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CNN's The Arena with Kasie Hunt

Remembering Dolly Parton: Musician, Philanthropist, Icon; Trump Angers Some In GOP By Reviving Tariff War Ahead Of Midterms While Blaming Biden For The Affordability Crisis; Trump Travels To Texas "To Help" Paxton In Senate Race; Two Unvaccinated People In Pennsylvania Become First Measles-Related Deaths In The U.S. This Year; Measles Vaccine; Meta Settlement; I'm Sorry, What? Aired 12-1p ET

Aired August 29, 2026 - 12:00   ET

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

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN ANCHOR: The months-long event, to relocate it, has been a rousing success involving locals of all ages all determined to lend a hand.

All right, that's all we have time for this week. Don't forget, you can find all of our shows online as podcasts at CNN.com/audio and on all other major platforms. I'm Bianna Golodryga in New York. Thanks so much for watching.

Christiane will be back next week.

[12:00:39]

KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, everyone. I'm Kasie Hunt. Welcome to The Arena Saturday.

This week, the passing of an American icon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(DOLLY PARTON SINGING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Was Dolly Parton the last person, not just the last celebrity, also the last celebrity, but the last person who could unite our divided nation? We're all in mourning following the death of the country music legend. Regardless of political affiliation, race, sexuality, creed, everyone loved her and is united in grief.

It's a moment, in some ways, as strange as it is painful. I mean, who else would be celebrated by both President Donald Trump and by the Democratic Socialists of America? But that's just who Dolly was throughout her career in music and philanthropy.

Here's what she told a local news station about her approach to politics. This was back in 2017.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DOLLY PARTON, SINGER-SONGWRITER AND ACTRESS: I just try to make life a little better. I try to lift things up when they're down. I write my songs about that sort of thing. You'll find me and my opinions, you know, in a lot of the songs, but most of it's based on love and acceptance and lifting people up.

I ask God every day to let me be a blessing to mankind and to uphold him and to glorify him. And that's how I go about my day.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No political rallies for you then?

PARTON: No political rallies for me. I make my joke is that my daddy was a Republican. My mom was a Democrat and I'm a hypocrite.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: I mean, if you have any questions, why everyone loves Dolly Parton. It was just answered for you right there in just those 30 seconds or so.

All right. My panel's here in The Arena. Republican Pollster, CNN Political Commentator Kristen Soltis Anderson, CNN Senior White House Correspondent Kristen Holmes, Former DNC Senior Adviser, CNN Political Commentator Xochitl Hinojosa, and Former Republican Congressman and Speaker Pro Tem Patrick McHenry. Welcome to all of you. Thank you so much for being here.

I don't know who among us would -- if we want to compete to see who is the biggest fan of Dolly Parton. But I certainly am up there. I mean, Patrick McHenry, what are your reflections on her life and legacy especially -- I mean, what a respite -- I mean, what a painful thing to have her pass away. But also what a respite from the world that we are constantly in to be able to spend a moment agreeing with the people around us that we've lost an icon.

PATRICK MCHENRY (R), FORMER SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: Well, she was above politics. I mean, and she purposefully stayed above politics through generations. And you can't figure out what she was other than an entertainer and somebody that was so beloved. For me, you know, for me, there's a distinction between who she was and what people think of as culturally the South.

She said she's a hillbilly. Well, it's very relatable in Appalachia to find a grandmother that was a lot like Dolly Parton in every community, right? Full of dignity, pride, respect and demanded that of everybody in their community. So she was relatable to them, even though she was clearly, you know, very --

HUNT: International superstar.

MCHENRY: International superstar who had risen well above that. But extraordinary to every American, every walk, every walk of life, but actually stayed true to culturally who she was and where she was from.

HUNT: Let's watch. She was once asked whether she would run for president. You may have seen on your social media, you know, Dolly for president at various points. I really appreciated the way she answered this question. Let's watch it. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am sure somewhere in the course of your career, somebody has suggested that you run for president.

PARTON: Yes --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because based on popularity -- no, seriously. So hasn't somebody along the way says, Dolly, why don't you run for --

PARTON: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- why don't you run for that White House?

