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State of the Union

Trump Targeting Freedom of the Press?; Interview With Rep. Jennifer McClellan (D-VA); Interview With Gov. Wes Moore (D-MD); Interview With U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz. Aired 9-10a ET

Aired September 20, 2026 - 09:00   ET

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

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(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN HOST (voice-over): Global stakes. World leaders on edge prepare to meet in New York, as President Trump reshuffles

alliances and rolls out the red carpet for a tech and trade rival.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We get along very well.

BASH: Is there any off-ramp in the Middle East or room for AI agreement with China? U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz next.

Plus: Denied. Six weeks until the midterms, a president facing political headwinds picks a fight with the press.

TRUMP: They purposely write negative news.

BASH: Can the president change the subject? Three White House Correspondents Association presidents ahead.

And carpe diem. On AI and more, Democrats try to seize the moment.

GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM (D-CA): This nation needs to get in the game.

GOV. JOSH SHAPIRO (D-PA): We can't kick the can down the road.

BASH: Do they have the plans to back it up? Maryland Governor Wes Moore is coming up.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BASH: Hello. I'm Dana Bash in Washington, where the state of our union is doing our jobs.

We are just over 40 days out from the midterm elections, and Republicans are showing increasing signs of nervousness about their chances. We're going to read the tea leaves on a whole bunch of races ahead. But, first, this week, President Trump is turning to foreign policy,

as world leaders head to the U.N. General Assembly in New York, and the president prepares to host Chinese President Xi Jinping and then top AI leaders at the White House, all amid global concerns about the explosive rise of AI.

And, this morning, Middle East tensions are on the rise again, as Iran-backed Houthi rebels attack Saudi Arabia's capital.

Here with me now is the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Mike Waltz.

Thank you so much for being here, Ambassador Waltz.

I do want to start with that latest escalation in the Mideast. Iran- backed Houthi rebels attacked Saudi Arabia's capital. How seriously does the Trump administration take this? And should we expect a direct U.S. response?

MIKE WALTZ, U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: Well, Dana, of course, the administration, the president takes it very seriously. I won't get ahead of him in terms of our response, but this is not something new necessarily.

As you know, the first Trump administration declared the Houthis a foreign terrorist organization. The Biden administration lifted that within its opening days, and they practically used U.S. Navy ships for target practice under the Biden administration.

And we took decisive action against the Houthis last year. Unfortunately, whether it is -- and what you will see at the U.N. General Assembly is a lot of discussion of the freedom of the seas, the U.N. law of the sea, freedom of navigation.

Whether it's Straits of Hormuz, the Bab al-Mandab, Suez Canal, Panama Canal, Malacca Straits, we must have free and open commerce. And I expect us and our allies to take decisive action, whether it's the Somali pirates, now the Houthis, or the Iranian regime acting like naval terrorists in attacking civilian shipping.

A U.N. record number of countries, 146, have condemned the Iranian regime for those acts. And they will -- we will continue to take action against terrorism.

BASH: More broadly on Iran, "The Wall Street Journal" reports the president's top advisers are warning that the Iran war could continue through the remainder of the president's term. We're talking 2029. Is that what you think?

WALTZ: Well, I think that time with the president's strategy and Operation Economic Fury is on the president and on the United States' side.

The blockade is in place. You just heard the CENTCOM commander, Admiral Bradley Cooper, announce a milestone of over a billion barrels of oil have been escorted by our great U.S. Navy from our Gulf allies out to global markets, but not a drop of Iranian oil is coming out.

And we're seeing the results of Operation Economic Outcast led by Scott Bessent, our treasury secretary. The Iranian rial, their currency, just tanked below two million rials to the dollar. Inflation is spiking. Their foreign currency reserves are down, and they are not getting revenue. Even the little bit of oil they're getting out over land...

[09:05:07]

BASH: So, when you say time is on our side, does that mean that...

(CROSSTALK)

BASH: ... keep going?

WALTZ: The banks aren't sending it back in, so -- what's that?

BASH: So, when you say -- so you say, time is on our side. That means that, yes, it could keep going until 2029?

