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CNN This Morning

Trump Vows to Left RFK Jr. Go Wild; Neil deGrasse Tyson is Interviewed about his New Book; Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-PA) is Interviewed about Pennsylvania Voters; Haley Comments on Trump Campaign. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired October 30, 2024 - 06:30   ET

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

[06:30:00]

KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR: So, you did say it. Do you still believe it?

ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR.: Well I - here's what - here's what I - here's what I would say.

First of all, I'm not anti-vaccine.

HUNT: How is that statement not anti-vaccine?

KENNEDY: Well, it's - I - it's - I can say right now there's no vaccine - medicine for cancer that's safe and effective. It doesn't (INAUDIBLE) all medicines.

I've been fighting for years to get mercury out of fish. Nobody calls me anti-fish.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAREN FINNEY, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, now that you got a whale head on the top of your car, we might. OK.

HUNT: Kristen, I mean, do - I - does this help Trump?

KRISTEN SOLTIS ANDERSON, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: So, there is this interesting crossover of in particular like women who their - politics is not necessarily the thing that they're most interested in, but they've been concerned for a long time about things like chemicals in food, et cetera, for whom RFK and his acolytes have become kind of a rallying thing. And it is interesting watching these left-right divides around a whole range of voters not trusting big institutions, whether it is not trusting, in one case, the media, in some cases food producers.

I mean, remember how the right at a time like made fun of Michelle Obama for pushing like, we want to have more healthy, organic foods in schools. I mean, things have really changed a lot in the last 10 to 15 years where now suddenly you have Republicans who use to trust maybe business, now don't. Democrats who are now not trusting other institutions. Like, the decline in trust across the board are creating these strange, bipartisan bedfellows. And this is one example of it. HUNT: Oh, for sure.

All right, still ahead here on CNN THIS MORNING, famed astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson joins us in studio. He has a new book shedding light on some cosmic questions about our universe. And it's going to be wonderful to take a little break from politics to talk about it all.

Plus, Nikki Haley not backing down from supporting Donald Trump. Also not back in the bromance.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NIKKI HALEY (R), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This bromance and this masculinity stuff. I mean, it borders on edgy to the point that it's going to make women uncomfortable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:36:46]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Proceeded. And there it is, Houston, there's Camelot.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wow.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look at that target.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I see it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've got them all.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As I step off at the surface at Taurus-Littrow, I'd like to dedicate these first steps of Apollo 17 to all those who made it possible.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: That right there was the last time NASA astronaut stepped foot on the moon. It was back in 1972. It was a feat that many Americans saw, of course, as the apex of human discovery. But 52 years later, we still haven't been back, even as one of America's wealthiest men - men has become fixated - look at that. That was his rocket getting caught recently. He's become fixated on colonizing Mars.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Elon Musk has been campaigning every single day in Pennsylvania. (INAUDIBLE). You know, when that rocket landed last week, I saw that rocket land. I said, this guy, that's his. I got to call him. I said, was that yours? He said, that was mine. That sucker came back down, just coming in, and it's - it's going to crash. I'm saying, oh, no. It's going right next to the gantry (ph). It's coming down at an angle. I don't like that. It's not good. But what the hell do I know. It's up to Elon, not me, but it's coming.

And then all of a sudden you see the fire and the jets going. The bottom are - just fires ripping the shh - ripping in the - then it came in - those beautiful arms came in and they hugged it like you would hug your little beautiful baby.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: OK.

Joining us now to discuss is astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson. He is the author of the new book, "Merlin's Tour of the Universe: A Traveler's Guide to Blue Moons, Black Holes, Mars, Stars and Everything Far."

Sir, I am so grateful to have you on the program.

NEIL DEGRASSE TYSON, AUTHOR OF "MERLIN'S TOUR OF THE UNIVERSE": Thanks for having me on.

HUNT: Thank you for being here.

TYSON: Yes.

HUNT: Honestly, it's a welcome - I would say it's a respite from the campaign trail, but I guess it's not actually because -

TYSON: Well, yes, space is everywhere. Space is everywhere, so you can't - but, yes, there are - there are connected points (INAUDIBLE).

