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Discovery Of Abedin Emails Occurred Weeks Ago; Trump Targets Democratic-Leaning States This Week; Clinton Urges Supporters To Get Out The Vote; Four Democratic Senators Set Halloween Deadline For Comey; Obama on "Full Frontal" with Samantha Bee. Aired 4-5p ET

Aired October 30, 2016 - 16:00   ET

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


[16:00:03] FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Donald Trump holding a rally in Las Vegas, Nevada, where he again slammed Clinton's use of her private server.

Nevada is a crucial state for both candidates. A new poll there showing Trump and Clinton in a dead heat. This as nearly 19 million people have already cast their votes with almost 10 million of those coming from battleground states.

We have this breaking news to share with you on the FBI review into the newly discovered e-mails of Hillary Clinton's close aide, Huma Abedin. CNN is being told that the discovery of those thousands of e- mails was weeks ago.

CNN's justice correspondent, Pam Brown, joining me on the phone with more details on this. So what are you learning about when James Comey actually learned of these thousands of e-mails from agents?

PAMELA BROWN, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): Well, it's still unclear, Fredricka, about when exactly he learned about the existence of these e-mails. All we know is in a letter to Congress on Friday, he said he was briefed on the new findings the day earlier.

But what we do know is that weeks before that, shortly after the FBI launched an investigation into Anthony Weiner, an allegation that he was sexting with an underage girl, they subpoenaed his devices and found these e-mails.

By early October, it was clear to investigators involved that the e- mails they discovered may relate to the Hillary Clinton e-mail server investigation. From there, there were internal discussions at the FBI about how to proceed.

Now we know, days before the election, the FBI, James Comey, disclosed the discovery. This all raises questions about why this information was kept under wraps and then released only days before the election.

And when James Comey was actually initially briefed on this, when he found out about these e-mails, still a lot of unanswered questions. But what we're told by our law enforcement sources is that FBI officials moved to disclose this development on Friday.

Because there was a fear that the information would leak out otherwise, and then it would be perceived that the FBI was hiding information, pertinent information, before the election.

That is what we're being told at this point, but we do know that this would not something that the FBI just discovered on Thursday, when James Comey said he was briefed. This happened weeks before, when the initial investigation into Anthony Weiner was launched -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And so Pamela, what about the issue of the search warrant? Now we know we've heard this weekend that the Justice Department, FBI, are talking about a search warrant. But if this discovery was made weeks ago, might that search warrant have been applied for long before now?

BROWN: It's unclear exactly when the search warrant was applied for. This is really kind of a unique situation because, you know, they're investigating the sexting allegations. Now the FBI needs to get a search warrant in order to look at these other e-mails relating to the Clinton private server probe.

But as we've been reporting, Fredricka, there was this agreement between department officials, Department of Justice officials and the FBI about disclosing this information. Of course, the FBI would need the approvals of the Justice Department to get this search warrant.

And so this could be something that could even happen after the election. It's really unclear about that timeline for the search warrant.

When we find out more information about what was actually in those e- mails, whether they were duplicates, whether they were e-mails that weren't turned over. A lot of unanswered questions there.

WHITFIELD: All right, Pamela Brown, thank you so much. Keep us posted.

All right, so to the campaign trail now, where Donald Trump has been hammering Hillary Clinton over this latest FBI review of e-mails. Trump is campaigning in Colorado, New Mexico and Michigan, all states that currently favor Hillary Clinton.

CNN's senior White House correspondent, Jim Acosta has been covering this campaign for a very long time. So Jim, what's the expectation there?

JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think, Fredricka, no question about it, this race was changing even before the disclosure that the FBI is now looking at these new Hillary Clinton e-mails or potentially Hillary Clinton e-mails as part of the Anthony Weiner investigation.

If you look at that latest ABC News/"Washington Post" daily tracker poll, Donald Trump has closed the gap with Hillary Clinton significantly. So why not is the attitude inside the Trump campaign?

Why not go to places like Colorado which look like they're in Clinton's column? Why not go to places like New Mexico? My goodness, who would have thought Donald Trump would be campaigning in New Mexico.

