New Poll: Key Senate Races Too Close To Call 

0:02We're dropping brand new CNN polling from two states that could make or break a Senate majority. I'm Casey Hunt in for Dana Bash. Let's go behind the headlines and inside politics.

0:18There are 55 days until the election, and we are tracking the races, candidates, and stories that could shift the balance of power here in Washington and across the country. And we start with breaking news. Two new CNN battleground state polls in Michigan and Maine. The headline, the Senate races in each state are statistically tied. In Michigan, Democrat Abdul El-Sayed and Republican Mike Rogers are within the margin of error. And in Maine, it's the same thing. Democrat Troy Jackson also within the margin of error. CNN's political director David Chalian is at the magic wall with all the numbers.

0:56We also have Manu Raju covering the race on the ground in Maine and Arlette Sainz on the ground in Michigan. We'll get to them in just a moment. But David, let's start with you. I think you're going to start us off in Maine. What are we learning? Two battleground states, Casey, and they are toss up races, no doubt. As you showed here in Maine, I'm going to take my earpiece out. As you showed here in Maine, you see Troy Jackson at 48 percent among likely voters, Susan Collins at 45 percent, well within the margin of error. There is no clear leader in this race. What about the demographic breakdowns in this race?

1:30Well, if you've been paying attention to American politics, as I know people who watch Inside Politics are. This will look familiar. The Democrat Jackson with an advantage among female voters. The Republican Collins, an advantage among male voters. Jackson has a big advantage with voters under 45, a small edge for Collins for those 45 or older. College graduates, big advantage for the Democratic candidate. And with non-college graduates, this is the education divide we talk about. You see an advantage for Susan Collins. This is why we always say turnout is so important. how these groups show up will determine a lot of the outcome here.

2:06I think this is one of the most fascinating numbers in our entire poll. What's driving Jackson voters in this race? Overwhelmingly, 71 % of likely Jackson voters are casting their ballot as a vote against Susan Collins. This is an effort to get rid of Republican control of the Senate, and these voters clearly see Susan Collins and defeating her as a pathway to do that. That's the motivation for Jackson voters. When you look at the issue set in Maine, Casey, this is the negative political environment overall for Republicans that we see. Donald Trump's approval rating in the state of Maine is at 31 % among likely voters.

2:44A slim majority of likely voters are angry, not just dissatisfied, angry about how things are going in the U.S. fewer than one in five voters say that their financial situation is better now than it was two years ago. Only a small fraction of voters. And this is so interesting. Seventy percent, seven in ten of likely voters in Maine say that tariffs on Canada are bad for the state of Maine. And as we know, Donald Trump keeps pursuing that agenda and putting it front and center, which creates a problem for Susan Collins. A problem indeed. All right, CNN's Manu Raju is on the ground in Newport, Maine for us.

3:24So, Manu, what are you seeing, feeling out on the ground there as you see these numbers? Yeah, it's interesting because what you're seeing with Democrats, and it's borne out in the polling here, they're trying to nationalize this race. They're trying to make this about Susan Collins, Donald Trump, and if Susan Collins wins re-election here, that the Republicans will likely keep the Senate majority. And that's what's really driving supporters of Troy Jackson in this race. He's not particularly well known in this state still, given the fact the way he came into this race just several weeks ago as a Democratic nominee.

3:58But the issue that is driving them, according to this poll, 53 % of Jackson supporters believe that party control of the Senate is the most important issue. Then when you look at the Collins supporters, it's different. That's the issues of the candidates' positions are the most interesting to them. and issues of candidate character, which explains to you why Susan Collins very much ended up Republicans going after Troy Jackson. They're up with a bunch of campaign ads, trying to attack him as an insider politician, someone they said that people should not trust. But then here's another question, too, that this poll tested.

