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Inside Politics
Democrats Look To Win Texas District Re-Drawn To Help GOP; New Democratic Ad Features Virginia Giuffre's Family; Will New Hampshire Decide Control Of The Senate? Aired 12:30-1p ET
Aired October 05, 2026 - 12:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[12:30:00]
JOHNNY GARCIA (D), TEXAS CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: I don't view it as a liability. Look, currently, I'm meeting folks here in this district that are telling me the everyday prices of everything has gone through the roof and it's why we're seeing Latinos come back to our party.
Here in South Central Texas, being able to make it to Sunday to afford your barbacoa and Big Red means a whole lot to folks in this district, to include the diesel prices that we're seeing at the gas pumps when we go fill up our vehicles.
Folks here in South Central Texas aren't able to make it to work and come back home with the gas prices that we're seeing these days. Folks aren't able to go and fill up their prescription medications these days and it's why I feel very optimistic that we're seeing the 16- point swing shift in Latinos come back to our party that's ultimately going to be the deciding factor on November 3rd.
MANU RAJU, CNN ANCHOR: But why do you think there has been -- there's still a negative perception of your party? Why does that still exist? In -- are you concerned, for instance, about the leftward shift in your party, the socialist wing of your party? Does that concern you as a Democrat?
GARCIA: By all means. What may work in certain areas of the nation regarding DSA isn't going to work here in District 35. Look, I feel very optimistic because we know that the Democratic Party got it wrong here in South Central Texas during this last admin -- during the 2024 election.
We got to see how Democrats failed us here on the border, but we're also seeing that this targeted enforcement that is continuing to go after everybody else but the criminals, these are the things that people feel very strongly about --
RAJU: Yes.
GARCIA: -- to include our builders here in this district that are just fed up with not only the tariffs but the targeted enforcement that is affecting our construction sites here in Texas.
RAJU: To that --
GARCIA: And that's why I know --
RAJU: Yes, I'm sorry to interrupt but I want to ask you about that point specifically about immigration enforcement because there have been the growing calls in your party to abolish ICE and that's going to be a huge issue if Democrats do recapture the House.
You have resisted those calls to abolish ICE. Will you fight your party on this issue if you become a House member?
GARCIA: Absolutely. As a sheriff's deputy that has served and protected my community for nearly two decades, I understand how important it is to have a strong border and keep our communities safe. But under this administration and with the failure of Senate and House Republicans on their failures to use ICE to keep our communities safe, they're continuing to go after everybody but the hardened criminals.
They've targeted five-year-old kids like Liam Ramos, high school-age students that are nearly two weeks away from crossing the stage. This isn't what targeted enforcement looks like. And as a sheriff's deputy, the only one running in the nation for Congress, I'm going to bring this unique skill set with me to make sure that we're not defunding law enforcement but we're actually fighting for and championing public safety to keep our communities safe here in Texas.
RAJU: Has Trump done a good job securing the border?
GARCIA: I think folks feel that the attention placed on the border has been different under this administration versus how it was in 2024, but we're also seeing that tariffs are wrecking our economy. They're hurting businesses to include our barbecue restaurants and those folks that are trying to make housing more affordable and it's why we need change come November 3rd.
And the only way to do so is by helping us across the finish line. And I'm urging everybody here watching this interview to please visit votejohnnygarcia.com because it's going to take everybody supporting my campaign for us to win back the House majority this midterm election.
RAJU: If you do win your race, your first vote will be the next House speaker. Would Hakeem Jeffries have your vote?
GARCIA: He will. He's doing a tremendous job with the minority as we're in right now. He's doing everything to make sure that the issues that are affecting everyday families is our priority. And when we win the midterm election, we're going to have to end these tariffs.
We're going to have to make health care more affordable. We're going to have to make sure that we're not creating and pushing our nation's troops into more forever wars. These are the issues that are affecting working-class families here in my district and it's why I feel very strongly that I'm going to win this race.
RAJU: All right. Well, Johnny Garcia, we're going to have to leave it there. Thank you so much for your time this afternoon.
And we have invited his Republican opponent Carlos De La Cruz to join us too. We hope to have him on before the election.
