Return to Transcripts main page

CNN News Central

Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA) On CNN Polling Showing Voters Favor Democrats Heading Into The Midterms; Wall Street Rattled By Fed's Unusually Unpredictable Meeting; Michigan Health Department: 10,000+ Cyclosporiasis Cases As Record Outbreak Spreads. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired July 30, 2026 - 07:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:32:00]

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news this morning. With just over three months to go until the midterms a new CNN poll is out today revealing that voters want to see big changes in Washington and right now, they favor Democrats to bring that change about.

Among registered voters they have -- Democrats have an 8-point edge over Republicans to take Congress on the generic ballot. And when asked to identify the party of change those same voters pointed to Democrats by a 10-point margin, and that's a shift from last spring when Republicans had a 7-point advantage.

But the polling also shows -- and is showing this divide that we've been seeing playing out among Democrats and a growing desire for change within the Democratic Party itself. About a third of the party now identifies as democratic socialists in this poll.

Joining us right now is Stef Kight. She is a politico -- political reporter for -- with Axios. It's good to see you, Stef.

When you see this advantage Dem now in this -- on the generic ballot, what sticks out to you and kind of what this says less than 100 days out?

STEF KIGHT, POLITICAL REPORTER, AXIOS (via Webex by Cisco): I mean, look, it's certainly confirming the sense that I get talking to both Republicans and Democrats day in and day out in Congress who do feel like, you know, the winds are in favor of Democrats this cycle.

It's clear that the American public is not -- you know, not a fan of what President Trump has been doing so far in his second term here and, you know, we're seeing that in the polls. We're seeing it in the number of competitive races both in the House and in the Senate.

You know, for a while there we thought that Senate Republicans were going to be OK. Republicans were confident they would hold on to the upper chamber, and now even that can't be taken for granted.

And I do think we are seeing this anti-incumbent wave that really could benefit Democrats all the way through November.

BOLDUAN: And that bit about -- it's really revealing about the -- kind of this what we've been seeing play out within the Democratic Party and you're seeing it now in this polling is about a third of Democrats and Democratic-leaning adults are now identifying as democratic socialists.

One thing you see -- and David Chalian kind of pointed -- highlighted it earlier this morning is that when you look at who that is within the party and what the kind of -- what the description is of them, they tend to be younger. They're the younger members of the Democratic Party, which is where a lot of the energy is. Fifty-nine percent of those who identify as democratic socialists are younger than the age of 45.

How are you seeing and how is that showing, and what does that mean for the party and how candidates and the electeds already are grappling with this?

KIGHT: Yeah. You know, especially when looking at young people. That's always been a key demographic for Democrats. And if you'll remember, in 2024, Trump and Republicans kind of made some inroads with younger voters and I think Democrats are really wanting to get that younger demographic back and turn them out in November.

Young people can also be, you know, highly motivated to vote. They can bring energy to a party.

[07:35:00]

And so I think it is interesting to look at this data showing that when it comes to this divide within the Democratic Party a lot of the young people are siding with this idea of democratic socialism. And what does that mean for the Democratic Party?

You know, I think there's a lot of discussion about whether, you know, this is just a temporary reaction to President Trump or whether this is a longer-term shift in the party.

BOLDUAN: Stef, I was also seeing this morning some exclusive reporting from Axios about Elon Musk planning a big push for -- in the midterms. That Musk -- your colleagues are reporting Musk is resuscitating his dormant super PAC, America PAC, which spent more than $260 million to help get President Trump elected in 2024.

Cash is not the -- is not a problem for Republicans right now when you see especially all the reporting that we've seen of the financial struggles of the Democratic Party and their fundraising.

What could a Musk jumping backing in to politics do to this race?

KIGHT: I mean, I think there's a lot of questions on how this is going to play out, right? Who are the kinds of candidates that Elon Musk might be willing to put his significant resources behind?

And to your point, money is, of course, not everything when it comes to politics, but it does matter some. And when you're looking at the Republican Party and the headwinds that they're facing and, you know, how hard it will be for them to hold onto their majorities in November, I'm sure that they are thrilled to have the kind of, you know, money coming in from Elon Musk.

