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The Story Is with Elex Michaelson
Trump Adds More Red States to Midterm Campaign Blitz; U.S. Senate Candidates Debate in Georgia, Iowa and Maine; Judge Extends Order Giving CNN and Other Outlets White House Access; Pope Leo Diagnosed with Lung Cancer; Bass & Raman Face Off in Final Debate Before Election; French Student Protest Movement Spreads to Other Countries; Cyberattack on French Supermarkets Sparks Fires, Food Losses. Aired 12-1a ET
Aired October 14, 2026 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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LAURA COATES, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks for watching. Here comes "THE STORY IS WITH ELEX MICHAELSON" now.
ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Elex Michaelson live in Los Angeles.
Coming up, THE STORY IS midterm Senate debates. Nominees clashing late tonight in Georgia, Maine, and Iowa. We've got the best moments.
THE STORY IS student protests across Europe growing. Demonstrations taking place from France to Albania. What are they asking for?
And THE STORY IS cancer. Pope Leo recovering after having part of his lung removed. CNN's Vatican analyst live with us with an update.
ANNOUNCER: Live from Los Angeles, THE STORY IS WITH ELEX MICHAELSON.
MICHAELSON: The top story is President Trump adding more red state stops to his midterm campaign blitz. The White House says he will visit Kentucky and Florida in the next few weeks.
Happening right now, the president is on the move. He's on Air Force One as we speak, on his way to Las Vegas, Nevada, where he will spend the night.
If you're watching, Mr. President, thanks for watching.
He has appearances scheduled on Wednesday in Arizona and in Montana. Earlier, he rallied Republican voters in Alaska, where incumbent Senator Dan Sullivan is locked in a surprisingly tight race with Democrat Mary Peltola. Democrats have not won a U.S. Senate seat in Alaska in nearly 20 years.
Meanwhile, Senate candidates facing off in debates, including Ashley Hinson and Josh Turek in Iowa, Susan Collins and Troy Jackson in Maine. Among the notable headlines, Georgia's Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff pledging to serve his full six-year term if he's reelected, denying that he's running for president. Republican Congressman Mike Collins running to unseat Ossoff. All that happening, plus an L.A. mayor's debate tonight.
Let's bring in our panel. Elisha Krauss, conservative commentator and op-ed writer for the "Washington Examiner," and Fabian Nunez, founder and managing partner of the global consulting firm Actum and the former speaker of the assembly here in California.
Welcome, both of you. Let's start with Iowa. You've got an interesting situation here. A traditionally red state, a state that President Trump won. Josh Turek, the Democrat challenging Ashley Hamilton. And Turek, clearly -- Ashley Hinton, I should say, clearly trying to appeal to the middle and convince some Republicans to vote for him. Watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOSH TUREK, DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE FOR U.S. SENATE: More than 700 times voted with Republicans. I think you take that in contrast with Representative Hinson, the least bipartisan member of the Iowa delegation. I have gone out there and I have met with Iowans all over the state, all 99 counties, hundreds of public forums. Meanwhile, Ashley Hinson, since she decided to run for U.S. Senate, has not done one in-person town forum.
ASHLEY HINSON, REPUBLICAN NOMINEE FOR U.S. SENATE: I've done more town halls than the percentage of time he showed up to work this year. 42 percent of the time is all Representative Turek showed up to work this year, and that's two out of every five days of work. And I think Iowans, if you're watching tonight, you should know if you don't show up to work two out of five days, you're not getting a promotion, you're getting fired.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Interesting there. Fabian, the challenge, though, in winning as a Democrat in a state that has more Republicans.
FABIAN NUNEZ, FOUNDER AND MANAGING PARTNER, ACTUM: Yes, I mean, it's a real challenge. I mean, you said it earlier. Democrats haven't won in Iowa in over two decades. But I think Josh Turek is an interesting candidate. He's very formidable. If you look at the way he approaches the problems. So I've always said, if you're a Democratic candidate in a red state, you've got to mirror the voters in the state in which you are running.
You can't be in left field running to try to convince someone that's a voter of an idea that just doesn't fit the mold of the state that you live in. And I think for Iowans, what they want to see is they want to see a U.S. senator who's going to work with both sides of the aisle. They don't want to see someone who's going to dig their heels in partisanship. They're going to want to see people who are going to work with both sides of the aisle and look to foster a good relationship to get things done for Iowans because they're suffering from the same thing that the rest of the country is suffering from.
There's an affordability issue in Iowa. There's a question of access to housing and the high prices of gasoline thanks to the war that the president started with Iran. And so I think what you need here is a dynamic candidate that can reach across the aisle and work with the other side. And I think Josh Turek is that candidate.