(CROSSTALK)

WALTZ: I don't -- I wouldn't necessarily put a timeline on it, but I think the president is focused on his clear objectives, that Iran will never have a nuclear weapon. And they are welcome to come back to the table when they're ready to negotiate in good faith.

And, meanwhile, maximum pressure will stay in place on the regime's economy. And I'll remind everyone that IRGC controls over 40 to 50 percent of the Iranian economy. So this is directly affecting their military capabilities to terrorize the region and the world.

BASH: Let's talk about the president's meeting with President Xi.

During the Cold War, there wasn't a lot of trust between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, and yet leaders struck agreements to limit the nuclear threat because of what it meant for humankind. The president has been skeptical of slowing down AI development, but there are some targeted areas, like a ban on AI to produce bioweapons, for example.

Do you see any chance for any agreement on any of this?

WALTZ: Dana, with President Trump, I always see the opportunity for an agreement or an opportunity for a deal.

And to your Cold War analogy, unlike in the Cold War or any other adversary we have had in the past, Germany, Japan, et cetera, we have never been so intertwined economically with a competitor or potential adversary like we are with the People's Republic of China.

So it is a much more complex situation. That said, to your point of whether it is rules of the road or guidelines on diffusion on AI in a nuclear enterprise and weapons, humans in the loop, I do see space for guardrails there. However, what we cannot do is put a throttle on our innovators, on our

entrepreneurs, on so many great Americans in our system that's so unique that are creating the solutions of the future. So I also hope to see -- we're going to have an AI conference here at the U.N. General Assembly.

We're going to see AI discussed at the U.N. Security Council, where we will have our Office of Science and Technology, Michael Kratsios, really stating what the U.S. is for here. I can tell you that China just announced a world AI cooperation organization.

BASH: Right.

WALTZ: And our values and their values don't exactly mesh when it comes to global governance and how technology can be used for surveillance and the suppression of freedom.

BASH: Well, CNN is reporting that the U.S. almost attacked a Chinese ship after AI misidentified materials on the ship as nuclear materials.

So, short of an agreement, are there safeguards that can be put in place immediately to stop that from actually going forward or happening again?

WALTZ: Well, there are principles that both the Pentagon and across our government that we certainly follow. But, really, it's how does that intersection, the role of government in that intersection with the private sector and innovation, entrepreneurship, and growth?

And the president has been clear. The United States has to remain in the lead. The United States has to win this. But this covers everything, as you know, from energy to infrastructure, data, privacy, and the ability of our companies to continue to grow.

So it is a hugely complex issue, and our entire team is laser-focused on it.

BASH: On Friday, President Trump banned CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House. The president, as I mentioned, is about to host the Chinese leader.

Historically, it was the United States pushing countries like China for greater press freedoms. Now President Trump is the one backsliding on these rights. Are you comfortable with this?

WALTZ: Dana, the president is absolutely within his rights to limit journalists to government facilities, particularly when, in his opinion, they're not behaving as good faith journalists.

And that's just not his opinion. That's the Supreme Court's opinion. There are multiple cases, Zemel v. Rusk off the top of my head, and I'm not a lawyer, that said, look, you can have the ability to speak, you can have the ability to publish as an open and free press, but you don't have an inherent right to any government facility that you want, whether it's Langley or the White House.

And so I will leave it to the lawyers, but I think the president's absolutely spot on here.

[09:10:00]

BASH: Mr. Ambassador, you are a decorated veteran. You served in an elite unit, the Green Berets, for 27 years, defending freedoms like the First Amendment.

And the president you work for just banned three news organizations, and he said it's because he doesn't like some of the things that are being reported.

WALTZ: Dana, the prior administration limited all kinds of journalistic outfits and journalists themselves that they deemed as right-wing.

Those have now been allowed onto the onto the facility, and the president doesn't believe others are acting in good faith. Heck, I just saw one yesterday use anonymous sources referencing someone who's dead.

And so I think -- I would hope that the media would take a good introspective look at itself and its practices, because it throws things out there and then puts a little baby correction that nobody pays attention to, and it sticks to people like napalm.

