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Politics Of 9/11 Come Roaring Back Ahead Of Anniversary; Commerce Secy. Lutnick Becomes Engine Of Trump Election Agenda; DOJ Sends Letters To States Demanding Election Records Be Preserved; Latino Voters Could Shape Colorado's 8th District. Aired 12:30-1p ET

Aired September 10, 2026 - 12:30   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- Abdul El-Sayed gives comfort to that hatred. He campaigns with it. This election, remember what is at stake.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[12:30:08]

MANU RAJU, CNN ANCHOR: And El-Sayed's spokesman tells Axios that, quote, "Abdul has always unequivocally condemned terrorism and the September 11th attacks. Mike Rogers' attempts to represent Abdul's beliefs are bad-faith lies."

CNN's Political Director David Chalian is in his office with some thoughts on all this. So David, does that brand of politics still work?

DAVID CHALIAN, CNN WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF & POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Well, I guess we're going to find out, Manu, when we see the votes counted in this Michigan Senate race. Because Mike Rogers seems to be leaning into this. I mean, we, you know, we expect this is going to be a big theme of his remarks at the Republican National Convention today in Dallas.

Donald Trump did exactly this attack on Abdul El-Sayed last night from the stage in Dallas. So this clearly is a theme. And we'll see if it has resonance. But you are right, it does evoke like a different time in American politics. This sort of defined a generation of American politics, the politics of 9/11.

Take a look at this ad that was sort of central to George W. Bush's theme for his reelection campaign in 2004.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In an increasingly dangerous world, even after the first terrorist attack on America, John Kerry and the liberals in Congress voted to slash America's intelligence operations, cuts so deep they would have weakened America's defenses. And weakness attracts those who are waiting to do America harm. (END VIDEO CLIP)

CHALIAN: I mean, the menacing aspect of what George W. Bush was doing in 2004 about not trying to switch parties in the middle of the fight against terror is sort of what Rogers is trying to remind voters about now in some way with Abdul El-Sayed, that if a vote for him goes in a different direction, that may make you less safe. And it's something that El-Sayed is clearly going to have to work with and defend against in this cycle. But we're in a different time. So I don't know how it will play with voters.

RAJU: Yes, great flashback. I mean, amazing that was 22 years ago. And a very effective ad, too, at that point in the campaign, which is actually a closely-fought one. And, David, of course, tomorrow is the 25th anniversary of 9/11.

On the night of 9/11, just hours after the Twin Towers fell, I mean, I remember this vividly. Dozens of members of Congress, they gathered to sing God Bless America on the steps of the Capitol. Do you think, David, that we could actually see a bipartisan moment like this again in today's political atmosphere?

CHALIAN: You know, God forbid we have another massive terrorist attack on the United States like 9/11. But if something catastrophic like that were to happen, even in our polarized times, Manu, I'm not willing to suggest that this kind of moment that happened on September 12 may not be able to exist again in America.

I do think we, you know, the country would unify in a moment. I think what we would probably see, given how polarized, how nasty our politics have gotten, maybe by two days later it'll sort of retreat into corners, but I'd rather us avoid having to learn this at all because we wouldn't want to see another attack. But I don't rule out the notion that America can find a way in a crisis to heal across some of the political divide, even if temporarily.

RAJU: Yes. God forbid it happens. Let's hope it never does. And we'll see how the country reacts if that tragic day repeats itself.

All right. David Chalian, thank you so much for that.

And President Trump wants to remake elections in America, and he's trusting one man to do it -- Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. We'll have new CNN reporting when we come back.

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[12:38:19]

RAJU: The election deniers aren't knocking at the door anymore. They've been invited inside. That is how one nonpartisan watchdog described developments at the Commerce Department that are the subject of some excellent new reporting from my colleagues Gabe Cohen, Jeremy Herb, Sean Lyngaas and Phil Mattingly.

In the piece, how Howard Lutnick's Commerce Department became an unlikely engine of Trump's election agenda, Cohen digs into Howard Lutnick's key role in the President's efforts to reshape American elections, including meeting with a pair of prominent election deniers who want to ban most, if not all, voting machines.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COL. CONRAD REYNOLDS (RET.), PODCAST HOST: The Secretary of Commerce has the ability to say, hey, this can't be used, this machine cannot be used because it is against -- it is a threat to our national security. That's what the message we need to get to the Secretary Lutnick.

