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Poll Shows Healthcare and Gas Costs Tied as Voters' Top Economic Worries; Students Protest Cornell's Handling of Gang Rape Allegations; Pennsylvania Measles Outbreak Surges to 1,000-Plus Cases This Year. Aired 10-10:30a ET

Aired October 06, 2026 - 10:00   ET

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

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PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now, it's the economy, stupid, that famous line from James Carville. New polls reveal the affordability issues that matter most to the voters. This as president Trump pivots his midterm message.

And he said what? Backlash and anger after the president suggests Iran could take out Los Angeles and San Diego.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Plus, measles outbreak. New York declares a disaster emergency as Pennsylvania's cases now top 1,000. It's the largest number the state has seen in decades.

And death by firing squad, the president signs off on the execution of the man who killed 13 people at the Fort Hood Army Base in Texas.

Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer with Pamela Brown, and you're in The Situation Room.

We begin this hour with a brand new look at what's really weighing in on voters' minds.

BROWN: As we head into the final weeks before midterm elections, there is a new KFF poll that shows affordability is still the top issue for most voters. Healthcare and gas costs are virtually tied as the main economic concerns, with food and groceries close behind, close behind.

And there is a major warning sign here for Republicans. Voters actually trust Democrats more to handle those issues, with Democrats holding nearly a 2-1 advantage when it comes to healthcare. And that was the backdrop for President Trump's rally in Nebraska last night, where he notably addressed economic concerns amid these growing fears from the GOP that a Senate seat there could flip to Democrats.

The president signed an executive order targeting diesel costs, which have risen 68 percent since the war with Iran began, and he promised the order would bring quick relief.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: The typical trucker will save over $100 every time they fill up, so it's more than $100 each time. And farmers will also save millions and millions of dollars.

And this order will also drive down the cost of all goods, including grocery prices, very substantially, and it's an honor to do it. And we're not going to need it long. I hope we're not going to need it long, because your prices are plummeting, and they're going to really be plummeting in just a little while.

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BLITZER: We will see.

Let's go live right now to CNN White House Correspondent Alayna Treena. She's over at the White House for us. Alayna, the president has repeatedly called the focus on affordability, in, in his words, he says that's simply a hoax. But now it appears that he's leaning into it out there on the campaign trail.

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right. And he's not just leaning into it, he's also being more blunt, I'd argue, in some of his more recent rallies, acknowledging that prices are very high right now, specifically gas prices. And he continues to argue that once the Iran war is over, that they will come down. Of course, we are now more than six months into that war.

I do want you to listen, though, to some of the rhetoric he's been using, specifically when it comes to this issue of affordability and, of course, the economy. Listen.

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TRUMP: There's no economy like this economy.

We don't seem to be able to get the word across.

I'm going out, because nobody's selling it. I'm doing -- we're doing an extremely poor job of promotion.

We're doing a great job in running the country, but we're not doing a good job of public relations.

It was just announced, we have the best economic numbers of any president in the history of our country.

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TREENE: So, you can hear there, he's now arguing as well that this is more of a messaging failure than it is a failure on policy.

But I will say, I would just look at where the president has traveled, Wolf and Pamela, in recent days. You look at Texas, Oklahoma, Alabama, Ohio. Last night he was in Nebraska. These are all states that the president won three times, in 2016, in 2020, and in 2024. If you asked Republicans about six months ago, a couple months ago, they would've argued that these are all pretty safe races, that the president doesn't need to be spending time, a very important resource in the lead up to a midterm elections, that he doesn't need to be spending time in. But now he is, and he's on defense, because these issues, particularly as you put up in that polling in the polling from today, gas prices, affordability, the economy, all things that voters care very much about with just days to go until November 3rd.

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And so the president is really trying to do one thing, and when I talk to members of his political operation, they tell me the key strategy for him all comes down to turnout. The president is going to these pretty red states, these pretty conservative districts because he needs to gin up as much enthusiasm among Republicans as he can. That's the only way they believe that they'll be able to help boost Republicans come the fall.

BLITZER: And, Alayna, amidst all of this, the president is now receiving very heavy backlash this morning for comments he made about Los Angeles and San Diego, right?

TREENE: Yes. And, look, this appeared to be, last night, an unscripted moment. I think this kind of shows the dangers of going off script and making these types of aside, but I want you to listen to what exactly the president said when talking about some of these cities and how Iran could be targeting them.

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TRUMP: I want to see a tremendous victory. You want to see a tremendous victory, because it verifies all the things we did. And, again, remember, with a war it's just artificial. It's a little bit high. It's a small price to pay for keeping the world safe, keeping our country safe. They can take out a city. Let them take -- let it -- let them take out Los Angeles. Let them take out San Diego. That's -- this is a very small price to pay, and it's going to be over very soon.

