Return to Transcripts main page

CNN News Central

Second Judge Rules Trump Must Use Funds for SNAP Benefits; Netflix's Nuclear Thriller Catches Pentagon's Ire; Some Trump Advisers Surprised by Order for Nuclear Testing; New Study Links Autism and Pregnant Women with COVID-19. Aired 2:30-3p ET

Aired October 31, 2025 - 14:30   ET

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

[14:30:00]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Democrats nationally, it's putting them in tricky places, Republicans see opportunity. How do you see this after the election in the New York mayor's race having an impact on the party?

DAVID FREEDLANDER, POLITICAL COLUMNIST, NEW YORK MAGAZINE: It's a great question. I mean, you know, I think you've already seen Republicans make Mamdani the sort of poster child of the Democratic Party. You know, although he is popular here in very liberal New York, he's not popular even in the suburbs outside of New York.

So I think they're going to try to elevate him. You know, having said that, you know, should Cuomo, you know, pull this off, I mean, he he has his own issues. And so it's not as if, you know, he would be the easiest face of the party either.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: David Freedlander, thank you so much for the perspective and for the time.

FREEDLANDER: You bet.

KEILAR: So as of tomorrow, millions of Americans, including military families and veterans, are at risk of losing critical food assistance as the government shutdown continues. Next, we'll speak with a disabled Navy vet about how his family will be affected with SNAP benefits set to expire.

[14:35:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: More now on our breaking news. A second judge has ruled that the Trump administration must use emergency funds to at least partially cover SNAP benefits in November. Remember, 42 million Americans depend on these benefits for groceries to feed themselves and their families.

KEILAR: Yes, so many people. And Rene Marsh is following this. Renee, what else are we learning? A very quickly moving story here.

RENE MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so these two judges, one in Boston and one in Rhode Island, making these decisions just really just minutes apart. And so what we have here at this hour is that these two federal judges are aligned in saying that the Trump administration is required to tap into this emergency fund that is sitting at the USDA that that contains close to $6 billion. They must tap into that fund to keep SNAP benefits going.

If you remember, the Trump administration said because of the shutdown, they had spoken to states and told them that payments would not be made on November 1st. That meant that some 42 million people who rely on this program starting tomorrow were not going to have funds on their cards to buy groceries for their families.

But these two judges said that that was unlawful and that the Trump administration needed to release the funds for this program. In court today, the Trump administration's lawyers had argued that they weren't mandated to use this emergency fund. And they said that the shutdown was actually not an emergency situation in which they would move to use these funds.

To that, the lawyers representing both the cities and the nonprofits who were challenging the suspension of this program said that millions of people not having access to food indeed is an emergency. So this judge in Rhode Island essentially ordered them to release these funds as soon as possible. Worth noting that the six -- close to $6 billion will not cover all that is needed to fund SNAP throughout the country.

That costs about $9 billion per month. And so this judge said that the agency would also have to figure out if they would agree to look to move other money from the agency to supplement what is needed so that every American who relies on this program will get funds.

Last point that is super important that if you're watching and you're a part of this program, what does this all mean for whether you will have these funds starting tomorrow?

You will still see delays because it will take some time before both the agency and states can get the money flowing once again. Back to you guys.

KEILAR: Yes. They'll expect an interruption here. Renee, thank you so much for the latest there that we have been waiting for.

Let's talk about this now with Juan Saro. He is a disabled veteran and a SNAP recipient. Juan, first off, just you're hearing this new news, right?

These judges have said the Trump administration is required to tap into these emergency funds. How are you hearing that? What's your reaction to the rulings?

JUAN SARO, DISABLED VETERAN AND SNAP RECIPIENT: Yes, we're happy. I'm happy. And it's a good first step in accountability and, you know, giving veterans what they need.

All 42 million, you know, SNAP recipients have what they need to continue to provide for their families and put food on the table. KEILAR: So Juan, tell us a little bit about your family and why you rely on SNAP benefits.

SARO: Yes. So a couple of years ago, I was a schoolteacher in the classroom, middle school classroom, and I had to step out because some of my service-connected disabilities were worsened because of COVID, some lingering symptoms of COVID. And about that time, I started helping take care of a neighbor's two sons, which ultimately live with me now.

And she just took off about a year ago. She's addicted to fentanyl. And so, you know, I get just one check amount, the disability compensation that I get from the VA.