And so it is incredibly frustrating, I can tell you, as someone who's serving in the public space. But, meanwhile, again, the Supreme Court has been very clear in multiple cases going back to the '60s. There is a different in your right to speak, different in your right to publish than having access to any government facility that you want.

BASH: Yes, well, I mean, there are laws, and we are going to see what the courts say, and then there are norms, and then there is, again, what you have fought for, and we thank you for that service, for these freedoms.

And I -- it's kind of a loss for words, especially when the president says he just doesn't want negative reporting. It's critical reporting. It is intended to get facts. And negativity...

WALTZ: There's a big difference, Dana, I'm sorry, in negative reporting and garbage gossip journalism that -- that will sit on one anonymous source and then push it out in the ecosphere. And it's been repeated by other journalists as fact. So...

(CROSSTALK)

BASH: I refer you back to the first 10 minutes of this conversation and this interview, where we were talking about very substantive issues.

On that, President Trump on Friday announced a deal with Denmark that would give the U.S. -- quote -- "permanent control" over security in all...

WALTZ: But case in point, when you have anonymous journal -- but when you have anonymous journalists putting out, for example, sensitive conversations on deployment orders, on our munitions stockpiles while we're in a conflict, these are -- these are not simple black-and-white issues, as you -- as you're laying forward, and I think you know that.

(CROSSTALK)

WALTZ: And on the Greenland deal...

(CROSSTALK)

BASH: Wait, wait. Hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on.

WALTZ: Look, we're quite excited to announce this over this next week.

BASH: The question of national security -- the question of national security is one that every serious news organization takes seriously. That is quite different from the president saying that he's not happy because it's too negative against him.

OK, let's focus on Greenland. The Danish prime minister says the deal recognizes the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the kingdom of Denmark. Based on this deal, Mr. Ambassador, who has the final say over what happens in Greenland?

WALTZ: Well, I will let the details be announced by the president and Secretary Rubio.

What I can say is, the Arctic is something that the president has been focused on as part of protecting the United States. People should understand that, if we're ever attacked by any type of intercontinental missiles, they will come over the Arctic.

Our radars, our sensors are incredibly important up there. They need to be defended. We need to have full access. And no one, Dana, was paying attention to the Arctic until President Trump was. I can tell you with certainty that our NATO allies were not spending what they need to.

Now President Trump has an icebreaker deal in place with Finland. He has the spending that he's driving coming out of NATO, and we will now have the full access and basing that we need for Iron Dome, access to critical minerals, access to the energy reserves that are up there.

And, importantly, we're starting to see shipping flow through as the ice retreats. We're starting to see shipping bypass checkpoints or global choke points like the Suez Canal, Panama Canal, Straits of Hormuz, and go over the top through the Arctic. So it's incredibly important.

The president's been focused on it. And for all of those naysayers out there, we now have a diplomatic agreement with Denmark and with Greenland to ensure America's high north is safe. BASH: Mr. Ambassador, you have a very busy week coming up this week.

Thank you for taking the time this morning.

WALTZ: All right, thank you, Dana.

BASH: President Obama is putting pressure on Democrats to address one of voters' rising concerns. I will talk to Maryland Governor Wes Moore next.

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[09:19:16]

BASH: Welcome back to STATE OF THE UNION.

We are six weeks from the midterms, and, for the first time in a long time, Democrats say they're feeling hopeful.

Here with me now is a Democrat, Maryland Governor Wes Moore, who is up for reelection.

Thank you so much for being here.

Before we talk about the midterms and other issues, I do want to ask about the president's ban of three news organizations to the White House, including CNN, and what your response is.

GOV. WES MOORE (D-MD): Well, the president seems to have a real problem with the Constitution, whether it is the freedom of the press. Whether it is voting rights, whether it is state rights, things that were very clearly laid out.

And, again, not even just clearly laid out, that, at the founding of this nation, that the founding fathers of this country found it to be so important that they made things like the freedom of the press and free speech and freedom of assembly so important that they made it the First Amendment, the first thing they wanted to get done in this country.