4:34The issue of the Dobbs decision that occurred after Susan Collins was last on the ballot. Remember, she voted for Brett Kavanaugh to sit on the Supreme Court. Kavanaugh, of course, voted to overturn Roe v. Wade. And when you ask the voters how they feel about that issue, and it's very clear, a lot of them very angry. 65 % are angry. When you break down the demograph, who is ideologically, which voters are most angry about this? Of course, Democrats, no surprise there, but it is the blue state. This is the issue. If you're Susan Collins, you're paying attention because 70 % of independent voters are concerned about the fact that Roy V.

5:14Wade was overturned in 2022. Can the question now for Democrats, Casey, is can they translate into a vote against Susan Collins? And can Susan Collins, who's running very much on her seniority, sitting as a chairwoman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, what she's brought to different parts of the state, can she make this race, separate herself from the national environment, separate herself from Donald Trump, and focus on her record and what she's been able to deliver? That's what she's doing actually right behind me right now. campaign stops going to one business after another, trying to talk to voters about what she has done for them.

5:47The question is, how will voters decide? What will they decide at the end of the day? Local issues, parochial issues, her record or the national environment? She's been a real lion in the state in the test of whether this national environment is bad enough to push her out. It's going to really say a lot. All right, Manu, thank you. Let's get back to the magic wall and David Chalian, who has the CNN poll results out of Michigan. David, walk us through it. Yeah, Casey, you noted the top line numbers here. Again, this is a razor thin race and 47 % of likely voters supporting Abdul El-Sayed in our poll, 44 % for the Republican Mike Rogers.

6:22I realize this number is higher than this number, but this is the number that really matters here. 4.1 % margin of error. This is within it. There is no clear leader in this race. You look at the demographic breakdowns here. Again, we see Rogers, the Republican performing a bit better with male voters. El Syed, the Democrat, a bit better with female voters. They're running really close together among white voters, so that may be a good sign for El Syed. Among black voters, obviously, the Democrat has a huge advantage among black voters in Michigan. But is it a big enough advantage? Because he's going to need big black turnout if, indeed, he's going to be successful as a Democrat in Michigan.

6:58And, again, you see the age divide here. Younger voters overwhelmingly advantage for El Syed. Rogers, a slight edge with older voters. Speaking of black voters, among likely black voters in Michigan, look at this. 60 % tell us that they've made their mind up. They're locked in. But that leaves 40 % who either might change their mind or haven't decided. So if you're El-Sayed, you say, hey, I got to shore up what should be a natural constituency for me as the Democrat. And if you're Rogers, you see opportunity in here to try and dig away at what may be your opponent's natural base. So that's an interesting finding in the poll.

7:34if indeed Michigan voters at the end of the day vote because they want change, that's going to advantage Abdul El-Sayed. 65 % of likely Michigan voters say that he will try to change things a lot if he gets to Washington. Only 20 % of Michigan voters say that about Mike Rogers. So what may be keeping this race so close, if that is the reality and people are hungry for change? Well, it might be ideology, Casey. 50%, half of likely voters in Michigan say El Syed is too liberal. That is more than the voters who say 42 % of likely Michigan voters who say that Rogers is too conservative. So that may be something that El Syed has to navigate through if he is to be successful in this race, Casey.

8:19Indeed, and there may be some significant layers to what voters are including in that particular metric. All right, CNN's Arlette Saenz is there in Pontiac, Michigan for us. Arlette, you've been on the trail with both of these Senate candidates this week, and you've talked to voters. What have you learned on the ground? Well, Casey, a lot of these findings in our newest Michigan poll really reflect some of the conversations that we've been having with voters here on the ground in Michigan. You have Republicans who have argued that Dula El-Sayed is too extreme, too liberal. That is something that is reflected a bit in these numbers.

8:53while you also have the Democrats and El Sayed supporters who've been very frustrated with some of the policies coming out of Washington and are worried that Mike Rogers is aligned with the president. Now, one of the other interesting dynamics of this poll is one of the top concerns for voters here in Michigan, and that is the state of the economy and cost of living issues. That is something we heard over and over again from voters. And included in all of that is some of the impact that has been felt here in Michigan from the tariffs that have been in place with Canada and other countries as well.

