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Trump Signs Executive Order Aimed at Lowering Diesel Prices; Trump Draws Backlash After He Suggests Iran Could Take Out Los Angeles or San Diego; Cornell Faculty Preparing No-Confidence Vote Against Administration. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired October 06, 2026 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: New polling just out showing the top election issue right now as people are beginning to vote early already reminder, affordability in America today. And more signs that the midterm election may be the Democrats to lose, holding a two to one advantage over Republicans.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: And, quote, it's a rough disease. The president expressed his concern over the possible death from plague in Russia. What even is pneumonic plague, and how fast could it spread if it's on the loose?

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: And for anyone wondering where robots go to die, turns out we've had the answer since Terminator 2, a dark fate into a fiery furnace.

I'm Sara Sidner with Kate Bolduan and John Berman. This is CNN News Central.

BOLDUAN: All right. Breaking this morning, new polling out offering another look at what is on voters' minds as President Trump seems to be changing his mind a bit in the final weeks of playing defense in several red states. He was in Nebraska last night, back in Texas tomorrow. Alabama then comes again Saturday. He's also been, of course, in Ohio and Oklahoma, all states that President Trump won by double digits in '24. The president also now says that he's going to be campaigning in Michigan, where former President Obama is going to be hitting the trail this month as well.

While he was in Nebraska last night, the president signed an executive order aimed at trying to lower fuel prices, specifically lowering the price of diesel, which has soared by 68 percent since the beginning of the war with Iran, seeming to acknowledge that the price of fuel is a real problem in reality and in the political environment they're living in.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: The typical trucker will save over $100 every time they fill up, so it's more than $100 each time, and farmers will also save millions and millions of dollars. And this order will also drive down the cost of all goods, including grocery prices, very substantially.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: High prices are top of mind for voters. In this new Kaiser Family Foundation poll, 62 percent say it is extremely important for candidates to be talking about the cost of living. Gas prices and the cost of healthcare are nearly tied as voters' top economic worries.

And maybe reading the room here and feeling the bipartisan backlash that he was getting, the president is now course-correcting on his paid-for-by-the-U.S.-government ads, saying now his campaign-style ads will be funded by a super PAC going forward. Millions of taxpayer dollars, though, have already, as we know, been spent on them.

CNN's Alayna Treene live for us this morning at the White House with the very latest. What are you seeing there? What are you hearing there? Where is he headed now?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Look, Kate, I think one of the most precious resources that a politician has, particularly in the lead-up this close to an election, the midterm elections is time, and we're seeing the president spend his time playing defense.

You had that map of all the different states where he's been going. I mean, you have Texas, Oklahoma, Alabama, Ohio. Last night, he was in Nebraska. Those are all states that the president won three times, states that if you asked Republicans a few months ago, you know, how they were feeling about those, they would argue that they were likely in the safe column. But now the president is going to these places to try and ensure that they have enough support to carry them over the finish line in November.

Actually, our colleague Kristen Holmes asked the president specifically about his schedule, and he told her that, when I go there, they pick up a lot of steam. When I go there, they win, and that's what I'm doing. That was how he described why he's spending so much time in some of these deeply red states.

As for his message it continues to be one that we know, and I know from my conversations with his, members of his political operation, is all about turnout. That is really what they believe the president can do to really help boost enthusiasm ahead of the midterm elections, to convince voters who normally would sit out in an election year like the midterms, to convince them not to do that, to actually show up on Election Day.

I will say when it comes to the specific messaging, though, on policy, we are starting to hear the president do something he often doesn't do, which is acknowledge when things aren't really great, and specifically high gas prices.

[07:05:10]

The president was pretty blunt, saying that prices are too high. I should note, he did at times argue that this is a byproduct of the former president, Joe Biden. We actually saw a tepid reaction from the crowd when he said that last night, but acknowledging it all the same, saying he knows that they need to do more to bring prices down. He continues to argue that once the war is over, that will happen.

I will say, too, though, one of the things that is also pretty blunt is seeing how the president is reversing on these ads. All of this comes as we're seeing the president, he argued, in a Truth Social post yesterday that he's going to start paying for some of these controversial ads that have really been all about promoting himself. He posted last night, quote, I've decided to do the patriotic ads, among others, and pay for them myself and with money I raised for MAGA Inc.

This is super notable, especially as we've heard the president, and even just last night the vice president as well, really trying to defend these, arguing they're not partisan. But, of course, it comes as a lot of Democrats and even some Republicans have been saying this isn't something taxpayers should be paying for.

Already millions of dollars in taxpayer money have been used for some of these ads. The president now saying he's going to go into his war chest from his political super PAC to now pay for them. Kate?

BOLDUAN: Alayna, great to see you. Thanks for starting us off this morning. John?

