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CNN NEWSROOM

CPAC Rallies Around Trump, Culture Wars, The Big Lie; McCarthy Struggles to Keep Congressional Members in Check; Death Toll Jumps in Florida Condo Collapse; CNN Tours Champlain Towers North Amid Collapse Investigation; Suspect Arrested in Triple Homicide at Georgia Golf Club; 2 Americans Arrested in Haiti Assassination; Biden Delivers Remarks on State of Economy. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired July 9, 2021 - 13:30   ET

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


[13:30:00]

ANA CABRERA, CNN HOST: Well, I think Democrats are taking this seriously. It's Republicans who aren't taking it seriously that are enabling some of the efforts to continue.

They're the ones who are passing the laws when they have the majority in state legislatures. They're the ones in the Senate who wouldn't even debate a voting rights bill when all Democrats were on board.

But I know you're trying to do something about this. You just launched Republicans for Voting Rights that pushes back on Republican efforts to restrict voting.

You're going against the majority of lawmakers in both federal level and state level in your party right now. How do you plan to fight this?

AMANDA CARPENTER, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, I think it's very easy. I think for too long the fringe radicals in this party have taken control, because there's too many good people pushed out.

When you talk to people about what happened over the last six months and how that big election lie led to the insurrection and now they're coming after your vote, Republican votes.

I mean, I work with people who last December were advocating going to the state legislators to cancel votes in states Joe Biden won. Those are lines that should not be crossed.

I think it's easy to talk to regular -- not professional Republicans in Washington, but people who vote Republican on the ground and say, don't you think something is wrong with this?

I talk to people in rural areas who vote by mail all the time. Never saw anything wrong with it. And they're being told there's something wrong with the system and maybe you did something bad. You talk to members of the military who vote by mail. They didn't do anything wrong. But these people keep attacking the system.

And we had a chance to move on from this after Trump lost the election. We're not -- they're not moving on.

But there's many Republicans who look at this and say, I want my vote to count.

We have a basic principle of democracy in this country. Every American that meets the legal requirements gets to vote.

But then vote gets to count. And that's what we saw attempted to be taken away on January 6th when people stormed the capitol to try to take away those votes and overturn the election.

CABRERA: I want to ask you about the new reporting we have about Kevin McCarthy's approach to members of his caucus.

The most extreme members, people like Marjorie Taylor Greene, Matt Gaetz, they haven't faced any consequences from McCarthy.

We're told he believes keeping folks like that in the fold rather than excommunicating them is a better long-term strategy for keeping them in check. Do you agree?

CARPENTER: McCarthy is a weak Republican leader. And that's why I think these fights -- while we may look like we're going to win right now, I think the Republicans that have a smarter, better way can retake the party at some point.

McCarthy only derives his political power as a proxy from Trump.

We've seen a lot of weak leadership in the Republican Party for many years. John Boehner was knocked off. Paul Ryan got knocked off.

And Kevin McCarthy barely has a hold on things. When we pushes out people like Liz Cheney, who represent a smart, considerate pragmatic approach to Republican politics, and elevates people, he's making the party much weaker.

And he shows that because he can't even discipline people for hanging out with white supremacists and making -- invoking the Holocaust in the most inappropriate ways.

CABRERA: Amanda, good to have you here. Thank you for being with us.

CARPENTER: Thanks.

[13:33:22]

CABRERA: The death toll in the Surfside, Florida condo collapse jumped dramatically today. What we are learning ant the victims and the effort to make sure this never happens again. Next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [13:38:26]

CABRERA: Today, the staggering death toll in Surfside is rising as crews recover for victims in the rubble.

And 78 people are now confirmed dead, 62 others unaccounted for, now 15 days after nearly half the condos that came crashing down.

CNN's Rosa Flores is there for us.

Rosa, you just wrapped a tour inside the sister building, Champlain Towers North.

Before we talk about that tour, talk to us about the latest on the recovery operation.

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, the mayor, Ana, put it like this. She says that the magnitude of this tragedy just continues to grow. The death toll increasing by 14 overnight for a total of 78.

And officials here are very concerned about the mental health of the first responders.

I can tell you, I talked to one yesterday who says it's finding children that is the most difficult for them.

