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Erin Burnett Outfront
Biden About to Speak at Drive-in Rally as Biden Hammers Trump with Starkly Different Message on Pandemic; Biden Holds FL Rally, Intensifies Attack on Trump's COVID Response: "Trump Refused to Listen to the Science"; 5 Days to Election, Biden Maintains Lead in Key States; Melania Trump Denounces Spread of Hate & Fear, Minutes Later the President Calls Dems "Marxists" & "Flag Burners"; Federal Appeals Court Rulers Mailed Ballots Must Be Received By Election Day in Minnesota; Interview with Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota. Aired 7-8p ET
Aired October 29, 2020 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: May they rest in peace and may their memories be a blessing. Thanks for watching.
Erin Burnett OUTFRONT starts right now.
ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: OUTFRONT next, Trump and Biden's dueling realities of the pandemic playing out in the crucial State of Florida. As CNN learns the leader of President Trump's task force, Dr. Deborah Birx has all but abandoned the White House.
Plus, new polls from several key battleground states. What do they tell us about where the race is to 270 tonight, John King with us at the magic wall?
And Melania Trump on the campaign trail tonight blaming everyone except for her husband for messages of hate and fear. Let's go OUTFRONT.
And good evening. I'm Erin Burnett.
OUTFRONT tonight, Joe Biden about to speak live in the crucial State of Florida. It is his second rally there of the day. With just five days until Election Day, both candidates are in Florida tonight. A state where coronavirus cases are surging, hospitalizations are on the rise. And not a single voter in Florida or anywhere can be confused as to the two worldviews they're choosing between Trump's massive rally on the left, very few masks, no social distancing, even those behind him who at some rallies are told by the campaign to wear masks for the cameras, mostly shunning them.
And then on the other side, Biden's gathering, let's call it that, socially distanced, drive-in rally on the right.
Trump and Biden only 250 miles apart and the two images you see on your screen in Florida, but when it comes to their messages, they are a universe apart.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We locked out. We
understood the disease and now we're open for business.
JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: We're expected to lose another 200,000 people between now and the end of this year if we do nothing. This is not a political statement. It's a patriotic duty for God's sake, but still Trump refused to listen to the science.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Here are the facts tonight. One American died every 90 seconds yesterday, just yesterday, from coronavirus and this is happening every single day. And the CDC says the death rate is going up, more people are dying every single day as cases surge and hospitalization surge.
And where is the President's Coronavirus Task Force, you may ask. Well, the woman who is a fixture in our TV screens, you remember her, leading medical voice on the task force, Dr. Deborah Birx, all but abandoning the White House, according to new reporting from our Kate Bennett.
Dr. Birx now traveling the country alone, pounding the pavement, going all-in on her own to take her message directly to the American people because she believes lives are at stake. And what may have been the final straw for her is Dr. Scott Atlas, the controversial task force member who has questioned masks and pushed the concept of herd immunity.
A person close to Burke's telling CNN tonight she vowed never to sit in a meeting with Atlas again, after having to listen to the radiologist who does not have an expertise in epidemiology, obviously, push misleading claims about the pandemic. Like when he told me on this show that he supported wearing masks when you can't socially distance and he said that that is consistent with Trump's packed non- socially distanced, non-masked rallies and said it again and again and again with a straight face.
Birx is not alone. She and her colleagues on the task force pushing back against the President when it comes to masks, social distancing testing and claims that the United States is rounding the coronavirus corner.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. DEBORAH BIRX, WHITE HOUSE CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE COORDINATOR: I am always for mask. You know I've talked about mask unrelentingly. We know mask work.
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: I feel quite confident that if we had uniformly done the things that I was talking about just a moment ago, that certainly considerable number of lives could have been saved.
ADM. BRETT GIROIR, ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR HEALTH, HHS: We do believe in the data show that the cases are going up, it's not just a function of testing.
DR. JEROME ADAMS, SURGEON GENERAL: This week, we will probably have our highest number of cases that we've ever had on a daily basis in the United States.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Just to state the obvious, each of those people who have dedicated their lives over the past month to this pandemic saying the opposite of what the President of the United States continues to tell all of us. We have both campaigns covered tonight.
Kaitlan Collins is at Fort Bragg in North Carolina with the President, Jessica Dean is covering Joe Biden. Let me start with you, Kaitlan. Trump openly mocking Biden today for following, well, Trump's own CDC guidelines.
KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right. And Erin, we've known these two candidates had very different messages on the coronavirus, but nowhere was it more obvious than at these events in Florida today. Seeing the President mock Joe Biden, saying that it's not that he is holding small events because of the pandemic but that people don't want to come to his events according to the President while, of course, he's got thousands of people in front of him in Florida. A lot of them not wearing a mask.