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TREENE: You could see there when he was talking about Los Angeles and San Diego how he was not looking at the teleprompter. Look, we did hear from the White House communications director, Steven Cheung. He posted this on social media in response to these comments. He said that the media freakout over President Trump's comment is not rooted in reality. He was clearly stating U.S. cities would have been threatened if a nuclear Iran hadn't been stopped.

I will say we have heard a lot of criticism and backlash from some of these local leaders on the West Coast. Gavin Newsom, of course, the governor of California, he argued that Donald Trump is now saying our foreign enemies should take out Los Angeles and San Diego. You heard similar things from Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria, all of them responding to these comments. But, again, these are the types of dangers that the president keeps facing when he does go out on the trail and goes off script and, and doesn't exactly focus on the messaging that his team and his advisers have really drilled into him. They create these kinds of issues and controversies that media like us are talking about the next day. Wolf, Pamela?

BLITZER: All right. Alayna Treene, thank you very, very much. Pamela?

BROWN: Happening now, anger spills over at Cornell University as students and faculty protest the handling of an alleged gang rape on campus two years ago. The demonstration comes amid new reporting on a conversation between the alleged victim, known as Jane Doe, and a member of the fraternity where she claims to have been assaulted by seven members.

CNN's Brynn Gingras is here with all the latest on this quickly developing story. Brynn, what more can you tell us about this latest phone call to surface?

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Pam. So, this phone call is being reported by ABC News, saying it took place on November 7th, 2024 between Jane Doe and one of the men in the fraternity brothers, one of the men that is named as a defendant in that recently filed civil lawsuit. November 7th is three weeks after this alleged incident happened at the Chi Phi fraternity house at Cornell University.

I want you to hear the voice of this fraternity member, and we'll follow up with more of the conversation that followed according to ABC News. Take a listen.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm so sorry about all, like the backlash you're getting from this, by the way.

Oh, dude, I'm, I'm so sorry. No, I'm very -- like I feel so bad for you, dude.

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GINGRAS: Yes. And to that response, Jane Doe, according to ABC, says, I was completely and totally intoxicated and then given multiple sedatives, and then I was surrounded by upwards of eight to ten men. This is classified as a gang rape.

Then the tone of the conversation seems to change if you listen to this audio, again, obtained by ABC.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why? Wait, what's -- can I ask like what's the purpose for why you decided to call me?

(END VIDEO CLIP) GINGRAS: Yes. So, again, you're starting to see little trickles of information coming out about this story, the investigation, hopefully by the attorney general's office able to uncover a lot of this, Pam. But certainly this is a new development as we hear more of these recordings coming out.

BROWN: And also, Brynn, while we have you, I want to learn more about that vote, that no-confidence vote that could be coming against the administration.

GINGRAS: Yes. So, we're learning from our Gloria Pazmino, who spoke to a faculty member, that there is this formal written statement that is going to be taken up by the full basically advisory board for the faculty members of Cornell University next week. And so far, it appears 40 faculty members have signed on saying they have no confidence in the job that the administration is doing and in its handling of this incident back in 2024.

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Now, just so you have an idea, this board can't exactly make changes, so to speak, but certainly puts a lot of pressure, right? If their objective was to get people to have reform or if they were to get people fired, say it's not necessarily they are able to do that. But, certainly, it's very important as they put pressure on.

And you could see these campus protests that took place and continue to take place, one, maybe even two, expected later today. Certainly this is something they're asking for.

BROWN: All right. Brynn Gingras, thank you so much. Wolf?

BLITZER: Still ahead, the U.S. is having its worst year for measles since 1991 as more states are now battling fast-moving outbreaks of the resurgent disease.

BROWN: And President Trump is downplaying concerns about waning support among Latino voters, a group that was critical to him getting a second term. The numbers tell a different story.

You're in the Situation Room. We'll be right back.

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BROWN: Happening now, a surge in measles cases. Pennsylvania just surpassed 1,000 new cases, marking the largest state outbreak in more than 30 years. Health officials say the Commonwealth's current outbreak started in April and includes nearly 200 hospitalizations and five deaths. They attribute the spread to low vaccination rates. And New York is declaring its first measles disaster emergency since cases began surging in 2025.

So, let's go live now to CNN Health Reporter Jacqueline Howard for all the details. What's going on here, Jacqueline? JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: Pamela, it really seems like these pockets of unvaccinated communities are driving this rise in measles cases that we're seeing across the country. And like you said, in Pennsylvania alone where an outbreak is ongoing, sadly, more than 1,000 people have gotten sick. And like you said, we've seen sadly five people die.

And just to put these numbers in perspective, in the year 2000, when the United States declared measles eliminated, in the quarter century that followed that, nationwide, there were only about 180 measles cases reported each year. But now, in 2026, we are seeing individual states reporting more than 100 cases at the state level, and the year isn't even over yet.

So, that's the situation that we're facing right now here in the United States, Pamela.

BROWN: Let's talk about New York. Governor Kathy Hochul issued an executive order declaring a statewide disaster emergency due to a growing number of measles cases across rural parts of the state. How many people have been sick with measles there so far this year?

