Return to Transcripts main page
CNN This Morning
FBI Arrests In Michigan Stopped Potential Halloween Terrorist Attack; Millions Of Americans Could Lose Access To SNAP Benefits; Canada's Mark Carney Apologizes To Trump Over Anti-Tariff Ad; Pentagon Cleared Giving Ukraine Long-Range Tomahawk Missiles, Leaving Final Decision To Trump; King Charles III Strips Brother Andrew Of Titles And His Home; Obamacare Enrollment Begins For 2026, Premiums Set To Soar. Obamacare Enrollment Begins for 2026 With Premiums Set to Soar; Rescue Crews Race to Help As Hurricane Melissa Leaves 49 Dead Across the Caribbean; U.S. Transportation Secretary Warns of Holiday Travel Disruptions if Government Shutdown Doesn't End. Aired 6-7a ET
Aired November 01, 2025 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:00:29]
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: It's November 1st. Brand new month. Welcome to it. Welcome to CNN This Morning. I'm Victor Blackwell. Here's what's happening today.
Millions of people will not get their monthly allowance of SNAP benefits thanks to the ongoing government shutdown.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't want to be on SNAP benefits the rest of my life, but it has carried us over this far. So yes, it's a big impact.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: SNAP isn't the only program going without funding the wide ranging impacts to people across the country as the shutdown enters its second month. Coming up, there are also new details in what officials are calling an ISIS inspired terror attack. What we know about the people arrested and what officials think they were planning.
Also new this morning, Canada says, sorry.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK CARNEY, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: I did apologize to the president. The president was offended by the act.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: The prime minister apologizes to President Trump over an ad that caused a breakdown in trade talks between the two countries. Overseas devastation in the Caribbean. CNN is in Jamaica as people there recover from Hurricane Melissa.
Plus, staffing shortages are plaguing air travel and the transportation secretary says it could get worse. More on the impact across the country coming up.
All right. This morning we are learning more about a planned terror attack. The FBI says it stopped in Michigan. Federal agents made the arrest after tracking the suspects for weeks. And now investigators are sharing new details about how they moved in and what they found.
CNN's Leigh Waldman is in Dearborn with what they uncovered.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEIGH WALDMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Multiple people have been arrested here in Michigan after the FBI foiled a planned terrorist attack for Halloween weekend. According to FBI Director Kash Patel, police here in Dearborn are confirming FBI activity in this community today.
Video shows some of that activity at homes and nearby. Inkster Police they are confirming FBI activity at a storage facility. Law enforcement officials with knowledge of this case say that this plot was inspired by ISIS and unfolded in online chat rooms.
We know two people have been arrested. Three others are currently being questioned. A group being monitored by the FBI went to a shooting range this week with AK47. They fired multiple rounds or practicing high speed reloads.
Now Patel says there was references being made to quote pumpkin day. And that's what prompted the FBI to jump into action. Police here in Dearborn and in nearby Inkster are telling the community that there's no threat to the public. Leigh Waldman, CNN, Dearborn, Michigan.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLACKWELL: All right, Leigh, thank you very much. Today, millions of Americans will not get their SNAP benefits for food stamps. Two federal judges ruled Friday, though, that the Trump administration needs to use emergency funds to at least partially cover those benefits.
And the president said on Truth Social that he'll be honored to provide the funding, just like he did with military and law enforcement pay. But that money will not come quickly for the nearly one in eight Americans who rely on food stamps.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTINE VIETEL, AMERICAN FEDERATION OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES: Our officers are scared. You know, I have a few officers that have to drive over an hour to get to work, you know, and they're doing the best they can, but, you know, the morale is bad. Morale is bad. They're giving up. (END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Now that means that some of your neighbors don't know where they'll get their next meal.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Never thought in a million years I would be in line to get some food.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What does that feel like?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's humiliating. You know, I've been working for 30 years in my career. I've had to apply for unemployment. I haven't done that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Helpers, though, are around every corner. A lot of them want struggle themselves. Like Jamason, who owns several grocery stores in West Virginia, is now offering to bag some foods and hand those out to families.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAMSON SPARKS, GROCERY STORE OWNER: We're not going to turn anyone away. We want somebody to feel, hey, I need fed. OK, come grab a bag. You don't have to say anything other than that 50,000 will come straight from my pocket and I'm more than happy to do it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Or this Tennessee farmer who is giving away fresh food at his farm this weekend.
