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Erin Burnett Outfront
Speaker To Dem Rep-Elect He Refuses To Swear In: "Bless Her Heart"; Leaked GOP Text: "I Love Hitler"; Mamdani Versus Trump. Aired 7-8p ET
Aired October 15, 2025 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[19:00:24]
ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: OUTFRONT next:
Bless her heart. Those words tonight from the House speaker to Congresswoman-elect Adelita Grijalva, as she accuses him of not swearing her in to block the release of the Epstein files. Congresswoman-elect Grijalva is here live to respond to the speaker.
Also, J.D. Vance brushing off racist, homophobic, antisemitic texts reportedly sent by Republicans. Several of them have actually already lost their jobs because of what they posted. The reporter who broke this story and got nearly 3,000 pages of chats is OUTFRONT.
Plus, the Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani goes on Trump's turf to take him on. But are the two way more alike than either admit?
Let's go OUTFRONT.
And good evening. I'm Erin Burnett.
OUTFRONT tonight: Bless her heart. Those are the words of the House Speaker Mike Johnson to the duly elected congresswoman from Arizona, Adelita Grijalva, when he was asked why he has not swearing her in 22 days and counting after she was elected, and whether his refusal to swear her in has something to do with avoiding a vote to release the Jeffrey Epstein files.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN ROBERTS, FOX NEWS HOST: So, she says that you're afraid of her being the 218th signer to the Epstein petition to release the files. That if she were a Republican, you would have sworn her in. What do you say?
REP. MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: I say, bless her heart. She's a representative-elect. She doesn't know how it works around here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Okay, put aside the condescension for a moment on the facts. One thing is true. The way it works is that there can be no vote on the release of all the Epstein files until Grijalva's sworn in. Once Grijalva is a sitting member of Congress, she will be the final signature needed to force a vote to release those Epstein files. That is how it works.
Grijalva will be our guest for her first interview since Johnson's comments in just a moment. But even as Republican Congressman Thomas Massie has weighed in on this writing, "Why are we in recess? Because the day we go back into session, I have 218 votes for the discharge petition to force a vote on releasing the Epstein files." That is, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie. That's not the congresswoman- elect. That's the Republican congressman.
And this is bipartisan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: He won't swear her in, you know. Has he had any conversation with you or anyone in Democratic leadership about why he's doing this?
REP. ROBERT GARCIA (D-CA): Look, it's pretty clear to a lot of us that he partly doesn't want the government to be open because he doesn't want that 218th member, Adelita Grijalva, to be able to sign the petition to get full Congress on board with releasing the full files okay.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: OK. Well, that's Garcia and Massie. They both want transparency on the Epstein files.
So, what is Johnson's excuse for not seating a duly elected member of Congress? Because the reality is that he can swear her in any time he wants. Back in February, Johnson swore in two in two Florida Republicans who won special elections during what's known as a pro forma session. He did it the day after they won.
Now, Johnson was actually asked about this inconsistency. Here's how he replied.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. MARK KELLY (R-AZ): If we do that with the Virginia Republican swore the person know the circumstance?
JOHNSON: No, no, the exception is there were two Floridians who were elected in a special election. This happened a couple of months back. They were here on a day, they had their families here. They had a scheduled day for the oath of office, and the House was called out of session that day. They had all their family and friends here. So, we went ahead and went through the process in a pro forma.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Okay, wait. So that was about -- it was about that they had all their family and friends already there, and it would be rude to not do it. Family and friends flying in was the reason?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TV HOST: So, she flies in her family, would you guys do it?
JOHNSON: She'll get the full bells and whistles.
TV HOST: You understand how this looks, right?
JOHNSON: We don't schedule things for pro forma.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Except for he did when the shoe was on the other foot. That excuse obviously doesn't add up. But it is only the latest one that Johnson has supplied. Eight days after Grijalva won, Johnson's office wrote in a statement to CNN that Grijalva would be sworn in when the House, quote, "returns to session", which was expected to occur the following week.
Now that did not occur, the government shut down, and Johnson told the House not to return. And since that date, the excuses have shifted from as soon as she wants to, she deserves pomp and circumstance.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHNSON: Look, we'll schedule it, I guess, as soon as she wants. It has nothing to do with it.
This is a scheduling matter. As soon as the Democrats open vote to reopen the government, we will get back to the regular order in session of Congress. And that will be, I'm sure, among our first orders of business is to administer the oath to the newly elected representative.
She deserves to have all the pomp and circumstance that everybody else does.
[19:05:02]
She deserves to have a full house of members and go down and do the speech and have her family and friends in the balcony.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Oh, with the family and friends again.
Okay, look, none of this changes the bottom line, which is remains very simple. Johnson can swear in Grijalva any time he wants to. Instead, he has taken the rare step of shutting the house down for three straight weeks now, outside of summer recess. That is something that is typically not done.
