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Trump Bans CNN, MS NOW And Politico From White House; Hundreds Gather To Protest Trump's Handling Of The Kennedy Sheeran; Ed Sheeran Set To Return To Stage After Macklemore Backlash; CNN, MS NOW & POLITICO Denied White House Access After Trump's Ban; Alaska Race Could Decide Which Party Controls The Senate. Aired 4-5p ET

Aired September 19, 2026 - 16:00   ET

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

[16:00:01]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

We continue to follow breaking news in the nation's capital. Today the Trump administration has implemented the president's ban on some media at the White House, including CNN. This morning, when CNN's senior White House reporter Betsy Klein arrived at the security checkpoint, she was denied access and the U.S. Secret Service seized her press pass. MS NOW reporters and photographers, as well as a reporter from Politico, were also denied the same access.

This comes after the president posted a threat on social media on Friday banning CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House effective immediately. Trump did not cite any specific reporting that prompted his ban. Press freedom groups and lawmakers slammed the move as a blatant violation of the media's constitutional right to report on government functions.

In a statement, CNN says, quote, "Early today, CNN journalists were denied access to the White House grounds. CNN's mission to report on the U.S. government will continue regardless of any attempts to restrict physical access to the White House and other government buildings or any other attempts to impede our journalism. We have a right under the U.S. Constitution to do our reporting without hindrance or interference from the government.

"And this ban is an illegal assault on this fundamental right. We will not be deflected from our duty to hold the government and other public bodies to account, and we will continue to report on the actions and processes of this administration without fear or favor. CNN stands fully behind our White House team."

CNN's Julia Benbrook is part of that White House team. She is reporting now from outside the White House, on the street with a whole lot of folks going by, traffic going by.

But, Julia, bring us up to speed on where things stand.

JULIA BENBROOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The most recent development here is coming from the White House Correspondents Association. This is a group that represents reporters, producers, photographers that are -- they're a part of the White House Press Corps. They really serve as a go between for the press and the administration.

Now, the president, Jacqui Heinrich, she is a White House correspondent for FOX News, put out a statement just a short time ago, and I want to read that to you. In this she said, quote, "Today's action revoking access for journalists from CNN, Politico and MS NOW violates the First Amendment. The implications extend beyond these organizations. A standard used to exclude one news outlet because of its coverage could be applied to any outlet in the future.

"The American people, through a free and independent press, must be able to scrutinize those elected to power, regardless of whether the government officials view it favorably. That's why courts have repeatedly held that once the White House provides access to journalists it cannot deny that access arbitrarily or based on the content of their reporting. The WHCA calls on the administration to immediately restore our colleagues' access."

This, of course, comes after President Donald Trump, he took to social media yesterday afternoon. He said that he was banning a number of outlets, including CNN. He did not cite specific reporting when he did this. He instead said that this was cumulative. He also has, though, repeatedly referred to these organizations and many others as fake news. He also said that there could be others added at certain points. He made that very clear while speaking with the press yesterday.

And I do want to point out there are a couple of different ways that this impacts access to information. Of course, we deliver the news as CNN to our viewers, but also our team participates in the TV press pool, and that is a five network rotation that makes sure that visuals from the president's travels, visuals, sound when he takes questions that those are accessible to all members of the press.

And CNN happens to be scheduled to be pool on Monday for the United Nations General Assembly, for Trump's travel there. It's unclear what's going to happen with that at this time.

WHITFIELD: All right. Julia, thank you so much.

All right. Joining me right now to talk more about this media ban is Jeff Mason. He is the White House correspondent for Bloomberg. He is also the former president of the White House Correspondents Association.

Jeff, great to see you.

JEFF MASON, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, BLOOMBERG: You too, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. So even though President Trump has tried this before, what new concerns do you have about how this is being carried out against CNN, MS NOW, and Politico?

MASON: Well, I think it's part of a continuum.