[06:05:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHAWN DARTY, FARMER: I think as a community, you wait on people that are in those positions to take care of you. I think you take care of each other. I remember working my way through college full time and buying fast food and gas on a credit card just to survive.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Neighbors are ready with resources. But people's message to lawmakers and state officials, it's clear.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hunger is not waiting for Washington. People need to eat. Children need to eat. And the people making the decisions have never been on a food pantry line.
(END VIDEO CLIP) BLACKWLEL: With me now, Rachel Kent, a SNAP recipient herself, and Eric Mitchell, he's the president of the alliance to End Hunger. Welcome to you both this morning.
Rachel, let me start with you. Without the SNAP disbursement of the benefits, how much or how long will what you have now last?
RACHEL KENT, SNAP RECIPIENT: Truthfully, I could last about two months. My grandparents were raised in the depression era who raised me, and they taught me that you could have money today and gone tomorrow, but always have your pantry stocked up with the essentials like canned goods and, you know, even your freezer with meats. So always plan ahead. It's way up and taught and way I was raised.
BLACKWELL: Yes. And there are so many people, though, who don't have that luxury or were not raised that way to have canned goods or to have nonperishables they can rely on. You had a message for state leaders in the Georgia Capitol. What was your message? What do you want state leaders to know?
KENT: I want to know that my main message is that food should not be a political argument. Congress can debate budgets all day, but you don't debate whether children get to go to bed hungry. That's the main thing. And politicians do forget that. You know, we are the people, United States. We elected the politicians. We elected them to represent us. And they're not right now.
BLACKWELL: Eric, let me ask you, the president, I read some of his message on social media. Let me read a little more of it. Even if we get immediate guidance, it will unfortunately be delayed while states get the money out. If we are given the appropriate legal direction by the court, it will be my honor to provide the funding just like I did with military and law enforcement pay. What's your reaction?
The president says that his lawyers say he can't disperse this emergency aid from the Department of Ag. But if he gets that clarity, it's coming. What do you hear from the White House?
ERIC MITCHELL, PRESIDENT, ALLIANCE TO END HUNGER: Well, first and foremost, I appreciate President Trump speaking out on this issue, finally stepping into this issue. But what I would also say is that they already have the authority to implement the program, Congressional authority. Congress already gave them a set of funding to put aside four times just as this to be able to use an emergency situation.
I would say that the government being shut down and folks who are at risk of not receiving their benefits is in fact is an emergency situation. So while there is definitely they're going through the legal process, we could have avoided this from the get go if USDA just implemented the program that they were already authorized to do.
BLACKWELL: Eric, you said in a recent interview that this is not just about SNAP benefit recipients, that it's going to impact everyone. Expound that. MITCHELL: Sure I will. First and foremost the SNAP benefits help over
42 million Americans. But it also has an economic impact to the SNAP program. For every $1 billion that's put that's spent on the program, one 1.5 billion go back goes back into the economy. So this impacts our retailers, our farmers or distributors all the way down the value chain.
So this is a huge economic impact. That's why you have retailers and other groups who are concerned about the fact that the administration was looking to not provide SNAP coverage for the month because the economic impact could be up to $8 billion to the food economy.
BLACKWELL: Rachel, again you said that you've got resources, a backstock that will support your family for months. Hopefully the government shutdown is over then. But what do you think people need to know about this program? Because we've talked about it in some ways of a support for families that it a supplement. But for some it's not a supplement. It is the food.
