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GOP Wraps Up Midterm Convention; Inflation Heating Up; Nation Marks 25 Years Since 9/11 Terror Attacks. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired September 11, 2026 - 13:00   ET

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

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BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Never forget. The nation marks 25 years since the 9/11 attacks with moments of silence and reflection. We are revisiting the stories of that day.

Plus, fueling higher prices, diesel topping $6 a gallon for the first time ever, and that means steeper costs for most things that you buy.

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN HOST: And a parting plea, the president's final message at the Republican Convention: Vote like his name's on the ballot.

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

KEILAR: Pausing to remember one of the darkest and deadliest days in American history now 25 years later.

Today, survivors and families are gathering to honor victims of the 9/11 terror attacks. Right now, an afternoon ceremony is just getting under way in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, the grassy field where 40 passengers and crew members, many of whom became heroes, died that fateful day on United Flight 93, in New York at Ground Zero each year, the solemn reading of nearly 3,000 names, and for the first time this year, a seventh moment of silence to honor those who have died of 9/11-related health issues.

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KEILAR: At the Pentagon at 9:37 this morning, a ceremony was held marking the moment that American Airlines Flight 77 struck the western facade of the building, killing 184 people.

President Trump just minutes later addressing the nation.

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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: In 25 years, a generation has passed since the terror attacks of September 11, 2001. Yet time has not dimmed the honor of that day when our country came face-to-face with true evil.

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KEILAR: We're going to have more from the president here in a moment.

First, though, we begin this hour in Shanksville, where CNN's Danny Freeman is at the Flight 93 National Memorial, where a ceremony is being held.

Danny, tell us about it.

DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, of course, Brianna.

You know, any time that I have been at this United Airlines Flight 93 memorial, so many emotions go through your mind, because there's, of course, that intense sadness, a tremendous amount of reflection as well, but, most of all, there's deep, deep gratitude for, as you noted, the 40 crew members and passengers who truly were heroes because they were brave enough to revolt against those hijackers on this plane on September 11 25 years ago.

And that's really what's being remembered today here on the spot. Earlier today, Brianna, we had a morning observance, where there were songs, wreath-layings, of course, the reading of the names, also the ringing of the bell of remembrance.

And then now the afternoon ceremony is about to begin, where we're going to hear speeches from Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum.

But I just want to note, again, this whole memorial here is really about those people, those crew members and passengers who were on that plane. Remember, they actually voted once they learned that there was an attack against our country to storm the cockpit. Their plane had been hijacked.

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And there were people who were making phone calls to loved ones, calling 911. And one of the people who was actually on the phone before those passengers and crew members stormed the cockpit heroically was Elizabeth Wainio.

She actually was a member of our larger family. She was a Discovery employee. She was 27 years old, and she was going to a company-wide business meeting in on this flight to San Francisco from Newark, New Jersey.

We just had a moment to speak with her sister, Sarah Wainio, who explained that this day is always so hard and difficult for so many of the families of their loved ones who were killed. But she hopes, especially with this particular tragedy of Flight 93, that those in D.C., that suspected target of this plane, really always keep what happened in this Pennsylvania field close.

Take a listen.

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SARAH WAINIO, SISTER OF FLIGHT 93 PASSENGER ELIZABETH WAINIO: There are a lot of folks that were in Washington, D.C., that day, which we believe was the intended target of Flight 93, who I hope this anniversary allows them to remember the sacrifice that my family made.

I bet they think about it a lot, but I would love and encourage them to talk about it a lot. And I think that it would be great in our future if this became a national day of remembrance.

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FREEMAN: So, again, Brianna, we're going to hear from Pennsylvania Governor Shapiro, also the secretary of the interior in just a moment, and also other loved ones of those who were on Flight 93 that day, an incredibly moving and powerful ceremony earlier today and expected this afternoon, Brianna.

KEILAR: All right, Danny, thank you so much for that live for us from Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

We turn now to New York, where, 25 years ago, the first two hijacked planes struck the World Trade Center. Earlier, former Presidents Biden, Obama, Clinton, and Bush sat alongside Vice President J.D. Vance as a commemoration ceremony began.

JIMENEZ: There were several somber moments as the children of victims read their parents' name out loud, including Daniella, who spoke about the time she's missed with her dad, Victor Wald.

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DANIELLA, DAUGHTER OF 9/11 VICTIM VICTOR WALD: Daddy, wow, 25 years. Some days, it feels like a lifetime ago, and others just yesterday. It's painful to be here, but important, not only to mourn the events of that day and the horrific way that you were killed, but it's important to mourn the life that was ahead of you that was lost.

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JIMENEZ: CNN's Brynn Gingras is at the 9/11 Memorial Plaza in Lower Manhattan.

So, Brynn, what have you seen over the course of the morning? Bring us into the space here.

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Omar, I'm not sure if you can hear, but just in the distance from where I'm standing right now, someone is playing "Taps" on the bagpipes, an individual ceremony, probably in front of the name of the loved one they lost. We have been seeing that all throughout the day. I actually met a

woman with her daughter. Her daughter was 2 when her father died. And they had a moment of prayer in front of their father -- her father, the woman's husband's name when the bell tolled for the second tower that collapsed, because that's when they believe their loved one died.