It's important to be clear here that shutting the House down is not something that actually happens during a government shutdown. In fact, it did not happen during the 35-day shutdown during Trump's first term. It did not happen during the 16-day shutdown during Obama's presidency. And right now, the Senate is in session. They're voting on a funding
bill. Now, maybe they're doing so in a sort of Don Quixote like fashion, but they keep voting on it. The house should be in session, too, and should be able to do its job.
And we're getting more clarity on what Trump's team intends to do with this shutdown. Russell Vought the Trump official leading the shutdown, of course, warning that the job cuts could be north of ten thousand, putting an actual number on it, saying north of 10,000.
Manu Raju is OUTFRONT live on Capitol Hill with our coverage tonight.
Manu, I know you're talking to your sources there when you see this -- this stalemate going on. How long do they think this shutdown will actually last as we're entering, what is it, week three?
MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. This could be very long, Erin. In fact, there is real fear here that this could be the longest government shutdown in the history of the United States. That 35-day shutdown from 2018 to 2019 currently ranks at the top. But several Republican and Democratic senators today told me that they believe it could go longer.
John Kennedy, Louisiana Republican, told me that he thinks it will go well past thanksgiving, and its simply because the two sides are in complete opposite positions about what actually needs to happen here. Republicans say there should be no negotiations whatsoever over the Democratic demands. Instead, they're saying that the government should simply reopen when Democrats vote to pass the House bill to keep the government open up until November 21st, Democrats say no way. They want to deal with health care, particularly to extend those expiring subsidies under the Obamacare program that was set to expire at years end.
They say it must be dealt with immediately to avoid premium increases. Republicans say no negotiations on that until the government reopens. And there you have it. That back and forth has been going on now for three weeks. And the fear is that this could extend very much longer.
And at the moment, there are questions about when the House ultimately will come back, Erin, and a belief that the House could be out this entire time. The House is scheduled to come back into session next week, but don't expect them to come back. And don't expect Speaker Johnson to move off of his position either.
He told me that he does not plan to negotiate with Democrats, and he is not planning to move on Congresswoman elect Grijalva's swearing in as well, so she could be out of that seat. Erin, potentially for as long as this government is shut down. So, assuming that neither side moves off of their positions and at the moment neither side is -- Erin.
BURNETT: Wow. I mean, do you think that history could be being made yet again in so many ways as it is these days, being made on how long the government shutdown.
Manu Raju, thank you very much.
And I do, as promised, now want to go OUTFRONT to the congresswoman- elect, Adelita Grijalva, and I want everyone to notice, as we look at her and where she is sitting.
Congresswoman, welcome. Unlike most lawmakers that we speak to here, you're not live from our usual capitol hill camera locations, not in a rotunda, which is because despite the fact that you were elected 22 days ago, I know your staff says they're not fully credentialed and you don't have after-hours access to move around the Capitol, even though, of course, you won the election and are going to be going to be a sitting member of Congress once you're sworn in.
Have you gotten, Congresswoman-elect, any clear explanation from the speaker as to when you might be sworn in?
REP.-ELECT ADELITA GRIJALVA (D-AZ): No, none. There has been no direct communication with myself and the speaker. And when he made the comment about the other two members made an appointment and arrangement to have their swearing in and their family and friends were here, and supporters were here, where do I sign up for that?
Because there has been no direct communication with myself and the speaker other than, you know, sort of flipping remarks to news reporters, statements that come out of his office basically saying, you know, I'm in this limbo here where so many of my Democratic caucus colleagues are welcoming me as a member. But you can see very clearly, I cannot -- I'm essentially a tourist to D.C.
BURNETT: Well, at one point I was playing obviously his -- the list of things that he said. At one point he said whenever you wanted to. Then he said, you deserve pomp and circumstance. Most recently today when he went on Fox News, he said something new about your situation and why he hasn't sworn you in.
I'll play it again for you, Congresswoman-elect.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: So, she says that you're afraid of her being the 218th signer to the Epstein petition to release the files.
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That if she were a Republican, you would have sworn her in. What do you say?
JOHNSON: I say, bless her heart. She's a representative-elect. She doesn't know how it works around here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Well, what do you say to that?
GRIJALVA: How offensive and how patronizing, really? I mean, I do know that two members of Congress were sworn in on a pro forma session. Weve had several since I've been elected. And yesterday my race was certified and so that's how things work. Your job as speaker is to swear people in whether you politically align with them or not, whether they're going to sign a discharge petition that you want out or not, your job is to swear me in.
BURNETT: So we've seen a number of Democrats confront the speaker on your behalf. And by the way, in terms of this having been related to the Epstein files, we heard that from Tom Massie, the Republican.
But I want to play the moment that the two senators from your state confronted Johnson.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. RUBEN GALLEGO (D-AZ): Excuses. This is an excuse. So she doesn't sign on to that.
JOHNSON: This is absurd.
GALLEGO: This is the longest time.
JOHNSON: How do you want me to answer the question? If you ask --
GALLEGO: Actually answer the question. This entirely has to do with it.