KENT: The lifeline. My main thing is a lot of misconceptions about what SNAP is for me. I'm college educated, you know, single mom, getting a jobs and hard. So I had to choice starve or get government house. I chose government help so my children I could eat and it's been helpful.
And you don't get a lot. I mean there are people get a lot of money. I don't get about 300 bucks a month and honestly I learned to stretch the dollar as much as I can.
[06:10:00]
It's definitely helped out a lot while I still look for a job and it's -- you do have to fill an application. You have to prove that you are -- you're getting a source of income or you're attempting looking for work. You have to reapply every six months. And there is a system for that as well. And you get a card. So you're not like spending, you know, back in the 80s and I guess 90s, they give you paper money or something.
BLACKWELL: Yes. The food stamps.
KENT: You have a card so you have to carve your pen. Yes.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
KENT: So it's not, you know, I see online when people are saying, oh, I'm selling the food stamps, you don't sell it. You can, you know, if you see someone that needs money or needs food, yes, you can buy user food stamps to buy that person food out of kindness. But you're not, you know, selling your food stamps. You can't do that.
BLACKWELL: Yes. Rachel Kent, Eric Mitchell, thank you. As we see that these two judges say that the administration has to use this money, this 5.3 billion or so, $9 billion is the cost monthly for SNAP benefits. So even if that comes online and it won't take care of everyone for the month of November. But I thank you for your conversation. Enjoy the Saturday.
In your morning headlines this morning, new video from the Netherlands shows a passenger train crashing into a semi-truck. This happened Thursday in the small village of Meteren.
Seconds before impact, the truck appeared to stop and reverse before becoming trapped between the barriers as they close. At least five people were hurt.
A federal judge has ruled that President Trump cannot require proof of citizenship on federal voter registration forms. The judge said the directive violates the Constitution's separation of powers. The decision blocks Trump's order from taking effect and bars the Election Assistance Commission from enforcing it. The civil rights groups call the ruling a win for democracy. They say the proof of citizenship rule would have made it harder for many eligible Americans to vote for.
All right, World Series now Los Angeles held off a late rally from Toronto to win game three as a six, forcing a winner take all. Game seven. It's tonight. Los Angeles is aiming to become the first team to win back to back titles since the Yankees and the Blue Jays are chasing their first championship since going back to back in '92 and '93.
All right, next, the Pentagon green lights giving Ukraine long range Tomahawk missiles. What does this mean for the tensions with Russia? We're live with an update.
Also an apology from Canada's Prime Minister over a controversial ad reviving Reagan's tariff criticisms.
And CNN is in Jamaica as it assesses the devastating damage left by hurricane Melissa.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You see the images? They are all desperate equally so that's why right now, in the next 48 hours is when the increase of age use has to be exponential. Because again, it's day two, day three, day four is when. hey, we need food. Hey, we need water. Hey, we need --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:17:42]
BLACKWELL: New this morning, Canada's prime minister says that he has apologized to President Trump for Ontario's anti-tariff ad. That ad caused a shutdown in trade talks between the two countries. Ontario's government released the ad, which used a portion of a 1987 speech from late President Ronald Reagan where he largely criticized tariffs on foreign imports.
The ad angered President Trump to the point that he walked away from trade negotiations with Canada.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CARNEY: I did apologize to the president. The president was offended by the act or by the ad rather. And it's not something I would have done which is to put in place -- put in place that advertisement and so I apologize to him.
(END VIDE OCLIP)
BLACKWELL: Ontario's premier said the ad is being pulled. All right. Now to Russia's war on Ukraine. The Pentagon has given the White House the OK to now give Ukraine long range Tomahawk missiles. And now it's up to President Trump.
Earlier this month he said that he did not want to send the missiles because it could negatively affect U.S. stockpiles. Let's go now to CNN senior international correspondent Melissa Bell. Melissa, we'll see now what the president does, but at least this gives him the opening now to make that decision.
