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National Guard Troops Now Deployed in Chicago Area; Interview with Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY): Pressure Ramps Up as Government Shutdown Enters Day 9; Israel and Hamas Agree to First Phase of Gaza Ceasefire Plan; Poll: 59 Percent Disapprove of RFK Jr.'s Moves as Health Secretary. Aired 8-8:30a ET

Aired October 09, 2025 - 08:00   ET

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

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OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: As you mentioned, Texas Guardsmen are now officially deployed on their mission to protect ICE and other U.S. government personnel according to U.S. Northern Command. And the place that they were seen, at least uniformed military personnel, would have been just behind me beyond the fence that has been put up. That is where the federal property sort of begins beyond that fence over to the right side.

And the reason this location is so significant and one that we've been watching for quite some time now is because this has been really the focal point of many protests for weeks now that typically swell up and down in size, a little bigger on the weekends, but at the very least has seen clashes with federal personnel and protesters that have been outside this facility. Because this is where those who are picked up by ICE in the city limits are brought to be held for detention.

Tear gas has been deployed at points, and so if the idea was to protect ICE personnel and property, this seemed like a logical place to be.

That said, we are still hours ahead of a very critical court hearing where we expect oral arguments from both the federal government and from state and local leadership who have opposed any Guard deployment because this has come over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker. And I think it's safe to say they have not minced words between Pritzker and President Trump, who has called for the jailing of the governor and the mayor in Chicago over failure to protect ICE employees, as he said -- Sara.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: Omar, holding down the fort there. Thank you for being out there. Appreciate your reporting as well.

A new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: This morning as the government shutdown now stretches into day nine, tensions are flaring on Capitol Hill, with multiple public confrontations even breaking out in the halls of Congress. But does any of that mean that lawmakers are any closer to getting to work in ending the shutdown? We'll find out. And celebrating in the streets, all the reaction that is pouring in as Israel and Hamas agree to the first phase of a ceasefire deal in Gaza. We're standing by to hear from Israel's government with a hostage and prisoner exchange on the horizon.

And this --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOB ROSS, TV ART TEACHER: I'd like to wish you happy painting and God bless, my friend.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: The work of TV art teacher Bob Ross inspired and brought joy and calm to so many. Now those happy little trees that you know so well will help fund local TV stations after losing a massive amount of federal funding.

I'm Kate Bolduan with Sara Sidner and John Berman. This is CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, we are standing by this morning to see if the Israeli cabinet signs off on the ceasefire plan that could lead to the release of all hostages in Gaza within days. You can see celebrations both in Gaza and Israel after the initial announcement of this U.S. brokered plan. We are watching closely for developments there this morning.

Here in the United States, the government remains shut down. And chances of a solution do not seem to be rising. But temperatures certainly are.

Republican Congressman Mike Lawler confronted Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries after a news conference.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY) HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: You're not going to talk to me and talk over me because you don't want to hear what I have to say.

REP. MIKE LAWLER (R-NY): Oh, I'm listening, go ahead.

JEFFRIES: So why don't you just keep your mouth shut. Because you showed up --

LAWLER: Oh, so is that the way to talk.

JEFFRIES: You showed up --

LAWLER: Yes.

JEFFRIES: And so you voted for this one big ugly bill --

LAWLER: I signed on to this. I'm here on my behalf of my constituents because you shut the government down. And my constituents are suffering as a result of your ridiculous ploy because you're so afraid of Zohran Mandami. By the way, when are you endorsing him?

JEFFRIES: By the way --

LAWLER: Do you endorse him for mayor?

JEFFRIES: First of all --

LAWLER: Are you going to endorse him for mayor?

JEFFRIES: Listen, you're you're a complete and total embarrassment right now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: With us now is the House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Leader Jeffries, thank you so much for being with us. We'll get to you and your friend Mike Lawler in just a second.

But first, I do want your reaction to the word that all the Israeli hostages could be home within days. Your reaction to that and what you think President Trump's role was in brokering this deal.

JEFFRIES: Well, good morning. Great to be with you. It's a very, very positive step in the right direction.

We're all hopeful that this agreement will be finalized, that the hostages will be released in a matter of days and returned home to their loved ones. Of course, that we can surge humanitarian assistance into Gaza to alleviate the pain and suffering that Palestinian civilians have been experiencing in a theater of war for the last two years.

[08:05:00]

And that we can achieve not just a ceasefire, but a pathway toward a just and lasting peace for both Israel and the Palestinian people.

BERMAN: So, Leader Jeffries, let me ask you about the status of the shutdown and that confrontation with New York Congressman Mike Lawler. Among the many things that were exchanged back and forth there, he was asking you about the possibility of a one-year extension on the expiring Obamacare subsidies. Specifically, what is your opposition to that?

JEFFRIES: Well, MAGA Mike Lawler is an irrelevant individual. He doesn't even have the support of the House Republican leadership, who have refused to address the issue of extending the Affordable Care Act tax credits. The Democratic position has been clear.

