Trump's Dark Message

0:00Twas many nights before Christmas, and one woman knew she needed a tree, so to Wayfair she flew. She found more decor and added to cart. Merry Christmas to all. Get your Wayfair head start. For holiday decor you can count on, Wayfair delivers. This holiday, all plans, even unlimited, are just$15 a month. A holiday deal this good obviously deserves an enormously expensive holiday song, like All I Want. Right. Okay, we can't afford that. You know what? Forget the music budget. We're going to stick with whatever's in the public domain. Give it a try at mintmobile.com slash switch. Upfront payment of$45 for three months,$90 for six months, or$180 for 12-month plan required.

0:38$15 per month equivalent. Taxes and fees extra. New customer offer for initial plan term only. Greater than 50 gigabytes may slow when network is busy. See terms.

0:50Happening now, Trump's dark message. The president is painting an ominous picture in his midterm pitch with just two weeks until election day. Plus, one-year-old killed. This stroller once held a little girl, Angelina. She is one of the latest victims in Russia's war on Ukraine. As President Trump blasts President Zelensky, suggesting it's time for someone else to negotiate with Russia. Unannounced trip. Well, what we're now learning about Defense Secretary Pete Hexas' trip to Israel and what he talked about in his meeting with the Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. And later, injured in an ICE incident.

1:26Police say a Long Beach man was found handcuffed and bleeding after being detained by ICE agents. According to the mayor, he is a U.S. citizen. Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer with Pamela Brown, and you're in the Situation Room.

1:52We begin with a countdown to the midterm elections. election day is now just two weeks away and already more than 10 million ballots have been cast in the very high stakes battle for control of the U.S. Congress. That according to data from 41 states and the District of Columbia. And today President Trump is heading to Greenville, North Carolina, a key battleground state for Republicans. Tonight's visit also comes after President Trump painted a very dark picture of what he says the country would look like if Democrats take back power. Here's what he told voters in Kansas last night. When you see burning steeples and raging fires in France, just remember that is what the radical Democrats want to do to America.

2:35And just like in Europe, Democrats are the party of anti-Western Marxist and hostile third world migrants. And Senator Roger Marshall and the great people of Kansas will not let them plunder our nation's wealth or demolish what our ancestors built with their own sweat, blood, tears, and skill. All right, let's go live right now to our White House correspondent, Elena Trane. Elena, do you expect we'll be hearing more of this type of rhetoric, very nasty, angry rhetoric, later tonight in North Carolina? I do. Look, Wolf and Pamela, I was actually with the president on Saturday when he was in northern Kentucky.

3:15He was there mainly because it's so close to the Ohio border. There's a very tight Senate race there. You heard similar language from the president. This type of fear mongering that we know isn't exactly new for him. I mean, this reminds me of when I was out on the campaign trail with him in 2024. We know he's used the same type of rhetoric in 2020 and 2016 as well when he was running his own races and trying to become president. This fear mongering of this difference between kind of painting a picture of the Republican Party as the type of party you want for the future versus Democrats who would oversee kind of this bleak state of play for the country.

3:51That is exactly what he's trying to do, which is two weeks left until these midterm elections, and play on the fears of some members of his own party about what could happen if Democrats were able to take control of the House and the Senate, either or both, of course. And look, where the president was last night was a deeply red state. We've seen him repeatedly now having to play defense in a lot of these different races where Republicans, I would argue, you know, roughly six months or so ago would say you shouldn't be spending resources here. You wouldn't need to. They would typically be safe seats, but not the case anymore with two weeks left to go.

4:26Wolf and Pamela really seeing the president need to do as much as he can to try and boost these candidates in the hopes that they will win their races. of course. Today, I will turn our attention to is where the president is heading, Greenville, North Carolina. Now, this is a place where you have two people really vying for the seat that will soon be vacated by the senator. They are Tom Tillis. Trump will be there to stomp for the former chairman of the Republican National Committee, Michael Watley. He's actually someone the president had handpicked to lead the RNC. He's running up against the former Democratic Governor Roy Cooper.

5:00That's expected to be close. There's some tight house races in North Carolina as well. I am sure you'll hear similar language from the president as he tries to convince them to get out and vote on November 3rd. All right, Elena Trin, thank you so much. Wolf? And also happening now, sources telling CNN Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth made an unannounced trip to Israel, meeting face-to-face with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu just last night. Hegseth's trip comes just days before very competitive Israeli elections, where Netanyahu faces a brutal battle for re-election. So far, the Pentagon is declining to comment on this surprise trip.

5:36Our Jerusalem correspondent, Jeremy Diamond, is joining us right now. Jeremy, first of all, what are you learning about this meeting between Hegseth and Netanyahu? Well, the timing of this meeting between these two men is obviously quite notable for a few reasons. First of all, because it comes days before the Israeli election here, very shortly after President Trump issued his endorsement for Prime Minister Netanyahu in those upcoming elections. And yet this visit was not publicized, which seems to point to more national security reasons for this visit. And we know that it comes in the context of ongoing discussions between Israel, the United States and a number of other partners in this region about the prospects of the war with Iran resuming in the coming weeks or months.

6:24And so it's quite clear that that is a focus of the discussions here between the United States and Israel. And in fact, it was one of the key reasons why President Trump said that he was endorsing the Israeli prime minister, because he said he believes that he is the best partner for him in that ongoing and still unresolved war with Iran. The timing of that, of course, will be the most interesting aspect of this. We know that President Trump doesn't seem to want to restart that war with Iran before the midterm elections. Prime Minister Netanyahu, on the other hand, could benefit from the war resuming before the Israeli election slated to take place next week.

7:02But clearly there is ongoing coordination here between these two very close allies. And Hegseth, notably, also posted photos of himself alongside U.S. troops and fighter jets in the region. And as you know, Jeremy, Prime Minister Netanyahu is fighting for his political life right now. The polls show potentially he could lose this parliamentary election. And just days before the election, President Trump just gave Prime Minister Netanyahu his full-throated endorsement. But Vice President J.D. Vance has declined to do so. Listen to this. I endorse American candidates, and that's where I'm focused on is the midterm.

7:39So I'm not getting involved in the Israeli election. So you don't want to say one way or the other? I'm not anti-endorsing him. I'm not pro-endorsing him. I'm not getting involved in Israeli elections. What's been the reaction, Jeremy, in Israel to Trump's full-throated endorsement of Prime Minister Netanyahu? Well, look, it was certainly a shot in the arm for Netanyahu's campaign in the first, you know, 24, 48 hours after that came out. Now, it's not really being discussed all too much in the Israeli elections. We know that President Trump remains a broadly popular figure here in Israel, but perhaps less popular than he was in Israel a year ago.

8:16Less influential, perhaps, in shaping voters' minds a week ahead of that critical election. J.D. Vance here, you know, choosing not to endorse. Frankly, that falls a lot more in line with past precedent, where presidents and vice presidents tend not to get involved in allies elections. But when President Trump endorsed Viktor Orban in Hungary in that election, J.D. Vance then kind of played partner to President Trump's endorsement, went and stumped with Orban in Hungary. Orban actually went on to lose. And so this time it is notable to see J.D. Vance not piggybacking off of President Trump's endorsement of Netanyahu, but rather choosing instead to stay out of the fray.

8:59It's worth noting, of course, that J.D. Vance does seem to be one of the more skeptical voices of the, you know, ongoing war with Iran and also the role that Israel plays in that broader partnership. Good point. Jeremy Diamond and Tel Aviv for us. Thank you very, very much, Pamela. All right, well, still ahead, Drone Rescue. Ukraine says this is the first time a drone has successfully saved someone from the front lines. We're going to bring you the full video up next. And later, concerning, a very concerning rise in dengue fever. Florida, yes, Florida is experiencing an outbreak of the mosquito-borne illness.

9:38What you need to know right now to stay safe, all that coming up right here in the Situation Room.