All right. Coming up for us, President Trump campaigned on releasing the Epstein files but now his fellow Republicans are feeling the brunt of the administration's bungled release. That's next.
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[12:39:30]
RAJU: The House Democratic campaign arm is up with a new ad today bringing back one of President Trump's biggest liabilities, his tied to Jeffrey Epstein. And this features a highly personal story.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SKY ROBERTS, VIRGINIA GIUFFRE'S BROTHER: My sister Virginia was one of Jeffrey Epstein's victims. She spent her life trying to expose the truth. After she died, we promised to carry on her fight.
AMANDA ROBERTS, VIRGINIA GIUFFRE'S SISTER-IN-LAW: But our own Congressman Jeff Crank refused to meet with us. Then when he had the chance to expose the truth and release the Epstein files, he repeatedly voted to cover them up.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[12:40:02]
RAJU: Should be Congressman Jeff Crank is trying to fend off Democrat Jessica Killin in the Colorado Springs area district? The Cook Political Report rates it as lean Republican.
My excellent reporters are back. So, Arlette, you've been on the trail a lot talking to voters about this issue about the Epstein files, release of the Epstein files, how Trump has handled it. Is this an effective strategy? Does this actually resonate with voters beyond the Democratic base?
ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I think that when I talk to voters out on the trail, so many people are pointing to the economy. I think that efforts like this try to put Epstein front and center. It's trying to make this argument that it's the economy and other issues.
We know that for Republicans, there was a lot of frustration with the fact that the Epstein files weren't immediately released, as the President had promised. He had downplayed a lot of the conversation around that. So this is, for Democrats, certainly, an area where they could try to make a play for additional votes.
I was also taking a look before we came on the air through Ad Impact, and there are close to 70 Epstein-related ads that are running just this year. So Democrats certainly feel that this is something that they can push forward, and it also plays into the corruption messaging that we've heard from a lot of Democratic candidates.
TIA MITCHELL, WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF, THE ATLANTA JOURNAL- CONSTITUTION: Yes, what I'm saying -- and Senator Ossoff actually does this to great effect. What he says is that Epstein was a distraction away from the economic issues, that Republicans under Donald Trump and the Epstein class, as Ossoff calls it, were so focused on protecting their own, protecting the rich, protecting the powerful, and forgetting about the little guy.
And so, that's what I think is the message that becomes effective, kind of similar to what Trump did in 2024 with making the immigration crackdown an economic message. So they take the Epstein files, and they say, because Republicans were so focused on protecting the powerful, they weren't focused on what you want them to care about, which is the economy and the cost of living. And so that's where I think it does kind of connect to the greater issue that is top of mind for voters.
RAJU: And this ad from -- you know, while there have been a lot of ads that have referenced Epstein, or as Tia was saying about how Ossoff has just kind of sprinkled this into his messaging against the Republicans. What's different here is that you have an ad of Virginia Giuffre's family, looking direct to camera making that kind of appeal.
Actually, I was told by Democrats that this is a first time that they've actually had done an ad like this, where the family's talking direct to camera and the specific race. They have ties to this Colorado Springs district. They're actually having a press conference this afternoon with the Democratic candidate, Jessica Killin.
This is a Trump-plus-nine district, Burgess. Is that -- how do you see this playing in a Republican-leaning district? And can other Democrats use this to their advantage?
BURGESS EVERETT, CONGRESSIONAL BUREAU CHIEF, SEMAFOR: Well, we're talking about who's unpopular, right? The Democratic Party is not popular. Donald Trump's not popular. Who's the least popular figure in American politics? It's got to be Jeffrey Epstein.
RAJU: Yes.
EVERETT: And so linking a Republican like Jeff Crank, who has this personal connection, they're calling him out for not meeting with the victims' families. You know, you can see that this is just another way of tying Republicans to someone who's not popular and dragging them down.
But to go back to what you all both said, when I talk to folks about what they're most worried about in the Republican Party, it's economy, economy, economy --
RAJU: Yes.
EVERETT: -- and the Iran war. I don't hear them worried about the Jeffrey Epstein attacks --
RAJU: Yes.
