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Battle for Governor in Virginia; Emily Ngo is Interviewed about the NYC Mayor's Race; Air Traffic Staffing Shortages; Trump Sits for "60 Minute" Interview; ISIS-Inspired Attack Thwarted in Michigan. Aired 9-9:30a ET
Aired November 03, 2025 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[09:00:00]
FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN HOST, "FAREED ZAKARIA GPS": More of an arms race. But, look, I think I know where President Trump is coming from on this issue. He wants leverage in these negotiations that we should be engaging in with the Russians and the Chinese. The big nuclear fact that we need to come to terms with is that China is on -- on track to, I think, roughly quadruple the number of nuclear weapons it has over the next 10 years. That is a huge shift in the nuclear balance of power. And we should be trying to engage them in terms of negotiations and arms control. And if you need some leverage in that area, I'm not entirely opposed to it.
SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Fareed Zakaria. Got your new book out. Thank you so much for coming on early this morning with us as well.
A new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Brand new CNN data. President Trump underwater. The highest disapproval rating ever for him in CNN polling. How Americans think he's handling the key issues right now.
And the ripple effects from the government shutdown are hitting airports hard. The weekend -- this weekend saw the worst staff shortages in air traffic control towers since the start of the shutdown. And there's a new warning it's about to get worse.
And just one person survived a plane crash that killed 241 people. Now he's speaking out for the first time about the disaster.
I'm Kate Bolduan, with John Berman and Sara Sidner. This is CNN NEWS CENTRAL.
SIDNER: This morning, just hours left in the 2025 campaign. Voters go to the polls tomorrow. There are several high-stakes races that we're following that could have some serious impacts nationwide. There are two governor's seats up for grabs, one in New Jersey and one in Virginia, where Democrat Abigail Spanberger, the former congresswoman and CIA officer, is looking to defeat Republican and current Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears, and flip the governor's mansion blue. Spanberger hopes to turn this election into a referendum on President Trump and Republicans, while Earle-Sears has tried to tie the moderate Spanberger to some of the more controversial policies among progressives.
CNN's Eva McKend is joining us now from Virginia, watching this race closely.
How are these two candidates sort of making their final closing arguments?
EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Sara, any minute now Democratic nominee Abigail Spanberger will show up here to greet supporters before they go off on a canvass launch. So, knocking some doors here in the critical final hours.
And this is a campaign that is clearly moving with confidence. And it's for a few reasons. They feel good about the strategy that they have employed, focusing heavily, primarily, on the cost of living and affordability. But also Spanberger benefiting from the environment that we are in right now in this country. She has spoken directly to those deflated federal workers here in Virginia and really fashioned herself as someone that can fight back against the policies of the Trump administration and how they are impacting this state.
Meanwhile, Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears, the Republican, has said that if Virginians are really concerned about economic issues, they could -- should support her because she would be an extension of the Youngkin-Earle-Sears agenda, and that they have brought jobs and money back to this state.
Take a listen to how they are both making their case on the campaign trail.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ABIGAIL SPANBERGER (D), VIRGINIA GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: It's not about reflecting what we are against. It is about what we are for.
And frankly, it's how we set a good example for the rest of the country. An example that we expect them to follow in 2026.
WINSOME EARLE-SEARS (R), VIRGINIA GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: What are you doing in my kitchen, Abigail? Get out of my kitchen. That's what California's standards are. So, maybe she'll have better luck if she goes to California. California.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCKEND: So, you heard Earle-Sears there trying to tie Spanberger to Democrats nationwide.
Something else that I noticed is that Governor Glenn Youngkin joining Earle-Sears on the campaign trail, has really brought up this issue of the Democratic nominee for attorney general, Jay Jones, and violent text messages that he sent back in 2022 that was discovered. And he essentially says, by Democrats rallying around him, that it indicts the whole party. And that is the reason that Virginians should put their faith in Republicans.
Sara.
SIDNER: All right, Eva McKend, thank you for your reporting there from Virginia for us.
John.
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, this morning, the race for mayor of New York City in its final stretch. Zohran Mamdani walked across the Brooklyn Bridge this morning in part of the final stretch of campaigning.
[09:05:02]
He has been leading in the polls over former Governor Andrew Cuomo and the Republican, Curtis Sliwa.
With us now is Emily Ngo, the co-author of "Politico's" "New York Playbook," who's been on the run, on the trail, really, with Zohran Mamdani, including this morning at 7:00 a.m. off the Brooklyn Bridge. He's been like everywhere the last 72 hours.