JOHNSON: Okay, you see, this is a publicity stunt.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Now, look, Tom Massie, obviously Republican, has directly said that that you are not being sworn in because of the fact that your vote would be the definitive vote for the discharge petition on the Epstein files. So he said that publicly.
I am curious, though, Congresswoman-elect, as to whether any Republicans, even perhaps some who are not speaking publicly, have reached out to you.
GRIJALVA: No, none have reached out to me directly, not even my neighbor, in Arizona, CD6.
BURNETT: So are you planning any legal action against Johnson?
(CROSSTALK)
BURNETT: Go ahead. I'm sorry. Theres a --
GRIJALVA: This is -- this is -- I know, I apologize. So there's an issue here where our attorney general, as of yesterday, once my race was certified and signed off by the governor, attorney general and our secretary of state in Arizona. There is no dispute who won. I have -- I won by nearly 40 points, 70 percent of the vote. That is not in dispute.
So here we are. And today, we had a press conference with all of the Arizona Democratic delegation, including my senators, who basically said, this is all about the Epstein files. And none of us thought that we would be in this point.
I remember on election night that turned into a victory celebration. Somebody came up to me and said, you know, he's not going to swear you in because of those Epstein files. And I thought, oh, that's a little conspiracy theory. I don't think that's true.
But here we are now on day 22 of waiting with no apparent end in sight when there are several opportunities that he's had to swear me in.
So, if this has nothing to do with the Epstein files, then swear me in. There are other -- there's a whole freshman class that was sworn in during a shutdown, so Congress still needs to work. And he needs to call us back to get to the negotiating table so we can get out of the shutdown. This Republican shutdown.
BURNETT: Congresswoman-elect, thank you very much. I'm grateful for your time tonight.
GRIJALVA: Thank you.
BURNETT: And Gretchen Carlson, Jamal Simmons are OUTFRONT.
Turns out we even get a delay when you're not able to join from the normal location where a sitting congresswoman would be joining from. But she can't because she doesn't have the access.
Okay, Gretchen, what's your reaction when you, you know, you heard how she responded to Mike Johnson. She's been doing a lot today. I don't know that she had seen what the speaker said about, bless her heart, she doesn't know how things work around here.
GRETCHEN CARLSON, JOURNALIST: Yeah. Look, that's a Southern phrase. But we all know that when somebody says that to you, it's sort of tongue in cheek. And it is, you know, it's supposed to be condescending on its face, right? And he just didn't need to do the next line, which was, she does not understand what's going on here. That's obviously condescending, but I think we should look at this.
BURNETT: Then you drop the fig leaf of bless her heart, just go straight for condescension.
CARLSON: Just go straight for it. But I think the bigger picture here for me is that, yes, it's probably about Epstein. It could be about politics. Just because the shutdown is going on, right? Would it happen if it were the other side? Maybe.
But what I'm thinking about tonight is who's the one directing mike Johnson to not swear her in. And in my mind, that could be coming from high above. And we all know who I'm talking about.
BURNETT: Right. I mean, you know, it would be unusual in a situation like this for Mike Johnson to suddenly decide to take the stand all on his own, wouldn't it? JAMAL SIMMONS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, it is unusual. We
know that he's done this before. He just did it and talked about it before with two members of Congress from Florida who are Republicans, who he swore in and they weren't in session when those folks got sworn in.
This is -- and of course, it is condescending, not only because representative elect Grijalva, like any freshman representative, will be, you know, knows the ways of the house. They have kind of classes and all sorts of trainings for new members.
And also, her father was a member. I knew her dad, Congressman Grijalva was a great old member.
[19:15:04]
And so, the idea that she doesn't know what she's talking about really is condescending. I just think as someone who's been involved in politics for a long time, and everybody plays political tricks and there are all kinds of pranks you do to try to maintain your power, that's fine until something happens, like you start to look like you're protecting pedophiles.
And when that happens, you need to call the game. Get that representative up here. Let's not have that look.
BURNETT: It is one of the most bizarre things that we sit here every day and have people wanting to say that nobody should know who's in a bunch of papers talking about who is pedophile and who's protecting pedophile. I truly don't understand it.
CARLSON: But even if that vote goes through, there's no guarantee that the files will be released.
BURNETT: Right, that's right.
CARLSON: I mean, that's the other thing to think about here.
BURNETT: Or what's truly going to be in them when they are. And what I mean, people, I mean, all of these things.
SIMMONS: But, Erin, in politics, it's not always what's real. It's what people believe to be real.
BURNETT: Right.
SIMMONS: And so, that's the point here, which is that people are beginning to believe whatever their truth is, about why they're doing it. People are beginning to believe they're not doing this for a reason, and it's because of the Epstein.
