'This Week' Transcript 9-15-24: Gov. Mike DeWine and Gov. Maura Healey

A rush transcript of "This Week with George Stephanopoulos" airing on Sunday, September 15, 2024 on ABC News is below. This copy may not be in its final form, may be updated and may contain minor transcription errors. For previous show transcripts, visit the "This Week" transcript archive.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: THIS WEEK WITH GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS starts right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARTHA RADDATZ, ABC "THIS WEEK" CO-ANCHOR: The debate.

KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE U.S. (D) AND U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Donald Trump was fired by 81 million people.

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Everything that she believed three years ago and four years ago is out the window.

HARRIS: He is more interested in defending himself than he is in looking out for you.

TRUMP: She doesn't have a plan. She copied Biden’s plan.

RADDATZ: The issues, the insults, the baseless claims.

TRUMP: They're eating the dogs, the people that came in. They're eating the cats.

HARRIS: Talk about extreme.

RADDATZ: But now what? We'll break down surprising results from our brand-new poll. And we're on the road in battleground Pennsylvania talking with voters about what it all means.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think Kamala was a little more convincing last night.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When she was asked direct questions, she didn't answer them.

RADDATZ: This morning, the presidential race ahead with Republican Governor Mike DeWine and Democratic Governor Maura Healey.

Plus, analysis from our powerhouse roundtable.

And –

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The pain of the burns was beyond description. White, hot pain is really the only way to describe them.

RADDATZ: Twenty-three years after surviving the 9/11 Pentagon attack, former Navy Officer Kevin Schaefer now reveals his secret role at the CIA, tracking down the man responsible for the attacks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: From ABC News it’s THIS WEEK. Here now, Martha Raddatz.

RADDATZ: Good morning, and welcome to THIS WEEK.

If you were betting that this week's ABC debate would be without high drama, verbal clashes, and one of the most memorable, baseless claims in debate history, think pets in Ohio, you would be wrong. But if you were convinced that Kamala Harris would surge ahead in the polls because of her strong debate performance, you would also be wrong. Our brand-new post-debate ABC/Ipsos poll out this morning shows that a majority of Americans, 58 percent, think Harris was the victor in the debate. But while Harris still has a solid lead in the race nationally, 52 percent to 46 percent among likely voters, those numbers are almost exactly the same as before the debate.

But there were some gains. Sixty-nine percent of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents say the debate made them see Harris more favorably, which could help boost turnout for her in November. Just half as many Republicans and GOP-leaning independents, 34 percent, say the debate made them see Trump more favorably.

And the poll shows Harris advancing among young people who say they're likely to vote in November. That's fueled by young women with Harris leading by 38 points among those young women likely to vote. Trump, however, still leads Harris among likely voters on handling the economy and immigration.

Of course, this race will all come down to the battleground states, and our FiveThirtyEight polling average shows it's still very much a tossup race, including in Pennsylvania, where the debate took place, and where we got a sense of just how close the race is the morning after.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RADDATZ (voice over): It was just hours after the debate in Pennsylvania, the state that could well decide the outcome of the election, that we stopped to chat with voters. Those who support Kamala Harris, practically glowing.

ED MOON, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: I thought the vice president killed it.

LINDA DEAN, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: She was just on point. She didn't let Trump frazzle her.

ART, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: Quite frankly, I liked Kamala's message of, you know, more prospective, positive outlook on the future.

RADDATZ (voice over): But we were looking for undecided voters to see what difference the faceoff made.

RADDATZ: Did you know before the debate last night who you would vote for?

KARRINGTON BRYANT, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: No, I didn't. I was – it was up in the air. I don't have anything against women. I'm just a little skeptical. You know, I’ve never seen a woman run a country before. But Donald isn't 100 percent, you know? So, I think Kamala was a little more convincing last night.

RADDATZ (voice over): But he is still leaving the door open in case former President Donald Trump changes his mind.

BRYANT: You know, I like to hear both sides. You know, I'm fair. Fair is fair.

RADDATZ (voice over): For Temple College student Ben Rohrbaugh, neither candidate said enough to win him over yet.

BEN ROHRBAUGH, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: It was kind of hard for me to learn anything justbecause there was so much like talk in the room. And it was just a lot of, like, I don't know, a lot of fluff.

RADDATZ: You wanted more specific?

ROHRBAUGH: I wanted more specifics.

RADDATZ: This first-time voter is torn.

ROHRBAUGH: I like Kamala Harris' presence. I like the fact that she was willing to go shake President Trump's hand. Those are – those are good things. But I – I – I just – I feel like Donald Trump, you know, I just – I trust him.

RADDATZ (voice over): Southwest of Philadelphia, at a park in Concord Township, we met Debi Sutherland. Despite what others may have seen as Donald Trump's angry outbursts –

TRUMP: People don't leave my rallies. We have the biggest rallies, the most incredible rallies.

RADDATZ (voice over): Sutherland thought he kept his cool.

DEBI SUTHERLAND, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: I think Trump actually did pretty good controlling himself.

RADDATZ: You do?