BERMAN: All right. So, this morning, the mayors of Los Angeles and San Diego are responding after what some perceived as a suggestion from the president that the two cities would be a small price to pay in the war with Iran.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: And, again, remember, with the war, it's just artificial. It's a little bit high. It's a small price to pay for keeping the world safe, keeping our country safe. They can take out a city. Let them take, let them take out Los Angeles. Let them take out San Diego. That's -- this is a very small price to pay, and it's going to be over very soon.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Let them take out Los Angeles. Let them take out San Diego.

With us now is political reporter for Axios, Stef Kight. And, Steph, let me just read you the response from Gavin Newsom, you know, governor of California. After sending the National Guard and Marines to occupy California, Donald Trump is now saying our foreign enemies should take out Los Angeles and San Diego. He is deranged and dangerous.

I'll let others argue about what the president said and maybe what the president meant. Sometimes his syntax is garbled, but I will note that kind of statement isn't what we saw on the Kaiser poll today, a discussion about affordability, a discussion about gas prices. Again, it's the president's actually presence pulling focus from what voters are telling us they want to hear about. What do you see there?

STEF KIGHT, POLITICAL REPORTER, AXIOS: And, look, that's something that I hear from Republicans all the time, that they are -- they get frustrated by the president not focusing on what they have done for the American people, focusing on gas prices, focusing on what he's trying to do to lower costs for Americans. That's something that Republicans have been saying, quite frankly, for months. That's going to hurt them in the midterm conventions.

You know, it's fascinating to look at the way the Republicans are responding and campaigning right now when you look at the states that the president is deciding to go to, these deep red states, states that he won by double digits in 2024, that he feels the need to go to, whether that's, you know, Nebraska, Alaska, Ohio, some of Texas even.

These are states where they're seeing as actually vulnerable now because of, like you said, some of these issues like gas prices and the war in Iran and that impact on diesel prices as well. And we're seeing, you know, Republicans shift where their ad spending is going as well, another sign of just how worried the Republican Party is going into November.

They're moving money out of races that we would have thought would have been the decision makers for the majority, when you're looking at the North Carolina Senate race, the Georgia Senate race, and we're seeing instead money going to, you know, Kansas. Some of these states, again, that are in these more red areas of the country.

It's just, again, another sign that Republicans feel the need to put more money on defense and they're worried about how November is going to go.

BERMAN: That's a great segue into some reporting that I read in Axios this morning, a publication you're quite familiar with, about South Carolina, that the Senate Leadership Fund, the main super PAC backing GOP candidates, will inject $5 million into South Carolina as an insurance policy for GOP nominee Darline Graham. That comes from your colleagues Mark Caputo and Alex Isenstadt.

But $5 million in South Carolina right now, which is a state where Lindsey Graham on the -- is still alive and on the ballot, I can't imagine that they'd be spending there.

KIGHT: No. I mean, again, it's another example of where this is both the way the map is right now. It goes to show just how poorly Republicans are faring generally on the ballot. It shows how unpopular many of Trump's policies are, and how many Americans want to see their lives get more affordable, right?

[07:10:03]

It's these national issues, but it's also a local issue. There have been concerns about Darline Graham in particular, that she wasn't vetted the way you normally would vet a candidate running for Senate because of her brother who was -- who passed and wanting to honor his legacy, and she just was kind of ushered in as the candidate. And there have been moments throughout her campaign on the debate stage where she has faltered, and that's hurt her ability to campaign and win in a state, again, that should be easy to win.

So, it's sort of a two factor in that race. You have Darline Graham, who, you know, I've heard people express concerns about her in particular as, you know, an untried candidate, and then you also have these national headwinds we're talking about where Republicans, in general, are just struggling, not even in battleground states, but particularly in some of these southern Republican states.

BERMAN: Stef Kight, great to see you this morning. Thanks so much for sharing your insights. Sara?

SIDNER: All right, thank you, John. Ahead, outrage on campus. Thousands of students show up in protest, demanding accountability at Cornell University, and members of the faculty are calling for a no confidence vote as disturbing new details emerge in the gang rape investigation.

And the first measles emergency has been declared here in the United States. What you need to know with cases rising well above normal levels this year.

Also, from mothballs to millions? A long-lost painting bought for just $30 at an estate sale, what it went for at an art auction.

Those stories and more ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:15:00]

SIDNER: This is first on CNN. Cornell University Senate faculty members are preparing to hold a vote of no confidence against the school's administration over its response to the allegations of sexual assault at a fraternity house.

Anger is growing on campus. Thousands gathered yesterday to protest the school's handling of the alleged gang rape in 2024. Some even demanded the school revoke the degrees of the men accused, and later today, students are planning to hold a town hall on sexual violence.

CNN's Brynn Gingras is joining me now. You've been following this case, and it is really taking on a, a different life than what happened in 2024 because ultimately of a lawsuit that came out and then all of the details afterwards. What are you learning?