9:50This holiday, all plans, even unlimited, are just$15 a month. A holiday deal this good obviously deserves an enormously expensive holiday song, like All I Want... Right. Okay, we can't afford that. You know what? Forget the music budget. We're going to stick with whatever's in the public domain. Give it a try at mintmobile.com slash switch. Upfront payment of$45 for three months,$90 for six months, or$180 for 12-month plan required,$15 per month equivalent, taxes and fees extra. New customer offer for initial plan term only. Greater than 50 gigabytes may slow when network is busy. See terms. Twas many nights before Christmas, and one woman knew she needed a Christmas tree.

10:25So to Wayfair she flew, finding just the right one, and for years it will last. Wayfair shipping was free and remarkably fast. What's this? Garland? A wreath? Essentials to host? Good thing she celebrates way longer than most. As her cart filled with magic and decor from the heart, Merry Christmas to all. Get your Wayfair Head Start. For holiday decor you can count on year after year, Wayfair delivers.

10:52Happening now, incredible video written to the Situation Room. It shows a first-ever drone rescue of a Ukrainian soldier. Take a look. This is the moment a wounded Ukrainian soldier was evacuated from the front line by drone. The Ukrainian armed forces say a 49-year-old infantryman was wounded in battle in a location that was impossible to access with regular ground vehicles. The soldier was alone after Russian airstrikes killed his comrade. The infantryman sustained injuries to both legs. A nearby unit then attempted to rescue the soldier using a drone designed to be deployed as a heavy bomber.

11:38The evacuation was successful and the soldier is currently recovering after a double amputation of his legs and multiple surgeries, according to the military medical center in the region.

11:56And according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, more than two million Russian and Ukrainian troops have been killed or wounded since the war began. That's really amazing reporting. Thank you very much for that. Also happening now, facing a disintegrating relationship, the White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Norway. And that follows a 45-minute call that President Zelensky had with Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Zelensky is raising serious concerns. The U.S. is scaling back the military intelligence it shares with Ukraine that is so important.

12:33The White House is denying that happened. Listen. Yeah, we share intelligence. We share a lot. We've given a lot to Ukraine. You know what? We've given a lot to Ukraine. They've given nothing to us. The second is intelligence sharing. The president made it very clear he's ordered no such changes. So none of that has changed. None of it. And I see reporting that it has, but it's just not accurate. I think at its core is the president is frustrated because he, first of all, he doesn't like to be blamed for things that aren't true, including accusations that somehow he had ordered intelligence sharing to be cut off.

13:05And that's not true. He's said that repeatedly. All this as Russia's attacks on Ukraine are ratcheting up big time. President Zelenskyy said a strike on a park in the Kharkiv region killed a teacher and her one-year-old daughter. Officials also say strikes from an intense barrage of Russian drones killed at least seven people in Kiev earlier today. With us now is CNN political and national security analyst David Sanger. He's also the White House and national security correspondent for The New York Times. David, thanks so much for joining us. I know you have some new reporting, important new reporting on Trump, Putin and Ukraine.

13:41And I want to get to that in just a moment. But you argue that President Trump's frustration with President Zelensky is more about Trump's desire to normalize relations with Russia. Well, Wolf, I think if you just add up the things that we've seen happen in the past 10 days or so, it really does amount to a remarkable reversal. Some might even say switching of sides from supporting Ukraine to supporting the Russians. There was the president's decision to import diesel fuel from Russia, not enough really to make any difference on prices or anything, although the president claims it will, but certainly enough to break the sense that the U.S.

14:28is leading the sanctions. There was this decision to neutralize the Lindsey Graham Act, which would have put new tariffs on Russia for its failure to get out of the areas of Ukraine that it has invaded. And there is this mystery about what has led to the throttling of Starshield, the classified version of Starlink, which has made it difficult for the Ukrainians to see what's incoming. So if you take all these together and the business deals that the president has made clear he wants to use to lure the Russians back out of this, you can understand why he's blasting Zelensky at every stage. And he did again yesterday.

15:15And as you point out, Ukraine is raising very serious concerns that its access to Elon Musk's Starlink satellite system is being cut back. The White House says they aren't behind it, but the concerns are also rattling a lot of allies out there. Here's what the British Defence Minister told our Pamela Brown just last Thursday after meeting with Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth. I was reassured, first of all, by Secretary Hegseth that that intelligence sharing through Starlink is back up and running. That's the most important thing. It's a reminder, actually, especially when sometimes the prevailing narrative is that the U.S.

15:56isn't supporting Ukraine, that whether it's the supply of weapons, munitions, whether it's intelligence sharing, whether it's the diplomatic track that President Trump is championing, the U.S. is engaged in Ukraine. David, is the U.S. chipping away at Ukraine's ability to fight this war with Russia? Well, certainly the U.S. is still engaged with Ukraine. We still have sanctions in place, although the president is not enforcing a few of them I mentioned before. The startling thing is a real mystery, Wolf, because the Pentagon and the White House have had ample opportunity by now to say, hey, look, this is what happened.

16:41You know, there was a technical glitch. We ran into some kind of problem with it. Or there was a temporary reminder to the Ukrainians that they better comply with the U.S. because we can turn this on and off. But they've offered no explanation for what the Ukrainians and others clearly say was at least a throttling of the ability to get Starlinked. And, you know, a few weeks ago, a group of us at the Times met with Prime Minister Carney of Canada. And one of the things he said to us, Wolf, was he doesn't want Canada to be dependent on Starlink because of his fear the U.S. could turn it on and off.

17:24Well, he's got those fears sort of reinforced now. Yeah, Canada, a key NATO ally, to be sure. Listen to what President Trump is expressing. He's expressing a lot of frustration with President Zelensky. This is amazing. Listen to this. Ukraine could have had this thing settled a long time ago. If he would have listened to me, and you remember the Oval Office, he would have had this settled a long time ago. Maybe it's time for Zelensky to get somebody else to negotiate. What do you think about that, David? Well, it's interesting. The president always talks about having a peace agreement, which certainly we all want, and you're seeing the horrific pictures on both sides of young Russians killed and young Ukrainians killed.

18:12But what's missing from the president's discussion here is a settlement on what terms? Does the president believe that Russia should be entitled to lands that it is now occupying inside Ukraine? If so, what precedent does that set if the Russians get away with this? Does it encourage them to move on to other non-NATO countries? Might it encourage them to try to take some territory in NATO countries where we have seen the shadow war underway? So, you know, it's not just a question of saying you've got to negotiate and agree to a deal. The question, as in all such peace agreements, is under what terms?

18:54And the president hasn't set a standard here yet. Yeah, that's an important point. David Sanger, thank you so much as usual. Pamela. All right. Well, coming up here in the Situation Room, are GOP candidates distancing themselves from President Trump? The answer could be in the ads. We'll be right back. That light through me and I gladly still

19:21Twas many nights before Christmas and one woman knew she needed a Christmas tree so to Wayfair she flew finding just the right one and for years it will last Wayfair shipping was free and remarkably fast What's this? Garland? A wreath? Essentials to host? Good thing she celebrates way longer than most As her cart filled with magic and decor from the heart Merry Christmas to all. Get your Wayfair head start. For holiday decor you can count on year after year, Wayfair delivers.

19:53Happening now, the French Prime Minister says local officials will decide whether to impose additional curfews across the country. Curfews were imposed in multiple cities overnight, maintaining calm, and many cities are still cleaning up from those fiery protests over the weekend. Well, Brent crude oil is trading around$110 a barrel. This comes as the International Energy Agency is warning that global energy markets are more than a year away from returning to normal. And the White House is launching a$25 million program to reward Americans for reporting fraud. The new program will be unveiled at an event this afternoon.