They have resources on the scene to help them in the short-term. Long- term help will also be needed.

According to the fire chief, in certain areas of the grid where they're searching, they are down to the second and the fifth floors.

And Ana, this other portion is a little difficult to talk about, but according to the mayor, because they are finding more bodies now, they're actually asking the Broward County medical examiner to help.

CABRERA: So sad. We know earlier this week they removed about five million pounds of material from that rubble pile.

Let's talk about the tour now. You got to go inside Champlain Towers North with a structural engineer. What did you see and learn?

[13:40:02]

FLORES: This engineer, he is the one that's hired by the city of Surfside to investigate to figure out what happened. His name is Allyn Kilsheimer. Very experienced.

He can't go to the site where the collapse actually happened until the search and recovery is over.

Where he's doing his work is at Champlain Towers North, the sister building.

So he is taking core samples of the concrete and he showed us around. He's already taken core samples of the concrete in the garage. We went around this building with him as he took core samples from

different apartment buildings. They're careful.

They use ground penetrating radar so they take the samples of the actual concrete without disturbing the rebar, the reinforcing steel that holds the building up, of course.

He says that what's going to happen next is the core samples, this material that -- and this investigation, all of these samples are going to be analyzed.

They're also going to be compared to samples from the actual collapse site once he has access to it.

And, of course, one of the first questions that I asked is if he has seen anything, anything so far that is of worry.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES: Allen, have you seen anything that has worried you yet?

ALLYN KILSHEIMER, STRUCTURAL ENGINEER: No, ma'am. But I can't see through concrete, and I can't get compressors to the through the concrete. That's why the GPR and compressor strength to the concrete is important for me to understand.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES: And, Ana, of course, everybody wants to know what caused this collapse.

I asked him, do you feel confident that you will find out, and he says yes. He's confident that he will figure it out at some point.

But he does say it probably won't be one thing. It will probably be a combination of things.

CABRERA: Rosa Flores there in Surfside, Florida. Stay strong, my friend. Thank you for your reporting.

Now to Georgia. Police are a major step closer to some answers in a triple homicide case at a country club. Golf pro, Gene Stiller, is among the victims.

This happened Saturday outside Atlanta. And we're learning there's a suspect in custody.

Let's bring in CNN's Ryan Young, following this story.

What are you learning, Ryan?

RYAN YOUNG, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Ana, first, I want to say this. Police haven't shared a motive yet. They haven't answered a lot of questions on the crime yet. In terms of trying to figure out why we're here, that's not been

answered.

They have a suspect in custody. That's Bryan Rhodan. He was arrested. And, of course, he's charged and going to have his first court appearance later tonight.

But so far, so many people in the community are sort of breathing a sigh of relief because they're happy this murder suspect is off the streets.

I want to tell you this. There were two other men that were killed in the back of that car as well. There are so many questions about this case.

But listen to the chief responding to one of my questions last night when I asked him about the community's concerns about how this investigation was going on.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TIM COX, CHIEF, COBB COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT: I realize some members of the community felt frustration. They felt like they had limited information. I respect that feeling.

From the perspective that I'm at, I knew we had a mission to come to a successful conclusion of this and provide a form of justice to the family.

And the successful arrest and prosecution was our highest priority and that's what we were focusing on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

YOUNG: Yes. The police had a lot going on here, and especially using outside agencies to help them as well with tracking this down.

Something that also piqued our interest, there's a timeline where the suspect was arrested and charged with five different traffic violations on the fourth, including a DUI. He was released on the sixth.

You have all this conversation about him getting pulled over in less than 12 hours after the fact of the shooting.

Not sure if police developed him as a suspect at that point when he was arrested for that DUI.

But then, once he was released, he was picked up about 25 miles away from where the shooting happened.

So many questions about this case. As soon as we learn more about the motive, Ana, we'll share it with you.

CABRERA: Ryan Young in Atlanta. Thank you. In Haiti, two American citizens are now among 17 suspects arrested in

the assassination of the country's president. Authorities there say the armed group was made up of, quote, "professional killers." More than two dozen in all.

The attackers reportedly include retired members of the Colombian military. And a nationwide manhunt is underway for at least eight more suspects.