SUTHERLAND: I – yes, I think it – but I fell asleep. So, I don't know if he got worse, but I think he didn't do his usual childish name-calling behavior.

RADDATZ (voice over): Sutherland has previously supported Trump, but she's currently undecided.

RADDATZ: And what is your hesitation, if that is the right word, because you haven't made up your mind yet about Kamala Harris?

SUTHERLAND: I don't know enough about her. I don't know enough. I found more information last night, but I don't know enough about her.

RADDATZ (voice over): Independent Clare Bobiak agrees.

CLARE BOBIAK, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: When she was asked direct questions, she didn't answer them. So, that's why I'm still – that's what's left me with, OK, I'm not quite sure yet what her policies are and so on. So, I'm going to dig a little more into her policies.

RADDATZ: And you were satisfied with the answers that Donald Trump gave?

BOBIAK: Well, I knew them already.

RADDATZ (voice over): Ten minutes across town, Mike McDermott told us he's made up his mind, and nothing will change it.

RADDATZ: Had you already made up your mind? Did it make a difference?

MIKE MCDERMOTT, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER: No, not at all.

RADDATZ: Not at all?

MCDERMOTT: There’s facts. Facts are facts.

RADDATZ: You're supporting?

MCDERMOTT: Trump.

RADDATZ: And –

MCDERMOTT: Economics. It's as simple as that.

RADDATZ (voice over): We asked McDermott about the baseless claims made by Trump during the debate that Haitian migrants are eating pets in Ohio. McDermott bought in.

MCDERMOTT: There's actually, all over the internet, that's on it.

RADDATZ (voice over): But there was one voter in Pennsylvania who we met last year we were eager to see post-debate. In April of 2023, when Joe Biden was his party's candidate, Democrat Soneyet Muhammad told us she wasn't even sure she'd vote this November.

RADDATZ (April 2023): So, in the end, if – if – if Donald Trump is the nominee and Joe Biden is the nominee, you’d just stay home?

SONEYET MUHAMMAD, PENNSYLVANIA VOTER (April 2023): Probably. Get me out of bed, Joe Biden, because, frankly, it's not working.

RADDATZ (voice over): But now, after watching Kamala Harris debate, she has had, well, an awakening.

MUHAMMAD: I will vote. I will vote for Kamala Harris this time. She showed, I think, her grit, her ability to pivot, to respond, to create a vision that was just incredibly impressive. So, yes, getting out of bed is not going to be as hard this time around.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RADDATZ: So, let’s take all that to Republican Governor Mike DeWine of Ohio, whose state has been in the spotlight this week. I know you are a Trump supporter.

And, Governor, let’s start with that poll. Donald Trump did not make any significant gains after that debate. Kamala Harris is ahead among likely voters 52-46. Her favorability numbers are 69 percent. Donald Trump's are half that. Did he miss an opportunity at that debate?

GOV. MIKE DEWINE, (R) OHIO: Well, he’s going to do well in Ohio. You know, he’s going to win Ohio by a big – big margin. And that’s what we’re looking at, of course, in Ohio.

RADDATZ: Well, he needs to do more than that. So, did he miss an opportunity in that debate?

DEWINE: Look, I think he’s always better off talking about the issues that really impact Americans. I think the economy is always the most important thing. The inflation. These – these are the things that I think are bread and butter that, you know, he should be talking about.

RADDATZ: And – and I, of course, you remember what he did talk about. You have said that you don’t oppose the program that allowed some 15,000 Haitians to migrate there in Ohio, in Springfield, Ohio, but former President Trump and J.D. Vance, who you support, have doubled down on baseless claims that former President Trump made at the debate. Let’s listen to that again.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs, the people that came in. They’re eating the cats. They’re eating – they’re eating the pets of the people that live there. And this is what’s happening in our country, and it’s a shame.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RADDATZ: And here’s a question I never thought I would have to ask, but do you see any evidence, as governor of the state, that Haitian immigrants are eating pets?

DEWINE: No. Absolutely not. That’s what the mayor has said. That’s what the chief of police has said. I think it’s unfortunate that this – this came up.

Let me tell you what we do know, though. What we know is that the Haitians who are in Springfield are legal. They came to Springfield to work. Ohio is on the move, and Springfield has really made a great resurgence with a lot of companies coming in.

These Haitians came in to work for these companies. What the companies tell us is that they are very good workers. They’re very happy to have them there. And, frankly, that’s helped the economy.

Now, are there problems connected? Well, sure. There’s -- when you go from a population of 58,000 and add 15,000 people onto that, you’re going to have some challenges and some problems. And we’re addressing those. We’re working on those every single day. Primary care is essential.

The other thing we’re working a lot on is driving. We have Haitians who, frankly, many times have not driven before. We need to do a -- get more drivers training, and we’re working on that.

So, these are things that we are working on. Springfield is moving forward. I've always felt that as the governor of the state of Ohio, you know, we want people who want to come here who are legal, where they come from another state or another country who want to work.

RADDATZ: So --so, Governor, let -- let me --

DEWINE: This state that -- that is really moving forward.