PARTON: But you know what I say? We've had enough boobs in the White House. They don't need me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Just in case you were missing what she was referencing there Xochitl. I mean, only Dolly Parton can pull it off --

XOCHITL HINOJOSA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Right.

HUNT: -- with that kind of class.

HINOJOSA: Only Dolly Parton can pull it off, but also the reason why people love her so much is authenticity. She was willing --

MCHENRY: Yes.

HINOJOSA: -- to go out on television, talk about her boobs, but also talk about how she is helping children, right? And like, there are very few artists and people in the age that we live in that do so much for the community and stay out of politics.

[12:05:07]

Usually you have a lot of people who want the credit of like going out and helping children, et cetera, and will take positions in presidential races or -- and or issues that are deeply divisive. She was helping children. She funded some off the, you know, COVID vaccine.

She did things that Americans, regardless of where you're from, what you believe in your religion, anything you agreed with. And I think this is why she was so beloved. And when the news broke, I don't know about your text messages, but mine came from like my mom to like my husband who to, like, you know, my nephew who is --

HUNT: Do they not normally talk to your wife (INAUDIBLE).

HINOJOSA: I mean, they -- my mom is watching this and so they do talk, but it's very different.

HUNT: Sorry. HINOJOSA: And then my nephew, who is 21 years old and is an artist, right? So it's like everybody loved Dolly Parton.

HUNT: Yes, no, it's amazing. Kristen?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: I felt a little bit of shock when I saw the Donald Trump post. And the reason is because, you know, I've been covering him now for so long. You almost never see him cover a death that is not a full blown supporter. Somebody Lindsey Graham, a celebrity that was 100 percent all in for Donald Trump in a way that is him celebrating their life, talking about how amazing they are and covering it with grace. You know, making it about that person.

And I think it kind of took me aback because -- and I didn't realize it would. But once I saw it, it was like, oh, right. This woman had this insane ability to have this man, who is probably the most sensitive person to loyalty, believe that she was great, despite the fact that she wasn't a full blown Trump supporter. And then you saw it coming in from the other side.

We saw Bill Clinton responding. You saw -- it just showed you how careful she was her entire life, because it's just not easy this day and age to be that great of a unifier, to span across that kind of a bridge in politics, unfortunately. But she was able to do that.

And I think that that was -- you know, even just one of the things that she said was that after she had rejected the presidential Medal of Freedom from Donald Trump twice because the first time she -- her husband was sick, the second time it was COVID and she didn't want to travel.

She said that Biden called her and offered her it as well. And it would have been fine for her to go. But she said that she rejected it again, essentially saying that if I chose to go for Biden, it would look like I was intentionally choosing sides.

And then she went on to say, of course, as Dolly Parton would, that she didn't even know if she actually deserved it, which we all know that she deserved it.

HUNT: Come on. Anyone deserves a presidential (INAUDIBLE).

HOLMES: But I thought that was such an interesting calculation on her part that it was more important for her to stay above the fray than to get the presidential Medal of Freedom.

HUNT: Well, and here's how The Washington Post put it, Kristen Soltis Anderson. They wrote this, quote, "The cheerful cultural critic behind 9 to 5," which, let's be real, that was some cultural criticism, "bashed politicians as corrupt jerks without naming any. She worshiped God proudly. She loved drag queens. She funded disaster relief, the COVID vaccine and millions of free books for children. She led with humor and messaging that focused on love, love, love." Something we could all do with a little bit more of. KRISTEN SOLTIS ANDERSON, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes, cheerful, populism, a little of column A, a little of column B. That's actually where an awful lot of Americans are.

HUNT: It was a secret, right?

ANDERSON: Yes. And that's I think how you get -- you know, I took a look. I am a pollster. I wanted to take a look. OK, how many people felt favorably? You know, was there any partisan divide? No partisan divide on Dolly Parton. To the extent that any Americans didn't have a favorable view of her. It's just because they didn't know her.

