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The Lead with Jake Tapper
More Than 4,000 Flights Delayed, 900 Plus Flights Cancelled Today; Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, (D-PA), Is Interviewed About Thousands Of Flights Delayed Or Cancelled Due To Shutdown; Trump Angrily Dismisses Affordability Concerns; Obamacare Enrollees See Premium Skyrocket. Aired 5-6p ET
Aired November 07, 2025 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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Have a wonderful weekend. Don't go anywhere. "The Lead with Jake Tapper" starts right now.
[17:00:35]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN Breaking News.
JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: Welcome to The Lead. I'm Jake Tapper live from Ronald Reagan National Airport in Virginia just outside Washington, D.C. where due to this government shutdown, the longest in the history of these United States, the average delay for inbound flights to Reagan Airport is a whopping four hours. And what does it look like for departures for planes leaving here? Well, I just walked over to the schedule board moments ago. Take a look, delay, delay, delay, delay, delay, cancel, delay, delay, delay, canceled. Our breaking news this hour, at least 15 reports of staffing problems at air traffic control facilities leading to flight delays across the United States.
And that is despite the fact that air traffic today has been reduced by 4 percent at this airport and at least 39 others. That reduction based on an order from the FAA, the Federal Aviation Administration. Even more flight cuts are planned in the coming days, it could go up to 20 percent, we're told. All of it thanks to staffing issues caused by the failure of the U.S. Congress to pass a government funding bill as air traffic controllers have now gotten two paychecks with a total of $0.00. That doesn't put gas in the tank, that doesn't put food in the fridge, that doesn't pay for childcare.
So on day 38 of the government shutdown, where do negotiations on the Hill stand? Well, today Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, said the Democrats would agree to end the shutdown in exchange for Republicans adding one more year of enhanced Affordable Care Act or Obamacare subsidies. But don't get your hopes up, the Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Republican in South Dakota, called the Schumer offer a nonstarter.
The Secretary of Transportation, Sean Duffy, today warned that no matter when the government reopens, travel is not going to bounce back to normal for a little while. And these travel delays and cancellations, they're more than just numbers. They're more than just inconvenience for thousands, if not millions of Americans. This is a major self-inflicted blow to our own economy. It also means medicines not getting to people who need them.
It means people not able to get home to see their ailing or dying loved ones. With me here, CNN Aviation Correspondent Pete Muntean.
And Pete, walk us through the numbers of cancellations and delays today and where this goes next.
PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: Well, the numbers keep going up and up and the cancellations today have reached about 966 nationwide. Eight hundred of those were the preemptive cancellations because of this Trump administration mandate for airlines to slash their schedules by about 4 percent today. It's all detailed in this 15 page emergency order from the Federal Aviation Administration that came out late last night. And essentially this is only the start. It says that starting Tuesday, airlines will have to cancel flights by about 6 percent.
And then it goes up on Thursday by 8 percent, then 10 percent on Friday. That gets us in the two week window to the start of the Thanksgiving air travel rush. There are a lot of big questions here about how long this will last and if this is really necessary for the Trump administration to do this. Want you to listen now to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who said this is not really a science when it comes to picking these numbers. And he said it was a little bit arbitrary when it comes to protecting air traffic controllers who are still not getting paid during this government shutdown.
Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEAN DUFFY, TRANSPORATION SECRETARY: I necessarily didn't want to give the data because some people might say, well, you're at 10 percent, it should be at 15 percent. Others might say it should be at 5 percent. It is not a science. It is a art that we're trying to deploy to keep people safe in the airspace. And we're trying to be -- we're trying to prevent the pressure that we now see building in the system.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MUNTEAN: Some pretty big questions now about whether or not these Trump administration mandated cuts have really worked because we've seen the delays go up and up today and we've seen these staffing shortages at air traffic control facilities across the country continue. The list was huge. About 25 facilities in the U.S. with short air traffic control staffing. There's even a sign up here in the tower at Reagan National Airport that you can see from the street that says will vector for food. These controllers want this shutdown to end.
But the delays aren't getting abated by these Trump administration moves. We've seen about 40 -- 151 delays so far today, and that number is continuing to go up as we speak.
[17:05:09]
TAPPER: What happens to passengers who are caught up in all this chaos? Is there any recourse for them?
MUNTEAN: They're caught up in this chaos because it feels like a crisis that's been a bit manufactured. And the airlines say they're just trying to make it so that they can get the word out to passengers so they know that their flight is canceled already. That's one of the reasons why we're not seeing a lot of people camped out in airports right now stuck, stranded. They're preemptively canceling these flights as if it's like a massive snowstorm or a blizzard coming through. And so the thing right now is airlines have put into place what are called travel waivers, meaning that they are waiving the fees typically associated with changing your flights ahead of time.
