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One World with Zain Asher
Blinken In Israel To Revive Gaza Ceasefire-Hostage Talks; Lebanon: At Least 18 Killed In Strike Near Beirut Hospital; Trump Campaigns In Key States Of Florida, North Carolina; Harris, Trump Try To Win Support Of Undecided Voters; Political Ads Inundating Voters In Battleground States; Young Indians Taking A "Do or Die" Journey To Live American Dream; LeBron And Bronny James Look To Make NBA History; Aired 12-1 p ET
Aired October 22, 2024 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[12:00:41]
ZAIN ASHER, CNN HOST: Pressing for a ceasefire. Antony Blinken visits Israel as the bombing campaign in Gaza and Lebanon continues.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN HOST: ONE WORLD starts right now.
A diplomatic push as lives lie in the balance. Blinken and Benjamin Netanyahu wrap up their meeting behind closed doors.
ASHER: Also ahead, it is literally neck and neck. We'll break down the latest numbers in what very well could be the closest U.S. presidential
race ever.
GOLODRYGA: Exactly. Two weeks away.
And later, like father like son. LeBron James and his son, Bronny, are about to make NBA history.
ASHER: All right. Coming to you live from New York, I'm Zain Asher.
GOLODRYGA: And I'm Bianna Golodryga. You are watching ONE WORLD.
America's top diplomat is back in the Middle East, hoping to revive stalled Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal talks after Israel killed Hamas leader
Yahya Sinwar last week.
ASHER: Yes. Antony Blinken met with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, for some two hours today in his 11th trip to the region since
the October 7th terror attacks. As Israel weighs a potential retaliatory attack on Iran, it is pressing on with its military in both Gaza and
Lebanon.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(EXPLOSION)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: What you just saw right there is the aftermath of a new Israeli strike, air strike on the outskirts of Beirut. And this is the scene
outside Lebanon's largest public hospital as well.
GOLODRYGA: The Lebanese authorities say at least 18 people were killed. The IDF says that it targeted a Hezbollah terrorist site near the hospital.
Now across the border, the IDF says about 15 projectiles were fired from Lebanon into Israel today.
ASHER: Meantime, inside Gaza, residents in two towns the north say they've been warned to evacuate.
U.N. workers there say, quote, the smell of death is everywhere.
GOLODRYGA: Let's bring in our Kylie Atwood, who leads our coverage today, joining us from Washington, D.C.
And, Kylie, we have, as we noted, Secretary of State making his 11th trip to the region following the October 7th attacks in his meetings with Prime
Minister Netanyahu, really urging Israel and other mediators to capitalize on this moment now.
The short window of opportunity perhaps for even a short-term ceasefire hostage deal following the death of Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar, last week.
KYLIE ATWOOD, CNN U.S. SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Those were the exact words used in the State Department readout of the meeting that the
secretary of state had with Prime Minister Netanyahu that lasted for more than two and a half hours today in Israel, saying that the secretary
pressed on the need to capitalize on the death of Yahya Sinwar to drive forth the release of all the hostages and an end to the conflict in Gaza.
Though notably the readout didn't actually state any agreement that the Israeli prime minister and the secretary of state came to about the way
forward there.
And when it comes to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, that has been something that U.S. officials have pressed on, according to this readout in
their meeting. Blinken spoke about the need for Israel to take additional steps to both increase and sustain the humanitarian flow going into Gaza
and to make sure that humanitarian assistance is actually distributed across Gaza.
We've have heard from the U.N. humanitarian organization in Gaza just today saying that the northern part of Gaza is still not receiving the assistance
that they need.
So it's very clear that the United States thinks Israel has to do more to get that humanitarian assistance into Gaza. And it comes on the heels of
the Biden administration making demands to Israel that they need to take this action, or else they will risk violating U.S. laws that govern the
flow of U.S. military assistance to Israel. So that is a specific area that we continue to watch.
But the backdrop here is that even though the United States wants to seize on what they call this opportunity following the death of Yahya Sinwar,
U.S. officials really don't know what the next few weeks here are going to look like.
[12:05:59]
A senior State Department official said that one of the main challenges here is the fact that the U.S., Qatar, and Egypt all don't know who's going
to become the decision-maker for Hamas inside Gaza. And that will largely be one of the major factors that drives forth if there's a possibility to
start conversations about an end to this conflict, even though, of course, we know that Prime Minister Netanyahu himself hasn't expressed a
willingness to drive forth that end.
He wants to release all the hostages now, but whether or not that they can all get on the same page about driving forth an end to the conflict really
remains an open question.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. And this visit by Secretary of State Blinken comes as we're anticipating at any moment Israel's retaliatory response to Iran following
its unprecedented strikes a few weeks ago, lobbing over 200 ballistic missiles at Israel, a very fraught time indeed.
Kylie Atwood, thank you.
ASHER: And let's bring in CNN's Jeremy Diamond, who joins us live now from Tel Aviv. So, Jeremy, we just heard Kylie Atwood talking about the fact
that there's still so much uncertainty about who is going to be the main decision-maker when it comes to Hamas.