[09:20:15]

And so the president continues to use the Constitution like it is a suggestion box simply because he does not like the coverage. And so I would just hope that this administration would spend a little bit of time reading, instead of just talking.

BASH: There is a big discussion in your party and around the globe, really about AI and how to regulate it. You said your goal is for Maryland to lead the nation in its responsible deployment.

Last year, you began a partnership with Anthropic to embed AI in your government, modernize it, accelerate state services. Do you have second thoughts about partnering with a leading AI company that's had a whistle-blower warn of an existential crisis and is now asking the federal government for regulations? MOORE: No, in fact, I think part of the thing we have to do is be able to work together with an establishment that there have to be real guardrails that are set up.

I mean, people are concerned about this. And it's not just individual Marylanders. It is not just the tech companies themselves, but it's America's governors. And that's why I have now spent days speaking with -- I'm the chair of the National Governors Association.

And so I work with both Democratic and Republican governors. And governors around the country have been sounding the alarm, particularly when you have a president of the United States who now says the way he's dealing with it is putting together an AI Force.

But it has no specific responsibility and guardrails. So it's not AI Force. It's AI farce. It's not real, and particularly because 30-plus percent of his personal portfolio is in AI companies. And so we need to have real guardrails and restraints around this.

This is a powerful technology that can actually do remarkable things when it comes to things like health care and when it comes to things like human services. But the human part has got to be important in this, and guardrails have got to be established, and we have to work together on a bipartisan basis to be able to accomplish this.

BASH: President Obama is advising all serious 2028 contenders to have a plan for AI.

The California governor, Gavin Newsom, issued an executive order on Friday to explore the ideas of using a kill switch if need be. Is that something that you would be for in Maryland?

MOORE: I think we have to have all available options in discussing these things on a bipartisan basis.

And the other thing is, this cannot happen to the absence of federal leadership. All the governors are now working on this. We're actually going to be doing an AI summit within the next couple weeks in Maryland, where we're bringing industry leaders, union leaders, the people to be able to discuss how is Maryland going to move and respond in this way, and I'm really proud that Maryland is taking this very seriously.

But I also know having 50 different guidelines is not the most productive thing for us to be doing and thinking about. We all have got to be engaged. The governors have got to be engaged, Republicans and Democrats.

But we need a federal administration who is both going to say more than just it's a hoax. And we need a Congress who's going to actually put a check on that federal administration who's simply saying it's a hoax.

BASH: Last week in Maryland, an alleged illegal immigrant who was a rideshare driver was accused of raping a 17-year-old girl who was his passenger. The fact is that Homeland Security is saying he was an undocumented

immigrant and the Biden administration let him come in 2023. When you hear this, do you understand how upset this makes people?

MOORE: I understand that. And I think -- I want the people of my state to understand that I have no tolerance for violent offenders, period and full stop.

And there is nothing that we will not do to make sure that our communities are safe. It's the reason we made historic investments in local law enforcement. It's the reason that we have been very clear that, if someone commits a violent crime in our state, I want him in handcuffs in 24 hours and they will have accountability coming their way.

And we have now seen that Maryland has now had amongst the fastest drops in violent crime anywhere in the United States of America. So I will work with all partners, particularly when it comes to dealing with violent offenders, removing them from our communities, and making sure that they are accountable. And that includes -- and that includes our federal partners when it comes to immigration services.

But here's the other thing that I do know that, when I look at ICE, ICE was an agency that was funded at $10 billion. Now ICE's budget is over $85 billion. ICE is larger than the FBI. ICE is larger than the ATF. ICE's budget is larger than the state of Maryland.

And they are also using that to put unaccountable and unqualified people in our communities that are doing things like arresting 5-year- olds. So I will work to make sure that our communities are safe and address violent criminals everywhere they are.

But I also know this, is that the idea that we -- are we supporting a Trump/Vance ICE operation that continues to violate the basic laws of our state, that also is not going to be tolerated.

[09:25:06]

BASH: Before I let you go, you are heading on the campaign trail this week. You're going to go to Nevada. You just endorsed an independent Senate candidate in Montana. You are on the ballot as well in Maryland.