MICHAELSON: How do Republicans bring Republican voters home in the final days?
ELISHA KRAUSS, CONSERVATIVE COMMENTATOR: Well, I think telegenically, she seems much more on it in that debate. I think I get his talking points, and I think for the betterment of the country, I would prefer that instead of going the radical progressive DSA, AOC route, that the Democratic Party would offer up more candidates like him that seem to want to represent their constituency and what's best for their state.
[00:05:15]
But he kind of looked a little sloppy and unsure of himself when he's trying to portray this message. And I think that Republicans need to get people to come home, like millennial suburban moms, by making sure that we put out the right messengers and go back to the core roots of like what we think conservatism is. And it's really getting government out of the way so that you can pursue the American dream and grow your business, send your kids to a better school, make sure the borders are safe, make sure that the affordability issue is addressed, which is a bipartisan issue.
I would argue we probably disagree a little bit on how to go about doing that, because I think it's more about getting government out of the way instead of throwing more money at the problem.
MICHAELSON: Do you think the president right now is getting the government out of the way? Is that what the current Republican Party has done?
KRAUSS: I think -- well, you've seen this in places like Texas, you've seen it more on the state level. I think that federally I do take issue with how the president broadly has decided to approach things. And I think I've argued for a very long time that you have some people that are members of the Republican Party now that don't represent the core values of the Republican Party, which is smaller government. They want to use government just as much as the left does to fix their problems.
MICHAELSON: You know, Fabian, a year ago, the thought was that Georgia would be one of the close competitive Senate races. Now it's seems to be so much in the Democratic camp that Democrats are starting to pull some of their money out of Georgia tonight. The -- another Senate debate there, Jon Ossoff, who a lot of folks see as a potential presidential candidate, was asked about that possibility. Let's watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JON OSSOFF (D-GA): I have zero interest in running for president. I'm not running for president. I'm running for reelection to the Senate.
REP. MIKE COLLINS (R-GA): He is running for president. He's going to be your DSA candidate.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KRAUSS: I think he's also running for president. I've been comparing him since the beginning of his election campaign to like the southern white Barack Obama. I think that there are lot -- there's lots of kind of, we've discussed this before on the program, like on social media amongst the donor class, amongst Democratic consultants that I know and talk to that really like this guy and are interested in seeing him go all the way to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
And so I don't think -- he might give that answer now but when he runs for president in less than two years and we're talking about the Iowa caucuses, not just the Iowa Senate race, this guy will then be changing his tune to say, well, you know, I had to answer the call for God and country.
MICHAELSON: Well, the Democrats have kind of given up on the Iowa caucuses so yes.
NUNEZ: But this reminds me of the analogy, a bird in hand is better than two in the bush. And the fact of the matter is he's running for the U.S. Senate. He's got to get reelected first and foremost. But if you're the Jon Ossoff's opponent and your only argument to defeating him is saying, don't vote for him because he's going to want to run for president of the United States, tells you that the Republicans are not in a good place in this stage.
KRAUSS: He also said he's a Democratic socialist. He got that zinger on the end, too.
NUNEZ: Well, that -- he did. I would agree with that. But I think the reason why he's getting all this publicity and all this attention is because he has a very interesting demeanor in the way he approaches issues and the way he articulates his vision, the way he questions people in those Senate committee hearings.
I think that people are looking at him and saying he's kind of Obama- esque in that respect, in that, you know, he can inspire people to think about things differently than most without necessarily going on the offensive and on the attack. Well, he has a way to approach.
MICHAELSON: Yes. It's interesting because if you listen to him on these debate stages, he's very stinging in what he's saying. But the tone is very calm.
KRAUSS: This is what I tell my husband. It's always about the tone.
MICHAELSON: It's about the tone. It's about the way you say it, not necessarily what you're saying. But in terms of what he's saying, I mean, he's basically knifing up his opponent.
NUNEZ: Well, he also -- remember he's also gone after President Trump. And remember this election, I mean, Georgia, I think is the best example. This election is a referendum on president Trump.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
NUNEZ: Make no mistake about it.
MICHAELSON: And yet.
NUNEZ: That's what this is all about.
MICHAELSON: Yet Susan Collins may be the outlier to that once again because if this election is truly a referendum on President Trump, she should lose. Because, you know, unlike all these other red states, President Trump lost in Maine again. She's on the debate stage against Troy Jackson. And they talked about the Iran war. Watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TROY JACKSON, DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE FOR SENATE: Donald Trump wanted to play war games. And when Susan Collins had the chance to stop him because she's chair of appropriations, she would not do that.
