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DOJ Indicts Comey Days After Trump Publicly Pressured AG Bondi; White House Threatens Mass Federal Firings If Govt. Shuts Down; Trump Tells Parents Not To Give Kids Tylenol For "Virtually Any Reason"; North Carolina GOP Leader Floats New Map Ahead Of 2026; More States Move Toward Gerrymanders Ahead Of Midterms; Schwarzenegger Condemns California Redistricting Plan; Trump Attends Ryder Cup, The Latest Major Sporting Event He's Attended In His 2nd Term. Aired 12:30-1p ET

Aired September 26, 2025 - 12:30   ET

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

[12:30:25]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MANU RAJU, CNN ANCHOR: More on our top story. The Justice Department indicts former FBI Director James Comey just days after the President publicly pressured the Attorney General to pursue charges. The President is already attacking the federal judge assigned to this case. And shortly before we came to air, he said quote, "There will be others prosecuted after Comey."

Joining me now to weigh in on this and much, much more, Republican Senator Mike Rounds of South Dakota. Senator Rounds, thank you so much for joining me this afternoon. Appreciate your time.

Let's start off by talking about this indictment of James Comey. The President made no secret that he wanted Comey to be prosecuted. In fact, this weekend, he called on Pam Bondi to go after Comey in a Truth Social post just as he installed his personal attorney, the top prosecutor in this district. And five days later, Comey was indicted.

[12:35:17]

So Senator, are you comfortable with the way this played out?

SEN. MIKE ROUNDS (R), SOUTH DAKOTA: I think the courts will make the final decision. That's where it was going to go from the very beginning. You know, look, the President made it very clear that he was going to be looking for accountability, and that's exactly what he's doing. It probably does not come as a surprise to anybody.

And so right now, we've got other things that we've got to be doing in the United States Senate. We will let the courts sort this out.

RAJU: But the President is personally directing the Justice Department to prosecute Comey. Shouldn't there be a line, a clear line of separation between the White House and the Justice Department?

ROUNDS: Once again, I think it's accountability. And, you know, look, the President ran on this. He said very clearly what he intended to do. The people of this country understood that he was going to call for accountability.

He really did believe and still does believe that that has to occur. He's pushing the issue just as we expected that he would. So once again, this is about accountability, and it's exactly what we had expected would happen.

RAJU: So let's just take a step back and look at some of the actions the President has taken in just the past few weeks. He's calling on the Attorney General to prosecute his foes, fired a U.S. attorney who wouldn't do so. His FCC chair is threatening media companies. He's trying to strong-arm the Federal Reserve to do what he wants, and the list really just goes on.

I'm wondering, Senator, can you understand why some people may see these actions and worry that Trump is shattering democratic norms?

ROUNDS: Well, you know, I think what you're finding is a President that wants to show a strong executive. He is trying to fill a void out there right now. Part of that is that --

RAJU: You don't think he's gone too far in any of those areas that I just listed?

ROUNDS: I think when he talks about what he's doing, he's filling a void that Congress has simply allowed, in many cases, because we haven't been doing our job. And part of it is, is Congress has got to come together. Part of it right now, we talked about accountability earlier.

We've got some accountability as well. Part of it is, is actually doing our job and actually passing appropriations bills. And I know that's one of the things that you wanted to talk about today --

RAJU: Yes.

ROUNDS: -- it's something that I think is critical to the American people.

RAJU: Yes.

ROUNDS: And I think that's probably a bigger issue for a lot of people out there than what the President is doing or talking about on Truth Social.

RAJU: Yes, but just before we turn to the government shutdown fight, because it is hugely significant, are you personally OK with him, Trump saying, telling the Attorney General to go after his political opponents? Are you OK with that?

ROUNDS: I think that will -- I think it's an accountability issue, and I think the court sorted out. I think we need to stay in our lane right now. And our lane is, is doing our job. The President clearly wants accountability. And once again, this is one that will be decided in the courts, which is exactly where it should be. RAJU: All right. So let's turn to what's happening in Washington in just four days. The government will shut down if Congress cannot pass a short-term spending bill. The White House's Office of Management and Budget has directed federal agencies to prepare for mass firings of the federal workforce if the government shut down.