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. And I think from European point of view, Victor, it adds no doubt to the pressure. They think it'll be difficult now to go back on the idea of sending them.
Remember that, of course, even before this meeting with President Zelenskyy in Washington, President Trump had been speaking about giving Kyiv the Tomahawks. It was therefore something of a surprise when he announced in front of President Zelenskyy and then privately with the Ukrainian president that in fact he couldn't because of that question of stockpiles.
In fact, what we think happened is that there was a phone call just the day before between the American and Russian presidents in which Vladimir Putin had warned President Trump that giving the Tomahawks to Kyiv could harm U.S.-Russia relations. So perhaps that said something to do with it.
Certainly the Ukrainians have been trying to get their hands on these for some time, Victor. They are a lot longer range than anything they have in their arsenal right now, about a thousand miles in range. And Ukrainians believe that it could be a significant addition to their arsenal in terms of trying to bring the war to Russia as they have been doing these last few weeks and months, and that is by targeting oil facilities.
[06:20:06]
We've had yet another strike overnight that apparently, according to Ukrainians, is it an important Russian pipeline. The aim of Ukrainians is not simply to try and hamper the Russian war machine, Victor, but also actually to harm the everyday lives of Russians. And what we've seen as a result of those infrastructure strikes was the price of gas go up inside Russia over the course of those few weeks. Now, the idea is that this will then bring pressure as well on
Russians. Essentially what President Zelenskyy says is that thanks to these tomahawks and thanks to this strategy, he believes that they can substantially move ahead with rectifying the getting a fairer deal between Russia and Ukraine for when the war ends.
That is his assessment of how important they are. Question now whether President Trump goes ahead and gives them.
BLACKWELL: Now we'll see if there's also another well timed call from President Putin now that this news is broken about the Pentagon saying it's OK. Melissa Bell from Paris, thank you.
All right. New this morning in the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, the brother of Virginia Giuffre, the woman who accused the former Duke of York of sexually assaulting her, is demanding a full investigation and a meeting with King Charles. Buckingham palace has declined to comment on that request.
Giuffre was the most prominent victim of the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking operation. She died by suicide this year.
Andrew has denied the accusations against him. Still, King Charles took the historic step of stripping his brother of his titles and honors, even evicting him from his home. CNS Nic Robertson has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, look, it's been a slow roll, if you will. 2019, when Prince Andrew, as he was then, got taken off of Royal Judas. 2022, the Queen takes away his military titles. Then just less than two weeks ago, he voluntarily says, well, I won't use the Duke of York title. It's gone way beyond that. This is something historic, monumental, hasn't happened in the U.K. for over 100 years. No longer the Duke of York, no longer the Earl of Inverness, no longer the Baron Killyleagh, no longer a prince, quite simply, Andrew Mountbatten Windsor forced to leave this 30- bedroom --30-room mansion on the royal estate in Windsor.
Where he is going he is still sort of, if you will, under the auspices of the king. But it's a private estate, privately owned residence that have been moving to privately owned by the king. So no burden on the taxpayer there. It is something that has been met, I think on the streets of the U.K. with support certainly at the beginning of the week.
King Charles was actually heckled by people saying, what did you know about Epstein and Endrew at an early stage? So this is something that has been building and it is really going to remove it certainly seems Andrew very much from the public eye. Sandringham estate is about 100 miles north of London, monumental, historic and I think for a lot of people in the country, this was something that was a long time coming.
By the way, no longer a prince, but Andrew does remain still eighth in line to the throne. (END VIDEOTAPE)
BLACKWELL: All right, Nic, thank you. Open enrollment is here, but if you rely on the ACA, brace yourself because premiums are set to spike by about 26 percent and without renewed subsidies, your cost could be more than double. Next we'll take a look at what's behind that surge.
ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And hurricane season is not over yet, but where do we stand compared to other seasons? We'll take a close look, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:28:19]
BLACKWELL: This morning, open enrollment begins for millions of Americans who get their health coverage through Obamacare, the Affordable Care Act. And there is going to be some sticker shock. The monthly premium for the benchmark plan on the healthcare.gov will soar 30 percent on average, but they could actually double for many participants with enhanced premium subsidies also expiring. These are the subsidies at the heart of the government shutdown, and Democrats are holding firm on their demand to extend them before they'll agree to reopen the government.
With me now, Sabrina Corlette, a research professor and project director for the Center on Health Insurance Reforms at Georgetown University. Good morning to you.
Before we get to the subsidies and the scale of these increases, why are these increases the largest since the start of the ACA more than a decade ago?
SABRINA CORLETTE, RESEARCH PROFESSOR, CENTER ON HEALTH INSURANCE REFORMS AT GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY: Well, insurance companies are worried that Congress is not going to extend the enhanced premium tax credits. And the people most likely to be deterred by these big premium spikes are people who are relatively young and healthy.
And when insurance companies are worried that they're going to have to cover a smaller group of sicker people, they're going to raise their prices to reflect those higher costs.
BLACKWELL: And so what's the scale of this increase? Because we said on average I've seen 26 percent, I've seen 30 percent. Where will it be worst?
[06:30:00]
CORLETTE: Well, it will be the worst for people who are currently getting premium tax credits to help lower the cost of their premium. Those folks on average will see their premiums go up over 114 percent. And for -- depending on where you live, depending on your age, depending on your income, your premiums could even triple or quadruple. VICTOR BLACKWELL, ANCHOR, CNN THIS MORNING WEEKEND: And I read that
some states are actually holding off on notifying consumers about how much these premiums will increase. Why?
CORLETTE: Well, I think many people are hoping that Congress will come to a deal and extend the enhanced premium tax credits so that people can get premium relief. And the worry is that if people come to the marketplace, healthcare.gov today, the start of open enrollment and see the premium, they're going to be asked to pay, they will walk away and they won't come back.
So, I think part of the calculation here is that if Congress can strike a deal, then they can at least alert consumers that they're going to get some premium relief.
BLACKWELL: And that walk away and not come back. What's the estimate of if these subsidies drop off? How many thousands, hundreds of thousands of people will lose or forego that health insurance?
CORLETTE: Yes, well, we have some government estimates on that. The Congressional Budget Office has projected that about 3.8 million people will become uninsured as a result of this failure to extend the enhanced premium tax credit --
BLACKWELL: So, 3.8 million. Now, the individual mandate, the penalty was dropped off several years ago. But there are several states that have penalties that require people to have that insurance. So, what happens to them if they drop off? They have to pay the fine in California or in other states that require this?
CORLETTE: Well, possibly, there are exemptions for folks who have hardships. Also, many of those states also have provided state dollars to help defray the cost of premiums.
BLACKWELL: And Sabrina, let me ask you this, because the critics of the Affordable Care Act say that if the premiums are so high that people cannot afford to pay them without these increased subsidies, then it's not affordable. And so, what do you say to the people who say that from the beginning, ACA is flawed. If you can't keep these 3.8 million on without these billions of dollars of federal subsidies for them.
CORLETTE: Sure. Well, health insurance is expensive in this country because healthcare is expensive in this country. So, if you look at the average price of an Affordable Care Act, health plan, it's not that different from the total price that we face in an employer-based health plan. So, its' not anything unique to the Affordable Care Act marketplaces that health insurance is expensive.
It's expensive everywhere. So, there are absolutely underlying problems in our healthcare system because we're not getting good value for our healthcare dollar. But you know, I'm not sure that the answer is to, you know, force people in the marketplaces to pay exorbitantly high premiums that, you know, for example, the government is perfectly willing to subsidize for folks in employer-based coverage. BLACKWELL: All right, Sabrina Corlette, thanks for helping us
understand it. Enjoy this Saturday. All right, this morning, rescue crews are working across the Caribbean, combing through debris after Hurricane Melissa tore through the island. Right now, at least, 49 people are dead, and even without a direct hit, Haiti saw heavy flooding and mudslides.