And I think the one thing that I really want people to know about her, in addition to -- you're seeing all of the songs and et cetera, the work that she's done with books for kids. I mean, my children --

HUNT: Yes.

ANDERSON: -- every month of their lives have gotten a book from Dolly Parton comes in the mail. It's kids all over the country. Incredible work she's doing.

HUNT: It's why they -- I mean, my kids know the "Coat of Many Colors," which was --

ANDERSON: Yes.

HUNT: -- a Dolly Parton song about where she came from with just an absolutely wonderful message. And we have read that over and over and over and over again. And listen, if you put the polling up on Dolly Parton on the screen, let's go ahead and do it. We never see hardly ever polls that look like this.

The unfavorable opinion of Dolly Parton, 3 percent among Conservatives, 6 percent among Liberals. For some reason, 7 percent of Moderates have an unfavorable view of Dolly Parton. Who knows why? But either way, she is just off the charts in terms of what Americans think of her.

All right. Coming up next here in The Arena, inside a landmark settlement this week over social media. Why the parent company of Facebook and Instagram is agreeing to pay billions of dollars and what changes you might see? But first, the President's midterm message. It's our quote of the week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There's a theory that I get the vote. You know, there's -- I see it all the time that when Trump's on the ballot, they win. When he's out of the ballot, the people don't go to vote.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:14:44]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is the President washing his hands of Republicans is they do poorly in November?

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The President is wholeheartedly committed to helping Republicans across the board retain the majority. And I think voters across the country will be presented with a contrast between everything this President and Republicans have done.

There's obviously a huge cash advantage on the President's side. And he'll continue to go across the country, meet with everyday Americans and push his message until the very last day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[12:15:11]

HUNT: Ahead of what's shaping up to be a bruising midterm season, President Trump hoping to turn the tide for Republicans by putting himself and his record front and center. Even though his approval rating on a number of issues is severely underwater, the President is plowing ahead with his plan.

This as the war with Iran hits the six-month mark and the U.S. continues to escalate its trade war with its neighbor to the north. And of course, our ally Canada, which brings us to our quote of the week with Trump telling voters to use their imaginations and pretend that he's on the ballot instead of his fellow Republicans. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: There's a theory that I get the vote. You know, there's -- I see it all the time that when Trump's on the ballot, they win. When he's out of the ballot, the people don't go to vote. I'm asking the people to get out and vote. Pretend I'm on the ballot.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: OK, my panel is back. Congressman, is that going to help Republicans?

MCHENRY: I can't hurt. And I'll tell you why. So let's agree. There is bipartisan support for what he said, "Pretend I'm on the ballot." The Democrats are already jazzed. They are acting like --

HUNT: They're like, great. Go right ahead.

MCHENRY: -- on the ballot. This is led to the rise of the Democrats socialist because they are the craziest batch of people on the ballot and therefore are getting the attention within the Democratic Party and these primaries, the energy is driven by Donald Trump.

Donald Trump brought in two Republican majorities. And is -- when he's on the ballot and when he loses, Republicans lose. So it's very important that he's activated, absolutely. It's also important that the money flows into these races. And he is the greatest fundraiser for the Republican Party in the history of the Republican Party.

He is also the greatest fundraiser for the Democratic Party. So they're getting the benefit of his existence. Now Republicans need to get the benefit. If he wins, if he just performs again like he did at the presidential, you have a Republican majority in the House and in the Senate. Unfortunately --

HUNT: But let's be real, that's --

MCHENRY: -- this environment --

HUNT: Not going to happen.

MCHENRY: -- is much tougher for Republicans right now. And what he needs to do is be activated and his money flow in order to preserve at least the Senate majority and narrow the chances for Republicans in the House.

ANDERSON: It also depends on what race you're talking about, right?

HINOJOSA: Yes.

ANDERSON: If you are in Texas, I bet you that if you are Ken Paxton, you want that Trump coalition to turn out. But if you are Susan Collins in Maine, imagine Trump is on the ballot is not a helpful dynamic for you as much. And so this really does vary race by race in a big way.

