Return to Transcripts main page
CNN This Morning
New CNN Poll: 44 percent Say Midterm Vote is to Oppose Trump; Trump Threatens to Annihilate Iran in a U.N. Speech; Kamala Harris on Campaign Trail to Help Michigan Senate Candidate. Aired 6-6:30a ET
Aired September 23, 2026 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Vehicle on fire.
[06:00:06]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can't get out that way. Get the crane (ph). Get the crane (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I need a fire extinguisher now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Unbelievable. That man reportedly crashed through a fence, hit a tractor yard after speeding away from deputies trying to pull him over.
They say that he reached up to 111 miles per hour before crashing there. And authorities got the man out safely and then airlifted him to the hospital.
All right. That's going to do it for CNN HEADLINE EXPRESS. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. CNN THIS MORNING with Audie Cornish starts right now.
AUDIE CORNISH, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, what's in my group chat this morning? New CNN polling. It shows some voters plan to use the midterms to send a message to the president. So, should more Republican candidates distance themselves from Trump?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
J.D. VANCE, U.S. PRESIDENT: So, I think it's completely reasonable that Republicans are going to tailor their campaign messages.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: Plus, the president's threat to Iran at the United Nations.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: Do I annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: And could sideline meetings still lead to a deal to end the war?
Also, Israel's prime minister slams the New York mayor just days before he's due at the U.N. Is Netanyahu's message really for Mamdani or for his own voters back home?
And Kamala Harris campaigns as AOC considers her own run for the White House. Will America be ready this time for the first female president?
Good morning, everybody. I'm Audie Cornish, and we begin here. Because some people are seeing some red flags, some Republican candidates distancing themselves from the president.
Why? Well, we've got some new polling just into CNN THIS MORNING that finds 44 percent of midterms voters say that their vote is to oppose Trump.
Some in the Republican Party, after feeling the heat and showing it in their ads, are saying this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE ROGERS (R), MICHIGAN SENATE CANDIDATE: Michigan families are struggling with the price of everyday life. Groceries cost too much. We have to bring prices down. The war with Iran needs to end and end quickly.
REP. MARIA ELVIRA SALAZAR (R-FL): Mr. President, some of your immigration enforcement efforts have gone too far.
Be careful what your advisers are telling you about immigration policies. The same Hispanics who helped you get to the White House in 2024 feel betrayed today.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: So, they're calling for an end to the war in Iran as quickly as possible. They're voting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. TOM TIFFANY (R-WI), WISCONSIN GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: I just believe that we should be exiting Iran, that it's time to move on, time to come home, take care of business here in America.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: And so, some of them are voting for the first time to limit the war. Even loyal allies, for instance, Byron Donalds in Florida, they're scrubbing his name from their campaign websites.
Vice President Vance doesn't see this as a break from the administration, however.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VANCE: My sense is that people are obviously focused on the local issues that matter. You know, what matters to a North Carolina voter is going to be a little different than, you know, Mike Rogers, what he's going to talk about in Michigan.
So, I think it's completely reasonable that Republicans are going to tailor their campaign messages to the people that they're going to Washington or hope to go to Washington to represent.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: Today in the group chat, we've got Julia Manchester, White House correspondent at "The Hill"; Terry Schilling, president of the American Principles Project; and Antjuan Seawright, Democratic strategist.
So, I was looking deeper into this polling. And one thing I noticed: that there's some issues we talk about a ton here, whether it be A.I., for example, whether it be immigration, those things are not the top three things at all for the voters.
As usual, it's the economy. And when it comes to that issue, the president is down, down a lot.
And it comes down to the issue about immigration, which he would be able to boast about, having deported so many people, also down.
Foreign affairs, down. Inflation, 24 percent down versus March 2025.
It's fair to say the administration is aware of these numbers, even if they don't like them.
JULIA MANCHESTER, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, "THE HILL": Absolutely. And I don't think you can -- you can't -- you can look at yesterday and what happened at the U.N.
You have President Trump now seemingly open to an export ban on diesel. We're seeing diesel prices rise, gas prices rising. And I think he's taking a cue from a number of Republican candidates.