Also on top of that, we don't necessarily know if there is a genuine authentic willingness on the part of Benjamin Netanyahu to actually bring
this conflict to an end. We know that Antony Blinken met with Netanyahu for about two and a half hours. Just walk us through the specifics of what was
discussed there.
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, clearly, the discussion focused on the Gaza Strip, on Lebanon, and also, of course, on the
potential for Israel to carry out these retaliatory strikes against Iran. And potential is maybe, you know, pretty soft given the fact that Israel
has said that they will indeed retaliate.
And we have seen in the past that the United States has been closely consulting with Israel in anticipation of these kinds of attacks. There's
no question that one of the main focuses, though, as Kylie was just saying, is this of notion of seizing this window of opportunity to try and reach
some kind of a hostage and ceasefire deal to wind this war down in the wake of the killing of Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar.
But in recent days, what we have really heard from the Israeli prime minister is continued defiance, vowing that Israel will continue with this
war, that Sinwar's death does not mark the end, even though he did say it does mark perhaps the beginning of the day after Hamas.
But he did make clear that Israel will continue to press forward until victory. And that is clearly the perspective of many of his right-wing
allies who are keeping him in power, some of whom I was with yesterday as they were calling for Israel to actually create settlements inside of the
Gaza Strip.
And then, of course, beyond that you have the actions that the Israeli military is carrying out, which gives us a sense of where the Israeli
government's thinking is right now. And we have seen nowhere in where the Israeli military is acting, whether it is in Gaza or in Lebanon, that
Israel is in any way taking its foot off the gas.
In Gaza, we have seen a series of deadly strikes. We have seen very little aid get into Northern Gaza, even as the United States is calling on Israel
to ramp up aid getting into the Gaza Strip.
And in Lebanon, we saw just today this latest deadly strike right next to a hospital, a major hospital in Lebanon, Rafik Hariri University Hospital. At
least 18 people were killed there, including four children.
And so it's very clear that the Israeli military is continuing to keep up the military pressure on Hamas in Gaza, on Hezbollah in Lebanon, and, of
course, we are seeing that many of these strikes are also coming at the cost of civilians.
In that strike that killed 18 people in Beirut, we saw that four of those were children. Zain, Bianna.
ASHER: All right. Thank you. Jeremy Diamond live for us there, thank you so much.
GOLODRYGA: All right. Several developments to talk about with our guest, Steven Cook, a senior fellow from Middle Eastern Studies at the Council on
Foreign Relations. He's also the author of the book, "The End of Ambition: America's Past, Present and Future In the Middle East." Steven Cook,
welcome back to the program.
So we have Secretary of State Blinken in Israel. We have U.S. Envoy Amos Hochstein in Lebanon, both pushing for some sort of resolution, some sort
of off-ramp here to both hot wars at this point, both also representing a lame duck president.
It's notable that the leader of Hamas is now dead and the leader of Hezbollah also has been killed. And still, it doesn't look like there's
much hope for an imminent resolution to either conflicts.
In your view, which one do you think is closer to at least coming to a temporary ceasefire at this point?
STEVEN COOK, SENIOR FELLOW, COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: Well, neither of them, to be completely honest with you.
As Jeremy pointed out in his piece, the Israeli government seems not at all interested in a ceasefire. Netanyahu's allies on the right have called for
the destruction of Hamas.
And when it comes to Hamas, the late Yahya Sinwar, he didn't want a ceasefire either. And just days after his death, one of his colleagues in
Gaza, a leader of Hamas named Khalil al-Hayya, said that Hamas would carry on the fight.
[12:10:13]
So again, we are at a status quo in which all the parties want to keep fighting with the exception of the United States, which continues its
diplomacy.
When it comes to Lebanon, clearly the Israelis believe that the wind is at their back and want to press their advantage. Hezbollah is a much more
dangerous foe than Hamas. And that the Israelis don't believe that there is an actual diplomatic solution to be had, and therefore, they might as well
press their advantage, particularly, as you point out, where the President of the United States is a lame duck, and there are likely to be fewer
consequences for the Israelis, if any at all, by pressing this military advantage.
ASHER: Just in terms of what's happening in Gaza, I mean, there has been a sharp reduction in the amount of humanitarian aid that is getting in,
roughly around a 50 percent decrease. Just give us your thoughts, because Antony Blinken is expected to really reiterate this idea that the U.S. is
going to halt military assistance to Israel unless Israel does more to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza.
I mean, obviously, this has come up multiple times before over the past year. Just walk us through why it's different this time and what do you
make of this strategy by the United States to issue this kind of ultimatum?
COOK: Well, the provision of humanitarian aid into Gaza has actually been quite controversial in Israel and some of Prime Minister Netanyahu's
partners have opposed it from the very beginning.
The -- what you're referring to is a letter that Secretary of State Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin sent the Israelis a week ago saying
that unless there's a dramatic increase in aid, the United States would start suspending military aid to Israel over 30 days.