BURNETT: So as to what Trump is doing -- you know, when you talk about the shutdown and Kennedy saying his news reporting that this could go post-Thanksgiving making it the longest in American history, we'll see. But that's a pretty somber threat. Trump is holding a major fundraiser and attending our, wealthy
executives in the tech and defense industries to raise money for his ballroom that he wants to the $200 million ballroom. And we're learning from sources that he is planning to build this new permanent arch in Washington. Like the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, of course, built by Emperor Napoleon. And obviously the arch is built in Rome and around Italy at the time were built by emperors to celebrate military victories by individual emperors.
We've seen the model on his desk. So, we've able to confirm this. So, this is how Trump is spending his time publicly during a shutdown, right? He's fine with people knowing all this.
CARLSON: I'm not surprised at all. Look, there's tons of real estate developers all over New York City and all over the world. I don't think any have put their name on front of their buildings as much as Donald Trump.
He lives with bravado. I mean, this is who he is. The fact that he would put up a Arc to Triomphe in America to celebrate the 250th anniversary, or the birthday of our country, does not surprise me.
And do I think people out there who voted for him are worried about this? Probably not what he should be basking in right now is the peace deal that he was able to get in the 20 Israeli hostages to come home to their families.
But I think in the minds of voters, they're thinking about that. They're thinking about immigration. They're thinking about their pocketbooks. I'm not sure they're spending a lot of time worrying about this.
SIMMONS: Yeah, the Arc de Triomphe or the Arc de Trump, right? Like we don't know what this thing is going to be called by the time it gets done.
The president sometimes seems like he doesn't understand how politics work, which is that when you're doing national politics, it's like walking around in a field full of kindling while you're playing with matches. You never know what's going to get lit. And when the American public is on one hand, seeing people being laid off, military families are still talking about their uncertainty. We've got people in the streets with ICE agents, getting families and dragging them out of cars, away from their kids, all -- pastors being pepper sprayed, right?
There are all these things that are happening in the country, and he's hanging out in ballrooms and building arches and doing things that are having big parties in Washington. Those are not things I think the American public necessarily want to see happen while the country seems like it's got real problems.
CARLSON: They've been anesthetized. The American public has been anesthetized to this just flurry of news that comes out of the Trump administration. And it's so hard for journalists to keep up on every single story. And so, they think about, this just moves on to something else. More grand tomorrow.
SIMMONS: Well, in a normal times, I would say, hey, you get elected president, you get to have a party at the White House.
BURNETT: That's what is outrageous and shocking have changed.
CARLSON: Totally.
BURNETT: And that is a reality. All right. Thank you both very much.
And tonight at 9:00, don't miss CNN's town hall on the shutdown with Senator Bernie Sanders and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
OUTFRONT next, breaking news. Trump says he may drastically expand strikes against the country of Venezuela as he reveals new details about a secret CIA operation inside the country. Of course, the Senate has not had any voice on this.
Plus, nothing to see here. Vice President J.D. Vance dismissing racist and offensive text messages reportedly sent by Republicans across the country in a mass group chat, including messages like, quote, "I love Hitler", end quote. The reporter who broke that story is our guest.
And two of the biggest names in California politics head to head, Newsom versus Schwarzenegger. One of the most expensive fights in history.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:23:59]
BURNETT: Breaking news, President Trump hinting at a major expansion of American military action in Venezuela, saying one day after six people were killed in another strike of a ship near Venezuela's coast, that he is now open to land strikes as well.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So much of the drugs, 25, 30 percent, would come in through the seas. Weve almost totally stopped it by sea. Now we'll stop it by land.
REPORTER: Are you considering strikes on land?
TRUMP: Well, I don't want to tell you exactly, but we are certainly looking at land now because we've got the sea very well under control.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: It's a very significant statement. And here's some context. Look at this map.
Open source flight data reviewed by CNN tonight shows that three B-52 bombers took off before dawn from a U.S. Air Force base in Louisiana and flew off the coast of Venezuela today for more than four hours.
As of now, the Trump administration has confirmed at least five strikes since the beginning of September against Venezuelan targets.
Pentagon correspondent Natasha Bertrand is OUTFRONT.
And, Natasha, this comes as you are learning more about how people who would make these decisions about what is allowable, what is legal, those top legal voices are being sidelined about how the American military is being used.
[19:25:14]
What more are you learning?
NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yeah, Erin. So, we spoke to more than a dozen current and former defense officials, including half a dozen JAG officers who are the uniformed lawyers inside the Pentagon and throughout the military. And many of them told us that these strikes that the administration has been carrying out in the Caribbean, they do appear to be patently unlawful under international and domestic law.
And that is part of the reason why we're told there have been a lot of concerns raised within DOD's office of general counsel by several of these international legal experts. Inside that office about these strikes, raising questions about their legality.
And, in fact, we're told that the top international law expert in the Pentagon's office of general counsel has actually been reassigned out of that office altogether and has been cut out of those very important discussions.
