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NYPD Releases Video Of Suspect Pushing Commuter Off Subway Platform; N.Y. Officials Roll Out New Plan To Stop Subway Crime; Gunman On Parole Kills 2 At Dallas Hospital, Now In Custody; Education Secy. Urges Borrowers To Keep Applying For Student Debt Relief; Inside Secret Drone Workshop Where Ukrainians Make Weapons. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired October 23, 2022 - 11:00   ET

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

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[11:00:40]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Happening right now in The Newsroom, a deadly shooting at a Dallas hospital sparking outrage today. The suspect, on parole and wearing an ankle bracelet.

Plus, a pledge to keep the student debt relief program moving full speed ahead, just a day after a court ruled to hit the brakes on loan cancelations for now. And which major retailers won't be open on Thanksgiving Day? You're live in the CNN Newsroom.

Hello, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. We begin this hour in New York, where officials say they are working to tackle the rising crime on the city's subway system. The city has seen a wave of crimes like this one. Police releasing new video today of a man pushing someone off the subway platform onto the tracks. The victim was not hit by a train but was injured.

Police are still searching for the suspect. The NYPD says subway crimes have skyrocketed 41 percent from the same time last year. Mayor Eric Adams and Governor Kathy Hochul announcing new plans to address the problems. CNN's Gloria Pazmino joining us live now. Gloria, what are officials say?

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Fred. And that video you just showed there in many ways, it's every New Yorkers nightmare. You can see that that man who was pushed onto the subway tracks was completely caught off guard. And there have been several incidents similar to this one, including ones that have ended in fatalities.

So both the mayor and the governor trying to get together to announce a plan to increase subway safety. Now, they are acknowledging that even as a transit ridership increases in the last couple of months, they need to do more about safety. And so here's a little bit about what they're going to do, they're putting together a plan to increase the number of police officers that are patrolling stations.

They are also going to be increasing the amount of overtime shifts, 1,200 of them in order to increase those patrols. And they will be creating two new units at psychiatric centers creating 50 inpatient beds for people who are mentally ill.

Now, Fred, that last part is such a crucial part of the plan, because there has been an acknowledgment that there is a mental health crisis unfolding in the city. In fact, the mayor spoke about this yesterday saying that nine of the homicides that have taken place in the subway system, so far this year, involved people who had a history of mental illness.

Now, we did press the mayor about this idea that increasing police officers will lead to more safety and that people will feel like it's safer to ride the subway. Some of these incidents have happened at stations that were being patrolled. This is what the mayor and the governor had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR ERIC ADAMS (D), NEW YORK: We have to look at the totality of public safety. And what we have found in our analysis is that when that police officer makes that quick apprehension, he's prevented the repeated crimes. There's a small number of people who are repeated committing these crimes.

GOV. KATHY HOCHUL (D), NEW YORK: The MTA is going to be ensuring that there are security guards at the turnstiles as well. So they can monitor situations that if someone sees something, hear something, they have one more person they can speak to while they're in the station, but also to determine --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAZMINO: So determine is the idea here, the idea that if you see more police officers, that if you see more security at those train stations, that the perception, the feeling of safety among the riders will be increase. Both the mayor and the governor certainly facing a tough challenge here in order to make sure that people are feeling safe about riding the system. It is the lifeblood of the city and so essential to the economy and the bounce back of New York City especially post-pandemic. Fred?

WHITFIELD: All right. Clearly, a big concerns, but that is always the nightmare scenario, the fear when people stand on the platforms in New York, but no one should have to experience that at all.

Gloria Pazmino, thank you so much. Appreciate that.

We're also learning more about a deadly shooting at a hospital in Dallas. Police are releasing new details about the suspect, 30-year- old Nestor Hernandez.

[11:05:03]

They say he was on parole for aggravated robbery and had an active ankle monitor when he opened fire killing two hospital employees. Hernandez was wounded by a responding police officer. The motive for the attack still unclear at this hour.

