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Economy a Huge Factor for Voters in Midterms; Cruz, Vance Trade Barbs Over 2028 Ambitions. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired October 06, 2026 - 06:00   ET

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

BRAD SMITH, CNN ANCHOR: -- in a ravine. Emergency management crews realized things would get difficult with the darkness setting in and the changing weather.

[06:00:07]

So, they called for a helicopter to come hoist him out. What a rescue there.

That does it for CNN HEADLINE EXPRESS. I'm Brad Smith. CNN THIS MORNING with Audie Cornish starts right now.

AUDIE CORNISH, CNN ANCHOR: Today we are talking about the president, because he isn't just campaigning like Republicans are in midterm trouble. He's saying it out loud.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: We're worried about Michigan. We're worried about Texas. We're worried about a few states.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Plus, former President Barack Obama joins the midterm fight. We're going to talk about who he's backing in these final weeks of the race.

Also, a gang rape allegation at Cornell, an alleged cocaine ring at Penn State. Should colleges take a serious look at banning fraternities?

And in the first election of the A.I. era, people are asking chatbots who they should vote for. What could go wrong?

Good morning, everybody. I'm Audie Cornish. Here's where we begin. The president's red state blitz.

We're talking Oklahoma, Alabama, Alaska, Ohio. And now, Nebraska. Trump and J.D. Vance are trying to shore up support in states they won, some by 20 points two years ago. The races in those states today, now tighter than ever.

The White House is trying to sway voters. There was a $90 Medicare check, an ACA refund, and then a claim about a $5,000 Trump dividend. And now you're hearing this. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I'm going to sign a historic executive order to officially waive the off=road requirement and allow anyone to purchase tax-free red dye diesel for any reason.

Typical trucker will save over $100 every time they fill up, so it's more than $100 each time. And farmers will also save millions and millions of dollars.

And this order will also drive down the cost of all goods, including grocery prices, very substantially.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: But is it too little, too late? Three-fourths of voters don't think the Trump administration is doing enough to lower prices of goods and services, and the price of diesel is up nearly $3 from before the war in Iran.

For farmers, especially those in the Midwest Corn Belt, this is all taking a toll.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Your bottom line is you're trying to make it profitable so you can be here next year. But, you know, sometimes the fight gets to be too much.

It just follows you. That -- that -- that same problem follows you. The diesel fuel, the price of chemicals, the parts. It all follows you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Today in the group chat, Francesca Chambers, White House correspondent at "USA Today"; Chuck Rocha, Democratic strategist and former senior advisor to the Bernie Sanders presidential campaigns; and Ashley Davis, former White House official under President George W. Bush.

Welcome back, you guys. Thank you so much for being here.

So, one of the reasons why we wanted to talk about this is because you are seeing candidates campaign on it. Certainly, Democrats are talking about it, specifically on the campaign trail.

I want to give you an example. This is Dan Osborn in Nebraska. He's running for Senate as an independent. But here's what he said just this week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAN OSBORN (I), NEBRASKA SENATE CANDIDATE: Anybody who's putting gas in their F-150 right now, or if you're putting diesel in your John Deere because your crops are going to harvest, they're not fooled anymore.

If you're buying groceries, again, you -- you're not getting fooled. They have made life exponentially harder through bad policy. And, you know, this should be a Ricketts apology tour, is what this should be, you know, for -- for hurting American families.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: And then meanwhile, if you're in Nebraska, and you're a voter, what you hear from Republicans in this same race, again, Pete Ricketts. And this is somewhere where Trump is campaigning. Here's how he's talking to voters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. PETE RICKETTS (R-NE): This president has secured the border. The Democrat socialists will undo that. So, I ask for your vote. Let's make sure we keep a secure border. Let's keep a safe country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: So, you can't fill up the truck, or the socialists are coming. Which is the more convincing thing to a voter, right?

CHUCK ROCHA, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Look, I think the socialist thing or the trans thing, all these things have some effect, and they are a strategy. And when bellies are full and gas is cheap, it works a lot of times. It worked for Donald Trump just two years ago.

CORNISH: You said when bellies are full.

ROCHA: Bellies are full, and gas is cheap. Right now, neither one of those are happening, because it's an off-year election.

And in a presidential election, like we lived through two years ago, much more people vote. And Donald Trump, I give him credit, as a Democrat; got a lot of new people to vote.

But in an off-year election, that's the same people vote. There's a smaller group of folks, and the ones that are most motivated. And right now, the American public, to your reporting right now, it really makes people angry every time, whether it's right or wrong, when they have to fill up their gas tank and it costs more.

When you get your health care bill or you pay your light bill, that's once a month. That's bad enough. But normally folks get gas every three or four days. That's why there's just a constant drumbeat.

And in every focus group that I'm doing, from New York to California, this is the No. 1 thing. And they link it to the war. And because Republicans are in charge, whether it's their fault or not, they get blamed.