9:28And I had the chance to speak with voters on the economy, on tariffs. Here's what a few of them had to tell me this week. Well, there's no upside. There's no end game. Inflation has increased. Gas prices increased. Everything in this world has increased. What has decreased? The economy is doing better, I think, in a way that, yes, not everyday people are feeling it in their pocketbook right now, but you've got to give it some time. When I spoke with El-Sayed earlier this week, he cited those tariffs on Canadian imports being part of the problem that is driving cost up for Michiganders here in the state.

10:06A bit earlier today, we were with Mike Rogers outside of an event where he had toured a literacy program at a school. And he was asked about the president's tariff policies. He said that he believes that some of it gets it right, some of it needs to be tweaked a bit, kind of showing the tricky and fine line, delicate balance that he is trying to strike in this race. But this battleground state of Michigan will be key heading into November. Republicans feel that this could offer one of their best pickup opportunities. And if a Republican, if Rogers were to win here, that could potentially disrupt the Democratic math to the Senate majority.

10:43But El-Sayed, I asked him if he believed that Democrats could win the Senate majority without Michigan. He told me no, but he expressed confidence that he thinks the state will. Casey. All right, Arlette signs for us on the ground in Michigan. Arlette, thank you very much for that. And coming up next here, it is President Trump's party and he'll call it sold out if he wants to. We're going to have new reporting on tonight's first ever GOP midterm convention and the very political RSVPs. Plus, high prices, an unpopular war, and a president deep underwater. With all that GOP baggage, why aren't Democrats flying higher?

11:19I'll speak to DNC Chair Ken Martin this hour.

11:29I'm Dr. Sanjay Gupta, host of the Chasing Life podcast. We get to talk about to the men's winner of the New York City Marathon. Andreas Almgren, he's a self-coached 31-year-old who was, get this, making his marathon debut. He never ran a marathon before he won it. If someone wanted to start getting serious about running and they wanted to approach it like a data scientist like you do, how would you suggest they start? Be patient. My peak weeks, I ran like 140, 150 miles per week or something. Wow. either increase the distance or you should increase the intensity. You should never increase both at the same time.

12:08Listen to Chasing Life, streaming now, wherever you get your podcasts.

12:16President Trump is rallying Republicans in Dallas tonight at the first ever GOP midterm convention. This is probably not the headline they'd like to kick things off. Global oil prices crossed the$100 mark today. A response to a U.S. strike on Iranian oil tankers and a host of other developments that make clear the war in Iran is far from over. So what does that mean for gas prices? The average price at the pump today jumped seven cents overnight. It is now four dollars and 22 cents. All right. Our panel of great reporters is here. And David Chalian, with the economy at the front and center of all of this, affordability, the economy, whatever word you want to use to describe it.

12:59the president is putting this on true social. The national Republican National Convention tomorrow night in Dallas is really hot. It's totally sold out. Everybody wants to be there, but we're really asking only those candidates who are in tight races. We don't need people who are up 45 points and have been in office for 30 years as much as we love them. I'm not quite sure where he's going with that, but what do you make of this? He said something similar in the Rose Garden last week about don't bother me. I'm not coming to you. I think you're safe, right?

13:28I of all, what I make of it is that is still a president from his apprentice days who's very much into, you know, it's hot. Like he wants the tune in for it. No doubt about that. Yes. Ratings. Exactly. But here's the thing about the economy. No matter what rhetoric the president offers up around it, people live it day to day. They see the gas price sticker shock that you have just put up. And so unlike other things where the president can really sort of shape public opinion around it, That is much harder for him to do around the economy because people experience it at their kitchen table every day.

14:00Well, and we saw with Joe Biden, Jamie Gengel, that in some ways it was problematic to insist to voters publicly that everything was going well. Correct. And with the gas prices going up, you know, this is it's not an October surprise, but it's it's not helping him. The other thing that I wonder about this event is, you know, these candidates are show me the money. Trump has this big war chest, whether it's$400 million or, as he said the other day, a billion dollars. I'm very curious to see how much he really puts out there in the end, which races it goes to, and does it help? Yeah. So, Shelby, the RNC is saying that the point of this convention is this, quote, our goal is to remind voters who aren't necessarily politically engaged all of the time that there is an election in November and it's critical for them to get out and vote.

