Return to Transcripts main page

CNN News Central

Mortgage Rates Fall; Gaza Negotiations Continue; Interview With Sen. Edward Markey (D-MA); Judge Pauses Troop Deployment to Portland. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired October 06, 2025 - 13:00   ET

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

[13:00:00]

TIA MITCHELL, WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT, "THE ATLANTA JOURNAL- CONSTITUTION": And being silent and letting people criticize him for days on end doesn't seem like the best way to handle it. Also, it's a little bit late. It's not like he can be replaced. Early voting's already under way.

So, Democrats are kind of stuck with him. So they're just going to probably hope he doesn't pull the rest of the ticket down.

MANU RAJU, CNN HOST: Yes, that is the big question, of course, at this time of political violence. Unbelievable comments that he made in those text messages that were leaked. We will see the impact on this race.

And thank you guys for coming on and talking about all this.

Thank you for joining INSIDE POLITICS.

"CNN NEWS CENTRAL" starts right now.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: Presidential power hitting a legal roadblock, a judge pausing White House plans to deploy troops in Portland, a battle hitting cities and states against President Trump. We are expecting a White House briefing at any moment. We will take you there.

ERICA HILL, CNN HOST: Six days in, still no way out, lawmakers deadlocked over how to end the government shutdown. So what does it mean for Americans as the money runs out?

And an urgent operation in Tibet to rescue hundreds of trekkers from the slopes of Mount Everest, the latest on the fate of these hikers and the growing threat from frigid temperatures and hypothermia.

We are following these major developing stories and many more all coming in right here to CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

SANCHEZ: Happening now, we're following new developments in President Donald Trump's crackdowns on U.S. cities and the ongoing government shutdown.

Today, the state of Illinois and Chicago suing the Trump administration over its move to deploy hundreds of National Guard troops to the Windy City. The lawsuit was filed just hours after a federal judge temporarily blocked Trump's deployment of any National Guard members to Portland, as clashes between anti-ICE protesters and federal agents unfold there.

The Trump-appointed judge initially only blocked Oregonian National Guard troops to Portland, later expanding it to Guard troops from anywhere in the U.S. after President Trump mobilized hundreds of Guard members from California.

We're expecting to hear from the White House at any moment.

CNN's Kaitlan Collins is at the briefing and joins us now.

So Kaitlan, what are you hearing is next for the administration after this ruling?

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN HOST: Well, Boris, this is the first time we will have heard from the White House press secretary here in the Briefing Room since Chicago and Illinois and those A.G.s filed those lawsuits against the administration over their planned deployment of the National Guard, something that President Trump has been threatening for several months now, and now officials there obviously believe he is ready to make good on.

And so, what we're going to hear from the White House, obviously, we have seen this being playing out over the last 48 hours or so, where they have argued that a judge cannot override the president's authority when it comes to sending the National Guard to places where he believes that it needs to be.

Now, of course, this reached a fever pitch over the weekend and we have seen this playing out inside courtrooms over the weekend after that lawsuit, after the federal judge, who I should note, you mentioned her there, Boris, she was actually appointed to the bench by President Trump during his first term in office.

She put out that temporary restraining order blocking the president from being able to deploy other members of different states' National Guards to Portland. That is something that she basically was arguing it wasn't tied to the facts of what's happening on the ground.

And we have seen the White House arguing against that. The president has been speaking about this length and including yesterday was saying the judge should be ashamed of himself in this. Obviously, it's a woman judge who made this ruling. But that is really the question here of where this is going to go forward for this White House, because this is very clearly something the president has been trying to push and he is facing serious resistance from the courts over this, saying that it doesn't line up with what's actually happening on the ground in cities like Portland.

Now, we have also heard from the governor of Chicago on this front, who has been basically criticizing the president over this. And one thing to point out from that lawsuit that was filed today, Boris, they cite posts from the president going back to 2013 when he was saying that the National Guard should be on the streets of Chicago, not in Syria, at that time when that chaotic civil war was playing out.

And so they're basically saying this is a longstanding position the president has had. It's not based on what's happening on the ground right now. And, of course, the question is how the administration is going to handle that serious pushback that they are getting from the courts.

SANCHEZ: Meantime, Kaitlan, we're monitoring this government shutdown. What's the latest on the administration's vow to lay off thousands of federal workers if the government doesn't reopen soon?