HOWARD: That's right, Pamela. In the state of New York alone, we know that at least 108 people have gotten sick with measles. Among those cases, seven were confirmed in New York City.

And going back to that outbreak in Pennsylvania, in Pennsylvania, the outbreak is really concentrated in rural communities that border New York. And because this active outbreak is happening in their neighboring state, that's why Governor Hochul in New York says this in a statement, quote, after reviewing the latest data on measles cases in New York State, I am declaring a state disaster emergency to strengthen our ongoing efforts to confront this disease. No one should get seriously ill or die from a vaccine preventable disease. That is why I have taken steps to increase the number of health professionals who can vaccinate and test, end quote.

So, Pamela, this emergency declaration, what it does, it expands the pool of healthcare professionals in New York who are authorized to administer the measles vaccine. So, that group now includes paramedics and midwives and other health professionals. And this emergency declaration allows nurses to order measles tests.

So, it seems like the state is really focusing on vaccinating people who are unvaccinated and testing people with symptoms, and those two tools, vaccinations and testing, are what they're relying on to really combat this rise in measles cases at the moment.

BROWN: Jacqueline Howard, thank you. Wolf?

BLITZER: Coming up, President Trump approves the execution of Nidal Hasan, the man behind the deadly 2009 mass shooting at Fort Hood in Texas. And the chosen meth- method for his execution is one that hasn't been used since World War II.

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BLITZER: New this morning, President Trump has approved the U.S. Army's first execution by firing squad since World War II. Former Army Major Nidal Hasan admitted to carrying out the 2009 massacre over at Fort Hood in Texas. 13 people were killed, 32 people were wounded in the nation's deadliest mass shooting at an American military base.

CNN's Brian Todd is here with us in the situation room. So what happens next, Brian?

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they're going to set a time and a place for the execution, Wolf, Pamela that will be set by either Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth or by the Army secretary. We're going to get some clarity on that shortly, we hope.

This is just -- it has some extraordinary components to it all the way around here. This attack at Fort Hood occurred 17 years ago. Major Nidal Hasan was convicted of murder in 2013 and sentenced to death, so that was a long time ago as well. Finally nearing some kind of resolution to this case, the Pentagon did announce that Pete Hegseth recommended the firing squad for Nidal Hasan, and that President Trump approved it.

It's the first time any Army soldier will have been executed since 1961, the first time an Army soldier will have been executed by firing squad since World War II. I'm going to get to that in a moment.

Let's go over the details first, though, of that Fort Hood attack. Hasan, who was a U.S. Army major and psychiatrist, walked into a processing center at Fort Hood on November 5th, 2009, and he opened fire, killing 13 people and wounding 32 others before being apprehended by military police.

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He was convicted of 13 counts of premeditated murder, 32 others before being apprehended by military police. He was convicted of 13 counts of premeditated murder, 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder, and was sentenced to death in 2013. So, it's taken now close to 13 years for there to be some movement in this case as far as the death penalty.

Now, Hasan had been radicalized, and he said at the time of his trial that he was targeting soldiers who he was set to deploy to Afghanistan with in order to protect the Taliban and its leaders from the U.S. military.

Here is what the Pentagon had to say in a statement about this case. Quote, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has recommended, and President Donald J. Trump has approved, death by U.S. Army firing squad for convicted terrorist Nidal Malik Hasan. The secretary of the Army will set the time and place of the execution. Judgment day for Hasan has finally come. But as we've as we've said, it's not clear whether the secretary of the Army or whether Pete Hegseth will set the time and the place for that execution. Hegseth replied to that post with one word, quote, justice.

Now, besides Nidal Hasan, there are three other soldiers on death row at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. That's the Army's only maximum security prison. All of those soldiers were found guilty of murder. But what's interesting, guys, is the -- again, the last time they executed a soldier by firing squad, January 1945, Private Eddie Slovik, who was convicted of desertion. He wasn't even convicted of murder. He was convicted of desertion. There's a picture of Eddie Slovik. Young man there was executed in 1945 just a few days after the Battle of the Bulge ended.

Also, Private John Bennett was executed in 1961. That case also did not involve a murder. It involved an attempted murder and the rape of an 11-year-old Austrian girl. 1961, the last time the Army executed anybody, and now they're about to do it with Nidal Hasan.

BLITZER: Yes, significant development indeed, Brian Todd. Thank you very, very much. Pamela?

BROWN: All right, Wolf. We have some breaking news to go to, unprecedented student protests erupting again across France. These are live pictures right here of the protests. And this, in particular, is in Paris.

You see the smoke rising right there. There had been a fire set. They began as a demonstration in support of striking teachers in a Paris suburb two weeks ago, and it's turned into a full-blown national crisis over the conditions inside French schools. This was moments ago. Schools have been closed and thousands of students have been arrested.

We'll be right back.

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