[16:05:01] The president has started to take out his animosity towards the press in ways that are now not just verbal and rhetorical, but practical and logistical. And it is a very concrete attack on the rights of the press to tell reporters from three different news organizations that they can't come on to the grounds of the White House. And those were some of the questions that we had yesterday that were very articulately posed by the members of the press pool in the Oval Office with him, about how he was going to impose this ban. And now we know that the press credentials have been taken away from these reporters and from our colleagues. So the concern, of course, is for them specifically and for what comes next.

WHITFIELD: Yes. And you served as the president of the White House Correspondents Association before, you know, during Trump's first term.

MASON: That's right.

WHITFIELD: And the current president of the same association, you know, put out a statement as Julia just read for us, backing the constitutional rights of a free press. So help explain what now looks like a rather difficult position for the association, you know, and leadership to be in to help reaffirm the rights of the working press and the White House, at the same time, now challenging the president, who inside the White House is targeting free press?

MASON: Sure. Well, first of all, I don't speak for the association anymore. Jackie does. And I thought her statement was, you know, spot on in terms of articulating what the issue is here and stand and the pledge to stand up for press freedom. That is what the association is supposed to do. And that's what they're doing.

The rest of the press corps is affected by all of this. And I think Julia also said it out well. There are additional questions about what happens for the news organizations, the three news organizations including CNN. How that affects their pooling responsibilities and what other news groups and organizations will do to either step up or help. And that's, you know, that's above my pay grade and not my responsibility to decide. It will be interesting to watch and see how the rest of the press corps responds.

WHITFIELD: All right, Jeff Mason, we'll leave it there for now. Thank you so much for being with us. Appreciate it.

MASON: Sure thing.

WHITFIELD: All right. Coming up, concert controversy. Ed Sheeran is set to take the stage tonight for the first time since rapper Macklemore was booted from the tour, causing every single one of Sheeran's opening acts to drop out in protest. We've got the latest on the fallout. And later, a fierce rivalry gets even more personal. Head coach Lane Kiffin returns to Ole Miss with LSU as heightened tensions prompt police to step up security.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:12:42]

WHITFIELD: There is growing anxiety about the future of the Kennedy Center. Thousands gathered outside the iconic building last night in Washington, D.C., linking arms to form a human chain around it, singing songs, playing music and giving speeches. The protest comes as President Trump pushes to remake the historic arts center, and recently threatened that the building could actually be ripped down.

The Kennedy Center is a living memorial for the late president John F. Kennedy. His commitment to the arts expressed here in 1962 about the plans for a performing arts center in D.C..

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN F. KENNEDY, 35TH PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: As a great democratic society, we have a special responsibility to the arts. For art is the great Democrat calling forth creative genius from every sector of society, disregarding race or religion or wealth or color. The mere accumulation of wealth and power is available to the dictator and the Democrat alike. What freedom alone can bring is the liberation of the human mind and spirit, which finds its greatest flowering in the free society.

Thus, in our fulfillment of these responsibilities towards the art lie our unique achievement as a free society.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: A year after that speech, Kennedy was assassinated. President Lyndon Johnson signing legislation later officially designating the center as a living memorial to Kennedy before its official opening in 1971.

Joining me right now is Judy Chesser, chair for the Committee of 100 on the Federal City.

Great to see you. I'm glad you could be with us. I mean, as a head of a preservation organization, what is your biggest concern about what is happening at the Kennedy Center now?

JUDY CHESSER, CHAIR, THE COMMITTEE OF 100 ON THE FEDERAL CITY: Well, as you know, we have several lawsuits going on regarding the Kennedy Center. One is from the preservation groups, and the other one is Congresswoman Beatty, who is a member of the board. And we keep getting some protection from the courts, Judge Cooper, and he has said that the Kennedy Center cannot close unless they come forward with a detailed plan for the plaintiff and the court to review.

[16:15:10]

Nonetheless, they keep threatening to close the Kennedy Center permanently. And as you know, the president has threatened to demolish the Kennedy Center, God forbid, but the -- right now it's all before the courts. The court has said that the Kennedy Center has to give us 30 days' notice to both the plaintiffs and to the court if there's any reversal in what they have already presented to the court, which is a temporary closure for repairs, not a demolition.