[19:05:00]
And today before they left to go to that rally, the President's Chief of Staff Mark Meadows was asked when you go to these events, when the Vice President goes to events after coming into contact with someone who's later tested positive, you're not even following your own administration's guidelines and he was asked why that is. Here's how he answered that question, Erin.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK MEADOWS, WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: I can tell you that I'm following the guidelines and a number of us are following the guideline. For all of you that are watching this morning is if you can carry a little container of Purell, I probably have used more Purell than any American here in the United States over the last seven or eight months.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: So you see, he talked about Purell more than he did wearing a mask or social distancing. And Erin, the thing that even Trump's advisors can't really answer is whether or not these rallies, these large events are going to turn off the voters that he needs to win on Election Day. Those middle of the road voters who aren't showing up to the rallies, who are concerned about the pandemic and they're not sure. It's basically a bet that they're taking.
But what is clear is that the pandemic is defining the last days of this race and that is certainly not something that the President wanted to see.
BURNETT: All right. Kaitlan, thank you very much.
And I want to go to Jessica Dean who is covering Joe Biden for us tonight. And Jessica, Trump was mocking Biden today on the virus but then Biden not shy about handing it back to him.
JESSICA DEAN, CNN WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely not, Erin. He criticized President Trump for holding what he called super spreader events. These rallies here in the State of Florida, as Caitlyn mentioned just a few miles away.
And as much as President Trump did not want these final days to be all about the coronavirus pandemic, Joe Biden and his campaign do. They believe they have the winning message on this; listen to the scientists, let doctors and experts lead the way and that is what he talked about in his closing argument to Floridians today talking about what he would do if elected saying he has a plan.
And if he is elected, they are going to follow this plan. He acknowledged yesterday during his briefing that it's not going to be as easy as flipping a switch but that he promises if elected, he will do everything in his power to shut this virus down. And he actually said I'm not going to shut down the contrary, that's an attack he's heard from President Trump, but I am going to shut down the virus.
So we did hear him talking about that today, Erin. He also talked about how health care is on the ballot, tying it again back to the Affordable Care Act, back to the Supreme Court, warning people that the coverage for pre-existing conditions could go away. So kind of tying this all together in his closing arguments also weaving in an economic message tied to the coronavirus pandemic, Aaron.
But again, this is what they're going keep driving home. We are in a state that seeing rising cases you laid out the numbers nationally. This is what Joe Biden is going to be pounding and talking about every day until we get to Election Day.
BURNETT: Absolutely. Jessica Dean, thank you. And I want to go now to Olivia Troy, who served as Vice President Pence's lead staffer on the Coronavirus Task Force. She has since endorsed Joe Biden. John Avlon is our Senior Political Analyst and Dr. Jonathan Reiner advised the White House medical team under President George W. Bush currently is in charge of the cardiac cath lab at GW.
So John, let's start with Florida. Key state, very different message, it could not be more stark and they both know it and they both own it when you see those two images on the screen, the virus and how they handle it. And yet, millions of people have voted already in Florida, millions more than 4 million people have already voted in Florida, and is the die cast?
JOHN AVLON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: The die is not cast, because we don't know how it's going to end up and Florida is always tied around a hundred thousand votes. But you're right, the contrast couldn't be clearer and all the major themes of this election, the pandemic, the hyper partisan politics, the contrast and styles, division versus unity are all coming together in Florida with both candidates today.
It is a stunning moment when you reflect at all of these intersections and in a state whose governor has embraced the kind of herd immunity being pushed by many, especially Scott Atlas in the White House. And you're starting to see the toll of that strategy take place in very real ways, especially with so many senior citizens there.
BURNETT: So Dr. Reiner, Biden slamming Trump today for holding super spreader events, but there was a change, a small change but something different the President said at one of his rallies today and here it is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: If you get close, wear a mask, always controversial. It's controversial to me. You get close, you wear a mask, social distance, social distance.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: OK. So in case as you watch that, you're watching the President as we all often do when you hear someone speaking on screen. I just want to play the video again. You can actually see the crowd behind him. We know sometimes, they hand mask out to the people behind them. I see one mask, I see two.
So he's saying this and behind him they're not socially distanced, they're not wearing masks. Obviously, he doesn't ever practice that if that is what he's going to preach, but he has not preached that until today, Doctor.
JONATHAN REINER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: It's too little too late and he's really giving lip service.
[19:10:02]
But what's becoming something that he just simply can't ignore is that the virus is out of control. We had record numbers today, 88 and a half thousand more cases today. We've never seen more cases than we did today, 46,000 people in the hospital. And all the places he's been to in the last week have skyrocketing positivity rates.
Pennsylvania is over 12 percent. Wisconsin is 27 percent. Iowa is 28 percent. So it's becoming impossible for him to just get the country to believe that we're turning the corner because every day is record cases. At 88,000 cases per day. We'll tick off another million cases of coronavirus in 11 days. It took three and a half months to get to our first million cases and we'll do it now in 11 days. The virus is out of control.
So when you hear the President sort of giving lip service to masks, someone must be saying, Mr. President, you really need to say more. It's too little too late. BURNETT: So the Coronavirus Task Force here is at the center of it and
Olivia I know you work with Dr. Birx on the task force. I want to get your reaction to this reporting of Kate Bennett's and I want to bring her in now.