20:33And President Trump will also present a$10 ,000 check to Nick Shirley. He's the right-wing content creator whose video about Minnesota child care centers drew national attention. And let's get back to our top story this morning. A new dark warning for President Trump on the campaign trail as he argues the same scenes of unrest in France could happen right here in the United States if, he says, if Democrats take back power after the midterms. Listen to this. If you want to see what is at stake in this election, just look at what's happening in France. a once great nation that is being conquered, looted, and burned to the ground by migrants, jihadists, and communists who hate Christianity, and they hate, frankly, the Western civilization itself.

21:20When you see burning steeples and raging fires in France, just remember that is what the radical Democrats want to do to America. A vote for any Democrat this year is a vote to let that small and dangerous group of extremists hold all of us hostage in America. They're not going to hold us hostage. All right, let's discuss with CNN senior political commentator Anna Navarro. Anna, is that a winning message, you think, for Republicans, what we just heard from President Trump? Well, it's something that he has used time and time again, right? The boogeyman, immigrants as the boogeyman and scaring people to the polls, preying on people's angst and distress.

22:04What's happening in France is young people protesting and getting completely out of control because of the cost of living. It's not only happening in France, it's happening across Europe. And Donald Trump says that that could happen here in America because of immigrants, because of communists, because of this, because of that. I actually have seen similar scenes in America. I saw them on January 6th when insurrectionists that he ginned up because of an election conspiracy theory that he spread and promoted took over the Capitol and destroyed our national treasures, our national monuments and national buildings in our nation's Capitol.

22:47So I would say to Donald Trump, why don't you look at history and what you caused and helped cause on January 6th, because this has happened in America. And I want you to look at this new Fox News poll that asked voters how concerned they are about key issues. Eighty-eight percent of voters say they are extremely or very concerned about corruption in government. That tops concern over inflation and high prices, gas prices, health care, and the war in Iran. What does that mean for Republicans who control Congress and the presidency? I think it's really a terrible thing for Republicans, particularly because so much of it is centered on Trump, who is telling everybody to pretend that he's on the ballot.

23:31It is not a week goes by in this country where we don't hear a story about how Trump, a family member of Trump, somebody in the inner circle of Trump is making millions, if not billions of dollars from inside deals, a lot of it profiteering from the presidency, while Americans can't pay for groceries, while Americans are losing health care coverage, while Americans are paying enormous amounts for gas and diesel and just having a really hard time making ends meet. Not a day goes by that we don't hear about Donald Trump and his ballroom or the reflecting pool or gilding everything gold in Washington, building statues to himself, putting his name on buildings while Americans are hurting.

24:18So I think it's two things. I think it's the incredible contrast of the wealth that Trump and his inner circle have amassed as he is president and the hurt and pain, the financial pain that Americans are going through. That's an important point indeed. President Trump, Anna, is also looking to increase Republican voter turnout in North Carolina for two key congressional races there, as well as the Senate contest. But listen to what the Kansas Democratic Senate candidate Adam Hamilton told CNN about the president's visit to his state only yesterday. Listen to this. I took it as a big compliment.

25:01I took it as a statement that the Republican Party felt they needed to send the most powerful man in the country to try to save Roger Marshall. And I think it's only going to hurt him. Are these rallies that Trump is engaged in right now across the country helping or hurting Republican candidates? I think it's a little bit of both, Wolf. I think that certainly for low propensity Republican-based voters, the ones that only show up for presidential elections, it does help. And that's what I think. And I think these rallies and these visits to these states are very strategically designed to do just that, to get the base, the Republican base, the Trump base out and voting.

25:43But when he's in these states, everybody sees that he's in these states and he has historic lows, is carrying a ton of baggage. People are angry about so many things, the economy, the war, the corruption, you name it. And so, yes, does it help with a targeted group of voters? Yes. But does it hurt with a general population of voters? Also, yes. I wonder what you think about this. So Ad Impact has tallied how many mentions President Trump has been mentioned in campaign ads and found, quote, in May, President Trump was mentioned in 47 percent of GOP broadcast ad airing. So far in October, that figure has fallen to just one percent.

26:28What does that tell you? It tells me that Republican candidates realize that he is an albatross around their neck and want to distance themselves as much as possible. Look, I've seen it in my own district, right? I live in District 27 in Florida. That's the district where the congresswoman, the Republican incumbent, Maria Elvira Salazar, put out an ad actually speaking to the camera and telling Donald Trump that he had gone too far on immigration and the Latinos felt betrayed. When you see an ad like that by an incumbent Republican in Miami, Florida, that's all the proof you need about just how toxic Donald Trump has become in this race, even for Republicans.

27:16And Anna, on that point, there's been a big swing from Latino voters, a critical group of voters. that was certainly key in re-electing President Trump just two years ago, especially in Florida. A Pew research poll finds that among Latino registered voters, 51 % would rather a Democratic candidate win, while just 24 % would rather a Republican candidate for Congress win. Why are these voters moving away from Republicans? for the same reason that every uh most americans are moving away from republicans it's the economy first it's the war but look when it comes to latinos there's this very specific thing playing out and we see it playing out on our screens on a daily basis latinos brown and black people in this country are being hunted by the trump administration we see the extreme cruelty Rarely a day goes by that we don't see images of Latinos, sometimes U.S.

28:14citizens, just because they look brown, because they look black, because of the racial profiling by this government, that they're not being tortured, wounded, hunted, chased, treated worse than we would allow animals to be treated in this country. If you are a Latino, that hits your algorithm. You're seeing that on your social media. We are sending it to each other. You cannot avoid seeing the cruelty, the inhumanity, the violation of human rights and just human dignity that is happening and has become commonplace under this administration when it comes to immigrants and anybody that looks like me or sounds like me.

28:54And so, yes, even people who supported Trump, look, Latinos were among the Americans who thought that the border was out of control. But now they think ICE and this administration is out of control. And Navarro, thank you so much. Always great to have you on. And thanks for me as well. And I appreciate it. And now to a Situation Room special report on the viral clips helping shape the midterm conversation and the people behind them. It's an industry known as clipping, with independent journalists and political operatives flooding social media with moments from the campaign trail. But those clips don't always tell the whole story.

29:32And sometimes what's left out matters just as much as what takes place online. CNN senior reporter Marshall Cohen dove into the world of political clipping. Marshall, you're here with us in the Situation Room. You spoke with a prominent clipper, as they're called, about the industry. What did you learn? Yeah, well, you know, we've all been there late at night scrolling your feed. And if you're like me and you get political content, you've probably seen material from these clippers that they've edited and posted. They're more influential than ever, and they are shaping how we see the midterms. Viral clips on social media are shaping how we see the midterms.

30:12But do they leave voters with just part of the story? Check out this clip of President Trump talking about the war in Iran. It racked out more than 30 million views from just two tweets. It's a small price to pay for keeping the world safe, keeping our country safe. They can take out a city. Let them take out Los Angeles. Let them take out San Diego. All right, let's look at this together. It's a small price to pay. All right, these were 40 seconds from what was a 90-minute rally in Nebraska. But those 40 seconds drove the media conversation for days. Now this is happening because of what's called the clipping industry.

30:55These are folks that make a living by watching political rallies and campaign events and posting hundreds of clips on social media every single day. I want everybody who's clipping this debate online tonight to roll that tape. Aaron Rupar is an independent journalist and a Trump critic who has built up a significant following on social media as a clipper chronicling Trump since he first ran in 2016. It was clear to me that there was a huge appetite for this. If you're really going to do this well and kind of beat the competition, you have to be locked in, sometimes for up to 12 to 14 hours a day.

31:27These days, more than half of Americans get at least some of their news from social media. But what you see on your feeds can be highly selective. And of course, that comes with some risks. In 2024, this account from the Republican National Committee repeatedly posted dozens of out-of-context cherry-picked clips making President Biden look like he was lost and confused. And this year, Kamala Harris's old campaign account rebranded as a new video-forward feed supporting Democrats. That was one of the accounts, along with Rupar, that clipped those comments of President Trump talking about Iran possibly nuking cities in California.