You know, you had that polling that you put up right at the beginning of this block that showed Trump's job approval on a variety of issues. It's pretty grim across the board. But what really stuck out to me were even on issues like border security, being underwater by five points, crime and public safety. I mean, these are issues that Republicans really want to lean into and say, look, you trust us on this more than you trust Democrats.

You know, if the economy is bad and you don't have those issues to lean on, that's a very, very, very tough environment to face in a midterm election.

HUNT: Yes. Kristen Holmes, I mean, all points taken, including the congressman's about how potentially the President putting himself out there helps in certain circumstances. But then this is how the President himself put it on truth social. He says, "I don't think the GOP fully grasp how badly they are f-ing up right now. I'm very worried the GOP is sleepwalking toward a midterm reckoning they don't see coming."

I guess this was a repost of somebody that --

HOLMES: It's some random concern --

HUNT: -- supports him, right? But like, why do that?

HOLMES: Well, because Donald Trump wants it both ways. I mean, he wants to be front and center, but he also doesn't want to take responsibility when there is a bloodbath or if there's a bloodbath in November. I will say, I mean, to your point, the Republicans that I've spoken to, lawmakers, even those in competitive races, have told me, look, Donald Trump's on the ballot already.

The idea that, like, I shouldn't go to the convention or I shouldn't be seen with Donald Trump, even if I don't go, even if I don't stand next to Donald Trump for the next three months, every ad that is run against me has me next to Donald Trump. So the one good thing I might get out of this is that his involvement could boost the base to come out and vote at a time where they're not really that interested in voting for me.

HINOJOSA: Well, and I think a lot of this conversation is also about the base. You have a base who is not motivated to turn out in a place like Texas where my sister is actually running for governor. There is -- they are worried and in Paxton is worried about turning out the base because of the issue of data centers. Republicans in rural areas are really upset about what is happening there with data centers.

[12:20:05]

Donald Trump is helpful in Texas for the reason that really not only about what is happening there with data centers. Donald Trump is helpful in Texas for the reason that not only the base, but can Paxton needs money. And in a lot of these places, the only way to sort of get that money in is to bring Donald Trump to the state, as you saw earlier this week for Ken Paxton.

But when it comes to independent voters, largely in many of these states, Democrats are overperforming with independent voters and Donald Trump doesn't help with those independent voters. So I think, yes, it involves - it depends which state it is, but it is a bad place to be in right before Labor Day when your base is not motivated and you are focused on that and you're not necessarily focused on these independents that you need to win.

HOLMES: Well, and I was told by someone who is tracking these races very, very closely that a lot of what they are looking at right now is undecided voters, obviously. But they feel from their polling that a lot of these undecided voters are actually people who supported Trump, but they just like don't know if they want to do the same thing again.

So if they're already not going to get the Independents, they're not going to get the, you know, any crossover and people hate Donald Trump, then they need to bring out the reason that people come to the poll or undecided in the first place. Again, Donald Trump.

So he's kind of, you know, he really is a double-edged sword in a way that they seem to all acknowledge. But I will say, of course, when they lose, he's not going to take any responsibility for that at all, which you saw with these posts of it's the Republicans fault. They're not doing anything I want them to do.

HUNT: It's not going to be a thumping or a --

MCHENRY: But the path for the Democrats to take the House majority is through Trump won districts. The path to Chuck Schumer being leader in the Senate, majority leader in the Senate, is through Trump won states. So you look at Iowa, Ashley Hinson, great quality candidate. Trump won the state by what, 13? It's a no brainer. Like bring Trump in. He can be helpful.

Michigan, Mike Rogers would have won if he actually had the Trump vote last time. He's changed nothing two years later about his campaign, changed nothing about his approach. And he's hopeful to win in a much tougher environment in a state that Trump won. That's his own story, right? And so you're going to see a separation of these depending on the Senate races and depending on the House races.

HUNT: Yes. All right.