EMILY NGO, CO-AUTHOR, "POLITICO'S" "NEW YORK PLAYBOOK": Yes. He seems to be having fun, which I think goes a long way with people who are turned off by politics. But a very big morning for him after a big weekend for him. He's running as if he's behind in the polls, when, in fact, he's up by double digits.
BERMAN: How conscious is he, when you're on the trail with him, of this national argument over him, about whether he's the future of the Democratic Party, whether he should be, whether he helps or hurts Democrats nationwide?
NGO: I mean he has to be very, very conscious of it. It's the questions that he gets all the time are you the future of the Democratic Party? Are you the face of the Democratic Party? Do you like being the subject of attacks by the Republican Party? And when you gets -- when he gets asked questions about his impact nationally, globally, he tries to bring it back to New York City and to the local challenges, like cost of living and affordability, which I think is why he's leading in the polls.
BERMAN: He might have an easier time dealing with that question than the people around him, right? New York Governor Kathy Hochul gets asked. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries was asked and he definitively said no, right?
NGO: Absolutely. So, this is something that the Democratic Party is struggling with and will be struggling with, how big is your tent? Is there room for a Democratic socialist who has been shunned by battleground Democrats, who are worried about re-election in those purple districts by, you know, congressional leaders? Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has yet to endorse Zohran Mamdani. He had endorsed Eric Adams in 2021 at this point in the race. So, he's not really willing to play kingmaker. He's more focused on the government shutdown, which is understandable.
BERMAN: Give us your decoder ring of what you'll be watching for in the results in New York tomorrow, New York City.
NGO: Definitely the margin of victory. We're looking to see if Mamdani can break that 50 percent threshold and win a majority and thus a bigger mandate to effect the change that he wants to. And the polls have been closing day by day. We do see Andrew Cuomo, his closest rival, out in full force, traversing the five boroughs, really campaigning in a way that he did not in the primary that he lost so badly. But that margin of victory is going to count for something.
BERMAN: So, the 50 percent threshold is hugely interesting, right? Obviously, Mamdani would want it for some kind of a mandate to govern, not just in New York City, but to take his case up to Albany, where you need to get a lot of support if you're a New York City mayor to get measures passed. But I do wonder, again, what national Democrats want. Do they want him to get over that 50 percent and have this sort of mandate, or would they be happier if he wins, but it's not so big.
NGO: I would say that they might not know exactly what they want, or it changes day by day, right? They don't want him necessarily to be the Democratic nominee, to win in a deep blue city, to be the face of the Democrats. At the same time, they do want the enthusiasm and younger electorate that he has ginned up. And that message, again, of affordability, that he's not backed down about -- from one bit.
BERMAN: And in terms of that younger electorate, early voting in New York City has sort of reached levels it hasn't before in non- presidential years. And a big chunk of that turnout has been younger voters.
NGO: Yes, at least these last couple days. The first couple days of early voting was dominated by, you know, 50 plus, which led Cuomo to be more enthusiastic. But certainly there's -- everyone's super excited about this, both campaigns too.
BERMAN: What's going to be his -- if he does win -- and we don't know that it will happen. I mean anything could happen tomorrow.
NGO: Anything can happen, yes.
BERMAN: But what would be the first challenge he would have as mayor- elect or incoming mayor?
NGO: The first challenge he would have was trying to convince Governor Kathy Hochul and Albany to tax the wealthy so he can have some of the revenue he needs to effect these changes and roll out these policies that he's been promising for so long.
BERMAN: Emily Ngo, great to see you this morning. Thanks so much for hopping off the trail, hopping off the chase of Zohran Mamdani. We saw you as he was walking off the Brooklyn Bridge in our footage this morning. Thank you very much.
Kate.
BOLDUAN: Well, President Trump, in his first "60 Minutes" interview since he sued CBS, not backing away from his now new push that surprised his own cabinet about restarting nuclear testing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Russia has a lot of nuclear weapons and China will have a lot. They have some. They have quite a bit. But they don't have any --
NORAH O'DONNELL, CBS HOST, "60 MINUTES": So why do we need to test our nuclear weapons?
TRUMP: Well, because you have to see how they work.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BOLDUAN: Plus, ten counts of attempted murder after a mass stabbing attack on a train. What we are now learning about the suspect.
And two little girls were thrown from a Ferris wheel. How they are doing this morning, and what happened.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:14:16]
SIDNER: A warning this morning from the Transportation secretary, airport delays and disruptions will get much worse if this government shutdown does not end soon. It comes after the worst weekend for air traffic staffing shortages since the shutdown began now more than a month ago.
CNN's Pete Muntean is joining us now. Our pilot extraordinaire correspondent. He does it all.
What are you seeing today?
PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: Well, the FAA just updated the list, Sara, and the facility responsible for flights arriving and departing in Newark is short staffed. That's not really all that unusual. But also the center facility responsible for high altitude flights around New York, that is short staffed. Those are the only two spots for concern today. But history has shown that can change so, so fast. It's exactly how we started out on Friday, which kicked off the worst weekend for air traffic control staffing shortages since the start of the shutdown.
[09:15:09]
And this is the list that we often look at, and what we've been monitoring. It's called the FAA's National Airspace Operations Plan, published every few hours. It shows the FAA facilities with short staffing. And that list, on a normal day, has two, one, maybe no facilities listed. On Friday, there were 46 different FAA facilities on that list. The three New York airports have been hit especially hard. And the FAA says nearly 80 percent of air traffic controllers were out on Friday at facilities that handle New York flights. That is what creates the bind. And the FAA says it has no choice in some cases but to slow the pace of flights and put in place delays or ground stops.
I want you to listen now to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and what he said about that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEAN DUFFY, TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: I think it's only going to get worse. We have controllers who some of them are new controllers. We have trainee controllers who are very helpful in the tower. They don't make a lot of money. And they're now confronted. They haven't had a paycheck for over a month. They're confronted with the decision, do I put food on my kid's table, do I put gas in the car, do I pay my rent, or do I go to work and not get paid? And they're making decisions.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MUNTEAN: This is the human face of the shutdown. And in all, this weekend saw about more than 16,000 flight delays nationwide. Remember, air traffic controllers still working without pay during the shutdown, and that zero dollar paycheck they received last Tuesday was really insult to injury in all this.
Secretary Duffy said yesterday that the Trump administration is looking for what he calls pots of money to pay controllers despite the shutdown. But he says the rules are pretty strict and the Trump administration must follow the law.
By the way, TSA agents also working without pay and no major surprise on day 34 of the shutdown and they have been -- there have been delays in airport security lines, too.
I just want you to look at the lines at Houston George Bush Intercontinental Airport over the weekend. At one point, the TSA line there stretched for about three or four hours. It is really getting dire now. And we're not all that far out from the start of the Thanksgiving travel rush. Transportation Secretary Duffy says if this shutdown continues till then, air travel will be a disaster for Thanksgiving.
SIDNER: I mean, yes, I think we're, what, 24 days away from that. We will see if Congress can get it together.
But this begs the question when you hear about, you know, air traffic controllers, you know, having to call out sick for various reasons. Is it safe to fly during this shutdown as this goes on?
MUNTEAN: Here's the analogy that I would use. It's like a power like went out at a stoplight and it turned essentially into a four way stop. You get the blinking reds or yellows. It's not really any less safe, it's just less efficient. And so that's what the FAA is doing. They're purposely slowing these flights to maintain safety.
The big thing here are the human factors and the stress, the toll that this takes on controllers. You know, frankly, they should call out sick if they can't keep their mind completely focused on the job. It is a tightrope act sometimes, and they are under a lot of pressure right now.
SIDNER: Yes, that's a really good point.
Pete Muntean, thank you so much. Do appreciate you coming on this morning.
John.
BERMAN: All right, one of the precipice of a huge moment testing the reach of presidential power. The Supreme Court will hear arguments this week on the president's tariffs. They could throw a huge chunk of them out, or not. Overnight, the president defended the tariffs on "60 Minutes."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NORAH O'DONNELL, CBS HOST, "60 MINUTES": What happens to your economic plan if the Supreme Court invalidates your tariffs?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think our country would be immeasurably hurt. I think our economy will go to hell.
I think it's the most important subject discussed by the Supreme Court in 100 years.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: So, just part of that interview on "60 Minutes."
CNN's Kevin Liptak at the White House with the latest.
Good morning, sir.
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, this is a very expansive interview. And, you know, for all of the times we see President Trump in front of a camera answering questions, he really does not do these lengthy sit-down interviews very often. And yes, there was an interesting dynamic at being "60 Minutes." You know, the last time he was on there was five years ago, and he walked out on Lesley Stahl. And certainly the Paramount settlement, the lawsuit that the president settled with that company, was also a backdrop here. And the president seemed acutely aware of that.
But it was a very in-depth interview. The president ticking through all manner of topics, including the government shutdown, which seems poised this week to become the longest in history. The president showing no signs that he's willing to negotiate, and continuing to call on Republicans to get rid of the Senate filibuster, that 60-vote threshold there that would sort of eradicate precedent, seems to brush off Republican concerns that this would come back to haunt them, saying that Republicans have to get tougher.
[09:20:02] He was -- also talked about his hardline deportation campaign and some of those images that we've seen around the country of immigration officers deploying tear gas and breaking glass in automobiles. But the president suggesting he wants it to go further.