32:05But the White House took issue with those clips. They called it a cherry-picked media freakout. They said that Trump was obviously just talking about what could happen if Iran ever got a nuclear weapon, which he is trying to prevent. That is a struggle of being a clipper is kind of making sure that everything is in the best context that you're not misrepresenting. Because he said something later about how we're never going to let that happen. You know, that that kind of opened the door to me receiving some pushback. But I also understand at this late date, you know, doing this for a decade that, you know, that's just part of the business of covering Trump.

32:38There are people, though, that say this clipping culture is not good for democracy. How do you respond to that? I'm always going to err on the side of trying to get it right. It might have 10 million views for something that you misrepresented. But then that next time you have something, people are going to look at your account and kind of be like, I don't know if I trust that guy. We've got some fresh data just out this morning from the Pew Research Center about how people consume the news on social media. You won't be surprised, 59 % of adults say that they get some of their news from the Internet.

33:10Most popular platforms, Facebook and YouTube, video is obviously quite dominant. And also Gen Z, members of Gen Z say that they also are getting news influencers on their feed that are promoting the midterms as well. Guys. Marshall Cohen, thanks very, very much. Thanks, Marshall. All right, coming up, expanding dengue fever right now. Florida has the most locally acquired cases the state has had in at least a decade. An infectious disease doctor will join us just ahead on what you need to know.

33:49This holiday, all plans, even unlimited, are just$15 a month. A holiday deal this good obviously deserves an enormously expensive holiday song, like all I want. Right. Okay, we can afford that. You know what? Forget the music budget. We're going to stick with whatever's in the public domain. Give it a try at mintmobile.com slash switch. Upfront payment of$45 for three months,$90 for six months, or$180 for a 12-month plan required,$15 per month equivalent. Taxes and fees extra. New customer offer for initial plan term only. Greater than 50 gigabytes may slow when network is busy. See terms. When an intruder approaches a home, they expect a camera.

34:22What they don't expect... Stop. This is SimpliSafe. Police are on the way. Using smart AI cameras, live U.S.-based agents help deter intruders in under 30 seconds. Don't just record a break-in, stop it from ever happening. Plan starting around a dollar a day. Right now, get 70 % off your new system with professional monitoring at simplisafe.com slash Spotify. 30 seconds response time requires monitoring plan with outdoor protection starting at$49.99 a month. Visit simplisafe.com slash licenses for alarm license information. happening now the florida department of health confirms two new cases of locally acquired dengue fever in citrus county this week meaning those patients were bit in the state of florida and florida officials say that there have been more than 360 locally acquired infections this year that is the highest number of locally acquired dengue cases in years with us now in the situation room is dr eileen marty infectious disease professor at florida international university's Department of Medicine.

35:20Bottom line, first of all, what is dengue? Like, what does it do to you? So dengue is a disease that's transmitted via mosquitoes, and it's a viral disease. And there are actually four different types of dengue viruses, one, two, three, and four. And it is particularly dangerous if you've had one type and then get another in a short period of time for a variety of reasons. It is the a large percentage of people will get no symptoms at all which is great for the mosquito vector which is going to bite you and then incubate it and then transmit it to someone else but and great for that individual but it keeps the disease in play because that's that many more potential people that can get bitten and can get serious disease so So most people who get disease, the dengue illness, will have what we typically call breakbone fever.

36:14It is a high fever. It is a rash, pain behind the eyes, extremely uncomfortable. You can have little tiny petechial hemorrhages. Now, some people, that's it. That's the worst of it. It lasts a few days. Other people, after the fever breaks and they think they're getting better, actually things go tremendously downhill, and they get severe dengue, which is basically a hemorrhagic fever. So we just call it, and you can get bleeding from various different body parts, including your nose and your, yes, exactly. So you can think you're getting better, but then you get worse. So it can be deadly. Yes, it is deadly.

36:52In fact, we had a death this year in Florida. Yeah, so on that note, I think people across the country are watching this and wondering what does this mean for them? The CDC has reported more than 1600 locally acquired cases across the U.S. What is the level of concern when it comes to the growing number of cases we're seeing not only in Florida, but across the country? Well, the concern is that we're not having appropriate mosquito control because we do not have a licensed dengue vaccine right now in the United States. Dengue vaccines exist, but not available in the United States, and none of them are that great.

37:28One that we used to have licensed here has been pulled from the market because it wasn't as effective as we want it to be and some problems with dengue 2. Remember, there's four types. So we have to control the vector. And in this heat that we've been having this year, there are many more mosquitoes. And if just a handful of them get infected, those female mosquitoes are gonna lay infected eggs and those infected eggs are gonna grow and become adult mosquitoes much faster. Much faster. So it's really a race against time. All right, so I'm channeling Wolf Blitzer here who has loved ones in Florida.

38:05What can they do to protect themselves from this? So you always have to think in terms of what the government does and what the individual does, right? So what the individual has to do is get rid of containers that have water anywhere near their homes or businesses because that's where the eggs get laid, and then you may have potentially contaminated eggs that bring contaminated adults. The next thing you have to do is if you're going to be outside, you want to wear an appropriate mosquito repellent. And these are Aedes mosquitoes. They're not the malaria mosquitoes that we think of as Don and Dust.

38:41These bite in the middle of the day. So you have to be aware to use, I preferably pick keratin. That's an excellent type of mosquito repellent. You can use DEET. I'm not a fan of DEET because it smells bad and ruins your electronics. And IR3535. Fantastic. All right, good tips right there. Okay, Dr. Eileen Marty, thank you so much. So little kids who are playing outside should be protected as well. Yeah, they should. And obviously if you're going to be sleeping in the sun where there are mosquitoes, you might want to wear a mosquito net. I mean, is that just in Florida or across the country at this point?

39:15No, no. So right now it's mainly Hillsborough County, the Tampa Bay area, where we're seeing the vast majority of cases in Florida. But yes, we're seeing it in a number of different places that we've had locally acquired. But what the government can do is even more important. Two things. Number one, you can spray for, and in fact, in Broward, where I live, they actually have drones that spray specific areas because the mosquitoes that carry dengue don't travel very far, no more than 500 meters. So if you localize where they are, you can target that spraying. Unfortunately, they're not doing that in Hillborough County.

39:50They're doing helicopters. The other thing is to put Bacillus thuringiensis, a bacterium, BT, in water or in the area because that will kill the larval. Okay, alright, thank you so much. Thank you very much, good advice. We'll be paying attention, especially those of us who do have family and loved ones down in Florida watching all of this unfold. Thank you very, very much. Thank you. And coming up, a very, very different story. The World Series is now set. It'll be the Rays versus the Brewers on baseball's biggest stage. How the matchup is guaranteed to make history just ahead.

40:31Traditional home security only alerts you after a break-in, and that's too late. SimpliSafe is changing that. Stop. This is SimpliSafe. Police are on the way. We don't just alert. We help stop crime before it starts. Plan starting around a dollar a day. Right now, get 70 % off your new system with professional monitoring at simplisafe.com slash spotify. SimpliSafe, ahead of crime in real time. Outdoor deterrence plans start at$49.99 a month. Visit simplisafe.com slash licenses for alarm license information.

41:05The World Series teams are now set, and whoever wins will make history. All right, let's go live now to CNN Sports anchor Andy Scholes. Andy, it's going to be a great matchup. Yeah, yeah, the Brewers, best record in the National League. The Rays, the best record in the American League. So fitting they're going to meet in the World Series. Got a feel, though, for Guardians fans, right, guys? You know, they're the longest World Series drought in all of baseball. Haven't won it since 1948, so their wait's going to continue. But either the Rays or Brewers are going to get to celebrate their first ever title.