RADDATZ: So -- so, bottom line is, is you are asking for federal help. No one was eating any pets in Springfield, Ohio.

So, what would you say to Donald Trump for bringing up those baseless stories? Is it responsible for a presidential candidate, a former president of the United States, to make those baseless claims?

DEWINE: Look, there’s a lot of garbage on the Internet and, you know, this is a piece of garbage that was simply not true. There’s no evidence of this at all.

And look, here’s what we’re starting to see. We’re starting to see Haitians --

(CROSSTALK)

RADDATZ: But -- but I want -- I want you to -- to address what you would say --

DEWINE: Let me just finish because --

RADDATZ: OK, but I -- I do want you to address what you would say to Donald Trump.

(CROSSTALK)

DEWINE: Let --let me just -- yeah.

Yeah. There are hate groups coming into Springfield. We just don’t need these hate groups. I saw a piece of literature yesterday that the mayor told me about from, purportedly, the KKK.

Look, Springfield is a good city. They are good people. They are welcoming people. We have challenges every day. We are working on those challenges.

Haitians are -- they’re culturally -- my wife Fran and I have seen this when we’ve been down in Haiti that education is prized. So, when you look at all of these things, people who want to work, people who value their kids, who value education, you know, these are positive influences on our community in Springfield.

And any comment about that otherwise I think is hurtful and is not helpful to the city of Springfield and the people of Springfield. This is -- this is a state on the move, it’s a city on the move.

These Haitians can be part of this, but there are challenges. And, you know, I've talked to people at the White House. We need additional assistance.

I think when you have this many people surge into a community, they need help.

(CROSSTALK)

RADDATZ: Governor -- Governor, I -- I did let you talk there for a few minutes.

I -- I do -- I do want to go back to this. You had threats there in Springfield. Hospitals had to close. Schools had to close because of bomb threats.

You were a huge supporter of J.D. Vance. He spread this conspiracy. Eleven million people saw it on X.

DEWINE: Look --

RADDATZ: Is there a connection between threats to your state and what President Trump said and what J.D. Vance is doing online?

DEWINE: I think these discussions about Haitians eating dogs and cats and other things needs to stop. We need to focus on what is important. What’s important is that we get primary care health to everyone in a very growing city, that we do other things in regard to housing.

These are kind of the basic things that we need to do. We need to focus on those and not these -- this discussion about Haitians eating dogs. It’s just not helpful.

And, again, these people are here legally. They’re here legally. And they want to work. And they are, in fact, working.

And when you talk to the employers, what the employers tell you is, you know, we don’t know what we would do without them. They are working and they are working very hard and they’re fitting in with our native people from Springfield who have been working in this shop or working in this manufacturing company for -- for a long, long time.

So, that’s what we need to focus on. And, you know, this idea that we -- we have hate groups coming in and talk -- this -- this discussion just has to stop. We need to focus on moving forward and not dogs and cats being eaten. It’s just ridiculous.

RADDATZ: Also, on Tuesday night Trump refused to accept, again, the 2020 electionresults. He told false stories, as you – as you noticed, and falsely claimed that he ordered National Guard troops, 10,000 guard troops, on January 6th.

So, how do you square all of this with your support for Donald Trump? Has it softened in any way?

DEWINE: Look, I – yes. I said before we knew who the nominee was going to be, I would support the Republican nominee for president. I am – I am a Republican.

I think if you look at the economy issues, and these are issues that I think the American people are most concerned about, I think that Donald Trump is the – is – is the best – is the best choice.

RADDATZ: So, you would advise him to keep talking about that and not pets in Ohio?

DEWINE: I think you have to – if you talk about things that people really care about and the things that are important and things that a president can have a real impact.

Now, he can also talk about – and of course he does and – and both candidates do, all four candidates do, about immigration. Look, there’s – these are legitimate problems that we have on the border. I'm not minimizing that at all. And those are legitimate arguments where the vast majority of the American people agree with Donald Trump and not the – and not the vice president.

But what’s going on in Springfield is just fundamentally different. These people are here legally. They came to work. These are – these are good people.

RADDATZ: OK.

DEWINE: These are hard-working people.

RADDATZ: Thank you so much for joining us this morning, Governor DeWine.

DEWINE: Thank you.

RADDATZ: We appreciate your comments.

Coming up, will Taylor Swift’s endorsement of Kamala Harris bring more voters to the polls. We’ll tell you what our new poll shows.

And up next, Harris campaign supporter, Governor Maura Healey of Massachusetts joins us. We’re back in two minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: As a prosecutor, I never asked a victim or a witness, are you a Republican or a Democrat? The only thing I ever asked them, are you okay? And that's the kind of president we need right now, someone who cares about you and is not putting themselves first. I intend to be a president for all Americans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RADDATZ: Vice President Kamala Harris making her closing argument in Tuesday's debate on ABC.

I’m joined now by Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey, clearly a supporter of Kamala Harris.

You know, Democrats said quickly that Kamala Harris won the debate. In fact, our poll found 58 percent of the voters thought she was the clear winner and yet that performance did not overall move the needle. They're -- they're basically in the same place as before the debate. Does that surprise you?