CNN's Camila Bernal has more.

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The shooting happening at Methodist Dallas Medical Center. According to authorities, they began getting calls about an active shooter at around 11:00 a.m. local time in Dallas, so around 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time. And by the time, authorities arrived, the suspect had already shot and killed two hospital employees.

We're told that Methodist Health System police is who responded first. An officer with the help system was the one who shot at the suspect. And as we're told, he confronted him, shot him and then they were able to apprehend him and take him to another hospital. Officials, though, saying there is no threat at the moment.

The hospital releasing a statement. I want to read part of it where they say, "During this devastating time, we want to ensure our patients and employees that Methodist Dallas Medical Center is safe and there is no ongoing threat. Our prayers are with our lost co- workers and their families, as well as our our entire Methodist family."

So again, this is two hospital employees that were shot and killed. So, of course, a community, a hospital system that is now grieving their loss.

WHITFIELD: All right, Camila Bernal, thank you so much for that.

Let's talk more about all of this with CNN Senior Law Enforcement Analyst and former Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey. Chief, so good to see you. So, let's start with, you know, this shooting in Dallas. The Police Chief Eddie Garcia says he is outraged at -- and I'm quoting now, "the lack of accountability and the travesty of the fact that under this broken system, we give violent criminals more chances than our victims."

The suspect was on parole for aggravated robbery. He was wearing an ankle monitor. Do you agree with the police chief that this is an issue of leniency?

CHARLES RAMSEY, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: I agree 100 percent. I mean, he has every right to be outraged. But not only Chief Garcia, there ought to be outrage across the country because Dallas isn't the only place where things like this are happening. I mean, you know, the guy is a violent criminal. He should have been incarcerated. He should be locked up.

He's out on parole. He's wearing an ankle monitor and he commits a double homicide. I mean, what else do you need? And this is being repeated in many cities across the country. We have to find the right balance. And I believe that we've just gone too far over and I realized that, you know, people were talking about police reform. I believe that there is a need for reform, criminal justice reform, period. There's a need for that. But at the same time, we've got violent people among us, and some of them need to be locked up. They don't need to be in society. And we're giving people second, third, fourth, fifth chances. At some point in time, you got to realize that some of these guys are unsalvageable. There are others that are, and I'm all for alternatives to incarceration. But we need to think that through and we need to have systems that are robust enough to be able to track people and keep them on the straight and narrow. They are a threat to our society, and it's not going to get better.

WHITFIELD: And quickly, can I ask you about the ankle monitors, because I think a lot of folks may not have a clear understanding of how it works. Someone on the other end is monitoring the whereabouts of a person wearing the ankle monitor, but then how immediately is that information getting to them. And, you know, perhaps going to a hospital wouldn't seem like an unusual or a potentially dangerous place for someone wearing an ankle monitor to go.

RAMSEY: Well, they aren't being monitored in real time and every case. You have more people on ankle monitors and you have people to monitor. And so, it's a problem, it is definitely a problem. And that's not to say there's not a viable tool. And most people that probably put on ankle monitors, you know, do pretty well.

But there are others that should never be on an ankle monitor because they're just violent people. And they don't care that either cut them off, and they'll leave or they commit a crime as this guy did while they're on the monitor. There have to be consequences to some of these things.

Look at the rise in gun violence, look at all the things that are going on. And people want simple solutions. They want to blame it on COVID, you know, they want to blame it on just guns. Not the guns, it's the idiot using the gun to commit the crime. And so until we really get the balance, until we really sit down and talk -- and I co- chair President Obama's Task Force on 21st century policing, the first recommendation was that we look at the entire criminal justice system.

Police, prosecution, corrections, reentry, everything. It hasn't been done since Lyndon Johnson was president. I mean, it's crazy and it's going to continue. It is not going to get better unless we make it.