So Kate, you broke this story about Dr. Birx, her decision to abandon the White House and the relationship with Scott Atlas. Tell us more of your reporting.
KATE BENNETT, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, Erin, essentially Dr. Birx who was this forward-facing person right next to the President as the country started to go down this road of the pandemic was ostensibly replaced because the President decided to doctor shop, essentially for lack of a better word, until he found someone in Scott Atlas, who believed what he wanted to believe, which was questioning the efficacy of masks, not necessarily believing that children were carriers and that really only old people got this disease.
And what happened with Dr. Burks was she felt that she was no longer going to be affected, no longer really wanted to listen to someone who was not a career immunologist that she is and a global health a government employee. So she basically packed up and decided to go out into the country and spread the word about coronavirus from state to state. She has now gone to 40 states, some 20,000 miles she's done and Scott Atlas is in the Oval Office and she's basically in Bismarck and this is how she's choosing to fight the virus, which as we just said is growing.
So it's a battle to stop the virus and it's also been a battle for her to stop what's going on in the White House, which has been a medical expert who isn't involved in what Birx and Dr. Fauci are saying and advising.
BURNETT: All right. Kate, thank you. So let me just give Olivia chance to react to this reporting. So Kate - I mean, I'm sorry, Olivia, Kate's reporting has this detail right, 40 states, Bismarck going to - she actually continues on and on. I hope everyone reads her full story, carry on bags, staying in the most inexpensive hotel she can possibly find, going in the grocery store aisles to see who's wearing masks. She is pounding the pavement.
You worked with her every single day. You shared an office with her for a while, so you know her. And then you were there when Dr. Atlas first showed up on the scene. So tell us about this. Tell us about their relationship.
OLIVIA TROY, VICE PRESIDENT PENCE FORMER HOMELAND SECURITY ADVISER: It was tense. It was very tense. You have Dr. Birx who has been every day working tirelessly for countless hours with Dr. Fauci and other people in the task force. She's been briefing the stats and the data firsthand. I saw her wake up. I've said this before, she would wake up at four o'clock in the morning to prepare the slide decks for the day.
Those slide decks were informing FEMA and others on where PPE was really needed and what the hot spots were going to be. This was consensus making. This is how you make policy. You get the experts at the table and you hash it out.
And so when Dr. Atlas walked in and I call him Scott Atlas, because I don't even think that he's deserving of the title doctor, because all he does is perpetuate lies that are dangerous. I don't blame her for getting fed up with this whole situation. She's had to deal with horrible dynamics within the White House.
I've seen it firsthand. I've seen the Vice President's team completely disparage her at times, that they roll their eyes at her as well. That is how she has been treated for months. This is someone who I've seen take up fights sometimes when it really mattered.
BURNETT: John, I mean, it's pretty incredible. You have been doing a lot of reporting on Atlas and the fact that Birx is - look, she's out fighting because she thinks it's the way she'd be most effective, right?
AVLON: That's right.
BURNETT: Every plain, every grocery store, she thinks that that is more effective any single life she saves that way than actually talking to the President of the United States was what's her job, who actually has the power to save 10s of thousands of lives. But she has made this choice because he's not listening to her anymore and now Atlas really has, it seems control of the presidency here.
AVLON: Yes. And that's been true since he joined in early August, which is when Birx and Dr. Fauci were effectively sidelined.
[19:15:00]
And it's got to be incredibly frustrating because she was brought in as the expert to help give ballast to Mike Pence's his attempts when he was put control of this disease. She put her credibility on the line, not criticizing President Trump when he said things because it's always this line, people walk in the White House, he's heard say it all the time.
Well, if I wasn't here, it would be so much worse, so they put up with a little bit. And in some cases, their credibility is compromised, but they feel they're helping the country. Dr. Birx definitely is, but once you have an ideologue who's ignorant about epidemiology brought in over you, well, then you go to the ground. You say, you know what, I have a moral obligation to do what I can, but the President is not listening anymore and I'm going to try to redeem something positive as best I can for the country even while Captain Chaos is in the White House compounding the cases in death tolls through denial and disinformation.
BURNETT: Dr. Reiner, you take what Dr. Birx is doing, she's actually physically doing and you take what other advisors on the Coronavirus Task Force and the top testing are saying, which is the opposite of what this President is saying, Giroir saying, yes, there's more cases and it's not because of more testing. The opposite of the President. They are all now starting to take him on. REINER: Well, they have to take him on because they see that the virus
is getting out of control and that things can get much, much worse. And I think we'll see this more going forward. And it'll be interesting to see in the aftermath of the election next week, what the task force does and whether they go rogue and they start speaking out and disregarding the process in the White House, because they have nothing to lose, but the American people have a lot to lose.