CNN's Matt Rivers is in Port-au-Prince for us -- Matt?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATT RIVERS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Let me describe the scene as where we are right now. This is one of the areas where some of the shootouts the governments say took place between security forces here, an army police joint operation and also some suspects.

Some of which were in this car behind me that you can see to my left. There's bullet holes scattered throughout the vehicle. And obviously caught fire afterwards.

[13:45:08]

You see bullet holes in the building behind me. There's shell casings of the different weaponry all over this area.

Let me give you the numbers we have in the government. Mainly coming from a press conference that was giving here in Port-au-Prince last night.

And 17 different suspects have been detained so far. At least three have been killed during shootouts like in this area where we are right now. And eight people at least at this point remain at large.

Of all the suspects that we have heard about from the government, 26 of the 28 are Colombian nationals. Six of them have previous experience with the Colombian military. The remaining two suspects are Haitian-Americans.

That's about what we know for so far. The motive of all this, how they managed to get into the presidential residency, is what we're here to find out. And hopefully, we'll have answers for you soon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CABRERA: Matt Rivers, thank you.

Any minute, we'll hear from President Biden on his plan to make the U.S. economy more competitive. We've talking about lower prices on items Americans care about the most. Details just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Not good morning, which my remarks say here, but -- good afternoon. We're in the midst of a historic economic recovery. And because our

successful vaccination program strategy has been working.

And the immediate relief through the American Rescue Plan has brought back our economy from the worst economic crisis in nearly a century, America's now on track.

We're now on track for the highest economic growth in 40 years and one of the highest growth records on record.

We designed our economic strategy to be durable through the ups and downs that come with recovery. There are ups and downs.

That's why the American Rescue Plan was designed to help people not just all at once but over the course of a full year. So, we can continue supporting families, small businesses, state and local budgets to help them weather those ups and downs.

And now that the economy is back on track, we're making progress on the second phase of our strategy, ensuring long-term growth.

[13:50:05]

That's what my Build Back Better agenda, including my American Family Plan and the bipartisan infrastructure agreement we reached last month, that's what they're all about, long-term.

But to keep our country moving, we have to take another step as well. And I know you're all tired of hearing me during the campaign and since I'm elected president talk about it. And that's bringing fair competition back to the economy.

That's why today I'm going to be assign signing shortly the executive order promoting competition, to lower prices, increase wages, and to take another critical step toward an economy that works for everybody.

The heart of American capitalism is a simple idea. Open and fair competition. That means that if your companies want to win your business, they have to go out and they have to up their game.

Better prices and services, new ideas and products that competition keeps the economy moving and keeps it growing.

Fair competition is why capitalism has been the world's greatest force of prosperity and growth.

By the same token, competitive economy means companies must do everything they do to compete for workers. Offering higher wages, more flexible hours, better benefits.

But what we've seen over the past few decades is less competition and more concentration that holds our economy back. We see it in big agriculture, big tech, in big pharma. List goes on.

Rather than competing for consumers, they are consuming their competitors. Rather than competing for workers, they're finding ways to gain the upper hand on labor.

And too often, the government has actually made it harder for new companies to break in and compete. Look at what that means for family budgets.

Take prescription drugs. Just a handful of companies control the market for many vital medicines, giving them leverage over everyone else to charge whatever they want.

As a result, Americans pay two and a half times more for prescription drugs than in any other leading country. And nearly one in four Americans struggles to afford their medication.

Another example. Hearing aids. Right now, if you need a hearing aid, you can't just walk into a pharmacy and pick one up over the counter. You have to get it from a doctor or a specialist.

Not only does that make getting hearing aids inconvenient, it makes them considerably more expensive. And it makes it harder for new companies to compete, innovate, and sell hearing aids at lower prices.

As a result, a pair of hearing aids can cost thousands of dollars. That's a big reason why just one in seven Americans with hearing loss actually use a hearing aid.

Another example. Internet services. There are more than 65 million Americans live in a place with only one high-speed Internet provider.

Research shows when you have a limited Internet operation, you pay up to five times more on average than families in places with more choices.

That's what a lack of competition does. It raises the prices you pay. That's not just consumers getting hurt.

Big Ag is putting the squeeze on farmers, small and family farms, first-time farmers like veterans coming home, and black and Latino and indigenous farmers.

