Walz ticket?

MCKEND: Jess, the momentum is real. These rallies are packed affairs and clearly this shake-up in the Democratic ticket has energize the base of the party. But what's also instructive is that there are -- they are gaining some of these swing state voters as well, undecided voters, Republicans, some of them were meeting right here in Nevada. Take a listen to what they told me.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHAD LAYNE, REGISTERED REPUBLICAN VOTING FOR HARRIS: She's unifying. Donald Trump I think has been so divisive to our country and what he stands for is not what I stand for in any way. And I think she's uber intelligent, inclusive, and can unify our country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKEND: And so there you have it. He is a longtime Republican and I think this is part of a concerted effort from the Harris campaign. They have a Republicans for Harris group, and they're really trying to leave no part of the electorate on the table. There are so many conservatives up for grabs in these battleground states and they want to capture those voters as well -- Jess.

DEAN: All right. Eva McKend with the latest reporting there from Las Vegas. Thank you so much for that.

Meanwhile, former president Donald Trump held his first rally campaign rally for the week in Bozeman, Montana. He was there in Montana supporting Republican Senate candidate Tim Sheehy, who's in a tight race to unseat the incumbent, Democratic Senator Jon Tester. While Trump attack Tester he repeated insults about Vice President Harris. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Kamala is grossly incompetent and in my opinion has a very low IQ, but we'll find out about her IQ during the debate. OK. Let's find out about her.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Joining me now chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, Congressman Steven Horsford of Nevada.

[16:05:01]

Congressman, thanks so much for being here with us this afternoon. We'll wait for him to pop up. I think we're waiting on the congressman, but he's going to talk with us a little bit about the Harris-Walz ticket as they wrap up what has been an absolute campaign blitz across key battleground states. And it's set up quite a contrast this week, as we mentioned.

The former president Donald Trump staying at his home there in Mar-a- Lago and venturing out for his first rally of the week just yesterday as we saw Kamala Harris and Tim Walz going from state to state, again, very different campaigning styles this week.

I now see the congressman with us.

Congressman Horsford, can you hear me OK?

REP. STEVEN HORSFORD (D-NV): I can hear you fine.

DEAN: Oh, wonderful. We are very happy to have you here with us. We were just listening to some clips from the former president's rally last night in Montana. And I was talking about the differences in the campaign strategies that we've seen this week. We've seen Kamala Harris and Tim Walz aggressively out on the campaign trail. We saw the former president holding that question-and-answer news conference with reporters and then going to his first rally in Montana.

What do you make of how Harris and her campaign are making the most of this momentum and these differences that we're seeing in these campaign styles right now?

HORSFORD: Well, we're so elated to have the Vice President Kamala Harris back in Las Vegas, Nevada, today. This is her seventh trip to the great state of Nevada this year alone. This is one of the most diverse communities in the country. She is bringing everyone together. This is not only about momentum, this is a movement. This is about bringing voters together from every walk of life.

The fact that Nevada represents the diversity that is America and the issues that really resonate is so very important. And to have the vice president here along with Governor Walz talking about how we're going to bring down the cost of housing, how we're going to protect a woman's right to make her own health care decisions. How we keep families together while also securing our border.

These are the issues that Nevadans care about and we're very excited to have the vice president back here in Nevada today.

DEAN: In 2020, President Biden won Nevada by 2.4 points, beating out former president Donald Trump. And before Biden got out of this race, Nevada seemed to be one of the states that was beginning to look almost out of reach for Democrats when it came to the presidential race but it could be back in play now with Harris at the top of the ticket.

What do you make of that assessment? Would you say that's fair?

HORSFORD: It's absolutely fair. The vice president knows Nevada, more importantly the people of Nevada know the vice president. And they are fired up. There's energy, there's enthusiasm, but it's not only about winning the presidency, it's also about winning back the House. I'm in one of the most competitive House districts in the country. We're going to protect my district and win back the majority by making history and electing Hakeem Jeffries our next speaker.

We also are going to protect our Democratic majority in the Senate with Senator Jacky Rosen here in Nevada. So we're talking about voting up and down the ticket. We're about bringing people together, inviting people into this party, reaching out to nonpartisans and independents and Republicans because they also want to move our country forward with Kamala Harris, not backward with Donald Trump.