BURNETT: So Olivia, let me let me ask you one more question. The moment that a lot of people remember from Dr. Birx, when the President talked about injecting himself with bleach and she sat there and blanched. But she didn't seem to - she certainly didn't publicly contradict him and she was criticized for that. Let me just play that moment again.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: And then I see the disinfectant would knocks it out in a minute, one minute, and is there a way we can do something like that by injection inside or almost a cleaning?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: You can see the distress on her face, Olivia. I think that's the fair word, distress. But did she stand up to the President more than we know?
TROY: Yes. I was there for that. I was standing behind the press briefing room where the staff holds and we walked out of there and she was incredibly upset as were others. And I will say that she had some pretty strong words for those who were the Vice President's and President's advisors on what had just been said and she knew how dangerous it was. I think she was embarrassed at what had just happened. It was completely ridiculous.
But when Dr. Birx - she is a fighter, I will give her this. She is a strong woman and she has been known for shutting the door and having those conversations. She just does it very privately. She will not do it publicly.
BURNETT: All right. Well, now we, of course, know so much more of this story. Thank you all very much.
And next, new polls from the crucial battleground states and what it means for the race to 270. John King at the magic wall.
Plus, First Lady Melania Trump on the trail, appearing with her husband for the first time during the campaign. Is her message rooted in reality?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MELANIA TRUMP, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: Under Donald's leadership, we have blocked out the noise and focused on you.
(END VIDEO CLIP) BURNETT: And breaking news, a major victory for Republicans. A federal
appeals court ruling just moments ago that mail-in ballots must be received by Election Day in Minnesota, the State's Governor is my guest.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:22:34]
BURNETT: Joe Biden holding a drive-in rally right now in Tampa. His second stop today in the key swing State of Florida. President Trump also visiting Tampa today. Both candidates know the stakes are as high as it gets in the state.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Five days from now, we are going to win Florida. We are going to win four more years in the White House.
BIDEN: Right here in Florida, it's up to you. You hold the key. If Florida goes blue, it's over. It's over.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: John King, OUTFRONT at the magic wall. OK. John, so what are you seeing in Florida right now?
JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Erin, what a day, right? So much in our life is new normal or not normal. This is normal to both candidates in Florida, final days of the campaign. And guess what, a poll showing it is close. Let's pop this out.
Monmouth University poll out today, Joe Biden 50, Donald Trump 45. A five-point lead for Biden in this poll when you average it in with the other recent polls, you see, let me move it up, you can see a little better. Joe Biden 49, Donald Trump 46, so a close race in Florida. What else is new? Right? It always is. Where were the candidates right now? Let's go back to the 2016 map.
Joe Biden is in Tampa right now. Donald Trump was there earlier. That's the I-4 corridor. That's Tampa. That's St. Pete. That's Orlando. That's retirees. That's Latinos. That suburbs. That's independents.
This in a close race decides it for it to be close. Joe Biden started down here in Broward County, southeast part of the state; retirees, people from the northeast, Latinos, Democrats. They have to turn them out in huge numbers. And for the President, the key is across here, the northern part of Florida votes like the South; Georgia and Alabama.
The Trump army came out here four years ago, Erin. One of the big tests this time is do they turn out again. Democrats think they're a little bit ahead in early voting. The thing is the President is there for that rally to drive out late vote on Election Day. BURNETT: Right, right. I mean, it is incredible. I think more than 4
million people have voted and just - I mean, as you say, it's normal to see them there. It's normal for Florida to matter. It's normal for it to be close. But gosh, it is abnormal.
So there are new polls, I know, from a lot of the key battleground states out tonight. What do they show to you?
KING: Let's pop this back and let me show you this because to me, today is a great test, especially if you're a Democrat. When you're looking at this race right now, do you see the glass is half-empty or half full, let's pop these out and take a look. Let me move this over a little bit, so we get it - so you can see it upright.
I mentioned the Florida poll, it's close, Joe Biden on top, a North Carolina poll. It's close. Joe Biden on top, 48-45.
[19:25:01]
A Pennsylvania poll, this one stays comfortable, seven points for Joe Biden in Pennsylvania. That's been pretty stable throughout. Republican say it's not true, but it's been pretty stable throughout.
Look at Ohio, Joe Biden in his Quinnipiac poll up five points, 48-43. If that's true, imagine if Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio gave Joe Biden the presidency after handing it to Donald Trump four years ago, and an Iowa poll showing it very close out in Iowa as well. So what does that tell you?
Well, if you're a Democrat, you could say Biden is on top of a lot of these and he's even competitive in Ohio. If you're Republican, Erin, you say we remember four years ago, Donald Trump is close, he's going to roll back at the end. We got five more days to figure it out.
BURNETT: That's right. And of course, now this whole thing about who's voting early and you bet that's Democrat, they try to turn out those Republicans. I mean, so many unknowns. We are, of course, seeing a lot of money getting involved here, Mike Bloomberg, another $12 million in some of the key swing states just today, 5 million of those in Texas, 4 million in Ohio, almost 3 million in Florida.
And if there is anybody more data driven than Mike Bloomberg's team about where to put money, they're not in politics. So what does that tell you?