But I do think it'll be fascinating to see which races he actually decides to play in. Elon Musk has, you know, a fascinating political history. Yes, he, of course, was highly supportive of President Trump. Does that kind of change the kind of Republican candidates that he's willing to back. Are there particular issues, you know, that impact his companies that he is going to be more willing to push for -- push for candidates who are going to support those endeavors there.

So I think there's a lot of questions. We don't know yet how much he's really willing to spend here so, you know, it is significant to see that he's jumping back in politics. And it's not during a presidential year but he seems to be --

BOLDUAN: Yeah.

KIGHT: -- willing to jump back into the game. It's a lot of money but there's a lot we don't know still.

BOLDUAN: Yeah, definitely a lot of questions around this.

But it is great to have you. Thank you so much, Stef -- Sara.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Thank you so much, Kate.

Joining me now Democratic Congressman Jake Auchincloss of Massachusetts. Thank you for being here early this morning with us.

Let's talk about this polling. One the one hand there is new CNN polling that we brought out yesterday of the president showing Americans are fed up with his choices. His approval rating lower than it has ever been at just 34 percent. And then you have this other number. Seventy-three percent of Americans polled said Trump is not paying enough attention to the most important issues to them.

And yet, in the latest CNN poll, Democrats are seeing just an eight percent bump over Republicans.

Why do you think there isn't a bigger shift towards Democrats taking over? I mean, does this worry you at all?

REP. JAKE AUCHINCLOSS (D-MA) (via Webex by Cisco): Good morning, Sara. It's nice to be with you again.

Let's start with President Trump and why he's being rejected by the American public. It's because he's not doing what he said he was going to do.

And I think Iran is a good example of this. He said I'm going to do regime change. What did he do instead? He empowered a newly-hardened, hardline, defiant regime.

He said he was going to take away nuclear enrichment from Iran. What did he do? He tried to give nuclear enrichment to Saudi Arabia.

He said he was going to lower prices. What has actually happened? Gas prices have gone up. The oil major profits have been bumper this quarter.

And so I think Americans just sense the huge gap between his lies and what he has actually delivered. That does not translate, as you said, into durable support for the Democratic Party though. Democrats need to be clear that we're going to be a check on Donald Trump's worst impulses and his authoritarian overreach. And we need to articulate a proactive government agenda for the future. We're not the party that's against Trump; we're the party that's for the middle class.

SIDNER: That is a really interesting way to put it. What you're saying there is it can't just be anti-Trump rhetoric; it's got to be solutions oriented, I think, as I understand what you're saying.

I do want to move on because you are on the committee of the Armed Forces. I do want to move on to what's happening with Iran. The U.S. launching a heavy wave of strikes on Iran overnight after that Iran surprise attack on a U.S. base in Jordan. This is -- and these are some videos of what happened overnight.

This all happening as concern heightens about the U.S. military stockpile. And I want to let people see what is happening.

[07:40:00]

The Center for Strategic International Studies, which analyzes these things, are showing that the amount of certain munitions that the U.S. has. And it shows its analysis of what was left before the war and after the war. And you're seeing a huge drop where there was more than 2,000 munitions in one case and then it dropped down to -- they're saying about, you know, between 500 and 800.

I mean, should Americans be worried about the situation with the U.S. stockpiles as the war with Iran drags on?

AUCHINCLOSS: Yes, we should be worried about the stockpiles. More importantly, we should be worried about the safety of American troops.

Sara, I'm not on the Armed Services committee but I have been a strong opponent of this failed potential forever war against Iran from day one. And we need to ratchet up the pressure on the president through Congress and through public opinion to prevent what is already a lost war from becoming a quagmire and potentially, a regional war.

That means three things.

One, stop the ratchet of escalation. The United States is trying to vertically escalate, meaning put more effects on target. The ayatollah is horizontally escalating, meaning bringing in other vectors of conflict -- the Houthis, the Strait of Hormuz, Saudi Arabia, et cetera. We've got to stop that escalation ratchet because it risks a wider regional war that we cannot control. Number two, we've got to negotiate transit through the strait. It's not going to be free and open like it was before this war. As I said, this war is lost but it needs to at least be navigable in order to bring down prices.

And then number three, you've got to strengthen the Abraham Accords -- energy, defense, logistics ties between Middle Eastern partners and allies so that Iran's new chokepoint control of the strait becomes a wasting asset.