That was about a week ago. The Israelis have three weeks until the United States takes some action if the Biden administration is good to its word.
I see the 30-day period as one in which the Israelis are likely to try to press their advantage as much as they possibly can to destroy as much of
Hamas as they possibly can.
They are laying siege to Jabalia in the northern part of the Gaza Strip, and preventing humanitarian aid is actually part of this strategy.
GOLODRYGA: Steven, what is your biggest takeaway in light of the leaked Pentagon documents, which reportedly outline some of Israel's retaliatory
plans against Iran, aside from the obvious embarrassment but well-known fact that friends do tend to spy on each other?
COOK: Yes. Well, there's clearly people within the U.S. government who are concerned that the Israelis are trying to drag the United States into a
regional conflict with Iran. And as a result, leaked some of these documents in order to put a break on Israel's preparations for a response
to Iran's ballistic missile strike on Israel a number of weeks ago.
I don't think whatever the intelligence that was leaked is going to change the Israeli mindset here. It's not a question of when, it's not a question
of if, but when the Israelis will strike.
They have said over and over again, they appreciate the American advice, but they will strike what they want and when they want, when they're ready.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. And all is sort of interconnected. This ultimatum on getting more aid into Gaza, the supply of the THAAD missile defense battery
program to Israel, in anticipation of whatever Iran's response may be.
And again, Israel is set to respond at any moment reportedly. They've given assurances to the United States that it would come before the U.S. election
just two weeks away now.
Steven Cook, thank you so much.
ASHER: And as Bianna just mentioned, the clock is running out here in the U.S. in a presidential race that literally, I mean, literally could not get
any closer.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. Day by day, here we go, election day in America exactly two weeks away, and Kamala Harris is getting help from one of the Democrats'
heaviest hitters. Former President Barack Obama is scheduled to campaign with Tim Walz during two stops in Wisconsin today.
On Monday, Harris received support from another big name, this one from the Republican Party. And she had this message for voters.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LIZ CHENEY, FORMER UNITED STATES REPRESENTATIVE: I certainly have many Republicans who will say to me, I can't be public. They do worry about a
whole range of things, including violence, but they'll do the right thing.
And I would just remind people, if you're at all concerned, you can vote your conscience and not ever have to say a word to anybody. And there will
be millions of Republicans who do that on November 5th.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[12:15:08]
ASHER: Donald Trump, meantime, is campaigning in Florida and heading back to back or rather back to North Carolina for the second time in two days.
During a campaign stop in the hurricane ravaged state yesterday, the former president repeated lies about the White House and federal disaster relief
as well.
CNN's Alayna Treene joins us live now. So former President Trump is in Miami for a roundtable discussion really focused on the Hispanic vote. I
mean, Donald Trump has made a big sort of concerted bid to win over the Hispanic vote, this time around focusing on issues like the economy, crime,
specifically focused on men as well.
Just walk us through why has Trump managed to be that much more successful this time around at eroding a popular sort of voting bloc for Democrats.
ALAYNA TREENE, CNN REPORTER: No, it's a great question. And I think also it's very clear that both campaigns, the Trump campaign and the Harris
campaign, really see Hispanic voters as a key demographic, particularly Hispanic men.
And this also comes down to what their strategy is in this final two-week stretch before November 5th, which is really any votes they believe that
they can siphon away from the other side or turn out, perhaps first-time voters, low-propensity voters, who they believe, you know, even if it's
just a small number compared to the overall vote.
They really do believe that these demographics, these core demographics that they're targeting, like Hispanic men, could make a difference on the
margins. That's why you see him doing this roundtable today.
I'd also note that Donald Trump has actually canceled a lot of these types of events in recent weeks because he has such a packed schedule. There's
some reporting that, of course, he's very tired since he's been traveling so much. But this is one he kept. So I think that just underscores how
important they view Hispanic voters right now.
Now, during that roundtable, and this gets to your question, Zain, about why is he being successful. You know, he gave off his normal pitch. He
talked about the economy. He talked about issues that he believes that community cares a lot about.
He claimed that Kamala Harris and the Democratic Party is moving towards socialism, something that some of Hispanic voters, particularly those who
have maybe traveled from South America, are worried about.
But one thing he also talked about, and this was him veering off script a little bit, was about the border. Particularly the southern border, and of
course the issue that Donald Trump always discusses and paints a dark picture about, which is that he believes undocumented immigrants in this
country are committing crimes and stealing jobs.
Now, you would think that normally that type of messaging, that hardline rhetoric on immigration may not play well with Hispanic voters and
particularly many people who are immigrants themselves.
However, when I am on the campaign trail and when I talk to Donald Trump's senior advisors, they acknowledge that that's actually an issue that they
do care a lot about. That particularly immigrants who have gone through that process and are in the United States legally, they care a lot about
immigration. So that's part of what this messaging has been to try and target that key group of voters.
ASHER: All right, Alayna Treene, live for us there. Thank you so much.