GOV. MAURA HEALEY, (D) MASSACHUSETTS & HARRIS-WALZ CAMPAIGN NATIONAL ADVISORY BOARD MEMBER: No, not at all. I -- Martha, we know that this is going to be a close race. Kamala Harris says that she's an underdog.

But what's important is that she and Tim Walz have built a campaign for a close raise. And they're opening an unbelievable number of offices around the country, tons of staff, tons of volunteers, the enthusiasm has been really strong.

And I think what's very important also is that she and Tim are playing for every voter. They're going to red counties. They're going to red districts, right? Because as she said in her closing argument, I'm going to be a president for all Americans. You may not agree with me on everything, but I'm going to be here for you and your family.

And one thing that the debate demonstrated to me at least is that Kamala Harris is about you. She's about the American people. She's thinking about your family. Donald Trump is just about himself. Remember, Kamala Harris is the one who's out there saying she's going to cut taxes for 100 million Americans. She's going to provide a tax credit to families with children. She's going to produce more housing around the country so we can lower housing cost. She's focused on lowering the cost of prescription drugs and groceries.

RADDATZ: Governor, I --

HEALEY: What have we heard from Donald Trump beyond -- beyond the pets and the like? So, you know, the debate -- we've moved on from the debate. It's about the campaign.

RADDATZ: Governor, I want to go back to the debate because that was important and I want to go through a few things that Kamala Harris said. I want to ask you about her comments about the military. She said during the debate this about the U.S. military.

Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: As of today, there is not one member of the United States military who is in active duty in a combat zone in any war zone around the world, the first time this century.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RADDATZ: Our fact checkers found that to be false and I have a lot of experience in that area, as well. There are currently 900 U.S. military personnel in Syria, 2500 U.S. troops in Iraq, all have been under regular threat from drones and missiles for months. We also have action in the Red Sea. We also -- every single day, the Navy SEALs, Delta Forces, special operators can be part of any sort of deadly raid.

So why would she make that claim?

HEALEY: I think what's important here, Martha, is that Kamala Harris in contrast to Donald Trump demonstrated herself to be commander-in-chief. We are in a world where there are all sorts of conflicts and it's all the more reason we need somebody who's serious and who supports the military and just remember --

(CROSSTALK)

RADDATZ: But, Governor --

HEALEY: -- Donald Trump's own --

RADDATZ: But, Governor, excuse me, but she said there is not one member of the United States military who is an active duty in a combat zone. That is not true. You say she demonstrated her ability to be commander-in-chief, but did she not know about these people in Syria and Iraq? Why would she say that?

HEALEY: Look, that was a comment -- that was a comment in a debate. I think the point that she was trying to make was a broader point and, of course, we have military in place all around this country, that's important. We're the United States of America, and Kamala Harris, remember, is the person who stands with NATO, who supports our allies, who's working to bring countries together.

Donald Trump stands with Vladimir Putin. So, you know, I think that's what's really important. Kamala Harris, she respects our military, she respects our service members. Donald Trump calls them suckers and losers. And it's why Donald Trump's former military generals support Kamala Harris. They say that Donald Trump shouldn't be anywhere near the Oval Office.

And I think those are the points, Martha, that people need to understand. We live in a world of very serious times with serious consequences and the actions of the next commander-in-chief matter. Kamala Harris will be that commander-in-chief and lead us forward in freedom, working with other --

(CROSSTALK)

RADDATZ: Governor, I want to hit another --

HEALEY: Donald Trump is interested in --

RADDATZ: I want to stick to --

HEALEY: -- saddling up to Putin.

RADDATZ: Governor, I want to stick to -- I want to stick to Kamala Harris here. On abortion, Vice President Harris did not make clear whether she supports any restrictions on abortion. Currently, nine states and the District of Columbia have no gestational ban on abortions. Your state of Massachusetts has a ban on abortion after 24 weeks. Your state drew a line.

Should she let people know where she stands and draw some sort of line?

HEALEY: She already did, Martha. What she said is let's go back to Roe, which, by the way, contrary to what Donald Trump says, nobody was asking to be overturned except for some segment. She's been clear -- and I can tell you that because I myself am a former prosecutor, former attorney general, very familiar with abortion laws and we both respect the right for people first off to make their own individual decisions about their body and what they want to do.

That's very important. Women and families should have that choice. That includes the choice not to have an abortion. But what Kamala Harris has said is she wants to take us back to Roe which allowed for abortion in certain circumstances. Donald Trump is -- you know, here's what's really important, he did not say the other day in the debate that hewould veto a national abortion ban. And, in fact, he supports abortion bans, just like the Trump abortion ban that's on the ballot in Florida.

And it's appalling. It's appalling what that means for women, for families for their health. And you know, that is a clear, clear distinction in this race.

Kamala Harris wants to bring us back to the Roe period where we had protections in place and access. We weren't jailing doctors. Women weren't bleeding out and afraid. Husbands and wives who wanted to have children, you know, were able to access and make the health care decisions that they need to be able to protect their ability to do so. Victims of rape and incest had relief.