[11:10:03]

WHITFIELD: All right, let me shift gears. Let's talk about the situation in New York with new plans now about, you know, to come out to combat the growing crime wave, particularly on the city subway system. It includes putting cameras on every subway car, increasing police presence, what are your thoughts on the plans?

RAMSEY: Well, it's a short-term strategy. And if they have to do something, there have been nine homicides in the subway system in New York so far this year. Crime is up, 40 percent of the homicides were committed by an individual who is believed to be suffering from some form of mental illness. So you've got a lot of social issues that are involved. It's not just a policing issue. You've got mental illness, you got homelessness, you've got all these things going on. Again, consequences for people that do commit crime, and these things have to be taken very seriously. And you can't wait until it gets out of control in order to put in place strategies. You have to be consistent, you know?

New York had, at one point in time, one of the safest subway systems in America because of the actions that were taken. I don't know what happened. I'm not in New York, but they need to be consistent. They need to come up with a strategy that can be sustained long term, because, again, you know, this is a complex problem. And unless we really sit down and think about it, take the politics out of it, think about it and come up with viable strategies, again, it's not going to get better on its own.

WHITFIELD: About New York crime, our Chris Wallace sat down with the New York City Mayor Eric Adams, and had this to say about this situation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ADAMS: We have our average of less than six crimes a day on the subway system with 3.5 million riders. But if you write your story based on the narrative that you're going to look at the diversity of those six crimes and putting it on the front pages of your paper every day, so I have to deal with those six crimes a day, felony crimes, and the perception of fear.

Yes, we decrease gun violence in this city, we've had zeroing on, decrease homicides. We've made -- we removed off our streets, over 5,700 guns, 27-year high and gun arrests. We are attacking the problem exactly the way I stated.

CHRIS WALLACE, HOST, "WHO'S TALKING TO CHRIS WALLACE?": You're saying that the crime problem in this city is more perception than reality?

ADAMS: No, it's a combination of both. New Yorkers must be safe.

WALLACE: But, Mayor, the New York City crime statistics are, that year today, crime in the subways is up 41 percent over the same period last year, and serious crime, major felonies are up even more than that. That's not perception. That's reality.

ADAMS: If you do an analysis of the six major cities in America, the crime waves is tackling all of our cities. New York City is the safest. So yes, we have a real crime problem that we're addressing. But part of that is the perception that every day, those six crimes are being highlighted over and over again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So Chief, what do you hear the mayor to be saying there?

RAMSEY: Well, listen, you know, we have an obligation in law enforcement, elected leaders and everyone else to keep people as safe as we possibly can. You can't hide behind statistics. If people don't feel safe, then guess what? They aren't safe. Because that's what it's really all about. So one crime is too many, you know?

And so, we have to come up with the kinds of strategies that we need to have to make things as safe as possible, give people the confidence they need to have either the ride or subway, ride a bus, sit in a park, you know, go to a bar late at night and not worry about things when they come out. I mean, that's our obligation as public officials.

And so, when we get into this whole statistical thing of one city compared to another, if you are the victim of a crime, guess what, you don't care about the rest of this. My own brother got carjacked outside of Chicago. He's driving an Uber, retired postal worker. Three guys carjacking, he's lucky he didn't get shot because they did threaten to shoot him.

I mean, it affects everyone. And it does create a sense of fear. And so, we, as a nation, we have to work together to do everything we can to calm the situation down and get these guys off the street that are out here committing these crimes. And I think you can do it, you can police constitutionally, you can give people a second chance if they deserve it, but we can't get around one.

Important fact, and that is some of these guys need to be in jail. They do need to be in jail. And we've got to find out who they are, the most violent people, and we need to take them out of society, period.

WHITFIELD: Chief Charles Ramsey, I'm glad your brother is OK. I'm sure he's still shaken up about that. Because once you --

RAMSEY: Yes.

WHITFIELD: -- experience something like that, you really, you know, that experience kind of is repeated over and over in your head and you really never forget it, but I'm glad he's doing all right. Thank you so much. Thanks, Charles.