And, in Maryland, there are nearly 600,000 voters who requested mail- in ballots. What does that tell you about the expected turnout?

MOORE: I think it's going to be a strong turnout, and I want the people of our state to know that, in Maryland, your vote is free and fair and it is safe.

And it is something that we take very seriously, but particularly because elections are state-run functions. They are not federal-run functions. And I know that, while I'm on the ballot and we're running hard and we're going to be supporting a lot of candidates in Maryland, there are the candidates around the country that I'm excited about, to include Seth Bodnar, who's running as an -- he's an independent running for Senate.

My -- when I was in the military, as was Seth, I led soldiers,. Seth led soldiers in combat. And I know that, in the military, we never asked what's your political party.

And I know Seth never did either. And so the reason that I wanted to get out there and support a candidate like Seth Bodnar, who -- and going against the Democrat who's running, is because I think at this moment we need commonsense, strong-minded leaders who are going to disrupt the status quo and making sure we are bringing -- building better results for the people of our jurisdictions.

And so I'm excited about our race and where we are standing and all the other candidates we're supporting. And I look forward to getting on the campaign trail and having there be a big turnout and sending a message.

BASH: Governor Wes Moore, thanks for being here. Appreciate it.

MOORE: Thank you. Thank you so much.

BASH: And, usually, we are in competition for a story. Today, three journalists from rival news organizations will be here to talk about what unites us, freedom of the press and access to the White House.

That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:31:10]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Very simple ban. I don't want them in my office. I don't want them here. I would say the ban would go as far as you can. And if they could straighten themselves out, if you -- if they could straighten themselves out, I'd love it.

Look, they're very dishonest people. They write in a very dishonest way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Yesterday, the Secret Service confiscated press badges from reporters from CNN, MS NOW, and Politico.

I want to talk about what this means for you with three former heads of the White House Correspondents' Association, Weijia Jiang of CBS News, Tamara Keith of NPR News, and Jeff Mason of Bloomberg News.

Thank you all for being here. I really appreciate it.

And, Weijia, I want to start with you. You just finished your tenure as president of the White House Correspondents' Association. How do you kind of put into words why this moment is so important, given what you do and what you see every day there? WEIJIA JIANG, CBS NEWS WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: So, it's really

important that we're clear about what this is and is not. This is not a tantrum by three media outlets because the journalists are upset they can't get on White House grounds.

This is a restriction of information that we work so tirelessly to gather to give to the public. And an attack on one media organization is an attack on all media organizations, because it could be us next, you.

And the individual outlet matters less than what the president is trying to do. He is very explicit about it.

BASH: Yes.

JIANG: He does not like the information that these outlets are sharing.

I'm so glad that you pointed out with Ambassador Waltz that not liking the information is very different from claiming it's a lie or fiction. I keep asking, where's the lie? And he's unable to answer that. That's why it matters to the public. That's why everybody should be worried and upset that they're getting less information that they need to make decisions.

BASH: And I just -- because you mentioned that, but I want to continue this. I want to listen to a little bit more of what the president said, explicitly saying the negative stories are what's causing this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: It's sick. I mean, there's something wrong with a country that can allow people to write purposely negative stories. Now, if they want to write them, that's fine. But I don't have to let them into my -- into the people's house.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Into the people's house. He caught himself there.

TAMARA KEITH, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO: He did catch himself there.

This is -- this is a president who doesn't like the news that is being reported and is striking out at news organizations. And it's not going to have the effect that he wants. It's not like news organizations are going to stop reporting the news.

What it does, though, is, it reduces accountability. If fewer organizations are there asking questions that he doesn't like, he's not getting questions that he doesn't like necessarily. And we're not there for ourselves. We're not there for our news organizations.

I would be afraid to ask the president of the United States a question, except that I'm doing it on behalf of the American people. I'm not doing it for me. And by kicking people out, he's kicking the American people out of the room. He's kicking the American people out of the people's house.

BASH: Jeff.

JEFF MASON, WHITE HOUSE AND WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT, BLOOMBERG NEWS: I think that's a great point.

I also think it's important to underscore that this is part of a pattern that started in 2017...