14:57And of course, this speaks to the way voters have behaved when Trump is on the ballot, right? The times that he has been running, there have been people. And, you know, there was some of this with former President Obama as well, right? They only would go to vote for Donald Trump. And in other elections they're not coming out. What does that say to you about the goals and what are they hoping to accomplish? I mean the administration when I talk to White House officials and people who have been involved in this midterm planning from the administration's perspective is pretty simple. They believe that the more that they can get the president out there the more likely it's going to be that that sort of 20, 30, whatever the percentage of sort of core hardcore Trump voters who really only historically have turned out for the president will turn out for other people.

15:43And you heard this has been something that the administration has been thinking of for months because it's been a little bit of a journey to get the president out on the campaign trail as much as we're seeing him get out now. I remember an interview with Susie Wiles last year where she was saying, the president might not like this yet, but I'm going to make him get out on the campaign trail. That's their calculus. I think the question is, are those Trump voters as happy with the president now as they were before the 2024 election when they voted him into office for things like lowering the cost of groceries and the cost of living?

16:22We don't know that yet. Right. So, David Chalian, let's look at a list of who's going to be there and who's not. because those who are attending and speaking include Senator John Husted of Ohio. He's in a tough race against Sherrod Brown. Michael Watley from North Carolina, likely, or he's got an uphill battle against Roy Cooper. Mike Collins of Georgia. Mike Rogers from Michigan. That's a tight one. Ken Paxson of Texas. Attending but not speaking, the candidates in Iowa and Roger Marshall is the incumbent senator from Kansas. Not going. John Sununu, New Hampshire. Dan Sullivan, Alaska. And Senator Susan Collins.

16:58of Maine, New Hampshire being kind of a sleeper one for Republicans that they'd like to have beyond the map here in November. What do you think are the differences and similarities among these groups? Well, let's start with the folks that aren't going, because New Hampshire and Maine are blue-tilted states, right? So you kind of understand that. And with Collins and Sullivan, two incumbent senators who really have tried to carve out a distinct identity from the national Republican political brand, you know, in their states. So they don't want to sort of be attached to that. So I think I understand that.

17:30The Mike Rogers is really interesting because to me, he gets to the very thing you're talking about as like a test case for if the theory from Susie Wiles and others is correct. He doesn't want to not show up because he needs to energize that base. So he wants to dabble in that. And yet he's at a state that we just saw in our poll. Donald Trump is wildly unpopular in the state of Michigan. And so how closely do you want to be attached? You know, I don't think Rogers is seen as super Trumpy by voters in Michigan. But deciding that he wanted to attend this, to me, indicates he knows part of his challenge, as much as he's done since the primary to woo the middle and try to get some disaffected Democrats who may not be happy with El-Sayed in the fold, part of his challenge also is he's got to have a totally excited and livened Republican MAGA base to show up.

18:19Right. And of course, in the environment in Michigan with tariffs and some of those other things you walk through, That's a challenge. Jamie Gangel, let's look at the list of House candidates who are going to be speaking at the convention, because this also gives us a sense. And of course, we talk about this all the time, but the environment, the House is going to be much more driven by the national environment, whereas the Senate races, who the candidates are, can matter a little bit more. But are there any names that stand out to you as being missing? Jamie, what does it say to you that, I mean, Mike Lawler of New York is going, right?

18:48One of the districts that is most likely to flip here because it's reasonably Democratic swing. So he may be able to afford to be able to go. And I think that's a question. I think the other thing is no one wants to be the target of Trump's wrath. Someone like Susan Collins, she's going to get a hall pass. He understands that she can't show up. But, you know, you see these House candidates there. They know to go back to the money. Trump has the money. He has the base. These folks clearly think they need to be there. They absolutely do. All right, coming up next here, CNN uncovers a Republican congressional candidate comparing feminists' weight to whales and nuclear bombs.