HUNT: Yes. So, this is a - this is - this one was your first book and you've updated it.

TYSON: Well, yes. Yes. My first - very first. I wrote it in graduate school, actually. And it was - turned out to be the proving ground of all the different ways, even to this day, that I communicate science to the public. Little quirky, fun - Merlin is a fictional character that I created to be this tutor of the universe. And merlin's been around - it's not the - it's not the Arthurian Merlin.

HUNT: Right.

TYSON: Like there's more than one Joe in the world. There's more than one Merlin.

HUNT: More than one Merlin. That's fair.

TYSON: But Merlin is from another galaxy visiting earth and has known everybody. So, people have asked questions. I don't quite understand how gravity works and so Merlin would recall a conversation with Isaac Newton.

HUNT: OK. TYSON: And then so it was - it was a fun - and my brother, who's an - my artist brother illustrated it.

HUNT: Yes, they're so cute.

TYSON: And so it's just - it's just a - it's a -

HUNT: So, can I ask, how would Merlin explain Elon Musk and his view of colonizing Mars.

TYSON: Oh, so Merlin is wise, OK.

HUNT: Uh-huh.

TYSON: So, you can say, let's colonize Mars. But you have to ask, well, what's motivating you to do that?

[06:40:01]

And we went to the moon, not because, oh, we're Americans and we're explorers. No, we were like scared, witless from - because of Russia, the Soviet Union at the time. And we got to the moon - by the way, the clip that you showed, Apollo 17. But we go to the moon, we look over our shoulder and the Russians aren't there. So, we stopped the program. We had an Apollo 18 ready to fly. And now it's in captivity in Huntsville, Alabama. You can see all the rocket ready parts. But we stopped going once we saw that the motivating driver was no longer there.

So, to just say you want to go to go, I don't see that as - we can go geopolitically if there's some force operating, what China says, we want to put military bases on Mars, whatever, something that will prompt us, have us -

HUNT: Right. Well, that's some of what's going on now.

So, I have another set of sound from Donald Trump and Elon Musk. I don't think they're directly in the forms of questions, but I think Merlin could take them as such.

TYSON: OK.

HUNT: Let's watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There's no reason not to. I mean there's no reason not to think that Mars and all these planets don't have life.

ELON MUSK, : Maybe the aliens will come visit us. Maybe - maybe they are here right now.

I haven't seen any like sort of green aliens with antennas on their head or anything like that. And maybe there are, they're just very subtle. (END VIDEO CLIP)

TYSON: OK.

HUNT: So, are aliens here?

TYSON: Quickly. Quickly. Aliens with antennas. The only people who imagined them that way are those who remember the antennas on TV sets, the rabbit - remember? Back when that was how you communicated through space. Our aliens that we drew had antennas. So, that's an old- fashioned way to think about aliens.

He - Elon is wondering whether they've already visited us. I'm pretty sure had - had they visited us that they ran home concluding that there's no sign of intelligent life on Earth.

HUNT: Awe. Well, that's underselling you, sir.

TYSON: Sorry.

HUNT: No. And so one other question I have for you because, obviously, everyone is wondering, certainly a lot of viewers of this program and others, who's going to win the election. And "The Economist," OK, so a serious publication, "The Economist," wonders what astro - astrology - astrologers, is that how you say it, astrologers - astrologers are predicting the result of American's election. So, quote, "Donald Trump's horoscope illuminates the laptop screen. He's going to enter the peak of his life in April 2025, Helena Woods, a professional astrologer, tells your correspondent, a Pisces. As for Kamala Harris, Jupiter and Saturn are aligning in her favor. If she does win, I do think she might carry out two terms, said Ms. Woods."

Is there anything to this?

TYSON: Yes, if astrologers had power, as much power as they want, we would still be living in caves.

HUNT: OK.

TYSON: I'm just - no, think of the ego involved in suggesting that the universe cares about us on a level where the planets are trying to fix outcomes of your lives, of your love life, of your financial life, of your political engagements. That means you think you're in the center of the universe. And these people have not seen how big the universe is and how small we are to make such claims.

HUNT: So, you don't read horoscopes?

TYSON: Oh, is that - did I make that clear.