CORNISH: Yes, the gas prices thing always falls to whoever is president. But can I ask you, Ashley, the president is saying something. I have actually heard from other people who support the Iran War, which is that this is short-term pain for long-term gain. They really stuck to this argument.

ASHLEY DAVIS, FORMER WHITE HOUSE OFFICIAL UNDER GEORGE W. BUSH: Yes. And I -- the question is going to be when people, especially Republicans or independents, go to the polls, will they be motivated enough to go to the polls and believe that the prices are going to come down right after Iran is over?

The president -- as we say this all the time, the president is not going to make a deal with Iran just because it's the midterm, which that part I do agree with.

Do we lose the House and potentially the Senate because of it? Maybe.

Going back to the Ricketts, Ricketts is going to be fine. I mean, the numbers were closer than a couple months ago than they should have been.

CORNISH: Yes. But we've got a bunch of other toss-ups, right? Whether that is Ohio, Kansas, Iowa, no clear lead.

DAVIS: But there's a congressional race. Don Bacon's race, Nebraska two, that was always very close. And that's going to be interesting. Is that where, like, Ricketts is OK, gets reelected, and then you lose that congressional seat?

FRANCESCA CHAMBERS, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, "USA TODAY": I think your point about affordability is very interesting, because it's unclear to me what either party would actually do when it comes to affordability.

If they win the House of Representatives and they win the Senate. This past week, I interviewed Hakeem Jeffries, who, if Democrats take the House of Representatives, would become, most likely, Speaker of the House.

And asked what that affordability agenda would look like. And they have these working groups on childcare and healthcare and all these other things, but they haven't put forward yet specific bills that would address these issues.

And they, by the way, say that they're going to end the war in Iran. And -- and the President Trump's tariffs, as well. When you ask Republicans, though, like House Speaker Mike Johnson, who was asked in an interview last week what their agenda would be, his response was, Well, we're going to keep doing what we've been doing.

So, it's not entirely clear, I think, at this point what that agenda either party would have would be to lower these costs.

DAVIS: By the way, it was working up until the war. Up until April, the policies were working. I mean, the gas prices --

CORNISH: The tariff policies?

DAVIS: Well, that was -- that was the only thing. And besides some of the -- some of the prices. But gas prices were down. I mean, if you look at for seven --

CORNISH: But that's relevant for agricultural districts, which is what we're talking about, tariffs in particular, gas in particular.

DAVIS: Yes. But I don't think -- I'm just saying that 90 percent of -- 90 percent of the policies were working until the Iran War.

CORNISH: Well, I want to end with this GasBuddy, the GasBuddy guy, because if you're like me, you're always going on the app, trying to figure it out and get cheap gas.

He says of this new policy: "You'll want to see THIS: the dyed (red) diesel order sounds big, but most drivers won't benefit. States will enforce their own rules. It's not truly tax-free, and it doesn't add a single gallon of supply."

All right. Coming up on CNN THIS MORNING, some voters are turning to A.I. asking for help understanding who to vote for. What kind of answers are you going to get if you do that?

Plus, Ted Cruz and J.D. Vance taking little shots at each other ahead of 2028. How ugly could this get if Republicans lose the midterms?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:13:21]

CORNISH: All right, so we're just weeks away from the midterms. But that doesn't mean the battle lines aren't being drawn for the next political fight in the Republican Party, because there is a simmering rivalry between Vice President J.D. Vance and Texas Senator Ted Cruz.

And it seems to be bursting into public view after the senator said this on MS NOW.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX): Are we a small government, free-market conservative party? Or are we a big-government, nanny-state party?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is this a party that has coalesced already behind J.D. Vance?

CRUZ: Oh, no. There's going to be a full discussion about who we are and what we believe. Listen --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you going to be part of that?

CRUZ: There'll be time to figure that out. I'll certainly be part of the discussion.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: In an interview with NBC News last week, Vance singled out Cruz, saying, quote, "It is really obvious to me that at this very moment, Ted Cruz is running for president. At this moment, I'm not. I'm trying to help elect Republicans."

Senator Cruz didn't seem to appreciate that. And over the weekend, he told "Politico" in a phone interview, quote, "In my experience, people engage in political bomb-throwing when they're feeling insecure. So, he's welcome to make whatever comments he likes. I'm going to keep focusing on the midterms."

The group chat is back. Look at your face.

ROCHA: This is really important, because '28 is going to tell so much about both parties: one trying to get past the Trump, the other trying to find its identity, to Francesca's point.

The thing here is that -- that I find tantalizing is that we're going to have a conversation about a Kamala Harris and a Pete Buttigieg, who may -- may -- let the Democrat say this, who may can't get Kamala Harris-Biden stench off of them.