If you wanted to do that, if you didn't want to be a part of this mess, the other thing and the big advice I would give people is to just be able to pivot quickly, try to book nonstop flights, try to book early in the morning and never check a bag. Always fly with only a carry on. It makes it so easy when things go sideways to replan that way. TAPPER: All right, Pete Muntean, thanks so much. We'll check back in
with you.
Let's go now to CNN's Jason Carroll, who's up north at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, right near New York City. It was struggling with air traffic controller shortages and flight delays before the shutdown. And of course, it has seen delays every day of the shutdown, which started October 1st.
Jason, what are you hearing from travelers?
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we've been hearing from a lot of frustrated travelers, Jake, all day long, starting early this morning. A number of them who we spoke to who made it here to the airport either had their flight so severely delayed that they decided to just give up and leave or had their flight outright canceled. And some of those folks that we spoke to, Jake, decided just to forget flying altogether and deciding to instead hop in a car and drive to wherever they needed to go. Spoke to one woman from Utah, she's a doctor, she needed to get back there so desperately she tried to go and rent a car. Couldn't end up doing that.
Ended up renting a U-Haul and at this hour is driving across the country. What is very clear here, Jake, is that the longer that this drags on, the more frustrated people are going to be.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just difficult to understand how they just can't figure this out. You know, it's going to impact everybody.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just wish they get their stuff together and do what's needed for the people because the people are suffering out here. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm renting a car. I have to be back in Utah.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People are really hurting out here. And it's not just the traveling public, but it's affecting the whole economy. And you people are to blame. (END VIDEO CLIP)
CARROLL: And the you people, Jake, obviously, that he is talking about are those lawmakers who simply are unable to get it together and end this shutdown. Once again, more frustration here on the ground. And you really get the sense that again, that the longer this drags on, the more impatient people are going to be. And they're looking squarely at the lawmakers here. Jake. TAPPER: All right. And our hourly reminder that while air traffic
controllers and TSA agents are not being paid, lawmakers are. Jason Carroll at Newark Liberty International Airport, thanks so much.
And of course, you can hear the announcement. I'm in an airport. It is noisy as you might recall.
With me now, Chris Gallant is a former air traffic controller. He's a U.S. Veteran. He's also a Democrat running to represent New York Congressional District 1, which is out in Long Island in the House of Representatives.
So, Chris, thanks so much for being here. Do you think that these mandated flight reductions, 4 percent reduction in 40 airports mandated by the Trump administration and the FAA, do you think they're necessary to keep people safe? CHRIS GALLANT, (D), NEW YORK CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: Jake, thanks for
having me on tonight. I really appreciate it. And they are absolutely necessary. Right now, the controllers are coming to a breaking point. I remember in 2018 when I was a controller as well, and you received two paychecks and that second paycheck you receive for $0, you really start to question what you're going to do with not only your health care, but your family care.
A lot of these controllers have kids that they have to worry about and they're working six days a week, 10 hours a day, and they have to worry about putting their child care -- making sure their child is taken care of. And if they can't afford it, they have to stay home in order to do that and maintain that. So if we're reducing the amount of controllers that we have in the tower cab or reducing the amount of controllers that we have at some centers, the idea is to reduce the traffic flow in that area in order to not have too much workload on the controllers that are there. TAPPER: So we already are at an air traffic controller shortage before the shutdown and now we're told by the air traffic controllers union that because this shutdown has gone on so long we're on day 38, it's the longest one in American history, air traffic air traffic controllers are quitting. They're not just working without pay or not just calling in sick so they can deliver Uber eats, they're just quitting altogether. There already was a shortage.
GALLANT: I actually got into the FAA in 2014 and at that time there was a shortage and the shortage actually just never got better. It's continually has gotten worse and you see air traffic control staffing levels at an all-time low at this point and there's just no relief. And if you're going to continue to have controllers now resign because of the stress in the workload I don't know where the -- I don't know where the next steps can be. It's really a serious problem.
[17:10:06]
It comes down -- Washington is currently broken with the way -- the way they handle things and the way they do things. And that's the exact reason why I'm running for Congress with this shutdown.