They're seeing price hikes for seed, lopsided contracts, shrinking profits and growing debt.

Lack of competition hurts workers as well.

In many communities, there are only a handful of employers left competing for workers.

Think of company towns across Appalachia and other parts of the country where one big corporation runs the show.

When corporations have that kind of leverage over workers, it pushes down -- it pushes down advertised wages by up to 17 percent.

As competition decreases, businesses don't feel the pressure to innovate or invest in their workforce. That hurts working families and hurts our economy. All told, between rising prices and lowering wages, lack of

competition costs the median American Household $5,000 a year.

Look, I'm a proud capitalist. I spent most of my career representing the corporate state of Delaware. I know America can't succeed unless American business succeeds.

Let me be very clear. Capitalism without competition isn't capitalism. It's exploitation. Without healthy competition, big players can change and charge whatever they want, and treat you however they want.

[13:55:10]

And for too many Americans, that means accepting a bad deal for things that can't go -- you can't go without. So, we know we've got a problem, a major problem.

We also have an incredible opportunity. We can bring back more competition to more of the country, helping entrepreneurs and small businesses get in the game. Helping workers get a better deal, helping families save money every month.

Good news is, we've done it before. In the early 1900s, President Teddy Roosevelt saw an economy dominated by giants like standard oil and JPMorgan's railroads.

He took them on. And he won. He gave the little guy a fighting chance.

Decades later, during the Great Depression, his cousin, Franklin Roosevelt, saw a wave of corporate mergers that wiped out scores of small businesses, crushing competition and innovation.

So, he ramped up antitrust enforcement, eightfold, in just two years, saving families billions in today's dollars and helping set the course for sustained economic growth after World War II.

He also called for an economic bill of rights, including, quote, "the right of every businessman, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies," end of quote.

Between them, the two Roosevelts established an American tradition. An antitrust tradition is how we ensure that our economy isn't about people working for capitalism. It's about capitalism working for people.

But over time, we've lost the fundamental American idea that true capitalism depends on fair and open competition.

And 40 years ago, we chose the wrong path, in my view. Following the misguided philosophy of people like Robert Bork and pull back on enforcing laws to promote competition.

We are now 40 years into the experiment of letting giant corporations accumulate more and more power. And what have we gotten from it? Less growth, weakened investment,

fewer small businesses. Too many Americans who feel left behind. Too many people who are poorer than their parents.

I believe the experiment failed. We have to get back to an economy that grows from the bottom up and the middle out.

The executive order I'm soon going to be signing commits the federal government to full and aggressive enforcement of our antitrust laws.

No more tolerance for abusive actions by monopolies, no more bad mergers that lead to mass layoffs, higher prices, fewer options for workers and consumers alike.

My executive order includes 72 specific actions. I expect the federal agencies, and they know this, to help restore competition. So that we have lower prices, higher wages, more money, more options and more convenience for the American people.

Today, I want to focus on three specific actions.

First, the FDA, the Food and Drug Administration, they're going to work with states and tribes to safely import prescription drugs from Canada.

That's just one of many actions in the executive order that will lower prescription drug prices.

Second, the FDA is going to issue rules so that hearing aids can be sold over-the-counter. That's something the last administration was supposed to have done but didn't do. We're going to get it done.

After these rules go into effect, a pair of hearing aids could cost hundreds of dollars, not thousands. And you'll be able to pick them up at your local drugstore.

Third, we're going to approve competition for workers. I've talked a lot about noncompete agreements, contracts that say you can't take another job in your field even if you get a better deal.

I made a speech, I was just reminiscing with my staff, back in 2018 at the Brookings Institution, where I talked about the noncompete clauses that were just -- I found to be absolutely ridiculous but how prevalent they were throughout industries.

At least one in three businesses require their workers to sign a noncompete agreement. These aren't just high-paid executives who are assigned to hold secret formulas for Coca-Cola so Pepsi can't get their hands on it.

The recent study found one in five workers without a college education is subject to noncompete agreements. They're construction workers, hotel workers, disproportionately women and women of color.

[14:00:05]

Think of the 26-year-old employee at a company. She's a star worker, but she isn't being treated right.