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Cook Political Report Moves 18 House Races Towards Dems; Ossoff, Collins Face Off In First Georgia Senate Debate; Trump Says He's Not Attacking Iran Before Election Day; Pentagon's Plan To Livestream Execution Draws Bipartisan Criticism; Legendary Bears Head Coach, Mike Ditka Has Passed Away At The Age Of 86. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired October 09, 2026 - 13:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:30:28]

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CO-ANCHOR OF "CNN NEWS CENTRAL": A new warning sign for Republicans ahead of the midterm elections. Today, the closely watched Cook Political Report is moving 18 more House races in Democrats' favor. That includes several contests that were previously considered toss-ups, but now lean toward the Democrats.

Despite trends moving their way, there are questions in the party about the midterm strategy. Some want to play it safe and devote the party's limited resources to districts that are seen as less of a gamble, while others are pushing to go after districts where Trump won big that now appear to be in play. CNN's Annie Grayer joins us with her new reporting.

Annie, what are you learning?

ANNIE GRAYER, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: So Boris, Democrats are seeing these same trends that we're all seeing that this is an environment that is looking increasingly favorable for Democrats. And now, there's a group of Democrats, the Democratic Party really wants to try and drive up the margins as much as possible. And they think that strategy means going deep into deep Republican territory.

So for example, this week on Monday, when the DCCC, the Democrat campaign arm, put out their list of new races that they were going to target, it included races where Trump had won those districts by 20 points or more in some cases. And so, that list set off some alarm bells to lawmakers and some sources I was talking to, who felt like the party's resources will be better spent focusing on races that Trump only carried by 10 points or fewer.

That with the limited resources that the party has between now and election day, knowing that Republicans have such a big war chest, President Trump has his own $400 million war chest to add on top of that, that focusing the limited resources they have into more realistic seats would be a better play call. So that's the discussion that's going on behind the scenes right now in these final weeks, how to divide the limited resources that are left. Of course, those who are trying to drive up the margins here are trying to not just win the House, but Democrats are trying to create the biggest governing majority that they can so they have more of a margin, because as we've seen in this very near Republican majority that Republicans currently have, having only two or so votes to play with makes a really big difference about the kind of legislation you can put on the floor, the kind of strategy that you can have. So --

SANCHEZ: The speaker you elect, potentially. Yeah.

GRAYER: Exactly. So all of those things are part of the conversation here. But that is the divide right now of, with the momentum Democrats are feeling is sort of like at their back, how much to take advantage of it and do they have the resources really to do that?

SANCHEZ: Annie Grayer, thank you so much for that reporting.

One race Democrats feel increasingly confident they can win, the critical Senate seat the party holds in Georgia. Polls show incumbent Senator Jon Ossoff with a lead over Republican challenger, Congressman Mike Collins. The two nominees faced off for their first debate last night with Ossoff repeatedly hitting Collins over accusations that he has ties to white nationalists.

Collins' son-in-law, David Alan Scheer II, is a pro-white nationalist, a social media influencer with a track record of sharing anti-Semitic material and Nazi imagery and comments across the Internet. Watch this moment from last night's debate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICK FOLBAUM, GEORGIA SENATE DEBATE MODERATOR: What specifically have you said to your daughter and son-in-law about his posts? And will you once and for all denounce white supremacy? You have 60 seconds.

MIKE COLLINS, (R) GEORGIA SENATE CANDIDATE: You know, Rick, that's my family. That's the craziness that Jon Ossoff has been spewing out there. I actually had a crazy person get put in jail this weekend because he not only wanted to kill my son-in-law, but he wanted to kill me.

And you're exactly right. I've got a daughter and grandkids there, as well as my wife. I've condemned racism, anti-Semitism, hate. I don't care where the source is. And I tell him that, too. It's wrong. We have no, no place in this world for that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Let's discuss with Georgia Republican Congressman, Buddy Carter. We should point out, he ran against Collins in the GOP Senate primary.

Congressman Carter, thank you so much for sharing part of your afternoon with us. You heard there the moderator asked Mike Collins what he specifically told his daughter and son-in-law, whether he would denounce white supremacy. I wonder if you're satisfied with his answer and whether you think his son-in-law's track record is a liability in this race.

REP. BUDDY CARTER, (R-GA): Look, anti-Semitism and discrimination have no place at all in our society and in either party. This is an issue that should not be attributed to either party, and we should not accept it. Now, look, this is a family issue with the candidate. He needs to take care of it with his own family.