Now, DOD, at this point, were told, is relying pretty much entirely for these strikes on opinion that was produced by the Justice Department and that which gives the president really sweeping, broad authority to carry out these kinds of military attacks in the Caribbean that, frankly, has made a lot of people inside the Pentagon, including many of those lawyers, deeply uncomfortable.
Now, I should note the Pentagon in a statement to us, they denied that there were any -- there was any opposition to these strikes in the Caribbean and the White House as well, told me that these strikes are going to continue because the president has deemed narco terrorist organizations as a direct threat to the United States. And these strikes are not going to stop -- Erin.
BURNETT: Natasha, thank you very much.
And joining me now, Ryan Goodman, our OUTFRONT legal analyst, who, of course, spent a lot of time at the Department of Defense in the legal department looking over what is legal and not legal on drone attacks and strikes.
So, you know exactly what we're talking about here. And, and this is crucial, especially in the context of the Pentagon trying to restrict reporting on what is actually happening as opposed to what they want people to know about what is happening. Is there a legal basis for strikes on -- these strikes, especially now
that we see these B2 bombers taking off and flying off the coast, and the president saying that strikes are on the table.
RYAN GOODMAN, JUST SECURITY CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: I can't see any legal basis for it. I understand why lawyers inside the Pentagon can't either as being reported, and there are a number of different issues.
When we move from the high seas to land strikes, then that means striking inside the territory of another country.
BURNETT: Sovereign country.
GOODMAN: That's right. Which is very different. It would have to be in response to an armed attack against the United States, would have to be necessary, would have to be proportionate, and would have to be authorized by Congress. None of those things, none of those boxes are checked off.
If anything, there is a War Powers Act which requires the termination of such military operations. If the president hasn't received affirmative authority from Congress. That clock started on September 2nd with the first strike, and so, it should expire in the first week of November.
So, under any circumstances, he doesn't have domestic authority. He doesn't have international authority. And if anything, the laws that I think that they're looking at are murder laws that apply. If you strike and try to kill people who are smugglers, which are civilians.
BURNETT: Okay. So, in the context of this, the president is also saying not just land strikes. He's confirmed that he has authorized the CIA to conduct operations inside Venezuela. He's actually putting out there that he's done that.
Let me just play what he -- what he wanted everyone to know about that and what he didn't. Here he is today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: I authorized for two reasons, really. Number one, they have emptied their prisons into the United States of America. They came in through the, well, they came in through the border. And the other thing of drugs, we have a lot of drugs coming in from Venezuela, and a lot of the Venezuela drugs come in through the sea.
REPORTER: Does the CIA have authority to take out Maduro?
TRUMP: Oh, I don't want to answer a question like that. Thats a ridiculous question for me to be given.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: It's kind of fascinating, Ryan, because of course, it's not a ridiculous question when he's been striking without authority and saying he's going to strike on land, that obviously the most obvious question is whether if you're putting the CIA in, it's about the current dictator in Venezuela.
GOODMAN: Right. I think he should have answered the way normal president would answer those questions, which is, I'm not going to say anything about anything. But he actually started to answer the first question, which is that, yes, he has authorized --
BURNETT: I authorized for two reasons.
GOODMAN: That's right. Which is remarkable. The whole point of doing CIA work is that its covert and not acknowledged as the United States whatsoever.
So, the fact that he's acknowledging part and saying, I'm not answering the other one is odd. And it also comes in the context of not just the firing of the senior military lawyers in the Pentagon, but the oddity that just last week, "The New York Times" reported that the deputy director of the CIA, Michael Ellis, has demoted the general counsel of the CIA and put himself in as general counsel.
So, the lawyering behind this is very worrisome.
[19:30:01]
It's coming at quite a troubling moment.
BURNETT: Ryan, thank you very much.
And next, a bombshell report sending shock waves through the GOP. "Politico" uncovering hundreds of text messages sent by members of a national Republican organization. The reporter who broke that story is OUTFRONT next.
And Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani, appearing on Fox News to send Trump a direct message. But are the two who, of course, are now battling it out? It's become personal. Are they more alike than either would admit?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:35:12]
BURNETT: Tonight, Vice President J.D. Vance dismissing hundreds of racist and hateful text messages from leaders of the young Republicans, which were obtained by "Politico", including one that said, quote, "I love Hitler", end quote. And another that called Black people "monkeys". Vance saying, it's simply, quote, "what kids do".
Now, before we even play Vance's response, I do want to be clear that the people on this text chain were aged 18 to 40. One of the people involved is a state senator. Others had professional jobs in politics. So never mind if you think that saying those things are things that kids would even do.
Here's J.D. Vance.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) J.D. VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The reality is that kids do stupid things, especially young boys. They tell edgy, offensive jokes like, that's what kids do.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Vance's response comes after "Politico" obtained 2,900 pages of texts showing leaders of the young Republicans repeatedly using racist, antisemitic, homophobic and violent rhetoric. Now, at least four people who sent messages in this group chat have already lost their jobs inside state government and party politics since the reporting broke last night, because these were not boys. Again, even if you think it's okay for boys to do that.