41:32It's going to be the first World Series since 1980 between two teams that have never won. And for the third time in their history, the Rays have won the AL pennant. Junior Caminero, the big hit, he finally had his postseason moment. First playoff home run came in the seventh off Guardians All-Star closer Cade Smith and Camonero celebrated a lot. Took them 38 seconds to get around the bases, which is the longest since they started tracking it back in 2015. But the Rays take game six, seven to three. Game one of the World Series is going to be Friday night in Milwaukee. 49ers, meanwhile, are the first team to get to 6-0 this season as they beat the Commanders to wrap up week six last night.

42:09Christian McCaffrey, he scored two first-half touchdowns. The Niners, they were up 20 in this game, but the Commanders actually fought back and actually had the ball down six in the closing minute. Final play, though, the Niners only rushing three, and they're still able to get to Jane Daniels for the sacks. San Francisco wins 23-17. NFC East really struggling this year. They're the first division ever to have everyone play in a two-week span and have nobody win. And it was a big night in the Bay Area as the Valkyries. They were hosting the Dream in Game 2 of the WNBA Finals. And after struggling in the second half of Game 1, Angel Reese coming through big time in this one.

42:46He had 30 points, 16 rebounds. The Dream outscored Golden State 21-9 in the third quarter. We cruised a 79-65 win. This was Atlanta's first ever Finals win. They had been 0-10. The series now tied to Game & Peace as it shifts to Atlanta for Game 3 tomorrow. And guys, the NBA season, it tips off tonight. The Knicks are going to open it up, hosting LeBron James and the 76ers as they drop that banner. Wolf, how are you feeling about your Wizards this year? Got a lot of talent. I'm feeling upbeat. I'm hoping for the best. Go Wizards. All right. Every year, you always have a positive attitude. I'm very optimistic.

43:22Very optimistic. All right, Andy Scholes, great to see you. Thank you. We'll be right back.

43:33happening now new attacks in ukraine russia pounds the country overnight as president selensky rushes to repair his growing rip with washington plus mississippi's attorney general now says a police shooting that left a one-year-old little boy dead was justified but the Charles' family and the community are still making a plea for justice. Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer with Pamela Brown, and you're in the Situation Room.

44:10We begin this hour with the quickly disintegrating relationship between the United States and Ukraine. Right now, the White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Norway. And tomorrow, Witkoff and President Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, head to St. Petersburg, Russia, to meet with Vladimir Putin. Zelensky is raising serious concerns right now that the United States is scaling back the military intelligence it shares with his nation. The White House denies that's the case, but President Trump is doubling down on his severe criticism of Zelensky.

44:48Ukraine could have had this thing settled a long time ago. If he would have listened to me, and you remember the Oval Office, he would have had this settled a long time ago. Maybe it's time for Zelensky to get somebody else to negotiate. Also today, Ukrainian officials say at least seven people were killed and several energy sites were damaged in an intense barrage of Russian drone strikes. CNN Chief International Security Correspondent Nick Payton-Walsh joins us. Nick, are the meetings today and tomorrow a sort of Hail Mary for some kind of peace deal before the midterm elections here in the U.S.?

45:24I mean, I think the chance of any progress that's markedly going to get us towards a deal that the Kremlin wants to accept is almost close to zero at this point. I think we are again seeing a moment in which Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner and indeed Kiev and Kiev's European allies want to certainly let President Trump feel that a peace process is continuing to try and forge its way ahead. But exactly what the details and the plan they're discussing is unclear. And as one European official in Oslo said to me, look, it's not really about what plan we come up with. It's about Russia and whether it would accept any plan at all.

45:58And so here we are after an extraordinary two weeks in which the US-Ukrainian relationship ultimately through the actions and opinions of President Trump is at a really an all time low. Different perhaps from the Oval Office blowout back in February 2025 that you heard the president refer to back there, because ultimately, I think the emotional shock for Ukrainians is a lot less. And indeed, Ukraine has seen how it's had to become more self-reliant and forge ahead regardless. But we are still in dispute over the basic facts of what's happened in terms of US hampering Ukraine's ability to defend itself and strike back at Russia.

46:33Indeed, today, after the 45-minute phone call between Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, Zelensky emerged, talking again about Patriot interceptors, Starlink and Starshield functioning normally, and intelligence warning of ballistic missile strikes still continuing. Three things that ultimately Ukraine has had, without any doubt, from the US over the past years. Ukrainian officials, Ukrainian troops on the front line we've spoken to, ordinary Ukrainians have noticed interruptions in those. Yet that has been disputed by President Trump and by Marco Rubio in just the last hours or so, simply saying the Ukrainians are wrong here.

47:09And so we're in a remarkable moment where they can't even really seem to disagree exactly what the facts of the hindrance of each other indeed is. So yeah, what comes out of Oslo? Unclear. But I think certainly this is a move to try and suggest that peace process yielding virtually nothing so far, it still at least has a pulse. And this is all happening as President Trump is really ramping up his attacks on Ukrainian President Zelensky. How has Zelensky responded to all of this? I think with a very different tone of what we've seen in the past months. You could always feel in Kiev that sense of, oh my God, here we go again.

47:45Over the past 18 months, when President Trump would demand Zelensky step aside, when he'd begin saying things that are very similar to the talking points you might hear from the Kremlin, a feeling that maybe the pendulum would swing back again and he would speak in Ukraine's favor a matter of weeks later. You get the feeling now from Zelensky, from his public statements, that he just doesn't care. He has openly called President Trump an ally of Russia, said he's on the wrong side of history, clearly seeing that that plays well not only domestically in Ukraine, well, you know, he is still the president without any doubt, but also with European allies who I think are increasingly discombobulated about where the White House really stands, what its policy really is, whether it's really trying to assist Ukraine and Europe's security at all.

48:26The last 10 days have shown a plethora of things that President Trump has supported, a diesel deal, energy ceasefire, apparent, according to Ukraine, hindrance of Ukraine's technology, which has left many European allies deeply concerned. And I think Ukraine is simply saying we have to call what we see. And so far, it seems Trump's Republicans around him are actually turning. And that may be the lesson from here ahead of the midterms. All right, Nick, thank you, as always. Wolf? I want to continue the conversation with former NATO Supreme Allied Commander, retired U.S. Army General Wesley Clark.

48:57General Clark, thanks for joining us. The U.S. now says it has not cut off military intelligence to Ukraine, but is that the biggest leverage the U.S. potentially has over Kiev right now? It's one of the major leverages, and we don't know whether it's been cut off or not. Frankly, Wolf, as I've followed the dialogue over the last few days, There's contradictory statements. And really the only people you can listen to and believe are the people in Ukraine, because they're the ones that are either receiving it or not receiving it. So when we hear from Ukraine that they're getting early warning, that they know what's happening, then we'll know that it's not cut off.

49:36So what message do you think Steve Whitcoff is carrying to President Zelensky in today's meeting in Norway? I think he's going to tell him that the United States is at the end of its rope, that he's got to make a deal. He's got to give up on Donbass. And I think he will say that it's got to be sweetened by some more economic gifts from Ukraine to the, let's say, to the United States and maybe to Russia, because the president clearly is pressuring Ukraine to step out of the war. And this is a, it's really a shame because, you know, we signed an agreement in 1994. We promised Ukraine we would defend their borders and their security if they gave up nuclear weapons.

50:27And they're doing everything they can, and we certainly aren't. I was in Warsaw at the Security Forum last week, and when the word of this came out, everybody's saying, what's happened to the United States? Where's the national, where's the leadership of NATO? What does this mean for the rest of the alliance? Is Trump a traitor? I mean, there were all kinds of terrible things that, as there were a few Americans there, and it was extremely hurtful and difficult to defend, to be honest, Wolf. And so I think we're at a real turning point here in this conflict if the president continues on the current course he's on.