[13:35:00]

But he needs to be judged on his comments and on his actions, not on the comments or the actions of a family member or of a staff member, but his individually and what he believes.

SANCHEZ: Well, the two have blended in a way because his son-in-law appears on Collins' campaign website. He was there at the primary victory party and according to CNN's K-File, he's registered to vote at a house that Collins owns.

Shouldn't he cut him out of the campaign and address this further?

CARTER: Well, look, that's up to the individual candidate, to handle the family matters the way that they are going to handle it. But you have to judge the candidate by his actions, by their own actions, not by the actions of the family member, even if he lives in the same house or whatever, but by the candidate themselves. That's the one who is going to be legislating.

That's the one who is going to be serving and that's the one who we're concerned about.

SANCHEZ: So part of last night's debate centered on the economy as well, the impact of President Trump's tariffs. Collins made the argument that these tariffs are making markets more fair. Senator Ossoff's response was go buy groceries, essentially saying just look at the price of everyday things and judge for yourself.

Do you think your constituents are finding products more affordable now because of tariffs?

CARTER: Well, tariffs are part of the issue, but we all know that petroleum and the price of gas has a lot to do with the rising prices as well. And certainly what has happened in Iran, the conflict that the president is trying to bring to an end and will bring to an end soon, that has had an impact on the prices of not only gas, but also on groceries.

You have to get them there, fertilizer, all the things that petroleum goes into. And that's what we need to keep in mind. Prices are going to go down again. They're going to go down as soon as we have this issue in Iran handled and it should be handled soon.

Look, I applaud the president for doing this. As a grandfather, as a father, I don't want my children living in a world where Iran has a nuclear bomb or where they have ballistic missiles that can reach our homeland. So we need to put an end to this.

The only way we're going to get any stability in the Middle East is to take care of the leading state sponsor of terrorism and that is Iran.

SANCHEZ: Just a few weeks ago, you and I went over some of the arguments, even from the intelligence community, that dispute the idea that there was an imminent threat from Iran. I do want to get your thoughts on President Trump last night announcing that he would not launch new attacks on that country before the midterm elections.

If the goal is to get Iran to the negotiating table, to get them to concede on not only reopening the Strait of Hormuz fully for the traffic of energy and other goods, but also to give up this nuclear program altogether, doesn't the president giving them a free pass for four weeks make that harder?

CARTER: Well, let's keep in mind that there are economic issues at play here too. Iran's economy is in shambles. I mean, inflation is out of control and not only has their military been decimated, but their economy has been decimated. They are on the brink of failing. There's no question about that and I think the president understands that.

Look, the president has tried the carrot, he's tried the stick, and he's going to use both of them in order to achieve his ultimate goal and that is to get Iran under control.

SANCHEZ: I want to get your thoughts on the Pentagon announcing that they're going to livestream the execution of Nidal Hasan, who was convicted of murdering 13 people at Fort Hood about 12 years ago. Your fellow Georgia Congressman, Austin Scott is warning the Pentagon against this, saying, quote, "I absolutely support the sentence of death, but livestreaming executions is what jihadists do. America is better than that."

Do you support the plan to livestream this execution?

CARTER: Look, I agree with Austin and with the death penalty. This person does deserve the death penalty. There's no question about that. Whether or not it should be livestreamed, that's another issue altogether. But we need to make sure that people understand that we take this very seriously and we're not going to tolerate this here in America.

And setting an example is very important, but for it to be livestreamed, I would agree. I'm not sure that that's not past the tipping point here. But at the same time, I agree with the verdict. I agree that the life sentence and the death penalty is appropriate here.

SANCHEZ: Past the tipping point because you think jihadist groups might make him a martyr and use it to further their cause? What puts it past the tipping point?

CARTER: Well, you know, I do think it is America, and I'm not sure that that is the type of thing we should be livestreaming. And I'm not sure that I agree with that. But certainly, I feel like the Department of War has an idea of what they're doing.

[13:40:00] But I just think that that may be going a little bit too far.

SANCHEZ: Understood. And Congressman, before we go, what is your reaction to this Wall Street Journal reporting that Kimberly Guilfoyle, the Ambassador to Greece, was messaging a one-time Trump donor asking for $100,000 to pay off an American Express bill? This was apparently just days ahead of her confirmation hearing.

CARTER: Well, certainly the administration will take care of this, and they'll handle this issue. First of all, I'd like to know who that donor was. I'd like to get in touch with him.

(LAUGH)

CARTER: But nevertheless, at the same time -- at the same time, obviously, this is inappropriate. And obviously, this deserves to be addressed.