So if they have any change in those plans, those plans officially, they have to come before the court 30 days before they do anything. Having said that, the president is saying that unless they reinstate his name on the building, then he will not do the repairs. Congress, in this particular instance, has provided $257 million to repair the Kennedy Center. So that that money is sitting there.

None of the plaintiffs have done anything to forestall using that money right now to make the necessary repairs. Nor have we said that repairs didn't need to be made. They do need to be made. But the building being closed down is not perhaps necessary to those repairs.

Were you about to ask a question?

WHITFIELD: No, I was about to underscore. You said, you know, that money has already been designated. It just hasn't been utilized to actually do any of the renovations or repairs. But one thing you did just say a moment ago, you said, God forbid, God forbid it were to be demolished. I mean, talk to me about that instinctive fear because we did see, I mean, the world, the nation already witnessed that the East Wing was demolished before Congress could weigh in, before any preservation group could weigh in and stop it before it's happening.

So talk to me about your real fears about whether this president would go around even Judge Cooper's order and demolish the Kennedy Center just as he was holding up that poster that said Kennedy Center demolished.

CHESSER: Yes, the concept of ripeness, which is a legal term, but ripeness, meaning some injury has occurred, has somewhat changed during the Trump-era following the demolition of the East Wing. So we filed this suit as quickly as we could when they seem to be showing interest in the Kennedy Center by getting rid of its prior board and placing the president as the chair and a lot of the trustees are people that the current president has placed on the board.

Always remember, this is not the president acting in his role as president. This is the president acting in his role as a trustee of the of the Kennedy Center. So although he may be president and is president, he is in this role -- capacity as trustee and trustees have legal and ethical obligations to the institution and the protection of the building. So one of the things that the plaintiff has -- plaintiffs have raised is we haven't actually filed a formal request in the court yet, but we've raised the possibility that the court needs to put greater protections around the Kennedy Center,

Perhaps a receivership or perhaps a modified receivership in order to protect the building and the institution from any precipitous demolition.

WHITFIELD: And then, Judy, let me ask you quickly. I know we're up against, you know, the clock here, but your group also sent a letter to the Department of Interior to offer an alternative structure to what President Trump wants to be that arch that would be erected between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington Cemetery. You sent that letter offering an alternative, which would be like two columns, something that has been proposed before.

But have you heard back from the Department of Interior and expressed your concerns about what that triumphal arch could potentially do.

CHESSER: To be specific, we didn't actually offer an alternative. All of our lawsuits are saying that you need to follow the laws that are on the books. National Environmental Protection, National Historic Preservation, et cetera., Commemorative Works Act.

[16:20:04]

The National Historic Preservation Act requires what they call a Section 106 consultation. And that letter was submitted to the Interior, the National Park Service, as part of that consultation. And what we said was that National Park Service is citing a law enacted by Congress 102 years ago as providing congressional authorization for the arch.

And so, we did a bit of history and what happened in 1924 was that there was an Arlington Memorial Bridge Commission. It gave a report to the Congress, including some draft legislation regarding what should be built at that end of the Arlington Memorial Bridge. Congress the next year, 1925, enacted that legislation and authorized the bridge commission to determine the exact design for what should be there.

The bridge commission considered several options. Quite a few options, actually, including a two-column option. The columns were to be 300 feet apart, didn't interfere a lot with the view from the Lincoln to the Lee Mansion. Did some. They were 166 feet tall. And ultimately they were rejected by the bridge commission. In fact, in a very similar design, Frederick Law Olmsted, quite a renowned source, said that to build them would be a slap in the face of the Lincoln.

And the Commission of Fine Arts, Andrew Weinman, said that the two columns look like two smokestacks. In 1931, December, the bridge commission specifically and explicitly removed the columns from the options to be built and they were never built. So for the National Park Service to now cite that history as authorizing the arch is a bit disingenuous.

WHITFIELD: All right. Judy Chesser --

CHESSER: And we -- yes.