In Iowa, for example, over the weekend, we saw Senator Chuck Grassley really calling for this. And then you saw a number of Iowa Republicans in toss-up races really -- really echoing that call, including Ashley Hinson, who's running for Senate in that state.
So, I think that's an example of how the administration is really taking a cue from this.
But look, we have the CNN polling out today. That's on the heels of FOX News -- I guess -- election labeling yesterday showing 15 races switching towards Democrats, including a number of races in Florida, which we --
[06:05:15]
CORNISH: Yes. We don't have as elaborate a map, but I will show you one. This the Republicans who are breaking with Trump on some issues.
These are all in states that he won. Iowa. By 13 points, he won Iowa. Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Florida.
And then there's places like Texas and North Carolina. We've talked about are these races closer than they should be?
Antjuan, I want to come to you, because when we look deeper into the polling, you don't -- even though you see people saying they want to cast a vote to oppose Trump -- 44 percent say that --they're not, like, running to Democrats to solve things.
And their sort of choice for Congress ratings haven't really risen that much, if at all. I'm looking at choice for Congress. If you choose between a Democrat and a Republican. Like in July, 47 percent of people said they would. And now, it's 49 percent. You know what I mean? It's practically a rounding error.
ANTJUAN SEAWRIGHT, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Well, it's not the party that's on the ballot. It's the person.
And what I can tell you about Democratic candidates is that we have the better candidates, and our candidate quality is much better. Plus, we have the better messengers, messages, and messaging.
CORNISH: So, do you think this race will be -- and I saw this in the "Cook Political Report" -- a blue wave, or as they say, a red undertow?
SEAWRIGHT: It's going to be a blue wave. The question is, how big is the wave?
I do believe that Donald Trump is a walking, talking liability. Some of the constituencies that gave him the presidency, like middle class voters, he's given them the middle finger. And as a result, they are responding, both in polling and at the ballot box, by saying, we're going to vote against you.
The farmer in Iowa paying $75,000 a month for diesel fuel is a problem. The health care policy that's gone up by $1,300 a month, that's a problem. The groceries, the recalls, all these things are problems. And Americans are feeling it every day.
That's why I say to my good friend Terry all the time, MAGAnomics has been a failure. And as a result of MAGAnomics being a failure, people are going to vote against the people in charge.
CORNISH: So, we have a sense of the messaging, Terry. And I think the thing I'm wrestling with is the president is doing what Biden did: The economy is actually pretty great. You just don't realize it yet. Actually, the stock market is good. And this metric and that metric, but you'll feel it soon. Gas prices will come. The war in Iraq will be over after the election. And I feel like, if he was elected with a mandate: You said you're good with the economy. Give me a good economy. Has he failed on the only actual mandate that voters approved? TERRY SCHILLING, PRESIDENT, AMERICAN PRINCIPLES PROJECT: Yes. Look, I
think that, if we didn't have $5 a gallon gas, and I think if we didn't have the unpopular Iran War going on, I think the midterm elections would be a lot different.
Obviously, gas prices impact the cost of living everywhere.
But what I will say is at APP, we just released a memo and released it to all the candidates and to the public. And what we found is that voters essentially trust Republicans when it comes to the culture war: when it comes to protecting children, getting boys out of girls' sports, all of that.
But they don't trust Republicans with the economy.
CORNISH: Yes.
SCHILLING: And for good reason. They're not articulating what they're going to do. What's the next step, right? We made the tax cuts permanent.
CORNISH: And that --for instance, those cultural issues, because I went to look at this, are way down on the list of things they care about.
So, it's one thing to talk about trans issues. It's another thing for a voter to be like, actually, that's the 10th thing I care about. What's going on with the economy?
SCHILLING: And I will -- I will -- I agree with you on that.
CORNISH: Yes.
SCHILLING: But those questions are tricky, because it doesn't measure how many people shift their vote once they find out that James Talarico supports --
CORNISH: It still won't bump the topic up ten points.
SCHILLING: No, I understand, but it's still shifting votes, is my point.