COLLINS: So far, we haven't seen that materialize. It has certainly been a threat that they have made and something that they have described as their hand being forced to have to do that.

Speaking of meetings that the president has had with his budget director, Russ Vought, we have not actually seen that come to fruition, though. But we have seen them pulling contracts left and right when it comes to infrastructure projects. We saw them reverse counterterrorism funding cuts just last week in the state of New York.

And also, we have seen this playing out in other areas, including from the Department of Energy canceling climate contracts. But the argument from the administration on that front, Boris, has been we have to pull this funding because of the government shutdown.

[13:05:10]

But in my interview with the energy secretary, Chris Wright, here at the White House last week, he actually acknowledged that it wasn't tied to the shutdown at all, that it was a longtime thing that they had been planning and reviewing and working on for months.

And he also said that there could be more to come potentially, so obviously a lot of questions here at the White House to see what they say about both of these fronts and whether or not they believe that government shutdown is going to come to an end any time soon, as we have seen a virtual standoff happening on Capitol Hill.

SANCHEZ: And that briefing is under way at any moment. We will, of course, monitor it.

CNN's Kaitlan Collins live at the White House, thank you so much -- Erica.

HILL: Well, in just a few hours, the Senate will reconvene, tasked with striking a deal to reopen the government. It's now been six days since the shutdown began.

As Democrats and Republicans, though, continue to point fingers, President Trump's top economic adviser is warning this:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEVIN HASSETT, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL: Today, the Senate opens its gavel I think around 3:00. I expect there will be a team of people in the Oval with the president hoping that we're going to get the government to stop being shut down.

But, if not then, I would guess that team of the Oval is going to start taking sharp measures.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Joining us now, Senate Democrat Ed Markey of Massachusetts.

Senator, it's thanks to have you with us this afternoon.

As you just heard there from Kevin Hassett, he said -- and I'm quoting him here -- "The team in the Oval is going to start taking sharp measures."

There are 25,000 federal workers in Massachusetts. How concerned are you and how are willing you to let this happen, you and your party, that potentially a number of those federal workers in your state alone could lose their jobs?

SEN. EDWARD MARKEY (D-MA): Look, Donald Trump started taking sharp measures on January 20 of this year. He started laying off people at the Department of Health and Human Services, at NIH, at all of the agencies that provide veterans' health in our country, just started laying off people en masse.

So this is nothing new. He has decided to declare war on the health care of our country. And he has been laying off workers by the tens of thousands over the last eight months. And he's going to continue to do so.

But what we're saying as Democrats is, we're going to stop right now. Let's have the fight. The fight will be over health care. As the great Massachusetts poet Ralph Waldo Emerson said that health is the first wealth. And they're looting that wealth, the health of every American, for tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires.

So we're going to see a dramatic spike in the number of people who lose their health insurance in our country. We're going to see a dramatic spike in the number of people who see dramatic increases in their health care. We're going to see more NIH researchers laid off who are trying to find the cure for cancer and Alzheimer's and diabetes and all those other diseases.

So we're going to say to Donald Trump, restore those health care cuts for the families at the kitchen table who right now are worrying that they won't have coverage for their family members.

HILL: Do you worry that you have further enabled the president, though, and the administration in terms of layoffs and the way that could impact the people in your state and, frankly, across the country?

MARKEY: Donald Trump has not felt that he needed congressional approval to cut anybody thus far.

He has been laying off en masse at the Department of Education, at the EPA, at HHS, 30,000 workers at the VA providing health care for our veterans. They're laid off right now. So Trump is not waiting for permission from Congress.

But we're saying to him, Democrats, we're standing up for all these health care programs, for Medicare, Medicaid, NIH, for the Affordable Care Act, for the protection for the premiums and the health care of every single American in our country.

HILL: You have mentioned this is the fight -- this is the fight that you want to have right now. Just within the last hour, your colleague Senator Andy Kim told Manu Raju that this -- that Democrats are engaging on something in his words that they think is gettable.

So in terms of this being gettable when it comes to these subsidies and health care, do you have any indication from some of your Republican colleagues, perhaps, even in conversations over the weekend, that leads you to believe that this is in fact gettable? Are you getting closer?

MARKEY: Well, right now, the Republicans are in a witness protection program. They're not talking. They're not negotiating. They're continuing to say that these cuts must go into effect.