BASH: Yes.

MASON: ... during President Trump's first term.

BASH: When you were president.

MASON: When I was president.

And that began with rhetoric, and it began with calling the media fake news or failing news organizations, but it has manifested into concrete actions. And it did during his first term. And in this term, it has only accelerated, and not just at the White House.

[09:35:05]

It was at the Pentagon, where our colleagues have essentially been kicked out of covering the Pentagon for not signing a statement saying that they would follow specific rules in what they covered. It's happened with Treasury, which just within the last couple weeks excluded reporters from my news organization, as well as "The Wall Street Journal" and "The New York Times" from the Treasury -- from a finance ministers meeting.

And it's happened at the White House, specifically not just these three news organizations in the last day -- in the last couple of days, which is the biggest escalation, but also kicking the wires out of the pool, except when they allow us in, and also restricting access within the White House to what's called upper press, which is very inside baseball, but it's the area where the press secretary's office is.

BASH: Where you can physically go and ask questions.

KEITH: Yes.

MASON: Ask questions for your stories.

KEITH: Well, now we can't.

MASON: Yes.

JIANG: It's been about a year...

BASH: Thank you.

JIANG: ... that they changed the policy, and now we can't just go up and ask questions.

KEITH: And this is actually bigger than the press. This is more about independent facts and independent information, because the president has also gone after inspectors general.

There has been an effort to change the Census Bureau, to fire people from the Bureau of Labor Statistics that put out statistics that he didn't like. This is much, much bigger than us. However, we are there as a stand-in for the American people, and therefore we're an easy target.

MASON: And our rights as reporters and our jobs as reporters is enshrined in the United States Constitution. And I think that's what we have to really remind people.

And, in fact, our colleagues reminded that to the president in the Oval Office when he was asked about this last week.

BASH: Yes.

MASON: But it's the First Amendment that protects the freedom of speech.

JIANG: Right.

MASON: That doesn't necessarily mean getting access to everything we'd like to have access to.

JIANG: Of course.

MASON: But it certainly means being able to be in the room and ask the questions that are necessary for stories and for news and for the democracy that we live in.

JIANG: Exactly.

BASH: Thank you all for being here. Really appreciate it.

President Trump's tough political week. Are more Republican candidates about to give him the cold shoulder? That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:41:35]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

J.D. VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I always tell you, whenever you hear me talk during this midterm campaign, I will say Rome was not built in a day, because we know there's a lot of work to do.

Give us another chance or give us another couple of years to continue to work on the amazing things that we have been doing for the past two years.

I know she couldn't be here today, but are we going to elect Ashley Hinson the next United States senator from the great state of Iowa?

(CHEERING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Welcome back.

My panel is here to discuss all things midterms.

Former Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Beutler, as a Republican who has been in Congress and on the ballot, where do you think things stand, given the fact that you have the vice president going to red states and candidates who are in tough races not appearing with him?

FMR. REP. JAIME HERRERA BEUTLER (R-WA): There's no question that the headwinds are against the GOP, right? The gas prices haven't changed. In fact, I don't see a path for that to happen, and there's a historical context.

I think the number one thing that I keep looking for is, where's the breakaway? Where's the breakaway? And we're not seeing it. And I think part of that is because I'm not seeing out of either party really a prosperity agenda, like, this is how we're going to make your life better. I see a lot of, we're not them. We're not -- and this is on both sides. We're not them.

And I think, in the next six weeks or so, it's still -- everybody still has a shot at it, even given this context.

BASH: Congresswoman?

REP. JENNIFER MCCLELLAN (D-VA): Well, I think we have seen the American people have had enough with a president who said that he was going to lower costs and end forever wars. Costs are higher than in a long time.

And we are now in a forever war that we have no idea how we got into and how we're going to get out. And at the end of the day, though, the people feel it in their pocketbooks. They're tired of all the chaos. They're tired of all the vitriol.

And I'd actually push back, that Democrats have pushed an agenda. First, we have got to restore the enhanced premium tax credits and eliminate the Medicaid cuts before the worst of them take effect to at least stop the bleeding.