DEAN: And you bring up such an important point which is Nevada is one of those states that has big races up and down the ticket that Democrats were concerned about. But this week the Harris-Walz campaign picked up some big endorsements from the UAW, the League of Latin American Citizens and the Culinary and Bartenders Union is in Las Vegas.

I'm curious, do you think that the members of those unions will follow their leadership in supporting this ticket?

HORSFORD: Absolutely. In fact, I'm wearing my "One Job Should Be Enough" button. This is the Culinary Workers 226. They are the ones who represent the hospitality workers, the guest room attendants, the cooks, and the servers who helped make Las Vegas thrive, and the Vice President Kamala Harris has earned their endorsement. They came out last night in support of the vice president and Governor Walz.

And they're going to be instrumental in turning out the vote in the next 87 days. So it's time for us to focus on the people who are at the center of the policy. That's what the vice president is doing and we're excited to have her back in Las Vegas doing just that today.

DEAN: And former president Trump has said he will end taxes on tips. That of course is a big issue for a lot of Las Vegas hospitality workers. It's such a driver of industry there in your state.

[16:10:03]

It's something you have backed as well. Would you like to hear Vice President Harris and her campaign support it?

HORSFORD: Absolutely. I believe not only will you'll hear her talking about having a more fair and equitable tax policy that incentivizes the dignity of work over big corporations and billionaires. But she's also going to talk about how we lift up workers. Nevada is actually the goal standard when it comes to how workers, particularly tip workers, are treated. We have a high minimum wage here. It's $12 an hour. That compares to a subminimum wage of workers in other states that make as little as $2.13 an hour.

So not only is the vice president for lifting up workers, she's also about making sure that we have a more fair and equitable tax policy that protects workers and their families.

DEAN: All right. Congressman Steven Horsford there in Las Vegas. Thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate it.

HORSFORD: Thank you for having me.

DEAN: And we have some breaking news just into CNN now. Former president Trump's campaign saying someone has hacked it and "Politico" says it's already received e-mails from an anonymous account with documents from within the campaign. The campaign is blaming, quote, "foreign sources hostile to the U.S." for this breach.

It's unclear how much information has been accessed, but CNN is reaching out to the FBI and the Justice Department about this breach. We're going to follow this story and we'll of course have more for you throughout the evening as we get new details.

But let's go now back to Wolf Blitzer, who is in Tel Aviv -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Jessica, that's a very, very, very worrisome development. Indeed the hacking of the campaign site. I'm sure that people are concerned and they're trying to learn exactly what happened because the lessons could be very, very significant.

Jessica, thank you very much.

Still ahead from here in Tel Aviv, the reaction coming in from across the region to Israel's deadly early morning strike on a school and a mosque in Gaza. Dozens are dead. Plus sources now say Lebanon's militant group Hezbollah is ready to strike Israel within a matter of days. Is Hezbollah coordinating potential attack with its ally, Iran? We'll have a live report from Beirut. That's straight ahead.

And amid all of this, there are now dozens of hostages still being held in Gaza tonight. What's their fate?

I'm Wolf Blitzer in Tel Aviv. And you're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:17:18]

BLITZER: Welcome back to the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Tel Aviv, Israel.

Outrage is growing around the world tonight over what some are calling a horrific massacre in Gaza. A warning, the images you're about to see are disturbing. Gaza officials say at least 93 people are dead, including children and countless more are injured after a devastating Israeli strike on a school and mosque in Gaza. Israel has accepted responsibility for the attack, telling CNN it was targeting, quote, "Hamas terrorists" who are running a command-and-control center in that compound without presenting any evidence. And they say they took steps to mitigate the risk to civilians.

CNN cannot verify those claims. This is the IDF's fifth strike on a school in Gaza in just six days. CNN's Clarissa Ward is here with me in Tel Aviv right now.

Clarissa, this was truly a devastating attack.

CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This really was a hideous attack. Gaza's civil defense, Wolf, is saying that among the 93 dead at least 11 of them are children, six of them are women. They are concerned that death toll will rise because they are still trying to assemble all of the body parts. And I do want to underscore that warning that this report is graphic and hard to watch.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WARD (voice-over): The strike hit before dawn as worshippers gathered to perform the Fajr prayer. Shortly after rescue workers arrived to a scene from hell.

Daddy, this girl screams. Where is daddy?

Amid the carnage, there is way to know the answer. The ground is covered with blood and bodies but it is the wailing that is perhaps most harrowing.

Gaza's civil defense says that around 6,000 people were sheltering at the Al-Tabi'in Islamic school compound in Gaza City. Many had recently arrived from the north after the IDF issued new evacuation orders there.

Abu Ahmad comforts her son, sobbing over the loss of his father. They were all in pieces and dismembered, she says. I went to look for my husband and I couldn't identify anybody. They were all dismembered.

Israel Defense Forces claimed the strike targeted Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters, and says approximately 20 to 25 militants were killed. CNN cannot verify the number of casualties or if any combatants were among the dead.

[16:20:02]

But video from the scene shows the remnants of one munition used. A U.S. manufactured GBU-39 small diameter bomb. The strike comes just a day after the U.S. agreed to release $3.5 billion in military aid to Israel. What did the people do to deserve this, this man says. Where is the

entire world? The whole world is seeing these massacres and staying silent.

It is a stinging reminder of the international community's collective failure to protect innocent Palestinian civilians.

At the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital, families gathered to claim their dead and to say a final goodbye. Diplomatic efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement have intensified in the past week but for the people of Gaza, talk of peace rings hollow.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WARD (on-camera): This is the fifth school that has been hit in less than a week 17 schools in the last month.

Obviously, Wolf, those schools aren't actually in session at the moment. But they're being used as shelters. The vast majority of Gaza, 2.2 million people, have been displaced. So many of them are relying on mosques, on schools, as places to shelter, and that's why you saw such devastating scenes as a result of this strike, Wolf.

BLITZER: So heartbreaking to see those scenes indeed.

Clarissa, thank you very much. Clarissa Ward reporting for us.

In the meantime, Israel has been bracing for days now for retaliation strike from Iran and its proxy Hezbollah, raising a lot of concern that the conflict could become a much wider regional war. Iran has vowed what it calls blood vengeance after Hamas leader was killed in Tehran last week. Iran and Hamas blame Israel, though Israel has not confirmed or denied responsibility.

Israel is taking credit for killing a top Hezbollah commander in Beirut, Lebanon last week. The U.S. is warning of a, quote, "major escalation" if Iran were to launch this retaliatory attack. And Hezbollah says it is ready to strike Israel independent of Iran. Sources are telling CNN that could happen potentially within days.

CNN's Ben Wedeman is covering all of this. He's joining us live from Beirut right now.

Ben, Hezbollah and Israel have been exchanging fire now for weeks. How much worse potentially could this get?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It could get much worse. I mean, actually they've been exchanging fire going back to the 8th of October, and what we've seen today is a higher rate of fire from both sides. Israel has conducted a series of strikes on southern Lebanon and Hezbollah has claimed so far today 10 strikes on targets within Israel. The ninth strike seemed to go deeper than the normal most strikes. hitting around the city of Safed in northeastern Israel as well as near the lake of Tiberius.

Now, Hezbollah always claims that its targets are military, but we are hearing from inside Israel that one of the things that was hit in that ninth strike was a central center for the disabled. Now, Hezbollah has said, we heard it twice over the last 10 days from Hassan Nasrallah, the head of Hezbollah, that Hezbollah would strike -- will strike. There's no question about it and if you interpret his words but he did stress it would be done probably independently of Iran.

And of course they're in basically very different situations. Iran, if it fires a drone from there to Israel, it takes hours to get there. Hezbollah is on the line that separates Israel from Lebanon, and they can strike with very little warning. And what we've seen over the last few months is that they are using ever more sophisticated weaponry, weaponry like drones, the Shahed 101 Iranian-made drone that seems to be able to some extent evade Israel's surveillance and air defense systems.