And so they're not in any way moving forward, and there's a good reason, because Donald Trump does not want them to, to move forward. Donald Trump and his team in the White House have always harbored an ancient animosity towards Medicare, towards Medicaid, towards the Affordable Care Act, towards Social Security, because it requires millionaires and billionaires to pay taxes to take care of the health and well-being of every other American.

And Trump resents that. And so until he gives Republicans permission, it's not going to happen. Until he's willing to restore those cuts, Republicans aren't going to move. They're frozen, because he gives them, in "Godfather" part one, an offer they can't refuse. They will lose their seats if they do anything that Trump does not give them permission to do.

[13:10:13]

HILL: So, then, sir, -- so, if you believe that they are not at this point open to engaging, then what is the off-ramp?

MARKEY: That's Donald Trump's decision. He has to decide that he's going to begin...

HILL: So, you believe this all lays squarely with Donald Trump.

Are you comfortable with the way that Senator Schumer has been leading this?

MARKEY: The Democrats are standing up uniformly for the health care of every American family. We are going to protect the kitchen table budgets of every American, and the Republicans are refusing to come to the negotiating table. And so, yes, right now, we're taking almost uniformly the position amongst Democrats that all those programs that Democrats passed over all of these years for the health care of every American that's transformed our country, yes, we're going to fight. And we're going to fight until Trump gives back that funding that he's looted from the health care of Americans to give to tax breaks for the wealthiest in our nation.

HILL: Senator Ed Markey, appreciate your time this afternoon. Thank you.

MARKEY: Great to be with you. Thank you.

HILL: Still to come here: They are understaffed. Now they are unpaid. And does one group of federal workers, though, have enough sway to help end the government shutdown?

Plus: In a text message with, President Trump says Hamas faces -- quote -- "complete obliteration" if it does not agree to cede control of Gaza. We are following the peace talks live in Egypt happening right now.

And still ahead: lifesaving rescue attempts under way on Mount Everest, where a blizzard has now left hundreds of trekkers trapped on the world's tallest mountain.

These important stories and much more coming up this hour on CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:16:18]

SANCHEZ: Indirect talks between Israeli and Palestinian negotiators are right now under way. An official tells CNN the talks in Egypt are expected to last a few days, with mediators from the United States, Qatar, Egypt and Turkey taking part.

The official also says they will discuss a postwar security force in Gaza, as the delegates work to finally stop the bloodshed based on President Trump's 20-point peace plan. Trump told CNN that Hamas faces complete obliteration if it refuses to cede power.

Let's go live to CNN's Jerusalem correspondent, Jeremy Diamond.

Jeremy, what are you learning about where these talks stand?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, Boris, on the eve of the two-year anniversary of October 7, there is significant optimism in the air about the possibilities of ending the war that began that day and returning the hostages who were taken two years ago.

Those negotiations, indirect talks between Israel and Hamas, are indeed beginning tonight in the Egyptian city of Sharm el-Sheikh. But there's no question that, despite the optimism, the sense of momentum, the sense that this moment is different from previous negotiations, there are still major gaps between these two sides that will need to be addressed during these talks.

And as these talks get under way, we may get a better sense of how bridgeable these gaps actually are. Among the issues that are going to be discussed beyond the release of the hostages, the identities and the names of the Palestinian prisoners who will be released in exchange for them, there's going to be some negotiation over the withdrawal maps, the lines to which Israel -- Israeli forces will withdraw to during that hostage release.

The map that President Trump released over the weekend represents the deepest Israeli lines of control inside of Gaza that have ever been presented in previous cease-fire negotiations. And I'm told to expect that Hamas is going to be pushing back on that and seeking changes. And then, of course, there is this big question of disarmament. Is Hamas going to be willing to disarm as part of this comprehensive agreement?

Publicly, they have yet to actually say whether or not they are, but it is a red line for the Israeli government. And then, big picture, the question over whether or not Hamas will agree to release all 48 hostages up front, before everything else in this plan is agreed to, meaning will they need agreements on the entirety of this 20-point comprehensive plan before moving forward with the first phase of it, which would be the release of those hostages and that initial withdrawal of Israeli troops?

Clearly, the Israeli government is pushing to have that hostage release happen as quickly as possible. President Trump also putting significant pressure on all of this, saying that he wants to see an agreement within days.

SANCHEZ: And, Jeremy, Trump on Friday told Israel to immediately stop the bombings in Gaza. Have we seen a different approach from the IDF?