EVERETT: -- hurting them. So I do think that's an interesting wrinkle here.
RAJU: Yes, no question about that.
All right, we're going to have to go to break. Because coming up, if Democrats want to win the Senate, they have to hold the line in New Hampshire.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN SUNUNU (R), NEW HAMPSHIRE SENATE CANDIDATE: When you get desperate, you'll say anything.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RAJU: My report from the Granite State Trail, that's next.
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[12:48:10]
RAJU: While Democrats are focusing on flipping states like Texas and Maine, Republicans are setting their sights on a Democratic held seat in New Hampshire. I hit the campaign trail in the Granite State.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RAJU: This is the nightmare scenario for Democrats. They have a great night on November 3rd. But something goes wrong, and that's here in New Hampshire. And that's because of John Sununu, the former Republican senator. Someone's trying to win his seat back after losing in 2008, now going up against a congressman of eight years, Democrat Chris Pappas.
Are you worried? You know, Sununu name obviously goes a long way here in this state.
DONNA CATALANO, NEW HAMPSHIRE VOTER: Oh, yes, absolutely. There's a lot of Sununus. But we're done with Sununus.
RAJU: Sununu is trying to battle all of the headwinds that Republicans are facing across the map, particularly here in the Northeast, a state, a blue state, a place that Donald Trump has lost three times.
But Sununu has a different brand. He is someone who's comes from a political dynasty of sorts in New Hampshire. His father was a governor. His brother was a governor. He is a former senator, and that name still carries some weight.
How hard is it to run against that brand?
REP. CHRIS PAPPAS (D), NEW HAMPSHIRE SENATE CANDIDATE: Yes. Well, he doesn't put his first name on his signs because he's hoping to stoke the confusion about which Sununu is on the ballot.
RAJU: You think that's a strategy? PAPPAS: Well, yes. His brother was governor for eight years, was a popular, pretty moderate governor. On balance, John is a much more conservative guy, was down the line for George W. Bush when he was our senator before.
RAJU: Are you trying to confuse voters?
SUNUNU: No, that's the -- look, I'm using the same signs I've ever used. That's actually a very silly question, Manu. I mean --
RAJU: He said it. I didn't say it.
SUNUNU: Yes. Well --
RAJU: And they're running ads about it too.
SUNUNU: Look, when you get desperate, you'll say anything. And the fact of the matter is, I'm running ads with my picture, my voice, talking to the people of New Hampshire about how I'm going to tackle affordability.
[12:50:10]
RAJU (voice-over): Even with several GOP seats in their reach. It's two Democratic seats, causing them deep anxiety as polls show a tight race for the open New Hampshire seat currently held by retiring Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen and GOP groups outspending Democrats here and nearly everywhere.
RAJU: Democrats see an expanding map. Should they think twice before trying to throw money into other states and focus on the seat they need to keep?
PAPPAS: I think the majority won't be flipped if we don't hold this seat in New Hampshire. Right now, we're being outspent anywhere from two to three to one on TV and on digital. And that's the situation that most Democratic candidates are facing across the country.
RAJU (voice-over): On the airwaves in New Hampshire are many GOP attacks like these.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Chris Pappas looked voters in the eye and lied. Pappas dated an Amazon lobbyist, voted on bills that Amazon lobbied on.
RAJU: Should you have done anything differently, voted differently, recused yourself, disclosed your relationship, anything like that?
PAPPAS: It's been seven years since he had that job, and my votes are always for the people of New Hampshire. So, you know, I disclose everything. I follow all the rules, and I'm going to continue to do that.
And what's really rich is you have $60 million coming into New Hampshire Senate race from Trump, from Elon Musk, that want to maintain control of the U.S. Senate. RAJU (voice-over): For Pappas, who once ran his family's iconic Manchester restaurant, his task is to convince independent-minded voters that he's not tarnished by the image of his own party, including in the town of Salem, where Trump won three times.
LAURIE WARNOCK, NEW HAMPSHIRE VOTER: I'd like to tell you that I really am a very strong supporter of the Pappas agenda, but I don't think he has always served as well as -- as well. So --
RAJU: Why do you say that?