Michigan is another issue. That is because the Trump campaign, although, they recognize it is solidly in Hillary Clinton's column at this point, that is chock-full of voters that they think are likely to vote for Donald Trump. So they want to make a couple more last stabs at taking that state.

[16:05:02]But no question about it, you know, Fredricka, I wouldn't call the Anthony Weiner story, this e-mail story, or the FBI isn't looking at potentially new e-mails involving Hillary Clinton as a game changer.

But it certainly has put some wind at the back of Donald Trump. Earlier today in Las Vegas, at his earlier event today, he was almost praising the former New York congressman because of this latest story that broke on Friday. Here's what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I have a feeling they've just found a lot of them. Don't you think? I have a feeling. Huma -- they just found a lot of them. We never thought we were going to say thank you to Anthony Weiner.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: You heard the big applause line there, Fredricka, and it's really sort of a reversal of positions in terms of the way Donald Trump has been talking about the FBI.

You'll recall earlier this year, when the FBI, when the director, James Comey, came out and essentially cleared Hillary Clinton and said they weren't going to pursue a criminal investigation against her.

Donald Trump all summer long, into the fall, was saying that the FBI mishandled that investigation, that they were part of this rigged system. You're not hearing Donald Trump talking about a rigged election quite as much.

That is because what he's talking about and what the Hillary Clinton campaign is talking about is a story that is damaging potentially to Hillary Clinton. That can only work to Donald Trump's favor in these final days -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Jim Acosta there in Grille, Colorado, thank you so much. We'll check back with you later on.

All right, meantime, Hillary Clinton is hitting key battleground states, including Ohio, Arizona, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and, of course, Florida, her second day there today. Without specifically mentioning the latest e-mail controversy, Clinton told the crowd that she is not going to be distracted.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: My mom taught me to never, ever quit, and what does that mean? Well, that means -- you got it. It also means when you're knocked down, what matters is whether you get up again.

I have been fighting for families and underdogs my entire life. I'm not stopping now. We are just getting warmed up. Right? And we won't be distracted, no matter what our opponents throw at us. We're not going to be knocked off course. We know how much this election matters. We know how many people are counting on us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN's Phil Mattingly joining me now from Wilton Manners, Florida, outside of Ft. Lauderdale. Is there any reaction coming from the Clinton camp, especially with this breaking news, that these e- mails may have been discovered by the FBI weeks ago?

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think what you're hearing from the Clinton campaign when it comes to this issue specifically is not going to change. It hasn't changed really since Hillary Clinton's first statement in Cedar Rapids a couple of days ago.

They believe they have undercut the argument that Republicans are making about what this actually is right now. They believe this letter from Director James Comey to Capitol Hill was unnecessary.

They question the rational for it. Every piece of the story that's has come out since, when you talk to Clinton advisers, they believe it is essentially evidence of the claims that they are making.

Because of that point, Fred, you played the sound from Hillary Clinton from here a couple hours ago. It is a not so subtle look at their strategy going forward. Maybe implicitly referenced what's going on, but focus on the campaign trail.

Here's why. Jim kind of eluded to this when he is talking about Donald Trump, too. This is a big issue. This is what everybody is talking about. That's problematic because people are voting now in all of these key battleground states, including here in Florida. This is what Hillary Clinton had to say about how important that is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLINTON: This is amazing. More than 20 million people have already voted in this election. Most of those votes in the last few days, 3 million of those votes from right here in Florida. Now, you only see numbers like that when people are standing up for what they really believe in.

So if all of you vote, if your friends, your family, your coworkers vote, if everyone you talk to between now and Election Day votes, we are going to make some really big history on November the 8th.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: Fred, the point here is this, at least from Hillary Clinton's perspective on the campaign trail, is to keep pushing forward with the same message she had 11 days ago, as she does have now nine days left in the race.

And the rational is this, it's because people are actually voting and the Clinton campaign believes that people who are going to have a problem with the latest news, the latest FBI letter to Capitol Hill, weren't going to be voting for Hillary Clinton either.

[16:10:04]Hillary Clinton referenced this on Friday saying, I think that's already baked in. Clinton advisers have repeated that over and over again.