GOLODRYGA: So, what might make the difference? Let's take a look at the numbers. CNN senior data reporter Harry Enten joins us now. Harry, let's
continue.
ASHER: Arms folded and swaying from side to side.
GOLODRYGA: Typical Harry.
Harry, let's continue what I think should be a premium sell for CNN now at this point, and that is conversations had in the makeup room.
HARRY ENTEN, CNN SENIOR DATA REPORTER: Yes.
GOLODRYGA: This is something you and I continued this morning.
ENTEN: Of course.
ASHER: So all the deep conversations I had.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. Yes. Well, you --
ENTEN: I was getting my foundation put on.
GOLODRYGA: You noted that this could very well be a historic election. In what sense?
ENTEN: Yes. A historic election because I'll look so good after all the makeup's put on me. But beyond that, I mean, let's just -- let's just take
a look here, right? This is a complicated slide, but I'll boil it down for you pretty simply.
What I essentially did here is I looked at the poll leaders at the end of each campaign going all the way back since 1972, and I tallied up all of
the states to figure out what, at the end of the campaign, did the poll suggest the electoral college would look like.
How many electoral votes would the poll leader actually get? And at this particular point, what we see is Kamala Harris, the whole leader, but by a
very small margin as we'll get into, would get 276 electoral votes.
You go back to 2000 and you tallied up the polls at the end. It suggested that Al Gore would get 281 electoral votes. You go at the end of 2004, what
did you get? You had George W. Bush with 296 electoral votes.
So what this all means is that the polls right now suggest that this will be the closest election basically in the last 50 years according to the
polling data. That is the polls are so tight at this point.
Now this, of course, is a national look. Let's dig deep down into those swing states, right? All right. Let's take a look here. Kamala Harris
likely must carry at least three of these four states. These are the states most likely to determine the Electoral College winner.
Look at this, North Carolina, you have Donald Trump up by less than a point. Wisconsin, you have Harris up by less than a point. The same in
Michigan, the same in Pennsylvania.
[12:20:05]
My goodness gracious. We're talking about four very important states in which the polling at this point, the leader is up by less than a point,
well within the margin of error. So what does that mean for the Electoral College map?
Well, as that first slide might have hinted at, I like giving little tea leaves that are out to the segment, giving you an idea of what will happen
later.
If the results match the polls exactly right and Harris wins Pennsylvania, she gets these Great Lake battleground states, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania.
That gets her to 276 electoral votes. Not much room for error at all.
So what happens if we just flip Pennsylvania and we give it to Donald Trump? Well, now all of a sudden, not only do we have a nice little pink
stripe there in the great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, but he gets to 281 electoral votes. Very, very tight.
All three of these battleground states up in the Great Lakes, extremely tight. So much so, I went to myself, hmm, let me go back through history. I
wonder if I dig through the spreadsheets. Have these three states, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, ever been so tight at the end of a
campaign?
And the answer, my dear friends, is no. Not at least since 1972. There has never been final polling in Michigan, Pennsylvania, in Wisconsin, in which
the leader led by less than a point. Right now the leaders in all three of these states are up by less than half a point. It's never happened.
So when I said at the beginning of this presentation that we're looking at a historically close campaign on this cover slide, historically close
Electoral College. Guys, I absolutely meant it. And that is what happens when you sit in the makeup room with me. You find out segments before they
actually happen.
GOLODRYGA: I want to cut it as premium content that we're going to push now. Make up the statistics with Harry Enten.
ENTEN: Oh, I love it.
ASHER: We'll do a live shot from the makeup room.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. But I think what Harry is getting at is the likelihood that we'll know the winner on election night.
ASHER: Oh, yes.
GOLODRYGA: Probably slim to none too, am I right, Harry?
ENTEN: I don't know.
ASHER: It could drag on.
ENTEN: Maybe, maybe.
ASHER: Just like it did in 2020, right?
ENTEN: That's what happened in 2020, but if all the swing states go in one direction, which is possible, maybe we'll get gifted a gift, and that is
actual sleep of which I'm very limited right now.
So if I was a little loopy during this segment, it's because I wanted to go to sleep.
ASHER: You're always loopy Harry. That's why we love you.
ENTEN: That's true. I guess I'm always a little loopy, a little strange, a little, you know, I'm going to get some exercise in though.
ASHER: OK.
GOLODRYGA: Brilliant words of wisdom once again from Harry Enten. Thank you, my friend.
ENTEN: Bye.
GOLODRYGA: Bye.
ASHER: Bye.
All right. Let's bring in our politics senior reporter, Stephen Collinson, joining us live now from Washington.
Harry Enten is such a tough actor for that. Because now I'm going to be all serious with you, Stephen. Doesn't mean I love you any less.
OK. So just in terms of Liz Cheney being enlisted, obviously, a staunch conservative, and one of the things that she said is that she wants to back
a candidate who defended what she called the most conservative principles, and that is of course the U.S. Constitution.
She also said in the clip we just showed a few minutes ago, this idea of voting your conscious, listen, nobody has to know. When you get into that
booth and the curtain is closed, nobody has to know which candidate you're going to be circling.