TAPPER: Well, let me ask you. Because Democrats are the ones that are not voting to fund the government now. The reason for it is they don't like all the health care cuts, the Medicaid cuts that Republicans did earlier this year and they are fighting for also an extension of the Obamacare subsidies that are set to expire at the end of the year. But you clearly have a different perspective than most Democrats I talked to because you also were an air traffic controller. Do you think the Democrats should vote to reopen the government?
GALLANT: I think that both sides need to come to work. Right now the -- Speaker Johnson has the House out of session.
TAPPER: True.
GALLANT: The Republicans own the House, they own the Senate, they own the executive branch, they need to come to work. They need to get the -- to get the job done, they need to work. And if you're not in Washington D.C. to do that, how could you ever get -- come up to a solution?
TAPPER: So it's not easy to become an air traffic controller, obviously, as I don't need to tell you, lots of training, exams, crazy schedules. You have to be under the application age of 31 on the application date. What do you think -- this is a longer term question if you get elected to Congress, I assume this will be something you want to work on, how do we get more air traffic controllers?
GALLANT: Well, the lapse in funding that happens when the government shuts down or the people that -- people that go to school because you have to go through Montgomery Aeronautical Center in Oklahoma City and that schooling and that education takes several weeks. It's six weeks to do ATC basics and then either six or 12 weeks depending on where you're going to go. So when the government shuts down, the funding for those programs stop and we just need to up the funding on that side of things. It takes almost two years to actually go through schooling and takes almost two years to go through schooling and then actually get certified at your facility. In the end, it's a very rigorous process and the failure rate is very high as well.
So we just need to make sure we focus on trying to get more people interested in air traffic and also that the funding doesn't lapse during these times of need.
TAPPER: All right. Thank you so much, Chris Gallant. Appreciate it.
As this chaos unfolds at airports from coast to coast, the U.S. senate is still in session on Capitol Hill, but is any kind of deal on the horizon? Well, I'm going to ask a lawmaker who earlier this week got into something of a confrontation with House Speaker Mike Johnson. Plus President Trump dismissing questions about the economy today and high prices. He says he doesn't want to talk about affordability right now, but is the president ignoring the main reason why his party won last year and lost so many elections this week?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:16:36]
TAPPER: And we're back. We're live at Ronald Reagan National Airport just outside Washington D.C. in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It's one of the 40 U.S. airports seeing flight cuts amid the government shutdown. A reminder these delays and cancellations mean much more than just an inconvenience for thousands, if not millions of Americans traveling. This is a major self-inflicted blow to the American economy.
Medicines are not getting to people who need them. People are not able to get to their dying loved ones. CNN's Arlette Saenz is on Capitol Hill for us.
Arlette, is Congress any closer to ending the shutdown? ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, Jake, it really does not seem
so. And in fact, it feels like frustration is really beginning to boil over up here on Capitol Hill. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer earlier today unveiled a Democratic counter proposal to Republicans which said that they would vote to reopen the government in if Republicans also agreed to a one year extension of those Obamacare subsidies. Now, shortly after Schumer offered that proposal, Senate Republicans began huddling together in a caucus meeting.
And I was catching up with several of those Republican senators as they were leaving moments ago and they were very frustrated with this proposal. Senator Bill Cassidy said that this was an unreasonable proposal from Schumer, that he likened it to sabotage. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has said that this proposal really is a nonstarter. Any Republicans who have talked about extending Obamacare subsidies have always said that there needs to be some type of reforms to the program. So they are just not going to buy in to this proposal from Schumer.
But Democrats are really feeling united and emboldened in this moment after their success in last Tuesday's elections. They believe that voters have shown that they want their Democrats to continue fighting against Republican leaders up here on Capitol Hill. So right now it really does not appear like there is an immediate end to this standoff. But Senate Majority Leader John Thune did say that he expects the Senate Republicans at least to be here over the weekend. It's just unclear whether they'll actually be voting on anything to reopen the government.
TAPPER: All right. Arlette Saenz on Capitol Hill, thanks so much.
Joining us now, Democratic Congresswoman Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania.
Congresswoman, good to see you. So your district includes Chester County just outside Philly and just outside the Philadelphia International Airport, which is one of the 40 airports. Seeing these significant flight cuts. I'm sure you're hearing from constituents who use the airport or work at the airport or rely on the airport. Are any of them telling you that it's time for Democrats to not hold the line anymore in this issue, that there should be a deal, there should be a government funding bill that passes?