That's where the most lives were lost. At least, 30 people killed, including ten children there. One man said he lost his entire family. In Cuba, Melissa hit the island as a Category 3 storm, flooded towns, cut off more than 100,000 people from help. And in Jamaica, the damage -- look at this.
The damage is massive. Neighborhoods flattened, roads washed out. CNN's David Culver is in Black River, one of the hardest-hit areas.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID CULVER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Now, where we're headed is towards Black River. And that's an area that you've seen a lot of devastation of some of the homes that have just been totally decimated. And the folks who are on this path headed to the direction that we're going, and we can walk just a little bit here to keep track of going -- are folks who are -- many of them going back to their homes for the first time, or what's left of their homes.
[06:35:00]
You've got others who are bringing supplies with them, and others who are bringing communication devices to try to see if they can get to individuals who they've not been able to be in touch with so far. Now, here we are several days out after the storm, and you're at a point where the adrenaline has started to wear down. The shock has started to subside and reality starting to sink in.
And we were talking to some of our local team here too, and as we were just sitting here, he looked up and he said, it's not just the homes that were destroyed, but also the beauty of my country. And he said, you should see what this was before. And this was a beautiful canopy. Bamboo avenue, and you can look now and the bamboo is just shredded.
I mean, all of it just torn apart. And he said, that's another thing that they're thinking about and mourning even. Well, this is the issue. I mean, everyone you speak with will have a story of someone they have yet to be in contact with, and that tells you there are so many areas that are like this corridor. I mean, just so difficult to get through and cut off at this point.
So, they're starting to mobilize quickly. We're starting to see a lot of those efforts come internationally as well. The military here is certainly playing a role in that. But as of now, the latest death toll that we've seen is at 19, it's expected to rise. But again, it's trying to get to these areas that are next to impossible to go through. I saw an ambulance trying to go through just a few minutes ago, and it was just going as slow as we were. I mean, it's a huge challenge. (END VIDEOTAPE)
BLACKWELL: David Culver reporting there. David, thank you. And for more information about how you can help Hurricane Melissa survivors, go to cnn.com/impact, or you can text the word Melissa to 707070 to donate. All right, here with me now, CNN's Allison Chinchar. All right, so, we saw obviously the damage from Melissa. But we've got another month of hurricane season.
ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I think that's what people forget. As you kind of forget the tail-end of the season. But the hurricane season in the Atlantic goes all the way through the entire month of November. And we usually do have at least one more storm that comes through during this month.
But there's been a lot of question, but it doesn't seem like it's been a very busy season. So, let's take a look at where we stand compared to some of the other seasons. Here you can see an average season, we've got numbers of 14, 7 and 3 out there. Well, that kind of shows you what an average year would entail.
But this year, we've had 13-named storms, five hurricanes, four of which have been major. I would point out that only Imelda was the only storm that was a hurricane that did not actually reach major hurricane status. But the interesting thing about this year, specifically, was the track of most of them. Look at this.
Almost all of them taking that sharp turn to the north over the Atlantic, really kind of avoiding most areas of land, especially the United States. The only storm to impact the U.S. was Chantal back in July along the Carolina coast. That's been it. And also noticed the empty area, the gulf. There really has not been any development in that region.
Even the storm there that you see down in the Bay of Campeche actually developed in the southern Caribbean, crossed over the Yucatan Peninsula before sliding into the Bay of Campeche and going into Mexico. So again, we really haven't had some of the normal areas we would typically have tropical activity.
It just really hasn't been there for this year. But we're not done yet. In fact, when you take a look at this map, again, right through here, this is the month of November, you'll notice this is a similar line compared to where we are in July, and we had a storm in July of this year. And we typically do have at least one in July.