And I have to make that last, you know, for all three of us. So to bridge the gap in benefits, we rely on the SNAP benefits to get us through to the second -- through the second part of the month.

[14:40:00]

KEILAR: Juan, I mean, that's an amazing family story of a family you have created there and taking care of those two boys. If you don't receive SNAP benefits, take us through your calculations here. What do you not pay in order to pay for food?

SARO: That's a good question. I -- we -- I have looked at the bills for the month and we've anticipated -- started to anticipate not receiving the November SNAP benefits. And I have not paid the electricity bill this month yet because I'm not sure if we're going to have the money to pay that and provide food on the table.

So it's a tit for tat. It's deciding. Earlier, you guys talked about, you know, what bills to pay, what bills not to pay.

And that's a real thing. And it's what we're having to do today, you know, and yesterday and tomorrow until the Trump administration is able to release the funds that are in the reserves.

KEILAR: There's still, even though there are these rulings, we're still expecting at the very least here to be this interruption because this expiration of the funds was put in motion. You know, what is your message for lawmakers, for the president here in Washington as you were sitting there in Georgia, very much affected by these policies and the shutdown?

SARO: You know, not just veterans, but all, like I said, all 42 million people that received these SNAP benefits, like we're in the richest country in the world. We have the most resources, the most access to resources. Like having this conversation is sad.

You know, having food is not a benefit, it's a human right. And so as you eat dinner tonight -- this is to lawmakers and to President Trump -- as you eat your meal tonight, or at some point whenever you eat today, you know, as you take each bite, just remember that there are veterans, there are children and women who are not going to be able to have any food today. And they're making that worse just by having these conversations -- or these debates and holding these funds against us, you know, instead of prioritizing, you know, what we need to do in helping us in our families, in our homes.

KEILAR: Juan Saro, thank you so much for your service. Thank you so much as well for being here with us today and talking to us about the real stakes.

SARO: Thank you very much for having me.

KEILAR: And ahead, the president suggests that the U.S. could again begin nuclear tests. We will discuss that with the screenwriter of "A House of Dynamite." It's a movie that shows the dangers facing the U.S. from a nuclear strike.

[14:45:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Earlier this hour, we heard from President Trump aboard Air Force One, addressing his social media post indicating the United States would resume nuclear testing. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you talking about literally resuming underground nuclear detonation tests?

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You'll find out very soon, but we're going to do some testing. Yes. Other countries do it. If they're going to do it, we're going to do it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. You can't clarify whether you'll be able to resume.

TRUMP: I'm not going to say yet. I mean, I know exactly what we're doing, where we're doing it, but other countries are doing it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: The original announcement came as a surprise to many of Trump's advisers, leading to questions about when or if it would happen or really even how. The president's instructions cited other nations' capabilities, including China and Russia. Neither of those nations have actually run explosive nuclear tests since the 1990s.

Trump's move also follows criticism from the Pentagon over a new Netflix thriller centered around the country's missile defense capabilities. "A House of Dynamite" portrays a high-stakes scramble after an unidentified ICBM is detected heading straight for Chicago. Here's a clip.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Have we seen DEFCON 2 before?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is this real? UNIDENTIFIED MALE: STATCOM is asking for launch instructions right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm going to need you to breathe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Joining us now to discuss is screenwriter and producer for "A House of Dynamite," Noah Oppenheim. Noah, thanks so much for sharing part of your afternoon with us. I'm curious to get your reaction to the president's announcement regarding new testing.

Even though it is somewhat ambiguous, he hasn't said that he wants to see a nuclear device detonated or if he wants to see nuclear-capable weapons being tested. What did you think?

NOAH OPPENHEIM, SCREENWRITER AND PRODUCER, "A HOUSE OF DYNAMITE": Yes, well, I think like so many of your colleagues, my initial reaction was just a series of additional follow-up questions looking to clarify. You know, this is a subject matter that I'm obviously deeply interested in. Kathryn Bigelow, who directed the film, is also passionate about.

We made the movie to draw attention to the nuclear issue, the fact that these weapons exist in vast numbers, more than enough to destroy civilization several times over. And when politicians talk about testing them or, God forbid, using them, it's often, you know, it's easy to sort of look at that in the abstract and not pay too much attention. But hopefully, a movie like this can give people a visceral reminder of the danger that gets heightened when these weapons get spoken about in this way.

SANCHEZ: I do want to point out for our viewers as well, just in important context.