What we've also seen going back to October that Hezbollah has consistently struck surveillance and observation posts and equipment belonging to Israel along the border, perhaps poking an eye or putting out an eye in terms of Israel's ability to see what's going on in that area along the border on the Lebanese side -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Ben Wedeman in Beirut for us. Ben, thank you very much for that update.

Today's attack and Gaza is being condemned by many countries. Tonight one country calling it, and I'm quoting now, "a crime against humanity." The White House says it is, quote, "deeply concerned" following the strike.

[16:25:03]

Joining us now the former Israeli ambassador to the United States, Michael Oren.

Ambassador, thank you so much for joining us. So what's your reaction to this attack on the school and mosque in Gaza?

MICHAEL OREN, FORMER ISRAELI AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED STATES: Well, certainly, Wolf, the pictures are very, very difficult. Any Palestinian casualty, civilian casualty is one Palestinian civilian too many. It is definitely tragic. It is very, very painful. But what's missing from all these reports is who is responsible for this. Israel has been striking schools and mosque because Hamas is in the schools and mosques.

Hamas is in the schools and mosques because it wants Israel to attack them, and then be condemned for war criminals and the world because what Hamas wants is for the world to impose a permanent ceasefire on the Gaza Strip that will enable Hamas to come out of the tunnels, declare victory, recapture the Gaza Strip, reorganize, rearm, and mount another October 7th. That's precisely what its leaders say all the time. We'll do it 10,000 times until Israel is destroyed.

It's disturbing, I'll say, that whenever Israel's claims, whenever Israel says that 19 or 25 terrorists were killed in these attacks, when Israel says that our aerial photographs show that there was no damage to the school, that is always couched as Israel claims or we can't verify this. But whenever Hamas makes a claim, it's never needed, it's never required verification. It's taken as a fact. And that's very disturbing because that's just what Hamas wants. Hamas is using disinformation as a tool to get the international community to impose a permanent and unconditional ceasefire that will enable Hamas to re-emerge from the tunnels and to reclaim its control over Gaza and to try once again to destroy the people and state of Israel.

On the north, we have a situation again where it's being couched as tit-for-tat. Israel and Hamas are -- Israel and Hezbollah are exchanging fire. No. Israel and Hezbollah are not exchanging fire. On October 8th to October 10th, Hezbollah opened fire on the state of Israel. It has been opening fire daily on the state of Israel, and Israel has been returning fire to defend itself. And to couch this as some type of violent cycle or a tit-for-tat is to completely, completely misrepresent what is happening in the north and the dangers that Israel faces, not just on the northern border but in all of its borders. All from Iran.

Hezbollah says it could act independently of Iran. That of course is ludicrous. Hezbollah is a branch of Iran. Hezbollah will not do anything without a specific and very bright green light from Iran. Iran is trying to get plausible deniability. That's all. But the only way and I've said this to you before, Wolf, the only way to de- escalate in the Middle East is to escalate against Iran. We're in a regional war already. The only way to stop it is to stop Iran.

BLITZER: Let me just press you on one point, Ambassador. Would you support a ceasefire in Gaza if it were to result in the immediate release of all the remaining hostages?

OREN: Well, first up, not a spokesman for the government. Let's be careful. I'm not in the government, but as a citizen of the Israeli -- a citizen of Israel and someone I think reflects I think broad Israeli public opinion, I think Israelis would accept a ceasefire. A not permanent ceasefire, not an unconditional ceasefire, if it would result in the release of a large number of hostages, certainly.

And it's a great risk for the state of Israel. I think Israelis would agree to that. I don't know if anybody in the Israeli government would agree to that, but I think the majority of Israelis would.

BLITZER: The U.S. says it is deeply concerned by this Israeli attack on a school and mosque in Gaza. And the White House Middle East envoy Brett McGurk is expected to travel to Cairo in the coming days for ceasefire talks with Israeli and Egyptian officials. How will the strike on the school do you think impact these negotiations, these talks that potentially could result in a ceasefire and the release of the hostages?

OREN: I don't know how it's going to impact, but I will say this. There's only one way that Hamas have been brought to discuss a ceasefire. And that is by Israel's ability to put pressure on Hamas all the time. Whether it by eliminating Hamas leaders or taking the command and control headquarters, even if they're in schools and mosques. That's why again why Hamas is putting them there. They're using those schools and mosques and the people around them as human shields.