I can tell you anecdotally, Fred, when you talk to her supporters in the last couple of days during the swing through Florida, they seemed to agree. They believe actually that this helps fire up some of their volunteers.

Fire up some of their canvassers that they feel like they need to defend Hillary Clinton. Now the Clinton campaign also believes this is something that is going to happen. The reality is this, we don't have a great sense yet of what impact the last 72 hours will have on the numbers in this race.

The Clinton campaign, for their part, believes that this should help motivate some of their volunteers and it kind of adds an extra onus on the table for Hillary Clinton to try and get people out to vote now and try to maintain the message that they had 11 or 12 days ago, even in the wake of all the noise and sound that's surrounding this FBI letter -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, Phil Mattingly, thank you so much. Appreciate that.

When we come back, the Clinton campaign isn't alone in its call for more transparency from the FBI. Four sitting congress people have now penned their own letter accusing the Justice Department of confusing voters. We'll speak to one of them next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, welcome back. A group of powerful Democrats are turning up the pressure on FBI Director James Comey. The four senators are calling for the release of more information about the bureau's announcement that it is examining new material as part of its investigation into Hillary Clinton's e-mail server.

Patrick Leahy of Vermont, Diane Feinstein of California, Tomas Carper of Delaware are joining with Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland, sending this letter to the FBI Director Comey.

In it, it says, "No later than Monday, the 31st of October, 2016, we request that you provide us with more detailed information about the investigative steps being taken, the number of e-mails involved and what is being done to determine how many of the e-mails are duplicative of those already reviewed by the FBI."

[16:15:07]Joining me right now to discuss this is one of the writers of that letter, Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland on the phone with us. Thanks so much, Senator, for taking the time out. So this letter has been sent? If so, have you received any kind of confirmation of its receipt? Any reaction?

SENATOR BEN CARDIN (D), MARYLAND (via telephone): Today, we have -- the letter went out yesterday. We have not received any reply. Obviously, the timing of the FBI director's announcement is very disappointing. Secretary Clinton has asked for full disclosure.

We believe the American people need to know before the elections what this is about because there's strong belief that this is nothing new. This is a separate investigation they're doing.

So there is no indication that there is anything of concern, but this is a matter that the FBI director needs to make a much further disclosure. Quite frankly, this should have been held after the election.

WHITFIELD: CNN is reporting that we're learning that the FBI may have known about these e-mails for weeks now, even though the public has learned about it just this week by way of the letter that Comey sent to the hill. What questions do you have about this now?

CARDIN: Well, the notice to the hill was sent less than two weeks before the election. That is highly unorthodox. You don't do types of investigation announcements this close to an election.

Secondly, there is no indication here that this is anything involving Secretary Clinton. This was an independent investigation. There is no indication there is any new e-mails that have not already been seen. We don't know.

The American people have a right to know exactly what was involved. What e-mails are we talking about? Let's get immediate disclosure so there aren't these innuendos going into the national elections.

WHITFIELD: So in your view, how should this have been handled?

CARDIN: Well, it should have been -- the announcements -- if there is anything that needs to be looked at, should have been done after the election at this stage. You don't make an announcement a couple -- less than two weeks before an election, knowing full well you won't be able to do a full investigation before the election.

The notice issues are a separate investigation, should not have been made. That could be used, as it has been used by the Republicans, this close to an election.

WHITFIELD: But you know others may have argued that if the FBI sat on this information, waited until after the election to reveal it, that that would not have been fair to the American voter.

CARDIN: Then disclose everything. That's what we're asking for. Before the election, disclose everything you have. Let the American people judge what you have. Don't just tease with this notice to Congress. That leads a lot of questions unanswered. Secretary Clinton is very comfortable with all the information being disclosed. She's a person who is being mostly impacted by this. Disclose the information.

WHITFIELD: Do you believe all of this is influencing voters before they head to the polls on the 8th?

CARDIN: I think it is a matter that voters would like to know more about. They have the right to know, considering the announcement that was made, notice given to Congress. It is raising a question. That question should not be raised without having a lot more information out there.

