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Trump To Speak At Ohio Rally As Early Vote Shows Dem Gains; As High Fuel Prices Drive Inflation, Fed Considers Another Rate Hike; Federal Agents Search Home Of Dem Rep. Ilhan Omar; Video Shows Moment Saudi Airport Struck In Deadly Houthi Attack; Trump Weighs Joining Fight Against Houthis After Riyadh Airport Attacks. Aired 3-3:30p ET

Aired October 12, 2026 - 15:00   ET

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

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: The President heads there in about an hour from now.

And federal officers executing a search warrant at the home of Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, the Minnesota Democrat calling this an attempt to target political enemies and to weaponize federal law enforcement.

Also, Kelly Clarkson not backing down after the singer accused a Brooklyn store of giving her the "pretty woman treatment."

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

In just 22 days, America decides who controls Congress for the rest of President Trump's second term. And soon, he'll be heading to Ohio, where Republicans are finding themselves in a tight spot right now.

Two years ago, President Trump carried the Buckeye State by nearly 12 points. He's won it each time he's run for president. But new voting data shows Democrats are showing up early this year in a big way. The key number here is that bar right in the middle, showing in counties that Trump won, Democrats are seeing a shift of more than 25 points. CNN's Alayna Treene is live for us at the White House with more on the President's trip today. Alayna?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, look, I think that graphic that you just showed, Boris, is so crucial to really explaining all of the President's travel recently, this frenetic pace that he's really picked up in the lead up to November 3rd. And I think it underscores the enthusiasm gap, really, that Republicans are so worried about. And that's why you're seeing the President spend so much time and energy on this specific strategy of trying to get Republicans to show up to the polls. It's all about turnout, it's consistently what I've been told for weeks now in my conversations, Boris, with members of the President's political operation, convincing voters who don't typically show up on an off-year election to come out and vote for Republicans this time around.

But I do want to specifically get into Ohio, because Ohio is a state, as you mentioned, Trump won it by more than double digits in 2024, one that I think, you know, a couple months ago, Republicans would argue they weren't -- as wouldn't be as worried about. Well, now we're seeing the President visit the state for the second time in just one month.

And really, when you dig into some of, you know, what you're seeing in the current races there, as well as the President's polling, it shows why he's needed and why him stopping there is so important.

If you look at just his specific, the President's approval rating in Ohio, he's underwater there by 28 points. His approval rating is now only at 36 percent. And we're seeing that having the effect of dragging down other Republicans in the state as well, take the Senate race there, the Senator Jon Husted, he is the incumbent in this race.

He is now losing in the polls to the former Senator Sherrod Brown, who lost his seat back in 2024. When you look at that, Sherrod Brown has 49 percent, Jon Husted currently polling at 43 percent.

When you go to the governor's race, the numbers there are even starker. You have Amy Acton. She is the Democrat. She's at 50 percent in the polls with Vivek Ramaswamy now at 42 percent.

And it's not really just Ohio. Yes, I think when you look at the issues, and there's other polls we show as well on the specific policy points that are very important to Ohio voters. You look at whether or not this question of whether Trump policies have increased costs. You have 76 percent of voters in Ohio saying they have. You go on to tariffs. If they're a bad thing for the state, 58 percent saying yes, they are, and 49 percent saying the cost of living and the economy is the key issue.

Those are similar things we're hearing in other states, particularly this idea of high costs and the economy being the key issue that voters care about as they're weighing who they want to vote for in the midterm elections. But again, like I said, it's these other states where that's playing out. And you're seeing the President spend a lot of time in other red states, too, including many states that he won, again, by double digits in 2024.

Just this week, you have the President. Tomorrow, he's going to be in Alaska specifically, Wasilla, Alaska. Tomorrow -- then Wednesday, he's going to be in Arizona, Bullhead City, and then also Flathead County, Montana.

We're also told later this week he's likely to go to Georgia for a visit there, as well as another red state over the weekend.

So, a lot of travel that the President is doing, and again, really making this about him to drive turnout, specifically about -- from his more base supporters, his fiercest supporters. Less so, I'm told, the strategy is kind of done with trying to convince more moderate- leaning, independent-leaning voters to come out to the polls.

And just to give you a sense of the scope of all of this, you know, I was reading an article that said by the end of this week, the President will have hit 11 different states in the span of just two weeks. I think that gives you a sense of just how much they recognize they need to go all out for these midterm elections for Republicans. Boris.