Israel must maintain that pressure on Hamas. People who want a hostage deal, people who want a ceasefire have to support Israel's continued efforts to maintain and even escalate the pressure on Hamas.

BLITZER: Ambassador Michael Oren, thanks so much for joining us. We appreciate it.

OREN: Thank you.

BLITZER: And let's go back to Jessica Dean in New York -- Jessica.

DEAN: All right. Wolf, a great interview. Thank you so much for that.

Straight ahead, we're going to take you live to Brazil where recovery teams are facing some rough conditions after a plane crash with more than 60 people on board.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:30:00]

DEAN: Straight ahead, we're going to take you live to Brazil where recovery teams are facing some rough conditions after a plane crashed with more than 60 people on board.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DEAN: Today, the search for answers after that deadly passenger plane crash in Brazil. All 61 people on board were killed when the plane just seemed to fall out of the sky.

Alarming video showing that plane in freefall, plunging to the ground in a residential area near Sao Paolo.

CNN's Stefano Pozzebon joins us live from outside the crash site.

Stefano, what more are we learning about the victims who we're on board that plane?

STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN JOURNALIST: Yes, Jessica, well, a couple of hours ago, a police officer told me that they have so far recovered about 50 bodies that have been taken to the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Sao Paolo, the capital of the state, which is about 100 kilometers from this location where we are.

[16:35:11]

The plane crashed in that residential complex behind those fences, about 200 meters, 200 feet, I'm sorry, from where we are.

The bodies have been taken to the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Sao Paolo, but only two of them have so far been identified. And these are the bodies of the pilots and the copilot.

Those were the only bodies that it was possible to identify with facial recognition. Because the other bodies that have been recovered, they are too damaged in order to be identified.

And the police lieutenant told me that they -- there's 12 bodies that are still in the plane wreckage. He thinks it's going to take even further time to recover all of them because of how damaged they are, because of how violent the crash has been.

Think about it, 17,000 feet in less than a minute. It was literally a plane falling down from the sky.

The police lieutenant told me that they hope to wrap up the operations by the end of today, hopefully, by 10:00 p.m. local time, which would be 9:00 p.m. up in New York. But he can't promise that.

Of course, there are thousands of families that are still waiting for answers here -- Jessica?

DEAN: So tragic.

Stefano Pozzebon, with the latest there from just outside Sao Paolo, thank you so much for that reporting.

I want to get us back now to my colleague, Wolf Blitzer, who is standing by in Tel Aviv -- Wolf?

BLITZER: Lots of tension, lots of stories going on right now here in the Middle East, Jessica. The latest on the breaking news out of Gaza, where nearly 100 people were killed today by an Israeli airstrike at a school, which housed displaced Palestinians.

I'm Wolf Blitzer in Tel Aviv. We'll be right back after a short break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:41:35]

BLITZER: International outrage is growing following an Israeli strike on a school and mosque in Gaza where Palestinians were sheltering.

Just to warn you, our viewers, the video you're about to see is very disturbing.

At least 93 Palestinians were killed and many more injured, according to Gaza officials.

The IDF, the Israel Defense Force, says they we're targeting members of Hamas but have yet to provide evidence to back up that claim.

Joining us now is Andrew Miller, the former U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state for Israeli and Palestinian affairs under the Biden administration.

Andrew, thanks very much for joining us. How does this Israeli strike complicate ceasefire and hostage release

talks, which we're expected to resume sometime this coming week, Thursday, we're told, either in Cairo or Doha, Qatar?

ANDREW P. MILLER, FORMER U.S. DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE FOR ISRAELI & PALESTINIAN AFFAIRS: Thanks for having me, Wolf.

I don't anticipate that this strike will have a major impact on any negotiations that take place this week regarding a ceasefire/hostage deal, at least as compared to the death of Ismail Haniyeh, the former head, political head of Hamas.

But it does underscore the imperative of bringing this war to an end, regardless of the reality underneath what took place today.

And Israel may be right that Hamas was operating out of this school compound, out of this mosque. They may be right that the number of casualties has been inflated.