SIDNER: You were mentioning the Abraham Accords. That's something that President Trump was able to put together and something that you clearly think needs to be bolstered, which is an interesting take because the Democrats and Trump don't usually go together. On this issue, you do.

Now to the hearing on how Dr. Anthony Fauci handled the pandemic where Republicans got really personal as Fauci pleaded the fifth to the committee.

Here's just a taste of that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOSH HAWLEY (R-MO): You don't want to answer questions. It's because you did all kinds of terrible things. It's because during the pandemic you got rich, didn't you?

SEN. RICK SCOTT (R-FL): Your legacy will not be as a man who have saved America from COVID but as a man who destroyed the public trust in America's public health institutions in exchange for five minutes of fame.

SEN. BERNIE MORENO (R-OH): It was about six years ago today that I decided I'm going to give up my businesses, sell them all, run for office, run for the United States Senate. And here I am sitting in front of you six years later saying who the (bleep) do you think you were for doing that?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: Yes, he used the f-word there.

And I want you to hear this unusual response from someone who has been seen, at times, to be quite friendly to President Trump but had some real concerns about how the CDC handled the COVID pandemic. TMZ's Harvey Levin said this about what he saw during the Fauci hearing -- listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HARVEY LEVIN, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, TMZ: We are in a Sen. Joseph McCarthy climate where there is such fear that people have and legitimate fear that they'll end up in prison for what they say, no matter what it is, if they are on the wrong side of somebody in Congress or the administration that they have been silenced. And that's where we are right now. We are in Sen. Joseph McCarthy territory.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: I'm curious if that's how you see this.

AUCHINCLOSS: No. Republicans are trying to use Dr. Fauci as a punching bag because they don't want to talk about public health in 2026.

We have measles outbreaks that are unprecedented in the 21st century because of the antivax agenda of Sec. Kennedy.

We have a cyclospora outbreak because DOGE came in, fired, and dismantled the surveillance mechanism to prevent these pathogens from being carried on produce.

We have an FDA that is approving peptides without any safety and efficacy backing as part of a broader set of fear and favoritism that includes approving flavored vaping as well in exchange for a $5 million PAC check to Donald Trump's -- Donald Trump's super PACs.

So the Republicans are desperate to distract the American attention from the public health catechisms that they are bringing forth onto the -- onto the American public.

SIDNER: I just have to follow up with a yes or no. Do you think that this is leaning towards McCarthyism, which is what Harvey Levin accused the Republicans basically of doing?

Congressman, thank you so much.

AUCHINCLOSS: Leaning towards McCarthyism and it's --

[07:45:00]

SIDNER: Yeah. Go ahead.

AUCHINCLOSS: I'm sorry. I don't understand the -- are you saying that this is a witch hunt against Dr. Fauci? I think it's just political (INAUDIBLE) --

SIDNER: So that's the way that Harvey Levin said it.

AUCHINCLOSS: -- to distract Americans.

SIDNER: Yeah. That's what -- Harvey Levin sort of put that out there as someone who has been, you know, friendly with the Trump administration over time. But he said this appears to be a witch hunt against Fauci.

AUCHINCLOSS: Of course. I'm surprised they didn't bring up Hillary Clinton's emails. I mean, they want to talk about anything except for the state of affairs in 2026.

SIDNER: Congressman, thank you so much for walking us through that. I just wanted to get the clarification. I do appreciate it -- Kate. BOLDUAN: Markets -- they will open soon. Right now they're there.

Futures are pointing higher after Wall Street recorded its worst day of the year. The Dow, yesterday, plunged more than 1,000 points as the Fed announced it's keeping interest rates unchanged right now.

CNN's David Goldman is here. It wasn't here -- I didn't know where it was, OK, in my defense.

DAVID GOLDMAN, CNN BUSINESS SENIOR REPORTER: No, no, no. I hit the wrong button. But it seems --

BOLDUAN: I didn't exactly blame you. I'm still not blaming you. But what -- the Fed's decision, market tank.

GOLDMAN: Yeah.

BOLDUAN: Now where are we?

GOLDMAN: It's wild. That sea of green is a little different than what we saw last night. Remember, the Fed started talking and this happened -- the worst day for the Dow in more than a year. When we're looking at stocks fall almost two percent that's not the reaction we want to see.