REP. CHRISSY HOULAHAN (D-PA): So first of all, thank you for having me on. And secondly, of course, we're hearing from our constituents and many of them are calling about a variety of different issues. I will say that one of the top issues that they're calling about, to be honest is, the fact that Speaker Johnson and the leadership in the Senate has on the Republican side has done nothing to come to the table. And so the number one phone call I've gotten this week is about that, not about the airlines and about catching flights. I can talk tell you obviously that I'm acutely aware of the pain that people are going through whether they are missing paychecks or not getting SNAP benefits.
That being said, the resounding amount of calls in my 40, 40, 20 district at this point in time is to stay the course and to maintain the fight to make sure that people have affordable, quality, accessible health care.
[17:20:05]
TAPPER: So, you talk about Speaker Johnson earlier this week, and for people who don't know you, this is not your normal nature. You're rather, I don't know if demure is the right word, but you're a rather polite person. I think that's fair, right? You're rather -- you tend to be rather polite and you confronted Speaker Mike Johnson --
HOULAHAN: Yes, civility and decency matter.
TAPPER: -- about the shut -- yes, yes. No, I'm not criticizing you. I just want to set up this clip just to make sure people know that this is not normally how you act. This is you at a press conference that the Republicans were holding. And here's just a little snippet of a tense exchange that you two had.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) HOULAHAN: You have an obligation --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You have an obligation.
HOULAHAN: -- to call the leadership of both parties and bring us together.
REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA), HOUSE SPEAKER: You voted to shut down the government. You voted to stop SNAP benefits. You voted to not pay the troops, not pay TSA Border Patrol. You may regret it now, but that's your vote, and it's on the record.
HOULAHAN: You were asked to misrepresenting history. So -- and you know that you are. And you're dividing the American people unnecessarily.
Sir, I do not regret anything. (END VIDEO CLIP)
TAPPER: So your senators, both of your senators are not with you on your position on the government shutdown. Republican Dave McCormick, obviously voting with Republicans, but Senator John Fetterman, a Democrat, is one of the three Senate Democrats that is continually voting to open the government, to fund the government. They say that they agree with your position on the Obamacare subsidies, but they just don't think shutting the government down is the way to do it. Why do you think Fetterman and McCormick are wrong?
HOULAHAN: I believe very strongly that they're wrong because I believe we are operating in an environment where I cannot believe or trust that the other side, so to speak, will actually negotiate in fair -- in a fair way would we open the government. And I believe that because of nine months of experience. And I believe that because over those nine months, the government has effectively been being slowly shut down, slowly strangled. And in addition, the administration has been behaving as though they are the Congress. They are behaving like they hold the power of the purse.
And to be honest, I don't blame them because the speaker of the House and the leadership of the Republican Party has allowed them to continue to proceed that way. And so there's no faith existing anymore that we would have good and decent conversations would we open the government. And there's just too much at stake. We've got people who are, in my community, 60 percent to 70 percent increases on average in their premiums if this -- if this happens in the next several weeks. And now is the time to have these conversations, and it's important that people understand that.
I think we need to show up to work. You know, we need to get our acts together. And that's not what's happening. The Republicans control the House, the Senate and the White House. And we have seen nothing of them other than them standing in front of microphones.
TAPPER: Yes, I like this idea of members of Congress getting paid and not doing any work. I mean, maybe you guys can do something about the anchors won't have to do work and you can continue to get paid off. HOULAHAN: Sure. And I -- first of all --
TAPPER: That would be -- that --
HOULAHAN: Yes. I'd like to point out that I have declined to be paid during this time and many of my colleagues on the Democratic side have done the same. But I don't disagree with you. I absolutely think --
TAPPER: Yes.
HOULAHAN: -- we should not -- you pay if we shut the government down.
TAPPER: Congresswoman Chrissy Houlahan, Democrat from the great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, it's always good to see you. Thank you.
When President Trump proposed the second summit with Russia's Vladimir Putin, he suggested as the location for it, Budapest, Hungary. Well, that country's leader, Viktor Orban joined Trump at the White House today for a wide ranging sit down. Some of it was in front of the cameras. That's next on The Lead live from Reagan National Airport outside Washington, D.C.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:28:10]
TAPPER: In our world lead, President Trump sat down with Hungarian leader Viktor Orban at the White House today. The two discussed a number of topics, including the war in Ukraine and trade and energy, including Orban's desire for President Trump to exempt Hungary from U.S. sanctions against Russian oil. CNN's Kristen Holmes is live for us at the White House.
Kristen, President Trump appears open to possibly granting that request?