SANCHEZ: Just so you know, Congressman, he's appeared, I believe, a couple times on CNN. We will be more than happy to send you a link to those interviews. Not sure you should do business with him, but that's not for me to decide.

CARTER: Yeah.

SANCHEZ: Congressman Buddy Carter, appreciate the conversation.

CARTER: OK, thank you.

SANCHEZ: Of course. Still to come, much more on the Pentagon saying it will livestream the military's first firing squad execution in decades, the story we were just discussing with the congressman. We have new reaction to the decision from Vice President, J.D. Vance, when we come back.

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[13:45:45]

SANCHEZ: Defense Secretary, Pete Hegseth says the first firing squad execution in decades will be livestreamed, allowing the public to watch. Former U.S. Army Major and Psychiatrist, Nidal Hasan was convicted of killing 13 people and wounding 32 others at Fort Hood Army Base in Texas in 2009.

The execution by firing squad would be the first of its kind carried out by the U.S. Army since World War II. Hegseth's pledge is drawing criticism from Republicans and Democrats. Here's Connecticut Senator, Chris Murphy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHRIS MURPHY, (D-CT): I mean, that's disgusting. What is he, mimicking ISIS executions? I mean, I understand that in this country, we have the death penalty, but public executions is medieval.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Just moments ago, Vice President, J.D. Vance was asked about the execution and the livestream.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

J.D. VANCE, (R) VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Well, first of all, I've seen his announcements. I don't know that that's actually going to happen. Let's sort of see what -- I think is going to happen in December when he's executed.

But what I try to remind people is, look, this is a guy who committed, in my view, the worst terrorist attack on American soil outside of 9/11. The people that he was meant to treat, the Army soldiers that he was meant to treat for mental illness and other problems, he took them at their most vulnerable and gunned down these people where they live.

So whatever the controversy is about the method of the execution, I hope that people don't forget that this is a guy who brutally murdered a lot of innocent people.

Now, that said, I mean, look, if it's all fully livestreamed, I'm not going to be watching it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Joining us now to discuss is public interest attorney, Bryan Stevenson. He's the Founder and Executive Director of the Equal Justice Initiative.

Bryan, thank you so much for being with us. What is your reaction to this plan from the Pentagon?

BRYAN STEVENSON, FOUNDER & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, EQUAL JUSTICE INITIATIVE: Well, I think it's appalling and I think it's really misguided. The United States military has not executed anyone in 65 years. The last time we had a public execution was in the 1930s, when mobs were still going to jails and pulling people out of the jail, and mostly black people were being brutalized and tortured in public lynchings.

I think the kind of -- public executions are what you do when you don't have power, when you're insecure about your status. That's why Al-Qaeda and ISIS would engage in these kinds of acts. The United States government should never give in to that kind of spectacle violence. And at a time when states are passing laws to try to shield young people and vulnerable parts of our population from violence and inappropriate things, for the United States government to then livestream an act of public violence, shooting someone to death, it just undermines everything we're trying to do in this country to create a healthier environment for our citizens.

SANCHEZ: How would you address the argument that executing him this way sends a message to others who may be eager to carry out killing in the name of jihad? STEVENSON: I think it's a very flawed argument. This man committed this crime because he wanted to draw attention to himself and to what he believed was the wrongfulness of the American government. He didn't commit this crime because he had a particular gripe against an individual, it was a crime seeking martyrdom.

And so when you wheel him out on a livestream, he's paralyzed from the chest down, he'll be in a wheelchair, and the powerful American government stands up with guns to kill this person who is unarmed. What you do is you glorify him and you demean our government, you demean our legal system.

It just makes him more memorable, it makes him more significant. People will remember his name in ways that they wouldn't but for this kind of gesture. A lot of the people I've represented would actually tell you that they would prefer execution or life imprisonment without parole. If this man spent decades in prison and died in prison because of his -- to be accountable for his crime, he would not attract the kind of attention that an execution would and certainly that a public execution would.

So if we're trying to deter jihadist violence, we're trying to not allow people to make martyrs in this way, this is the worst thing we could possibly do.

[13:50:00]

SANCHEZ: In terms of the question of executing him in general, what would you say to the idea that American taxpayers would essentially be funding his existence after he committed such a horrible act? So is it such a problem that someone, where there's no doubt that he committed this crime, a horrendous act, that he should be executed?

STEVENSON: Well, there's no question that if someone who committed a crime like this should be held accountable. But I don't think the United States can credibly say we have to execute people because we don't have the tax base necessary to imprison them for life. And in fact, what the studies show is that it costs so much more to execute someone than it does to imprison them for the rest of their life.