SANCHEZ: Alayna Treene, thank you so much for that update from the White House. Erica?

ERICA HILL, CNN HOST: Well, as the Iran war continues to drive high fuel prices and inflation, officials of the Federal Reserve are now warning of more pain ahead for American consumers. The Central Bank may have to raise interest rates again as part of an effort to curb spending in cool demand.

[15:05:00]

A move that could, though, put more stress, of course, on consumers and businesses as those higher interest rates make borrowing more expensive. Joining me to discuss Rick Newman, he's a business columnist and founder of Pinpoint Press.

Rick, great to have you here this afternoon. So, of course, the Fed raised interest rates by 0.25 percentage points last month, trying to prevent higher energy costs from really spilling over into other parts of the economy. Do you see evidence that's working?

RICK NEWMAN, BUSINESS COLUMNIST & FOUNDER, THE PINPOINT PRESS: Not yet. And we -- there are two different types of interest rates we have to talk about. There's what the Federal Reserve does, which mostly affects banks, but the interest rates that affect consumers and businesses are longer-term rates, and those have been rising by even more.

So, we have got mortgage rates now at 7.4 percent. They were around 6 percent when the Iran war started at the end of February. So, that is a big jump. So, for people who want to buy a home or take out any kind of loan, I mean, it's getting more expensive.

There's usually a six-month lag or so between the Fed taking some kind of action and that actually passing through into the real economy. So, they just raised interest rates for the first time in a while last month. So normally that would not show up until probably the beginning of 2027. And meanwhile, we're going to get another inflation report on Wednesday.

And then, right now, the forecasts are that inflation could go up a couple of tenths of a point. It's 3.4 percent now. We could get it up to 3.5 or 3.6, and that's just going to be a validation of what everybody sees when they fill up their car with gasoline prices around $4.40 a gallon.

HILL: So, earlier today, you had Cleveland's Federal Reserve President Beth Hammack arguing for smaller adjustments, saying that if they were made relatively quickly rather than waiting and risking the need for a larger course correction. As you point out, we're waiting that inflation report. When you look at what's coming down the pike potentially for the Fed's next rate decision at the end of the month, is that the kind of small adjustment you think she is talking about there? Or do you think there -- there could be, you know, other levers that could be pulled here? NEWMAN: I mean, these Federal Reserve policymakers, they parse their words so carefully. It's quite often very hard to tell what the heck they're talking about. You know, so she's -- we're talking about the Fed raising rates, if they do, by one quarter of a percentage point. But markets aren't waiting for that.

The long-term interest rates have been going up anyway. So, markets -- we are seeing shifts in markets without the Fed doing much of anything. My guess is that the Fed is not going to raise interest rates -- rates this month, and that is generally, I think, where markets are. We could call it 50-50. But they -- they -- there's no urgency to -- for them to raise rates. I think they could wait until their next meeting, which I believe will be in December, and then maybe raise rates then.

They can go slowly. I mean, because one of the big questions they're grappling with is, okay, we know energy prices are up because of the Iran war. When is the Iran war going to end? There -- some people think it might simmer down once the midterms are over in early November. So,, if energy prices come down right after that, then the Fed might say, oh, well, inflation is -- is falling, so we don't need to do anything.

So, I think there's a good chance the Fed may not do anything in October. But the markets are going to change and move regardless of the Fed.

HILL: Yes, it is -- it is fascinating, too, when we take all of that into play, right? And especially, you know, as you pointed out, where we were prior to the war with Iran. I was struck by something that you posted the other day, three or four days ago, writing about France, which, of course, is in the middle of a massive debt crisis.

And you noted that there may be some foreshadowing here when it comes to the United States in as short a time frame as three years. These are not necessarily apples to apples comparisons when you look at the French economy and the U.S. economy. So, what do you see there that gives you pause and is maybe a bit of a warning for the U.S.?

NEWMAN: Well, I'm eternally grateful that you asked about the French debt crisis. But what's going on here? And I'll try not to bore everybody, is, you know, investors are losing faith that France is going to be able to pay back all the money it owes. And we know that what's happening in the United States is the debt just keeps getting larger. We run $2 trillion deficits every year. Nobody's doing anything. We're just piling on debt. And it's inevitable that at some point, investors are going to start asking the same questions about the United States.