SUSAN COLLINS (R-ME): I agree that the president did not have a good plan. He should have anticipated the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which part of the world's oil travels, and I don't feel that that was well-anticipated, although it should have been.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[00:10:01]
MICHAELSON: So kind of -- Fabian, going to her way of criticizing the president, sometimes trying to be nuanced in it, but not all the time.
NUNEZ: I think it's too little, too late. I mean, quite frankly, I've always believed that she was more of an independent voice in the U.S. Senate, except when the president got elected the elected the second time around, President Trump, I feel like in every major issue, she's been with him. On the less important issues, she's not with him.
But look, she comes from a state, Maine, where there's, you know, 1.3 million, 1.4 million people. She should know every voter in that state on a first name basis. And the fact that a candidate that's running against her, who we just propped up at the last minute because we had issues with the last one, if we recall.
KRAUSS: Just a handful.
NUNEZ: That he's ahead in the polls tells you how difficult this midterm election is for Republicans. Listen, if this spells anything out, if there's a word to describe this, this could be a wave that is coming in this direction. This is why Elon Musk decided at the last minute now. He's coming in to throw in, you know, the lifeguard $276 million to try to save the day. But I don't think any amount of money is going to save the day.
People are disenchanted with a president whose family is enriching themselves with all the graft, grift, and corruption, while at the same time normal Americans are suffering on a day to day basis. They're living it. They're watching the Trump family enrich themselves on the backs of the American people. And I think people are sick and tired of it. That's what -- that's why these midterm elections are moving in the direction that they're moving.
KRAUSS: I would argue that Susan Collins probably keeps winning because she might actually know the names of all of those voters, those 1.4 million voters in the state of Maine. This woman is the Teflon queen for the Republican Party. And I also think that she has been very consistent. And even when she has changed her political opinion and been tougher on Trump and then maybe supported his nominees, like for SCOTUS and so on, she's doing so because she knows that's what her constituents in Maine want.
So we shall see what happens on election day. But I don't think that we should be undercutting this gal. She keeps delivering time and time again. Also, kudos to them because there was a story like a week ago, last time I was here that came out that said that there are fewer debates this election cycle than there have been in my entire lifetime, and I'm a 40-year-old millennial mother, and that is -- it's a tragedy to me that most people aren't willing to have dialogue and debate, especially if you're saying that you want to represent a district, a Senate seat, a state here in the state of California. Xavier Becerra won't debate Steve Hilton. It's an embarrassment.
MICHAELSON: Wow. He did once. In this studio.
KRAUSS: Good for you, guys.
NUNEZ: Didn't that just happen last week here.
MICHAELSON: Happened right here. Yes.
(CROSSTALK)
KRAUSS: But he refused the L.A. Times debate. Not like they were going to go after him. But I think it's good that Susan Collins in one week, she and her Democratic opponent are going out there and showing the constituents what they both believe. I would challenge more Republicans and Democrats across the country to do that.
MICHAELSON: And they're debating four times in two weeks.
KRAUSS: Good for them.
MICHAELSON: Which is interesting.
NUNEZ: But more --
MICHAELSON: Last point, really.
NUNEZ: More important than these debates is the fact that President Trump is showing up at every state. He's doing the work of the Democratic Party. The Democratic Party doesn't need to campaign. We just need to let the president continue to do these rallies every day, wherever he goes, all over the country. MICHAELSON: I mean, the places he's showing up is essentially would be
the equivalent of a Democratic president showing up in California to campaign for governor and Senate at this close to the election, which means maybe you're having a challenge.
KRAUSS: That could be another conversation for another segment.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
KRAUSS: I'd love to say.
MICHAELSON: We've got more to do, including well talk about the state when you guys join us next hour,
Elisha. Fabian, thank you so much.
A federal judge -- this is brand new this evening has extended the order allowing CNN, MS NOW, and Politico to continue to have access to the White House, just as the current order was set to expire. Set to expire 15 minutes ago. It's been nearly one month since the White House originally revoked credentials for the outlets. President Trump has defended the ban, claiming the outlets coverage was negative or one sided.
The Justice Department says it poses a threat to national security. The attorney for CNN, MS NOW, and Politico put out a statement a few minutes ago saying, quote, "The president has repeatedly, candidly and consistently admitted in public that he banned our clients from the White House to punish reporting he doesn't like and to try to force journalists to cover him in ways that he prefers. The harm this ban did to our clients, the First Amendment and the public as a whole, is profound."
Joining me live is Adam Rose, deputy director of advocacy at the Freedom of the Press Foundation.
Adam, welcome to THE STORY IS. Please explain to us basically what the judge said and what happens because of that.
