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CNN Polls Show Trump's Approval Underwater in Red States Iowa and Ohio; Satellite Shows Lightning Flashes as Isaias Grows Stronger; Maduro Expected to Face New Charges Over Alleged Torture of Americans. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired October 08, 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]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking just moments ago, new CNN polls reveal widespread disapproval of the president in two battlegrounds he took by double digits. Major implications in the race for the Senate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Also breaking overnight, a powerful hurricane now churning in the Gulf, gaining strength, set to make U.S. landfall tomorrow. Emergency alerts already going out in nearly 100 counties across Florida and Alabama.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: And a police dog, the key to helping save a little boy just feet from a busy road after an exhaustive search. The harrowing ordeal, see it all as it happens.

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

BERMAN: And breaking this morning, we have some brand-new CNN polls just out, and they spell deep trouble in a pair of deep red states for President Trump and his party just ahead of the midterms. In Ohio, a state the president won by 11 points in 2024, Democrat Sherrod Brown has a six-point lead in the race for the Senate against the Republican incumbent, John Husted. This would be a flip.

In Iowa, another state the president won by double digits, no clear leader between Republican Ashley Hinson and Democrat Josh Turek. But, again, the fact it's even close tells a story.

The top issue in both states is the economy. About three in four likely voters say that Trump's policies have raised the cost of living.

Want to get right to CNN's Washington Bureau Chief and Political Director, David Chalian, for the latest on this. Chief Director Chalian, great to see you this morning. Let's start with Ohio right now, what we're seeing there.

DAVID CHALIAN, CNN WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF: Yes, good morning, John. So again, that top line number in that Senate race, 49 percent of likely voters expressing their support for Democrat Sherrod Brown, 43 percent for Republican incumbent appointed senator, JD Vance, a six- point lead for the Democrat in Ohio.

In the governor's race, the margin's even a little bit wider. Amy Acton, the Democrat, 50 percent among likely voters, Vivek Ramaswamy, 42 percent. Look at Donald Trump's approval rating in the Buckeye State. He is down to 36 percent job approval in Ohio, a state he won three times, John, disapproval at 64 percent. That is a minus 28 percentage point underwater situation for there.

And just you noted what the 2024 presidential result was there. He beat Kamala Harris in Ohio by 11 percentage points just two years ago, John. So, you are looking at a state that we have, over our careers covering American politics, has gone from a true toss-up battleground state to a pretty red state, and we see it swinging back this cycle a bit.

BERMAN: Obama won it twice. Trump won it three times. You can see the swings back and forth there. David, let's go to the other four-letter state here. Let's talk about Iowa.

CHALIAN: Yes, the other four-letter state, also a deep red state. And take a look here. Here, we have no clear leader. This is a margin of error race in a really red Republican state. Ashley Hinson, the Republican seeking to replace Joni Ernst in the Senate, at 45 percent support among likely voters, Josh Turek at 43 percent support. Different story here in the governor's race. Big lead for the Democrat Rob Sand. He's at 51 percent in our poll compared to 42 percent for Zach Lane. But, again, Trump's approval rating is underwater.

Now, not as deeply underwater as in Ohio, John. I think these two red states are behaving a little bit differently. 41 percent approval, still not good for Trump in what should be a friendly state, 17 points underwater on his approval. And it is a bit of a redder state. I mean, he won it by 13 points in 2024 against Kamala Harris.

John, I do want to underscore something you said at the top. The economy and the cost of living in both of these states is far and away the number one issue. That is what this election is about. And to the point you made, this number here, the, at the top line, this jumps out at me like no other number in our polls.

Donald Trump's policies have increased costs, say, three-quarters, 76 percent of likely voters in Ohio and 74 percent, three-quarters of likely voters in Iowa. That is a huge majority of people who are tying their higher costs to Donald Trump's policies.

[07:05:03]

That is what this 2026 midterm seems to be about.

BERMAN: In 2024, he said he was going to lower costs. Three-quarters of people say his policies have caused them to go up.

David Chalian, with all the breaking poll news this morning, thanks so much for being with us. I appreciate it. Kate?

BOLDUAN: Let's talk about this hurricane. The first hurricane of the Atlantic season now breaking records and growing stronger as it nears the Gulf Coast. Isaias is already clocking wind speeds of 80 miles per hour, and satellite imagery captured lightning flashes as the storm was growing just yesterday.

A huge area from eastern Mississippi all the way to western Florida, the Western Florida panhandle, could see five to seven feet of water above what's normally dry ground. That's if the peak surge happens also at high tide. So, there's a big range, but big threats here. Already dozens of counties along the Gulf are under a state of emergency. Some have issued evacuation orders.

Let's get over to CNN's Allison Chinchar. She's tracking the storm for us. Allison, what is the latest that you're seeing in terms of where it is and when it could come?