KING: Well, let's switch maps because you make a great point. Number one, it's always great in politics when you have friends and Joe Biden is grateful for this. He already has a fundraising advantage. Now he has Mike Bloomberg throwing in money as well.
And so think about that, where did you just mention, you mentioned Texas, right? Well, we already have Joe Biden across the 270 threshold, Texas leans read, but the early vote has been enormous. The Democrats need to sustain it to the end to make it work. Is it possible you could flip Texas? Well, it sure helps if Mike Bloomberg is pumping a lot of money in
there, doesn't it? And if Texas flipped blue, forget about it. But you mentioned one of the other states, Ohio. I just mentioned, there's a poll there showing Joe Bien ahead by five. Let's assume it's a little closer than that, but it's very competitive.
If Joe Biden, this is our map right now, just imagine if this were blue on Election Day. It's just game over, no Republican in modern times has won the White House without Ohio, that's a cliche, but it's true. And so Mike Bloomberg is pouring money into places where if he can stem the tide, if he can get Joe Biden a point, a point and a half, it's game over. It is very smart spending and Joe Biden already has a huge advantage and it helps some more.
BURNETT: All right. Thank you very much, John King.
And next, new details tonight into whose message is resonating with voters in these final days.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We are going to defeat the Marxist, and the socialist, and the rioters, and the flag burners.
BIDEN: We need a president that's going to bring us together, not pull us apart.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: And John King just talked about Texas. Could Texas really turn blue, just a Halcyon dream of the Democrats? Well, Sen. Kamala Harris is headed there tomorrow putting a real bet on it. We're on the ground with a closer look at the Lone Star State.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:31:39]
BURNETT: New tonight, President Trump and Melania Trump holding their first joint campaign rally for 2020.
The first lady with this message.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MELANIA TRUMP, FIRST LADY: In a time when hate, negativity and fear are the messages the media streams into our homes and the large tech companies are protecting political censorship, we need to remember what is really important -- my husband's administration is focused on the future.
Under Donald's leadership, we have blocked out the noise and focused on you, the American people.
(END VIDO CLIP)
BURNETT: Well, she talks about hate, negativity and fear, then when her husband stepped up to the podium, here is what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm running against the worst candidate in the history of presidential politics. And we believe in law and order, not like in Philadelphia.
And they can't let that happen. They can't let the looters run wild.
We are going to defeat the, Marxists and the socialists and rioters and the flag-burners and the left-wing extremists. We are going to defeat the anarchists.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: OUFRONT now, the host of CNN's "Smerconish," Michael Smerconish, national political reporter for "Politico", Laura Barron- Lopez, and Larry Sabato, the founder and the director of the University of Virginia's Center for Politics.
So, Michael, the first lady comes up, says the president is focused on the future, not hate, negativity and fear. And then, of course, the president gets up, and, you know, he's quite negative and having -- talking about fear and hateful.
MICHAEL SMERCONISH, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: He never seems to have adhered to her Be Best campaign. I guess if the question is whether she's laying out a standard that he then can't meet, I think the evidence is clear that is the case. Whether that's a dichotomy that offends that audience, I doubt. I think they were probably enthused to see the first lady back out on the campaign trail for what I think was the first time in a long time. But your point is unmistakable.
BURNETT: So, Laura, she was there. And, you now, this rally -- joint rally together in Florida, five days before as I point out, it is their first rally together. She's trying to reach out to women voters, must-win women voters.
You've been talking to many of them, what are they saying to you?
LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Yeah, I've sat in on a number of focus groups in the last month with undecided female voters, particularly white women and we know based on the polling that the president is not doing well with white women in a number of key states, including in Pennsylvania and in Arizona.
And they're saying one of the biggest things across those groups that I'm hearing is about wanting to see more unity, wanting to see the negativity toned down, and wanting to hear more from the candidates about what they would do to bring in the opposing party, if it's Trump, if he continues in power, or if it's Biden.
And one of the women in the focus group I watched this week, she was from Pennsylvania and she decided, after voting for Trump in 2016, she was going to vote for Biden this time around.
[19:35:09]
And her reasoning came down to Biden's answer in the last debate when he was asked what he would say to voters who didn't vote for him. And she really liked his answer, saying that he wouldn't be a president for red or blue America, but that he would be a president that speaks to all of Americans.
BURNETT: A very different message than we get from the president.
Larry, I know you have Florida as a toss-up. The first lady and the president were campaign thing today. Both Biden and Trump in Florida today, tried to appeal to a voting group that really could end up deciding which way Florida goes, and that is the Hispanic vote. Here they are.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Biden's agenda will devastate the Hispanic-American community. He betrayed Hispanic-Americans for 47 years. He's been very had for the Hispanic-Americans.
JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: It's unconscionable that the Trump administration says they care so much are deporting hundreds of Cubans and Venezuelans back to their dictatorships. Trump loves to talk, but he doesn't care about Cuban and Venezuelan people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: So the latest poll from Quinnipiac shows Biden winning Hispanics 50-34. So, that seems like a huge margin, but I will point out, Larry, in 2016, Clinton won that group 62-35. So she did better with Hispanics than the polls currently show Biden doing. Is that a bad sign? What do you read into it?
