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CNN's The Arena with Kasie Hunt
Trump Campaigns In Arizona & Montana Today In Bid To Save GOP Seats; Katie Zacharia Has Bumpy Debut As White House Press Secretary; GOP Senate Candidates Pushed On Iran War In Trio Of Debates. Aired 4- 5p ET
Aired October 14, 2026 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:00]
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: And we should keep watching this.
Thank you.
JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Thanks.
KEILAR: THE ARENA WITH KASIE HUNT starts right now.
(MUSIC)
KASIE HUNT, CNN HOST: Hi, everyone. I'm Kasie Hunt. Welcome to THE ARENA. It's great to have you with us on this Wednesday.
As we come on the air, all eyes turning to Texas as CNN and Jubilee Media prepare to host a key town hall tonight with James Talarico. The Democratic Senate candidate set to take the stage in just a few hours. This as new polls show that Texas voters frustrated with the cost of living could turn Texas blue for the first time in decades.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: That war is going to end very soon, and when it does, your prices are going to come tumbling down. They already are. You're making more money today, in other words, than you've ever made before. Also, more Americans are working today than at any time in the history of our country.
(CHEERING)
TRUMP: Now, these are the greatest sound bites anyone's ever had.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: President Donald Trump last night in Alaska, just the latest battleground state he's visited. He is in Arizona right now. He'll be in Montana later tonight. His message that things are better than ever is running into a tough reality.
Today, the Labor Department announced that inflation not only rose last month, but it rose faster than expected. Gas prices alone shot up more than nine percent. And at the very same time, gas prices today set an ugly new record. They've now been averaging above $4 a gallon for 166 days. That is more than any other year in history, including under President Joe Biden.
That brings us, of course, back to Texas. New polling released today finds the Senate race has no clear leader. Talarico up by three points, but that's just inside the margin of error.
Still, it's polls like these that are why the president and the vice president have visited Texas multiple times in the last few weeks. And they're why more than half a billion dollars have been spent on this race alone.
And they're why the stakes are so high for tonight's CNN Town Hall with Talarico.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEN PAXTON (R), TEXAS SENATE CANDIDATE: He wants to transition your kids.
JAMES TALARICO (D), TEXAS SENATE CANDIDATE: Ken Paxton is running from a fight. And that sounds like low-T behavior to me.
J.D. VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Ladies and gentlemen, This guy is a freak. Don't elect him. Elect Ken Paxton. That's who we got to get elected.
TALARICO: I've heard credible reports that Ken Paxton has a serious medical condition that causes clinical levels of cowardice.
PAXTON: I don't know whether to believe him about the flu or not.
TALARICO: He has asked for proof of life from me. I'm asking for proof of spine from him.
TRUMP: The people of Texas are not going to let weak, gutless, self- hating, transgender-promoting freak shows destroy everything that we've built.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: OK, let's get off the sidelines, headed to THE ARENA. My panel is going to be here, but we're going to get started with CNN chief national affairs correspondent Jeff Zeleny. He is live at the site of the Talarico Town Hall that is set for tonight.
Jeff, great to see you. What do you expect?
JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kasie, I mean, you've heard the name-calling there from the president, the vice president in tens of millions of dollars of ads here. Well, that has been unable to stop the rise of James Talarico. Republicans have tried every way possible since May to try and make this race not competitive.
But in the final three weeks of the midterm elections, it is competitive. There is no doubt about it. Just look at the visits by the president and look at the spending here. But tonight, James Talarico is going to be taking questions from Republicans, Democrats and independents from this audience behind me here, but it's also going to be something very unusual and new and interesting. It's not just a normal town hall. He's going to be sitting face to face at the desk you can see behind me on stage here.
And he is going to be having a conversation, a dialogue about specific issues. In some cases, the undecided voters will ask him questions and the idea is called change my mind he is intending to try and persuade voters of course the undecided voters in the room and to a larger audience here this is something that James Talarico has been doing as he's been campaigning or at least trying to do, and that was really at the center of the final stages of this campaign. Is he going to be able to win over enough undecided voters and some independents and Republican voters to come to his side?
It's clear that Ken Paxton is viewed in a favorable light by most Republicans. The polls out this morning showed that once again. And there's an enthusiasm gap as well. But James Talarico was running as a Democrat. It has not been since 1988. Since Texas has elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate, that of course was Lloyd Benson one year before James Talarico was born.
And it's been since 1994, since a Democrat won statewide, that was the lieutenant governor candidate. So, look, history is against Democrats, there's no doubt. But talking to Democrats here, they feel hopeful and optimistic because of the moment that we are in, because of the economy, and because of Ken Paxton.
So, tonight, look for James Talarico to face some tough questions.