OUTFRONT now, Jason Beeferman. He is the "Politico" reporter who broke this story.
And, Jason, I do want to get to Vance's reaction in a moment, but I only mentioned some of the messages that you obtained, right? It's 2900 pages that you obtained through your reporting in a conversation about an election to choose the head of the young Republicans. There were some comments in there.
One person says about their political opponents, and I quote, everyone that votes no is going to go to the gas chamber. Another message, somebody says, I love Hitler. Someone else puts a smiley face emoji, along with that text. A person in another context calls black people watermelon people. One person, somebody even asked how much trouble they'd be in if this group chat was leaked.
Maybe that's when somebody in the chat decided to talk to you. I don't know.
What more can you tell us about what was said in this? Two thousand nine hundred pages is a lot.
JASON BEEFERMAN, NEW YORK STATE POLITICS REPORTER, POLITICO: Yeah. Like you mentioned, it's a lot of material. It took us a while. My colleague Emily Ngo and I to just read through all of these.
If you see the story, it goes way beyond that. It's frankly, you know, a lot of people have called it vile comments. I saw the vice president said that perhaps these are jokes. But, you know, we counted hundreds of epithets.
And one of the professors who studies racism that we spoke to for this piece said, you know, when you say something once or twice, it might be a joke, might be a really, really I guess the vice president said, edgy joke. But if you say it hundreds of times, that might start to influence your worldview. And these were people, as you mentioned, who were embedded in party politics. They're chosen among their peers to really represent the future generation of the GOP.
BURNETT: Okay. And some of the words that were used hundreds of times, the N-word, right, was that one of them? I mean, what else? BEEFERMAN: We had a slur against Asian people. We had a ton of
antisemitic stuff praising Hitler, applauding Republicans who support slavery. You know, homophobic stuff. Ableist stuff.
BURNETT: F word in homophobic comments in there repeatedly. I saw it.
BEEFERMAN: Correct. Yeah. And just the trifecta of these three. The N word, the F slur. Using ableist term. You know, that appeared -- those three alone, 251.
BURNETT: Girl is fully, the R word. If everyone can see on the screen. And that's the other word that you're talking about.
BEEFERMAN: Yeah, I want to be careful here. Yeah, the R word.
And, you know, we didn't count every single slur in this chat. We obviously didn't put all the offensive things that we found into this story. It would just be too long.
BURNETT: Yeah.
BEEFERMAN: But rest assured, there's a lot of stuff here.
BURNETT: I mean, it is. It is just stunning now. So, just to be clear, you said, when J.D. Vance, this is a bunch of kids, right? This is young Republicans. Does not mean kids. It means people up to age 40. So, a lot of these people have jobs and are state elected, even elected. Some of them, right?
BEEFERMAN: Uh-huh.
BURNETT: So, J.D. Vance says, at least four people have lost their jobs. Okay. At least four.
BEEFERMAN: It's six now actually, we just reported.
BURNETT: Six. So two more have lost their jobs.
Okay. So, J.D. Vance doesn't have a problem with it. But the employers of some of these people do. Do you expect more fallout?
BEEFERMAN: Well, what's interesting is that at the local level and the state level, we've seen the GOP really crack down on those associated with these chats. The governor of Vermont condemned the chat. He wants one of their state senators to resign.
In New York, we saw the New York GOP head and the head of the state senate for the Republicans condemn this. But at the White House level, when we came to them and told them, you know, this is what people are saying in these chats, they dismissed it. They said, you know, you should really focus on the left-wing violence and left-wing violence against Republicans.
[19:40:00]
BURNETT: So, the difference at the national level -- I mean, when Vice President Vance obviously didn't just brush off these texts, he pointed to the text messages that have come under. Obviously, people have said are vile from Jay Jones, a Democrat running to be Virginia's attorney general. He called for a colleague to be -- to get, quote, two bullets to the head.
Vance said in a tweet. This is far worse than anything said in a college group chat. And the guy who said it could become the attorney general of Virginia. I refuse to join the pearl clutching when powerful people call for political violence.
Just to be clear, he continues to say college group chat, which is just simply untrue. Right?
BEEFERMAN: Yeah, that's right. These people work in state houses. One was elected. None of them are in college. They have children at home.
You know, these are full-grown adults. Probably not that much younger than J.D. Vance himself. And these individuals, they were elected among their peers. This is the next generation of Republican leaders. That's how they saw themselves. That's who they wanted to be. And, you know, these aren't college kids like you mentioned.
BURNETT: No, no. And as you said, young Republican leaders for a reason, right? It's seen as the future for the Republican Party.
All right. Thank you so much. And obviously such, such important reporting. Thank you.
BEEFERMAN: Thank you.
BURNETT: And next, Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani heads to unfriendly territory.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ZOHRAN MAMDANI (D), NYC MAYORAL CANDIDATE: I want to take this moment because you spoke about President Trump, and you may be watching right now. And I just want to speak directly to the president.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Well, my next guest says that Trump and Mamdani may not be so different after all. And wait until you see the specifics as to why.