So just explain to us whether or not you think this is going to be an effective strategy, Stephen.
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR REPORTER: It was very interesting during Cheney's events yesterday across those three blue wall states that
Harry was talking about. She seemed to create this permission structure for Republican suburban women voters to vote for Harris and not tell anyone
about it.
Just talking to Democrats anecdotally. They are hoping and they believe there's some evidence in their door knocking that may be a potential trend
in this election and that might allow Harris to defy some of the closeness in the polls in these key states.
The downside to that, of course, is you have to question whether Cheney is that influential to many Republican voters. She was driven out of the party
that was transformed by Trump. She is a hark back to a more hawkish, conservative, internationalist Republican Party, which doesn't really exist
anymore. Most of the people that share her views have been driven out of it.
But nonetheless, the Harris campaign believes that there are Republicans voters, especially women, some of whom have voted for Nikki Haley, the
former South Carolina governor in the Republican primary, who might be out there and be persuadable. And that was that -- was what -- all that was
about yesterday.
And it's absolutely fascinating to watch Liz Cheney, of all people, alongside a democratic presidential candidate.
GOLODRYGA: Yes, explaining her decision with her husband at the dinner table, along with their five children, really concerned about the future of
democracy as they grow older in this country and begin to vote as well.
We also know, Stephen, that today is the first day of early voting in the battleground state of Wisconsin. More than 15 million Americans have
reportedly already voted, including 5.3 in the seven -- 5.3 million in the seven swing states.
[12:25:05]
The data shows that 47 percent of the early votes have been cast by Democrats, 33 percent by Republicans. That is an increase for Republicans
in terms of early voting.
Donald Trump got criticized by many within his own party for really being negative about early voting in 2020.
What do the tea leaves say about the fact that you're seeing more Republicans now going out early as well? It could be significant.
Generally, early voting favors the Democrats. And that's why you see when the votes are counted on election night, Republicans winning back, you
know, piling up big margins. And then the Democrat early vote coming in and overtaking them. Trump used that in 2020 to allege that the election was
stolen, which it was not, obviously.
But this year, as you say, Republicans are doing more early voting. They've been encouraging it. It's difficult to know how this reflects or will play
out, you know, when all the votes are counted, because we don't know whether some of those Republican voters are people that would have voted
anyway on election day, so they're just taking away from their election day vote. Or whether these are the people that Donald Trump really believes are
out there who are people that don't normally vote, but agree with him on almost everything, and they're getting them to the polls early.
But campaigns really like to get their early vote banked because it allows them to use what resources they have left to go after the voters that
haven't voted.
So by the time we get to election day, we're going to see a massive proportion of the electorate has already voted. In many ways, the election
will have already happened on November the 5th.
ASHER: You know, it's interesting because what you were saying about Cheney telling people, listen, vote for Harris, you don't have to tell anyone
(TECHNICAL DIFFICULTY) end up wondering if it all comes out.
GOLODRYGA: Exactly. Yes.
ASHER: Evens out.
GOLODRYGA: Yes.
ASHER: Stephen Collinson, live for us there. Thank you so much, Stephen.
COLLINSON: Thanks.
GOLODRYGA: Well, Vice President Kamala Harris will join CNN for a presidential town hall on Wednesday night, tomorrow night, moderated by our
own Anderson Cooper. That is at 9:00 P.M. Eastern Time. We will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ASHER: All right. Whether you turn on your TV or your computer, chances are you've maybe seen a political ad or two.
GOLODRYGA: Or your phone as well. How many text messages do you get?
ASHER: Oh, my gosh.
GOLODRYGA: If you live in a battleground --
ASHER: I blocked all of them.
GOLODRYGA: Hey, Bianna, it's Kamala Harris.
[12:30:00]
If you live in a battleground state, you've probably seen more than your share of ads. So which ones are the most effective? Danny Freeman went to
the Key State of Pennsylvania to find out.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The question was simple, how would you describe the onslaught of political ads so far this year?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Chaos. Complete chaos.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're ridiculous.
MEGHAN FINNEY, PENNSYLVANIA HARRIS SUPPORTER: It's so overkill. We're all sick of it.
JOAN JENNERJAHN, PENNSYLVANIA HARRIS SUPPORTER: I think it's overwhelming.
DREW NIELSEN, PENNSYLVANIA REPUBLICAN: And all of a sudden, it's nothing but like, oh, illegal immigrants. She's the border czar. She's not the
border czar. And we're just trying to get into false spirit. You know what I mean?
FREEMAN (voice-over): We know battleground states get flooded with political ads in the home stretch of every presidential race. But this
year, Pennsylvania is getting hit more than any other.
Since President Biden dropped out of the race and Vice President Harris took over as the democratic nominee, the campaigns and outside groups have
spent more than $350 million on ads in the Keystone state.
That's over $100 million more than the next battleground of Michigan and voters in Pennsylvania are set to see over 80 million more worth of
campaign ads over the final two weeks of the race.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A father of three.