And then we are putting forth an agenda on how we are going to lower costs on energy, on health care, on a number of things by first reversing some of the terrible policies of this administration from tariffs to that big ugly law.

BASH: We have some new numbers that show how much and where Republicans are spending their money, and I don't think it's going to surprise you because you do this for a living, Brad.

But it is stunning to see not only the amounts of money that Republicans have, but, again, where, Ohio, red state, Texas, red state, North Carolina, a little closer, but still a red state, Iowa. And go down the list. Most of these are GOP territory.

BRAD TODD, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, that's because those are the states on the ballot this year in the Senate races and where the Senate battlegrounds are.

And, of course, Democrats always have plenty of money, no matter what the state is. They seem to be able to counter it. One thing I would say is the congresswoman's right about the fact that there is a -- always in a six-year itch. There's always a push for a check and balance on the administration.

Well, one thing I'm watching is that there's a push for a check and balance in states that have been governed by Democrats like Michigan and Wisconsin, where you have had Democrats in power for eight years, and there's -- the governors there are now unpopular.

For instance, in Michigan, a state where I'm working, Gretchen Whitmer's unpopular. Michigan's in the bottom five in education, the bottom seven in economics. You're going to see a little push-pull there. So there's a desire to flip some of these states where Democrats have been in power at the state capitals, and there is a check and balance impulse on the president.

BASH: Adam, nice to see you here. You are the author of a new book, "Supermajority: How Democrats Can Build Lasting Power." Before you get to lasting power, you have to get to power.

[09:45:07]

ADAM JENTLESON, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: That's right. That's right.

And Democrats are doing a good job with some of the strategies that I advocate in the book this cycle, because one of the things that they're doing is they're running candidates who fit the states that they're trying to win, right?

One of the things we have made a mistake about in the past is running candidates who are too far left to win states like Iowa, Michigan, Ohio, even states like Kansas, where Democrats are competitive today, states that Trump won by double digits.

So I think Democrats are going to win states like Michigan, but I also think they're going to go further than that and put states like Iowa back in play, that we have written that state off for several cycles, thinking it was a state Trump won by double digits. There's no way we can compete.

We're seeing Democrats not just compete there, but also pull ahead right now.

TODD: You make a good point about Kansas.

Adam Hamilton, the Democrat running for Senate there, said he won't vote for Chuck Schumer. Mary Peltola in Alaska said she doesn't want help from Kamala Harris. And so you're seeing this -- the Democrat national brand is in the toilet.

So while Republicans do face a check-and-balance election, you're seeing a lot of Democratic candidates do what you're saying and try to like run against that national brand. I think Michigan's not a place for that. Abdul El-Sayed is the most radical left-wing candidate to run for Senate anywhere in a long time.

But the smart Democrats are trying to run away from the national party.

BASH: So, pushing against the national party on the Democratic side. It's also a big question about how much that's going to continue to happen on the Republican side with the president.

We saw your former colleague Congresswoman Maria Salazar, straight to camera, ad saying, Mr. President, your policies are -- basically are hurting our people, and you have gone too far.

How much more do you think we're going to see of that from Republican candidates?

HERRERA BEUTLER: I mean, I think it'd be wise for those who are in those swing -- in independent seats to completely make that race about what they bring to the table, not about Donald Trump. And I think that's what Maria has always done.

She was always skeptical of some of these policies, because she represents a lot of folks who are directly impacted, right? So I think that was her telling the truth about that. I don't think she's -- it's a huge break. But the thing that really surprised me, my old congressional seat,

it's -- I would say the path through the majority can run right through the Third Congressional District. And, interestingly, Trump is not the number...

(CROSSTALK)

BASH: In Washington.

HERRERA BEUTLER: In Washington state.

(CROSSTALK)

HERRERA BEUTLER: I'm so sorry.

BASH: It's OK.

HERRERA BEUTLER: Doesn't everybody know?

(LAUGHTER)

HERRERA BEUTLER: But that's -- I was driving my kids to soccer practice and I saw this huge -- sign wavers on the corner, and I thought, what are they doing? Who are they for?