51:06You think, General, that President Trump is feeling any serious pressure from within his own Republican Party to back off trying to normalize relations with Russia and clearly undermining U.S. support for Ukraine? Yes, he is feeling pressure. But I believe he feels that this is the best time to do it because he's out there campaigning. He knows these Republicans that are up for reelection have to have his support. If he pulls his support from them, then for whatever it means, they're afraid that they will lose for sure. So he's playing his power right now on the Republican Party. And even though we see statements coming out from Republican senators, what's their real means of influence on this?

51:55And that's what our friends in Ukraine are asking. They're saying, how can you abandon a democratic country that's fighting against an aggressor and side with the aggressor? I mean, all the lessons of history say that this is a tragic mistake that's going to result not only in the loss of Ukraine, but a massive, possibly a third war in Europe and certainly more trouble and destabilization in Europe. And we've seen this pattern before. of this administration in Afghanistan just wanted out and pulled the plug in their agreement. We've seen what happens when our allies are forced to go along with an agreement that they don't respect and that their warning us won't work.

52:39And I think what President Zelensky is trying to say to the United States is, you give up Donbass, you give up our defenses, there's nothing to stop Russia moving forward at a later time. And President Putin hasn't changed. He hasn't given up, made any concessions. He hasn't changed his opinion or his aims. He wants Ukraine. He wants the Baltics. He wants NATO basically broken up and the United States out. So this is a, it looks like a peace at any price move that's not really going to bring peace. It brings back all kinds of memories historically of Munich in 1938, where the allies pressured Czechoslovakia, and it didn't do a bit of good preventing World War II.

53:24Yeah, very quickly, before I let you go, General Clark, you think Trump is more interested in a good relationship with Putin than he is with Zelensky?

53:35Well, I think everybody thinks that, Wolf. You know, and the question is always why. And so he's decided for whatever reason, and you can make rational arguments for it or otherwise, that it's easier to get peace and an end to the conflict by pressuring the weaker party. But that's not the American way. That's not what the leader of the free world is expected to do. And so this is a really painful moment for our friends and allies around the world. Very painful indeed. General Wesley Clark, thanks so much for joining us. Appreciate it. Pamela. All right, Wolf, still ahead with the midterms getting closer.

54:17Some Republicans in tight races are trying to move further from President Trump. And a mayor demands an independent investigation after a man was hurt during a run-in with ICE. What the videos tell us about the moments just before this scuffle. It was many nights before Christmas, and one woman knew she needed a tree, so to Wayfair she flew. She found more decor and added to cart. Merry Christmas to all. Get your Wayfair head start. For holiday decor you can count on, Wayfair delivers. Traditional home security only alerts you after a break-in, and that's too late. SimpliSafe is changing that.

54:59Stop. This is SimpliSafe. Police are on the way. We don't just alert. We help stop crime before it starts. Plan starting around a dollar a day. Right now, get 70 % off your new system with professional monitoring at SimpliSafe.com slash Spotify. SimpliSafe, ahead of crime in real time. Outdoor deterrence plans start at$49.99 a month. Visit SimpliSafe.com slash licenses for alarm license information. Happening now 14 days from the midterm elections and more than 10 million ballots already are cast. President Trump's next stop in his campaign blitz is tonight in North Carolina, and it will come on the heels of Vice President J.D.

55:37Vance's visit to the Tar Heel State and after both parties pull back on ad spending there. Bulls show Democrat Roy Cooper leading Republican Michael Watley in the Senate race. Here now are CNN political commentator and Republican strategist, Shurmichael Singleton and Democratic strategist Chuck Rocha. Thank you both for being here, Shurmichael. What do you think about Trump's campaign blitz? Is he going to the right places right now? I think he is, and they're being specific in terms of going to areas in these various states where the president did well. And a part of the calculus, Pamela, is to try to turn out the president's base.

56:12They're non-traditional voters. They're low-propensity voters. They typically do not vote if Trump isn't on the ballot. We've seen this in previous elections. However, the difference this time is that the president is hoping, the theory is, that if he goes to these places, he excites that base, that maybe they'll still turn out despite the fact that Trump isn't running for another term. We'll see how effective they will be. But I believe in terms of the math, if you can get just 2 % of that base to turn out, when you're looking at some of these toss-up races that are within the margin of error, mathematically that 2 % could make a difference for many of those Republicans.

56:46Well, the races are really tight. So, Chuck, there's this data from Ad Impact, and it shows the mentions of President Trump and Republican ads fell 46 % from May to October. Let's listen to this ad from Trump-backed Republican New Hampshire Senate candidate Johnson, who knew who we should note, as I just said, has Trump's endorsement. So it's really interesting to hear this. The way Chris Pappas tells it, I'm President Trump's long lost son. I've never even met the man. When the president's policies are bad for New Hampshire, I'll oppose them. just like I opposed the war in Iran in the trade war with Canada.

57:25That's New Hampshire Independent. Do you think that message is going to work with voters? Look, it's really important for folks at home to realize that the midterm elections are held in just a handful of marginal congressional races. That means they're pretty evenly split. Maybe R plus five, maybe D plus five. Today, most of them are like R plus eight, plus 10 in that range. So the goal there is to tie them to a very unpopular president. And that's what we're doing. And that's why you're seeing what you're seeing, because these aren't MAGA, loving, all the right wing, all the things. No, no, no.

57:53These are folks who have to worry about some percentage, to Shermichael's point, of Democrats and independents voting for them to have success. So they're running away from a president who you yourself have said on this show, all of us, how unpopular his numbers are right now. Not based on the polls. And that's important, right? It's important for Sununu, for Susan Collins, for Mike Rogers, for Senator John Marshall in Kansas, to have a degree of separation from the president on the unpopular issues. And what you've seen, and this is not normal for President Trump, to allow those candidates to divorce themselves from the president.

58:26And despite those things, he's still campaigning in various states trying to turn out his base. I think that's really, really important. Yeah, I mean, but like in Kansas, Senator Marshall barely has distanced himself, and Trump's there connecting himself to Marshall. And that's a strategy, an important strategy that Schermacher actually said a while ago, is that the only pathway they have to victory, I've been working on many of these races for a year, is they have to, they are desperate to figure out how to get these infrequent Donald Trump presidential voters back. Because if they don't come back, they're going to be more than a blue wave because they're counting on them to vote.

58:54What people don't talk about is that in the presidential year, there were a lot of new people that voted. It's just Trump had more new people. I wonder what you think about Trump's messaging, too, sure, Michael, where he's trying to say what's happening right now with these protests in France and in Europe could happen here if voters elect Democrats. Remember, there were two things. For the broader electorate, it was the economy. But for Trump voters, it was immigration. And so what he's trying to say is if you allow Democrats to regain control of Congress, you will see the type of mass immigration, the influx of immigration that you saw under the Biden years that will lead to this type of internal turmoil.

59:31Now, make of that what you will intellectually. But it does mobilize and motivate his base enough. Now, will they turn out because of that issue? Singularly, I'm not exactly sure, but I do understand why he's trying to draw the correlation. He's done it before in his past campaigns that have worked for him. I'm not trying to break this down intellectually, but I'll tell you this. I've just finished my 251th TV commercial. And every commercial I've made for Democratic congressional candidates has been about cost, corruption, or the overreach of ICE. While in return, Republicans have attacked the Democrats around trans issues, around border issues, around whatever the flavor of the month is.

1:00:05These are two separate strategies. We're in 14 days. We're going to see which one works. Well, you mentioned corruption. So Democrats have linked corruption to the economic pain. And there's this new Fox News poll out that finds 88 percent of voters say they are extremely or very concerned about corruption in government. That tops their concern over inflation, high gas prices, health care. Are you surprised by that? And when I'm making an ad, a smart ad maker like me will take that corruption and tie it to the voter around your cost of living. If they've got money to build a new ballroom, why don't we have money to do this thing to bring our cost down?