Donald Trump wants to take all of that away.

(CROSSTALK)

RADDATZ: Governor, I want -- I want to move on to the economy.

HEALEY: -- there is a clear difference.

RADDATZ: There -- there is a clear difference there.

Governor, I want -- in terms of the economy, Vice President Harris says she has a plan for lifting the middle class.

But right now, the middle class under the Biden-Harris administration: eggs are up 119 percent, bread up 25 percent, chicken up 25 percent, the median home price is up 39 percent.

This is the Biden-Harris administration and Donald Trump is leading on the economy and immigration.

What are your people saying to you? You must hear that as a governor.

HEALEY: Yeah, and look, I try to explain to people as governor, here's how we got here, okay? We had COVID which Trump did not handle well. There had to be a huge infusion of money to save our small businesses and to help our -- all of our states. Inflation rose as a result.

And what's happened under the Biden-Harris administration is they've actually worked to bring down inflation. There is still work to do.

What's important, Martha, going forward is that Donald Trump wants to make permanent tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy among us, okay, which is only going to burden us with more debt. He also wants to put on more tariffs which are going to raise consumer prices for all of us.

In contrast, Kamala Harris has said, I’m going to lay the foundation to see further reductions in the interest rates which I think we'll see soon and prices are going to come down.

RADDATZ: Okay, Governor.

HEALEY: But it is very unfair to start that in the middle of the movie when the Biden-Harris team came in and we're dealing with a lot. We have the strongest economy of any country in the world right now and they are committed to making life more affordable for people on housing, drugs, groceries and the like. Donald Trump isn't.

RADDATZ: Thank you so much for joining us this morning, Governor. We appreciate your time and your comments.

Coming up, Trump says he won't debate again. Is that a mistake? The powerhouse roundtable takes that on when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAMALA HARRIS, (D) VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES AND PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I believe we owe it to the voters to have another debate.

(CROWD CHEERING)

HARRIS: Because this election and what is at stake could not be more important.

TRUMP: She immediately called for a second debate, which means that she was like a prize fighter that lost a fight. Because we've done two debates and because they were successful, there will be no third debate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RADDATZ: Donald Trump striking down the possibility of another debate after Kamala Harris advocated for one. So, how will the candidates now get their messages out in these final tension-filled weeks before Election Day? Our Powerhouse Roundtable is standing by standing by to take it all on. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

RADDATZ: The Powerhouse Roundtable is all here. Former DNC Chair Donna Brazile, Former RNC Chair and Trump White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus, NPR White House Correspondent Asma Khalid, and The New Yorker Staff Writer Susan Glasser, welcome to all of you. Quite a week. Donna, you were ecstatic after the debate, and Kamala Harris' performance, I think you said it was one of the best debate performances you've ever seen in your life. And yet, the needle didn't really move overall.

DONNA BRAZILE, ABC NEWS CONTRIBUTOR & FORMER DNC CHAIR: Martha, I didn't expect the needle to move. What I expected was the vice president to give a strong, solid debate performance. Look, she came into that debate knowing that Donald Trump was going to spew lies. He was going to probably bait her. Instead, from the moment she shook his hand, which I thought was very presidential, to the way in which she landed her arguments, she made the best out of that 90 minutes.

She was able to, once again, solidify the Democratic Party because that was a big challenge coming from the transition from Biden to Harris. 95 percent of Democrats believe in this ABC poll, that she did well. Only 75 percent of Republicans believe that Trump did well. But, you know what? The icing is on the cake; if I can have cake right now, is that 61 percent of independents thought she did well, and she won the debate.

RADDATZ: And that is a strong number, and Donald Trump's among GOP -- GOP and Independents leaning GOP was about half that in the debate.

REINCE PRIEBUS, FORMER RNC CHAIR & FORMER TRUMP WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF & ABC NEWS POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes, you know, but this isn't about performance. What this is really about is how did the debate affect the outcome of the upcoming election? And what we're seeing is that it did not. And what we’re also seeing in this poll is that Donald Trump is sitting there –

RADDATZ: But you're seeing some gains by Kamala Harris, not by Donald Trump.

PRIEBUS: OK, she went up one point. Trump went up one point.

But what we’re also seeing is that Donald Trump is remaining very strong with Hispanics in that poll at 41 percent, which is astonishing, that he's at 50 percent with voters that are under – or men – male voters under 30.

The reality is, is that she didn't address the most important issues that are affecting the election, which is the economy and the border, and she didn't address it, which is why the polling isn't moving. So, while she lied about Trump, he's going to pass a national abortion ban, he's going to monitor women's pregnancies, she didn't answer the question that David Muir asked, are you better off than you were four and a half years ago? Didn't answer it. Didn't answer the question on whether or not – why she waited so long to address the border. And she didn't answer the question on whether she supported a single restriction on abortion. She avoided it. So, she doesn't benefit in the polls.

RADDATZ: Reince, I – I do want to say, you know, you say these polls don't – don’t mean much. She – they – they are still very, very, very close, especially in those battleground states.