We're going to say the same thing about a J.D. Vance and a few other folks in this administration who may have coattails tied to Donald Trump. Everybody is going to be fighting for their own identity.

[06:15:10]

And there's going to be 30 Democrats running and probably no less than 15 Republicans all saying, I'm the future of either party. And that's where the debate will be.

DAVIS: What -- what this midterm does, especially if -- if we lose as bad as we're supposed to lose is it opens up 2028 for Republicans.

CORNISH: Yes.

DAVIS: I mean, so let's just talk about this. Chris Christie already said he's running. Ted Cruz obviously looks like he's running. J.D. Vance, Sarah Huckabee Sanders. There's my one woman.

CORNISH: To your point, can I play Chris Christie? Because --

ROCHA: I thought she was going to play Senator Kennedy.

CORNISH: -- so people can get a sense of how he is --

DAVIS: Oh, yes. Senator Kennedy.

CORNISH: Here's Chris Christie.

ROCHA: Foghorn Leghorn.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS CHRISTIE, FORMER NEW JERSEY GOVERNOR: I think he is going to reek with the stink of Donald Trump. And I think that the Republican Party will probably look at that and say, I don't want a Democrat to get elected. And if I nominate him, the overwhelming likelihood is he will. J.D. is not nearly as charming as Trump. You can say what you want

about Trump, but he has charm. And he has some charisma when he decides to use it. I haven't seen that out of Vance yet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHAMBERS: So, you said differentials, because we've got to dial back a little bit during the break. We continued the discussion, and I was talking about how there's some concern that, if Democrats take back the House in this most recent election, and then they don't get anything done, even if President Donald Trump is the reason, because he's vetoing and blocking all kinds of stuff, then that could set the stage for a difficult time for Democrats in 2028.

For Republicans in 2028, the difficult time for Vice President J.D. Vance, as I've been, you know, hearing from strategists, is that if he is tied closely to the -- President Trump's agenda, and that is disliked by Americans, then you have a very stinging midterm losses for Republicans.

When Vice President J.D. Vance was the original midterm messenger for the Republican Party, then that will -- that will roll back on him.

But I will also note that President Trump has also been out there almost as much now as Vice President J.D. Vance --

CORNISH: Yes.

CHAMBERS: -- in all of these rallies. So, it's -- it's been less.

CORNISH: One other thing I've been following for the last couple of months, which is that Ted Cruz has put himself out there as the person saying the Republican Party needs to do something about antisemitism.

And there were some recordings back in January that were made public, where Cruz was saying to these donors. He said -- the reporting says, "Cruz repeatedly brings up Vance in the recordings, tying him to Tucker Carlson, accusing him of advancing the podcaster's anti- interventionist foreign policy. 'Tucker created J.D. J.D. is Tucker's protege, and they are one in the same.'"

DAVIS: They're very close. Yes. I mean, I think that it's -- it's -- and but, if you look at what the followers that Tucker is now getting since he's kind of been on this anti-Israel path, he's bringing in a whole other demographic. I mean, people thought that he's, right, trying to run in 2028.

CORNISH: J.D. is kind of like, it's a big tent. All comers.

DAVIS: Yes. But he's hitting something he's bringing on. He's actually bringing Democrat voters.

CHAMBERS: This is an issue. His friendship with Tucker Carlson is an issue that Vice President Vance has struggled with.

Because when asked about this from the White House podium, he said, you know, he's my friend. We disagree on certain things. That happens in politics. But this is something that has been coming up more and more often, is his relationship with Tucker Carlson.

CORNISH: Yes.

ROCHA: I'm going to do some Campaign 101 as we close this segment. I'm going to look at the camera and say, as the only person here who's run a presidential campaign, outside of all the issues --

DAVIS: That's so not true. I was on Bush.

ROCHA: I said ran one as the manager of one. Listen to me, everybody. When you look at the camera, and you get in there, don't sit back, Chris Christie. When you see people on camera, you set up and you talk to people. You don't sit -- never let your back touch --

CORNISH: Are you lecturing about posture right now?

ROCHA: I'm doing a posture thing, because it drives me nuts as a campaign manager.

CORNISH: After the break on CNN THIS MORNING, the president getting back on the trail. He'll head to Michigan, this time for a Senate candidate. I'm sorry, President Obama heading back on the campaign trail, this time in Michigan for Abdul El-Sayed. We're going to talk about why this candidate? Why now?

Plus, the Trump economy. Some good numbers and some bad vibes. Is there any way to fix it?

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[06:23:32]

CORNISH: So, on paper, the economic data is good. Solid growth, heavy spending, and a relatively stable labor market.

In the polls, less than a month before the midterms, President Trump's economic approval has hit record lows. So, it's the ultimate political disconnect.