[16:05:02]
There's no doubt about it. But he also is trying to show that he is a new kind of politician. And I'm reminded, just -- when he won his own primary campaign, he talked about trying to build this new coalition. Here in the final stages of the campaign, that's exactly what's coming together. It's unclear if he'll be able to cross that hurdle. One of the questions, and we talked to voters is, is the Democratic brand going to caused him some difficulty in some parts of Texas. I expect him to address that tonight as well.
So, there's no doubt on this stage behind me here, by the audience here a fascinating night in one of the most consequential races. of the midterm election campaign.
HUNT: All right. Jeff Zeleny for us. Jeff, thank you so much.
And of course, a reminder, tune in tonight, the CNN and Jubilee Town Hall with James Talarico airs at 8:00 p.m. Eastern. It'll be right here at CNN -- on CNN, but you can also stream it live if you have an all access subscription.
All right. My panel is here in THE ARENA, the journalist and host of "The Real Patriotism" podcast and Substack, Terry Moran; managing editor at "The Cook Political Report", Carrie Dann, former communications director for Vice President Kamala Harris, Jamal Simmons, and Republican strategist Brad Todd. They're both CNN political commentators.
Welcome to all of you. Thank you so much for being here.
Terry Moran, I think you might be the senior journalist at this table, although I'm feeling old based on, like, the 1989 birth year, apparently, of James Talarico.
But what does it say to you that we're talking about Texas potentially turning blue? We have had this conversation and it has not panned out. Will it this time?
TERRY MORAN, HOST, "REAL PATRIOTISM" SUBSTACK & PODCAST: It looks much closer, but I wouldn't put money on it. I don't bet to begin with. But it is still a long shot, I think. It's candidate quality that is destroying the Republican opportunity in Texas.
Ken Paxton, everybody in Texas knows him. Most people loathe him for good reason. He's a crook, it seems. He's had all kinds of scandals.
And James Talarico comes and presents as a more moderate Democrat than the rest of the country sees usually.
And I think the problem with the president's stumping for candidates is that it is very difficult, even for the president of the United States, to argue people out of the facts of their lives, and that's what he's trying to do.
HUNT: Well, let's watch what it looks like when this president of the United States campaigns for Ken Paxton, who is the Republican that, as Terry correctly noted, has an extraordinarily high unfavorability rating.
Now, that doesn't seem to be many of the reasons why voters may have an unfavorable of him, not necessarily the same reasons as President Trump, but just watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Ken Paxton, you might not like the way he dresses. And I say this, it's so insulting to him, but I might as well say it. You might not like the way he looks. You might not love his look. You might not love his television interviews.
He may not dress right, he may not talk exactly perfectly, and he may not be the best-looking guy I've ever seen.
Ken Paxton was up my side more than anybody. And I have to always remember that, because he could be a pain in the ass sometimes, I'll be honest.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: I mean Jamal Simmons, with friends like these. (LAUGHTER)
JAMAL SIMMONS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: You definitely don't need anything else with friends like those. I mean, listen, every individual poll is just a pinpoint, right? You don't want to get too attached to it. So I went back and started looking at some of these trend lines. It's the trend lines that really in trouble for Paxton because it looks like Talarico is now trending up, now seeing him at 50 percent in some of these polls.
Paxton, it seems like he can't really get above like 47, 47.5. His trend lines all sort of stay a little bit lower, so I'm nervous about that.
The only thing that keeps me sober about this is the president's spending a lot of time there, the Republicans are putting hundreds of millions of dollars into that state. I think if they thought that there was no hope, they probably wouldn't be spending that much energy in that place. But the fact that they are makes me think they might know something the rest of us don't.
HUNT: Yeah.
Carrie Dann, where's Cook on this?
CARRIE DANN, MANAGING EDITOR, COOK POLITICAL REPORT: So we have this as a toss-up race. And We have seen some tightening in the polls most recently. But Talerico has consistently led by -- or been within the margin of error, but sort of with a tilt towards him. I mean, when -- Donald Trump may not endorse Ken Paxton's fashion choices. But recall, he did endorse Ken Paxton over John Cornyn, over the objections of pretty much every Republican in Washington.
And when he -- when he made that move, Republicans in D.C. -- largely said, OK, this is a solvable problem, but it's going to cost us $200 million to bail out Ken Paxton. We're now at $240 million and counting in ad reservations. And I think that that's just evidence of how problematic Paxton is.
And one of the most interesting ads of this entire cycle has been an ad from his ex-wife, Angela Paxton, speaking directly to camera and basically telling Republican-leaning undecideds, you need to put on your jerseys and vote for our team, even if you don't like --
HUNT: But she wouldn't name her --
DANN: Without naming her ex-husband there.