ADAM ROSE, DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF ADVOCACY, FREEDOM OF THE PRESS FOUNDATION: Well, the story is that fans of the First Amendment had a very good night. But I want to be very clear that this is going to be a long running battle. Brace yourselves, because the legal arguments have only just begun, and the practical nature of access to the White House continues to be a running question, really, as it has been for generations.
So the big headline here is that, as you said in the last 15 minutes, there was a temporary restraining order, which was ensuring that members of CNN, Politico and MS NOW were able to retain their hard passes, which allow access to the White House grounds through expedited security, and mean that they don't need an escort to go to the areas where the media normally is allowed to go.
So the good news is that a preliminary injunction has now been entered, and that extends it. It's no longer temporary. I don't want to say it's indefinite, but effectively it is for at least the coming weeks and months as this will continue to be fought in court. There is no question that the White House is going to continue to fight this in the courts. And importantly, there is no real settlement of the issue about the pool and whether media outlets like CNN can be kept out of the rotation of TV networks, which provide that pool coverage to literally thousands of TV stations.
MICHAELSON: So that may be another court case. We'll see. But in terms of this particular case, this isn't a ruling, right, that's binding. This is basically saying let's keep things status quo, which is that you guys can keep working at the White House while this continues, while we can do more arguments down the road, right?
ROSE: Well, that's exactly right. This is not a final ruling, but this is binding on the White House. And it ensures that these media outlets will be able to keep their hard passes, or at least their employees who have them can keep those passes, and they can continue going about their jobs covering the White House as they have day to day. Again, I really want to underscore, though, that the pool remains a very large issue here.
So while this injunction is in effect, those passes will still be used and hopefully you'll still get, yes, the continued reporting from CNN and everyone else. But, again, there will be other fights over whether or not the pool -- the poolers, and there are five different networks that provide that pool coverage so that the world can see what the president is up to. You know, that is really unaddressed by this ruling.
One other thing from a legal basis folks should note is that when the judge initially put out a temporary restraining order initially over this whole thing, it really focused on due process, right? These media outlets have the right to keep their cards until something was in place that would allow the White House to potentially revoke them for this sort of ludicrous claims about national security, which we can get into, but that now it has been extended to where not only did the judge say, in this particular opinion, that obviously a due process was violated, but he also said that on First Amendment grounds, the press are likely to prevail in their efforts to maintain their credentials and their access.
MICHAELSON: Adam Rose, with us on this late-breaking story. Thank you so much for helping to explain it to us. Really appreciate it.
ROSE: Thanks for having me on.
MICHAELSON: Still ahead, the Vatican reveals Pope Leo's cancer diagnosis after he underwent surgery. What we know about his condition as he recovers in the hospital. Our papal expert, Katie McGrady live next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[00:22:24]
MICHAELSON: The Vatican says Pope Leo is recovering in a Rome hospital right now, following what they describe as a successful surgery to remove a growth that was determined to be lung cancer. The pontiff had the lower lobe of his right lung removed during a 90-minute procedure on Tuesday. Testing revealed evidence of pulmonary adenocarcinoma, the most common type of lung cancer.
The 71-year-old pontiff is not a smoker and otherwise appears to be in good health, staying relatively active by playing tennis and swimming. All his public events have been canceled until October 20th.
Joining me now is CNN Vatican analyst Katy Prejean McGrady. She's also the host of the "Katie Mcgrady Show" on Sirius XM's the Catholic Channel.
Katie, welcome back. We talked with you yesterday at this time. Hopefully we'll get Katie back there. Hopefully, folks, let me know if we get her back. And we are working on that. In the meantime, I want to play some sound for you from a doctor who broke down the condition of Pope Francis -- Pope Leo right now. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. DANIEL BOFFA, DIVISION CHIEF, THORACIC SURGERY, YALE SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: It does depend on how healthy the person was before surgery. And it also depends on how healthy their lungs are. But I would expect that most people that have a lower lobectomy return to a very similar level of activity. It can take a while.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: So right now, in terms of what we know, is that his schedule is canceled until next week. It's unclear what's going to happen after that and is he going to be allowed to go back to South America, a trip that he's been looking forward to for a long time.
Katie Prejean McGrady now back with us. Worth the wait.
So in terms of what you're reporting because you're so connected in this space, what's the latest in terms of his condition and where he's at?
KATIE PREJEAN MCGRADY, CNN VATICAN ANALYST: Well, he was asking for dinner this evening, which is always a good sign. The Italians love to tell us how the Pope is doing in terms of his food consumption. And Matteo Bruni from Sala Stampa made note of before he left after having checked in on him following the procedure, he was asking for dinner. Not surprising, he'd been fasting since the night before.