This is where they would develop if we had something. So, you can see a similar area to Melissa as well as portions just off the southeast coast of the U.S.
BLACKWELL: All right, still a lot to watch for the rest of the month. Allison, thank you. Our Thanksgiving travel may be grounded if the federal government does not reopen. The Trump administration warns of a looming aviation disaster. A look at how bad it could be for holiday travelers. And if you haven't heard, you can now stream CNN THIS MORNING WEEKEND live in the U.S. or catch up whenever you want in the CNN app.
Stream shows, get access to exclusive live CNN reporting, or watch our award-winning original series and films, there's a lot there. If you want to learn more, visit cnn.com/watch.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:40:00]
BLACKWELL: The frustration is growing at America's airports as the government shutdown rolls now into a second month. The FAA reports nearly 50 percent of major air traffic control facilities are short- staffed. Nearly 90 percent of controllers are absent at New York's areas -- airports. The air travelers feeling the impact.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm kind of worried, though, because what's up with the air traffic control? I don't want to deal with any delays. It's not fun being laid off, and I feel for these TSA workers. They're trying their hardest. They're working for free.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy warns that as the holiday approaches, there could be an aviation disaster if the government does not reopen soon. CNN's Pete Muntean has more. Pete.
PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: Victor, the pressure is mounting from airlines for there to be an end to the shutdown. Now, with Thanksgiving travel on the horizon, air traffic control staffing on Friday was particularly bad, and shortages at three air traffic control centers caused the Federal Aviation Administration to halt flights for about an hour into New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport.
[06:45:00]
The FAA also implemented delays due to low controller staffing for flights into New York's LaGuardia, Newark Liberty International Airport, Boston Logan, Dallas-Fort Worth, Nashville, and both commercial airports in Houston. That is exactly why all major U.S. airlines are now calling for Congress to immediately pass a clean, continuing resolution to get air traffic controllers working with pay again.
Members of the Trump administration met with airline CEOs during a White House roundtable on Thursday, and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned this could get worse with what's anticipated to be a huge Thanksgiving travel rush less than four weeks out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEAN DUFFY, SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION, UNITED STATES: Our traffic will be snarled, right? It will be a disaster in aviation. As we go into November, travel picks up as people start to look at going to see their families. Kids come home from college, and if you don't have air traffic controllers who are being paid, they might want to stay on the job, but they cannot.
They're going to have to go take a second job, and you're going to have mass issues throughout the airspace. People will not be able to go from one place to the other because of the government shutdown.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MUNTEAN: The problems on Thursday were bad, too, and at one point the FAA warned it would have to stop all flights into Orlando International Airport due to no controllers available to work. A source familiar with the situation tells me the FAA had to lean on air traffic control supervisors so it could keep flights moving. Victor?
BLACKWELL: Pete, thank you. Tomorrow, discover the bread that bonds Wisconsin. Here's a preview of the new episode of the CNN original --
(COUGHING)
BLACKWELL: Excuse me, sorry, bad timing on this. The CNN original series "TONY SHALHOUB BREAKING BREAD".
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TONY SHALHOUB, ACTOR: That's my sister, Susan(ph).
(PLATE BREAKS)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What was that?
SHALHOUB: Family heirloom bowl.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's 15 more right behind you --
(LAUGHTER)
SHALHOUB: Parsley, mint, bulgur, lots of lemon juice, chopped tomatoes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Three tomatoes should be enough for that batch.
SHALHOUB: Oh, yes, makes another Lebanese staple, tabbouleh.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I remember this one time, Tony answered the phone and we were all sitting around the table, and let's pretend this is the phone, and he would walk over to one of us and go, like, it's not for you. And then he'd go to the next person, no, not for you. Remember that Tony?