WHITFIELD: We're going to leave it there. I'd love to have you back, though.

CHESSER: I'm sorry, I'm sorry.

WHITFIELD: That's OK. Hey, I love -- you are a wealth of knowledge, and this is wonderful. So we are definitely going to have you back because there is so much detail in which to, you know, consider and understand about these beautiful historic sites in our nation's capital.

Thank you so much for being with us, Judy Chesser. Appreciate it. We'll have you back.

CHESSER: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Thank you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:27:13]

WHITFIELD: All right. We're now hours away from Ed Sheeran returning to the stage. It will be the first time since a decision to drop Macklemore from his U.S. tour sparked backlash. The rapper made pro- Palestinian comments during a concert earlier this month, and Sheeran says his promoter took the decision to cut Macklemore's act. The move prompted supporting acts pulled out and ticket sales plummeted.

CNN's Gloria Pazmino is outside the stadium in Philadelphia.

Gloria, take it from there. What's about to happen tonight?

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Fred, we're going to find out in the next few hours or so as fans begin to arrive here at Lincoln Financial Arena in Philadelphia, where Ed Sheeran is scheduled to play a show tonight. And so far, it appears like the show is going to go on, right? But not without a whole lot of discussion about this issue, about artists' obligation to speak out, about their choice, Ed Sheeran's choice not to speak out on this issue, and certainly about the question of censorship of another artist who decided to speak out.

And this is how the whole controversy started earlier this month after Macklemore used his time on stage at the Ed Sheeran tour to speak out about the war in Gaza. He said free Palestine. He highlighted the war and he said that he wanted to use his time on stage to bring that message across stages in the United States, and it was shortly after that that we learned Macklemore was being dropped from the tour.

Now, Sheeran has said that this was not his decision. In fact, he mentioned that it was Robert Kraft, the billionaire owner of the New England Patriots who also owns Gillette Stadium, where Sheeran is scheduled to play, who urged him to do this. And Kraft also was rallying other stadium owners to follow his lead. So Ed Sheeran, under a lot of pressure to drop Macklemore from his tour.

Now, Sheeran has said that it was ultimately up to the promoter, that it was their decision to do this, and he has since not spoken out publicly about it. We'll see if he addresses the controversy on stage today. But in the middle of all this are, of course, a lot of fans, a lot of people who have spent a lot of money to come and see him tonight. People who are feeling conflicted and even some who, as of yesterday, we're not sure if they were going to come tonight. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAREN DEANGELIS, ATTENDING CONCERT: So it was very surprising to me when all of this controversy started happening after that, because I had actually -- I'm going with my 10-year-old daughter, and we had talked about, hey, this is what's going on in Palestine. This is what's going on with Israel. There's a lot of discussion about this. This is what Macklemore was speaking about. Here's what we could expect. And then obviously things started changing pretty quickly by the day.

[16:30:13]

HEATHER PARK, ATTENDING CONCERT: I'm still going. And even if Macklemore was still opening up, I would still go. Like, he's allowed to have his opinion. I'm allowed to have mine.

He has a platform where he can say it in front of thousands of people. Good for him. Doesn't mean I have to be offended, believe, or join the bandwagon of anything he says or anything anybody else says. I have my own opinions and my own feelings.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAZMINO: Now, Fred, there were other several performers, along with Macklemore, who were a part of the show who has since dropped from the tour in solidarity with Macklemore. So we are expecting Ed Sheeran to essentially do a solo show here tonight. We have not heard any announcements of other additional acts, and we expect him to take the stage around 8:00.

We should mention that there are also pro-Palestinian demonstrations that are scheduled not far from here. The police here in Philly has told us that they are prepared for the crowds, and they plan to make sure people have a space to demonstrate as well. Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. In Philadelphia. Gloria Pazmino, thank you so much.

All right. Just ahead. Access denied. CNN, MS NOW, and POLITICO barred from the White House after Trump said he is banning the news organizations. We'll take a look at the First Amendment battle that is brewing.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:36:14]

WHITFIELD: We continue to follow breaking news out of the White House today, the Trump administration following through on the president's threat to ban CNN and other media outlets from the White House. This morning, reporters from CNN, MS NOW, and POLITICO were denied access to the White House and had their press passes seized. The president did not cite any specific reporting that prompted his decision.