We will sit down with anyone, anytime, anyplace, one, to reopen the government, negotiate a bipartisan agreement that has to actually make life better for the American people, not hurt everyday Americans. And a meaningful part of that is to address the Republican health care crisis, which includes, but is not limited to, the largest cut to Medicaid in American history, the failure of Republicans to address the Affordable Care Act tax credits that are expiring, hospitals, nursing homes, and community-based health clinics closing all across America, including in rural parts of the country, because of the one big ugly bill.

These are real issues affecting everyday Americans, working-class Americans. And our view is that we need a meaningful response to addressing the Republican health care crisis, not simply a Band-Aid solution that Republican leadership in the House and the Senate don't even support right now.

BERMAN: Take Lawler out of it, Congressman Lawler, out of it for a second. I don't think you guys will be having a beer anytime soon. But are you suggesting that when it comes to Obamacare subsidies, you are for permanence or broke?

If they're not made permanent, you won't change your position on the shutdown?

JEFFRIES: No, what I'm suggesting is that we need to have a meaningful bipartisan discussion, that our position as articulated in the legislation that we've introduced is a permanent extension of the Affordable Care Act tax credits. But we're open to having a conversation in good faith to try to address this Republican health care crisis. It's ironic, however, that Republicans just a few months ago passed their one big ugly bill, which included permanent tax breaks for their billionaire donors, the wealthiest and the most well- off people in the United States of America.

And so the question becomes, isn't it reasonable for working class Americans, for middle class Americans, for everyday Americans who are facing the possibility of dramatically increased premiums, co-pays and deductibles? We're talking about thousands of dollars per year in additional health care costs. Isn't it reasonable for them to have a similar level of certainty in their lives?

And that's what Democrats are fighting hard to achieve.

BERMAN: One of the things that has not happened in Congress is the swearing in of Representative-elect Adelita Grijalva from Arizona. What do you think the holdup is there?

JEFFRIES: Well, it's been weeks since Representative-elect Adelita Grijalva has been decisively elected. And so it's very strange to us that House Republicans continue to delay her swearing in. It could have happened last week.

It could have happened this week. It's not been scheduled for next week. And it does appear to many of us that part of the issue is that she will clearly become the 218th signature on the discharge petition that will trigger an up or down vote on the release of the Epstein files.

Because we know that House Republicans and Senate Republicans and the Trump administration have been hiding the Epstein files from the American people for months now, even over the wishes of the brave survivors who want full transparency so there can be full accountability. And that's what we support.

BERMAN: I do want to go back to one second on the idea of the extension of Obamacare subsidies. You've said the idea of a one-year extension is a nonstarter. Punchbowl wrote up this morning in their morning note that they'd been talking to Leader Schumer over in the Senate and he hadn't drawn similar red lines to you, saying that a one-year extension is a nonstarter.

And the quote from Punchbowl is, When we pointed out to Schumer that he hasn't drawn similar red lines, Schumer responded, I don't negotiate in public.

To what extent are you and Senator Schumer on the same page on this?

[08:10:00]

JEFFRIES: The interesting thing is that for weeks we've seen House and Senate Democrats on the same page, and we continue to be on the same page as it relates to defending the health care of the American people and demanding a bipartisan negotiation between House Republicans, House Democrats, Senate Republicans, Senate Democrats, and the administration so we can enact a spending agreement that actually makes life better for the American people. Addresses the cost of living crisis that Donald Trump is inflicting on everyday Americans, health care premiums about to skyrocket, housing costs totally out of control, electricity bills have been skyrocketing, grocery prices remain high.

We just need to sit down and have a bipartisan negotiation in order to make life better for the American people and address the Republican health care crisis that is devastating people. Working class America, rural America, urban America, small town America, the heartland of America, and Black and Brown communities throughout America. This is an all hands on deck moment, and House and Senate Democrats have been completely aligned, and Senate Democrats continue to hold the line in a strong and principled way on behalf of the American people.

BERMAN: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries from New York, we appreciate your time this morning. Thank you -- Sara.

SIDNER: All right, thank you, John.

This morning, the world celebrating the first steps toward a landmark ceasefire and hostage release deal in Gaza brokered by the Trump administration. When we could expect to see hostages come home.

Plus, new this morning, the White House now pushing back on Illinois' bid to stop troops from deploying to Chicago. We are live from the Windy City.

And a moose pulled to safety after falling into a canal You got to see this rescue. Oh, buddy.

[08:15:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) SIDNER: Breaking news this morning. In Israel and Gaza, celebrations in the streets over the major breakthrough. After two years of war, President Trump announcing that Israel and Hamas have agreed to the first phase of a U.S.-proposed ceasefire deal. The president says that Hamas will release all of its hostages on Monday, and Israeli troops will pull back to an agreed-upon line.