The sheer optics of it puts Israel in a very difficult position. It puts the United States in a very difficult position internationally. And the longer this war goes on, the more such incidents are going to occur.

Of course -- (AUDIO PROBLEM).

BLITZER: This is the fifth strike on a school in the last week alone. Is this damaging for Israel heading into these upcoming ceasefire talks?

I think we've just lost our connection with Andrew Miller. We'll try to reconnect.

Let's go back to Jessica in the meantime in New York -- Jessica?

DEAN: All right, Wolf, thanks so much.

[16:43:45]

And coming up, we have breaking news from the Olympics. The International Gymnastics Federation could potentially force American gymnast, Jordan Chiles, to give back her bronze medal. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:48:34]

DEAN: Turning back now to campaign 2024, Democrat's new-found enthusiasm for their ticket has a lot to do with Vice President Harris' running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.

And it's not just his folksy style and sharp attacks on Republicans, but also his past as a teacher and football coach.

Whitney Wild has that story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHERRI BLASING, MANKATO WEST PRINCIPAL & FORMER WALZ NEIGHBOR: Tim is who he is. He's never changed. He's all about serving people.

WHITNEY WILD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Long before he was Governor Tim Walz to Minnesota, he was Mr. Walz at Mankato West High School. And Principal Sherri Blasing's neighbor.

BLASING: If you ask them, who's your favorite teacher? Nine times out of 10, it's going to be Mr. Walz because he was just that kind of teacher and he made learning relevant.

WILD: The photos here might be faded, but his impact on former students and football players, like Dan Clement, is clear.

DANIEL CLEMENT, FORMER WALZ FOOTBALL PLAYER: I was contemplating leaving school by 10th grade, you know, 11th grade. I was just like, I don't think this is for me.

WILD: When then Coach Walz asked Clement to join his football team, he followed Walz advice. But it was their daily talks, Clement says, that changed his life.

CLEMENT: He was like, Dan, I want you with me, on my team, on my crew. And I'm going to go to a lot of lengths to make sure that happens. I felt loved, you know, and I felt seen and not just the troublesome kid.

WILD: For 10 years, in this rural town of around 45,000 people, Walz taught social studies, coached football and sponsored the school's first Gay-Straight Alliance.

Former student, Nicole Grunswick, says Walz created a new safe space.

[16:50:04]

NICOLE GRIENSEWIC, FORMER WALZ STUDENT: For the football coach to say, look, we're going to be respectful of everybody and respect differences, period, that was really bold.

WILD: A 2004 rally in Mankato for then-President George W. Bush marked a turning point for Walz when his students were turned away. Some were spotted wearing items supporting Democrat John Kerry.

Brianna Farah was there.

BRIANNA FARAH, FORMER WALZ STUDENT: Even though we were all disappointed, and I'm sure he was as well, and maybe a little upset, right, he never put down the Republican Party.

WILD: Walz has said that was the moment he decided to trade public school for public service. In 2006, Walz won his first congressional race, ousting a six-term Republican incumbent.

(on camera): What kind of impact did he have on this school?

BLASING: Oh, tremendous impact because he's just a fantastic teacher.

WILD (voice-over): Walz's photo now sits in the high school's Hall of Fame. While Governor Walz may have left Mankato, former students and colleagues say this town never left him.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: All right. Whitney Wild for us, thanks so much for that reporting.

In the wake of the assassination attempt on former President Trump, U.S. security officials are now on high alert for potential retaliatory attacks at the upcoming Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

And CNN's Josh Campbell has looked into this. He has more details.

JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Jessica, security preparations for the upcoming Democratic convention had been underway for month. But after that attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, we're learning about a new type of threat that has law enforcement on alert.

Now, there's no indication that Trump's shooter was motivated by politics. He had apparently divergent political views. But after that incident, we saw these conspiracy theories start to spread online that this was the work of Democrats.

Now in this new intelligence assessment obtained by CNN, officials say that the FBI and DHS "remain concerned about the potential follow-on or retaliatory attacks of violence following the 13 July 2024 assassination attempt on Trump.

"Particularly, given that individuals in some online communities have threatened, encouraged or referenced acts of violence in response to the attempted assassination."