And he listened and he took notes and he called in somebody to help write more notes and he was shocked at what we had to say and he said he would be getting on it. So we'll see what that is.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: And the lead author of that piece, Gabe Cohen, joins me now. Gabe, how deep into the planning is the Trump administration into potentially going over and seizing voting machines or doing something to these voting machines and actually implementing this in time for the November midterms?

GABE COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's a great question and one that we don't exactly know the answer to. What I can tell you is it is something that has been floated for a long time by Trump allies, including senior officials inside this administration. And as part of this reporting about the Department of Commerce, we had uncovered these emails dating back to last summer from these two conservative activists, one of whom you heard on that clip from their podcast.

[12:40:04]

These emails showed that they had meetings behind closed doors with White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles as well as some other senior officials where they made this pitch about banning voting machines and the way they said it could be done was through Howard Lutnick and the Commerce Department because they have a certain amount of authority over supply chains.

And that because these voting machines have Chinese components, they could be declared a national security threat. To be clear, it doesn't look like any significant action has been taken. We've heard Markwayne Mullin talk about it. But what you heard in that podcast is one year after those meetings were happening, these two activists are saying, well, we've taken our pitch directly to Lutnick himself.

RAJU: Yes, they met with him.

COHEN: Yes, he gave us two hours and he told us he would be getting on it. So it could be the next shoe to drop. We don't know. But also I think it's important to note as part of our reporting, we really wanted to look at all the ways the Commerce Department and Howard Lutnick have been involved in this election agenda. And what we found is that he has been at the center of some really significant initiatives. Take, for example, those new mail ballot restrictions that we're waiting any day now for the Supreme Court to rule on. Well, those tie back to a March executive order from the President. And when he signed it, there was one cabinet secretary in the room, and that was Howard Lutnick.

And our sources tell us that he and his team were the driving force behind that order and those directives that are already causing a lot of stress and potential turmoil for the midterms.

RAJU: Yes.

COHEN: And then there is that Census Bureau analysis that came out last month about non-citizens voting in 2020. That came from a group of partisan analysts that were installed at the Census Bureau by the Department of Commerce. So, again, they've had their fingerprints on a lot of this. Voting machines, though, could be the next shoe to drop here.

RAJU: And, Toluse, this feeds into reporting that you just did recently about how this is a long game, as you report, that this is not just an effort back in this election cycle, in 2020, but also in 2028. Part of your story says, at the very least, the midterms could serve as a trial run for this coalition ahead of the 2028 presidential race.

TOLUSE OLORUNNIPA, WHITE HOUSE BUREAU CHIEF, THE WASHINGTON POST: Yes, and that coalition includes people at the federal level, at the Commerce Department, as Gabe and his colleagues reported, also at the state level, also at the local level. You've seen election deniers that are -- were empowered by Donald Trump, some people that were part of the January 6th insurrection, who were outcast six years ago.

They have slowly made their way into the election infrastructure of this country. They are serving on election boards at the county level. They're serving on election boards at the state level. They've been empowered and put into office by Donald Trump. And this is the first election where they have positions both at the federal level and at the state and local level, and they can actually make a difference.

RAJU: Yes. And what's interesting about Gabe's reporting, too, is that about how Lutnick is in the middle of all this. We have not really heard from Lutnick being in the middle of this before before. We've heard Todd Blanche. Todd Blanche was at the Republican convention last night. You don't see an attorney general campaigning at a convention. He's there last night.

And then news today about the DOJ sending a bunch of letters to states to try to seize their election records. So now we see all these cabinet secretaries playing a significant role in this effort, and Howard Lutnick in the middle of it, too.

EDWARD-ISAAC DOVERE, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Look, I remember just around this time six years ago, someone had flagged to me something called the Electoral Count Act of 1887 and said you should write about this. It was in the middle of the 2020 elections. And people are thinking about this. It might be a thing.

I wrote about it. People said to me I was crazy to write about it. That's the -- what January 6th was hinged on, right? All of these things are efforts to either create or activate on sometimes arcane bits of executive orders or legislation that exists and find ways to throw monkey wrenches into the election process. And it is not for the sake of anything other than getting their candidates to be the winners of those elections.