[14:50:00]

If the president was talking about using an actual explosive nuclear test for deterrence or whatnot, that would actually take years to unfold. It requires all sorts of legal fights over whether it could be allowed or not.

Nevertheless, I want to ask you about something particular in the film -- and I don't want to spoil anything for our viewers -- but it does suggest that our nuclear defense systems are far from foolproof, not only in assessing where a threat may come from, but also in actively destroying that threat.

How concerned should we be about that? Is that something that keeps you up at night?

OPPENHEIM: I think it's an important debate and discussion to be had. You know, again, this is not about us as filmmakers staking out a position in any way in opposition to the Pentagon. It's about us reflecting in the movie as best we could what experts told us about the state of our missile defense system. Most independent experts will say that the system is highly imperfect. They can debate about the precise percentage rate that tests are successful. Obviously, those tests occur under very controlled scripted circumstances, so those are best case scenarios.

And most experts would say, you know, our defenses leave a lot to be desired. That's not for lack of trying. I mean, even President Trump has indicated he wants to improve those defenses by building a so- called Golden Dome.

I think it's just important that we be talking about this. We haven't been talking about it as much since the end of the Cold War, but as evidenced by news this past week, this threat hasn't gone away, and we should all be engaged in a conversation about how to make the country and the world safer.

SANCHEZ: You mentioned the Pentagon and not wanting to get into a debate with the Pentagon. I do wonder, as a creator, as a filmmaker who's trying to raise awareness around a certain issue, what you say to leaders at the Pentagon dismissing your film as simply entertainment.

OPPENHEIM: I would point them and anyone else to the response from subject matter experts like Senator Edward Markey, Fred Kaplan, retired General Doug Lute, Tom Nichols. These are gentlemen who know far more than I do about the history of our nuclear defense system -- and they have all come out pretty vocally -- saying that any suggestion by the Pentagon that our system is, quote, 100 percent effective, which is what they claim, is preposterous and that, in fact, the system needs significant improvement.

Again, not through anyone's lack of trying. It's an incredibly hard technical problem to solve, how to knock one of these missiles out of the air, and it's an important debate to be had. How do we do this? Do we try to build a better shield, like Golden Dome, or do we try to reduce the number of these weapons that exist in the world, and or do we try to reduce the likelihood that they're ever used by de- escalating the rhetoric around them?

I think there's a lot of levers that can be pulled by President Trump, by the Pentagon, and I think we should all be part of the conversation about how to make the world safer.

SANCHEZ: The film is "A House of Dynamite," now on Netflix. Noah Oppenheim, thank you so much for the time.

OPPENHEIM: Thank you for having me.

SANCHEZ: Of course.

Ahead, a new study suggests a troubling link between COVID-19 and pregnancy and autism. We're going to bring you those findings next.

[14:55:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: We do have some breaking news into CNN. JFK Airport in New York City has issued a ground stop because of staffing shortages. These are shortages that are currently hitting air traffic control centers in New York, Indianapolis, and Boston.

SANCHEZ: As we've discussed all afternoon, this is the 31st day of the government shutdown, and earlier this week, air traffic controllers missed their first full paycheck. We should note we're also tracking some delays at airports in Dallas, Houston, Boston, and at New York's LaGuardia, all because of staffing shortages. We're going to have much more of this at the top of the next hour.

Meantime, a new study is raising some concerns about a possible link between COVID-19 and autism. Researchers have found that children may be more likely to be diagnosed with autism or other developmental disorders if their mothers had COVID-19 while pregnant.

KEILAR: CNN health reporter Jacqueline Howard has more on this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: This new study is getting a lot of attention. The researchers analyzed data on more than 18,000 births that happened between March 2020 and May 2021. They found that among the mothers who had COVID-19 while pregnant, about 16 percent of them gave birth to a child who was diagnosed with a neurodevelopmental disorder by age three.

But in comparison, fewer than 10 percent of the babies born to mothers who did not have COVID during pregnancy had a neurodevelopmental diagnosis by age three. And these findings, they were most pronounced for two factors. One, if the child was a boy, and two, if the mother had COVID in her third trimester.

So we already know that when a pregnant mother's immune response is activated because she has an infection like COVID-19, then that can have impacts on the fetus's brain development. We also know that when a high fever occurs during pregnancy, that can impact fetal brain development. So another possible factor could be how many of the mothers in this study ...

END