FREEMAN (voice-over): This is one of the ads former President Trump's campaign has spent the most on here in recent weeks, attacking Harris over
her past support of certain rights for transgender people including detained immigrants and federal prisoners.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kamala was the first to help pay for prisoner sex change.
KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES AND DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: The power that I had, I used it in a way that was
about pushing for the movement, frankly, and the agenda.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kamala's agenda is they, them.
FREEMAN (voice-over): Trump supporter, Drew Nielsen, thought the ad was effective.
NIELSEN: It's inflammatory, but I think the majority of people aren't affected by that. All they're hearing is, oh, she's just wasting tax
dollars.
FREEMAN (voice-over): But not all Republicans we spoke with liked the ad.
FREEMAN: Do you think that ad focused on this trans issue that that is effective to persuade voters here?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, because it's a side issue. And it's not what most people care about.
FREEMAN (voice-over): Republican Alfred Hagen said language and ads like this make it impossible for him to vote for Trump.
ALFRED HAGEN, PENNSYLVANIA REPUBLICAN: Is that really the biggest issue confronting America today? We've got climate change issues. We've got
hurricane issues. We've got relief issues.
These are fundamentally difficult, challenging questions that should be dealt with on the federal level. That's bull (BLEEP) and it's just
nonsense.
FREEMAN: Bucks County mom, Meghan Finney, said all of the ads have been hard to watch, especially when her young children ask questions.
FINNEY: You want to explain what's going on, who's running for presidency. But you don't really want to feel like you have to explain what rape is and
incest and all these things that they're putting out there.
HARRIS: I've seen all these negative ads against me.
FREEMAN (voice-over): This is one of the ads the Harris campaign has spent the most on here in recent weeks. Finney finds this one appealing.
HARRIS: Look, everyone is tired of the petty, destructive politics. Let's turn the page and chart a new way forward.
FINNEY: That's positive. That's, to me, what it should be about. It shouldn't be about all those other things that, you know, are negative.
FREEMAN: Do you think messages like these can help sway voters?
JENNERJAHNI think some people are just, you know, already predetermined. They're going to -- they're going to vote Trump or they're going to vote
Harris. I think those people that are not decided, I think if you compare the two ads side by side, do you want kind of crazy hateful speech? Or do
you want something that's much more hopeful? And how do we work together as people to bring the country together?
FREEMAN: Now I should note, when it comes to some specific claims in that prevalent Trump campaign ad, the New York Times actually reports that there
were some gender-affirming care options and treatment available to federal inmates during the Trump administration as well.
Meanwhile, when it comes to the ads in general, it's far from just on television here in Pennsylvania. We see it in billboards, we see it in
texts, we see it on planes carrying banners. So the voters that we spoke with told me it is bipartisan. They can't wait for all of it to be done.
Danny Freeman, CNN, Philadelphia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[12:35:03]
ASHER: All right. More now on our top story, the U.S. secretary of state is back in the Middle East pushing for a new ceasefire talks for Gaza and
Lebanon. Antony Blinken's 11th trip to the region comes ahead of Israel's threatened retaliation against Iran.
GOLODRYGA: America's top diplomat met earlier with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other key officials.
On the outskirts of Beirut, meantime, an Israeli strike near Lebanon's largest public hospital has killed at least 18 people. That is according to
health officials.
They say, overall, Israeli attacks on Monday killed a total of 63 people. and injured at least 234. This witness tells us what she saw in her
neighborhood.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): The children were playing in the yard when they shouted to me and said, we heard on the television news that
Israel's targeting. I asked them to calm down, and they replied as usual. Then throw us some candy and chocolates.
As I threw them the candy from the balcony, the first missile fell, followed by another one. I saw the children torn to pieces, screaming.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Really gut-wrenching picture painted there. Time now for The Exchange. The United Nations says Israeli airstrikes are destroying
humanitarian facilities in Lebanon.
Suzanne Takkenberg is the Lebanon country director for Action Against Hunger. She joins us live now.
Suzanne, thank you so much for being with us. Just in terms of the level of destruction in and around Beirut, we're hearing that rescue efforts are
continuing right now around Rafik Hariri University Hospital, where Israeli airstrikes have essentially leveled two apartment blocks, killed at least
13 people, that includes a child injured 57.
Just explain to us what it is like right now for residents in Beirut.
SUZANNE TAKKENBERG, LEBANON COUNTRY DIRECTOR, ACTION AGAINST HUNGER: Absolutely. And thank you so much for having me today. I mean, the
situation in Beirut and in fact, in the country as a whole is really unprecedented.
We're seeing the largest displacement of people that the country has ever faced. And if we look at 2006 and the war that took 30 days at the time, we
passed every indicator for that within a week in this war, so far.
And so right now, we're seeing a lot of destruction. We're seeing a lot of panicking amongst the population. We're seeing a lot of displacements again
and a lot of fear amongst people as well at this moment.
GOLODRYGA: When you talk about the situation in Gaza, one constant theme throughout this year was the difficulty in getting enough aid in supplies
into the enclave. I'm just wondering what the situation is in Lebanon.