And so if we're going to think about cost, there's no question that we should get out of the business of executing people. This misguided logic of killing people to show that killing is wrong. But beyond that, I do think we owe the victims of this terrible crime a lot.

We owe them psychological support, economic support, emotional support. We owe them everything we can provide, but we don't have to provide blood for blood. I don't think that's something we have the ability to give.

And I really do think, particularly hearing the way the government is talking about this, that we have to think about the death penalty differently. I don't think the threshold question of the death penalty is whether people deserve to die for the crimes they've committed. The question we have to ask is whether we deserve to kill when we have a system that has been so flawed. Hasan's case has not been reviewed in collateral courts. He hasn't even been through habeas corpus. If he chooses to do that, there won't be an execution in December. But a lot of people manipulate this process for precisely the reasons that this crime was committed, in my view, to kind of make martyrs of themselves, to draw attention to some cause that goes beyond the crime itself. I don't think we should accommodate that. I don't think we have to accommodate that.

We have a very, very severe punishment system that is capable of holding people accountable without executions and certainly without spectacle executions that we're talking about in the case of Hasan.

SANCHEZ: Bryan Stevenson, fascinating to hear your perspective. Thanks so much for joining us.

STEVENSON: My pleasure.

SANCHEZ: At any minute, we're going to receive an update from the National Hurricane Center on Hurricane Isaias, now expected to be a Category 3 storm at landfall. These are live pictures from Gulf Shores, Alabama, where we are following the latest. Don't go anywhere. We'll be right back.

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[13:57:18]

SANCHEZ: The football world today is mourning the loss of an icon. Legendary Bears head coach, Mike Ditka has passed away at the age of 86. Nicknamed "Iron Mike," as a player, Ditka helped revolutionize the tight end position and then moved to the sidelines and ultimately became Chicago's head coach, winning the 1985 Super Bowl. After retiring from coaching, Ditka took his talents to television, becoming an unforgettable commentator and pitch man.

Here's CNN's Andy Scholes with more on Ditka's life and legacy.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARACK OBAMA, (D) FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Some of you may remember that back in 2004, when I was running for the Senate, some people were trying to draft Ditka to run against me.

(LAUGH)

OBAMA: I will admit I was a little worried because he doesn't lose. Coach, I'm glad you didn't run because I have to say I probably would have been terrible on ESPN.

(LAUGH)

(APPLAUSE)

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR (voice-over): One of football's original tough guys, Mike Ditka built a career few people can match. A legendary football player and coach turned broadcaster who was known for his fiery temper.

MIKE DITKA, FORMER FOOTBALL PLAYER AND COACH: See that? That's your IQ, buddy. Zero.

SCHOLES (voice-over): And Ditka was one of the few to win Super Bowl rings as a player, assistant coach and head coach. Nicknamed "Iron Mike," Ditka was drafted by the Chicago Bears in 1961. The tight end would play five seasons with Chicago and briefly with the Philadelphia Eagles, before helping the Dallas Cowboys win their first Super Bowl title.

Ditka retired as an NFL player in 1973 and returned to the Bears as head coach in 1982, ultimately guiding the team to six conference title games and a victory in Super Bowl '20.

DITKA: What you do in life by yourself means nothing, but what you do with a group of people like this, it's something you cherish forever.

SCHOLES (voice-over): After leaving the Bears, Ditka tried to recapture the magic in 1997 with a new team, the New Orleans Saints.

DITKA: We're going to win the Super Bowl.

(CROWD CHEERING)

DITKA: Get him out of there.

SCHOLES (voice-over): While he coached with the same intensity, a questionable blockbuster trade for Heisman Trophy winner, Ricky Williams, in 1999 and three straight losing seasons, ultimately, sealed his fate in the Crescent City.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Will you coach again?

DITKA: No, never.

SCHOLES (voice-over): Ditka successfully made the transition from the sidelines to the television studio as a football analyst. The coach's outspoken personality made him popular beyond the sports world, thanks to "Saturday Night Live" skits.

DITKA: Live from New York, it's Saturday night.

(APPLAUSE)

(CROWD CHEERING)

SCHOLES (voice-over): Ditka also appeared on late night talk shows, as well as cameos on T.V. and film.

DITKA: Hey, shut up you little rat.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're just showing their appreciation.

DITKA: Hey, forget the appreciation. I want to win a soccer game.

SCHOLES (voice-over): Always the competitor, football was more than a game for Mike Ditka. It was his lifeblood.

DITKA: Football doesn't owe me a thing.