Coming up next here in The Arena, the new clash between a top Trump official and the governor of a key state over public health policy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. SHAPIRO (D), PENNSYLVANIA: There's real life consequences to spreading misinformation. There's real life consequences to scaring people and not relying on actual doctors and actual medical professionals to provide unbiased information to parents so that we can make reasonable decisions for our kids.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHAPIRO: There's real life consequences to spreading misinformation. There's real life consequences to scaring people and not relying on actual doctors and actual medical professionals to provide unbiased information to parents so that we can make reasonable decisions for our kids.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[12:27:45]

HUNT: This week, officials in Pennsylvania, the health officials announced two measles associated deaths. The first such deaths in the state in 35 years and the first in the U.S. this year. Both people were unvaccinated. One was an infant. It comes as measles cases skyrocket across the country and as President Trump works to reshape vaccine policy.

Earlier this month, he signed an executive order to break up the MMR vaccine that's recommended into separate shots. This week, Dr. Oz pleaded with the public to get their measles vaccines.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. MEHMET OZ, CMS ADMINISTRATOR: Well, we've said over and over again, I'm going to reiterate, please get your measles vaccine. Why play around with this? We have a solution. I want to encourage everybody, get your measles vaccine. But I also want to highlight that the incidence of measles vaccination really hasn't dropped much in this administration.

You know when it did drop? During COVID. And the reason for that is American moms lost confidence in what the scientific community was telling them. They didn't believe the messaging around COVID so they applied that to the measles vaccine, which is unfortunate because you should get your measles vaccine. But understandable --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: My panel is back. Congressman, I mean, listen to have -- so, Dr. Oz, you know, who works with RFK Jr. in the Trump administration, who has been a leading vaccine skeptic, despite denying repeatedly when you press -- I press him directly on whether he had said that all vaccines were -- no vaccines were safe and effective. And he said directly to me, I never said that, except that he did actually say that.

And now we have these two people dying in Pennsylvania. What would a -- what should our leaders be doing in a situation like this on?

MCHENRY: Just like what Dr. Oz said, just what Dr. Oz said, which is address the issue. You can make your point if you want. But the substantive thing here is for us to build trust with the American people that they can believe the recommendations they're given. This was deeply harmed during COVID.

The other thing is, let's realize this. We have no federal vaccine mandate on anything, period. So we're having a discussion. We had this discussion during COVID about nationalizing getting a COVID vaccine, and that also further polarized issues.

[12:30:23]

But we've got to go back to building trust. I think Dr. Fauci did a terrible job. In that, he undermined public trust and believing what we hear from public health officials. And then furthermore, we've seen this exacerbated, and we have parents believing something that's just not true based off medical science and the results we've gotten from all these tests.

You should vaccinate your children. That is clear and all the data. We've put away diseases that once debilitated millions of people globally, and they are no longer exists in society anymore because of solid vaccine policy. And we have received this wisdom from other countries around the world, and we've done a very good job as Americans on doing this without a federal mandate to do it.

So we've got to go back to building credibility. The more we hear from Dr. Oz, the better.

HUNT: So let's contrast what you just heard from Dr. Oz, OK, who looked straight at the camera and said, get your measles vaccine. More than one time in that clip he said that. Here was what RFK Jr. said about the -- what he purported to be a cure for measles or raising questions about what is the cure for measles. Let's watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR., US SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: What is the cure? What is the cure for measles? Your measles is chicken soup and vitamin A, and neither of those things can be patented.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: OK. So the cure for measles is not chicken soup and vitamin A. I think it's important to underscore that misinformation there. But the contrast between what RFK is telling people and what Dr. Oz is saying could not be more different. And by the way, one of them is a doctor.

HINOJOSA: That's right. And RFK, and we talk about Dr. Fauci a lot in the last administration. I think there are mistakes that the last administration made, but we have gone, boy, the other way when it comes to RFK and really having him lean into a number of conspiracy theories during his time here. It is going to be a huge issue for whoever the next president is to start rebuilding that trust.

This administration can't do it because they have RFK there saying all sorts of crazy things like you just heard. It will need to be the next administration who really tries. And I don't know how they rebuild the trust but they're going to have to have a doctor in there who is really, you know, talking about this.

I will say to be a parent right now with this measles outbreak and having small children is also extremely concerning. And I think the message from the administration needs to be talk to your pediatrician about it.