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. I mean, Sara, we've talked about this so much, but the deeper you sort of look into these allegations from 2024, the more infuriating it becomes. You can imagine why we're seeing the response that, you know, especially our colleague, Gloria Pazmino, up there is seeing on Cornell's campus right now, which is, you know, she's talked to a faculty member who is part of this larger senate which is basically the legislative body for this university who says, you know, hundreds of people are coming to them saying, what are we going to do, from students to alumni to staff. And so that's where this vote of no confidence really came from.

Now, this is a group of faculty members who have created a resolution that they're going to bring to the entire body next week on October 14th, 75 or so voting members on this larger body. About 40 people have signed on to this resolution. So, we'll see where that goes.

Now, look, just to give the parameters of this, they can't exactly say, hey, we're going to fire the president of this university. That is up to the board of trustees, but it's certainly going to put a lot of pressure on not only the president, but the board of trustees to do something, like make some sort of form -- you know, formal, you know, resignations. Are we going to ask for some reform? Like, what is going to be done? And as we said, there's just so much pressure mounting on that campus. Gloria was there, and I want to hear from some of these students who spoke out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I think it's really a wake-up call that they need to change because the student body is not going to let Cornell continue to be a school like this.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When someone comes forward with a story like Jane Doe did, it should be taken with the seriousness that it's being taken with now.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We stand with Jane Doe, but also we stand with taking more measures to prevent this from happening in the future.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GINGRAS: Yes, this is resonating with a lot of people and actually kind of bringing up this conversation, people actually thinking, you know, this might have happened to me, what would have done -- what -- oh my gosh. What would have been done to help me? And that's the scare here, so.

SIDNER: And I know the president has spoken out, it was a sort of an eight-minute video where he said, look, we put together a task force. It's doing its work. And a bit later we're going to be talking to one of the professors who was there, who has some things to say about whether or not that has done anything or is enough.

GINGRAS: Yes, look forward to that.

SIDNER: Brynn, yes, no, great reporting.

GINGRAS: All right, thanks.

SIDNER: Thank you. I appreciate it. John?

BERMAN: All right. Our friend Andrew Kaczynski put it this way, if you can't trust safety standards in a Russian plague lab, what can you trust? Concerns over the lack of information after a death at a lab that studies the plague.

And unprecedented student protests lead to thousands of arrests and hundreds of school closures. Why these students are taking to the streets.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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BERMAN: New this morning, New York Governor Kathy Hochul has declared a statewide disaster emergency over measles, the first action like this by any state since cases began surging in 2025.

I want to get right to CNN Health Reporter Jacqueline Howard. Look, as a New York resident, you find this pretty interesting, Jacqueline. How many cases are we talking about here? Why is this happening?

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: John, this is happening because so far this year, at least 108 people have gotten sick with measles in the state of New York. Seven of those cases have been confirmed in New York City. And just to put this number in perspective, when the United States declared measles eliminated in the year 2000, in the quarter-century that followed, only about 180 cases were reported each year nationwide. So, we're talking about across the country.

Right now, we're seeing more than 100 cases just in the state of New York alone, and that's why in a statement, New York Governor Hochul says this, quote, after reviewing the latest data on measles cases in New York State, I am declaring a state disaster emergency to strengthen our ongoing efforts to confront this disease. No one should get seriously ill or die from a vaccine-preventable disease. That is why I have taken steps to increase the number of health professionals who can vaccinate and test.

That is exactly what this executive order does, John. It basically expands the pool of healthcare professionals who are authorized to administer measles vaccines.

[07:25:05]

So, that group now includes paramedics, midwives, and also nurses can now order measles tests. So, it appears that this executive order is going to hopefully lead to more unvaccinated people getting vaccinated, and then testing more people with symptoms, and that seems to be the two actions that the state is really relying on to slow down the number of cases that we're seeing.

BERMAN: And that's New York, Jacqueline.

Just very quickly, Pennsylvania received a lot of press. That's where so much of the focus has been in terms of measles. What's the latest from there?

HOWARD: In Pennsylvania, John, more than 1,000 people have gotten sick so far in that outbreak alone. And sadly, five people have died. And to put this in perspective, that outbreak is mostly in rural counties bordering New York. So that also gives us insight into why New York Governor Hochul has declared this emergency, because right next door, there is this fast-growing outbreak happening.

BERMAN: 1,000 cases in Pennsylvania. It used to be 100 a year nationwide.

Jacqueline Howard, thank you very much for that update. Kate?

BOLDUAN: So, President Trump has now approved the U.S. Army's first execution by firing squad since World War II for the man convicted in the massacre at Fort Hood. We got more on that.

And a new plan to tackle high fuel prices. Why the president says it has nothing to do with the war in Iran.

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