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Jake, he didn't just appear open to it. He seemed to be making the case for it, saying that Hungary wasn't really the problem. The problem was our European allies. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're looking at it because it's very difficult for him to get the oil and gas from other areas. As you know, they don't have -- they don't have the advantage of having sea. It's a great country, it's a big country, but they don't have sea, they don't have the ports. And so they have a difficult problem. There's another country that has that same problem, by the way.
So that question could be really asked, maybe more accurately, if you talked about many European countries, not Hungary, necessarily, because Hungary is in a different position.
(END VIDEO CLIP) HOLMES: Now, it's not necessarily surprising that President Trump would align with Orban on this. The two of them are incredibly close. President Trump touted Orban on the campaign trail all throughout 2024. Orban went and visited him at Mar-a-Lago when he was out office. But one other interesting point of all this, you mentioned the Ukraine war.
At one point, President Trump said that he believed, or that Orban believed that the war was going to wrap up soon. But when he asked Orban why, Orban essentially parroted Russian talking points, saying that it was the Europeans who wanted this war to continue. Essentially, that's why they were giving ammunition and weapons to Ukraine, which of course we know is to protect themselves, for Ukraine to be able to protect themselves, that is where the question lies as to what President Trump is going to walk away believing about the Ukraine war.
[17:30:03]
We know he listens to generally people, the last person that was in his ear, and that is clearly the messaging Orban has. As we know, Orban is very close to Russian President Vladimir Putin. He was going to host the summit between Putin and Trump before Trump ultimately canceled that.
TAPPER: All right, Kristen Holmes at the White House, thanks so much.
With so many flights being canceled or delayed and warnings that matters are only going to get worse, we're going to break down your rights at the airport, if you find yourself or your family caught up in all of this self-inflicted chaos.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:35:00]
TAPPER: We're back at Ronald Reagan National Airport with more on the breaking news. More than 1,000 flights canceled today as a result of the government shutdown. And for some travelers, the stakes could not be higher.
A woman named Luana Griffin told us that she booked a flight for next week to spend a few days with her mother, who has terminal cancer. Any delay or cancellation of her return flight could cause her to miss work, something she cannot afford to do with a contract job. She told CNN, "I have very limited time left with my mom and so many other decisions, this is the last thing I need."
Let's discuss all this with Brian Kelly. He's founder of The Points Guy. Brian, some advice out there says that travelers should book a refundable backup flight with another airline every time they book a flight. For people who have the money, is that a good idea? And what happens if you don't have the money? What do you do?
BRIAN KELLY, FOUNDER, THE POINTS GUY: Yes, I couldn't believe Frontier CEO actually recommended. That's the first time in my life I've heard of an airline CEO recommending people do this. Yes, if you can afford to do it, absolutely, just remember to cancel it. Also, using your frequent flyer miles. Almost every U.S. airline will let you cancel up until departure, so just make sure you book an extra ticket on another carrier.
But for everyone else, you know, I think you've just got to be on the offense here. Do not wait for the airlines to contact you. Several of our writers at The Points Guy have had flight cancellations, never gotten e-mail or notice from the airline, so it's critical everyone who's traveling, you know, in the near future, log in right now and double-check that your reservation is still active and keep checking it, because these cancellations keep -- keep rolling.
TAPPER: What are your rights if one's flight is canceled? What -- what can I, as a passenger, do if I -- if I go up on the board there and I see that the flight's been canceled?
KELLY: So your right by the Department of Transportation is if your flight's canceled, for any reason, you get a full cash refund. Do not let the airline give you a voucher. Many agents will try to do that, and online they will as well. Or if your flight is delayed domestically three hours or more, say you want to throw in the towel and go home, you are owed a full refund. Once again, do not take a voucher.
But beyond that, you're not entitled to much, which is why it's critical to use a credit card that has flight disruption. Most of the major travel credit cards have this, and so many people don't know about it. So if you've got non-refundable hotels that you're not going to be able to use, always file a claim with your credit card company or travel insurance. And I personally buy a yearly travel insurance package that will cover me if the credit card won't.
TAPPER: So what tips do you have for folks who are going to the airport and their flights are not canceled? What else should they know?
KELLY: Yes, everyone out there, I mean, many, many flights and many airports are operating smoothly. So, you know, certain airports, I recommend using an app called Flighty. It'll actually tell you where your plane is coming from. And it'll also, you know, I follow them on X and FlightAware, see where your plane is coming from, see where -- whether the airport you're traveling out of that day is a hotspot.
Today, the problem child is DCA, which is seeing a huge amount of backup due to air traffic control shortages, sort of a game of hot potato. So I would just be proactive and make sure you understand the airport you're flying out of, what the situation is.