LARRY SABATO, FOUNDER & DIRECTOR, THE UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA CENTER FOR POLICIES: That's a bad sign for Biden, and the fact that Biden is doing considerably better with senior citizens than Clinton did is a bad sign for Trump. So, you know, we can -- we can play these games a lot and we'll continue to play them all the way until we get the results Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, whenever they really come in.
But, look, the Hispanic vote is fractured in Florida. It's the most complicated Hispanic vote in America. It is true that president Trump is doing relatively well with Cuban-Americans, with Colombian- Americans, with Venezuelan-Americans. But Mexican-Americans, Central Americans, and especially Puerto Ricans, are Biden's strength in Florida.
But I think you have to broaden it out again, and look at the bigger picture in Florida. There's probably no more important group than senior citizens. That's where Biden has really made some progress compared to Hillary Clinton.
BURNETT: Right. And, of course, some of that, no doubt because of the coronavirus. Michael, I want to ask you about these crucial Senate races, right,
because the control of the Senate is going to matter a whole lot here, especially if Biden does win, right? A Democratic Senate can pass a lot of legislation.
So sitting Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler who is running in a special election had an exchange today with reporters, including Manu Raju, about whether she ever disagrees with President Trump. I want to play it for you.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REPORTER: You were asked during the debate last week if you -- if President Trump had said or done anything you disagreed with. You know that President Trump was caught on tape talking about sexually assaulting women. You didn't disagree with that? What does that say?
SEN. KELLY LOEFFLER (R-GA): Look, what I agree with is the approach president Trump has taken since day one to put America first.
REPORTER: And you're still not disagreeing with that particular -- with that particular thing that president Trump said? You're still not disagreeing with that?
LOEFFLER: Sorry, what are you referring to?
REPORTER: You're still not disagreeing with President Trump's statements about personally sexually assaulting women.
LOEFFLER: I'm not familiar with that.
REPORTER: The Access Hollywood tape, he's referring to the Access Hollywood tape.
LOEFFLER: Look, this president is fighting for America. That's what I'm fighting for.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Michael, how much does that topic at this point does her answer to it matter in this race?
SMERCONISH: If she's saying that she's up aware of the Access Hollywood tape, he's simply an incredible statement, in my view. What I see taking place in a number of these Senate races is a very careful dance. I'm thinking not only of Senator Loeffler, but also of Senator McSally where they want to be close to the president in some circumstances, but careful, very careful to maintain their distance in other circumstances.
It was almost comical to see the situation with McSally and President Trump on the same stage, albeit for the allotted 60 seconds that he gave her within the last 48 hours. And I think that's emblematic of what I'm talking about. They recognize he can be helpful with parts of the base, but problematic with other voters. BURNETT: Right. So, Laura, let me play that moment. You spent a lot of
time in Arizona, so Martha McSally fighting to hold on to her seat, right, against Mark Kelly. She appears with Trump yesterday at a rally. Let me play that moment of how it went down.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Martha, come up just fast, quick. Fast!
[19:40:00]
Fast, come on, quick. You've got one minute. One minute, Martha, say, they don't hear this, Martha, come on, let's go. Quick, quick, quick. Come on, let's go.
SEN. MARTHA MCSALLY (R-AZ): All right, I'm coming. Thank you, President Trump.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: She's done everything possible to align herself with him. So how is it going to play, Laura?
BARRON-LOPEZ: Well, right now, McSally's chances aren't looking good based on the polling. She's running, she's trailing Trump in a number of polls. She's historically had a lot of trouble trying to win over the voting bloc that is Trump's base in Arizona. It's why she lost in 2018 to now Senator Kyrsten Sinema, the Democrat, because she wasn't able to win over as much of Trump voters.
Arizona is known for ticket splitting, meaning that a lot of voters may vote Republican in the presidential, Democrat in the Senate or vice versa. And I've heard about things like that from voters as I've been in Arizona, some saying that they'll vote for Mark Kelly but they aren't sure who they're going to vote for, for president yet.
And so, McSally, as Mike said, she -- she has embraced Trump on one end, but then also when she was asked in one of the last debates if she was proud of him, she wouldn't answer the question. And that's where she's been struggling to win Republicans.
BURNETT: To walk that line.
So, Larry, I know you have switched, I believe, your Georgia races, Kelly Loeffler being one of them to tossups.
So, what do you see happening there and what does it mean to the top of the ticket?
SABATO: Now, this is really fascinating to me, Erin, because usually voters forget the last election, they move on to other things. In Georgia, though, something else is going on, and, basically, it's what happened to Democratic candidate Stacey Abrams, an African-American legislative leader who ran for governor and nearly won.