But there's also a poll this morning from “The Des Moines Register” that says, “Kamala Harris has significantly narrowed the presidential race in Iowa, cutting Donald Trump's lead to four percentage points, a dramatic turnaround from Joe Biden's double-digit deficit.” What do you think is happening?

PRIEBUS: Yes, I mean, I saw that poll too. And I – and that’s really what I would focus in on in the campaign. All of these states that matter. And – and – and that would be a poll I would look at and be concerned with.

RADDATZ: And – and, Susan, what Harris and – and Donna said this as well, she really got under Donald Trump's skin. But do you see this debate as making any sort of big difference or does it just cement her as the nominee?

SUSAN GLASSER, THE NEW YORKER STAFF WRITER: Yes, Martha, look, I – clearly the theory of the case from the Harris campaign was, if you bait Donald Trump, he will take the bait. I think their strategic goal here is to make the race, in effect, a referendum on Trump, to turn him into an incumbent. There's a reason that the United States has not elected a former president in such a long time. It's – it’s – it’s generally speaking, a country that looks forward.

Now, we're in the unusual position where Harris is the incumbent vice president. We also don't have a habit of picking incumbent vice presidents. So, whatever the outcome of the election, it’s going to be very, very unusual in historical terms.

But I look at those polls and I say, it's really notable the difference between how Democrats responded to the defeat of their candidate, Joe Biden in June with the full-fledged panic and pushing Biden out of the race, versus how Republicans have, you know, been confronted with, I think, some pretty serious questions about Trump's age, his fitness for office, his ability to answer, to look the American people in the eye and to give a coherent answer, to any of the major questions facing the country, and yet support for Trump among Republicans is immoveable, even if like Governor DeWine on your program earlier today, they're very uncomfortable, some of them, with Donald Trump, but nonetheless they've stuck with him.

RADDATZ: And – and when we went out to talk to that one voter in particular, he said the same thing.

Asma, she didn't go very deep into policy and these planning. She gave kind of an outline of those plans. How did you see it?

ASMA KHALID, NPR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT & ABC NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Yes. I mean, right, she talks about the economy. She talks about creating sort of an opportunity economy. These are vague terms. There’s not a whole lot of – of concrete policy. And that's not something that the Harris campaign strategically really thinks they need to do. You're not going to see a whole lot of policy plans over the next few months. I mean to Susan’s point, they find it much more strategically advantageous to make this campaign a referendum on Donald Trump.

You know, the other thing I'll point out is though much of her policy, when she has articulated it, is akin to Joe Biden’s. I mean, you know, she's presenting herself as being a change candidate. And I would argue that change-ness is largely physical. It is that she is a candidate about 20 years younger than Donald Trump. She's a different person than Joe Biden. But to a tee –

RADDATZ: (INAUDIBLE) the optics of that night, too.

KHALID: Yes. Yes.

RADDATZ: Not only her kind of smiling and laughing and – and –

KHALID: And in command, I think, really of the debating arena, right, in a way that we did not see Joe Biden able to sort of command the platform and question and bait Donald Trump.

But I would argue, you know, whether it's on the Middle East, whether it's on Ukraine, the economy, immigration, by and large her policies are akin to what Joe Biden's are. And that's to be expected. She's the sitting vice president.

RADDATZ: Donna, I want you to comment on that, but I also -- I also want to reveal the Taylor Swift poll, okay?

(LAUGHTER)

RADDATZ: The big endorsement that the Democrats had hoped for, Taylor Swift endorsing her, but our new poll found that only 6 percent said her endorsement make them more likely to support Harris, while 81 percent said it makes no difference whatsoever. Although apparently, kids are going to registering.

BRAZILE: Oh, first of all, I’m a Swifty. Thank -- thanks to my students at Georgetown, I started listening to her music, her lyrics. So I know all of that. Sorry, I don't have my bracelet on this morning.

I would take the endorsement for several reasons. One, Taylor Swift is one of the smartest entertainers, businesswomen in this country today. Beyonce, of course, as well, but she -- you read her letter.

She said, read the issues, know the candidates, know the facts. If you're not registered, find out how to register and you know what? Go to vote.org.

People are starting to pay attention and they are registering the vote.

So, yes, in a close election and we both agree, Mr. Chairman, that it's going to be a close election, one on the margin. Taylor Swift is likely to get more people off the sideline to vote this year.

RADDATZ: And, Reince, I have to ask you about this. Laura Loomer, the far rightwing conspiracy theorist, Donald Trump took her to the 9/11 Memorial this week, 23rd anniversary of that.

He's taken her in his airplane. She has had -- spouted racist rhetoric about Kamala Harris. What is he doing with her?

REINCE PRIEBUS, FORMER RNC CHAIR & FORMER TRUMP WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF & ABC NEWS POLITICAL ANALYST: Not something I would do. I can't answer that but what I can say is that, you can't tweet things about 9/11 conspiracies and show up, you know, at an official memorial. So, you know, I’m not on board with that. I don't support that.