Press freedom groups and lawmakers slammed the move as a blatant violation of the media's constitutional right to report on government functions. Joining me right now to talk more about the legal aspects of this ban is Gloria Browne-Marshall. She is a constitutional law professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Professor, great to see you. GLORIA BROWNE-MARSHALL, CONSTITUTIONAL LAW PROFESSOR, JOHN JAY COLLEGE OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE: Nice seeing you.

WHITFIELD: So how do you see this ban conflicting with the U.S. Constitution's, you know, First Amendment protections for free speech and the press?

BROWNE-MARSHALL: Well, we know that freedom of the press is in the Constitution, but it's the interpretation of that phrase that gives rise in this particular situation, to two sides. One side is whether or not there is a First Amendment right for the press to be in the White House to cover the president. The other is, what are the rules and regulations for that?

And here's what's interesting. You have viewpoint discrimination that's under the interpretation of freedom of -- and under the First Amendment, the president cannot discriminate based on the viewpoint the press takes when it reports. But there's also a procedural process.

And the procedural process means that the president is supposed to give notice to the reporter. The notice is supposed to state why that particular reporter is banned. And then the reporter is supposed to be given the opportunity to respond, and then a decision is made. So, in this particular situation, the fake news or the other statements being made go well beyond what is given as a reasonable purpose for banning a member of the press.

WHITFIELD: Right. Because while the president didn't specify, you know, his grievances on Friday, he did use words like fake or fiction in describing material that he thought was coming from these three outlets. So, then how will these media outlets, including CNN, be able to make their legal arguments about this sort of -- I mean, you're calling it, you know, the viewpoint discrimination. It is content- based discrimination, right?

BROWNE-MARSHALL: Well, here's the 1977 case of Sherrill versus Knight that basically focused on the process -- the due process, the procedure, whether or not notice was given, et cetera. But you also have the idea of the content-based as well. And the content-based goes to whether or not it's what this being reported is the cause of the banning of the reporters.

There is a case going on right now. The Associated Press case, and that's in the D.C. Circuit Court. And in the D.C. Circuit Court, they are looking at whether or not this is an expansion of presidential power here, that these two judges of the three on the D.C. Appellate Court have said the inner sanctum of the president is supposed to be somewhere he has more power, the privilege to decide who gets in.

So the general press pool, as based on this case of Buttigieg, then that particular case, they're saying, well, he can -- the reporters can come in to the general press pool. But if it comes to Air Force One, when it comes to who gets to be inside the Oval Office that the president is supposed to have more power over that decision-making.

[16:40:03]

And so right now, that's the case. That's before the D.C. Circuit. And it's going to be up on en banc appeal, meaning there's been a three- judge decision, but there might be an expanded court decision on that one before it heads to the U.S. Supreme Court, which is certainly will.

WHITFIELD: So, like those cases, the president isn't waiting for court rulings, you know, before taking it a step further, like he just did with the three media organizations, including CNN. And he's already threatening that he might expand this ban to other organizations. So, he is exerting the power to do so by having the administration, you know, support his ban.

He's not waiting for the courts. Is there like a level of urgency in the courts to hurry up and render decisions, knowing that he's going to -- he's threatening and could act upon his threat of expanding his ban?

BROWNE-MARSHALL: It -- definitely. I mean, you think about the Acosta case. He was stripped of his ability to cover the White House. It went to an almost expedited process, and he was given his privileges back.

But Donald Trump has been doing this in his pushback regarding press that doesn't cover him favorably since he first ran for office in 2015, when he had a reporter from Univision taken out of the room because he was asking -- that reporter was asking questions regarding immigration. So this has been something that's been building over time. Even Fox News, though, has spoken up, which is somewhat surprising, that they have said that you don't ban reporters if you don't like what they're stating.