19:38Brandon Herrera says he was joking. But could his words put a Texas district in play?

19:53All right, now to new CNN reporting on a Republican congressional candidate with a trail of crass and sexually degrading comments about women. Conservative YouTube creator Brandon Herrera said some things so vulgar that we can't repeat them on television. Now Democrats are hoping that his past remarks could give their candidate an opening in a key red-leaning Texas district. CNN's Alison Gordon is part of the investigative team that has been digging into Brandon Herrera. So Alison, what did you find? Yeah, Brandon Herrera is a longtime conservative YouTube creator and he has a lot of fans, more than 4 million followers on his page.

20:34So he had a lot of content for us to dive into. Hundreds of videos, hours of his podcast and social media posts I had to sift through with my colleague Morgan Leeson to really tell this story well. So let's take a listen to just some of what we found of him talking about women. As you'll notice, his noggin appears to already have arrived empty and is instead full of mush, much like the average Austin feminist. So when a blue hair on the news says that a semi-automatic AR-15 is an assault rifle, she is both fat and wrong. But what if out of self-defense you had to take down something a lot bigger, like an elephant or a killer whale or an angry blue haired Austin feminist?

21:15These things weigh in at about 6 ,500 pounds apiece, or approximately four times as much as the average Austin feminist. Yeah, so that's just a small portion of what we dug through. And I also found examples of Herrera using sexually crass language, slang, other derogatory comments towards women, especially when he was insulting a female gun safety advocate, Shannon Watts, both her and her children. And the comments he used about her are too vile to repeat on air right now. So what has Herrera's team been telling us about this? Yeah, when I reached out to Herrera's campaign, again, they characterized these comments as jokes, and they directed my focus rather to his opponent, Democrat Katie Padilla-Stout, citing her involvement in a domestic violence case as an attorney in San Antonio.

22:05Now, when I reached out to Stout's campaign, they said that she was just doing her job as a court-appointed appellate attorney, and that Herrera should really take account for these past comments about women. So Herrera has been pressed on controversial comments that he's made before about Nazis and about veteran suicide. He has said those are jokes. You spoke with a political extremism expert who pushed back on that assertion. What did she tell you? Yeah, this is not the first time that this candidate has been scrutinized, and he has repeatedly characterized these comments as jokes. Now, when I took that to this political extremism expert who runs a research lab at American University, she told me that she looks through this kind of content all the time for her research.

22:48And her research has shown that when you go back and look at what folks who commit political violence are consuming online, it's often misogynistic commentary, whether that be on YouTube, social media or on podcasts. And she described Herrera's comments, particularly when he compared women's weight to that of animals, you know, the killer whales and elephants as hallmarks of Internet misogyny. And again, Herrera characterized his comments as jokes, and he pushed back on that assertion. All right. Allison Gordon, with that reporting, Allison, thank you very much for being here. All right, coming up next here, Democrats say they're a big tent party, but how far can the tent stretch before it starts to impact crucial battleground races?

23:28DNC Chief Ken Martin is next.

23:40With just under eight weeks to go until Election Day, President Trump has never been more unpopular. But headed into the campaign's final stretch, Republicans have a huge cash advantage as their midterm convention kicks off tonight. So which fact will count for more? DNC Chair Kim Martin joins me now. Mr. Chairman, thank you so much for being here. Really appreciate your time. So you've said that the one thing that unites everyone in the Democratic Party is opposition to President Trump. But unlike in 2018, when Democrats really benefited from that, we see in polling people are really unhappy with the Democratic brand.

24:17So is it enough to just be against Trump? Well, look, I think the reason our candidates have been winning across the board over the last 19 months is because they're running for something, not against something. They're not just talking about Donald Trump. In fact, what they're talking about is affordability. They're talking about actually making sure that people can afford their lives and actually achieve the American dream. And instead of just getting by, actually getting ahead. They're also talking about health care access, making sure that we save health care in this country and make sure that no one in this country, the richest country in the world, is going without health care.