RAJU: Final thought?

LEIGH ANN CALDWELL, CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT, PUCK: That the President and the White House is using the entirety of government to try to undermine the elections, to perhaps try to win the elections. And that is --

RAJU: And if they don't, and then we'll how they --

CALDWELL: Yes.

RAJU: -- they respond.

CALDWELL: Yes.

RAJU: That's a big question as well.

All right, great reporting, both of you guys. Thank you so much for bringing that.

And up next for us, John King visits a Colorado battleground where President Trump surged with Latino voters in 2024. But now, uncertainty. Will they re-elect their Republican congressman?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Has Congress done anything in his first term to help you?

MIKO RIOS, COLORADO VOTER: Not that I can feel. Nothing comes to mind.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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[12:48:35]

RAJU: It's a midterm battleground with a 40 percent Latino population primed to be a bellwether in the fight to control Congress. Voters in Colorado's 8th district will choose between Republican incumbent Congressman Gabe Evans and Progressive Former State Representative Manny Rutinel. So will President Trump's 2024 gains with Latino voters stick? John King is all over the map in Colorado.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KING (voice-over): Platteville, Colorado, population, 3,000. A frontier outpost back when the railroad spread west. Now a quiet ranching town with a giant say in the country's direction.

Miko Rios took charge of the Silver Spur when his mother died last year. He is a registered Democrat and a 2024 Trump voter.

RIOS: But the charisma caught my attention. I felt like we were a little stagnant for a while, and I wanted some change.

KING: Secret recipe --

RIOS: Secret.

KING: -- just like the colonel.

RIOS: Exactly.

KING: OK, got it.

KING (voice-over): But margins are down and costs keep going up for everything, including flour for the homemade bread. Keep going up, despite Trump's 2024 promise they would come down quickly.

RIOS: I don't believe it has changed. The economy I feel like right now is hard for small businesses, and that's what our supplies, our insurance, our cost of living has gone up so much.

KING (voice-over): Platteville is in Colorado's 8th congressional district. Republican Gabe Evans is the first term incumbent, and the race is a toss up.

[12:50:03]

KING: Has Congress done anything in his first term to help you?

RIOS: Not that I can feel. Nothing comes to mind.

KING (voice-over): And yet registered Democrat Rios is undecided.

KING: Would you prefer a more moderate candidate, personally?

RIOS: I would.

KING (voice-over): Manny Rutinel is the Democratic candidate, a progressive who beat a moderate in the Democratic primary.

KING: When he was in college, he criticized beef and cattle and that kind of farming, ranching. Is that going to hurt him?

RIOS: I think so.

KING: Does that come up around here?

RIOS: It does. Our community is strong on their cattle, their ranches, their livestock, and their crops. It's something they take it as a foundation of this country.

KING (voice-over): Rutinel says his views have evolved, and he believes ranchers in the district use appropriate and sustainable methods.

KING: This is a complicated district, stretching from the fast-growing Denver suburbs to more rural farming and ranching communities like this. It is 40 percent Hispanic, by far, Colorado's most diverse congressional district. And Colorado 8 is among the nation's most competitive districts. A Democrat won here in 2022 by 1,600 votes. Then Colorado 8 flipped red in 2024 by 2,400 votes.

KING (voice-over): Greeley is the district's conservative northern edge. Energy and food processing drive the economy here. Esmerelda Ramirez Rey is a big fan of the President and of Congressman Evans. But beyond that, she's beyond frustrated with Washington.

ESMERELDA RAMIREZ REY, COLORADO VOTER: The rest of them just sit there, and they grow stagnant, and they do absolutely nothing.

KING: What's the right word? Help me. Is it forgotten, ignored?

RAMIREZ REY: They get in there, and they forget all of their promises. And they get very arrogant and just forget that they're there to represent the people. It seems to be that they get there, and it's all self-serving.

KING: But you don't believe Congressman Evans has been caught by that spell yet?

RAMIREZ REY: No. No, I don't.

KING (voice-over): Ramirez Rey is a court translator now, but she came to the United States as a migrant farm worker, all for a secure border and all for deporting criminals. But sometimes troubled, the President doesn't seem to distinguish between the bad and the hardworking.