All the reports seemed to indicate the surgery went well. They got what they wanted to get. They got the results that they were expecting, which was this was in fact a cancerous nodule. But then they kind of are sparse on details. Beyond that, we don't know if there'll be further therapies or what kind of treatments, but that he's resting well. The Holy Father's brother was on another program earlier tonight on a different station.
[00:25:05] And I saw on Twitter that he was saying that the Pope's right hand man had called him and said, he's doing well. No pain.
This is a procedure that is somewhat painful and that, I mean, literally, somethings taken out of your body. So he's going to need a few days to recover. But Pope Leo is in great shape for his age. Well, he's in great shape, period. He'd put me to shame on the tennis court. So I think this is a positive outlook.
MICHAELSON: By the way, us Jews also monitor how we're doing based off of food consumption. So there is something universal in that.
MCGRADY: We are family. Let's be real.
MICHAELSON: Yes. Yes. It's all about the meal. In terms of his medical history, I know that his family has a history with cancer. What can you tell us about that?
MCGRADY: So both Pope Leo's mother and father suffered from cancer. His father died later in the '90s. His mother passed away from it at just 78 years old. And we don't know what kind of cancer it was, but there are reports in various biography books that, you know, from time to time they'd be like, oh, she's only got about six months left. And then she'd continue on for quite some time. And in fact, you know, he would come home thinking it's close to the end and she would press on.
His oldest brother is currently fighting cancer as well. And that doesn't necessarily cause alarm. It just lets us know there's family history. And so the Holy Father is monitored regularly. The Holy Father is someone who probably gets regular workups with his blood work, is probably somebody who as soon as there's a spike in something, they're putting him in some sort of a scan, which is why they were able to catch this, as he told us, early, that it was very well localized and that they had to do this lobectomy to ensure that it was gone.
But the family history of cancer, I'm not going to say that's a good thing, but it means that they weren't caught off guard by this. They were anticipating we need to keep an eye on him. And he's the Pope. So he's going to get the top medical care. They're going to have a close watch. When he was elected in May of 2025, they would have done a workup on him rather quickly to ensure that, OK, where are we? How's he doing? What do we need to monitor for?
One thing to note the Gemelli Hospital has a papal apartment on the 10th floor. It's actually being renovated right now, and I think it's probably because they thought, oh, 71, great shape. We're not going to need this for a while. So they might have even been a little surprised by this. But I think I think all things considered, he's going to be OK and we have cause for positivity here.
MICHAELSON: And, you know, you pointed out to me earlier that we haven't had a Pope that's had cancer since the '60s that we've known of. And the church has not always been overly transparent with the Pope's medical condition. But in this case, it seems like they are. And let's hope that that's a good sign that he's got a good prognosis and that hopefully he'll be back out and maybe even get to take that South American trip he really wants to take in the weeks and months ahead.
MCGRADY: We hope so.
MICHAELSON: Katie McGrady, thank you so much. Really appreciate it.
MCGRADY: Thank you.
MICHAELSON: Still ahead on THE STORY IS the final debate, and really the only televised debate between L.A. Mayor Karen Bass and her challenger, Nithya Raman. It got heated. We'll break down the major moments what it could mean for who's going to lead the second biggest city in the country. Will it be a Democratic socialist? Melanie Mason live next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back. Let's take a look at today's top stories.
[00:33:16]
President Trump and his advisers are reconsidering whether to livestream the firing squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan.
Sources tell CNN that Trump has said privately that he did not initially know that Hasan was paralyzed from the waist down and in a wheelchair.
The president has also been advised that livestreaming the execution could be used as propaganda to portray Hasan as a martyr.
President Trump and some White House officials are defending new press secretary Katie Zacharia after she was criticized over her first press briefing on Tuesday.
She took questions from reporters for around 15 minutes, notably shorter than her predecessor, Karoline Leavitt. Zacharia said that she cut the briefing short, because President Trump was going to speak to reporters himself ahead of a trip to Alaska.
But some White House advisers called Zacharias's performance awkward and uncomfortable.
Early voting underway in Georgia with key races for Senate and governor on the ballot. The secretary of state says nearly 190,000 people turned out on the first day, which is a 40 percent increase from the last midterm elections back in 2022.
But it is well short of the first day of early voting in the 2024 presidential contest.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MAYOR KAREN BASS (D), LOS ANGELES: I am so profoundly sorry that I was not in my city when my city needed me. There's not a day that goes by that I don't think of the lives lost, the families that lost their home.