Plus, Newsom and Schwarzenegger, two influential names in California tonight locked in a $100 million battle.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:45:58]
BURNETT: Tonight, Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic socialist favored to be the next mayor of New York City, looking straight into the camera during a Fox News interview with a message for President Trump.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAMDANI: I want to take this moment because you spoke about President Trump, and you may be watching right now. And I just want to speak directly to the president, which is that I will not be a mayor like Mayor Adams, who will call you to figure out how to stay out of jail. I won't be a disgraced governor like Andrew Cuomo, who will call you to ask how to win this election. I can do those things on my own.
I will, however, be a mayor who is ready to speak at any time to lower the cost of living.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: And tonight, my next guest says Mamdani and Trump have more in common than anyone might think. He writes, "Trump keeps blurring the line between capitalism and socialism. President's plans echo themes of Zohran Mamdani."
OUTFRONT now, Greg Ip, he is the chief economics commentator and deputy economics editor at "The Wall Street Journal".
Greg, your writing here, I thought was so thought-provoking. One of Mamdani's proposals that everybody talks about. And if anyone around the country has paid attention to this may be government-run grocery stores, right? That he's going to have government run grocery stores. And that is what they had in the USSR.
But what is fascinating is that you say Trump is pushing something similar?
GREG IP, CHIEF ECONOMICS COMMENTATOR, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Yeah. Two weeks ago, when he announced this deal with Pfizer to lower Pfizer's drug prices, he also said that there was going to be a federally run website where you could buy drugs. It will be called Trump RX.
And so, when I heard that, I thought, wow, so were going to have a federal website to buy drugs. In New York City, you'll have a city store to buy groceries. There seems to be more similarity between these two guys than meets the eye. And even the whole idea of like, telling Pfizer what to do with its drug prices had echoes of Zohran Mamdani telling landlords what to do with their rents, you know?
So, I just found it interesting that both men, have this -- you know, instinct that they want to tell business what to do.
BURNETT: So, I mean, it is -- it is fascinating. And so, in the context of reading your -- your report and I hope that everyone will read it in full, I went back and we were listening to Trump and Mamdani to actually compare their messages. And frankly, Greg, at times they sound very similar. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We will make America very importantly affordable again.
MAMDANI: What I'm focused on is making the city affordable for everyone.
TRUMP: For the next four years, I will fight for you.
MAMDANI: Now it's our time to fight for you.
TRUMP: We're turning the page on four long years of corruption, weaponization.
MAMDANI: We think it's time to turn the page on that politics of the past.
TRUMP: We are going to turn it around. We're going to bring prosperity back to every neighborhood.
MAMDANI: We will deliver a city that's affordable for all.
TRUMP: I fight for the middle class. I fight for everyone. I fight for this country.
MAMDANI: We have to fight for the working people in this city who are being pushed out of the place that they call home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: I mean, Greg, they sound remarkably similar for people who would -- would never in a million years think that they have anything in common with each other.
IP: Right. Well, they're both populists, right? And how do populists message? They basically tell the people listening to them, hey, you have enemies, and they're my enemies, too.
Now, let's get one thing straight. Trump is not a socialist, right? He loves businesspeople. He loves being a businessman. He loves billionaires.
But he also understands that people are really angry that costs are high. And so, he loves to use his bully pulpit to tell businesses to bring prices down. When Walmart said they were going to raise prices because of Trump's tariffs. Trump, you know, tweeted at them, eat the tariffs, right? And the same with the drug pricing thing, you know?
And that's really -- I mean, the difference between Trump and a socialist I guess is a socialist wants to write laws and pass regulations telling businesses what to do. Trump basically uses the bully pulpit and the implied threat that if they don't do what he does, they're going to like pay the price some other way.
BURNETT: Well, the old term we used to study, SOE, state-owned enterprise, right?
[19:50:02]
They're taking stakes in all sorts of companies as well. But you know, I want to Greg, as it seems, Zohran Mamdani may indeed be the mayor of the largest city in America and become someone who is constantly in opposition to Trump and a national figure.
People want to understand what the heck Democratic socialist is. And I actually asked Mamdani what he thinks of capitalism when I interviewed him one of the times. Here's what he told me.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Do you like capitalism?
MAMDANI: No. I have many critiques of capitalism, and I think ultimately the definition for me of why I call myself a Democratic socialist is the words of Dr. King decades ago. He said, call it democracy or call it Democratic socialism. There must be a better distribution of wealth for all of god's children in this country.
And that's what I'm focused on, is dignity and taking on income inequality.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Greg, outside of rhetoric, is there such a thing as a Democratic socialist?
IP: Well, sure. I mean, if you're asking, can a socialist you know, run for government and govern in a democracy? Absolutely. It happens all the time.
Spain right now has a socialist prime minister. Spain's a very democratic country.