RAMSEY: Thank you.

[11:15:04]

WHITFIELD: All right. Still ahead, the White House is still encouraging borrowers to apply for student loan relief despite a federal court putting a hold on their plan to cancel debt. How the administration is responding, next.

Plus, another round of relentless Russian strikes in Ukraine crippling the country's power grid, leaving more than 1.5 million residents in the dark. We'll go live to Ukraine, straight ahead.

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WHITFIELD: All right, welcome back. The Biden administration is doubling down on a promise to provide student loan debt relief, even though a federal appeals court put a temporary hold on the plan. CNN's Jasmine Wright joining us now. So Jasmine, the White House is encouraging people to keep applying for student loan relief online. But what exactly is the administration going to do next?

JASMIN WRIGHT, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes. Well, Fred, today would have been the day the White House said that some borrowers could have started to see their debt being canceled this Sunday, but obviously, that is not going to happen.

[11:20:04]

Now, the Court of Appeals gave the White House until tomorrow on Monday to respond to this hold. And then those challengers have until Tuesday to respond to the White House, obviously, pushing this timeline closer and closer to the midterm election. So, what the White House is doing is they're saying, hey, look, keep applying online despite the holes, really doubling down, trying to show the American people that they are serious about canceling this debt, no matter about the court case.

Now, in a op ed published in USA Today yesterday, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, not only did he doubled down on the fact that the White House wants to continue with this plan, but he also criticized Republicans who are opposed to this debt cancelation, really likening them to Hippocrates.

I want to read you some of this, Fred. He said, "These same Republican attorneys general and officials, however, didn't file lawsuits when $58.5 billion in pandemic relief loans were forgiven for their state's business owners. They didn't oppose $2 trillion in tax cuts to the highest earning businesses and individuals as part of the Trump tax giveaway. And they didn't complain when Republican members of Congress got millions of dollars of their own Paycheck Protection Program loans forgiven by the federal government last year. It's only when relief is going to working and middle-class Americans that these elected officials have a problem."

So again, no sign that the White House is backing down here as they hope that this issue galvanizes voters, particularly young voters and young voters of color ahead of the midterm elections. Fred?

WHITFIELD: All right, Jasmine Wright, thanks so much in Washington.

All right, coming up, a new wave of Russian missiles raining down on Ukraine overnight reporting -- reportedly damaging a kindergarten and critical power lines. We're live in Ukraine next.

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[11:26:13]

WHITFIELD: Ukraine says Russia has targeted the southern city of Mykolaiv in an overnight missile attack. Two missiles hit residential buildings injuring five people. Meanwhile, Ukraine says it shut down 16 kamikaze drones near the city and it reports Russia is pulling troops back from positions in nearby Kherson.

CNN Senior International Correspondent Fred Pleitgen joining us live now from Dnipro. So Fred, what is the latest that you're seeing?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Fredricka. Well, certainly still very active on the battlefields in Ukraine, especially if you're looking at the south and also the east of the country. As you mentioned, in the Kherson area, the Ukrainians continuing to say that they're making headway there. It's still fairly slow going. But they do believe that Russian forces by enlarge, are in reverse in that area.

And, of course, the Russians have said that they're evacuating civilians from that area as well. The Ukrainians claim that those are little more than deportations that are going on in the south of the country. Now in the east of the country, the Russians do have some of their strongest most brutal forces there. But the Ukrainians are able to keep them in check using high tech and some very, very smart young people.

Here's what we found.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN (voice-over): As the crow flies, the front line is only a few 100 yards away in Bakhmut. Ukraine's forces are both outmanned and outgunned here but holding on because they say they're outwitting the Russians.

We've been given access to this secret workshop where tech savviness is leveling the battlefield, the commander tells me.