NITHYA RAMAN (D), LOS ANGELES MAYORAL CANDIDATE: The question that I heard over and over there and across the entire city was, where is our mayor? Where is our mayor?
I want to tell Mr. Kamdar (ph) and every resident of this city that, if there is another emergency, you will not have to ask, if I am mayor, where our mayor is.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass squaring off with challenger Nithya Raman in their final debate ahead of the mayoral election, nearly two years after the devastating Palisades and Eaton fires.
[00:35:08]
The city's response to the Palisades Fire remains a major issue in the race.
"Politico's" California bureau chief and coauthor of the "California Politico Playbook," Melanie Mason, joins us live.
We get to have a preview of tomorrow's "Playbook" ahead of time.
Melanie, let's talk about this race. Youve got Karen Bass, the incumbent Democrat, running against Nithya Raman, who's a longtime city council member, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America.
And once again, the Palisades Fire becomes a big issue, which has been the political weak point of Karen Bass time as mayor.
MELANIE MASON, CALIFORNIA BUREAU CHIEF, "POLITICO": I think, arguably, it's the reason that we're seeing this debate in the first place, right?
I mean, I think we should remember, going back to prior to the Palisades Fire, Karen Bass had very high approval ratings. I mean, she was the most popular elected official in the L.A. area.
And I think that that moment of not being in the country during that fire, and then I think her handling after the fact, really just sort of put her on this -- this downward slide when it came to the approval ratings.
And that's how we get to where we are today, where you have a former ally of hers in Councilmember Nithya Raman, who decided at the last minute to challenge her and really was prosecuting a case against the mayor's management of the city.
I think we can draw a direct line from that Palisades Fire to this moment. And I think that that's why that clip that you played was so -- was so important. It was a really important moment of the night.
MICHAELSON: Another moment that probably got the most feisty between them during this debate on NBC here in Los Angeles, was this reference to a video that Nithya Raman posted with a social media influencer, where it certainly appeared that the influencer and Nithya Raman were calling the mayor and the police chief of Los Angeles fascists.
Now, she was pressed on that by anchor Colleen Williams and the mayor. Watch what happened.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COLLEEN WILLIAMS, ANCHOR: Does that not present a red flag to someone?
RAMAN: As soon as we realized that it was a mis-edited video, we took it down. We had -- we requested it to take it down. This was an interview from someone else. It was edited by someone else. It was up for maybe an hour or two. That's it. Yes, we made an error.
BASS: I am sorry. I mean, I think it's really important to be honest. And to say that you didn't know, or you were only talking about the police is just simply not true. And you know that.
You called the city fascists. You said -- you called the police chief; you called me fascist.
RAMAN: No.
BASS: It made me wonder whether you understood what the word "fascism" meant. But it also just showed that you're not ready for prime time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: So, some of the context here, Melanie, is that Nithya Raman is DSA, which, by the way, was not mentioned during the debate, strangely.
And there -- the question for a lot of voters in Los Angeles: is she too to the left for me to stomach, especially for Spencer Pratt voters who voted for him in the primary and are trying to decide who to vote for. That's why this particular issue seems to matter.
MASON: Right. And look, as -- as Nithya Raman said, that was an error. I mean, I think it's fair to say that was a misstep by her campaign.
Because I think she really has been trying to walk this line during her campaign of, yes, she's affiliated with the Democratic Socialists of America, but she has not really run a very ideological campaign up until this point.
It's been all about sort of execution, and competence, and Mayor Bass's management of the city.
And that video with the influencer sort of thrust this conversation back into, you know, far more heated language, far more of that sort of progressive versus establishment divide that we've seen all across the country.
And first of all, I think this is a great sort of instructive moment about the perils of this new media moment, right? Like you are -- they're not just doing interviews with -- with establishment media like you and me, Elex. They're talking to these influencers. And they're being set up, perhaps, for questions that they're probably not necessarily prepared to -- to answer, or at least don't necessarily know how these videos are going to be portrayed.
But I do think that -- that Nithya was on her back heel for that answer. And I think that what's really important is what we heard from Mayor Bass at the end of that clip where she said, you are not ready for prime time.
If there was any thesis statement that I think we saw from the mayor, it was her trying to plant the seed in voters' minds that this councilmember is too much of a risk.
MICHAELSON: Real quickly on this, who won the debate?
MASON: I think that the debate was a draw, but I think that the bigger sort of takeaway is that a draw favors the person with momentum. And right now, I think the momentum is with Nithya Raman.
MICHAELSON: And -- and we'll see. A lot of your former colleagues at "The L.A. Times" said that Karen Bass won the debate.