WHITFIELD: For the, what, nearly 20 million who already voted in early voting, absentee voting, et cetera, do you believe that many of them are feeling cheated by learning about this information now?

CARDIN: Well, quite frankly, we expect that the e-mails we're talking about involving Secretary Clinton have already been reviewed, already been looked at, the conclusions have already been reached when the investigation was closed.

We don't expect there will be anything new in regards to Secretary Clinton. This involves a different person, as the reason why the information was obtained. I don't expect this to produce anything new. But since the notice was given, it is important that all the information be made public.

WHITFIELD: All right, Maryland Senator Ben Cardin, thanks so much for your time. Appreciate it.

CARDIN: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, coming up, the Clinton campaign reacting strongly against the new FBI's new investigation. We'll hear from her campaign manager, John Podesta, next.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN PODESTA, CHAIRMAN, HILLARY FOR AMERICA: It was long on innuendo and short on facts. So we're calling on Mr. Comey to come forward and explain what's at issue here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:23:14]

WHITFIELD: All right, welcome back. We now know the same team that performed the original Clinton e-mail investigation will be looking into the newly found e-mails belonging to Clinton aide, Huma Abedin. However, the U.S. Justice Department and FBI officials have not yet secured approval that would allow the full search of those e-mails.

CNN's Jake Tapper spoke with Clinton campaign Chairman John Podesta this morning, where he said it was irresponsible for Comey to make this bombshell announcement less than two weeks before Election Day.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PODESTA: This was an unprecedented action. It broke with policy, Democratic and Republican Justice Departments. It was done over the advice of senior Justice Department officials.

And you know, I think that the Justice Department has had a long tradition of not interfering in an election, coming 11 days before the election and, as I said yesterday, it was long on innuendo, short on facts.

So we're calling on Mr. Comey to come forward and explain what's at issue here. So far, there's no charge of wrongdoing. There's no charge even that Hillary -- and the reporting that backs it up coming from anonymous law enforcement sources indicates it might not be about her server. It might not be about her at all.

So I think this is something that has been tossed into the middle of the campaign. We would have preferred that not to happen, but now that it has happened, Mr. Comey really needs to come forward and explain why he took this unprecedented step.

Particularly when he said in a letter to himself in the letter to the hill that this may not even be significant.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: He said that it was pertinent to the investigation and here's the world according to James Comey's perspective, FBI agents are investigating the husband of one of Hillary Clinton's top aides for allegedly sending illicit material to an underage girl.

[16:25:10]In the course of that, they stumble upon emails that seemed to be relevant to the other investigation, the Clinton investigation. Suddenly Comey finds that his sworn statement from September, that the FBI had completed its review, was no longer true. They had more materials.

Now, Clinton didn't follow protocols when she started her e-mail server. Huma Abedin didn't turn over that computer. Weiner was doing what he was doing and you and the Clinton campaign seemed to be blaming Comey for being transparent with Congress. What was he supposed to do?

PODESTA: Well, look, Jake, I think he should have done, in my view and in the view of many senior people in both Democratic and Republican administrations, two deputy attorney generals from the Bush administration have already come out. He should have taken further steps.

Yahoo! News reported last night that they haven't even looked at the content of this. To throw this in the middle of the campaign 11 days out just seemed to break with precedent and be inappropriate at this stage.

If they are not significant, they are not significant. He might have taken the first step of actually having looked at them before he did this in the middle of the presidential campaign so close to the voting.

TAPPER: But it's not that they haven't read any of them. Obviously the FBI agents who stumbled upon them read some of them and determined them to be (inaudible) and then realized they didn't have a --

PODESTA: Do you know that? We don't know anything.

TAPPER: I'm telling you, according to the reporting of Evan Perez, our justice correspondent, it's not as though they didn't know anything in the e-mails. They stumbled upon them and found that they seemed to be pertinent to the Clinton e-mail server investigation and that is why --

PODESTA: Might not be significant 11 days before the election, is that something you toss on the table or do you take the time to do what other prosecutors have done in the past and make sure it's so significant that you have to go forward with it.