Now, your fellow Republican Susan Collins, who chairs the Appropriations Committee, pushed back against that and said, federal employees should not be treated as pawns amid a needlessly partisan impasse. So do you agree with Senator Collins that federal employees should not be fired if there's a shutdown?

ROUNDS: If there is a Schumer shutdown, it will be a partisan Schumer shutdown. Look, Republicans don't want any kind of a thing happening where we have to shut down government. But if Senator Schumer says that this is the right thing for his party to do to pursue this and not to find a path forward, then, you know, we're going to have that problem because it requires Democrats to work with Republicans in order to avoid that. But a Schumer shutdown is entirely possible.

And look, last year or in March when this happened, one of the issues that was brought up, and I think Senator Schumer at that time recognized that if we don't do our job in Congress and if we don't do the appropriations process, then that allows the President to respond because -- and what he's saying is, is if you're not going to do appropriations and if you're going to have a Schumer shutdown, he gets to play a part in it.

RAJU: But Senator Rounds, as you know --

ROUNDS: And that's exactly what (INAUDIBLE) right now.

RAJU: -- as you know, in past shutdowns, typically those federal employees, they get furloughed, meaning they'll get their job back eventually, get back pay. Why not -- the White House is going further here and saying that they will get fired. Are you OK with that?

ROUNDS: Yes, look, the President gets to make that call. And the reason why he gets to make that call is if Congress doesn't do its job. So let's talk about this for just a second. Twelve appropriation bills. We've already got three of them out of the Senate right now. We've got the other ones ready to go.

[12:40:04]

The only reason why they haven't come to the floor so far is because Democrats have refused to allow it in some cases. And look, the bottom line is, is I really do believe that appropriations have got to be done and that that's our job. If you take a look at across this country, when I'm here in South Dakota and I talk to people, they want us to do the work.

RAJU: Do you think that Trump should meet with Jeffries and Schumer, the Democratic leaders? He scrapped a meeting with them just yesterday. ROUNDS: No, the President is correct. When I talk to people in South Dakota, they want Congress to do its job. That means Senator Schumer --

RAJU: Then that means they won't negotiate. That mean they would --

ROUNDS: -- that Jeffries support with Republican --

RAJU: That mean they won't negotiate.

ROUNDS: The negotiations should occur between Republicans and Democrats in the House and the Senate. We have got to take responsibility for our job in the government, which is appropriations. President Trump was absolutely correct in saying he should not have to step in and make the deals in this particular case. It is perfectly fine for Republicans to step forward.

The bottom line is, is that the only reason that we might have a Schumer shutdown is because they don't want to come to the table and work this out with the Senate leadership coming from the Republican side. We can make this work. I am absolutely confident that if Democrats will come to the table and sit down with us, we can work our way through the issues.

RAJU: Yes.

ROUNDS: But remember, one of those issues that Senator Schumer has been demanding is that people that are not legally here in this country should have Medicaid benefits. That's a nonstarter for Republicans.

RAJU: Senator, I do want to ask about one other thing. The President just posted another warning about Tylenol. This time he went beyond pregnant women and urged parents, quote, "Don't give Tylenol to your young children for virtually any reason."

So to be clear, an untreated fever or an infection could be very dangerous for a young child. So, you know, is it responsible -- you know, you're a grandfather, I'm wondering -- you hear the President saying this. Is it responsible for the President to be giving medical advice like this?

ROUNDS: Let -- the message that I've told my own kids, what I've told my relatives and what I've told anybody that wants to hear me, including publicly, is talk to your physician. Everybody's health can be different. But the one thing that we do know is that if you don't need Tylenol, don't take it. That's right.

But at the same time, talk to your physician. You and your physician should make that decision. Your -- you and your own physician should make that decision about vaccines and about Tylenol.

RAJU: But should he be using his platform to tens of millions of people to say these kind of things?

ROUNDS: Look, the bottom line is, is he's the elected President of the United States. I'm going to do my best to do my job. I will allow the President the opportunity to do his work. He's doing what he thinks is right for the country. I respect him for that.