But that, I mean --
MORAN: Cheated on her.
BRAD TODD, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Everyone knew -- everyone knew who she was talking about.
DANN: But the ad was many things, but it wasn't subtle about the fact that there's clearly an issue with Republican women that Republicans are trying to address in these closing days.
[16:10:05]
HUNT: Brad?
TODD: Well, this race is there are a lot of races that are complicated. This race is really simple.
The John Cornyn voters, who are about half the primary have to decide they can hold their nose and try to keep James Talarico out of the U.S. Senate. Ken Paxton is getting about 86 percent of Republicans in the poll right now. He needs to get up to the mid-90s. That would be what's normal. If he does that, he wins.
Other races are about independence. This one is about bringing home that base. And James Talarico, by the way, tonight, he's going to say he's a moderate. He decided to be a moderate in April of 2026. He decided to renounce his votes to allow gender transitions for minors in Texas, to renounce his votes for men and biological men in girls' locker rooms, to renounce his statements about veganism.
He decided he needed to be a moderate as soon as he became the nominee. And so that's what you're going to see tonight is more of this effort by James Talarico to try to make you forget his record as a legislator.
SIMMONS: Well, people are remembering is what you were talking about a little bit ago, Terry. Everything's more expensive. If you've got to go to work, gas costs more money. If you're going to buy a house, it's going to cost more money to get you a mortgage.
And if you've got to pay for healthcare, it's going to cost more money. That is the thing that Talarico's been focused on and a lot of these Democratic candidates across the country, and people are responding.
MORAN: And good politics is answering those concerns and not engaging in middle school name-calling, which is kind of what you get from the vice president of the United States.
HUNT: Let's -- actually, I wanted to play that for everybody because we did see Vice President J.D. Vance campaigning on Tuesday in Texas with some pretty harsh words. Watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VANCE: Now, before we get started, I love you too, sir. In a totally platonic way, to be clear. I'm the vice president, not James Talarico. But I got to --
(CHEERING)
VANCE: He was asked what he loves in life besides his own family and friends, and he responded without skipping a beat, and I quote, "trans children". Now you got to wonder what the Internet search history of a man like that looks like. Ladies and gentlemen, you don't want to find out. Neither do I.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: Brad, that's a pretty ugly accusation.
TODD: You know what? It was -- is a wasted opportunity. J.D. Vance got laughs for J.D. Vance, but he didn't move the ball down the field for Ken Paxton. He should have used the news bite coming out of that visit on that airport tarmac should have been the fact that James Talarico voted against efforts to keep biological men out of girls' locker rooms. But instead, he told a joke that got last for him.
And when you're a surrogate on the campaign trail, your job is not to help yourself. Your job is to help the candidate that you campaigned for, and you got to go deliver the mail. There are a lot of Texans that don't know James Talarico's record in the state legislature. I think it was the job of the vice president and every other surrogate to deliver the mail on that.
HUNT: All right. Coming up next here in THE ARENA, the battle for the Senate getting more contentious after three heated debates put candidates in both parties on defense.
But first, President Trump's former communications director Anthony Scaramucci will be here with us live. His name has been invoked several times in the past 24 hours after a rocky rollout for the newest White House press secretary.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't know how this gal got through the door. You can find a lot of people who are -- who are prepared to do this.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can tell you how she got through the door.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Stop it. Stop it. Don't even think about it. Don't do it. Don't do it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:18:03]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KATIE ZACHARIA, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Good morning.
REPORTERS: Good morning.
ZACHARIA: I am so honored to work for President Trump and the American people. as the new White House press secretary, something President Trump is delivering on, just like he delivers on every promise. In addition to that, we will be -- we will be -- there is $54 billion tied to the Alaska LNG pipeline.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: A bit of a rocky first appearance at the podium there for President Trump's new press secretary, Katie Zacharia. A source now telling CNN that it was President Trump himself who asked her to do that briefing just a day after she started that new gig.
Some advisors told us that while they thought the decision was a mistake, that message was apparently not communicated to either President Trump or to Zacharia, leading to a performance that even some White House officials are acknowledging was, well, rough.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ZACHARIA: Enthusiastic, hardworking Americans are lining up and packing arenas to support President Trump and Republicans. It's not hard to see why. He had a historic one-day war, and now we have a booming economy and a great relationship with Venezuela.
The idea of not spending evenings with my kids is completely unacceptable. So my president -- excuse me, my husband -- that's a good one.
To the question on -- the President will be back on Thursday, and that's what I will answer. I'll leave it there.
He will answer those questions out in your e-mail.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: All right, join me now in THE ARENA, someone who knows a little bit about working in the Trump's communications world, Anthony Scaramucci, who served a famously brief stint as the president's White House communications director.