And many even nonpartisan observers believe she lost to the Republican Brian Kemp because of voter suppression, some of it coming out of Secretary of State Brian Kemp's office. There's real anger there, and the African-American vote seems especially energized in Georgia. And I think that's one of the explanations for the fact that both Senate seats are essential tied, and the presidential race is tied. You don't expect that from Georgia.
BURNETT: No, you don't. It is pretty incredible when you look at where it is right now.
Thank you all three very much.
And next, breaking news, a federal appeals court has just ruled Minnesota's ballots must be received by Election Day. That is a victory for Republicans. So what if a voter just today mailed their ballot? OK? So, you're not going to get until after the election, but you didn't know about the ruling.
The state's governor is next.
Plus, Biden making a major play for Texas just days before the election. Does he seriously have a shot?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, it's gone from being a no shot to a long shot to now a medium shot.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:46:50]
BURNETT: Breaking news. A major victor for Republicans tonight. A federal appeals court ruling Minnesota's mail-in ballots must be received by Election Day.
This cuts off a grace period which had allowed election officials to accept ballots if they were postmarked by election day, and received up to one week later. In a 2 to 1 ruling, the court saying, quote, there is no pandemic exception to the Constitution.
OUTFRONT now, the Democratic governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz.
And, Governor, I appreciate you coming back on the show, and now, this news obviously just crossing. What impact does this ruling have on voters in your state?
GOV. TIM WALZ (D-MN): Well, first of all, Erin, Minnesotans have a proud tradition. We vote in the highest numbers. I just released a video with my three predecessors to ensure people the system of safe. What I would tell people is that with this ruling says is they will segregate those ballots, but well over 1.2 million ballots have already been received. I would tell voters, if you have an absentee ballot in your hand, right now, drop it off in person. You can go to IWillVote.com and that will give you the place where you need to go. But, you know, it speaks volumes when your goal is to make it more
difficult for people to vote, it probably speaks that they're not really happy with your policies. And so, here in Minnesota, we will still count all of the votes, the system is still secure. Those ballots will be segregated, and I think, you know, this will, obviously, go further up through the judiciary to get a decision.
But at this point in time, people can avoid all of this by simply going and dropping off their ballots in person.
BURNETT: Right.
WALZ: In Minnesota, we have same day registration, so they can vote on Tuesday.
BURNETT: OK. So, all of that is good, because you want every vote to be counted in any case. But what happens if the margin of victory in your state is such that people who mailed their votes today, or their absentee ballots today, or who don't get the message you are saying, now and do so over the next few days, right, that those -- a number of those ballots that are received after Election Day, actually matters? What happens then? That goes to the courts is what you're saying?
WALZ: Well, the courts will decide. Simply at this time, Erin, that they are segregated. They are not thrown out. I think that's what, you know, this court seems to think that it shouldn't be the predominance leading towards the voter, and counting the vote.
But at this point time, those ballots will still be there, they are illegal ballots, we will do everything in our power to ensure that they are counted, as they should be, regardless of who they voted for. And we'll pick a winner that way.
Our system has lasted this long, based on civility, decency, and respect for the process. So, I am still confident that the choice of the voters, and the voters need to decide, who the next president will be, and who these other elected officers will be. Not of the decision by a three-panel court, but at this point in time, we're still confident that a winner will be -- will be found on election night, or, shortly thereafter. That's part of the system.
BURNETT: Yeah.
WALZ: And we'll move forward.
BURNETT: OK. So, you mentioned the video, all right? And I saw this video on Twitter. A lot of people are talking about it.
You are right. It's getting a lot of -- a lot of discussion. It is a video you made with the three prior governors in the state of Minnesota, and I just want to play a clip of it, Governor.
Here it is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WALZ: With so many of us voting by mail, it may take a little longer to verify a winner.
JESSE VENTURA (I), FORMER MINNESOTA GOVERNOR: A delay just means our system is working, and that we're counting every single ballot.
[19:50:05]
MARK DAYTON (D), FORMER MINNESOTA GOVERNOR: There may not be a clear winner on election night.
TIM PAWLENTY (R), FORMER MINNESOTA GOVERNOR: But no matter who wins, let's demonstrate the civility and decency that Minnesotans are known for.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Democrats and Republicans, kind of message we need. And yet tonight --
WALZ: Independent.
BURNETT: And independent, that's right. You got it all there.
And yet the context here is, you know, I don't know if you saw the headline, Walmart, they are pulling firearms and ammunition in some stores, because they have unrest in Philadelphia, and they want them -- they want them off the shelves now, ahead of Election Day.
Tension is high, and people are anxious, and afraid, of what's going to happen on that night, and after. How concerning is all of this to you?
WALZ: Well, I believe -- I believe in our system. I think here in Minnesota, and I can speak to that, I think that's true in other states, there is resiliency in the system. I think it's clear to everyone that there are those that want to sow doubt, there are those that want to pretend like mail-in voting doesn't -- isn't valid.
I've used it as a soldier, and some of these rules, just to be very clear, Minnesota warriors in war zones right now could be denied their vote, if -- if we don't get a decision on the segregated ballot.