If you are traveling to areas where there is high measles, you know, people dying, et cetera, talk to your pediatrician before you go. Those are things, the conversations you should be having versus

government officials trying to dictate for you exactly, you know, talking about conspiracy theories or how you should not be vaccinated.

HUNT: I think that it's important to underscore too that this doesn't -- this isn't a harm free decision, right? If the community is not vaccinated for measles, Kris, I mean you have a six month old baby. You can't start getting these MMR shots until you're six months old, right?

That has a material impact on families and how they're living their lives and the risks that they're facing. And I mean, even if we just put up the map, there's a map of measles cases among US residents. The difference between 2024 and 2026 really underscores and shows to you, and we've been talking about, you know, the COVID vaccine and the marker of that.

This is actually the -- this is a weekly cases nationwide, so you can't really see where in the country on this chart. But if you do look at where they are across states, it's in a lot of the states where there are, it's Texas, it's Florida, it's South Carolina. You know, it's places that are listening the most to officials in the Trump administration.

HOLMES: It is. I do think that there is a needle to thread here that is not just this idea that, you know, RFK is anti-vax and people are listening to him. And I think this goes to your point about the idea that there was this breakdown in trust, and that when that happened there was nobody on the other side that was kind of trying to walk people through different options around vaccines.

So it became either vax or anti-vax. There's no real middle line. And for example, there are people who say you can split up the vaccines and do them in a row but, and they never get, but people were not giving that kind of information. So it became very two sided political around these vaccines, not medical.

[12:35:10]

ANDERSON: And this is something that I found a lot. I have done a lot of research on the MAHA voter. And first of all, most of them are not anti-vaccine, but they do feel like there's a lot of condescension and they want to just be able to ask a question of their doctor, and not feel like they're being told, how dare you ask me get vaccinated.

And so, I think the MAHA movement, there are a lot who just want to do things healthy with food, et cetera. And I think somebody like a Dr. Oz and what he had to say is kind of the perfect way to capture that movement to make sure that you're pushing people to get the vaccines that we know are safe and effective and necessary, while also inviting people to say, hey, let's try eating healthier too.

There's lots of other things we can do to improve our health as well.

HUNT: Right. No, and I think the point around RFK is not, oh, everyone's listening to him. It's that, oh, the Trump administration meeting is specific decision to elevate him to a position of public trust. That's really the difference, all right.

Ahead here in THE ARENA, the social settlement where an $18 billion payout is going and whether there could be more to come.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDREA CAMPBELL, MASSACHUSETTS ATTORNEY GENERAL: Companies continue to stand by the First Amendment and we are ready to continue to stand up to say you do not get a free pass by citing the First Amendment as a way in which to continue to harm our kids.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:40:56]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFF JACKSON, NORTH CAROLINA ATTORNEY GENERAL: HUNT: This is the largest settlement against Big Tech in American history by far.

ROB BONTA, CALIFORNIA ATTORNEY GENERAL: Congress is not acting appropriately and attorneys general have had to step up and take the leadership role. That's happening here, that happened with tobacco.

JENNIFER DAVENPORT, NEW JERSEY ATTORNEY GENERAL: This is the era of holding Big Tech accountable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: This week in history, we saw what many say could be social media's "big tobacco moment." On Wednesday, Meta agreed to a historic $18 billion settlement and a landmark lawsuit over allegations that the company intentionally-designed addictive features that hooked young people and then misled the public about its platform's risks. As part of the settlement, Meta is committing to enact a number of platform changes for young users, moves that hopeful say could fundamentally alter social media as we know it.

The day that the settlement was announced, the social psychologist Jonathan Haidt, who has been one of the fathers of the global anti- social media movement, spoke to the New York Times. He reacted this way. We're putting the cat back in the bag. We're going through a historic turning point from techno optimism to techno skepticism. This is the biggest victory that there's ever been for reformers.