But, of course, he's here because he is also the author of the new book "All the Wrong Moves: How Three Catastrophic Decisions and Years of HIT Show Politics Led to Trump and How We Find A Way Out".
It's always great to see you. Thank you so much for being here.
If you had to use one word to describe what we saw from the podium yesterday, what would it be?
ANTHONY SCARAMUCCI, FORMER TRUMP WHITE HOUSE COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: Well, I don't know if I can take it down to one word, but I guess not prepared. But that's OK. I mean, she seems like a nice enough person. I think sometimes when you get in a rut like that, you dig a bigger hole.
Unfortunately, I have been there, Kasie. I have been in a situation where I wish I wasn't, and then you're trying to get in reverse, and you can't find the right gear. So I felt bad for her there.
I also think she was basically trying to say that she went to China and didn't get her bar exam passed because she was working in China because her husband was there, also working in China. So that was another snafu of hers.
But -- listen, it's a super tough thing. I did one press conference in the 11 ill-fated days that I was there. My press conference lasted 40 minutes.
You may remember John Spicer wasn't calling on CNN, and so the first people I called on, I don't know if Sara Murray still works with you guys, but I called on Sara, who was sitting to my left. because I thought it was important to send a message that we were open for business. President didn't like that.
I then had breakfast with the White House Correspondents Association president with Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Sam Feist. I think you remember Sam. I think he worked with you guys --
HUNT: Of course.
SCARAMUCCI: -- before he went over to PBS or NPR. But I --
HUNT: He's running C-SPAN. We love C-SPAN.
SCARAMUCCI: C-SPAN, I'm sorry.
HUNT: That's okay.
SCARAMUCCI: He's at C-SPAN. But I mean, I had breakfast with him the day after. President didn't like that either. Eleven days after my fiasco started, I got fired, but I think she's going to beat it out though.
I don't think she's going to get fired. I think people that are talking about her getting fired, I think don't understand the current White House, and she's done nothing wrong to deserve to be fired. Will she get to the podium anytime soon? Probably not. She probably needs media training, she needs some coaching, maybe a Marco Rubio or a J.D. Vance will join her on the podium. try to give her a little bit of defensive positioning.
But listen, you know Karoline Leavitt, you know, she was very good at that job. And one of the things that you have to do in that job is you have to be a machine gun liar. And it doesn't look like this woman, Katie Zacharia, is up for that.
I mean, you got to sit there and you got to get four Pinocchios every day from "The Washington Post". And you got to do it in rapid succession. And she doesn't look prepared to do that. And I would just tell her she's got a great family, it looks like. She should probably focus on that rather than do something that she's not natural at.
HUNT: So you're saying that you think she's not going to get fired, but perhaps she should decide not to do the job herself?
SCARAMUCCI: Yeah, she's not. I mean, all right, Katie, let me put that. I know it's your show, but let me put the question back to you. Does she look up for the job?
HUNT: Hey, look, I am a reporter's anchor. But listen, I take your point and I'm interested in what you --
SCARAMUCCI: You get the point.
HUNT: I mean, clearly -- clearly the nerves were there.
SCARAMUCCI: Let me put it to you this way. She was my family member. I would say take a powder on that job, it's not the right job for you, and the universe is sending you a message. The good news for me is that the universe expunged me from Trump world nine years ago, and at the time it felt like a catastrophe, but the truth of the matter was probably the best thing that ever happened to me.
So, if I was her life coach, which I'm not, she'd probably be upset with me for saying all this thing, bail on that job, it's not the right job for you. and by the way she comes across as too nice of a person. You know, you got to have mendacity in your spirit to work for Donald Trump in that position. You got to be willing to lie with great enthusiasm.
You know, Sean Spicer was trying his hardest. You know, he was telling people the crowd sizes were bigger than they actually are and all that other stuff he just wasn't a good liar he was like too Catholic frankly to be a good liar and she doesn't come across as a good liar to somebody like me.
So, I would tell her to take a powder on the job. But they're not going to fire her, Kasie, because there's just so many different reasons why they won't fire her. But the main one, she really hasn't done anything wrong yet.
HUNT: She was essentially doing what the president had told her to do, it sounds like, according to our reporting.
SCARAMUCCI: Exactly.
HUNT: Yeah. So, let's talk about the president and how things are going for him right now. I want to play a little bit of what he had to say at his Ohio rally this week, and then we'll talk about another side. Watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: No, he's got to go on a diet. He's a fat guy. Wow.
You know the one I like the best? I shouldn't say this, should I? The one I like the best is gays for Palestine.
And I don't do this with men very often. I started examining his body because I didn't know he was a great athlete.