And basically, they made the argument that if this president is allowed to ban what they consider liberal reporters or reporters coming from what they consider a liberal press, what is the next president going to do to us? Because what Donald Trump is setting is a horrible precedent for all types of reporters, not just those from those three institutions. The power the president, though, has been expanded so much under this Supreme Court. That is, we're all really holding our breaths to decide how much more power -- presidential power will this particular executive receive.

WHITFIELD: Professor Gloria Browne-Marshall, always a pleasure. Thank you so much.

BROWNE-MARSHALL: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Coming up. One of the nation's most reliably red states has suddenly become a crucial battleground in the race to control the Senate. CNN talks with voters in Alaska whose politics are as complex as their state's geography.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:47:22] WHITFIELD: Alaska is one of the nation's most reliably red states, making its Senate race an unlikely but crucial battleground. CNN's John King speaks to voters whose opinions are as nuanced as their breathtaking state.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN KING, CNN ANCHOR: The raw, rainy morning makes no difference. It's September now. Snow not that far off. Training is on a schedule. Weather is weather.

ALYSSA BUSER, ALASKA VOTER: It is a part of Alaskan culture. There's evidence of sled dogs that dates back 8000 years.

KING (voice-over): Alyssa Buser and her husband, Rohn, picked the team, then harnesses for ten. Just four miles or so. This run.

BUSER: And then we'll slowly continue to build. And by December, they'll be worked up to 50-mile runs.

KING (voice-over): Gee is right. Horsch is left. There is no sled dog command for Flip Washington on its head.

BUSER: It's crazy. The amount of money that you spend on groceries, especially like within the last year and a half, food has just gone up so much. So, I think it's really important to vote and make sure that we have affordable food, affordable housing, that we have jobs, that we have health care. OK. Thank you. Ash.

KING (voice-over): Buser is a registered independent, but she wants change in Washington. Democrat Mary Peltola is her choice in a Senate race that could determine which party controls Congress.

BUSER: Mary is from Alaska that, you know, maybe she'll actually look out for what's the best for Alaskans.

KING (voice-over): The state fair has a spectacular snowy backdrop. Rides, games, and yes, a little politics if you wish. Daily celebrations of native Alaskans and traditions many in the lower 48 might not understand.

There are about 15 percent of the population now, many living in the most remote corners of this giant state. Lisa Lynch lives in the Anchorage suburbs now, but her mother is from Nome.

LISA LYNCH, ALASKA VOTER: These are salmon trips.

KING (voice-over): And much of their family still there.

LYNCH: It is crazy to think that you could go to a grocery store here in America, and there's no fresh meat, there is no fresh fruit, there's no fresh vegetables, and it gets so bad in some of the villages.

KING (voice-over): A visitor gets VIP Inupiat treatment. The curved ulu used to chop slices of dried salmon and muktuk whale blubber. Yes, some policy disagreements with Senator Sullivan. But Lynch says her vote for Peltola is mostly because of her rural Alaska roots.

[16:50:01]

LYNCH: He has lived here for a long time. But it's not quite the same because he never had to rely on the fish runs to feed his family. He never had to worry about if they could have a moose in their freezer or go caribou hunting.

KING (voice-over): If elected, Peltola would be the first native Alaskan to serve in the Senate. Senator Sullivan was born in Ohio, but has lived in Alaska for more than 20 years, served as the state attorney general, and has held the Senate seat since 2015. Palmer is home to the state fairgrounds, and Mary Grubbs stopped at a local restaurant for lunch during a visit from Fairbanks.

MARY GRUBBS, ALASKA VOTER: I don't ever miss a vote. And I will definitely be out there. And I will vote for Sullivan.

KING (voice-over): Nothing bad to say about Peltola. Though, Grubbs is worried about Democrats gaining power in Washington.

GRUBBS: You've got all these communities that are electing socialists or really far-left-leaning ideologies. So to me, I just -- I don't really want far like those, but I also don't really want really far to the right either.

KING (voice-over): Everywhere you go, reminders of the big choice, and don't make the mistake of thinking these warnings are just for show.