HUNT: Yes.

TYSON: I didn't know.

HUNT: Very clear.

TYSON: Well, there's a whole - there's a whole - there's a whole section of the Merlin book where we - Merlin addresses this topic.

HUNT: All right, that's - it's why I asked. I thought -

TYSON: Because there's 13 constellations, not 12, in the zodiac, by the way.

HUNT: That's also a fair point.

TYSON: Yes.

HUNT: So, look, I have one serious question for you.

TYSON: Sure.

HUNT: And it goes to what we had heard from RFK Jr. there. Do - are you concerned about the way Americans are willing to believe or not believe science in the day and age?

TYSON: Yes.

HUNT: Especially in the wake of Covid?

TYSON: It would be the - the extent to which science is either denied or rejected or ignored will be the unraveling of an informed democracy at a time when - when so much of who and what we are, our health, our wealth, and our security pivots on the advances in science that surround us. To the extent that that's ignored or rejected, we just give up. Just forget our leadership in the world and let's just watch the rest of the world take over because they embrace science in ways that scares me here what - the way I see people talking about it and reacting to it.

HUNT: All right, well, it's a fascinating book. Fascinating to have you on the show.

TYSON: Well, thank you. Thanks for having me.

HUNT: Come back anytime. I really appreciate it, Neil.

TYSON: And maybe next time I'll have a - like a real mug instead of a plastic mug here.

HUNT: We'll get you - we'll get you a mug. I'm sorry about the paper cup.

TYSON: You know.

HUNT: Yes, I know. Hopefully we'll actually have CNN THIS MORNING mugs. I think I told you in the break, I'm the indecisive one, which is why we don't have them yet.

TYSON: All right.

HUNT: All right, don't forget this new book is "Merlin's Story of the Universe: A Traveler's Guide to Blue Moons, Black Holes, Mars, Stars, and Everything Far." It's out now, I highly recommend it. All right, still coming up on CNN THIS MORNING, battleground beat. The Pennsylvania vote has been critical this entire race. Now, of course, the stakes are even higher for one key voting bloc there.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I usually don't plan to vote because it is always the same year - to me it's always the same thing. But, in this case, yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:49:08]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST, "THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT": The headlines have been really rough for the GOP, including Trumps Puerto Rico fallout is spreading like wildfire in Pennsylvania. Puerto Rico Republican chair is demanding a Trump apology for his rally's racist remarks. And, the Trump campaign is struggling to contain Puerto Rico October surprise.

Here's all little pro tip. When running for president, try not to October surprise yourself. Oopsy-daisy, I feel myself pushing an old lady into the river and sent it to CNN. Classic October surprise.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: So, there's been outrage on both sides of the aisle over the island of garbage joke that was made at Trump's rally at The Garden, but will it actually sway voters at the ballot box? The answer to that question is key when it comes to the critical Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the state home to hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans.

[06:50:03]

And some Puerto Rican voters made their voices heard yesterday, protesting outside Trump's rally in Allentown. Trump making something close to an apology while also brushing aside the jokes potential effect on the vote.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I have no idea who he was. Never saw him. Never heard of him. And don't want to hear of him. But I have no idea. They put a comedian in, which everybody does. You throw comedians in. You don't vet them and go crazy. It's nobody's fault.

I don't know who it is. I don't even know who put him in. And I can't imagine it's a big deal.

I've done more for Puerto Rico than any president.

SEAN HANNITY, FOX NEWS HOST: You wish he wasn't there?

TRUMP: Yes. I mean, I don't know if it's a big deal or not, but I don't want anybody making nasty jokes or stupid jokes. And probably he shouldn't have been there, yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Most campaigns actually, in the final days, at least the ones that I've covered, do actually vet the speakers that they put out before their candidates, but, hey.

Joining us now, Democratic Congressman Brendan Boyle of Pennsylvania.

Congressman, wonderful to have you on the show. Thanks for being here.

REP. BRENDAN BOYLE (D-PA): Yes, thanks for having me, Kasie.

HUNT: So, let's start with how this remark and, you know, you saw Trump sort of - not really - I mean you characterize what you think that was from him, and apology, not an apology. There's clearly some acknowledgement from the campaign that this is a problem. They had people speaking Spanish up on the stage at the rally in Allentown. The campaign did distance itself from this comment.