WARNOCK: -- I think that's why it's a toss-up. I think it's very easy to get caught up in the partisan politics and be more interested in representing your team than your state.
RAJU: Is the Democratic brand toxic here in New Hampshire?
PAPPAS: It's not in a good place nationally. But what New Hampshire --
RAJU: (INAUDIBLE).
PAPPAS: -- what New Hampshire voters know is that I'm a different kind of Democrat. You know, they see me as someone who's a small business owner, who's a community member.
RAJU: Not part of the national --
PAPAS: Who's --
RAJU: -- a separate from the national --
PAPPAS: Who's been a pragmatic voice in Congress. And I've stood up to my party, as I've mentioned, on issues where they're wrong.
RAJU: Chris Pappas very much trying to make this race about cost of living. Here in the nation's largest pin maker, they're hearing concerns about the impact that tariffs and the Iran war are having on their bottom line.
ADRIA BAGSHAW, NEW HAMPSHIRE VOTER: Frankly, everything that's been promised not only hasn't been delivered, but Trump has done the reverse of what he's promised to do. So I have a feeling there's going to be a pretty big swing towards blue.
RAJU: Now Democrats, they're trying to turn the focus to Sununu's career after he lost his Senate race in 2008, when he worked as a policy adviser for the D.C. firm Akin Gump.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: After voting for special interests --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He got kicked out of the Senate.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And spent the next 15 years cashing in.
RAJU: And I caught up with Sununu here at a county fair in Deerfield, New Hampshire, a Republican stronghold. Are people concerned here about the revolving door of politics?
SUNUNU: Look, I'm an engineer by training. I worked in manufacturing, technology, ran the operations of a manufacturing company in Manchester successfully before I was elected to Congress. After leaving the Senate, I've gone back to technology.
Look, I'm very proud of the work I've done in the private sector. I've never lobbied any member of Congress on any issue for any company. And Chris Pappas knows that's true.
RAJU: Now, even though Sununu backed Nikki Haley in the 2024 presidential primary, he even wrote an op-ed bashing Trump with the headline that said, "Trump is a loser." Trump did give Sununu his endorsement this cycle, giving Sununu a big boost in that Republican primary.
You also wrote an op-ed in 2024 with the headline that said, "Trump is a loser." Do you stand by what was said in that piece, really criticizing him?
SUNUNU: Sure. Look, I didn't support Donald Trump in 2016. I didn't support him in 2024. Yes, I supported Nikki Haley.
So this is New Hampshire, right? You stand up for the candidate that you believe in. And my focus again --
RAJU: But he supported you -- Trump.
SUNUNU: He endorsed me, although frankly, I've never met him.
RAJU: Never met him, never talked to him.
SUNUNU: No, no, no. I think, you know, he knew I was going to win the race. And nobody loves a good batting average better than the President. And, look, if the President pushes policies that I think are bad for New Hampshire, I'll oppose him.
RAJU: Yes.
SUNUNU: If he pushes policies that I think are good for New Hampshire, I'll support them.
RAJU: And now Sununu is careful in how he navigates the Trump factor in this blue-leaning state.
Do you think, though, when it comes to Iran and tariffs, should the President end the Iran war? Should he end his war with Canada on tariffs?
[12:55:03]
SUNUNU: Look, I said from the very beginning, it was a mistake to go in when we didn't have a plan for keeping the strait open. The focus now needs to be get the strait moving, get the oil commerce flowing. I think our allies in the region could be doing even more to support that.
And look, we never should have picked a trade fight with Canada. And, again, you know, that's always been my position because it doesn't make sense for the people here in New Hampshire.
RAJU: Would you vote to limit the President's war powers in Iran if you had a chance?
SUNUNU: Look, I would support any effort to get us out of Iran, keep the strait open, and again focus on the source of funding for terrorist proxies in the region.
RAJU: Do you want Trump to campaign with you?
SUNUNU: I've said many times, I don't need anyone to come into New Hampshire to campaign for me.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
RAJU: All right. Thanks for joining Inside Politics. CNN News Central starts after a very quick break.
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