SHALHOUB: Oh, what a sense of humor --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He went all around -- he went all around the table, it was for the last person, that was good.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: New episode of "TONY SHALHOUB BREAKING BREAD" premieres tomorrow at 9:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific only on CNN. I'm all good. I'm up here by myself, they didn't give me any water, but we've got it together. All right, next, meet the CNN hero saving thousands of lives. Tim Woodward and his team were on a mission to rescue animals from unimaginable cruelty. We'll go inside the struggle to give them a second chance.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:50:00]
BLACKWELL: So, is the morning after Halloween, and I understand. Some of you are waking up to start your Saturday, some of you all are just dragging your behinds in from Friday night from the parties. I get it. Some celebrities though, went out, just all out for Halloween. Allison is with me now. We're going to take a look at some of the costumes on social media.
Let's start with -- I think she's made herself the queen of Halloween, right?
CHINCHAR: Oh, yes --
BLACKWELL: Heidi Klum. Let's take a look here. Heidi Klum getting ready, and her costumes are always so elaborate, Medusa this year. What do you think?
CHINCHAR: It's a production. Like I feel like no matter what she is every year, it's a full blown production. But she nails it.
BLACKWELL: Yes, quality job here. I think her Jessica Rabbit was my favorite Heidi Klum costume. But this is up there. Next up, Ed Sheeran as Pennywise, the famous Stephen King villain. I think he used his own hair in this one.
CHINCHAR: And definitely, he nailed the scary part.
BLACKWELL: Just and -- nailed the scary part. Megan Thee Stallion, and so I'm not really into anime, and I think this is an anime character, Drolta; the winged-vampire villain from "Castlevania". Do you know who that is?
CHINCHAR: No, I don't, but her costume looks awesome.
BLACKWELL: Yes, I mean, I don't really know who to compare it to, but good job there, Megan, and our very own Allison and her husband here, explain this.
CHINCHAR: I am April Showers --
BLACKWELL: Yes --
CHINCHAR: Obviously, and my husband is May Flower, so we went with -- and just so -- like it's hard to tell in a picture, but my hat is a cloud and it did actually light up. I had all these battery packs, which by the way meant it weighed like 10 pounds.
BLACKWELL: OK, arts and crafts.
CHINCHAR: Yes, it took forever to build, but it was so worth it.
BLACKWELL: OK, I didn't dress up this year, I just stayed home and handed out candy, which the people came to my door were happy with.
CHINCHAR: There you go --
BLACKWELL: It was enough for them. All right, top five CNN Heroes out of 2025 are out, and you, our viewer, you will help us choose which will be named CNN Hero of the Year. This week we met Tim Woodward, a man who has made it his mission to save neglected and abused animals.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TIM WOODWARD, RESCUES NEGLECTED & ABUSED ANIMALS: We see animals living in conditions that I would have never imagined before doing this.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, dog down here in his crib --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi, mama --
WOODWARD: Their physical condition is incredibly debilitated. It can be very gruesome. Your average shelter is used to taking animals in one or two at a time. We pull in large numbers of animals from a crisis situation. We'll work with law enforcement, they will designate us as an agent of law enforcement to go onto the scene, to seize those animals.
You're OK, see?
[06:55:00]
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Look at that smile.
WOODWARD: Yes.
We bring a very tight, trained team, including a state licensed forensic vet, vet techs, as well as an in-take team, and of course, our trained handlers.
They're in five different pop-ups. We'll split them up two-two and two.
We're kind of the midway point between where they came from and where they will find their forever home.
And get you all fixed up.
So, for the time that they're in our care, we try to make sure that they are becoming healthier.
What are you doing? And we try as best we can to prepare them for life and a home.
Yes, you do --
(LAUGHTER)
WOODWARD: The change in the animals is always remarkable. They come out of situations where they have no trust. And then with time and attention, they begin to literally blossom.
You're getting out of here.
We've rescued well over 10,000 animals.
Where is that tail at?
My hope is that they have the best life possible, and forget all about where they came from.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Good work. You can vote at cnn.com/heroes to help decide who will be the next CNN Hero of the Year. We'll be back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)