But I'm going to suggest that maybe this is not the entire story because that's not the only market that's there. The bond market is also very important and when it comes to the Fed it's even more important. This rate -- this is what benchmarks against, you know, all kinds of consumer loans like credit cards, auto loans, your home loan. We're going to get that mortgage rate number later today. This is close to the highest that we have seen during the Trump -- the second Trump presidency --

BOLDUAN: OK.

GOLDMAN: -- even higher than during the tariff scare.

This number I want to come back to because that's supposed to be pegged to where the Fed is.

BOLDUAN: Um-hum.

GOLDMAN: This number is the highest that we've seen in 19 years -- that 30-year bond. And again, that is related to your mortgage rate.

Now, normally when the Fed sets rates this two-year yield follows that. Notice that they are not close to the same. The Fed is basically saying we're going to hold rates steady. The market is saying we don't believe you. And this is important because when the bond market is saying that we don't believe you, then crazy things happen.

The Fed chair, Kevin Warsh, is saying I don't need to talk so much. I can let the market do the talking for me.

And it doesn't have the only say here. The Fed can raise rates to target inflation but so can the bond market. This is the tension that's going on right now. And he put it really, really well. Kevin Warsh said that the markets are playing the ball; not the referee. This tension is going to continue as long as Kevin Warsh kind of keeps his mouth shut and lets the markets do the talking.

BOLDUAN: Yeah, and what -- kind of the dissention and disagreement amongst the Fed presidents that was happening leading up to it is kind of all part of this.

GOLDMAN: Yes.

BOLDUAN: It's great to see you. You can touch all the buttons you wish right now.

GOLDMAN: Thank you -- yeah. I'm going to play around with it.

BOLDUAN: It's crazy over here. It's confusing me all over the place, Sara.

SIDNER: You guys, don't get too wild over there. I mean, seriously.

BOLDUAN: I know.

SIDNER: Don't get too wild.

GOLDMAN: I'm going to have fun.

SIDNER: Oh.

We talked about this just earlier with Rep. Auchincloss. In Michigan, one in 1,000 people -- one in a thousand have now been affected by the cyclosporiasis outbreak the past three months. The state's health department says there have been more than 10,000 cases reported of the parasite that causes explosive diarrhea.

Thousands of new cases were reported across the nation just this past week as the outbreak continues to grow. It is now the largest of its kind on record.

Let's go to CNN health reporter Jacqueline Howard with more. There have been a lot of talk about whether or not we were getting the right numbers because suddenly, it seems there are a lot more of these cases than we initially knew about.

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: That's right, Sara. This outbreak is still ongoing, and we are seeing more cases. The state with the largest number of cases, like you said, is the state of Michigan where, I mean, think about it -- one in every 1,000 people have gotten sick with this parasite. And in the state of Michigan, we also know 160 people have been hospitalized.

Now, this outbreak does appear to be concentrated in the Midwest. So along with the state of Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. Those are the Midwest states where we're seeing connected to this regional outbreak.

[07:50:00] But across the country, Sara, the CDC does say other states have been reporting cases as well, and some of those other states are reporting higher numbers than we typically see this time of year. So when you look at nationally, nationally more than 18,000 cases have been reported. Among those, more than 6,000 have been confirmed. More than 11,000 are still under investigation. This is across 45 states.

So what's been done to address this? We do know that the shredded iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms -- Taylor Farms says that has been recalled. But Sara, health officials are still bracing themselves for possibly more cases to emerge as time goes on.

SIDNER: I mean, it is significant. This is the biggest outbreak of its kind ever.

Jacqueline Howard, thank you so much. I do appreciate your reporting on this.

Ahead for you, millions of Americans will be sweltering under a dangerous heat dome this week. We could see record temperatures across dozens of states. We're talking potentially, in some spots, more than 110 degrees.

All right. And do you know where they celebrate "Take Your Kangaroo to Work?" I don't think you're going to guess this one, but I'll let you go ahead and try. That story ahead.

(COMMERCIAL)

[07:55:45]

SIDNER: All right. With baseball's trade deadline looming, was last night Tarik Skubal's last game with the Detroit Tigers?

CNN's Andy Scholes joining me now with sports. A lot of folks, I guess, wondering about where he's going next and we don't quite know yet.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: We're all on Skubal watch right now, Sara. You know, the trade deadline is coming Monday. The big question in baseball is will the Tigers trade their ace Tarik Skubal? Whoever gets Skubal -- I mean, it would swing the balance of power in baseball, unless it's the Dodgers. Then it would just be brutal for everyone else.