STARSHINA, 93RD BRIGADE, UKRAINIAN ARMY: Oh, it's fun, it's game changing stuff because we have no so much forces, we have no so much guns and bullets and so on, so we have to be smart, or no die zone.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): The place is run like a startup, no idea is off limits. The soldiers work around the clock, repairing, modifying and arming consumer drones led by a young whiz known as the serpent.

THE SERPENT, 93RD BRIGADE, UKRAINIAN ARMY (through translation): It's way better to know in advance that an assault is coming literally every meter. We are watching every centimeter here. It helps us to save lives during both the assault and the withdrawal.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Ukraine's army says the Russians have around five times more troops here than Kyiv does. The brigade filmed this video they say shows Russian simply charging towards Ukrainian positions out in the open, disregarding the lives of Moscow's own soldiers.

THE SERPENT (through translation): There are a lot of them and they have a lot of weapons. We have creativity.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In our platoon, I do bonds and --

PLEITGEN (voice-over): And they have their weapons expert, a 19-year- old who goes by the call sign Varnak (ph) and turns grenades into aerial bombs in his makeshift bomb factory. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We reroll them as a science for drone dropping.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): He removes any excess weight and attaches a pressure fuse.

PLEITGEN: It's finished.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, we need a tail. And some tape. And you tape this on a drone. Tape this and just drop it.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): It's not just drones. The unit also built this radio-controlled gun turret and a kamikaze cart packed with explosive. All of this is developed on the battlefield for the battlefield helping Ukraine's army turn the tide here.

STARSHINA: We defend our positions. And now we contra -- we make contra offense and we are also successful in it.

[11:30:00]

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Like so many of the troops defending Bakhmut, the tech warriors often work to exhaustion, thinking up new ways to blunt Russia's massive assault despite a lack of heavy weapons.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN (on camera): So that's the fight that's going on in the East. We do have some troubling words coming this evening is to our time, from the Russian Defense Minister, Fredricka. He's saying -- this was on a call of Defense Minister -- that the Russians fear what they call a further uncontrolled escalation of this conflict and even accused Kyiv so the Ukrainians of allegedly planning to use a dirty bombed as he put it, in this conflict.

Obviously, the Ukrainians have always said that that is certainly very much out of the question. It's been the Russian so far, that have been threatening to use nuclear weapons. The Ukrainians, of course, do not even possess nuclear weapons, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Fred Pleitgen, thank you so much. I mean, extraordinary view of just the innovation of these Ukrainians. Thank you so much.

All right, I want to bring in now Bill Browder, he is the Founder and CEO of Hermitage Capital Management and heads the Global Magnitsky Justice Campaign. So good to see you, Bill. I'll ask you about the dirty bomb talk in a moment. But, you know, first, I also want to ask you about Russia's defense minister today, accusing Ukraine of barreling toward uncontrolled escalation. What do you believe is behind that rhetoric? And what does that kind of rhetoric really lead to or mean?

BILL BROWDER, CEO, HERMITAGE CAPITAL MANAGEMENT: Well, I mean, so -- I mean, Russia is the one who started this war. This is Putin's war.

WHITFIELD: Right. BROWDER: Nobody else wanted this war. They've invaded Ukraine, they've declared parts of Ukraine to be their territory. There's only one party that's barreling towards uncontrolled escalation and that's Russia. They could withdraw, be done with it. And there'll be no more problem that this is a complete -- you know, the Russians always accused the other side of doing what they're doing. And that's what this rhetoric is all about right here.

WHITFIELD: Yes, it's that reverse psychology. I mean, that official also, you know, stating that Moscow was concerned that Ukraine could use a dirty bomb. So here, you know, again, lies is this really what the Russians might be planning as opposed to Ukraine. We just heard, you know, they talked about the infrareds piece, they don't even have the materials for such a thing, Ukrainians.