Some of the hostages' families spoke with the president by phone, thanking him profusely. Last hour, our Kate Bolduan speaking with the brother-in-law of hostage Omri Miran, who has a wife and two young daughters. He expressed his enormous gratitude to President Trump but says they can't fully celebrate until they know Omri is finally safe.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOSHE LAVI, BROTHER-IN-LAW OF HOSTAGE OMRI MIRAN: And to be honest, until we see Omri ourselves, we will not believe it. Only once we receive a confirmation that this is happening that Omri is returning home, we will share it with the girls as we prepare them to meet him. It's going to be a difficult meeting for them, I'm sure, but also a happy one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: CNN's Nic Robertson is joining us live in Cairo this morning. What is the next step in all of this, as you understand it?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, and we've just been getting an idea from Hamas of what they believe the next step should be, and it reveals the first sort of potential trip wire before even hostages are released that could sort of put this whole first phase agreement off the rails at a very early stage. They are saying very clearly that they expect a formal agreement of an end of the war to be announced, and until they get that from Israel, they will not be releasing the hostages. That's the headline of what they're saying.

There's a lot of other detail out there about the number of Palestinian prisoners to be released and their demand that there should be no drones flown over Gaza, many such points. But their points, Hamas's points also reveal that there is very little that's been covered or let alone agreed in terms of the detail about potentially Hamas putting its weapons down, getting rid of its weapons. That was one of the demands in the 20-point plan about their role in a political future.

There is a lot yet to be agreed, but this formal declaration of an end of the war could be potentially very troublesome for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he meets with his security cabinet today. Because there are members of his cabinet who would potentially bring down his government if there were an end to the war, and they've already indicated that today. Belizel Smotrich, the finance minister, national security minister as well, Itamar Ben-Gvir, this also takes a very hardline position on an end of the war situation. So this is the sort of first tripwire that's emerging. I don't think anyone is saying at the moment that it's going to fail, but now we hear from Hamas, now we hear from other politicians in Israel, you get a sense of the momentum that's led to this point, but really some of the extreme difficulties that lie ahead even in the hours of today.

SIDNER: Nic Robertson, great reporting from you there in Cairo. Thank you -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: So there's new polling this morning showing Americans have low confidence right now in their top health agencies and officials. That's that new reporting and the numbers behind it are ahead.

And Dolly Parton, she is doing OK, guys. Putting out a video to reassure fans after pushing off her Vegas shows and seeing the rumors fly.

[08:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BERMAN: All right, new this morning, a new poll shows that most Americans do not approve of the way Robert Kennedy Jr. is running the nation's health agencies. And in particular, Americans do not like the way he's handling vaccine policy. CNN medical correspondent Meg Tirrell is here.

That's a pretty blunt assessment.

MEG TIRRELL, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it is, John. So this was a poll that was done by KFF, the Health Policy Research Organization, in the last week of September, asking more than 1,300 U.S. adults how they feel about different topics. And when it comes to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., 59 percent say they either strongly or somewhat disapprove of the job he's been doing overall. So you have 19 percent somewhat disapprove, 40 percent strongly disapprove, only 11 percent strongly approve of the job he's been doing. And as you can imagine, this really does separate by partisan lines.

Among Democrats, 73 percent strongly disapprove of the job he's doing, whereas among Republicans, 74 percent strongly or somewhat approve of the job he's doing.

But when it comes to vaccines, which of course is an area where there's been a lot of movement from the health secretary, and which he's focused on for a lot of his career leading up to his time in this job, you see that 62 percent of Americans disapprove either strongly or somewhat of the job he's been doing, and only 9 percent strongly approve. And again, you see partisan breakdowns really along the same lines there.

So overall, the majority of Americans not giving a thumbs up to RFK Jr.'s job.

[08:25:00] BERMAN: I got to say, I look at a lot of polling. A 40 percent strongly disapprove number is really unusual in almost any subject right there. What's the polling say about trust in health agencies in general?

TIRRELL: Right, so this is a really, really important topic, obviously, and one that RFK Jr. has actually talked about. He says the things that he's doing, he's trying to bring trust back to the CDC. Well, the polling data show that that is not working.

Trust in the CDC has fallen to the lowest level since the beginning of the pandemic. Overall, 50 percent of the respondents in this survey say that they have a great deal or fair amount of trust in the CDC to provide info about vaccines in particular. The most trusted source of vaccine information is doctors, your own healthcare provider.

That makes sense, right? The American Academy of Pediatrics, which has split from the CDC now on vaccine policy, the second most trusted, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. there for an overall 35 percent, the lowest in this poll of trust. And again, there are breakdowns by partisan divide here.

BERMAN: Pretty big poll with some pretty glaring numbers there. Meg Tirrell, thank you very much for that -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: Months after one of the worst wildfires in California's history, Los Angeles police have made an arrest. What we are now learning about the suspect -- that's ahead.

And the president raising eyebrows with what he's saying about the courts yet again and his efforts to mobilize federal troops to American cities.

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