And I looked, and I watched up and down. I looked at his ass and I looked at the hole. And then I looked at his hands. Look at his hands. He's got these, like, claws. (END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: So he's talking about a candidate that he's there to support with all of those comments, not the candidate that he's running against. What does any of this say about his headspace?
SCARAMUCCI: Well, you can go in two tracks with that. You could say that the president's bi-curious by the way he's talking about the guy, and so it was sort of awkward and weird. Or you could say that the president is an entertainer, and he thinks that his job is to go to those things and make people laugh.
And I think he's tested those lines. He's talked about the body parts of Arnold Palmer as an example and other people.
HUNT: I almost forgot about that.
SCARAMUCCI: Their aesthetics and so forth. Yeah, I mean, so he does that and you could say, okay, he's either bicurious or he's an entertainer and he's playing for laugh lines and I'll -- I'll let your audience decide which one of those two things is actually going on.
But you know, I will say this, he does it a lot, Kasie. It's not like he's saying it once in a while. You know, you've got comedians now on Instagram that are just lip-syncing what he's saying, and it's unusual stuff. And it would be unusual stuff from Donald Trump, the star of "The Apprentice", and it's even more unusual because he's the American president.
HUNT: Did he ever talk to you about your looks when you were working for him?
SCARAMUCCI: He complimented my looks, yeah. I mean, you know, he does that. But I mean, that's his form of flattery. I mean, he would -- you know, hopefully I'm not going to get in trouble by saying this. He would compliment your looks. I mean, that's something that he does.
And, you know, it's -- you know, I mean, does it go to the point of awkwardness? No, but when he's campaigning and he's at a microphone, he is saying some pretty awkward things. I mean, look at what "The Drudge Report" wrote two days ago, is the president coming out? I mean, it's an unusual way to talk from the presidential podium.
HUNT: Unusual, yes. We'll let that word stand as an understatement.
Anthony Scaramucci, it's always great to have you. Thank you for coming. I hope you come back soon.
SCARAMUCCI: Good to be on.
HUNT: All right, coming up next here, of course, in THE ARENA, we're going to talk with a U.S. senator and with one who's running to join him there, Chris Murphy on the campaign trail with Angie Nixon in Florida. He'll join us together live here in THE ARENA.
But first, Republicans pressed on the war in Iran and gas prices in a trio of heated debates in races that could control the balance of power.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JON OSSOFF (D-GA): Diesel's up 70 percent since Trump took office, Mike. You said last week gas prices were coming down. You didn't explain the statement. You want another try? Are gas prices coming down?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:32:48]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OSSOFF: Are gas prices coming down?
DEBATE MODERATOR: You may answer 30 seconds.
OSSOFF: Are they coming down?
REP. MIKE COLLINS (R-GA): Diesel prices are high. Diesel prices high. The supply is coming. The supply is coming now, and the prices will continue to come down. They're already coming down, but they're going to continue to come down.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: Last night's Senate debates in three key states showed how Republicans are navigating an increasingly difficult political environment. Just three weeks before Election Day, Democrats in Georgia, Iowa, and Maine pressed their Republican colleagues on a variety of topics, chief among them the Iran war and rising gas prices.
And as we saw over and over again, some GOP hopefuls are willing to break with President Trump to try to protect their own campaigns.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TROY JACKSON (D), MAINE SENATE CANDIDATE: Donald Trump wanted to play war games, and when Susan Collins had the chance to stop him because she's chair of appropriations, she would not do that.
SEN. SUSAN COLLINS (R-ME): I agree that the president did not have a good plan. He should have been have anticipated the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
JOSH TUREK (D), IOWA SENATE CANDIDATE: We are in this situation because of this unnecessary war in Iran that Ashley Hinson voted in favor of continuing seven times.
REP. ASHLEY HINSON (R-IA): We need to bring an end to the war in Iran. It's why I called for an immediate and successful end.
OSSOFF: I think that Georgians deserve to know, Congressman, how this war has helped them.
REP. COLLINS: Remember, Georgia. Remember this. He's the guy that's out there recruiting, supporting, and endorsing people like Abdul El Sayed. That's his guy. He can't go again. That's why he's for Iran.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: All right, my panel is back.
Terry Moran, this landscape in the Senate and looking increasingly difficult for Republicans. When you look at that sort of tableau, I mean, you are seeing Republicans who previously been unwilling to break with President Trump, because in many ways that used to be or has historically been politically difficult, shall we say, with the base, basically say like, no, I don't agree with you.
MORAN: Because they're in trouble, right? They're in trouble because of the facts of voters' lives. And the problem that, the way we talk about an affordability crisis, but I was in Iowa a couple of weeks ago, Maine last week, it's more than that. It's what happened to our country problem.