SEAWRIGHT: Terry -- Terry, you know, you know --
SCHILLING: I will say, you guys would have a much different race in Texas if the Democrats weren't that crazy on the culture war.
SEAWRIGHT: Well, Terry, you can say that, but there's a reason why Republicans are spending $60 million in that race. So, the race cannot be as comfortable as you think for Republicans.
But it's not just this war of choice that Donald Trump got us in that's got people pissed off and frustrated. It's the price of health care. It's the price of groceries. It's their everyday living.
I like to call it feel-onomics. Economics you can feel. Not to mention the fact --
CORNISH: Feel-onomics is new. It used to be the vibe-cession. You remember the vibe-cession? What a time.
SEAWRIGHT: Not to mention the largest cut to Medicaid in American history. Five million people off SNAP, including 1.2 million children.
SCHILLING: And there's a lot of fraud.
SEAWRIGHT: There's a real reason. There's a real reason why you see this massive frustration among the voters.
SCHILLING: -- five dollars.
CORNISH: Yes. Although I almost texted you, there was this, like, scam people are running on SNAP benefits by swapping out the readers.
SCHILLING: Yes.
CORNISH: Not caught --
SCHILLING: Yes.
CORNISH: -- by our fraud czar.
SCHILLING: Yes.
CORNISH: I would like them to catch actual fraud and abuse instead of vibing their way through it.
All right. We're going to continue this conversation, because there's lots more stuff happening on the campaign trail.
But obviously, the president spoke at the U.N. about the Iran War. Today, we may hear from Iran.
Plus, Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives in Washington for a meeting at the White House. We're going to ask about whether it's going to be competition or cooperation when it comes to artificial intelligence.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:14:36]
CORNISH: OK. The president of Iran is in New York to address the U.N. General Assembly. And here's what he plans to tell the world.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRESIDENT MASOUD PEZESHKIAN, IRAN (through translator): We will speak about the suffering of our children in Minab and Lamerd and the brutality of those responsible for these crimes. Human beings do not commit such acts, and this behavior is deeply regrettable.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: Yesterday, the president told the U.N. that he sees just two options for ending the war with Iran.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before? Maybe one of the greatest in the Middle East, or even the world. Or do I annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: So, columnist and geopolitics analyst Bobby Ghosh joins us now.
First, can you talk about the potential for sideline conversations at the General Assembly?
It's one thing for the president to get up and say something like this. It's another thing for when they get into those rooms and have what I'd call a real conversation.
BOBBY GHOSH, GEOPOLITICS ANALYST: Morning, Audie.
Yes, there have been already reports of sideline conversations. Steve Witkoff and -- seems to have had conversations through intermediaries. They don't like to meet face-to-face with the Iranian delegation.
There's also conversations taking place through the Qatari interface, the Qatar mediators are also trying to get the two sides closer to some sort of negotiation.
So, the U.N., particularly this time of year, the UNGA, is always an opportunity for these kinds of conversations to take place. The Iranians have a much smaller delegation than before, in part because the Trump administration has not allowed many of its members to come.
But the -- the important people are here, and the opportunity exists.
And there are signs that conversations are taking place. But we should not mistake conversations for progress.
The negotiations have been going on in fits and starts for a very, very long time now. The thing I would be looking out for is any indication of a change in the position of the two parties. Any sign that either of them is willing, besides talking, to actually take a step towards some sort of a middle ground?
CORNISH: But, Bobby, can I stop you there for a second?
GHOSH: There's absolutely no sign of that.
CORNISH: Because the addressing --
GHOSH: Yes.
CORNISH: -- of the assembly is a place for a lot of posturing. I mean, you heard the president get up before this 193-member, like, and talk about annihilating another country.
GHOSH: Yes.
CORNISH: I can't imagine Iran is going to have more somber conversation. So, like, what do you expect to hear out of this speech?
GHOSH: I think we'll hear a recitation of all the things that Iran has been saying. President, the president has used language like that before, which is not to -- to forgive it.