24:53And lastly, they're talking about corruption, the fact that this system is rigged for the powerful and the wealthy at the expense of hardworking Americans. That's what Democrats have been focused on. Everyone from Zoran Mamdani to Abigail Spanberger to Mikey Sherrill to every candidate that has been running over the last 19 months and has won, that's because they're running for something. They're very rarely talking about Donald Trump. In fact, we don't need to talk about Donald Trump, although we will and I certainly will. And, of course, we need to be united to put a check on this madman's power, and that's what Democrats are going to do.

25:25But the reason we've been winning is because we've been giving people a vision of what the future will look like with Democrats in control. You say you need to be united, but does embracing some of the Democratic socialists of America who've been winning in very blue places help get the candidates that are going to make your majorities over the finish line? Well, what I would say is we are a Big Ten party. I've always said that, right? We have all sorts of Democrats running all over the country, conservative Democrats, centrist Democrats, progressives, and new Democrats, these leftists. And the reality is it takes all of us, all types of Democrats, to win throughout the country.

26:02And while folks like you and others want to focus on the differences within this Big Ten party of ours, I am reminded of the fact that there is more that unites all of these disparate parts of our party. Every Democrat I know is running to put more money in people's pockets. Every Democrat I know is running to make sure we get towards universal health care so no one goes without health care in this country. Every Democrat I know is making sure that we bring down the cost of housing and make sure that people can afford the groceries and are paid a living wage and can retire with dignity. These are core values of the Democratic Party.

26:34And whether you're on the far left or the far right of our party, the things that unite us are much bigger than the things that divide us. One of the challenges that you face as a party apparatus at the DNC specifically is this massive cash advantage compared to Republicans. At the end of August, the DNC had$16 million on hand, but you owe nearly$18 million. And of course, the RNC has$130 million. What has gone wrong? Nothing's gone wrong. Just the opposite. We've made a bet. And the bet is we've raised more money, by the way, than any DNC chair without the White House. Nothing has gone wrong, even though you're in debt.

27:17Here's the deal. We inherited a bunch of money from the last presidential campaign. We decided to pay that money off. And, of course, we did. And then we took out a loan so that we could make deep investments in the elections last year to win. And we did as a result. We have raised a record amount of money, over$216 million to date through July 31st, which is$100 million more than the last record holder, which was Chairman Tom Perez at a similar time. There's no DNC chair without the White House who's raised more money. But the difference here is that we're spending the money. We're actually pushing it out to have conversations with voters, to have year-round organizing throughout the country, to support our state parties in a true 50-state party strategy, to invest deeply in elections up and down the ballot, not just federal elections, but state and local elections as well.

28:06And as I mentioned, to start the conversations with voters earlier and often. One of the lessons from the 24 election is that we as a party and our campaign waited too long to actually start engaging voters in the conversation. The DNC made a bet, and the bet was this. We're going to start early. We're going to start often. We're going to build the infrastructure to win. And as a result, by the way, we've been winning. Ninety percent of the elections on the ballot, we've been winning. And look, at the end of the day, you should measure a party chair at any level on two metrics. One, are they raising the money?

28:38And two, are they winning? And on both of those accounts, we are doing exactly that. We've raised a record amount. We're investing a record amount. And we're winning at a record rate. You know, we'll see in 55 days what ends up happening. I'm confident we're going to win. I'm not complacent. But I can tell you what, we've been raising the resources we need to to actually invest in the things that will help us win. There, of course, have been also some questions about the autopsy report that you all put out looking back at the 2024 election. and there was an aide that worked on that report who says that he gave you, according to the New York Times, a copy of a chapter of that report that discussed the former president's decision to run for re-election, Joe Biden.

29:22You say, or you told the paper that you've never seen that. What does this dispute say about what the party is capable of going forward? Well, look, none of that reporting was accurate. And the reality is for us, what we're focused on is the future. We took the lessons learned from that autopsy, the mistakes that were made in 24 and prior elections, and we've distilled them both into our lessons learned and our playbook to make sure that we as a party are incorporating those key lessons learned into our work. We've been doing that over the course of the last 19 months. Not only how we're investing money and spending money, but how we're communicating with voters.