Also quickly, while I have you, you had an article that made a lot of waves today that -- published in "Politico," looking at Kamala Harris. The headline was "'She Totally Blew It': How Kamala Harris Wasted a Year to Make Her Case."
[00:40:06]
You spoke to Democratic allies of Harris, donors of Harris, strategists across this state and the country. What did people tell you?
MASON: I think that what we were looking at is, in this sort of interim period, where we don't know if she's going to be running for president or not, what has she been doing to sort of reintroduce herself to voters, to give them a reason to vote for her if she decides to run again?
And I think that what we've heard from people who, quite frankly, are very close to -- to the former vice president or are big fans of hers, is they haven't necessarily seen her change her style, change her message, just present change in general. And this is at a moment where voters are really craving change.
And so, when we talked to people and asked if she, you know, took advantage of this time before a 2028 campaign really begins, what we heard over -- overwhelmingly was she missed an opportunity here.
MICHAELSON: Yes. We still don't know if she is going to run or if she is not going to run. And of course, the governor of California said if she runs, he's not going to run.
So, we could have a decision on some of that in the months after the midterm or even the weeks.
Melanie Mason with us from "Politico." You can check out her breakdown of the debate tomorrow morning in "The California Politico Playbook."
Thanks for being with us tonight.
Still ahead, students in more European nations are protesting what they consider poor school funding, a lack of job opportunities, and inequality. How the protest movement in France is sparking that conversation across the continent.
Dominic Thomas with us live, next.
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MICHAELSON: The ongoing student protest movement in France is inspiring other protests in Europe. Look at this in Albania. Protesters, police clashing outside the Education Ministry in the nation's capital on Tuesday, protest organizers demanding better conditions at universities and help with higher education costs.
They're also expressing frustration in general with inequality and a lack of job opportunities.
In Greece, university students in Athens set up tents across from the Parliament. They're protesting what they say are unaffordable rent prices and expensive education costs, arguing they shouldn't have to choose between housing and school.
And police in riot gear fired tear gas and water cannons at crowds of protesters in Paris. Most of the demonstrations across France on Tuesday were peaceful, with students continuing their demands for better funded schools and more teachers.
But some fringe protest groups lit fires, vandalized property, and clashed with police.
Let's discuss all this with CNN's European affairs commentator, Dominic Thomas, joining me here live in Los Angeles.
Welcome back to THE STORY IS.
Greta Thunberg, who of course, a lot of folks know for her climate activism over the years, was there joining protests today. What's the significance of that?
DOMINIC THOMAS, CNN EUROPEAN AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Well, I think it's really symbolic. I mean, let's not forget, this is somebody who, at age 15, in other words, at the age of the majority of the school-age people that are involved in these protests in France, launched, as you said, this campaign for increasing climate awareness and mobilizing young people, too.
So, we've seen this movement in France of school-age children that has now incrementally grown, that's brought the labor unions into this. University students are supporting the movement at the same time.
So, it's grown exponentially. And it's grown away from just being about education to broader issues.
We talked a little bit about it last week. Five education ministers in just the last few years, last two years. So, a sort of under caring of that particular system.
But I think here what we see is youth concerned about future, employment, post-secondary opportunities, and ultimately, looking at the leadership and not seeing in them the sort of solutions to the structural and systemic problems to which they're shining a light and drawing attention to.
MICHAELSON: And this is not just happening in France. We see it growing all over the place, and there's new developments in Spain. What's happening?
THOMAS: Yes. Well, you see a kind of synergy between these different problems. The question in Spain, really, the catalyst for it, was all about the housing crisis, affordability, growing demographics, and an increasingly difficult situation with low social housing, to essentially have people keep up with rising rents.
In this particular case, an 87-year-old woman was evicted from her home and died shortly thereafter. Not just any odd home, but one she'd lived in for 70 years.
And then on top of that, the Spanish Parliament was initially unable to pass legislation that might have addressed some of these affordability issues in housing, and the housing issues. So, the Spanish prime minister has called a snap election, hoping to capitalize on that.
MICHAELSON: And -- and meanwhile, you know, other countries getting involved. We see these dramatic pictures.
THOMAS: Yes.
MICHAELSON: Water cannons. I mean, sort of -- it seems like there's through lines with all of this. And a lot of it gets to this idea of inequality --
THOMAS: Yes.
MICHAELSON: -- and feeling left out of the system.
THOMAS: Exactly. That's very much the case. And you see that not only in Greece and Albania that you mentioned, but there have been long- term strikes in the U.K. university system. You see protests against austerity in Belgium, dissatisfaction with some of the far-right coalition issues in -- in Italy. And I think, perhaps, one of the most indicative aspects of this was a
recent state election in Germany, in Berlin, right, in the state of Berlin, where the left won that election on a single issue, which was housing affordability.