And even the National Economic Council director, Kevin Hassett, told CNN that it has left the White House in a messaging trap.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEVIN HASSETT, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL: If I say, "Oh, people are wrong. The economy is great," then it looks like I'm insensitive. And if I then go into why the economy is great, then it looks like I'm insensitive.

It's true that the polls, which have gotten the president's success wrong every time, have been saying that people are looking a little bit depressed about the economy. But if you look at their actions, the actions speak way louder than words.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Joining me now to discuss, the CNN chief global economic analyst Rana Foroohar. She's also the author of the new book, "Sea Change: Americas New Great Game in the Arctic Circle."

So, I want to start with this catch-22 he's describing, because the Biden administration went through it too, in a slightly different way, because you've got inflation. You've got high gas prices, but we're all still spending. You all are still spending.

If I show people's consumer spending, goods are up, and along with their credit card debt. So, help me understand the psychology here.

RANA FOROOHAR, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: Well, you know, you just -- you named it: psychology.

I mean, we can talk till the cows come home about economic numbers. We can say growth is good. We can say the stock market is still relatively high, given everything that's happening in the world.

[06:25:05]

But at the end of the day, what do people feel? You know, the economy is a kitchen-table issue. What they feel and what they see is higher gas prices. That's a number that everybody sees every day when they're driving around. They feel food prices going up.

Inflation, as you mentioned, was possibly the killer issue for Biden when it came to reelection or, you know, losing -- losing -- losing his mojo, actually, on the campaign trail.

And I think that that's exactly what is happening to President Trump right now. People just don't feel great.

Now, why are they still spending? Well, we have been in, really, a pretty -- pretty good recovery since COVID. It's only in the last year or so that inflation has really begun to bite. And there's a lag time. Psychologically, there's always a lag time about, you know, about a year, actually, a year, year and a half, to when people are feeling, Oh, I'm not sure things are so stable, to when they actually --

CORNISH: Yes, maybe when their credit card kicks in.

FOROOHAR: Exactly.

CORNISH: When their credit card debt hits.

FOROOHAR: Or when they go into default.

CORNISH: Yes.

FOROOHAR: Right. Right, right.

CORNISH: So, we've been talking about high gas prices and the cost of goods. How does the Iran War play into this? Like, with the Strait of Hormuz still, you know, pretty locked down and shipping really struggling, how is that affecting what we're seeing?

FOROOHAR: Yes. It's interesting, Audie. I was doing some pre-midterm reporting recently in Indiana, which is a very red state. And I was surprised, because even people that are totally MAGA were saying to me, this Iran War, you know, this isn't really what we signed up for. We are concerned about gas prices.

It's interesting, because it's hitting really hard in swing states where working people spend a much higher percentage of their overall take-home pay on things like energy, food, housing costs.

It's hitting big in ag states, because not only do you have energy inputs, but fertilizer is affected by food -- by fuel prices.

So, I mean, honestly, it's potentially the worst thing that the president and the Republicans could have done, you know, to -- to really affect their chances before the midterms.

It's also shown us that the Strait of Hormuz is now the world's biggest choke point. You know, it's an economic choke point. The Iranians have shown they can keep the high ground, no matter what is done militarily.

And I think that, even if we see an end to the conflict, you know, in name, I think that the economics of this region have changed. The Iranians are going to hold this economically as a choke point going forward. And I don't think you're going to see energy prices coming down dramatically.

CORNISH: Can I ask one more thing related to the book, which is that when you see these choke points lower, closer to the equator, people are looking elsewhere. People are even looking to the arctic. Right?

And I think for a while, there was a little bit of -- there's definitely joking about the president's preoccupation with Greenland.

But you write there is a real reason and a real race for governments to look North.

FOROOHAR: Yes, absolutely. you know, one of the reasons I was interested in the arctic is that Russia is doing exponentially more gas transport through the Northern Sea route, which it's now claiming as its own territory. That's in America's backyard, by the way.

You know, I was in the Bering Strait on the boat. We actually saw it's very close. I mean, you know, I don't know if Sarah Palin could see Alaska [SIC] from her backyard, but the two countries are very close.

And so, I think that it's becoming a homeland security issue. China now has a weekly transpolar shipping route, which it is using to get around conflict in the Strait of Hormuz or even the Suez Canal or the Panama Canal, which because of climate change, is, you know, having lower water levels, which is making it hard to transport.

So, the arctic, which is melting, which opens up new pathways, is becoming a major, major economic and political, geostrategic theater, I would say.

CORNISH: OK. That's Rana Foroohar. Thank you so much.

Please check out her book; unexpected pleasure there. It's called "Sea Change: America's New Great Game in the Arctic Circle." And it's out now.

Straight ahead on CNN THIS MORNING, the president turned old ethics fights into everyday politics. What used to be disqualifying barely registers anymore. We're going to talk about that later on CNN.

Also, the plague in Russia. The next hour, we're going to ask a Yale doctor if Americans should be worried.

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