30:06It's all a direct outcome of the autopsy and, of course, those lessons that we learned. And so, you know, there's disputes out there about what was in it, what wasn't in it. The reality is, is that what I've been focused on this whole time, our North Star is actually November 3rd and winning these midterm elections and putting a check on Trump's power. That's what the DNC's been doing. And so while some people want to focus on the past, some people want to focus on the divisions within the DNC and within the Democratic Party. What I'm focused in on is making sure that we win in November, we put a check on his power, and then we win again in 28.

30:42And we're certainly well positioned to do both. All right. Ken Martin, the chairman of the DNC, thank you so much for your time, sir. I appreciate it. Thank you. All right. Coming up next, President Trump tells voters to pretend that he's on the ballot. Is what Republicans who are actually on the ballot, is that what they want? I'll speak to a vulnerable GOP congressman skipping the midterm convention.

31:13Many battleground Republicans will be in Dallas tonight for the first ever Republican midterm convention, headlined on both nights by speeches from President Trump. Congressman Tom Barrett isn't one of them. He is fighting to hold on to a purple district in Michigan, and he is skipping the GOP gathering. And Congressman Barrett joins me now. Congressman, thank you so much for spending some time with us today. So unlike many of your colleagues, you're not going to the convention. The president has said that he's on the ballot, even though he isn't, right, that this is about him. Is he wrong to say the election is a referendum on his presidency?

31:53Well, I can tell you what I'm talking to folks in my district about and here back home in Michigan, they're concerned about a variety of different issues facing our country right now. And this is ultimately a binary choice on the ballot in my race between me and my opponent. In his rhetoric, his socialist advocacy, he claims that he's a socialist. He's a founding member of the Democratic Socialist Movement here in the Lansing area of Michigan. He stood out for policies about abolishing the police, opening borders and a whole host of other very dangerous things. He said that the nuclear family is a violent way to organize society.

32:31You know, I'm raising a nuclear family. I have four kids of my own. And part of the reason I'm home this week is to spend a little bit more time with my family as we head into election season and the challenges that that presents. So, you know, I'm campaigning on my own merits. I'm talking to voters in my district. I was out canvassing door to door just last night and look forward to doing that again here today or tomorrow and on for the next 55 days till Election Day. So when you are out there working in your district and framing it as a local race, a choice between two people there, is it helpful for you when the president spends time talking about his ballroom or the Kennedy Center or all of the projects that he's doing in Washington, the reflecting pool?

33:15Or does that make it harder for you to make the case that this race is about you and your opponent? Well, I think at the end of the day, like I said, when people get their ballot here, whether they're voting by mail, voting early or voting on Election Day, they're going to see the slate of candidates that are running on both sides. They're going to see me and the work that I've done challenging issues of affordability. I've done major legislation reforms around the affordability of health care and housing, as well as working on aviation safety. I flew in the military, flew the same type of helicopter that was in that tragic collision over Washington, D.C.'s airport about a year and a half ago and got to work on making reforms there that I still want to get done.

33:53And there's still more work to do, which is why I'm running for another term in Congress. But when folks draw their ballot, they're going to see my name on the ballot and they're going to see my opponent's name on the ballot. And they're going to have to make a choice. Do they want somebody who spent 22 years in the Army, came home serving my country, serving my state and now looking to continue the work that I'm doing in Congress? or do they want to turn our country over to radical socialist voices? This isn't an exaggeration. This is his own words and his own rhetoric talking about destroying the nuclear family, talking about opening up our borders.

34:24You know, for the first time in my life, we've finally seen a decline in fentanyl overdose deaths in America. And my opponent would completely reverse that. I don't want to see us go back to the days of 10 million or 15 million illegal immigrants coming into our country with drugs pouring over our border, poisoning friends of mine. The leading cause of death of Americans my age under Joe Biden's tenure as president was fentanyl overdoses. We've made major strides to secure our border. We've got more work to do in Congress, which is why I'm asking to go back for another two years from the people of the district that I represent.