1:00:37If we have money for this thing in Iran to go to war and be dropping bombs and paying for bombs, why don't we have money to bring the price of diesel down? That's a legitimate concern about independents, those swing voters who have shown the propensity to vote for either party. Like, how many of them find resonance in that messaging that Chuck is talking about and decide to vote for a Democrat as opposed to staying home, as opposed to voting for the Republican? And again, you just go back to the math. The calculus is if you lose some of them, you're looking at that variability in the delta, Can some of the president's base turn out to usurp whatever losses you may see with independence?

1:01:13It's a tough game to try to figure the math out here, Pamela. We'll see, again, if the president's theory is accurate. Lose some here, but turn out my base. You can still help Republicans win. Independence and Republicans and Democrats all have the same anxiety. The benefit that Democrats have right now is Republicans are in charge of everything, and it's easy for us to blame them. That's true. There you go. Summing it up right there, Chuck and sure, Michael. Thank you both. Great to have you on. Good discussion. Up next, the attorney general of Mississippi says a police shooting that claimed the life of a one-year-old little boy was justified.

1:01:44But the child's family says their fight for justice and accountability is not over.

1:01:56Happening now, Mississippi's attorney general says a police officer was justified in a shooting that left a one-year-old little boy dead. It happened in June in the town of Senatobia. Police were responding to a shoplifting call at a Walmart. Officers say the suspect's car came right at them, so they opened fire. A child in the car, Cohen Wiley, was shot and killed. His mother's friend, who was driving, was wounded. Cohen's mother denies her friend was trying to hit officers, and so far there have been no criminal charges. CNN national correspondent Rafael Romo has more details for us. Rafael, what else are authorities now saying, and how is the family responding?

1:02:40Well, first of all, the statement by the Mississippi Attorney General's office doesn't provide details about how the decision was made, nor does it discuss the circumstances of the shooting where one-year-old Cohen Wiley died in mid-June as police in a town in northwestern Mississippi fired into a vehicle while investigating a shoplifting call at a Walmart. As the AP reported last month, the boy's mother, Belicia Wiley, denied that she or a friend accompanying her had stolen anything and no charges have been filed against him. In a statement, the Mississippi Attorney General announced that it has completed the review of the June 14 incident in Senatobia involving one officer with the Senatobia Police Department.

1:03:22The statement says that in this incident, the attorney general's office found the use of force was justified pursuant to Section 4516 of the Mississippi Code. The review followed an investigation by the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation. Wolf, this decision is likely to renew calls for justice in the case not only locally in Sanatobia and the state of Mississippi, but also nationally, because the shooting has made headlines across the country. In a statement, Ben Crump, a nationally renowned civil rights attorney who is representing Cohen's family, reacted to the decision by the Mississippi Attorney General.

1:04:00He said the following. How can anyone accept that conclusion when Cohen's family and the public still have not been allowed to see the body camera footage, he asked. This is a department whose chief was fired after reports of racial slurs in his text messages. The AP reported last month that Sanatobia Police Chief Harold Banderford was fired by the local city council after the New York Times and two other media reported the chief had allegedly used racist slurs in private text conversations with a colleague. At the time, the Sanatobia Police Department declined to comment on the firing. There has been tensions for years in Sanatobia between its black residents and the police department.

1:04:44The town of 8000 is 40 miles south of Memphis. Wolf, now back to you. All right, Rafael Romo reporting for us. Thank you very, very much. Pamela. All right, just ahead here in the Situation Room, power priorities atop House Democrat atlons plans if his party takes control, including who and what to investigate. And he joins us next with those details.

1:05:10Happening now, a demand for answers after officials say a U.S. citizen was injured Saturday in an encounter with ICE agents.

1:05:25This new video shows at least four agents at one point trying to handcuff Ricardo Gonzalez in Long Beach, California. The mayor of that town says Gonzalez told him he is a U.S. citizen and he was found after he and other community members called 911 to report unmarked vehicles in their neighborhood. In this surveillance video obtained by KTLA, you can see an unmarked car driving the wrong way down a one-way street as a man on an e-bike turns onto the road. Now, it's not clear from this video whether the e-bike and the SUV collide, but you see the vehicle come to a quick stop and several agents exit the car.

1:06:01When local officers arrive to the scene, they say they found Gonzalez detained, handcuffed, and bleeding. And joining us now to talk about all of this and more is Democratic Congressman Robert Garcia of California. Long Beach is in his district. Good morning, Congressman. Thanks so much for joining us. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said this morning, in part, let me read the quote. On October 17th, 2026, ICE conducted a targeted enforcement operation in Long Beach, California, to arrest an at-large criminal illegal alien. During the operation, anti-ICE agitators attempted to impede operations, threaten officers, and damage government vehicles despite officers giving lawful commands.

1:06:46ICE did not hit an individual on a bike. An individual was arrested after he smashed the mirror of a government vehicle. Resisting arrest is dangerous and can result in injury. ICE law enforcement officers are trained to use the minimum amount of force necessary to resolve dangerous situations to prioritize the safety of the public and our officers. Officers are highly trained in de-escalation tactics and regularly receive ongoing use of force training. End quote. What's your reaction, Congressman, to that statement from the Department of Homeland Security? We all have eyes. I mean, we've all seen the videos.

1:07:28It's very clear what happened there. And I know this neighborhood really well. I was mayor of Long Beach for eight years. These are narrow streets. You see the ICE vehicle actually going in the wrong direction. He was going the wrong way on the street. Ricardo's on his bike. He turns. And obviously, then ICE agents throw him to the ground. He's screaming on the ground that his arm is broken, that it's seriously hurt. Everything is caught on video. And there is absolutely no reason why we are throwing a United States citizen to the ground, causing trauma. The entire neighborhood feels terrorized.

1:08:04And this continues to happen in American cities across the country. ICE agents have shot U.S. citizens, have killed U.S. citizens, continue to cause major trauma and harm across the country. This has to end. And the idea and this whole notion of Homeland Security coming out, accusing the community of causing havoc or being rioters is just B.S. We've all seen the footage. The community was trying to protect Ricardo, trying to record the harassment by ICE. And ICE is not welcome in this community or in cities across the country. Ricardo Gonzalez's daughter has spoken to CNN, but we haven't heard directly from Gonzalez himself.

1:08:46Congressman, have you had a chance to speak to Ricardo Gonzalez directly? So I haven't talked to him directly, but we're talking to the neighborhood. He has talked to our local mayor. He's someone that does not want a lot of attention on him. He is just upset at what's happened to him and his community. And the thing that we know about Ricardo, because we yesterday had a gathering of a bunch of folks from the community and immigration folks, is he was just he's just a neighbor in the city. And the idea that ICE is going to throw them to the ground and cause this level of harm is outrageous. This is happening across the country.

1:09:23ICE is out of control. They're not well trained. They're all masked. They're not wearing body cameras. And it was the Long Beach Police Department, by the way, that grabbed Ricardo, took him out, and actually got him medical care at a local fire station. ICE continues to brutalize communities, and they are not welcome, certainly in Long Beach, but they're not welcome in cities across the country. Do you know, Congressman, what transpired before the incident that was captured on video? What we know from the neighborhood is that ICE came in, they started driving the wrong way on streets, obviously in their big vehicles, and people were concerned.

1:10:04They started coming out wondering what is going on. And then as the ICE vehicle is coming in the wrong way on the street, Ricardo is on his e-bike going the opposite direction. and that is when the confrontation happened with him. But they don't arrest Ricardo. What they do is throw him to the ground and either break his arm or certainly damage his arm. He is screaming on the ground. And then what they're doing is causing havoc. They're going door to door. This is happening not just in Long Beach but across Southern California and the country. There has to be accountability. Right now, ICE and DHS are incentivized to arrest and detain as many immigrants, as many working people, as many U.S.