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: All right, so that video you showed with all of the lightning, that is a true sign that the storm is strengthening, and we're going to continue to see signs of that as we go through the remainder of the day today.

For today, that storm is going to stay over the open waters, but that's going to be fuel for the storm. , you're going to continue to see that strengthening take place for much of the day today. Those sustained winds at 80, gusting up to 100 miles per hour. It has that forward movement just about nine miles per hour, which is pretty decent for a storm right where it's located.

They do anticipate that the storm will get up to a category two, a high-end category two at its peak, right around 110 miles per hour. I want to caution though, 111 miles per hour is a category three, so we are going to be walking a very fine line there between a Category 2 or a Category 3. It could literally be either one as where it maxes out.

Then it will continue its trek off to the north, making landfall late on Friday. And again, you can see all of these watches and warnings that are out here just because there can be some slight shifts in exactly where it is expected to make landfall. Regardless, the earliest estimated times for some of those tropical storm winds, most of these areas likely to start seeing those things picking back up late Friday afternoon and that will continue into the evening hours.

Storm surge is going to be a very big component to this right along the water. Everywhere you see in the orange color, basically Biloxi all the way over to Port St. Joe, excuse me, including Mobile, Pensacola, Panama City, right around 5.7 feet. But even some of the surrounding areas, you're looking at three, four, even six feet of storm surge as this storm continues to slide off to the north and east.

Now, here's a look at the forecast radar. Again, you can start to see some of those outer bands could creep in early Friday morning for some of these locations. Obviously, it's going to get heavier as we make our way through the afternoon, and especially into the evening hours, where you really start to see the center of that storm begin to cross over land and make landfall. But even several areas inland, you're talking Atlanta, Birmingham, Montgomery. These areas have the potential for a lot of heavy rain, too. Maximum winds are obviously going to be very close to the coast. That's where you're going to see those hurricane winds. But even farther inland, say Evergreen, Hattiesburg, some of those areas could see 50 to 70-mile-per-hour gusts.

There also is the potential for severe storms. Yes, we are talking tornadoes and also the possibility for some damaging winds Friday and Saturday.

BOLDUAN: All right, a lot with it. Thank you so much, Allison. Much more to come today. Sara?

SIDNER: All right, thank you, Kate. Ahead, is the United States preparing to restart major combat operations in Iran? New reporting on the options the Pentagon is providing President Trump just weeks before the midterms.

Plus, boiling point. Riot police firing tear gas this morning as unprecedented student protests rock Paris, thousands taking to the streets. What the students are demanding.

And fan interference. A potential game-tying home run thwarted.

Those stories and more ahead.

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[07:10:00]

SIDNER: First on CNN, New York prosecutors are expected to bring new charges against former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife over the alleged torture of Americans held in Venezuela in recent years.

Sources telling CNN the new charges relate to what the U.S. has said was the wrongful detention of more than a dozen U.S. citizens in Venezuelan prisons while Maduro was in power. The announcement could come as soon as today.

Maduro and his wife were captured in a U.S. military raid in January. They have pleaded not guilty to narco-terrorism, conspiracy, and other charges, and are being held in New York.

Joining me now is CNN Legal Analyst and Criminal Defense Attorney Joey Jackson. Look, this was a previously scheduled hearing. What was the hearing initially for, and how will these new charges play out?

JOEY JACKSON, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yes, Sara, good morning. So, there's a couple of things going on. So we have these initial charges, and in addition, you know his wife is charged and others. And in terms of the wife, just very quickly, there's a hearing with regard to whether she should be released or on home confinement based upon her medical condition. As to him, he has these, him being Maduro, these underlying charges as you laid out relating to essentially drug trafficking. And so now, the other wrinkle is that there's this immunity hearing that's going to be scheduled in November.

[07:15:02]

Just very quickly about that, the argument is from his attorneys, Maduro's, is that you cannot prosecute a head of state. Just like we had, if I can relate it to the U.S., right, this Supreme Court that said the President of the United States for official acts is immunized from criminal prosecution, so too, his attorneys, Maduro's, are arguing he's the head of state. Whether or not you recognize him, United States, as that, the people certainly did, and as a result of that, we're going to hear that later on.

However, as to these charges that are expected, what we expect and anticipate and on to the drug trafficking charges, weapons charges, narco-terrorism charges that he's facing, and, by the way, he could get life in jail for those alone, we now add, or it appears that it's going to be added charges relative to what he was doing in terms of detaining Americans, in addition to the conditions that they were held under, meaning there's charges relating to torture. And what they're going to have to do, the government, and I'm interested in seeing the allegations, is tie him specifically to these charges.

It's a distinction for people in prison to be treated badly by prison officials, right, if that were the case, in terms of torture and these other allegations. It's another thing for him to have orchestrated or directed, Maduro, that is. So, I'm looking to see how the United States ties those allegations specifically to him, his conduct, what he did, how he orchestrated, what did he direct, and so we're going to see that potentially as early as today.