Obviously, this is not an area that prior to Israel's assaults had been controlled by Israel. So, what is the feasibility of getting supplies where
they're needed and when they're needed as soon as possible?
TAKKENBERG: Sure. And it's very different in different parts of the country. And Beirut getting supplies into areas is very much based on the
security situation of that moment. And when we have strikes, there are moments where it is harder to reach those, but in general. (TECHNICAL
DIFFICULTY)
[12:40:04]
Suzanne, can you hear us? OK. Suzanne. OK. It looks as though we're having a bit of trouble with Suzanne's audio. That was Suzanne Takkenberg. She's a
country director for Lebanon for Action Against Hunger.
Suzanne, can you hear us? I'm being told that maybe you can by our producers.
TAKKENBERG: I'm able to hear you.
ASHER: OK. We lost you just a moment ago.
TAKKENBERG: Yes. Can you hear me?
GOLODRYGA: Yes.
ASHER: We lost you a moment ago.
TAKKENBERG: Sure.
ASHER: But I wanted you to just sort of start talking a bit more about the number of displaced people. We're hearing that over a million people in
Lebanon are displaced right now. Just explain to us.
I mean, obviously, the Israelis do issue various evacuation orders when there is about to be some kind of airstrike. But just walk us through where
those who are displaced go at this point in time.
TAKKENBERG: I mean, that is one of the challenges amongst the population in the sense that they do not feel that anywhere in the country is safe. So
right now, we have an estimated 1.2 million people that are displaced. Just to give a kind of perspective on that scale. If you would take that to the
United States, that would be 55 million people displaced in just a week.
So here that is one in six people. That is an enormous number of people of that hundreds of thousands are currently in collective shelters. And a lot
of those are actually schools, also substandard and often unfinished buildings.
One of the big challenges we're seeing right now is the weather is starting to change quite quickly and we're starting to see a drop in temperature as
well.
So between that, the overcrowding that we're facing in those shelters and the fact that we had a first confirmed cholera case in the north of Lebanon
last week, as well as an increase in waterborne disease outbreaks, we're quite worried on how this situation will evolve in the coming weeks.
GOLODRYGA: Suzanne, who do you work with on the ground there in terms of government officials in the Lebanese government? Are you strictly reliant
on international aid and charities? Or is there work that you do with authorities there to try to help those who are displaced?
TAKKENBERG: Sure. I mean, the entire coordination of this response is coordinated very closely with the government, and that is from the very
top, from the Prime Minister level to ministers as well that are involved. And there is an interministerial committee that we closely, as an
international community, coordinate with. And then that also feeds down to the governor levels into the municipalities.
So it is very closely interlinked with each other. And it's extremely important just because of the magnitude and scale. And again, like I
mentioned earlier, it's really unprecedented in terms of how much displacement we're dealing with and how severe the situation is. So that
coordination is extremely close and very well coordinated.
GOLODRYGA: Suzanne also noted the vulnerability specifically for women and children and young girls there.
Suzanne Takkenberg, thank you so much for joining us, giving us a better picture of the situation there on the ground. The Lebanon Country Director
for Action Against Hunger. We appreciate your time.
ASHER: And thank you for the work you're doing, Suzanne. We appreciate it.
TAKKENBERG: Thank you.
GOLODRYGA: Thank you.
Still to come for us on CNN, we're following the do-or-die journey some young Indian people are willing to take to move to the United States.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We can go here and find someone and pay money to be smuggled to the U.S. here.
ANKIT CHAUDHARY, LAW STUDENT: Yes, yes. They will smuggle the person illegally in U.S.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[12:45:10]
GOLODRYGA: Well, over the past five years or so, a rising number of Indians have been fleeing their country due to high unemployment rates, even those
with a college degree who have struggled to find work in India.
ASHER: Yes. CNN's Ivan Watson shows us the desperation faced by a lot of Indians in the world's largest democracy and the risks some are willing to
take to make it to the U.S.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) WATSON (voice-over): Hiking through jungles and crossing rivers. A video vlogger from India showing his trip through Central America to the U.S.-
Mexico border.
Nearly 100,000 Indians crossed the border illegally into the U.S. last year, a journey many Indians call the Donkey Way.
CHAUDHARY: Donkey Way is an illegal route which is not allowed by the USA government. It's a route which is going through many of the countries and
then we will jump the wall of USA.
WATSON (voice-over): Ankit Chaudhary is a 24-year-old law student who dreams of migrating to the U.S. to escape joblessness in India.
CHAUDHARY: I have no other option due to unemployment.
WATSON (voice-over): And he's not the only young Indian desperate to leave. Many Indian cities have districts like this.
WATSON: This is one of the consequences of India's high youth unemployment. Entire neighborhoods of businesses dedicated to helping young Indians move
overseas.
WATSON (voice-over): Amid consultants who help Indians get visas to study abroad, Chaudhary says you can also find smugglers who specialize in the
donkey route.