As to the comment here though, why the strategic ambiguity of Kamala Harris doesn't seem to be affecting the polling and why the debate one way or the other doesn't seem to be affecting the polling, it's because at this very moment, both campaigns are taking a billion dollars and they focusing in on about 500,000 people that will actually decide the election, and those 500,000 people take in about five minutes of news per week.

And so, it may not matter whether what -- what's said in the debate, what happened with Laura Loomer, what happens, you know, in regard to pets --

RADDATZ: Almost 70 million --

BRAZILE: Wait a minute --

PRIEBUS: So few -- there's so few people at this moment -- you take Wisconsin. It's 48-48. There's hardly anything left in the middle that's undecided. People are hardened and there's very few --

RADDATZ: I want to very quickly. I want to get Susan and Asma in on this.

When you look at that debate, does it matter? There were 70 million people who watched that debate and where they go now?

SUSAN GLASSER, THE NEW YORKER STAFF WRITER: Yeah. Look, I spoke with one former campaign manager who had looked at the numbers and suggested that, you know, maybe over history, it's not a huge difference but maybe about like half a -- half a percentage point to the winner of the presidential debates.

Let's remember that Donald Trump has been judged to be the loser of every major national debate in the general election that he has had with -- against Hillary Clinton, against Joe Biden.

Does it matter? He's lost the popular vote in the previous two elections. I think it does matter.

RADDATZ: I got to go to Asma very quickly.

KHALID: Yeah, just briefly, I mean I think that the biggest indication to me, though, of the unknown of what might happen is how they have been running wildly different campaigns over the last few days post-debate.

You mentioned Laura Loomer, Donald Trump doubling down in his plans for mass deportation of immigrants.

You saw Harris going out to Pennsylvania, Luzerne County -- a county Donald Trump convincingly won in Pennsylvania, trying to court those moderates.

RADDATZ: So much more to discuss.

Coming up, as we mark 23 years since the 9/11 attacks this week, I spoke with a 9/11 survivor now revealing his role at the CIA tracking down Osama bin Laden. It's a remarkable story you won't want to miss.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

RADDATZ: That was Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Donald Trump, and J.D. Vance putting aside politics for a moment this week to attend the memorial service on the 23rd anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Like most Americans, I remember exactly where I was on that September day. After being evacuated from the State Department, I walked to the Potomac River where I could see smoke pouring from the Pentagon after a hijacked jet tore through the building.

But, what I did not know until I got a call from the CIA just a few weeks ago, was that a young navy officer who nearly died in the Pentagon that day, one who years earlier was on a navy ship that launched the first direct attacks on Al Qaeda, eventually joined the small team that would finally find the mastermind of 9/11, Osama bin Laden, the man who killed nearly 3,000 Americans, and almost killed Kevin Shaeffer as well. It is a remarkable story that only the CIA has told, until now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RADDATZ (voice-over): We met at the Pentagon memorial on a cloudless day, much like that September day in 2001, when Kevin Shaeffer was inside the Pentagon's Navy Command Center watching the horror in New York unfold.

LT. KEVIN SHAEFFER: When we saw the second aircraft hit, very distinctly, I remember hearing audible gasps throughout our command center space.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, this looks like it is some sort of a concerted effort to attack the World Trade Center that is underway.

RADDATZ (voice-over): That was 9:03 a.m. Shock and disbelief, but no indication the Pentagon would be next, but 34 minutes later, at 9:37 a.m. --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our belief at the moment is that an aircraft has crashed into either the courtyard itself or into that particular side of the building.

RADDATZ (voice-over): American Airlines Flight 77 ripped through the building.

SHAEFFER: I felt blast, the initial blast felt like it came from behind me, and it threw me to the ground. I knew I was on fire, badly burned, and everything around me had been blown to bits, and was in flames.

RADDATZ: Everyone on the plane died instantly. 125 killed inside the Pentagon. 42 of them in the Command Center with Shaeffer.

SHAEFFER: I remember being on the ground putting myself out, extinguishing the flames, putting my hands over my head, kind of feeling them slick. I think what was probably being doused with jet fuel and debris and things, and really no one around me left around me, and so in that moment was when I realized that I had to fight and claw and climb my way out or else I wasn't going to make it.

RADDATZ: Fighting through darkness and dense black smoke, Shaeffer saw a sliver of daylight.

SHAEFFER: So I felt my adrenaline kick in, and as I rushed across that space to the daylight that was shining through a freshly blown out hole and I crossed the threshold from the carnage behind me to relative safety in front of me.

RADDATZ: And there in the light, Sergeant 1st Class Steve Workman.

SHAEFFER: He found himself there just as I was walking through that threshold, and our eyes met for a brief moment and I called out to him, screamed out to him as best I could, I need help. Get me some help, and he took me and laid me onto a maintenance cart and we're off seeking aid.

RADDATZ: Nearly half of the then 29-year-old's body was seared by deep burns, including his arms and hands.