[16:35:01]
Where is the American dream? Nobody can get ahead, young people in particular. The frustration is boiling over and name calling and trying to smear the other candidate, if you don't have some kind of practical solution to pragmatic problems that people have, You can you can smear them all you want. They'll vote. They'll vote the other way or stay home.
HUNT: I want to talk for a second with Brad and Jamal about candidates quality, right? And how that -- because it matters a lot in Senate races in particular. It's obviously a little bit less important when the environment is so dominant on the House side.
But let's watch a moment with Jon Ossoff and Mike Collins, OK? And Georgia, by all metrics, should be at least competitive, right? But Ossoff has been all but running away with this race against Mike Collins in no apart because Collins is not a terribly strong candidate. Republicans tried to get a lot of other Republicans to run for that seat before Collins was the one who said yes.
Here was Ossoff and Collins on Jeffrey Epstein. Watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: You know, Jon, one of your largest donors is Reid Hoffman. He slept on the Epstein Island. He stayed at his Manhattan townhouse.
You claim to fight against the Epstein class, but I'm going to tell you, this call is coming from inside the House, and the Epstein class is on stage right now, and it's you. Will you condemn Reid Hoffman and apologize for your hypocrisy tonight?
OSSOFF: Mike, who on your team advised you to raise the Epstein files? You voted to cover up the evidence, Mike.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: I mean, Jamal, Ossoff is, of course, also with this, putting himself in consideration in "28.
SIMMONS: Yeah, I think Collins is a little high on the diesel supply. It wasn't great for him.
Listen, I think, again, we've talked about this. These prices are just so high for everybody, and they are trying to get people to pay attention to something in their own lives they're living through, as Terry mentioned earlier. But I can tell you, I ran a Senate reelection. I was part of a Senate reelection team back in 2002 in Georgia with Max Cleland.
The demographics of that state have changed so much because now Georgia and the Atlanta metropolitan market, television market, is so much more a part of the total vote of the state than it used to be. It used to have to go down south, go down to Augusta, go out to Augusta and get down to Savannah and really campaign. You can really win that state in the Atlanta metro market a lot better than you could 20 years ago.
HUNT: Brad?
TODD: You know, I've negotiated a lot of debate formats for candidates. I've done a lot of prep. And one of the key questions when you're negotiating, do you have questions that are candidate-to- candidate questions?
The press questions, frankly, are pretty predictable. We kind of always know what's coming. The ones we are most afraid of are from the other candidate. And so, I find it interesting that they went that route.
I think, by the way, Mike Collins points right about Reid Hoffman, who's a billionaire donor funding Jon Ossoff's campaign. I think Jon Ossoff's right that I probably wouldn't have used that airspace to try to take up that and go to that subject. So, both guys can be right in that situation.
I also think though, in Maine, there are four debates in Maine. And this third debate, I think was revelatory. Susan Collins is eating Troy Jackson's lunch. And this is a small state where people pay attention to public television. They don't watch public television most places in America, but they do in Maine. And they know Susan Collins, and they're skeptical, some of them, about what they should do in this race.
And I think four debates is really helping her. And I don't know who on Troy Jackson's team agreed to do four of them.
DANN: I think it's interesting that Epstein came up in the Georgia race because this is something I think in Washington, people have largely moved on from this issue. But pollster after pollster that I talked to say this is something that does pop. You're seeing real American dollars on ad campaigns in Iowa, in Kansas. Like, there are real ads on TV that are addressing this.
And I think it's not just because of Jeffrey Epstein and it's going after both Republicans who didn't vote to release them, people who have taken money from people who are in the files. But I think there's a larger issue, too, about Jeffrey Epstein, that it hits at voters' sense that there is an Epstein class. There's this class of elites that go to that are part of Washington and are not held accountable when they themselves are struggling day-to-day.
And it's something that I think is really resonating, and Republicans and Democrats are both talking about this, and voters, I think, are somewhat motivated by it.
MORAN: And analogous to that and to what Brad is talking about in Maine, the contrast between those two candidates in Maine is very stark. Susan Collins is a pro. She's a pro at this. She's got a long track record. It seems everybody in Maine knows of some program or project that she has helped them get.
Troy Jackson represents change, big time change. He is out there as a populist saying it is not working. And the question in that race is will the old ways win with a very good candidate or is Maine, like so much of the rest of the country, so hungry for fundamental change, angry at the system, that even not as good a candidate as Troy Jackson, but with a rough eloquence and authenticity about those populist issues, will he win?
[16:40:10]
HUNT: Yeah. Before we wrap up this conversation, I do want to just mark this moment from Jon Ossoff, just to show you, because we are, of course, as soon as this midterm is over, going to be '28. Watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MODERATOR: Will you pledge right now tonight to serve your full six- year term if you win?