Now DHS tells me that there's no specific or credible threat that they know about towards the Democrats convention, which starts in just over a week in Chicago. But again, authorities concerned about this type of threat.

This has been deemed a national special security event by DHS, which means that there will be a host of law enforcement resources on hand. Hundreds of officers in Chicago, officers brought in from around the country.

There will be a security posture that is seen, a physical presence, but a lot going on behind the scenes as well, including anti-drone technology.

Now, officials say there's only so much that law enforcement can do alone. They need the public's help to speak up if they see any potential threats. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LUCAS ROTHAAR, FBI CHICAGO ACTING SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE: The public is a key partnership in disrupting all the threats that we endeavor to fight. There is no such thing as something too insignificant to report.

I would encourage everybody, IF you see something suspicious, if something you feel as threatening, whether it's an online threat or comment or it's whether you see something in person, please report it to law enforcement.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMPBELL: And of course, it's not just the threat from domestic extremists, but we've been reporting on an uptick and concerns by law enforcement leaders about threats from foreign terrorists as well.

You just look at that recent alleged plot targeting a Taylor Swift concert in Europe, that's showing that groups like ISIS continue to plot, continue to plan.

Finally, beyond threats, law enforcement in Chicago will also be focused heavily on crowd control. We know that recent Mideast turmoil has fueled often heated protests here in the U.S.

Police in Chicago say they are expecting large-scale protests at the DNC. They say there'll be on hand to support peaceful protests, but they will not abide any violence -- Jessica?

DEAN: Josh Campbell, thanks so much for that.

And breaking news now. In a stunning moment for the U.S. gymnastics team, Jordan Chiles may now be told to forfeit that bronze medal she was awarded for her floor exercise event final.

This comes following a ruling from the Court of Arbitration for Sport and the Gymnastics Federation.

We're joined now by CNN sports analyst, Christine Brennan, who is live in Paris this evening.

Christine, what is this all about?

CHRISTINE BRENNAN, CNN SPORTS ANALYST: This is about a deduction that Jordan Chiles received on her floor exercise, Jessica, and her coach has filed an appeal. They said they waited basically a minute, not more than that. You have very little time to file an appeal on that deduction.

And when it was overturned, when they won their appeal, then Jordan Chiles, won the bronze medal and the Romanian, Ana Barbosu, did not.

And I think many people remember she had her flag there and she was devastated that, all of a sudden, the bronze medal was not hers, but it was Jordan Chiles. So the issue now that went to the Court of Arbitration for sport -- and they actually have a hearing panel here in Paris to deal with all kinds of issues, drug testing, doping, you name it.

The issue now is that what the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled today in a move that has been called devastating by the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee and USA Gymnastics, they ruled that the U.S. took too long. And a source told me it could be just four seconds too long to file that appeal.

[16:55:11]

Again, things were happening lightning quick. And therefore, the Court of Arbitration for Sport is saying Jordan Chiles doesn't get that bronze medal anymore but the Romanian now should receive it.

And of course, as of right now, there's a lot of concern, controversy, confusion about what happens next.

DEAN: Oh, what a heartbreaker.

It -- but we do have some good news for Team USA. The women's soccer team getting their hands on the gold medal after a drought?

BRENNAN: Absolutely. And I was there covering that, Jessica. And the U.S. won, 1-nothing. And this is a new-look U.S. team with younger athletes, much faster, speedier.

This is the team that had a terrible performance in last year's women's World Cup. And they hired a new coach, Emma Hayes, and they basically revamped the team and got rid of, in the case of Alex Morgan, the old veteran, beloved.

She was no longer -- she was not brought onto the Olympic team. And they won the gold. The first time the U.S. has won the gold at the Olympic Games since 2012.

And a complete turnaround from a year ago when the U.S. had such a disappointing performance in that women's World Cup.

DEAN: We do love to see this.

All right. Christine Brennan, for us live from Paris, thank you so much. We appreciate it.

Plenty more to come this next hour. We are live in Vegas where Kamala Harris and her new V.P. pick, Tim Walz, are getting ready to rally.

I'm Jessica Dean. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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