RAMIREZ REY: Nobody is perfect. And, I mean, he comes from an ivory tower in New York. He's not going to understand what the common people go through on a day-to-day basis.

KING: Should he understand that? Should he try to do a better job to understand that?

RAMIREZ REY: He should, right, but it isn't just the President. It's all of the elected officials. They are -- they have lost their way.

KING (voice-over): Adams County is the blue southern end of Colorado 8, suburban neighborhoods within sight of the Denver skyline.

KING: If you're the Democrat in Colorado 8, which is Manny Rutinel this year, this is where you need to win, and you need to win by a healthy margin.

KING (voice-over): Trump ran stronger among Latinos here in 2024, and that helped Congressman Evans.

KING: In 2026, a defining question, and then in 2028 and beyond, do Latino voters continue to trend Republican, or do they swing back? The answer to that question will decide this congressional district this year, and will have a huge role in what happens in 2028 and beyond because of the growing power of the Hispanic vote.

KING (voice-over): You see a lot of this here, new homes, which means construction jobs.

ALEJANDRA SPRAY, CEO, HISPANIC CONTRACTORS OF COLORADO: Gas is another thing for construction. The impact of gas in oil prices, not only in the fleets that we have, but also the materials we have. So I don't know if people feel like it's not what I voted, it's not what I was promised.

KING (voice-over): Alejandra Spray is CEO of the Hispanic Contractors of Colorado. She describes Congressman Evans as pro-business and accessible and noted his support of legislation that would have helped undocumented workers get legal status.

KING: The House Republicans are not for that. The President of the United States is not for that. Does that put him kind of in a bind back home?

SPRAY: I believe it does.

KING (voice-over): And this is a remarkable sign of the times. Fight back is what challengers say. Gabe Evans is the incumbent. And red is usually the Republican color, not blue.

MANNY TEJADA, COLORADO VOTER: There's like not that many Hispanic- signed businesses catering to the Hispanic market.

KING (voice-over): Manny Tejada and his wife, Alexandra, are active in Hispanic community organizations. He is a Republican, but knows a lot of longtime Democrats who voted for Trump in 2024 because of inflation and because of Biden immigration policies.

M. TEJADA: When they opened the borders, that inflated, you know, like millions of migrants that you will see, you know, on the streets. So Hispanics have been here for decades. They saw that and they didn't like that.

ALEXANDRA TEJADA, COLORADO VOTER: Yes, so the cost of the aluminum, I want to say three, four years, it's double or more.

KING (voice-over): Now costs are still going up, and Tejada says it is Trump's immigration policy and tone driving the conversation.

KING: Do you think it's going to swing back to the Democrats this time?

M. TEJADA: I think so. I think so.

KING: And the reasons why? People disappointed in Trump or disappointed in Evans?

M. TEJADA: You know what, Trump -- mainly Trump. We're hardworking people, we're people of faith. So when you start attacking, you know, our community, then everybody, you know, comes together and says, hey, this is not right. SCOTT BUSTIOS, COLORADO VOTER: You would only put it east-facing because you had consistent sunrise to midday year-round.

[12:55:13]

KING (voice-over): Scott Bustios is a Democrat whose push for change is personal.

KING: So you've been laid off three times in how long?

BUSTIOS: Three times in eight years, but two times in less than a year and a half.

KING (voice-over): This is Thornton, just outside Denver. It grew 20 percent between 2010 and 2020, but Bustios sees signs of a slowdown.

BUSTIOS: Several houses are for sale right now. People have had to lower their asking price. They're staying on market a little bit longer. Gas prices are higher. Food costs are higher. Insurance rates are higher. A viable industry like renewables is downsizing. The job sector is struggling.

KING (voice-over): He voted for Rutinel in the primary, yet Bustios is a little worried.

BUSTIOS: Manny Rutinel, he needs to get volunteers to go out. They need to do grassroots.

KING: You don't feel a blue wave right now?

BUSTIOS: Here in Thornton? No. This one's a fight, and Manny Rutinel and his team, they -- I haven't had someone knock on my door yet.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RAJU: All right, thank you, John.

And thank you for joining Inside Politics. CNN News Central starts after a very quick break.

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