BROWDER: Well, so, this is a very ominous threat that the Russians are making. We all know that the Ukrainians wouldn't use a dirty bomb. But what the Russians have done on numerous occasions, is done this type of thing, blamed it on their enemies and then retaliated. And so, what I could imagine happening here, and this is not an unreasonable analysis, is that Russia will use a dirty bomb on their own territory, blame it on Ukraine, and then retaliate with nuclear weapons. That -- they've done this type of thing, not with nuclear material, but in other ways before. This was an absolute standard operating procedure of Vladimir Putin and his government.

WHITFIELD: Yes, pushing the dirty war playing tactics. So Russia is battering Ukraine's power grid, just in time for these harsh winter months. They're causing rolling blackouts, widespread internet outages and shutting off water. And Ukraine appears to be, you know, facing a dark, freezing winter after its gains last month. So that, Russia would target that kind of infrastructure, targeting civilians in that way. Is this a sign of desperation, or really is this, you know, a page out of the dirty war playbook that Russia has been executing?

BROWDER: This is both. So, Russia is losing this war on the battlefield. And Russia is lost, according to Ukraine -- Ukrainian sources, about 67,000 soldiers, they've been pushed out of a lot of territory, and they're going to be pushed out of more territory in the near future. They're replenishing their soldiers with untrained recruits straight off the streets with one week or 10 days of training. We're dying on mass.

And so, the only thing Russia knows how to do is, you know, sort of, you know, shoot civilian targets. And this is what they've done with Chechnya, is what they did with Syria. And it's an asymmetric fight because we -- the west or Ukraine can't do the same thing to Russia. And their hope is to freeze Ukraine this winter.

And a lot of these big cities in Ukraine are these tall apartment buildings. And if you have no electricity, you can't get up to the 10th floor. You can't -- you have no heat, you have no water, and it becomes almost uninhabitable. And so, I suspect that the outcome of this will create another 5 million refugees coming into Europe.

And Putin's hope is by keeping gas prices high, creating more refugees, and creating all this mayhem. He will break our will to support Ukraine and that's the purpose of all this.

[11:35:05]

WHITFIELD: Yes. Imposing widespread cruelty. All right, Bill Browder -- \

BROWDER: Correct.

WHITFIELD: -- thank you so much. Thank you. Good to see you.

All right, despite a devastating wave of crime, violence this year, polls show that gun policies are not a top issue for voters in the United States as the midterm approaches. How will this impact the outcome ultimately? We'll discuss next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: With just over two weeks until the midterm elections, new polls are giving us insight into what voters think are the biggest issues. A recent New York Times/Siena College poll found that voters believed the economy and inflation were the most important problems facing our country today. Down to the bottom of concerns were crime and gun policies. This despite a large number of high-profile gun related incidents this year including the Uvalde, Texas school massacre that killed 19 children and two teachers that was just in May.

[11:40:09]

With me now is Stephen Gutowski, he is the Founder of firearms reporting site "Reload" and a Contributor to CNN's Guns in America, a team which takes a closer look at the gun control debates ongoing in the U.S. So good to see you. So why do you believe that gun policy is not a high priority for voters right now?

STEPHEN GUTOWSKI, FOUNDER, THE RELOAD: Yes, I think that's a really good question. I mean, certainly, in addition to Uvalde, you also had a significant ruling from the Supreme Court on concealed carry this summer, and you had the first bipartisan gun restrictions put in place at the federal level in decades. So it's probably seems pretty weird to people on the surface.

But one thing to consider is that a lot of times, after major events like Uvalde, you'll see a spike in interest in support for gun control policies, and then that will wane over time. And so, part of this is sort of a cyclical nature of how this issue ebbs and flows in response to high profile shootings. And then, you know, I think there was also that bipartisan bill probably helped that process along to lessen the interest, which was, I mean, one of the goals, Mitch McConnell said that to Politico. This was one of the reasons that they agreed to get on board with that bill.

WHITFIELD: I wonder, too, if it exhibits a certain level of frustration, among people who feel like even after Uvalde, even after so many, I mean, a litany of mass shootings, so little changes. And might people be reflecting in that kind of recent polling, that they've simply given up on it being a high priority among those that they want to vote in or out of office?