WATSON: We can go here and find someone and pay money to be smuggled to the U.S. here.
CHAUDHARY: Yes. Yes. They will smuggle the person illegally in U.S.
WATSON: How many people have you sent on this donkey route journey to the U.S.?
At least 150 to 200 people, he says. For around $48,000, this agent will fly you to El Salvador and smuggle you over land to the U.S.-Mexico border.
He shows me this video of some of his clients squeezing through the border fence.
WATSON (voice-over): These are your customers?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Two of them.
WATSON (voice-over): The number of Indian migrants crossing the border into the U.S. surged over the last five years.
But two Indian smuggling agents now tell CNN they've all but stopped sending migrants to the U.S. in the last couple of months after a Biden
administration executive order cracked down on asylum applications.
In September, Customs and Border Protection reported the lowest number of migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexican border since 2020.
That's little comfort to Rajev Kumar. Last year, his brother left the family farm for the donkey way to the U.S. Kumar says Indian authorities
returned Makeet's body nearly five months later after he was shot dead by criminals on a river bank on the El Salvador-Guatemala border.
The family's lone surviving son now farms these fields alone.
RAJEEV KUMAR, MAKEET'S BROTHER (through translator): People here know they will die from unemployment, so they think it is better to go and take the
risk. For people here, it has become do or die.
WATSON (voice-over): A vicious cycle of poverty and illegal migration that's emptying out communities in this part of India.
Ivan Watson, CNN, in Haryana State, India.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[12:50:21]
GOLODRYGA: Well, when the NBA season tips off in a few weeks, we could witness basketball history when Minnesota Timberwolves play the Los Angeles
Lakers. And who plays on the Lakers?
ASHER: Superstar LeBron James could share the court with his fellow teammate and son, Bronny. CNN's Andy Scholes is following this incredible
sports story for us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRONNY JAMES, LOS ANGELES LAKERS GUARD: I'm always thinking about, you know, that's my dad, because that's literally my dad.
ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS REPORTER (voice-over): Bronny James and his world famous dad making history this season, and it's been 20 years in the
making.
LeBron's legendary career has been defined not only by his basketball greatness, but also by his unwavering dedication to being a father.
He's had his children, Bronny, Bryce, and Zhuri, by his side during his NBA journey.
In a 2014 CNN interview, LeBron said his motivation to be a great father comes from his dad not being there for him.
LEBRON JAMES, LOS ANGELES LAKERS FORWARD: My whole life growing up, I think I just kind of always said, why me, you know? Why me? Why wasn't -- why
didn't my dad want to be around? I feel like I'm a pretty cool kid. I'm a good kid. Why wouldn't he want to be around for me?
And then as I got older and older and older and kind of had my own family, I started to think the reason he wasn't there is the reason why I became so
strong mentally, so loving to my mother. And I am who I am today because he wasn't there, because I use it as motivation.
SCHOLES (voice-over): LeBron and his wife Savannah had Bronny when he was just 19 years old in his second NBA season. And when Bronny started
becoming a star in high school at Sierra Canyon, LeBron and Bronny playing together became more than a dream.
But a frightening summer day in 2023 nearly derailed at all.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get an ambulance here now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. All right, sir. All right, sir. I'm going to send help there.
SCHOLES (voice-over): Bronny went into cardiac arrest during a college practice and was rushed to the hospital. He would recover after treatment
was cleared to return to the court just over four months later.
Bronny would go on to play for one season at USC. And then he declared for the NBA draft, where the Los Angeles Lakers would select him with the 55th
pick in the second round.
L. JAMES: I know I'm super happy for him. Our family's super proud of him.
SCHOLES (voice-over): Very proud? But LeBron says they will need to keep it professional on the court.
L. JAMES: We cannot be running down the court and they'd be like, dad (INAUDIBLE). Dad, I'm open dad.
B. JAMES: It's probably going to be like, Bron. Bron will be the easiest.
L. JAMES: That'd be the easiest.
SCHOLES (voice-over): LeBron and Bronny shared the court in the preseason, a moment that LeBron called surreal. And it's even more than that. LeBron
and Bronny on the same court is the culmination of LeBron's legacy, symbolizing the merging of a generational talent with the joy and pride of
being a dad.
[12:55:08]
L. JAMES: For a father, I mean, it means everything. I mean, for someone who didn't have that, you know, growing up, to be able to have that
influence on your kids and have that influence on your son, to be able to have moments with your son.
And then, ultimately, you know, to be able to work with your son, I think that's one of the greatest things that a father could ever hope for or wish
for. So it's pretty cool.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GOLODRYGA: The fact that such a superstar turns into a gushing father when he talks about his son.
ASHER: I know. But can we end every show with a feel-good story like that?
GOLODRYGA: I love it. Well, let's hope they do well because we'll be cheering them on.
That does it for this hour of ONE WORLD. I'm Bianna Golodryga.
ASHER: I'm Zain Asher. Appreciate you watching. "AMANPOUR" is up next. You're watching CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[13:00:00]
END