And, you know, congressman, I mean, I actually do want to focus in more on the changes that Meta agreed to make and that they're trying to get other platforms to make. Because the reality is if TikTok and YouTube don't join in with what Meta is doing here, it's unclear that the impact can be that great. But they are actually putting in some controls around time that give parents more power to help their kids stay off these apps, to prevent their kids from staying on them if they don't want them to be on there at all.

But the reality is, we are so late to this problem. There is a generation of kids that were guinea pigs essentially, while we figured out whether or not this was working. And it's only happening as this freight train of AI is coming down the tracks at everybody.

MCHENRY: Well, I would say, I would counter what Jonathan Haidt just said. This is not the turning point moment. That was years ago where parents, we all realize that these addictive features are real. We are also part of that, you know, fall victim to that ourselves or we're active.

HUNT: Oh, absolutely.

MCHENRY: Especially here in Washington and especially in a commercial break, by the way.

HUNT: You should see us all. Sometimes we talk to each other. MCHENRY: But TikTok has gotten off scot free in this conversation. Where's the conversation about TikTok? So this larger conversation about how we utilize tech has been front and center at the states, has been front and center here with elected officials in Washington. But we haven't got anything done in Washington.

That's the reason why you have the state suing. That's the reason why you have this outcome is the failure of Congress to enact with some basic regime for protection, protecting kids and giving parents rights and responsibilities for the use of tech.

HUNT: So let's put up kind of what some of these changes are. So Meta has agreed to do the following; a two hour cumulative daily time limit for users between 13 and 17, a default school mode and night mode, improved age verification. They're going to hide likes and reactions on teens' posts by default.

They're going to block extreme makeup filters for minors, give teens the opportunity to turn off the algorithmically-recommended feed and they're going to offer, they say, some stronger parental controls. Unclear to me what that means. Kristen, do you think this is going to go far enough? And what does your polling say about how people feel about these companies now?

SOLTIS ANDERSON: Yes. So for a lot of young people, when I look at the polls of how they respond, how are they using these different tools, it's really tough because, on the one hand, they feel like everyone in their schools and around them is using them. This is something that Jonathan Haidt has actually talked about a lot.

The idea that like this has become an arms race in order for one kid to put down the phone and say, no, I'm not going to use it if you're the only one at your school, it can feel kind of isolating. And that's why I think having the adults make the decision to say we're going to have much more restriction on what kids can do sort of takes the onus off the kid, or even the parent who's got to be the bad guy to say, sorry, you can't use your phone after this time of night.

[12:45:11]

You know, if they feel like everybody else is getting the companies to actually be the ones to play that role instead of just putting it all on the parents, I think is a good step and something that I see in my polls people are hungry for.

HUNT: Yes. Let's watch a little bit more from Jonathan Haidt about what he's learned about this. And, you know, as a young mom myself, or a mom of young kids myself, I don't want to go so far as to call myself young, but my kids are young. You know, this is something I deal with all the time.

This is what Haidt said about where the political power on this comes from.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) HAIDT: It's such an obvious electoral winner. And what I've learned is there is no force in the universe stronger than mothers trying to protect their kids. That's what has driven this all around the world. It's mothers of young kids. And that is driving the politics here too.

So if any politician wants to get mothers on their side, they should adopt this issue. And if any politician wants to get mothers against them, they should side with the tech companies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HINOJOSA: That's right. Things don't get done without moms. And I will say I will join the crew if we can do something about YouTube. Because I do think that if you are a parent of a kid and if there is an iPad or TV or whatever, YouTube, I mean, it just has -- the parental controls are terrible when it comes to that. And it's like --

HUNT: They're like non-existent.

HINOJOSA: Non-existent, and it's extremely addicting, you know, and it's actually quite scary. What scares me about all of this is you just mentioned this, AI is going to -- is coming at us fast. We are just putting protections in place for social media. Our politicians skew older. You were not one of them, Patrick.

HUNT: Patrick is kind of one of our younger.

HINOJOSA: Younger actually.

MCHENRY: Yes.

(CROSSTALK)

HINOJOSA: But now you're not there so, you know, everyone is older over there. And they don't understand AI. And I do think that AI will be a big issue in the 2028 presidential election. If you're thinking about running for president, you need to get up to speed about what -- where AI is heading and what protections we need to put in place.