[00:50:12]
So, these sorts of questions are very much resonating with the electorate in many European countries today.
MICHAELSON: And, of course, affordability. The No. 1 issue in the American elections right now. Here in California, housing affordability specifically, is the No. 1 issue, according to -- to polls.
So, you talk about elections. You mentioned the one that's coming up in Spain. We've got an election coming up in Great Britain, as well.
THOMAS: Yes.
MICHAELSON: How does all of this factor into that in terms of the play?
THOMAS: Elections in very important European players, E.U. players and European players. You mentioned the U.K., a brand-new prime minister, who was, let's not forget, selected, not elected.
He's going to have to go to the polls in the not-too-distant future.
French President Emmanuel Macron is coming to the end of his second term, not renewable. Significant changes there, inflected with the protests that have happened in France that have introduced, you know, real uncertainty into that election.
We know that the German chancellor is fragilized by the rise of the Alternative for Germany far right, and the showing of the left in Berlin on issues that are diametrically opposed to his agenda.
And I think that the Spanish election is going to be very interesting, because there's a strong indication in the polls that Pedro Sanchez, one of the only left-leaning leaders in the European Union, may have miscalculated this.
Because it looks like the right -- center-right, the People's Party and Vox, the voice, the far-right political party, may very well come out with percentages that could allow them to govern in a country in which the right is willing to work with the far-right and not set up a firewall, as we've seen thus far in France, the U.K., and in Germany.
So, a lot of uncertainty and unpredictability yet again, as we move forward here -- Elex.
MICHAELSON: Wow. It is remarkable how folks all around the world feel like the establishment is not serving them. And they're expressing that frustration in different ways. Some of it the far left, some of it the far right, but really,
clearly, a lot of anger and not a lot of centrism happening at this moment either.
THOMAS: Correct.
MICHAELSON: Dominic Thomas, thank you so much. Really appreciate your insights in laying that out so well.
speaking of France, French investigators are searching for the hackers who raised the temperature in refrigerators and freezers at supermarkets across the country. That cyberattack caused some fires; led to significant food waste.
So far, no group has publicly claimed responsibility. Anna Stewart has more.
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ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Investigators say this attack impacted hundreds of supermarkets in France and potentially some elsewhere in Europe.
STEWART (voice-over): Hackers raised the temperature of fridges and freezers to as high as 50 degrees Centigrade, effectively turning the fridges into ovens, spoiling vast amounts of food and even starting fires.
The CEO of Intermarche, one of the biggest supermarket chains, told French TV network BFM-TV. It likely cost tens of millions of euros nationwide in a single day.
STEWART: Hackers targeted a vulnerability in the software --
STEWART (voice-over): -- that connects the fridges to the internet, which allows them to be managed remotely.
Danfoss, the Danish company that owns this software, said it was, quote, "aware of incidents in France affecting a limited number of refrigeration management systems," and it said companies impacted hadn't updated to the latest firmware, as recommended.
Nobody has claimed responsibility for this attack, and the motives are unclear. France's national cyber security agency is investigating.
STEWART: In the meantime, the attack has raised the question of how vulnerable IOT devices, the Internet of things, can be to cyberattacks, both for businesses but also in the home, with so many devices connected to the internet: doorbells, ovens, thermostats, lights, security cameras.
And the risk is also increasing with a rapid development in artificial intelligence. Anthropic warning just this week that A.I. models may be months away from accessing certain devices, self-replicating itself across them in a way that would be very to contain.
Anna Stewart, CNN, London.
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MICHAELSON: Anna, thank you.
Coming up, Apple announces its first smart home product in years. We'll show you the new device Apple claims will bring, quote, "more joy and convenience to your home." Are you buying it?
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There are other worlds. Probably hundreds of worlds.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Even infinity worlds.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Audiences got their first glimpse of Greta Gerwig's take on the magical realm of Narnia, as Netflix dropped the first trailer for the upcoming film "Narnia: The Magician's Nephew."
Based on the classic C.S. Lewis children's books, the trailer unveils the movie's protagonists, two children in Digory and Polly, the White Witch, and the mythical lion Aslan.
The film is scheduled for a theatrical release on February 12th next year, before coming to Netflix in April.
Apple is trying to revamp its version of a smart speaker for your home and possibly get a leg up on Amazon's Alexa and Echo. The company just announced a new device called Home View, which is due out in November.
The monitor and speaker combo aims to make Apple's virtual assistant, Siri, a bigger part of your life, with Siri A.I. showing you relevant information based on your text messages, calendar, and more.