DIAMOND: Well, the Israeli military says that they have shifted to a defensive posture in Gaza, but that doesn't mean the same thing as a cease-fire.

And that's because we are watching as Israeli military bombardment of Gaza seems to have reduced, but it is not gone altogether, Israeli forces continuing to carry out artillery shelling and strikes, Israeli ground troops also still very much active in the Gaza Strip; 21 people have been killed over the course of roughly the last 24 hours, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

And so, this war is very much still ongoing, and with that, of course, the risk to Palestinian civilians, the risk to the Israeli hostages still being held in Gaza, including in Gaza City, where the Israeli military has been mounting this offensive, and yet another reminder of the enormous stakes of these negotiations and the hope that exists on the ground, including in Gaza, that perhaps this time the war can finally come to an end -- Boris.

[13:20:10] SANCHEZ: Jeremy Diamond in Jerusalem for us, thank you so much.

Next up, some good news for anyone looking to buy a home. Stay tuned for that.

Plus, the Supreme Court responding to an appeal from Jeffrey Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell -- the details on that in just a few minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:25:01]

HILL: New numbers are offering an important snapshot of the housing market today. So, the good news, falling mortgage rates are helping to boost housing affordability to the best levels we have seen in some 2.5 years. The bad news, many families still believe they are light years away from capturing this piece of the American dream.

CNN senior reporter Matt Egan joining us now to walk us through this data.

So, Matt, walk us through. What exactly are we seeing that points to both the good and the bad here in these new numbers?

MATT EGAN, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Yes, well, Erica, look, the American dream of homeownership, it remains way too expensive. Make no mistake, this is still an affordability crisis.

And yet, when you dig in, you look at some of the numbers, there are some glimmers of hope. So this new report out from Intercontinental Exchange finds that monthly payments on average have dropped to about $2,100.

Now, when you look at it as a share of income, we're now looking at, on average, monthly payments that are about 30 percent of household income. Now, that's not a great number. If you look back at the late 1990s, this was around 25 percent. Even as recently as 2012, it was below 20 percent.

But this is a step in the right direction, because, in late 2023, mortgage payments were swallowing up 35 percent of income. Now, why is this happening? In large part, it is because borrowing costs have gone down. This is a look at mortgage rates over the past year.

And, really, at the start of the year, mortgage rates on average were above 7 percent. Now they're much closer to 6 percent. The lower the mortgage rate, the lower the monthly payments. But, as you can imagine, this really varies city by city and market by market.

And the good news is that, yes, in some markets, it is more affordable to buy right now, right, less than 30 percent of income in some cities, including Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Atlanta, Minneapolis, Oklahoma City as well. But also, perhaps not shockingly, it is still expensive in a lot of places. You look at Miami at 38 percent of income, almost 40 percent in Seattle, New York at 46 percent. And look at this. Almost two-thirds of income in Los Angeles is

swallowed up on the price of an average home. And so it really does vary city by city. And I do want to just make one other point is that, even though mortgage rates have come down, Erica, as you know, home prices, they remain high. And in many markets, they continue to rise.

HILL: So what is there to do, especially when you lay it out, we see how disparate the issue is across the country? What can actually be done to address the affordability crisis, Matt?

EGAN: Yes, this crisis is really being driven by this gap between a lot of demand and not enough supply of homes.

And the president, just last night, he posted on TRUTH Social about this very issue. He kind of put the homebuilders on warning. He compared the homebuilding industry to OPEC, complaining that they're essentially keeping prices artificially high. He says that they're sitting on a record amount of empty lots.

And he urged the homebuilding industry to really start to produce more and more homes and restore the American dream. Now, one of the major issues here, of course, is the supply of homes, right? Goldman Sachs says that to really address this shortage of housing, you need to build three to four million new homes.

But to get at that, you really have to address some of the local regulatory zoning issues that's really preventing and holding back the supply of homes. And because that's handled on a local level, that would not be easy to handle.

One last point here is, this is, obviously, just a major worry for many consumers. If you look at how many Americans are very concerned about that cost of housing, 61 percent overall, 71 percent of those who are Democrats or lean Democrat and 52 percent of Republicans as well.

So, Erica, this is a bipartisan concern, and it's going to require some bipartisan solutions.

HILL: Yes, absolutely.

Matt, appreciate it. Thank you.

Authorities are now investigating after a judge's home went up in flames in South Carolina -- the details on that just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

_