So, I think people of goodwill understand this. I think the majority of Minnesotans clearly understand that while tensions are high. We have passions around voting, we need to follow the system. It's in place. It has served as well, all of these ears, and we're taking all of the necessary steps to make sure that their votes are counted, and people can be sure that they are safe in those -- in voting, if they go to vote in person.
BURNETT: And in the outcome.
Right, and, of course, going to vote in person, having more people do so is going to come amidst the coronavirus surge in your state, highest number of coronavirus cases today that you've had.
WALZ: Yeah. BURNETT: Your health commissioner said hospitalizations hit a high water mark, deaths today, tragically, near record levels.
So, what are you going to do about that? Especially if you're going to have more people voting in person than otherwise would? Are you -- are you considering new restrictions right now in terms of people's activity, or not?
WALZ: Well, we have opportunities. You can vote curbside. We've trained our folks who are working at the polls. We have the personal protective equipment. We have a mask mandate in Minnesota, and we will do it.
But you're absolutely right. All of those things are true. We are in a dangerous position. We're ranked 20th now in infection rates, but the states to the west of us are one, two, and four.
And so, it -- we have protections in place, it is safe for folks to go, it's more challenging this year. But it's important. People need to vote. We know how important this election is. People need to vote.
BURNETT: All right. Governor Walz, thank you very much. I appreciate your time, sir.
WALZ: You're welcome, Erin.
BURNETT: And next, Democrats cautiously optimistic that they can turn Texas blue. Why?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:56:36]
BURNETT: Tonight, Senator Kamala Harris going to Texas, three stops there tomorrow on her schedule as CNN's poll of polls showing a tight race. The state moving from, well, as red as it gets, right, to competitive.
But let's just take a step back here. That state, Texas, has not voted for Democrats since 1976. It would make history if it happened now. Could it really happen?
Jason Carroll is OUTFRONT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They have been lining up in the Lone Star State for days as early voting ends tomorrow. More than 8.4 million people have already cast ballots in the state. That is 94 percent of the overall vote from 2016. Both sides clearly energize.
But Democrats in this reliably red state are feeling more encouraged that they have in decades, thanks to changing demographics, the party's improved standing in fast growing suburbs and with younger voters like Angelica Tutton who voted for Joe Biden. ANGELICA TUTTON, DEM VOTER: I come from a very conservative
background. I'm the only one of my family that I know that's voting blue this year.
CARROLL (on camera): Do you think Biden has a chance in the state of Texas?
TUTTON: I think -- I think he does.
CARROLL (voice-over): The 24-year-old says she lost her job as a server due to the coronavirus. She lives here home to Tarrant County, home to Fort Worth. Donald Trump won Tarrant County by more than eight points four years ago. Two years later, Democrat Beto O'Rourke narrowly carried it while coming up short in his bid to defeat Republican Senator Ted Cruz.
Tutton didn't vote then. In fact, she's never voted until now.
SUTTON: I listened to some of the things that Trump said, and I educate myself a lot more, and I think that this year, just in general, with everything that's going on, it's really the turning point for me.
CARROLL: Make no mistake: a Biden win in Texas is still a tall order. The last Democratic presidential nominee to win here was Jimmy Carter back in 1976.
But given the early turnout, Democrats aren't seeing red, they are seeing purple. One side of that shift, people like former Dallas Mayor Steve Bartlett, a Republican who says the former vice president has a shot.
STEVE BARTLETT, FORMER REPUBLICAN MAYOR OF DALLAS: Well, it has gone from being a no shot to a long shot to now a medium shot.
CARROLL: Bartlett is backing Biden saying Trump has shown the character needed to be an effective president.
BARTLETT: I'm a lifetime Republican but the country is suffering and we will suffer a lot more if we reelect Donald Trump.
CARROLL: Democrats are making a late investment in the race with time and money. On Thursday, a super PAC funded by Michael Bloomberg added another $5.6 million in ads in the state. That's on top of nearly $9 million already spent.
And vice presidential nominee, Kamala Harris, is making three stops here Friday to mobilize new voters in their rapidly diversifying state.
RICHARD MURRAY, POLITICAL SCIENTIST: They are much less culturally conservative. They are very, very diverse. They are generally better educated, and those are the kinds of voters that are much more amenable to voting for a moderate Democrat like Joe Biden.
CARROLL: And back here in Tarrant County, many voters from both parties saying a Biden win in Texas could just be wishful thinking.
CASSIDY COKER, REPUBLICAN VOTER: He has a chance in Maine, but for Texans no, unlikely.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's hard to say because Texas has always been a red state. So, I'm not really sure.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CARROLL: Well, Erin, a poll out just this week shows that Trump is up in the state by three points, but again, this is Texas and Democrats are saying that a Republican candidate by this point should be way ahead. Again they say this is another sign that things are changing the state -- Erin.
BURNETT: All right. Thank you very much, Jason.
And thanks to all of you for joining us.
Anderson starts now.