So, those little moments that are so important to everyone in the larger picture of everyone's names being read and us hearing the sound of those bells. That seventh bell, as you guys said, that's what ended the ceremony today.

That is such an important one. That is one that will be permanent now in the fixture of this ceremony of the 9/11 remembrance, because it is for those who have died, also those who continue to suffer with 9/11- related illnesses. More people have died from 9/11-related illnesses than the people that died on the day itself.

And some people still live with those illnesses and are fighting those illnesses, including this woman Sonia that I spoke to earlier today. I want you to hear from her.

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SONIA AGRON, 9/11 RECOVERY WORKER: My husband and I both have illnesses. He survived cancer, but between the both of us, we have about six different illnesses, autoimmune diseases, no cure. And we know how it's going to end. And the seventh bell is really going to hit us hard this year, because one day it'll be ringing for us.

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GINGRAS: I mean, "One day, it'll be ringing for us," what an unimaginable -- unimaginable thing to think, honestly.

Yes, that woman says she comes here every year because she wants to be with the other souls. Her husband still can't even come here after 25 years, she says, because he can't be in the place where he thinks -- or he wanted to save so many more people. He was a police officer who was a first responder that day, so just incredible stories that, of course, remind you of the gravity of the situation.

But also so many people here, Omar and Brianna, today talking about what they plan on telling the future, continuing to talk about these stories, so that the future continues to learn about what happened here and remembers how it will never be forgotten and, of course, should never be repeated -- guys.

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JIMENEZ: And, of course, the illnesses such a big part of remembering this day, even 25 years later, and that powerful interview you brought us.

Brynn, really appreciate the recording from down there.

Finally, we want to go to the Pentagon as well. At dawn, as the sun was rising, here is the moment an American flag was unfurled over the section of the building that was hit.

KEILAR: CNN's Brian Todd is in Arlington, Virginia, overlooking the Pentagon.

Brian, tell us the latest there.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Boris and -- excuse me, Brianna and Omar, the -- my team and I got the distinct impression that, throughout the day and the morning, that the pain and the emotion that was felt by people here at the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, and the days, weeks, and years after, that pain and emotion really has not ebbed very much in 25 years.

We talked to several employees of the Pentagon who described today as being surreal, as being painful. We're told that some of the older employees who are here who were there on that day and working here on that day, don't even want to talk about September 11. That's how raw the emotions still are 25 years later.

President Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth both spoke at this event, of course, both of them telling anecdotes about the heroes and the victims that day, but President Trump and Pete Hegseth also felt like they wanted to speak about the Iran war and how they have couched it as a war against terrorism and preventing Iran from having a nuclear weapon.

Here's what President Trump had to say about that.

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TRUMP: We salute the service members working right now to ensure the world's number one sponsor of terror, the Islamic Republic of Iran, will never, ever have a nuclear weapon.

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TODD: And an especially poignant moment came early during the period when they were reading the names of the 184 people who died here at the Pentagon. They were reading them in alphabetical order, and about maybe a quarter of the way through it, they read the names of four members of one family who died all at once in an instant on board American Airlines Flight 77.

It was the Falkenberg family, Charles Falkenberg, his wife, Leslie Whittington, their daughters Zoe Falkenberg, who was 8 years old, and Dana Falkenberg, who was 3 years old. They were all on board American Airlines Flight 77 when it crashed into the Pentagon. Of course, all of them died together on that day.

Some personal items, including a teddy bear and stuffed dinosaurs that the little girls had, is now being preserved at the 9/11 Memorial Museum collection. But that was an especially poignant and emotional moment. It struck me, our team here, and a lot of people in the audience when they flashed the pictures of the members of that one family who were killed all in an instant when that plane hit the west side of the Pentagon -- Brianna, Omar. KEILAR: I think that's part of what makes that memorial there at the

Pentagon also so poignant, because the memorial is special in a way, in that it reminds you the ages of the people who died. You can actually see it visually represented.

And you're reminded of people who were so young, had so much life ahead of them, so many people. And it's really devastating to look at, just as it is to see that picture of that family.

Brian Todd, thank you so much for that report for us from Arlington, Virginia.

Stay with CNN. We will be right back.

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KEILAR: The latest economic report is confirming what many American families are already feeling. Costs are going up beyond the pump 6.5 months since the U.S. launched the war with Iran. Consumer prices rose at a rate of 3.4 percent in August compared to a year ago. This hotter-than-expected report could set the stage for the first rate hike in years.

Federal Reserve officials are meeting next week to talk about this. And for the first time ever, the price of diesel has exceeded $6 dollars a gallon. We were watching this yesterday as it was just below that. This workhorse fuel, this is what powers the economy. Heavy trucks, freight trains, and more all depend on it.

So let's talk about it with Scott Lincicome, vice president of general economics and trade at the Cato Institute.

All right, Scott, talk to us first about this diesel issue. And when people are feeling it, they're feeling those increases, you say, that's the diesel.