So I don't fault him for taking a look at whatever he's found. We don't really know what that is, but at this stage, having taken the step and he at least ought to explain, you know, if he thinks they are significant or not significant, let him come forward and say why.

TAPPER: Do you accept the fundamental premise that the reason we're here is because Hillary Clinton and her inner circle, not including you, made a horrible decision to set up her private e-mail server and everything that has happened since then is her fault?

PODESTA: Well, look, I think she's apologized for setting up a private e-mail server. She said it was a mistake. She said she wouldn't do it over again. I think, you know, it's very clear that this has been an issue through the course of this campaign. I think she obviously would like to take that decision back, but she's learned from it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, that was John Podesta, Hillary Clinton's campaign chair. We'll hear more from him straight ahead and our panel reacts right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:31:08] WHITFIELD: All right. You're watching the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Welcome back. All right so we know now the FBI knew about this newly discovered batch of Clinton related e-mails week ago. But the bureau director didn't disclose the discovery until this past Friday. E-mails were found as a part of a sexting investigation into disgraced congressman Anthony Weiner, the estranged husband of Clinton's top aide, Huma Abedin. CNN Jake Tapper spoke with Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta this morning and asked him specifically, why Abedin's e-mails were missing from the original FBI investigation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: Have you asked Huma Abedin what is on the computer and why she didn't turn it over when she said she is the one with all the devices.

PODESTA: We don't know what computer Mr. Comey is talking about. You're assuming a lot of facts that we don't know. So I think that, as I said, she is been fully cooperative with the authorities. And they have recognized that. You know, I think that the, you know we can sit here and speculate and put facts into the record based on anonymous report.

TAPPER: I'm not speculating, sir. Our reporting is that it was a laptop computer that belonged to Anthony Weiner and they found state department e-mails on that laptop. That is reporting. That is not speculation. You have access to Huma Abedin. I don't. Have you asked her how this happened?

PODESTA: I don't think she knows anything more than what we've seen in the press today.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. Let's bring in our political panel to talk more about this. Jay Newton-Small is a contributor at "Time Magazine", Bryan Morgenstern a Republican Strategist and Ellis Henican a political analyst, all right, good to see, all of you.

JAY NEWTON-SMALL, TIME MAGAZINE CONTRIBUTOR: Hi, Fred.

WHITFIELD: So that question really revolved around why that device, you know was not part of the original Clinton-related investigation, just some clarity on that one. So Jay, let me begin with you. Podesta, you know painting this as nuance not so serious. He says he thinks Huma Abedin truly believed, you know, that she had handed over everything. Do you believe that voters will see it that way?

NEWTON-SMALL: Well, I think this is something where it is going to be whatever you make of it, right? Because it is so vague, Hillary supporters are going to say, oh, it's not a big deal. You know what's on there, I'm sure, it is just innocent. You know potentially, she just left, she didn't realize that she downloaded documents from her husband's computer, whatever it is. They'll find a reason to say it is not a really big deal. And Trump supporters will say this is really a big deal. There is potential top secret information. And we just don't know. And the fact of the matter is we're not probably going to know until after the election. And so basically, each campaign will make as little or as much of this as they can.

WHITFIELD: And so, Brian, you know first, you know the criticism withheld at the FBI for releasing this kind of information 11 days ahead of the election. But now, we're learning through CNN's reporting that the FBI may have known about these e-mails for weeks now. Will that impact the strategy of these candidates or even the mindset of the voters? BRIAN MORGENSTERN, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Well, just the revelations

themselves certainly will. And we've already seen the campaigns obviously have to react to this. The Clinton campaign's reaction has obviously been to blame the messenger, which is typical Clinton politics. When they don't like the information, they just nuke whoever is presenting it. But the fact of the matter is, as Jake Tapper aptly pointed out to John Podesta, none of this would have happening if the Clintons didn't make this mistake in the first place, with the private e-mail server. I would add that the Wall Street Journal is reporting that 650,000 e-mails, apparently, are on that laptop. Many of which may be pertinent, not just to this e-mail probe, but also to the Clinton foundation probe.