And all they had up there was anti-Trump, anti-Trump. And I thought, what a miss on their part, because here's a seat that they can make a difference in, and their number one focus is, we're not Trump. I think you're seeing that for Maria, because it's an independent seat.

And I think you're -- I think that's one of the areas where Democrats could do better, honestly.

MCCLELLAN: Well, actually, there's a big difference between what the candidates are doing, what the party is doing, and what the people are doing.

And most of the people that you see protesting and holding up signs, those are everyday Americans who normally wouldn't be out there at all, but they are so fed up and angry with the president's actions and the congressional Republicans giving him a pass.

HERRERA BEUTLER: I agree. I agree with that.

I -- see, I think this is where -- I think Republicans are whiffing on this, right? And so are Democrats. That's my point...

JENTLESON: Well...

HERRERA BEUTLER: ... is to step in and say, here's what we would do to bring down gas.

(CROSSTALK)

MCCLELLAN: But we are doing...

(CROSSTALK)

HERRERA BEUTLER: Here's what we would do.

JENTLESON: Usually, midterms tend to be a referendum on the incumbents.

HERRERA BEUTLER: Absolutely. Absolutely.

JENTLESON: I think the problem for Republicans, the reason why they're sort of in the pain cave right now...

(LAUGHTER)

JENTLESON: ... is that people are furious at President Trump.

HERRERA BEUTLER: Yes.

JENTLESON: They're furious at him for driving up prices, for starting a foreign war of choice...

HERRERA BEUTLER: Gas.

JENTLESON: ... and driving up gas prices every day. And so Democrats, if they do those two things, if they run hard against Trump and they put candidates out into these races who reflect the actual states they're trying to win, I think Democrats can win a lot of seats this cycle.

MCCLELLAN: And as a matter of fact, Trump himself said: I want you to vote as if I'm on the ballot.

HERRERA BEUTLER: I -- yes. Yes.

MCCLELLAN: And so -- but Democrats are putting forward a plan to lower energy costs. We're going to end these tariffs. We're going to end this war in Iran that has made the energy prices go through the roof.

We are going to reverse the cuts in the big ugly law that have raised the cost of health care, that have raised food insecurity. We're going to pass a farm bill that the farmers have been waiting for.

BASH: OK.

OK, thank you so much for being here. Thanks to all of you. Great discussion.

Up next: warnings from the founding fathers.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:53:52]

BASH: The difference between having a free press and not is the difference between having a democracy and not. It is just that stark.

Don't take my word for it. Take the word of the men who founded this great country. James Madison said the freedom of the press, one of the great bulwarks of liberty, shall be inviolable. George Mason warned in Virginia's Declaration of Rights that the freedom of the press -- quote -- "can never be restrained by despotic governments."

Fast-forward 250 years to President Trump justifying a ban on three news organizations, including this one.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: But they purposely write negative news. And they do that because they want to try and diminish the Republicans and a Republican administration.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: No, we aren't trying to diminish you, just like we weren't trying to diminish your predecessors, Democrats and Republicans, most of whom, trust me, did not like getting tough questions and coverage holding them accountable.

But that's the job. When the U.S. is at war with Iran and gas and oil goes up, we cover it. When your fellow Republicans push back on your immigration enforcement tactics, we cover it. [09:55:00]

But it is also not accurate to say we don't cover what you are doing to help on things like affordability.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We lowered the drug costs by 50, 60, 70 percent. They won't even put it -- if they put it on, it'll be a -- they will find a reason why that's a negative.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Not true.

This is CNN's Kristen Holmes on the North Lawn of the White House about an hour before.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President Trump is going to make an announcement that all 50 states, as well as Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C., are going to participate in a model Medicaid program in which they will get drugs at a discounted rate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: The second U.S. president, John Adams, and his congressional allies in the Federalist Party also didn't like being challenged. They passed the Sedition Act, which made it illegal to criticize the federal government.

The backlash to that and other Adams policies led to his loss to Thomas Jefferson, who became the next president with 60 percent of the popular vote.

Thanks so much for joining us this morning.

"FAREED ZAKARIA GPS" picks it up next.