SHAEFFER: They knew they wanted to cut off the wedding band I wore on my left hand and my Naval Academy class ring that I wore on my right hand. Both of the rings meant so much to me and there was no way I was going to let anyone cut them off. And so I yelled stop, stop, and was able to muster up my will and strength and get my wedding band off and my class ring off, and I handed them to a nurse nearby, and I thought, now you can get on with saving my life, and it was the last conscious memory I have.

RADDATZ: When he woke up, his skin and lungs charred from fire and jet fuel. The pain was nearly unbearable.

SHAEFFER: The pain of the burns was beyond description. They -- I liken them to the color white, and white, hot pain is really the only way to describe them.

RADDATZ: Pain and infections, doctors were not sure he would survive.

SHAEFFER: One morning in October I succumbed to my injuries and flatlined twice, but they brought me back each time and I bounced back stronger, but they really had to introduce some novel techniques to break down the infection in my lungs and fight them off with -- they essentially used live maggots that they had bred in laboratories to be sterile to eat the infections off my arms.

RADDATZ: So you had live maggots on your arms.

SHAEFFER: Indeed.

RADDATZ: Eating the infection. It worked.

SHAEFFER: Indeed. It worked. They saved my arms.

RADDATZ (voice-over): When the danger finally passed, and he knew he would live, Shaeffer found a new and powerful purpose.

SHAEFFER: I thought it was possibly one of the reasons why I had made it through that I wanted to serve and learn the lessons of 9/11 to help prevent another 9/11, help secure this country.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here on the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, I hereby convene this hearing.

RADDATZ: He fought to get a role on the 9/11 Commission that investigated how the terrorists managed to carry out their mission, but the mastermind, Usama bin Laden, was still out there. Shaeffer wanted to do more.

And you wanted to find him.

SHAEFFER: No doubt.

RADDATZ (voice-over): It was then in 2007 that Shaeffer joined the CIA as a targeter, eventually assigned to the small team that was trying to track down bin Laden, the terrorist who almost killed him.

SHAEFFER: The hunt at the time was active and ongoing. I knew some individuals on the team, but very much so I wanted to be a part of it.

RADDATZ: It would be years before the team finally zeroed in on a compound in Pakistan, and a man the team dubbed the pacer. The lead targeter portrayed in the movie "Zero Dark Thirty" --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But bin Laden is there, and you're going to kill him for me.

RADDATZ: -- was certain they had their man.

SHAEFFER: And that individual had a very high confidence that it was bin Laden.

RADDATZ: President Obama gave the go ahead, and on May 1st, 2011 as his team watched in real time in the White House as the Navy SEALs descended into the bin Laden compound, Kevin Shaeffer and his team were watching the same images at a CIA Command Center in Virginia.

SHAEFFER: When that first helicopter kind of spun and performed a controlled by hard landing inside the compound, I think everyone's heart stopped.

RADDATZ: And the mood in that room was just --

SHAEFFER: Tense, you could hear a pin drop.

RADDATZ: But the SEALs kept going until they found their target.

SHAEFFER: We heard the initial callout, "Jackpot Geronimo" in the space and that was met with a bit of jubilation. That lasted for only a matter of seconds because everyone was then really intently focused on the evacuation and getting them out.

RADDATZ: And once they were out, what do you remember?

SHAEFFER: I packed up my things and I kind of walked back to our main counterterrorism space. I remember entering the space and joining up with a senior colleague and friend. I went into his office and shared a giant hug, and just started then, initially feeling that sense of closure. We reviewed the photos from the scene, realized that they had gotten our man, and that there was no doubt.

RADDATZ: You saw a picture of bin Laden --

SHAEFFER: Indeed.

RADDATZ: -- after he'd been killed?

SHAEFFER: Indeed.

RADDATZ: Shaeffer walked out of the CIA that night, before the rest of the world knew what had happened. But he wanted one person in particular to know, the army sergeant who had helped save his life.

SHAEFFER: I had to call Sergeant Workman, who I knew was an early to bed and early to rise kind of person. And I gave him a call, probably woke him up and said -- I said, "Hey, turn on the TV. There's some news that's going to be breaking."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, (D) FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The United States has conducted an operation that killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of Al Qaeda, and a terrorist who's responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent men, women, and children.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RADDATZ: You watched President Obama at home with your wife?

SHAEFFER: I did. She was holding my hand, and we didn't say a word. We just digested the moment, and thought over the last ten years at the time, all that we had been through, all that we collectively had gone through, and for me just thinking about the effort, the great effort that many, many, many people put in to get to that moment, and just being thankful to be a part of it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RADDATZ (on camera): Just an amazing story. Kevin Shaeffer has since gone on to do advocacy work for 9/11 victims and their families. He remains healthy, though the scars from that day will stay with him forever. This is the first time Shaeffer has talked publicly about his years in the CIA to anyone outside the agency, but you can learn much more about his remarkable story on the CIA's podcast " The Langley Files," a three-part series I highly recommend. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

RADDATZ: Thanks for sharing part of your Sunday with us, and be sure to tune into ABC tonight for the "76th Primetime Emmy Awards" at 8:00 p.m. Eastern, right here on ABC.