I happen to have a differing point of view when it comes to vaccines in many cases, and I have a differing point of view when it comes to the use of Tylenol. But once again, they shouldn't be listening to me. They should be listening to their own physicians.

And those physicians, I think, will speak very, very clearly that there are benefits to Tylenol that outweigh the risks.

RAJU: All right. Senator Mike Rounds from South Dakota, thank you so much for taking the time and talking to me this afternoon. Really appreciate your time.

ROUNDS: You bet.

RAJU: Coming up next, Schwarzenegger versus Newsom.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), FORMER CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR: This is a battle between the Democrats and the Republicans. Who should have more power? I'm for the power of the people.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

RAJU: Will California voters listen to their former governor or their current one?

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[12:48:13]

RAJU: There are several new fronts in the redistricting wars. The latest example, North Carolina. The state sentenced Republican leaders floating a new map in a state that's already among the most gerrymandered in the country. The Republican gerrymander in Texas is poised to give the party five extra seats.

They also could pick up multiple seats if Ohio and Florida do their own. And new proposed maps in Nebraska, Missouri, Kansas, and Indiana could net them one more seat in each. California voters will decide in November whether to allow a Democratic gerrymander there.

And Illinois and Maryland may try to add a Democratic seat as well. And in Utah, a judge has ordered them to redraw their map in a way that could add a blue seat. One thing we know for sure, every single seat will count next year.

My panel is back. I mean, this is -- this effort in North Carolina --

JAMIE GANGEL, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT: Right.

RAJU: -- just shows you the extent Trump was willing to go to just try to get one seat here, one seat there in order to keep the House. GANGEL: And I would repeat the word California and that is the reason that they're doing it. I spoke a senior Democratic leader who said whether we like it or not, we cannot sit back. We have to fight and they're going to fight seat after seat.

Look, at the end of the day, Democrats see the midterm election as existential. That if they don't take back the House, there are no guardrails on Donald Trump.

CATHERINE LUCEY, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, BLOOMBERG: And certainly, Trump also sees the midterm --

GANGEL: Absolutely.

LUCEY: -- as -- he is, I'm sure we're all hearing this, laser focused right now on his decision making. Everything he's doing is about the midterms in a lot of different ways.

RAJU: Where he's worried about impeachment, he's worried about investigations.

LUCEY: Yes. Exactly. Well, and because he knows what happens if you lose control of Congress. This happened to him before in his first term. He then, yes, then thinks he's facing investigations, potential impeachment and just any agenda on the Hill grinds to a halt. So they are incredibly focused on this in any ways that they can move the needle at the moment.

[12:50:14]

RAJU: There's so few swing districts in the country. But the California issue is going to be hugely significant because the voters there will get to vote on this Democratic gerrymander to add five Democratic seats in an effort to respond to what happened on the Republican side in Texas.

But the person who is fighting this perhaps the hardest is the former Republican governor of California and of course, former actor.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

SCHWARZENEGGER: Yes, they are fixing the elections in Texas. But that does not mean that California should fix the elections because of that. Two wrongs don't make a right.

So this gives them a great opportunity by saying, oh, we have to fight Trump. Let's go and get rid of our democratic principles. Imagine to fight for democracy and to get rid of your democratic principles. It doesn't make any sense.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

RAJU: Tens of millions have already been spent on both sides on this issue. How do you see this playing out?

JOSH DAWSEY, POLITICAL INVESTIGATIONS REPORTER, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: It's a fascinating arms race, right? I mean, it's like what the governor says there. He goes, OK, I don't like what's happening in Texas. I don't want to talk to California. If you tell the Republicans, stop doing it. Democrats will stop doing it.

You know what I mean? It's sort of -- one of those things is --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, they (INAUDIBLE).

DAWSEY: -- if one side's doing it, the other side feels like we have to do it. If the Republicans are doing it in Texas, a lot of Democrats feel they have to do it in California. There's a singular disarmament. So where do you go?

You have every state in the country, every election cycle, then trying to sort of gerrymander their state differently every time based on who's in power. Like, do we do this forever? I mean, it's a question. It's like, where does it end? How does it end?

LUCEY: Schwarzenegger is making a good government argument. I mean, he was part of the effort to bring in nonpartisan redistricting.