OSSOFF: Yes, I will. I have zero interest in running for president. I'm not running for president. I'm running for reelection to the Senate.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: Okay, sir. Let's just flash back to, hmm, 2006, when we saw something similar from another Senate candidate who actually did go on to be president.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: I will serve out my full six- year term. You know, Tim, if you get asked enough, sooner or later you get weary. And you start looking for new ways of saying things. But my thinking has not changed. TIM RUSSERT, FORMER NBC ANCHOR: So you will not run for president or
vice president in 2008?
OBAMA: I will not.
RUSSERT: Senator, thank you very much for your candor.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HUNT: Thank you very much for your candor. Guess who was running for president 13 months after that interview took place.
All right, ahead here in THE ARENA, one prominent Democrat campaigning today in Florida, urging the party to invest in the Senate race there. Senator Chris Murphy and Senate candidate Angie Nixon will be here in THE ARENA, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:45:44]
HUNT: All right, welcome back.
With just weeks until the midterm elections, bullish Senate Democrats are embarking on a last-minute spending spree. "Semafor" reporting today that the Chuck Schumer aligned Senate majority PAC is now dumping some $7 million into Michigan and Maine. That spending also comes days after the group dropped some serious cash on a Kansas ad blitz in a sign that the party sees real opportunity in that traditionally ruby red state.
Joining me now in THE ARENA, the Democratic Senate candidate in Florida, State Representative Angie Nixon, alongside Democratic senator from Connecticut, Chris Murphy, who is there supporting her.
Thank you both so much for being here in THE ARENA today.
And Senator Murphy, I do want to start with you because, of course, national Democrats haven't been willing to invest in this Senate race in Florida. It's a very large map, but you have focused in on it. What are you doing and why do you think you can make a difference here?
SEN. CHRIS MURPHY (D-CT): Yeah, thanks for having us. I mean, two reasons. One, I think we can win Florida and we can't give up on Florida as a national Democratic Party.
So, I'm down here campaigning with Angie today. I've committed $100,000 to her race and to the races in Florida. And I think that there is going to be an investment here. I hope there's going to be an investment here because we can win.
But frankly, I'm really here because Angie is an exceptional candidate. I mean, I just think that our party has suffered from a lack of big ideas. And I think there's a lot of folks out there who think that our party is just as weak when it comes to the problems that people are facing. And so, when I hear Angie speaking truth to power about, you know, how
corporate power has trampled on workers, why we need a living wage in this country, why everybody should deserve healthcare -- man, that sounds like the kind of message that would rally Democrats all across the country.
So, I'm here because I want the party to invest in Florida. We can win this race if we have the resources, but I'm also here because I just think that she has a message that is going to resonate around the country. And in a year where a lot of Republican voters are going to stay home because they're so embarrassed by this president who has defrauded the country, we need to have Democrats enthusiastic, not just to defeat Donald Trump's partners and his acolytes, but to actually be enthusiastic about our candidates.
And man, we saw that here today. We just left a bunch of students at Central Florida, and the room was, I think, bumping up against fire codes. Kids are that excited about Angie.
HUNT: Senator, you used the word weak. Now, Senator Schumer, the majority leader or minority leader, excuse me, possible majority leader, hasn't invested in this. Is it weak that consumers not putting money in Florida.
MURPHY: Well, I think we're going to be invested here in Florida. I mean, frankly, the head of the DSCC, Senator Gillibrand, called me just maybe a day after Angie won and said, listen, we need to make an investment in Florida. It's all hands on deck.
So, I think there's going to be an investment and a partnership here. I'm just reflecting what voters say. When you look at polls, there are a lot of people over the last 10 years who have said Democrats are weak. They're not strong enough in defense of working people.
And so, when we have candidates like Angie Nixon, AngieNixon.com, who are fighting really hard for working people, I just think we should show them support.
ANGIE NIXON (D), FLORIDA SENATE CANDIDATE: Yeah, and so I think it's really important to note that Senator Gillibrand, as well as Senator Schumer, we are now in conversations. They are now partnering with us. We opened up a leadership PAC in conjunction with the DSCC, and there are tons of senators and congresspeople that are now supporting this campaign.
You know, we always would love more. more, more, more, more. But I am super excited because what we need is diversity in our leadership and diversity in the Senate.
And I think me and Senator Murphy, we make a good tag team. He has some big ideas. I have some big ideas. He may have some that may be totally different from mine, but and vice versa.