Listen to what he said there.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, I think they haven't gone far enough because we've been held back by the -- by the judges, by the liberal judges that were put in by Biden and by Obama.
NORAH O'DONNELL, CBS HOST, "60 MINUTES": You're OK with those tactics?
TRUMP: Well, yes, because you have to get the people out.
O'DONNELL: Is it your intent to deport people who do not have a criminal record?
TRUMP: We have to start off with a policy. And the policy has to be, you came into the country illegally, you're going to go out. However, you've also seen, you're going to go out, we're going to work with you and you're going to come back into our country legally.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIPTAK: So, the president saying he wants immigration efforts to go further. That's despite polling out over the weekend that shows his approval rating on immigration largely underwater, including that CNN poll today that showed 57 percent of Americans saying that he's now going too far. So, the president also hit a number of foreign policy topics, including that directive he issued to the Pentagon last week to resume nuclear testing. You know, the U.S. hasn't tested a nuclear weapon since 1992. The president says that this is because Russia and China are themselves testing nuclear weapons. Those countries have not carried out known nuclear tests in decades. But the president suggesting they might be doing it in secret.
He's also talking about Venezuela, saying the U.S. is not going to war with that country, but that the president, Nicolas Maduro, days are numbered.
And then finally, on Taiwan, the president asked if he would send U.S. troops to defend that island if China were to invade. And he says, quote, "you'll find out if it happens."
John.
BERMAN: I wonder how reassuring that is to the people in Taiwan.
Kevin Liptak, at the White House this morning, thank you very much.
Sara.
SIDNER: All right, we are watching to see if charges are filed this morning for those arrested in that -- connection with the alleged ISIS-inspired terror plot in Michigan that the FBI announced.
And hear from the sole survivor of that Air India crash that killed 241 people. How he says he managed to survive.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VISWASH KUMAR RAMESH, AIR INDIA CRASH SURVIVOR: I lost everything, like happiness. God gave me life but took all my happiness, and my family.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:26:59]
BERMAN: This morning, the sole survivor of the Air India Crash that killed 241 people says it is a miracle he is still alive. He called himself the luckiest person on earth.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VISWASH KUMAR RAMESH, AIR INDIA CRASH SURVIVOR: I lost everything, like happiness. God gave me life but took all my happiness, and from my family. It completely broke down my family after this crash. It's a very difficult time for me and my family.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: He was sitting just seats away from his brother, who did die in the crash.
Kate.
BOLDUAN: Unbelievable.
This morning, a Michigan community is on edge after the FBI announced that it foiled a plot of an alleged ISIS-inspired terror attack. Law enforcement officials said two people were arrested. They have not yet been charged with anything. Three others are being questioned. Authorities say that the alleged plot unfolded in an online chat room, was eventually then uncovered by investigators.
CNN's Leigh Waldman has the latest from Dearborn, Michigan.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEIGH WALDMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's been several days since an alleged terror plot was thwarted by the FBI here in Dearborn, Michigan. But we still haven't gotten any new information from the agency and no criminal charges have been filed.
We sat down and spoke with Amir Makled, who is representing one of the young men who is in custody. And he says this whole case is odd. They still have not seen a criminal complaint. And he says the U.S. attorney's office has until Monday to file those charges. He says his client hasn't been able to sleep, watching the news coverage of what he and others are alleged to have done. He says there's also a lot of misinformation out there. The FBI director, Kash Patel, initially said two people were arrested, three others are in custody. The attorney says that's not true, it's actually the opposite, three people are in custody, two others have been questioned. He doesn't think that any charges will be filed. And he says, if that's the case, he is demanding an apology from Patel himself.
AMIR MAKLED, ATTORNEY FOR MICHIGAN TERRORISM SUSPECTS: I would demand an apology from the national director. They would have to come to this community and speak to these residents and say that they made a mistake. And that's OK. But that's how you create unity. And that's how you cure any, you know, error that was caused or harm that was caused by a mistake. This community is very forgiving, and we would accept that.
WALDMAN: It's also important to add some context to the Dearborn community itself. The attorney we spoke with says that this is one of the largest concentrations of Arab and Muslim people in the United States. And allegations like this one about an alleged terror plot have big ramifications for the community as a whole.
And we'll have to wait and see if any charges actually come down on Monday.
Leigh Waldman, CNN, Dearborn, Michigan.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SIDNER: And our thank you to Leigh Waldman.
[09:30:00]
All right, this morning we're learning more details about the man accused in Saturday's mass stabbing on a packed train traveling through central England. Police say a 32-year-old man