TAPPER: All right, Brian Kelly, thanks so much. Appreciate it.
[17:38:28]
President Trump says that grocery prices are way down. Is that actually the reality when you go to a grocery store? We're breaking down the numbers next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
TAPPER: In our Politics Lead, the rising cost of living was top of mind for voters on Tuesday, and Republicans took something of a shellacking from Democrats in key races across the country. But President Trump, who was elected just a year ago by voters for the very same kitchen -- kitchen table reasons, he has spent much of this week downplaying these affordability concerns.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We have the greatest economy right now. A lot of people don't see that. This is the golden age of America. This is the golden age. We got the princess here from Saudi Arabia. She's got a lot of cash. Serious cash. And she's a great person. So she doesn't care about the price of a turkey is down a little bit. She doesn't have to worry about that.
I think of groceries. It's an old-fashioned word, but it's a beautiful word. And beef we have to get down, but we've got prices way down.
So I don't want to hear about the affordability, because right now we're much less. If you look at energy, we're getting close to $2 a gallon gasoline.
Affordability, they call it, was a con job by the -- by the Democrats. The Democrats are good at a few things, cheating in elections and conning people with facts that aren't true.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAPPER: A point of fact, according to data released from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics just last month, found that average grocery prices rose 0.3 percent just from August to September. Among the grocery items more expensive now than in January when President Trump took office, coffee's up 15.3 percent, uncooked ground beef up 14.2 percent, bananas up 7.9 percent, cakes and cupcakes up 6 percent, candy up 4.2 percent, salad dressing up 3.5 percent, and on and on. I'm not going to give you the full grocery list my wife handed me, but it is long.
Here with us is the panel. Thanks for being here, guys. Thanks for coming out to Reagan Airport where we're covering this disaster. President Trump has repeatedly suggested that the cheaper price tag for this year's Thanksgiving meal from Walmart is proof that food prices are coming down. He said it again today. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[17:45:05]
TRUMP: It was 25 percent. Walmart just announced it two days ago, 25 percent cheaper this year will be cheaper to have Thanksgiving than it was a year ago under Sleepy Joe Biden.
(END VIDEO CLIP) TAPPER: Remember that he said Sleepy Joe Biden for something later. CNN's Daniel Dale fact-checked that and -- and Walmart's Thanksgiving package actually has six fewer items in the -- in this year's Thanksgiving meal and a smaller proportion of name brand products. Now, Ashley, today Trump was asked about that and the reporter pointed it out that it's actually fewer and Trump's response was, your fake news. Are you concerned as a Republican that President Trump is really starting to seem out of touch which -- with this affordability issue?
ASHLEY DAVIS, FORMER G.W. BUSH ADMIN. HOMELAND SECURITY OFFICIAL: Well, look, I'm not going to say he's out of touch, but because --
TAPPER: I said seem.
DAVIS: Seem, OK, that's fine. The stock market is doing well. This is the same thing that happened under Biden. The stock market was doing really well.
TAPPER: How'd that go for Biden?
DAVIS: It's very bad. That's my point. I asked my mother after the election on Wednesday, who lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, I'm like, what are your groceries like? And she's like, they've gone up. And so she's a rabid Republican and she says that she -- her day-to- day stuff is still not changing. So it's going to be an issue and it's going to continue to be an issue unless it changes.
TAPPER: So here's -- here's a wrinkle. Just moments ago, President Trump posted that he's asked the Justice Department to immediately investigate the quote, meatpacking companies who are driving up the price of beef through illicit collusion, price fixing, and price manipulation. Action must be taken immediately to protect consumers, combat illegal monopolies, and ensure these corporations are not criminally profiting at the expense of the American people. Xochitl used to work at the Justice Department. What -- what do you think?
XOCHITL HINOJOSA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: That sounds like a president who's very frustrated about the cost of living. He's feeling the pressure. He's feeling the pressure on Tuesday when Republicans didn't win in critical states and they didn't even get close to winning. It was, the margin was pretty large for Democrats. I'll also say this Thanksgiving, not only will the prices be going up for Americans, but now you have federal workers who are not receiving paychecks.
And not only are they not receiving paychecks, there are a bunch of federal workers who are still out of jobs because there were cuts across the federal government. So this is not looking good, especially now that we are about one year away from the midterm elections. People are feeling it. They voted for Trump because he was supposed to make change, and he has not made that yet, and so people are deciding to vote for the opposite party.