WHITFIELD: So that is the "Wall Street Journal" reporting but CNN cannot confirm those numbers. So I wonder Ellis, you know the running mates were on the Sunday talk shows today. Tim Kaine and Mike Pence commented about this investigation. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[16:25:07] SEN. TIM KAINE (D-VA), VICE PREISDENTIAL NOMINEE: It's just extremely puzzling. Why would you break these two protocols? Why would you release information that is so incomplete when you haven't even seen the material yourself 11 days before an election?

GOV. MIKE PENCE (R-IN), VICE PREISDENTIAL NOMINEE: We commend the director of the FBI and the FBI for following through on their work before the congress. That if there was new, pertinent information, sufficient to reopen this investigation that they would inform congress of that fact and they would move forward.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So, Ellis, who is making the better argument here?

ELLIS HENICAN, POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, listen, you know what? It depends which argument you want to hear, right? I mean any of the facts of this case can confirm whatever side of this you already are on. The part that is interesting to me is in the last hours, Fred, it seems like the story is bouncing back in the direction of the FBI, right? I mean the protocol violated, the 60 day rule, ignored throwing this thing 11 days right into the middle of the campaign. I mean Pam Brown's reporting, very interesting, right, that agents have known about this information for weeks. Didn't even tell -- apparently, didn't even tell their boss about it. And so, you wonder what their motives might have been. We've been hearing a lot of reports of conservative agents who weren't happy about the original decision. Maybe -- are they delaying? It just makes the mind wander a little bit, doesn't it?

WHITFIELD: Brian, so Comey said he learned of it, you know on Thursday but now through our reporting the FBI knew of these e-mails for weeks. But we don't know whether Comey, you know, was just made abreast of it on Thursday, like he said, or if he did sat on the information. But what's your thought as to how all of these developments are potentially influencing the narrative of either candidate?

MORGENSTERN: Right. Well, obviously, as Ellis just articulated, the folks on the left, who are supporting Hillary, are going to seize on this as evidence that, you know, the FBI broke some sort of protocol, which is sort of ironic, because it is an investigation into breaking protocol.

HENICAN: True.

MORGENSTERN: But if you look at what that really means, the Democrats, now that the shoe is on the other foot, sort of, so to speak, after the July announcement, they are now saying that the FBI should have covered up an ongoing criminal investigation into a presidential candidate for politics, it seems like, which I don't think voters will find very convincing. But again, the campaign strategy seems to be going after the messenger. In that case, in this case rather it is the FBI.

WHITFIELD: And Jay?

NEWTON-SMALL: Look, going after the messenger has been a common theme in this campaign, both on the Trump side and the Hillary side. Everybody is always blamed, the media, which is the favorite culprit here. But I mean this is clearly going to have an impact. The question is how big of an impact? We've already had 20 million people vote in the country. If polling is to be believed, it will have some impact. But is it going to swing the whole race? It remains to be seen. Because things are so vague and so fuzzy, we have to wait and see if is going to, you know what possibly could come out, more before the actually election.

WHITFIELD: All right everyone, stick around. We have more to talk about. We'll continue talking about the candidates' game plan from this point forward. What their schedules tell us about their strategies, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:41:52] WHITFIELD: Welcome back. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. So with just over a week to go before the election, CNN polling average show a tightening race, Hillary Clinton leading with 47 percent among likely voters to Donald Trump's 42 percent, both campaigns crisscrossing the battleground states all week.

I want to bring back our political panel, Jay Newton-Small, Brian Morgenstern and Ellis Henican. All right, good to see you guys back again. We're in the final stretch. Nine days to go. And so already, Ellis, we saw Donald Trump, you know seizing on the FBI investigation. We saw Hillary Clinton talking about her -- you know reiterating her commitment to the LGBT community.

How much of what we saw today are indicators of what we're likely to see from these candidates in the next eight days?

HENICAN: Well, this and 50 other things. Fred, I'm always nervous at a time like this, right? I mean this is the presidential election in a divided nation. These two candidates are fighting very aggressively. All you can say is get out and vote. In a lot of states you can do it early. And I can say that with comfort, because I know that high turnouts in this kind of situation tend to favor Democrats. So folks, get out there and vote.