GUTOWSKI: Yes, I mean, it could be a level of apathy taking place. I mean, that's probably one of the reasons why you see that ebb and flow in interest. Because among people who want stricter gun laws, they tend to have a more fatalistic view about what Congress is going to do on the issue. Although obviously they did something this time.

It's not something I think a lot of people on either side were terribly happy with. But it perhaps takes the issue off the top of mind for some of the less committed voters out there. And that's one of the reasons you're seeing less overall interest in guns as we approach the midterms.

And, you know, I think the same effect happened after the Supreme Court ruling on the program side of things, because a lot of people who are gun owners, who are opposed to new gun restrictions, see that ruling as, you know, major bulwark against new prohibitions.

WHITFIELD: Over the summer, following a string of mass shootings in this country, most polls showed a majority of Americans supported stricter gun laws, especially when it comes to banning assault weapons, and most of those restrictions, it never became law. And now the issue is once again, faded in the poll. So, what our politicians to think about this new polling? How might it either, you know, reprogram or readjust some of their approaches?

GUTOWSKI: Yes, I mean, I think you'll probably see less emphasis put on gun policy, you know, that -- while there are majority support in a lot of polling for new restrictions, you did actually see support for a solvents ban decrease after Uvalde in a pretty unexpected fashion. Usually, support for basically every kind of gun restriction goes up after a horrific shooting like that. But this time around was a little bit different.

But you still saw Democrats pass the assault has been through the House, even knowing that it wasn't going to go anywhere in the Senate. And you haven't really seen a lot of races where the issue has been the main issue, the forefront. You know, better work in Texas, you know, the Ohio governor's race have really featured it more. Stacey Abrams in Georgia, to some degree, has also made this a marquee issue.

But a lot of those candidates aren't really doing well in their races. And so I think there's probably a tendency, this time around to shy away from the issue on either side, really. And we've seen this from the gun groups as well, they're still raising and spending tens of millions of dollars in this election. But you've seen a shift to where they're incorporating other issues into their messaging. It's not just gun control for every town, it's now abortion and now they're spending in state secretary races that don't have really anything to do with gun policy, or at least --

WHITFIELD: Yes.

GUTOWSKI: -- there's sort of -- it's not directly affected. And the NRA has incorporated crime message into their ads as well.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

GUTOWSKI: So, you know, the shift has been there across the board.

WHITFIELD: All right, except we see in that Georgia gubernatorial race involving Brian Kemp and Stacey Abrams. It is pretty neck and neck, but unclear about whether the issues their stances on guns is a defining moment for either of them.

All right, Stephen Gutowski, thank you so much for that.

[11:45:15]

This morning, Chinese leader Xi Jinping is paving the way to rule China for life. How his historic third term will impact future international relations, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Welcome back. Xi Jinping cements his status as China's most powerful leader in decades. The Chinese leader has been confirmed for an unprecedented third term in office paving the way to be ruler for life. CNN's Selina Wang has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[11:50:15]

SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They're all the buses men. Chinese new top leaders have one thing in common, they're Xi Jinping's closest allies. Xi has ripped up the playbook, recrowned for a third term.

XI JINPING, CHINESE LEADER (through translation): I wish to thank the whole party sincerely for the trust you have placed in us.

WANG (voice-over): Appointing four new men in the seventh person Politburo Standing Committee, the apex of power. The top man after Xi is Li Qiang, the Shanghai Party chief and expected to be the next Premier.

Here he is back in April, getting shouted out by angry Shanghai residents. He oversaw the city's draconian two-month lockdown. Residents struggle to get in a food and medical care. Fights broke out between residents and COVID workers, where protests erupted.

But in Xi's China --

VICTOR SHIH, UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SAN DIEGO: Only one man's opinion matters.