TAPPER: Yes, and we're starting to hear sound from people in your party. We're starting to hear people, Republicans, not mad at President Trump, but concerned that he's not hearing the message. Here's Erick Erickson. He's a conservative pundit, a Trump supporter earlier today, I'm sorry, yesterday. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ERICK ERICKSON, HOST, "THE ERICK ERICKSON SHOW": Grocery prices are going up, and now Republicans are perversely doing the same thing Democrats did when they were in office with Joe Biden. Say, no, actually, don't believe your eyes at the grocery store. Prices are coming down. That's not helpful to Americans who are feeling higher grocery costs right now, which is actually happening.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAPPER: Again, this is a supporter of the President.
DAVIS: No, absolutely, and listen, I'm the first one to say I think it's a good lesson. We do have a year to fix it, but he -- it has to be fixed. I mean, this is the number one issue. No one cares about if Ukraine on the Republican side, they care, but at the end of the day, they care how much their groceries are, not if Ukraine is still at war, not if Israel's still at war. They care about they can, like, support their families every day.
TAPPER: So, it's not just Republicans saying this. Also, listen to Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill of the great state of New Jersey. He was asked how Democrats can win back working-class voters. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKIE SHERRILL (D-NJ), GOVERNOR-ELECT: If I am talking to you about abortion, and you cannot pay your rent, then we -- we can't talk. You know, we've got to talk about the first-tier issue, and for working families, you can't get to the other issues.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TAPPER: So, again, she supports abortion rights. She's not saying don't support abortion rights, but she's saying Democrats need to talk about this. It's -- it's actually very interesting, because Democrats did not sound like that as recently as a year ago.
HINOJOSA: You're right. I think Democrats have learned their lesson. They felt that, you know, a few elections ago, it was going to be all about reproductive rights. It was going to be about making sure that women knew, and that women were going to turn out for Democrats, and we talked about that issue. That was not the case.
We know that cost of living is going to be the number one issue. Number two issue, health care. That is why Democrats are fighting so hard on affordability and health care, and that's what Democrats want to make the next election about, the midterm elections. Cost of living and health care, and you know that Trump wants to make it about crime and immigration, but it's not that voters don't want to talk about crime and immigration, they want to talk about cost of living.
DAVIS: Well, and you look at what happened in -- in Virginia, where it was all about the schools, and it was all about, you know, LGBTQ rights and whatever, that is not an issue anymore for the voters, and you saw it when Winsome Sears tried to do it.
[17:50:05]
TAPPER: Oh, you mean four years ago it was that?
DAVIS: Yes, four years ago it was. But even two ago it was.
TAPPER: Yes.
DAVIS: But it's not anymore. I mean it's -- and also, immigration's kind of been fixed. Like, there's not, that's not the issue anymore. You have to move on.
HINOJOSA: The issue on it is sort of that he has gone too far, and now they need to sort of correct it.
TAPPER: But the border is essentially shut down.
DAVIS: That's correct. But the economy is a better message.
TAPPER: So, earlier I played a clip where President Trump had called his predecessor, Sleepy Joe Biden. Here's some video taken yesterday, President Trump in the Oval Office yesterday. You can see the President with his eyes closed there. He appears to be nodding off a bit. I'm not really, there he is in the bottom left there. I'm not sure if you can see. It's just -- it's not just a blink. I mean, I -- Dr. Oz seems like a very nice gentleman, but I doubt he's been memorized -- mesmerized by -- by what Oz is saying. But look, he's a 79-year-old man, and --
DAVIS: Well, he's moving. Look, his chair was just moving.
TAPPER: I didn't say he -- I didn't say he passed out.
HINOJOSA: Yes.
DAVIS: Well, that's what I was going to say. That press conference was very difficult on many levels.
TAPPER: Well --
HINOJOSA: Well, but also, he will be the oldest president when he -- when he ends this term, and I think that people are concerned about that. I mean, we -- we have Nancy Pelosi who's retiring, and rightfully so, she retired on her own. But you now have Donald Trump here, again oldest president, and unclear whether he's fit for the job.
DAVIS: But he's not going to run again, so yes.
TAPPER: Yes. Anyway, stay close. We have a lot more to talk about. The issue at the center of the shutdown debate, why I'm sitting in an airport right now. The cost that millions of Americans will pay for health care next year, that's what Democrats say anyway. Next, we're going to introduce you to three families who are cutting costs every way they can, and they still face the very real possibility of not being able to make ends meet for health insurance if a deal is not made. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:56:00]
TAPPER: In our Money Lead, while I'm here at the Reagan National Airport to highlight just some of the damage caused by the shutdown, we're going to take a moment to remind you how we got here.