WHITFIELD: Except, you know, take a look at this map. And you know the assemblage of early voting states and which ones lean so far Democrat and which ones are leaning a Republican. So, Jay, as we look at these numbers, you know these colors and these numbers. You see Florida, Arizona, Ohio, Utah, vital states and the GOP already leading in these early voting, you know stats. How much do you read into these numbers?

NEWTON-SMALL: Fred, you really can't read that much into these numbers at all, because even though you are looking at which party registered voters are actually voting, you don't know who they actually voted for. And you won't know that until Election Day. So there could be a lot of crossover voting. And there are also big questions of the independent voters. Which ones are they voting for? And actually the biggest numbers of voters in America are actually independent voters. And so whichever one the party -- registered party voters are going for is not that intends actually be that much of an indicator in the elections.

WHITFIELD: In fact, let's look at the screen one more time, showing, you know where the GOP is leading and where the Dems are leading this early voting. And so Brian, when you see for the Dems, Colorado, Iowa, Nevada, North Carolina, swing state of, you know, North Carolina, what does this tell you about the potential strategy of a Hillary Clinton?

MORGENSTERN: Well, it shows that, you know, she is trying to bolster her turnout in the states where she is not, you know getting after that early lead. That is why she is in Florida today. And Fred, you've heard both of the candidates today, the end if not additional points in their speeches, saying, get out there and vote. You know do whatever you can to vote today if it is an early voting state. They're emphasizing turnout so much and trying to focus on the key messages that will inspire people to turn out.

And for the Clinton campaign today, that was obviously, you know, we're not going to get distracted. We're going to focus on LGBT rights. And for the Trump campaign it is crooked Hillary and look at this FBI probe, you know, being reopened. If you don't want this corruption, get out and vote. So the campaigns are focusing on turnout, as campaigns are want to do nine days before an election and they are trying to say those exact talking points that they think are actually getting to get people to get out of their house and go to the polls.

[16:45:18] WHITFIELD: And so, Jay how much of this is, these candidates wanting to make sure the turnout is high versus these candidates trying to sway in these last few days, anyone who claim they really are undecides.

NEWTON-SMALL: Fred, is there an American left who is undecided at this point? It would be amazing if there is. I mean, it's been a contentious race. It has been such a high-profile race. It's been all over television for years it feels like. I really do think it is just, right now, all about turning out your base and really getting those party loyalists out there, but also getting, you know the independent voters out there for you, whoever is pledged to vote for you, whoever is going to vote for you. In the last week, it comes down to turnout and Geo TV and that is exactly what both campaigns are going to be focusing on in their closing messages in the nine days left to go.

WHITFIELD: Ellis, are there undecideds that are, you know, still waiting to hear something from Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump?

HENICAN: You know it makes you wonder, what on earth are those people waiting for? Don't you know enough about these candidates at this point? I mean, I guess the thing I would be looking at, Fred, is who has the better apparatus to get their folks to the polls, right? Who has the workers in the field? Who has the people driving the car pools and knocking on the doors or making the phone bank calls? You know, I have to say, advantage Hillary on that.

WHITFIELD: And Brian, last word

MORGENSTERN: Well, I think there actually may be some undecideds out there in this cycle, because both candidates have such high negatives. And a lot of voters are trying to decide, am I going to hold my nose and vote as I typically do, or am I going to change course, because the other candidate in this particular race is just someone I can't stomach? And so you may -- we've already seen some unusual voter behavior in this election, and I don't think anybody really knows what's going to happen, you know, as of November 8th.

WHITFIELD: All right. Brian Morgenstern, Ellis Henican and Jay Newton-Small, good to see all of you, thank you so much.

NEWTON-SMALL: Thanks, Fred.

MORGENSTERN: Thank you, Fred.

HENICAN: Take care.