1:10:43citizens as possible. Because there's so much money that is being made in this detention process. No American wants to see what is happening. ICE has turned into a deportation force that has gone way above and beyond what they were intended to do, and it must end. I know you say ICE should be abolished and not reformed, but Department of Homeland Security says nearly 70 percent of the people arrested by ICE have been convicted or charged with a crime here in the United States. ICE has said that some of the worst illegal aliens with criminal histories include crimes such as first-degree murder, possession with intent to distribute illegal drugs, rape, and more.

1:11:25If ICE is abolished, Congressman, who would be tasked with removing these kinds of violent criminals from society? So first, let's be really clear. The vast majority of the people that actually are apprehended and arrested by ICE don't have criminal histories. In fact, when you look at a place like Atalanta or these large facilities, majority of folks there have no criminal histories. People are being picked up because they are Latino or because ICE is not well-trained and they're picking up U.S. citizens. So majority of the people do not have criminal histories. And of course, if you are a criminal in this country, you are committing crimes, you should be arrested.

1:12:04You should not be in this country. We can all agree on that. ICE is not an organization that has been around this country for a long time. It is a product of a new police force that's been only around, as we know, for the last couple decades. The functions that currently are within ICE should be in other parts of the government within the Department of Justice, as it used to be. So there should, of course, be federal law enforcement. But ICE is now 10 times larger. This is now an organization that we know by reporting where there have been white nationalist groups that have recruited into ICE, that people aren't being trained appropriately.

1:12:41And people are going out and causing real harm. And so, no, ICE cannot be reformed. We have to start with a new organization, separate out the current agency, and ensure the functions exist, but in other places that are more appropriate. If Democrats win the majority in the House of Representatives and take control of congressional oversight, Congressman, what would be your number one priority? Look, when we take over, and I think we're going to win, we have a lot of work to do. There's a lot to investigate. Clearly, we have work to do as it relates to corruption within the White House and Trump.

1:13:17Clearly, we have work to do as it relates to those that are working with Donald Trump at the corporate level that are raising the cost for the American public, that are raising the cost of gas and groceries for the average American. But also the abuses of ICE and DHS also have to be investigated. There are serious allegations of pay to play by folks like Corinne Lewandowski, by folks like Kristi Noem, who essentially were getting a cut from some of these large contracts that are then being incentivized to detain and arrest people on our streets. But if there is government corruption, whether it's in ICE, certainly whether it's in the White House, which we're seeing every day, when your son is getting weddings paid for by Russian oligarchs or is sitting on boards that are winning contracts from the government, when you're getting crypto schemes and making billions of dollars, that has to be a priority.

1:14:03And so do the abuses of ICE and DHS. Congressman Robert Garcia of California, thanks so much for joining us. Appreciate it. Thank you. Pamela. All right, Wolf, coming up, just feet away from chaos. We're talking to a mom who had just left the Oregon Elementary School with her child when tragedy struck.

1:14:27Happening now, Ben, Oregon's police chief, says there is an active criminal investigation of how a 16-year-old was able to access a gun and kill three students and a teacher at an elementary school. Authorities are also trying to determine why the 16-year-old opened fire before he was shot and killed. And questions are mounting over whether his parents could face criminal charges. Silver Rail Elementary is closed for now, but other schools in the district are set to reopen tomorrow. We're joined now by Edna Ibarra. She has two children at Silver Rail. She had just picked up her fourth grade son for an appointment last Thursday and was walking outside when the shots rang out.

1:15:06Her daughter, a kindergartner, was still inside. Edna, you have been through so much, you and your family. Tell us more about what you witnessed.

1:15:18Yeah, so it was just like a normal day. I was picking my son up from school for a doctor's appointment. And as soon as we started walking out the doors, we heard some sounds. I didn't register that they were gunshots at first. And then started walking to the car. my son and I were talking and then all of a sudden I see a I see a white truck just pull up right like right on the grass and there's like a guy that comes out yelling that there's a shooter I started registering now that those were actually gunshots and so I saw him like jump over the fence that's when I grabbed my son's hand and I took him to the car and I told him to stay there while I was on the um called 9-1-1 I was on the phone with them um telling him telling them that there was a shooter uh out of my kid's school um like I said this happened it happened so quickly um the the dad comes out um says that he uh the the shooter is down um then the first officer comes He's, it was just, it was so quick.

1:16:37He also jumps over the fence because I think the gate was locked. It was, like I said, it was something that I just couldn't imagine it happening to us. Yeah, and you initially thought the dad who ended up killing the shooter and saving countless lives, no doubt, was the gunman initially because there was so much chaos in the moment, right? So much confusion in those early moments.

1:17:05Yeah, I didn't hear who had like screamed. It was that there's a shooter because all I saw was the dad just jumped out of his truck. Like I said, he had a gun. That's when I like it registered that there was something happening at the school. It was it was just it was very chaotic, very frightening. And during all of this, your daughter is inside that school. She's a kindergartner. What was going through your mind and your heart at that moment?

1:17:37um honestly just trying to get to her um it was like i said i had my son there with me so i had to stay um i had to stay strong for him but just not knowing not knowing if i was if she was okay and it wasn't just her i had every every kid in there with um thinking about them especially because as soon as like the first officer came out, I saw him running out and carrying a little child. And it's just those images that no parent should ever have to witness. Yeah, no, I completely agree. Couldn't agree more. There have been nearly 50 school shootings just this year. It's unacceptable. And for you, you're having to process so much, but your little kids are as well.

1:18:30How was your son and your daughter processing what happened? And how are you helping them when you're still trying to process it all yourself?

1:18:41Yeah. Thankful that my daughter just didn't know what was happening. Like as soon as we picked her up from that church where they told us that they were going to transport the kids, like I gave her a huge hug. and as soon as like we walked out of that church she like explained she's like what why are you crying um so I was very thankful that she just didn't know what was happening um obviously my son on the other hand he he heard everything I mean we were outside um and so I we were gonna take him to the museum that the next day um because the high desert museum was having free free admission for anyone that needed it.

1:19:27And he, he asked me, he's like, well, what if, what if shooting happens there? It's like, how do you explain that to him? That's like, I don't even know how to like explain that to him. I'm going to, we're actually going into therapy, all of us, just because I just, I don't know how to process it. And I don't even know how my son is going to process all of this. Yeah, that just gave me chills that now that is on his mind when he goes into a public place. When the chaos was happening, how long did it take between then, the shooting, and finding out that your daughter was okay?

1:20:09I mean, it took us, I think it took us like around like three hours. Other parents, I think it was longer just because their process had to go. It was, I mean, we were at the church waiting. My sister had to drive me there just because I could not. I was, like, hyperventilating on the way there. So for three hours, just to be clear, you didn't know. You didn't know if your daughter was okay during that three-hour stretch? Yeah. Oh, my goodness. Yeah. That must have just been awful. Like I said, they had, yeah. Yeah, it was something that no parent should ever have to worry if their kids are safe.

1:20:55Wow. Edna, thank you for coming on to share your story. And we are all just wishing your family the best and all the other families with Civil Rail Elementary School as you process this and you grieve with your community. Thank you for coming on the show. Thank you. And to our viewers, thanks very much for joining us this morning. We'll see you back here tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. Eastern. Inside politics with our friend and colleague, Dan Abash, starts after a quick break.

1:21:34It was many nights before Christmas, and one woman knew she needed a tree, so to Wayfair she flew. She found more decor and added to cart. Merry Christmas to all. Get your Wayfair head start. For holiday decor you can count on, Wayfair delivers. This holiday, all plans, even unlimited, are just$15 a month. A holiday deal this good obviously deserves an enormously expensive holiday song, like All I Want. Right. Okay, we can afford that. You know what? Forget the music budget. We're going to stick with whatever's in the public domain. Give it a try at mintmobile.com slash switch. Upfront payment of$45 for three months,$90 for six months, or$180 for a 12-month plan required,$15 per month equivalent.

1:22:14Taxes and fees extra. New customer offer for initial plan term only. Greater than 50 gigabytes may slow when network is busy. See terms.