KING: Affordability, of course, is the biggest midterm issue everywhere, but Alaskans pay even more for most things because being so remote comes at a price. Groceries in Juneau, for example, 29 percent more than the national average. In Anchorage, it's 26 percent higher. In Fairbanks, 25 percent. Healthcare is another giant affordability challenge.

Americans on average pay $9,700 a year for health care. In Alaska, it's $14,000. That's 44 percent above the national average. And those living in rural communities that are hard to reach face even higher. Sometimes eye-popping costs.

A gallon of milk as high as $16 in Bethel. A dozen of eggs, $8.69 in Skagway. Gas hit $11.50 a gallon recently in Alatna, and nearly $27 in Shungnak.

KING (voice-over): Rick Brown moved to Alaska three decades ago, the day he retired from the fire department back home in Kentucky. Started his own adventure company 20 years ago. Fishing, hiking, kayaking, panning for gold. He just turned 75.

KING: Happy birthday.

RICK BROWN, ALASKA VOTER: So anyway, you know, if I didn't enjoy it, I wouldn't do it.

KING (voice-over): Business this summer was OK. He expected better. BROWN: I think the war had a little bit to do with it. And people were unsure of what was going to happen. We get a lot of the campers that come up. They drive up. And I see that changing as the years go on, as the price of fuel gets up.

KING (voice-over): Brown liked Senator Sullivan and says he helped the company get access to federal land for some of its tours. For Sullivan twice before, leaning Sullivan this time. But some hesitation because of campaign support the senator receives from larger fishing operations.

BROWN: Our Sewards used to be a little village with a fishing problem, you know. Now it's a tourism town, but it's -- but I still have a lot of friends that are commercial fishermen. And I want to see what's going to happen to support some of the issues they got with the draggers, you know --

KING: The trawlers.

BROWN: -- the trawlers.

KING (voice-over): Again, nothing negative to say about Peltola, but again, worries about the Democrats' direction.

BROWN: You know, the socialism -- the socialist side of it. I don't -- I can't wrap my arms around that.

KING (voice-over): You see the change at the Seward waterfront. Still a fair share of small commercial fishing boats, but also a cruise ship stop now and a harbor more and more tailored to tourists. 31 years in the charter business for Andy Mezirow. 31 years of finding the right spot.

KING: How you doing, buddy?

ANDY MEZIROW, ALASKA VOTER: Beautiful silver salmon. We're going to let him go, John, so he can live to spawn another day.

KING (voice-over): This year, a faraway war hurt.

MEZIROW: We came into the season, and fuel was $3.25. And then overnight it turned into $5.25. And there's no way we can really back charge people that have already paid for their trips for the cost of fuel. So, we kind of had to eat it this year.

KING (voice-over): Mezirow is on the water just about every day, and he served in fisheries management roles here for years.

MEZIROW: They have a unique smell to them.

KING (voice-over): He thinks Peltola's talk of banning the big trawlers is over the top.

MEZIROW: I don't think we should ban trawling. I think we should hold their feet to the fire and make them do a better job.

KING (voice-over): Mezirow knows and likes both Senate candidates, and he says Alaska is lucky.

MEZIROW: I don't think this is like a communist versus a nazi or a devil versus an angel. This is two good people that are trying to do their best.

KING (voice-over): But choice time soon likely Peltola again, because of her roots.

MEZIROW: She's like a real Alaskan that lives out in rural areas and has been a fisherman. She knows what it's like to have a sore back at this time of year and sore hands. I think the decision point is, do you want to change in the way things are going in D.C., or do you like it the way it is? And if you frame it that way, it's hard to like it the way it is.

[16:55:18]

KING (voice-over): A change in course by reliably red Alaska would be beyond a big deal. But the last frontier just may get the last word on whether the Senate and Washington change tracks from red to blue. John King, CNN, Moose Pass, Alaska.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. Incredible views in so many ways. All right. Thank you so much for joining me today. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. The new -- I mean, more of the CNN NEWSROOM continues right after this.

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