But look, it's all hands on deck right now in this moment. We need to be building diverse coalitions all across the country as we take on this rise in fascism and authoritarianism. [16:50:03]
And we have a message that is resonating with the workers, with working families, and actually not just Democrats, with Republicans, too. I have been traveling all across the state of Florida, and I've talked to millions of voters now. And what I am hearing is that they are tired of the corruption and the chaos that's coming out of Washington, D.C.
They are ready for people to actually get up there and do their jobs. And when we take the House and Senate in November, because I am speaking it into existence, and I'm so thankful for Senator Murphy coming down here, we are going to deliver on that.
HUNT: Representative, the former President Barack Obama has been endorsing a number of Senate candidates here in the final weeks. Have you reached out to him and his team to see if he's going to be willing to support you?
NIXON: So we have not reached out yet. We definitely will be. I know my mom would be super excited if he was to endorse me.
She went up to the opening of his presidential library that would make her day. I'll never forget he came down here and shook her hand. She said she didn't want to watch it for a while.
And so, we -- we are all hands on deck. So, we are asking as many Democrats to come down here, even some former Republicans, you know, to come down here and help us make it over the finish line.
The fact remains that Ashley Moody is a lying, cheating, thieving, scamming person who basically took $10 million from sick kids for the Medicaid program. And she rerouted that into two political slush funds for Ron DeSantis to defeat two citizen-led ballot initiatives.
She also voted to end health care for over 440,000 people here in the state of Florida. And, you know, they are spreading, like, a lot of disinformation and lies on commercials about me, of saying things like, I want to abolish prisons and I want to defund the police.
Why would I want to do that when I want her locked up and punished in jail for what she has done?
And so, you know, we are going to continue to stomp on this campaign trail all across the state, from the Panhandle to the Keys, and we're looking forward to them calling me senator on November 3rd.
HUNT: You want your Republican opponent locked up?
NIXON: You know, she -- Yeah, basically, yes, because of what she did, yes. I absolutely would want that to happen, yes. Do you have -- I have been perfectly clear.
HUNT: Do you feel like you have enough evidence that that would be a warranted punishment? NIXON: What we -- what we have seen, right, what we have seen is that the DCA, the first DCA here, has decided to wipe out the release of the grand jury report, and that first DCA judge was actually appointed by Ron DeSantis. And what we are seeing is corruption through and through.
And so, I would definitely call for an investigation as a -- as a federal lawmaker when I become a U.S. senator to actively go in to see what happened. People are pissed off. We don't know how many children are potentially going to die because that $10 million did not go to where it was supposed to go to.
Not only that, but actually Moody has been a rubber stamp to Donald Trump and when he decided to cut Medicaid here in the state, I have talked to tons of doctors and parents and one doctor specifically over in Pinellas County who stated that the Medicaid, the hospital that she works in, they receive about 67 and 70 percent of their funding comes from Medicaid.
She looked at me and she said after that big B.S. bill passed, right, that children are going to die.
And so, we need to make sure that we are putting people in Washington DC who actually have back of hardworking everyday Floridians. I will be calling for a full-on investigation as it relates to what Ashley Moody and them have done. Yes, absolutely.
HUNT: Before I let you go, you also are planning a rally with Bernie Sanders that James Fishback, the right-wing former gubernatorial candidate, has said he wants to attend. Considering some of the comments that he has made in the past, is James Fishback welcome at your rally?
Everyone is welcome at my rally. I do not turn people away at the end of the day, like all are welcome. We are trying to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to be healthy, prosperous and safe.
And I am going to be a senator, not just to Democrats. I'm going to be a senator to Republicans, to MAGA Republicans, to independents, to people who don't even vote at all. And so, they should actually have access to me and ask me tough questions.
I'm not like Ashley Moody, who will not even debate me because she has a failed record here in the U.S. Senate. And so, we need someone who is actually going to be accessible, ethical, and someone that they can trust. And I pride myself on having been that way for the past six years as a state lawmaker.
HUNT: All right.
NIXON: And I will continue to be that way when I become the next U.S. senator.
HUNT: All right, Angie Nixon, Senator Chris Murphy, thank you both very much for joining us.
[16:55:01]
Really appreciate it.
NIXON: Thank you so much.
MURPHY: Thank you.
HUNT: All right. We do want to note that Ashley Moody, Ms. Nixon's Republican opponent, was Florida attorney general when her office signed off on a $10 million settlement payout to Hope Florida. It's a charity launched by Florida First Lady Casey DeSantis that later came under investigation. Senator Moody has not been charged and has denied wrongdoing. And of course, the senator is always welcome to join us here live in THE ARENA.
But with that, thanks very much to my panel. Really appreciate all of you being here today. Thanks to you at home for watching as well. We always appreciate you.
But don't go anywhere. "THE LEAD WITH JAKE TAPPER" starts after this quick break.