SCOTT LINCICOME, VICE PRESIDENT OF GENERAL ECONOMICS, CATO INSTITUTE: Yes, so you have a few factors driving higher diesel prices, the biggest one being the war in Iran, but also the continued war in Russia and several other countries, large refiners, producers of diesel that have restricted exports.

So you put all that together, and you inevitably have this exceeding the $6 benchmark today. The way you and I feel it, unless we drive a diesel-powered truck or car, we're going to feel it through everything that is transported through the modern U.S. economy, which is a lot of stuff, because almost all commercial transport depends on diesel.

And you're looking at about overall $35 billion, give or take, that's added costs for the commercial transportation sector. So, when it's -- whether it's food prices or stuff at retail places like Walmart or the rest, all of that is going to reflect those higher costs, because these are low-margin industries, and they're going to be passing them on, and so that means all the kind of basic consumables also going up in price.

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KEILAR: So some of the largest price increases stem from technology. Why is that?

LINCICOME: Well, here you have a few things.

A couple of these, like wireless services, might be anomalous. It might just be a one-off thing with a lot of noise in the data. But the other thing here is, look, the data center boom, the A.I. boom, for all of the good things it's doing for the U.S. economy, and it's a massive tailwind, it still is a ton of additional demand for tech- related goods and services.

More demand with relatively static supply, you're going to get higher prices, and that's what we keep seeing. So you can have some -- a lot of good things happening with A.I., but also you're going to have higher prices for the stuff that that data center build-out needs.

KEILAR: So after this report was released, traders boosted the odds of a rate hike to 90 percent from 70. You agree with that?

LINCICOME: Yes, I think that's probably right. I would note you shouldn't make decisions based on one month of data, but if you look at that core CPI, so excluding energy and food, what the Fed really wants to look at for kind of core inflation, that's going to be too hot at 0.3 percent last month.

And also the trend overall is looking hotter. And given what Chairman Warsh has said about not -- meaning disinflation, not even a -- not this uptick in inflation, for him to stand -- stay steady, I think you're going to expect a rate hike because of those things.

KEILAR: Speakers at this Republican Midterm Convention claimed the U.S. is still digging itself out of the Biden era inflation crisis. they're really trying to...

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KEILAR: I see you chuckling. They're looking back, trying to blame someone else for this. How much of the current inflation situation can be pinned on Biden? How much of this is something that would be Trump's responsibility?

LINCICOME: Yes, I'm chuckling because, of course, politicians are always blaming the other guy, right?

KEILAR: They are.

LINCICOME: But I think the reality is, if you look at the trend in inflation before Trump took office, it was heading down, wasn't where the Fed wanted it to be, but it was heading in the right direction.

Since then, it's reversed course, and you have several things fueling that. Some of them are those good things, like the A.I. build-out and all that additional demand. But others are clearly have to do with foreign policy, the big one being all of those tariffs, which last year probably added more than half-a-percentage point, if not more, to CPI, then, of course, the war in Iran really jacking up energy prices.

You had the One Big Beautiful Bill, which injected more kind of unfunded economic stimulus, tax cuts and the rest, into the U.S. economy as well. And that's all going to push inflation higher. So, again, we -- you take away that trend of disinflation, you reverse course, Republicans are going to need to take some blame for that.

KEILAR: All right, Scott Lincicome, thank you so much for taking us through that. We appreciate it.

Still ahead: President Trump closing out the Republican Midterm Convention with a final plea to attendees. His message: Pretend I'm on the ticket.

We will have more on his pitch next.

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JIMENEZ: Republicans are capping off their first ever midterm convention last night in Dallas, Vice President J.D. Vance and President Donald Trump both taking the stage.

And they're looking to generate some momentum for their party heading into this last stretch before elections in November. Now, he's not on the ballot. The president, though, still urged voters to pretend like he is, and even led the packed arena in this pledge.

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TRUMP: So please raise your right hand.

I pledge...

AUDIENCE: I pledge...

TRUMP: ... to the greatest president in the history of the United States that I will go out with my family, my friends. I will do it any way. I don't care if I'm registered or not. I'm going to try and cheat like hell like they do.

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JIMENEZ: Maybe some expected rhetoric from the president there, but Kevin Liptak is at the White House for us.

So, Kevin, look, the president clearly wants to be at the forefront of the GOP's strategy in these races. Ironically, it seems Democrats want him at the forefront of that strategy as well. What are you hearing?

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes.

And it was clear from this convention as it wrapped up that it was all about the president. Even last night, which was ostensibly supposed to feature the vice president, J.D. Vance, it was the president who came out with center stage at the end, kind of stealing the show in a lot of ways.

And once the festivities were over, it was the president alone on the stage as the balloons were coming down, kind of swaying along to an opera singer, which I think kind of crystallizes his view and his advisers' view that he is the best and in a lot of ways the only motivator for Republicans in what is going to be quite a daunting midterm season for them.

And that pledge that he had the attendees recite I think also crystallized that. He is asking them, I think facetiously, to cheat in the election.

He also said that they would -- quote -- "go to hell" if they didn't vote, really, I think, giving a window into his view that, unless he is at the center of all of this, unless his name is on the ballot, theoretically, then a lot of his supporters just won't go out and vote in this election season.