But Skubal -- he was on the mound in Detroit yesterday in what could be his last Tigers start. And the very first batter of the game, Skubal gets Taylor Ward swinging and that was his 1,000th strikeout of his career. The Detroit crowd giving him a big standing ovation. Skubal then got another standing ovation when he left the game in the seventh inning.

The Tigers were up 7-0 at one point in that game but then collapsed and lost 10-9 in 12 innings. A brutal loss for them.

Meanwhile, back in Chicago -- in Chicago, Yankees fans -- they were happy, enjoying a 4-run lead on the White Sox after the first inning but things turned in this game. The game would go to extra innings, tied at four. The Yankees now up by four, one out away from winning but Ali Sanchez makes a throwing error trying to throw out Munetaka Murakami at third. That tied the game. And check out this young Yankees fan. He was quite upset about that error.

It didn't get better for him. In the next inning Edgar Quero wins it on a walk-off single. So the White Sox -- they celebrate the comeback win. But that poor Yankees fan just in tears watching his team blow that one.

And finally, from tears to a bad headache. Rafael Devers -- he skies this foul ball right here in San Francisco yesterday. A fan was standing up looking for it, but he was looking the wrong way. He takes it right off the top of his noggin. Look at it again. The ball bounces right off his head. It goes a full two sections over. But the fan was somehow OK. He had a laugh about it. They even went and got him the ball and everyone there, Sara, giving him a big ovation.

Man, you know, they sometimes say that some people have an iron jaw. That guy had an iron dome. I mean, if I took a ball like that --

SIDNER: Seriously.

SCHOLES: -- I think I'd be down for the count.

SIDNER: OK. Literally, when I saw it, I was like oh, we all know what it feels like to bang the top of your head. It's a horrible feeling. Man --

SCHOLES: Yeah.

SIDNER: -- look at him. He's like uh-uh, I'm alright.

SCHOLES: What a champ.

SIDNER: I'm alright, I'm alright. Maybe he needed to be checked out for a potential concussion or something. I don't know. That looked pretty --

SCHOLES: Yeah.

SIDNER: Oh!

BOLDUAN: Oh my God.

SIDNER: It just -- it is hard to watch. Stop playing it.

SCHOLES: The ball went so far.

BOLDUAN: That is just --

SIDNER: It's bad.

Andy Scholes, thank you -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: The slow-mo of injuries, no matter if it's a fan or --

SIDNER: I can't handle it.

BOLDUAN: -- any game --

SIDNER: Agree.

BOLDUAN: -- it is just --

SIDNER: It's too much.

BOLDUAN: And I'm not squeamish --

SIDNER: No.

BOLDUAN: -- but, like, it makes me squeamish.

SIDNER: I agree.

BOLDUAN: We're going to try to avoid injury on set today.

SIDNER: Speaking of which --

BOLDUAN: Stop it.

Let's go to this. In Montana, a man and two friends were hiking the state's highest peak last week, and things took a crazy turn. This is what happened. After they approached -- as they were approaching the top -- the top, after hiking already for hours, David Cifaldi slipped and impaled himself on his trekking pole -- like, truly. Here is how he described it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID CIFALDI, IMPALED BY TREKKING POLE: I just slipped on some rocks. It was just kind of a freak thing. As I rolled over, I noticed one of my trekking poles laying on the ground. And as I kind of sat up I, like, could -- I realized that the other one was stuck in my side.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: The poor guy. It's a 44-inch steel tip pole, guys, and it went straight through his side. Cifaldi is actually a wound care nurse. That's why things turned out OK, I'm declaring. He assessed himself and decided that he could make it back down the mountain to get to medical care. It took six hours, 10 miles, all with a pole sticking out of his side.

And then, of course, he went to the hospital. Doctors -- wonderful doctors removed the pole, and he was back at work this week -- Sara.

SIDNER: I just want to be done. I just --

BOLDUAN: You've got two more hours, girl.

SIDNER: But you know what? We do, but I guess since he can walk down a mountain for, what, 10 miles with a pole sticking literally through his body, I can finish the show. I'm pretty sure. I'm pretty brave.