What impact are you seeing with Latino voters on the ground in Pennsylvania?

BOYLE: Well, you know, I happen to represent more than 100,000 Puerto Ricans, people who were either born on the island or come from families that hail from there. One of the really largest Puerto Rican populations anywhere in the United States. And so I was talking, as you can imagine, to a lot of folks from that community in the last 24 hours. And what they tell me is they're struck by the fact that this has broken through. That in a time in which a lot of people tune out politics, not much breaks through the noise. This really has, and has spread like wildfire, as Stephen Colbert said in his late night monologue last night.

So, look, I know there's a school of thought when it comes to Donald Trump after the last ten years that ultimately none of this has any sort of effect. I don't think that's actually true though. I mean we saw that in 2020. He was the first president since George Herbert Walker Bush to lose re-election.

And I do think that this comment, especially coming as late as it does, is having somewhat of an effect with the half a million or so Puerto Ricans who live in Pennsylvania.

HUNT: Congressman, of course, the other person who used the word garbage in a recent interview is President Biden, who had made a comment saying that Trump supporters were garbage.

BOYLE: Exactly. HUNT: And they put out a statement saying - they put out the transcript that said it was supporter apostrophe s, that he was speaking about this person singular. Obviously, the Trump campaign has already seized on it. Do you think what President Biden said is helpful?

BOYLE: Well, let's not do the false equivalency thing. I actually read the transcript. It's pretty clear in the same setting he said this -

HUNT: I'm not trying to do false equivalency, sir. I'm just asking six days out from the campaign if this is helpful.

BOYLE: He said - excuse me, he - he referred - he - he referred to the speaker, meaning the person who was the comedian who said this. Donald Trump - everyone knows who Donald Trump is. Is anyone really surprised by that festival of hate that he had at Madison Square Garden.

And frankly, it wasn't just the one mean-spirited, vicious joke of a comedian that he decided to platform. There were many other speakers as well at Madison Square Garden at his final closing argument. Compare that to Kamala Harris, who in her closing argument last night said that to her political opponents she's not going to threaten to jail them as Donald Trump has. She's going to give them a seat at the table. That's probably why so many Republicans, especially in the suburbs of Philadelphia, are actually supporting Kamala Harris in this campaign.

HUNT: Sir, briefly, there's been some back-and-forth in the press and kind of in these final days. There's a super PAC that pays for a lot of Kamala Harris' ads. They've been focused on an economic based message. The campaign has had a slightly different closing message.

What do you think is most productive for Pennsylvania voters to hear here in the final days? Is - do you think it's helpful for Harris to continue to call Trump a fascist, or do you want to see more economic messaging?

BOYLE: Well, first I believe the people who have called Donald Trump a fascist are literally the people who worked side-by-side with him. The fact that the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Mark Milley, has labeled Donald Trump a fascist.

[06:55:00]

The fact that a four-star Marine general in General Kelly, Trump's own chief of staff, called him a fascist, that is really - remarkable and truly unprecedented.

HUNT: And do you think it's moving votes?

BOYLE: I will say, however, when I'm out campaigning, as I will be later here today in Philadelphia, I always point out to people that Donald Trump is exactly who he tells us he is. He is a billionaires who only cares about billionaires like himself. His tax agenda when he was in office was to provide a massive $2 trillion tax cuts to billionaires. In every single one of Trump's budget over four years, cut Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. That is the message that I tend to lean on the most here in Philadelphia.

HUNT: All right, Congressman Brendan Boyle, very grateful to have you on the show. I hope you'll come back soon. Thank you.

BOYLE: All right, thank you.

HUNT: All right, turning now to this. Former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley raising alarm over some of the Trump campaign's recent rhetoric. She's warning that they could be scaring away women voters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NIKKI HALEY (R), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is not a time to have anyone criticized Puerto Rico or Latinos. This is not a time for them to get overly masculine with this bromance thing that they've got going. Fifty-three percent of the electorate are women. Women will vote. They care about how they're being talked to, and they care about the issues.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Some of these, the so-called bromance, is possibly on display during Trump's recent appearances on a number of podcasts.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There's no reason not to think that Mars and all these planets don't have life.