WANG (voice-over): The current Premier Li Keqiang is retiring from party leadership. He's seen as an economic liberal and not so close to Xi. In fact, he's a protege of former top leader Hu Jintao who was publicly humiliated at the closing ceremony of the party Congress. The 79-year-old Hu is seated there next to Xi Jinping. After several confusing moments, he's led out of the room, escorted by two men. He appeared reluctant to leave. On his way out, he said something to Xi and patted the shoulder of Li Keqiang. Chinese state media later said it was because of health reasons.

SHIH: I'm not a believer of the pure health explanation, and it seemed like he sat down in a pretty stable manner and then suddenly, he was asked to leave. I'm not sure if he whispered something, said something to Xi Jinping.

WANG (voice-over): Regardless, it was a symbolic moment out with who and the collective leadership of his era. While Xi Jinping is all about one man rule, and those closest to him all men. For the first time in at least 25 years, there's zero women in the 24-member Politburo, the second most powerful group in party hierarchy.

Since Xi took power, he's purged rivals, crushed dissent, reasserted communist party control over every aspect of China. He's only expected to double down on his iron rule in his third term and beyond. Xi's next five years may see more tense U.S.-China relations, more intimidation of Taiwan, with the world dealing with an ever more authoritarian and aggressive China.

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WANG: The fear is that Xi Jinping has turned China's top leadership into an echo chamber of yes men. So increasingly, the fate of China, its relationship with the world well, it hinges on the mind of one man. And Xi no longer believes that China needs to play by American led international rules.

He's got a vision for a New World Order, one that is no longer led by the West. And as we see the U.S., another global powers trying to push back against China, Xi is trying to make the country more self- reliant, especially in technology. So in the years coming, we are probably going to see a more powerful and advanced China but one that's also increasingly closed off, Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: Some real dramatic consequences. Selina Wang, thank you so much.

Still ahead, it is the season to start thinking about holiday shopping. But some of the most popular stores will not be open on Thanksgiving Day. We'll tell you which ones next.

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WHITFIELD: Hard to believe but the holiday shopping season is right around the corner and you may see some big changes as you set out to complete your list. CNN's Nathaniel Meyersohn is here to walk us all through it. Good to see you, Nathaniel. So this is, you know, breaking news seemingly on Thanksgiving Day, a lot of stores are going to be closed after so many years of being open on the day. Why the change now? NATHANIEL MEYERSOHN, CNN BUSINESS REPORTER: Right, Fredricka. So Thanksgiving shopping is becoming a thing of the past. Walmart, Target, Best Buy, Kohl's, other stores that are closing their doors on Thanksgiving. These companies used to get a lot of criticism for not closing on Thanksgiving and not giving their workers a break.

And then early in the pandemic in 2020, they closed as a safety measure, a safety precaution. And that policy has continued the last couple of years. And so Thanksgiving shopping no more. The retailers are also -- they're less reliant on their -- on big sales days to drive, you know, drive shopping --

WHITFIELD: Yes.

MEYERSOHN: -- and so they've realized they don't need it to have a good holiday.

FITZGERALD: Oh my goodness. And then real quick, Toys "R" Us is back sort of in new space. Real quick, what's up?

MEYERSOHN: Right. So Geoffrey the giraffe is back this year after a couple tough years for Toys "R" Us after filed for bankruptcy. They're going to be in all of Macy's stores during the holidays, life size Geoffrey giraffe photo opportunity for customers.

WHITFIELD: Right.

MEYERSOHN: So Toys "R Us, they're trying to stay relevant with shoppers. And then for Macy's, it's a way to get customers in the doors, buy some clothes after you, pick up some toys.

WHITFIELD: Yay, very fun, happy for the kids. All right, thank you so much. Nathaniel Meyersohn, good to see you.

And, of course, don't miss an all-new episode of "Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy." Join Stanley Tucci as he explores a region in Italy for its simple food and olive oil. That's tonight, 9:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.

I'm Fredricka Whitfield in Atlanta. I'll see you back here at 2:00 Eastern time. State of the Union starts right now.

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