France used to have, you know, a socialist president. France is a thriving democracy.
We have other cities in the United States that have government owned grocery stores. Right? Nobody's running around calling them Bolsheviks or anything like that.
I mean, socialism is one of those words that I have found in many years of covering the economy that is very much in the eye of the beholder. When Trump hears the word, he says, oh, that's communism. But I think when the average like millennial hears it, they think, oh, that's just progressivism. That's just redistribution.
And honestly, we've been doing redistribution in this country under Republican and Democratic presidents through the tax system and by expanding the safety net for generations.
So, when I hear that clip of you talking to Mamdani I mean, if he wants to call that socialism, fine, that just sounds to me like, you know, kind of old fashioned, left of center liberalism.
BURNETT: All right. Greg, thank you very much. And next, we take you inside the $100 million battle pitting Newsom against Schwarzenegger.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:56:05]
BURNETT: Tonight, Newsom versus Schwarzenegger. Two of California's biggest names are now head to head. And it is one of the most expensive ballot fights in history, one that could change the balance of power in Washington.
Elex Michaelson is OUTFRONT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM (D), CALIFORNIA: We can stop Trump, cold.
ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's the governor versus the governator in California TV ads.
ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER, FORMER CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR: Vote no on Proposition 50.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): Voting is already underway.
MICHAELSON: In a battle that will largely redefine Governor Gavin Newsom's future, and former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's legacy.
SCHWARZENEGGER: California will be very unique and very independent.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): In 2010, 61 percent of California voters agreed with then Governor Schwarzenegger and created an independent citizen commission to draw California's congressional lines, taking that power away from politicians.
SCHWARZENEGGER: We must terminate gerrymandering.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): Ever since, Schwarzenegger has traveled the country asking other states to do the same.
This year, Texas Republicans went a different way, redrawing their districts mid-decade, hoping to add five more Republican seats to the U.S. House.
NEWSOM: They fired the first shot, Texas.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): Governor Newsom is now asking California voters to approve Proposition 50, which would replace the congressional map drawn by the state's independent redistricting commission with this map drawn by Democrats that seeks to add five Democratic house seats.
SCHWARZENEGGER: This is a scam.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): Schwarzenegger's only TV interview on this topic was with CNN in September, after posting this to social media, "F the politicians. Terminate gerrymandering."
SCHWARZENEGGER: It's a big mistake. Two wrongs don't make a right. It's that simple.
MICHAELSON: Were you able to convince him?
NEWSOM: No, I wasn't looking to convince him.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): In his August interview with Fox 11 Los Angeles, I was first to report about a meeting this summer between Newsom and Schwarzenegger talking Prop 50.
NEWSOM: I wanted him to know that we're maintaining it, and I also want him to know if we are not successful with this, there will be no independent redistricting in this country.
MICHAELSON: He says that it is temporary. You just -- you don't buy what Governor Newsom saying.
SCHWARZENEGGER: Of course not. Look, I've sat there in Sacramento. I've listened to the politicians for seven years. They are not interested in giving any power to the people.
MICHAELSON: What are the stakes of Prop 50?
RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Yeah, I mean. The stakes are enormous.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): Ron Brownstein is a longtime California political watcher he says Prop 50 passing could boost Democrats chances to win back the House in '26. And Newsom's potential pursuit of the Democratic presidential nomination in '28.
BROWNSTEIN: Democratic voters see him as not only being willing but able to push back against Trump.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): These are the five Republican members of the house who Democrats are targeting with the new map. Among them Ken Calvert, a congressmember from Californias inland empire since 1993.
MICHAELSON: We're in the city of Corona, which is now represented by Calvert and Republicans we talked to here are not thrilled at the possibility of being represented by a Democrat.
FRANKLIN KARDOS, CALIFORNIA REPUBLICAN VOTER: As a Republican, I don't like that. And it would be the same. I mean, if I were a Democrat, I would want my district to represent me.
CHRISTINE WILLIAMS, CALIFORNIA REPUBLICAN VOTER: No, it's absolutely no. I have a big sign on my yard.
MICHAELSON (voice-over): We find a different view in Venice Beach, one of the most Democratic areas in the state.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I want somewhere where we have a little bit more balance.
MAIA DAVIS, CALIFORNIA DEMOCRATIC VOTER: I'm very much against gerrymandering. And yet, what are we to do when they've locked up the Supreme Court? BOBBY HACKER, CALIFORNIA DEMOCRATIC VOTER: We can't sit back and talk
nicely. We've got to roll up our sleeves and fight. So yes, on Prop 50.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAELSON: Newsom and Schwarzenegger both told me that they still have a cordial, respectful relationship. They just have a disagreement on this particular issue. California voters have until November 4th to either return their ballot at spots like this, or vote in person -- Erin.
BURNETT: All right. Elex, thank you very much. Our newest anchor here at CNN.
And thanks so much to all of you for joining us.
"AC360" starts now.