Is cocaine a stronger -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, yes.

TRUMP: Up?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, yes, yes.

TRUMP: A lot of wrestlers want to be - they'd want to do the UFC thing. But they can't take the shots.

I played football too. I didn't particularly like it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What position were you.

TRUMP: No, I didn't like it. I played tight -- tight end.

I'll tell you about TikTok. Trump is going to keep TikTok going.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: All right, our panel's back.

Kristen Soltis Anderson, is Nikki Haley correct? ANDERSON: Well, I don't think it's bad for Republicans to do outreach

to young men who feel like both political parties have failed them over the last couple of decades. I don't think that's a bad strategy. I do think, if it's all you're doing, if you're not making overtures to women, I do think that that's a problem considering that women are the majority of voters in this country. But it wouldn't surprise me, frankly, if we don't see a huge gender divide in this election.

In today's "New York Times," a great column by Democratic pollster Celinda Lake, Republican pollster Amanda Iovino. I adore both of them. And they've written about how this election is going to be the one where the gender divide is huge. Trump is gambling that he can run up the numbers more with men than Harris will with women. I think that's a dangerous gamble, but I don't think it's wrong for Trump to go after disaffected young men who feel like the two political parties have failed them.

ALEX THOMPSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: But to your point, he's not making a huge effort to go after women. That Madison Square Garden speech, there were 31 speakers, 25 of them were men. And I know because I was there for all eight hours. And Nikki Haley could be out there on the trail for Donald Trump if Donald Trump could get over his own bitterness and ego and actually give her a call. She's made very clear, she'll do it, but you have to call me first.

HUNT: Yes.

THOMPSON: And if - and if he loses, like he might regret not making that call.

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: You know, I think that, I do agree, if he does lose, it will be because of the margin of women that he lost in these key battleground states, whether it be Wisconsin or Pennsylvania.

FINNEY: Women and probably young women, I think, in particular who are, again, turning out in huge numbers, both in voter registration and in early vote. And, I mean, I agree, talking to young men, absolutely an important thing to do. It's how you do it. You don't have to do it at the at expense of crapping on women and constantly talking down to women and constantly having -

HUNT: Can I -

FINNEY: Yes.

HUNT: I want to show a part from the rally that Haley was talking about and then you can continue.

FINNEY: Yes.

HUNT: Let's watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TUCKER CARLSON, FORMER FOX NEWS ANCHOR: She's just so impressive. As the first Samoan, Malaysian, low IQ, former California prosecutor ever to be elected president.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's a pretender. Her and her pimp handlers will destroy our country.

HULK HOGAN: When I hear Kamala speak, it sounds - yes, it sounds like a script from Hollywood with a really, really bad actress.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kamala Harris is a c-word. You heard that right, a big ole c-word.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FINNEY: Yes. Nice.

HUNT: Difference between bromancing with the podcasters, dancing, which I take your point on and all of that.

FINNEY: Exactly. And that - and actually that's pretty tame for Tucker because remember last time he talked about daddy coming home and spanking his daughter. So, yes. So, that happened too. And I learned about it on your show, Kasie.

But, I mean - so, I mean, I think that's the problem -

PRESTON: (INAUDIBLE).

FINNEY: But you were making news.

No, but that's the problem, right? It's - and he's - he tries - I'm the father of IVF and he's trying to have it both ways in terms of talking about his position on reproductive rights, which he knows is a big issue with women.

[07:00:05]

But then it feels now like they just kind of said, ah, go out and say what you want.

THOMPSON: I was just going to ask, is this more overt than what you faced in '16 with Hillary?

FINNEY: No, because Trump's - and the hatred against Hillary is - was so visceral and 30 years baked in. But it's - it's more. It's - it's not more gendered, but it's more racist for sure.

HUNT: Yes. All right, well, here we go, six days out. Here we - thanks, guys, for being here. Thanks to all of you for joining us as well. So grateful to have you. I'm Kasie Hunt. Don't go anywhere. "CNN NEWS CENTRAL" starts right now.