RAJU: But do Democratic voters in that blue state listen to that?

LUCEY: And but -- that's the thing. I think, you know, there is this step back argument, which is what is better for democracy. But right now, neither side is particularly focused on that as they fight this arms race.

RAJU: Yes, it really is an arms race, something we have not really ever seen before, as we often say now in the Trump era.

All right. It is all of President Trump's favorite things. Golf, New York, adoring fans, and potential for American dominance. And although things are looking a little dicey right now, we'll explain next.

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[12:56:59]

RAJU: Will Team USA make America great at golf again and reclaim the Ryder Cup? Well, right now, Europe has taken an early lead on day one, just as President Trump arrives at the very treacherous Bethpage Black Golf Course on Long Island to cheer on Team USA against the Europeans.

You could call Trump the commander in sports. Since January, he has attended the FIFA Club World Cup Championship, the U.S. Open Men's Final, the Daytona 500, the Super Bowl, the NCAA Wrestling Championship, and several UFC fights.

My panel is back. This is a quote from an article one of my colleagues at CNN, Kyle Feldscher, wrote. "It's sort of a perfect Trump stew," he says about the Ryder Cup. "It's a high-profile event that pits the U.S. against Europe in his favorite sport at a hallowed course in Trump's home state just an hour or so away from the Queens neighborhood where he grew up. Oh, and it's a place that voted for him heavily in 2024." That's Nassau County, where he won by five points. Make of Trump inserting himself into yet another high-profile sporting event.

DAWSEY: Well, it's like you said a few minutes ago. I mean, this is -- he's done this almost every month, every weekend since he became President. He did it a lot on the campaign trail, too, on the campaign trail.

RAJU: Far more than other presidents.

DAWSEY: Right, far more than other presidents. On the campaign trail, it was viewed the UFC fights, NCAA football games, XYZ, as a way to attract male voters and to get that kind of attention. These events now, a lot of them, he just wants to be there, right?

I mean, Trump, you could see him, some of these events, it's for politics and some of it, he's president. If you took a look at a lot of folks who are around him in the White House, they will tell you that he's having a lot more fun than he was in the first term. I mean, that sort of matters that much.

But he's actually really like enjoying all of the travel he's getting to do, these kinds of things. And he's just making the most of it.

RAJU: And he puts himself in the center of it.

DAWSEY: Yes.

RAJU: I mean, like he did in the Football Club World Cup championship. He's on the stage handing out the medals to the winners.

GANGEL: As I recall, World Cup, someone sort of had to move him aside for the final picture taken. Look, unlike the U.S. Open, the tennis match where there were a lot of boos, this is a much warmer crowd for him. I was just reading some of the early things. He was cheered. There were some boos, then some -- then they started a chant to support him. So this is a place where he feels particularly comfortable.

RAJU: And the White House says about Trump and sports, they're at the forefront of American culture, according to the White House Assistant Press Secretary. And President Trump loves them as people's President. She goes on to say, "President Trump is the greatest champion for sports of any president in American history."

I'm not quite sure how you measure that objectively, but that's what they're saying.

LUCEY: No, I think there's plenty of presidents who like sports. But certainly, yes. I mean, one measure of what his interests are is how he spends his time and how he spends his travel. He is doing a lot of this kind of travel, even more so than he did during his first term.

He's spending less time doing some of the sort of traditional presidential travel, you know, going into the states to talk about his agenda and some of those kinds of things, and definitely spending more time on this, which they also see as a way, I think, to connect with certain groups of voters and supporters.

RAJU: Right. But it's a good point, because the President's time is his most valuable asset --

LUCEY: Absolutely.

RAJU: -- and he chooses to go to sporting events, not faulting him for it. It's just that's his decision to do that. But then it may come at the expense of perhaps going on the road and selling his agenda.

All right, great discussion, guys. Really enjoyed it.

Thanks for joining Inside Politics. I'll be back on Sunday for Inside Politics, Sunday at 8:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. Eastern. Democratic Congressman Seth Moulton will join me. And don't miss State of the Union. Jake's guests include House Speaker Mike Johnson.

CNN News Central starts right now.

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