WHITFIELD: All right, here's where supporters of Clinton and Trump stand on the FBI investigation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it is about time. I don't know how sincere his investigation is, I hope that it is, but it is about time.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: As far as the e-mails go, I think that that was, you know -- she admitted that was not a good thing. But I don't think it was intentional. I wonder who puts the wiki information out there. And you know I can forgive her for that.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [16:51:46] WHITFIELD: All right. CNN is proud to announce the top

ten CNN heroes of 2016. And you get to help decide who the hero of the year will be. Here is Anderson Cooper to show you how.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Now that we've announced the top ten CNN heroes of 2016, I want to show you how you can help decide who should be CNN hero of the year and receive $100,000 to help them continue their work.

Just go to CNNheros.com, where you can learn more about each hero. And when you're ready, click vote over here. Then choose your favorite. Now, confirm your selection using either your email address or Facebook account and you are all set. And this for the first time you can also vote through Facebook messenger and on Twitter.

You can vote up to ten times per method, everyday through December 6, then rally your friends by share your vote on social media. We'll reveal the 2016 hero of the year live during the 10th annual CNN heroes, an all-star tribute, Sunday, December 11th.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, meet all of this year's top ten heroes and vote every day at CNNheroes.com to help decide who should be our CNN hero of the year. All ten will be honored at the 10th annual CNN heroes and all star tribute. Join Anderson Cooper and special guest co-host Kelly Ripa, live, Sunday, December 11th.

All right, President Obama getting in the Halloween spirit with comedian Samantha Bee on her TV show, "Full Frontal."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAMANTHA BEE, FULL FRONTAL TV HOST: Thank you so much for joining us for our annual Halloween presidential interview.

BARACK OBAMA, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA PRESIDENT: It is so exciting.

BEE: This year, I'm going as a witch.

OBAMA: That is not a witch costume.

BEE: I'm a woman on television, and I'm over 40, so I'm already in costume. Where is yours?

OBAMA: I'm dressed up as what happens when young people vote.

BEE: Someone gets really old really fast?

OBAMA: That is not it.

BEE: So is that like white spray faint or fun Halloween cobwebs up there?

OBAMA: Sam, I'm still president for about three months, careful.

BEE: Yeah.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Full Frontal airs on our sister network TBS.

All right, just nine days until Election Day and it is fair to say that it has been quite a slugfest. But could it actually end with punches thrown? CNN's Jake Tapper ponders that question in this week's "State of the Union Cartoonian."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: As we're reminded by the smash Broadway Musical "Hamilton."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Alexander, can we agree that duals with dumb and immature?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sure.

TAPPER: Political duals in the U.S. are as old as our nation itself. Hamilton recalls the time vice president Aaron Burr went looking for a fight.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But your man has to answer for his words, Burr.

TAPPER: Sound familiar?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't I wish I were debating him? Don't I wish we we're in high school, I could take him behind the gym.

TAPPER: This week, we contemplated a modern day dual with Biden as Burr and Hamilton, Trump. Perhaps has high school students instead of, you know, grown men.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'd like to take him behind the gym if I were in high school. I used to have a temper. I don't have a temper anymore.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you see where Biden wants to take me to the back of the barn? Me.

TAPPER: Perhaps the man invited to the duel, gets to choose the venue.

[16:55:03] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'd love that. I'd love that. Mr. Tough guy, you know. He is Mr. Tough guy.

TAPPER: And you know what? Frankly, after this grim, rough and tumble election season, it is hard to imagine a more fitting end to this season than an actual fistfight.

(FIGHT SCENES)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some things in life you could really love doing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Oh, my. Ok. Well, nine days to go. Hey, thanks so much for being with me today. There it is right there, the countdown. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. We have much more straight ahead right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: Nine days out, here we go, folks. I'm Poppy Harlow. Live this evening in New York. So glad you're with us. We begin with breaking news on the FBI probe into newly discovered e- mails on the computer of Hillary Clinton's close aide, Huma Abedin.

Why do those e-mails matter? Because the FBI says they may be pertinent to the investigation into Hillary Clinton's private e-mail server.

Law enforcement sources now telling CNN the FBI actually discovered these new e-mails weeks ago, but did not disclose that discovery until Friday. This new time line raises new questions about why the information was kept under wraps until the FBI notified congress just 11 days before the presidential election.

How will the Trump campaign react to the revelation? We will soon find out when the GOP nominee seek for the rally in Colorado.