And we'll hear, just as we did with the president, well hear really a reiteration of the things they've said before: that they are under attack, that they are the innocent party here; that they that the American and Israeli attacks have killed innocent people; and that there are -- the sort of -- there is no guilt on their side of the ledger.
And there will be an attempt to bring world opinion closer to the Iranian position than to the American position.
And there -- there may be some promise of, look, if we can get to a deal we will let -- if we are allowed to control the Straits of Hormuz, we will be a responsible party in that control, and we will let the world have access to Middle Eastern oil.
And so, both on -- on Trump's side, he's -- he -- he plays the tough guy. On the Iranian side, we're going to expect some attempt at sweet reasonableness.
But as I was saying, the posturing on the -- on the main podium is less important than what is actually said in the negotiations. And there, the most important thing is to see if either side is making any progress towards the other. If there's any attempt to get closer to a position where both can agree, and we have not seen that at all.
CORNISH: Yes. And in the meantime, the global economy sort of hangs in the balance.
Bobby Ghosh, thank you so much. Appreciate it.
GHOSH: Indeed.
CORNISH: Now after the break on CNN THIS MORNING, we're also watching for Netanyahu's U.N. address tomorrow. The Israeli leader is already hitting back at the mayor of New York.
Plus, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez opening up. The congresswoman reveals what is weighing on her as she considers running for president.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:23:35]
CORNISH: Kamala Harris, back out on the campaign trail. It's in Detroit. The former vice president supporting Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan, a state that she actually lost two years ago. But this all comes as speculation is swirling over her future political plans.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAMALA HARRIS, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I have not decided if I'm going to run again. But I'm going to -- but and I thank you. But -- but let me just say this. I do -- I do sincerely believe '28 won't matter if we don't get through '26.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's true, very true.
HARRIS: And I'm a big believer that you can be -- when you focus on the thing out there, you trip on the thing over here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: Group chat is back. I want to talk about her getting off the sidelines a bit: where she's trying to help, how she's trying to help. There's a way that people have of just saying, like, the black vote, hands wave. But what is she actually -- like, who does she turn out?
SEAWRIGHT: The base. Kamala Harris received more votes than any other candidate in our party's history. There is people who believe in her and her policy agenda.
That's why they're voting against the man who actually prevailed in the election, because they thought, actually thought that he was going to be better on those issues.
At the end of the day, Abdul has an African-American problem. Kamala will help that. She has a problem. He had a issue with women in that primary. He's [SIC] going to help that.
In some places, she's going to be an asset. In some places, she's going to be a liability.
[06:25:03]
CORNISH: Yes.
SEAWRIGHT: That's not uncommon.
CORNISH: And we should remind people that one of the reasons people even know Abdul El-Sayed is that he was among those who was sort of part of the Uncommitted movement in 2024, when Biden was at the top of the ballot, and the Biden administration was struggling to articulate its policy on Gaza, for -- for that population anyway.
He was a big part of that, and he was actually asked about it on Tuesday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ABDUL EL-SAYED (D), MICHIGAN SENATE NOMINEE: My disagreements with the then-vice president's positions on Gaza are clear, and I still disagree with the position on which she ran in 2024. So, the reality of it is that we have a big party. There are going to
be issues on which there are disagreements in the party, and there's a lot of issues on which there are agreements.
So, what does it look like to bring people together around the issues on which we agree? That's what a mature politics looks like. And we can, you know, have our -- our -- our positions, our differences. I endorsed Vice President Harris for president.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CORNISH: I mean, we probably can't remember now, but people who -- pro-Palestinian supporters were heckling Biden people at their campaign events every time they stepped on stage. It was a thing.
So, him kind of being, like, we come together and unite, right, is like, you got to paper over some stuff.
MANCHESTER: Absolutely. And that very well could have impacted the election result in Michigan in 2024, particularly with the Arab American community.
Look, Kamala Harris going to Michigan is not only -- I read it as not only to help Abdul El-Sayed -- El-Sayed unify that vote there, the Democratic base there.