SIDNER: I'm curious about a couple of different things, but one is we haven't seen these charges yet. Is it possible they bring these up in court today, or is this something that you have to file and then get a response from the attorneys, and we may not hear those today in court?

JACKSON: Yes, so, Sara, I think we will. And so oftentimes what prosecutors do is they'll file an indictment under seal, and what that means is we cannot yet see it. But the allegations from what's reported is somewhat significant, talking about electrocution and this waterboarding, and subject to food deprivation and extreme temperatures.

And so the connection to him, and we have to see just very briefly in terms of the indictment and how it's laid out. Some indictments are speaking indictments.

SIDNER: Right.

JACKSON: They give very thorough detail with regard to what the behavior is, what's attributed to him. Did he engage with other officials? Some are just very bare bones, just setting out the specific facts that constitute the alleged crime. We'll see what the crimes are that are going to be alleged. We'll see what the facts are that lead to them, and we'll see what they say his involvement is. But look for today whether his wife would be released based upon her medical condition or otherwise held in, and then look for the immunity argument that's to come. That fight is not until next month, though.

SIDNER: All right. Joey Jackson, thank you for laying all that out. There's a lot of complexities in this case. And certainly we might expect for it to be delayed even further potentially as the defense looks at these new charges. I really do appreciate it.

All right, Kate?

BOLDUAN: Ahead, we have a CNN exclusive. ICE, new reporting that ICE agents have been told to ramp up immigration arrests ahead of the midterms. The goal, increase the numbers by 1,000 arrests every day.

And an alleged plot foiled to attack the Mall of America. The new details now coming out after prosecutors charge an 18-year-old with terrorism.

And for more of the stories you need to get your day going, my show, Five Things with Kate Bolduan, is streaming on the CNN app and CNN All Access right now and every morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:20:00]

BOLDUAN: So, overnight, Texas executed a man using and through lethal injection using the same drug as the botched execution of Christa Pike in Tennessee. Pike survived the failed execution attempts last week and is now hospitalized but alive. Her attorney calling it a medically unprecedented recovery, and they were in court yesterday, and there are new details now about what she said when she woke up.

CNN's Ryan Young is tracking this one. He's joining us right now. Ryan, what did she tell her attorneys?

RYAN YOUNG, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, there are new details here, and she told her attorneys basically when she woke up that, look, she was surprised about where she was, and she was asking who the people were around her. We were in court just upstairs yesterday for about 90 minutes as this all played out, the judge ruling the State of Tennessee having to hold some of the evidence here, especially even the 911 communications. So, hopefully, we'll learn more about what happened in those moments after this execution was botched.

But when you listen to her attorneys, you understand even they were shocked about how this has all played out. Take a listen to one of her attorneys talk about what she said when she first woke up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) RANDY SPIVEY, ATTORNEY FOR CHRISTA PIKE: I was not in the room when she woke up, so I don't want to speculate too much. Our understanding was the first thing she said was, where am I and who are you? There's still a lot of cognitive confusion, and so I will say that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

YOUNG: Yes, Kate, something that stood out to all of us that were in the room yesterday and as the lawyers were explaining this, they believe she was brain dead, and they were getting ready to remove some of those life-saving apparatuses that were keeping her alive, and then all of a sudden she wakes up.

When you move on from this, now the state has to preserve all this evidence, and there are people in the community who are not happy about how this moves forward because they want to see Christa Pike executed. In fact, take a listen to one of the women who showed up here yesterday who made her voice heard about how she believes the state should move forward.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE NOWELL, TENNESSEE RESIDENT: It's disgusting and the worst part is that Colleen has been forgotten. All we hear about is Christa, Christa, Christa.

[07:25:00]

Today in that courtroom, as I sat in there and listened and then on the steps just a few minutes ago, the attorney talk about cruel and unusual punishment, and when is enough? I would say she doesn't know cruel and unusual punishment. Colleen is the one that knew cruel and unusual punishment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

YOUNG: Let's not forget, Christa Pike is still shackled to her bed in the hospital. We are also told and learned yesterday that basically what's going to happen now is visitation's going to be set up for her attorney to be able to visit her so they can move this case forward.

Let's not forget, all executions in this state have been suspended as they try to figure out exactly what happened here. Tests should begin on some of that evidence that's been left behind, so maybe soon we'll figure out exactly what happened. Still no state officials stepping up to the mic to say what happens next.

BOLDUAN: Ryan Young in Tennessee for us. Thank you so much. John?

BERMAN: All right. The brand-new polls from key states that show the Senate is totally up for grabs. As Axios puts it, Republicans are in midterm triage.

And an emotional reunion that was a long time coming. An officer aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln reunites with his daughter after a year at sea. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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