Because Congress is too old to understand what is happening. They hardly understand the current platforms that exist --

MCHENRY: But on this AI question --

HINOJOSA: And I think we need it -- we need some safety around AI.

MCHENRY: The opposition to data centers on AI, I think, is driven by wanting some way to express the fact that they're frustrated about tech and AI. It's not about the data center necessarily, it's about being able to speak to the issue.

HUNT: Might be about electricity and water, but it's also about control over their own lives. And that's really what this is all about, is people feeling out of control of their own futures. All right.

Coming up, something totally different and bat, you know what, crazy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:52:37]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KRISTA EDELMAN, GASTROENTEROLOGIST: So this morning I was asleep and I had a dream that there was a little mouse trying to get into my mouth. And so I'm half asleep. I reach up to my mouth again, still thinking this is a dream. And then I touched something that is kind of slimy and a little hairy and cool.

And I immediately somehow knew it was a bat. This bat was legitimately trying to burrow between my lips into my mouth.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: I'm sorry, what? That was Dr. Krista Edelman. She's a gastroenterologist sharing what she calls a bat PSA on Instagram earlier this week. As you heard her say there, she woke up to a real life bat trying to crawl inside her mouth.

So she lives in a nearly 100-year-old home. It's in Richmond, Virginia. She said she's never seen bats in her house before. So, what are you supposed to do if you find a bat inside your mouth?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EDELMAN: I grabbed this bat and threw it across the room, and I screamed. So my husband ran and got a t-ball bat. And as a physician, I knew we were supposed to try to catch this bat so that it can actually been tested and see if there are rabies in its brain.

And my husband put on some gloves and we got a bucket, and somehow he caught this bat.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Hero husband there. Dr. Edelman says that animal control came to pick up the bat while she and her husband went to the ER for rabies shots. Thankfully, the bat tested negative for rabies. Now, of course, this story was shared, I'm sure, out of fear, more than a million times.

It reminded us here at THE ARENA of another infamous bat incident.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID LETTERMAN, TV HOST: Before you start explaining it, let's tell them what you did. Bit the head off a bat, there I said it.

OZZY OSBOURNE, SINGER: It wasn't Batman. It was like a bat. Somebody threw a bat on stage, and I thought it was one of these toy bats, so I picked it up, bite the thing's head off, and suddenly everybody's freaking out 'cause it's a real bat. But I can assure you the rabies shots that I went through afterwards aren't fun.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: I bet not. I bet not. I mean, it's like my biggest fear. Like, I didn't even know that I should be afraid of this.

HOLMES: No, I know, but now --

HUNT: Previously had not occurred to me, but I should be afraid of this.

HOLMES: Like, I feel like I'm already like, this is like, they're bugs. I'm going to get a spider in my mouth. And now I'm like, wait, there's going to be a bat in my mouth? And also, she lives in Richmond, Virginia.

HUNT: That's like, right there.

[12:55:06]

HOLMES: really wanted her -- I really wanted to be like she lives in like a log cabin in the middle --

HUNT: Australia, totally different island continent.

HOLMES: Exactly. Like some rural area.

SOLTIS ANDERSON: Everything in Australia wants to kill you. Everything in Australia wants to kill you.

MCHENRY: I don't think --

SOLTIS ANDERSON: New Zealand is the only place we can go where nothing's trying to kill you.

MCHENRY: I will tell you, this is the encapsulation of the whole show though, because the this was shared via social media, right, number one. Number two, if you get bitten by a bat you need to go get rabies shot. Wraps up everything, the whole show, and freaks us out at the same time.

HUNT: Very neatly, very neatly with a bow. That's a perfect way to end. Thank you guys so much. I appreciate it. Thanks to all of you at home for watching.

Don't forget you can see THE ARENA every weekday right here on CNN at 4:00pm Eastern. You can also catch up by listening to our podcast. You can follow us on X and Instagram. We're @thearenacnn.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend. The news continues next right here on CNN.