But I think it also helps her with the progressive base and progressives going into 2028, who are still skeptical over that issue of Gaza, which continues to be, I think, a dividing factor among the political left.
CORNISH: I want to turn to one other thing: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Because she's another woman in politics at the forefront, and she gets asked about this all the time, about running.
She spoke to "The New York Times" recently, and she said, "Look, I understand that my identity is a factor. It's very all or nothing. If I were to run in this cycle and not win, I would be done," she says. And she says, "I'm not opposed to that. That, in and of itself, does not exclude the decision, but it has to make it worth it."
I feel like one of you two probably talked to someone at one point who thought they wanted to run for president and have been in a room where that discussion happens.
SCHILLING: Yes. Look, I think AOC is running. I think Kamala is actually playing the 2028 game, making sure that, if El-Sayed wins, she can get an endorsement, or at least keep him on the sidelines for helping him. But she's not going to turn out any votes for him, unfortunately.
CORNISH: Yes. And we heard Gavin Newsom say if she runs, he's not going to run.
SCHILLING: But AOC, as I think -- Antjuan and I were talking about this in the green room. I think AOC is not a dark horse for 2028. I think she's actually a very likely nominee for the Democratic Party, primarily because her base is the -- the single unmarried woman vote, which is the bulk of the Democratic base at this point.
That's what's behind. You know, you've seen the videos of her doing the egg freezing. She's building a movement of these single women who are aging and not married. And that's really the base of the Democratic Party. And that's --
SEAWRIGHT: Terry -- Terry -- Terry -- let --
SCHILLING: -- why she's --
SEAWRIGHT: Let me say this as the Democrat on this panel.
No. 1, in order to be our nominee, you need strong, deep, wide support among African American voters. Kamala -- the difference between Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Kamala Harris. Kamala Harris, as Jay Z would say, is good on any MLK Boulevard. She's good on the back of any black church where there's fans.
AOC doesn't have that type of relationship.
CORNISH: Did you say, "where there are fans"?
SEAWRIGHT: Yes.
CORNISH: Is that a distinction for you?
SEAWRIGHT: Absolutely. Because --
CORNISH: Why churches with no fans? Not allowed?
SEAWRIGHT: Yes, because -- yes, because there's some. But the point I'm making is --
CORNISH: No, to your point. Southern black voters make up 56 percent of the voting Democrats in the party.
SEAWRIGHT: And I would also tell you the online engagement that AOC, Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders and some of those on the progressive left have does not translate to votes in a Democratic primary, when you have --
CORNISH: Is that your takeaway?
SEAWRIGHT: And, Julia, you know this because you have been to South Carolina for the presidential cycle. Sixty percent of people cast their vote are African American. That's not transferable from the online crowd.
SCHILLING: I just remember these same arguments being used to say that Barack Obama wasn't going to get the nomination. You know, you're not going to get --
SEAWRIGHT: Barack Obama's black. SCHILLING: -- these white Dem -- I know, but they were saying you're not going to get enough white votes from the Democratic Party for the primary.
I just think she should not be discounted. I think you guys should take her very seriously from the establishment.
SEAWRIGHT; I don't think nobody is -- I don't think nobody --
SCHILLING: She is the anti-establishment candidate.
SEAWRIGHT: I don't think nobody's counting her out. What I'm saying is she has an audience, but she doesn't have the particular audience that's going to get her through a primary to this point.
MANCHESTER: And, you know, another thing we were talking about in the green room, look, there's no question she's sort of dipping her toe in this '28.
CORNISH: Yes, why not?
MANCHESTER: While, you know, figuring out -- it's a way to build your own profile.
CORNISH: And she's super young.
MANCHESTER: But she is super young. And I would say that the senior senator from New York state is on the older side. And I think there is probably more of an opportunity --
SEAWRIGHT: Absolutely.
MANCHESTER: -- for her going forward. You know, New York's -- you know, we look at her moderating herself. She has to moderate herself even in a statewide race like New York, as well. So, I think we shouldn't forget the New York politics aspect.
SEAWRIGHT: And just a reminder, she is barnstorming the state of New York right now.
[06:30:00]