34:59So, of course, one significant issue in your home state of Michigan is trade with Canada. I mean, you do$65 billion, the state of Michigan, in trade with Canada every year. And we just put out a new poll of Michigan. 64 % of Michiganders say the tariffs are bad. But you voted against reining in Trump's tariff power. Do you stand by those votes? Well, you know, when we took those votes, it was, of course, prior to the Supreme Court making their decision about relative tariff power for the executive branch and everything else. And I think that any type of tariff has to be done where it is in the interest of the United States and in the interest of our objectives to balance anomalies within the trade arrangements that we have.

35:45And, you know, Canada, for example, has taken advantage of the dairy industry. Folks that I represent in Michigan, we have a strong amount of dairy that we have in my district, and they're struggling to really make market margins in no small part because Canada has really manipulated their market there that excludes Americans and Michiganders from being able to sell products in their country. You know, I'm still advocating for cooler heads to prevail in this tit for tat back and forth with Canada. And I want to see us get to a point where we can have mutually beneficial trade arrangements with Canada.

36:19I'm still hopeful that we'll get there. But that has been my advocacy, both publicly and behind the scenes, is so that we can move in that direction. And I think it's going to take movement by both sides, the United States and Canada, to get to a mutual arrangement where both sides can have. At the end of the day, as I said, trade has to be mutually beneficial for it to work. And we have to get to a point where, you know, on our manufacturing, as you pointed out, we have processor goods that ship over the border maybe five or six times before they're put into a final assembly plant. We have two of those assembly plants in my district.

36:50And that is something that I want to make sure we're able to continue doing in a competitive way without allowing Canada or any other country, for example, or for that sake, to take advantage of American industries. If you were to lose this race in Michigan, would it be because of the tariffs? Well, I'm not going to lose the election, so I'm not going to go down this pessimistic path that you want to throw down there. I'm an optimistic person. And again, I think that this difference between me and my opponent is profound. While I was serving my country overseas on deployment, he was trying to ban the gasoline engine vehicles that we make here in this district.

37:30He has a conviction for resisting arrest, a felony conviction for protesting a pipeline project here in my district that provides the propane that heats homes through the winter here in Michigan. We're the leading state for home heating through propane, and my opponent would shut that down in the vital artery that provides that for not just my family, but families across my district. People aren't going to want that when they're faced with those choices. I'm ready to go back to work and continue the job that I've been doing and continue to advocate for families like mine in Washington, D.C. And finally, I hear that you're a Western Michigan alum.

38:09How about that game on Saturday? Yes, we are definitely going to challenge this. We are going to stop the steal of the 2026 Michigan stealing Western Michigan University's rightful win in that game. I was watching it with my son, and we're both just terribly devastated by this. I am the only Western Michigan University Bronco in Congress, so this is something. I'm calling on Chairman Jordan to hold hearings on this to make sure that this injustice doesn't stand. Well, let me tell you, the fact that the game was so close says more about Michigan than I want it to, but I will say, go blue, because I am a lifelong Wolverine fan.

38:47No, go Bronco. Go Bronco. Sir, thank you so much for being with us. I really appreciate it. I hope to talk to you again soon. Thank you for having me on. All right. Thanks for joining Inside Politics. I'm going to be back at 4 p.m. for the arena. Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker will be my guest. CNN News Central starts after a quick break.

39:08I'm Adi Cornish. I'm Ari Shapiro, and it's Engagement Party. It is Engagement Party. And we get to talk about what we're obsessed with, what we're engaged with, what we need to process with a friend. We are going to be talking about the booming market of toys, games, puzzles, crafts for not children, but adults. OK, not just adults, kiddults. Kiddulting. This year, for the first time ever, a majority of toy sales were in adult-only households. And there are some other numbers to back this up. Like in a Harris Poll survey published this year, two-thirds of American adults reported spending$100 or more on playful activities and products like craft kits or action figures.

39:4613 % of adults reported spending$500 or more on these things. So it's a massive market and I think also a massive change in the culture. Follow Engagement Party wherever you get your podcasts.