Right now, millions of Americans are choosing health insurance plans and seeing their costs, their insurance premiums skyrocket. Democrats say the reason the government shutdown is the center of the shutdown debate. They're not going to reopen the government until Republicans allow an extension of subsidies that help people deal with some of these health care premiums.
CNN's Gabe Cohen breaks it all down and speaks with people forced to make an impossible choice.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRIS VETTERS, ACA ENROLLEE: MALE: Starting in 2026, the extra help will end and your monthly payments could go up.
GABE COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As they scan health insurance options for next year, Chris and Donna Vetters are choosing between breaking the bank and ditching their coverage. Right now, they pay $400 a month. Next year, that premium jumps to more than $1,900 monthly.
C. VETTERS: $1,500 increase. I don't know where that will come from.
COHEN (voice-over): The enhanced subsidies that capped most premiums on the Affordable Care Act marketplace are set to expire unless Congress steps in.
COHEN: Those price hikes, what does that mean for you guys?
DONNA VETTERS, ACA ENROLLEE: No health care.
C. VETTERS: No health care.
D. VETTERS: Flat out.
C. VETTERS: Or we keep healthcare and we don't keep anything else in our life.
COHEN (voice-over): Chris is a retired federal worker. Donna runs a small medical billing business here on Maryland's eastern shore.
C. VETTERS: It's rolling the dice big time.
D. VETTERS: God forbid, you know, car accidents, heart attacks, cancer. You mean we've got, we'll have nothing.
COHEN (voice-over): Premiums are rising for the 24 million Americans on ACA plans, what many call Obamacare. And for the millions losing the enhanced subsidies that lowered insurance costs over the past five years, those increases are steep, more than double on average.
REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: That is unsustainable.
COHEN (voice-over): It's at the center of the shutdown standoff in Washington. Democrats demanding Republicans extend these subsidies or say they'll block any deal to reopen the government.
REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA), HOUSE SPEAKER: It's time to stop the political games.
COHEN (voice-over): CL Marshall's premium is set to spike 40 percent, and he never got a subsidy.
CL MARSHALL, ACA ENROLLEE: It's going to be significant, you know, and it's something that I'm going to be forced to pass along to my customers.
COHEN (voice-over): He runs a fishing charter in Maryland. He's a Trump supporter and serves as a local Republican council member.
MARSHALL: And this reaches beyond party, Republican, Democrat, whatever. This is a humanitarian issue. The key is going to be finding an affordable middle ground on this thing. I don't see the subsidies going away.
SUNNI MONTGOMERY, ACA ENROLLEE: I fought really hard. Don't do this to us.
COHEN (voice-over): In Alabama, 63 year old Sunni Montgomery is battling lung cancer with daily oxygen and scans every three months.
MONTGOMERY: I want to live. I want to stay alive.
COHEN (voice-over): She says her premium is going from 540 a month to more than 1,700.
MONTGOMERY: I have to face the reality that I am probably going to become a late stage cancer patient who's uninsured.
COHEN: If you don't have insurance, what will that mean for your scans and your treatments and your oxygen?
MONTGOMERY: I won't have any of those. Life's going to get a lot harder.
AMANDA RUSSELL, ACA ENROLLEE: That's gone up.
THEO RUSSELL, ACA ENROLLEE: That has gone up. That's gone up.
COHEN (voice-over): Back in Maryland, the Russells scroll through their enrollment options.
COHEN: So your health insurance is going from 400 some to -- T. RUSSELL: About $1,100.
A. RUSSELL: For me it was OK, can I keep the kids insured?
COHEN: You were going to put them on health insurance and take yourselves off if needed?
A. RUSSELL: Yes.
T. RUSSELL: We had to.
A. RUSSELL: Yes, it was going to suck.
COHEN (voice-over): But they just found out their kids qualify for Medicaid. Because Amanda, who works two jobs and seven days a week in her new position.
A. RUSSELL: You feel like you have to stay at a lower paying job.
T. RUSSELL: She had to double what she's currently making at her current job.
COHEN: For it to even be worth it.
T. RUSSELL: Yes.
COHEN (voice-over): These sunsetting subsidies, pulling them further into a financial maze.
T. RUSSELL: It becomes nearly impossible to try to dig yourself out of a rut that you've been placed into.
[18:00:01]
COHEN (voice-over): Gabe Cohen, CNN, Maryland.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