Now, there are people like Ray Dalio, the billionaire investor who have looked -- looked deeply into this and know more than I do, who say we've got two or three years before we start -- we get to the point where markets start to push U.S. rates up because they have the same sorts of concerns about the United States as they do about France.

So, the message to Washington is clear. Start doing something about the national debt. That's not what seems to be happening.

HILL: I was going to say, do you think anybody's actually going to get that message? But I guess you sort of answered my -- my question there.

NEWMAN: At the very -- what -- at the very last second, that's the way we deal with problems. We wait until we have no other choice.

HILL: Is there even a plan, though, in all seriousness, for that very last second moment, because we have seen this for years, right? It is literally kicking that can down the road.

[15:10:01]

Someone else will deal with it. Someone else will deal with it. And we keep being told that it's going to be the big issue and it's going to change. I mean --

NEWMAN: There are abundant plans for how to deal with this. Every think tank in Washington has 10 or 20. Here's the problem, fixing the -- fixing the -- fixing the debt problem is going to be painful. We're going to have to cut services, we're going to have to cut spending and we're going to have to raise taxes. That's why it doesn't happen is because ...

HILL: Yes.

NEWMAN: ... you -- you know, to be -- to give politicians a small break, it's hard to go to voters and say we're going to raise your taxes and cut your services. Please vote for me.

HILL: Yes.

NEWMAN: Nobody gets elected or reelected if you -- if you tell voters what -- what it's really going to take, which is why it probably is going to take a crisis before it gets through all the way to voters. And they say, okay, we need to take our medicine, now is finally the time.

HILL: Rick, great to have you with us. Thank you.

NEWMAN: Thanks.

HILL: Still ahead here, what we know about the search warrant federal investigators executed at the D.C. home of Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar.

Plus, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Russia is already violating this surprise energy ceasefire announced by President Trump over the weekend.

Also ahead this hour, actress Selma Blair hospitalized after an alleged incident on board a flight. What we now know about that incident and who else may have needed attention.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [15:15:50]

SANCHEZ: Today, Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar is accusing the Trump administration of escalating what she calls a campaign of political intimidation against her after federal agents searched her D.C. area home this morning.

A spokesperson for the Justice Department saying a warrant was executed as part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation. CNN's Katelyn Polantz is closely following this.

So, Katelyn, what more are you learning about why this search took place?

Well, we don't have a full explanation right now. And what we know are the facts of who's involved in this search and how it came to be. The investigating agency here, that is Homeland Security, so that indicates this is immigration-related in some way, related to Representative Ilhan Omar, given that this is her D.C. area home being searched.

We also know that the Justice Department prosecutors would have been involved in getting a search warrant for this, going to a federal judge and getting sign-off from that judge. We also know that top Justice Department leadership were aware of this and would have needed to sign off and did indeed deliberate and then say, okay, let's do this search at this time, given that it's in the middle of a campaign season.

But this is one of those very unusual things that would happen. And as of right now, there would be a search warrant affidavit that the prosecutors would have given to the judge explaining why they needed to go into this home to potentially get evidence, why they wanted to do it potentially now. And the judge would have been able to look through their reasoning and maybe even ask questions. All of that, confidential, under seal. That's not the sort of thing that we're able to see at this point. So, we don't have a full explanation. Also, I should say we don't know exactly what it is because there are no charges ...

SANCHEZ: Right.

POLANTZ: ... filed here. Representative Omar and her office have repeatedly said that she has done nothing wrong and nothing merits some sort of immigration investigation. She's an immigrant herself from Somalia, but came here many, many years ago as a child.

SANCHEZ: Theoretically, if there are charges filed, then we would see from the judge the basis for the decision to okay this search of her home, right?

POLANTZ: Potentially. And, you know, we have sometimes in the past been able to get access to or see that reasoning for a search like this before there are charges filed. There's a whole process that would have to go through there to make that happen. And sometimes if a charge is filed, we see extensive reasoning. Not always, though. It just depends on the situation. This is, though, one of those things right now where Representative Omar is calling this another action among the political intimidation mission of the Trump administration. She is clearly someone the President has wanted to see potentially investigated, but has called a disgrace, had wanted her. He said he -- she should go back home at one point.

So, there's a lot here, not just the fact that there's a search of a sitting member of Congress.

SANCHEZ: Katelyn Polantz, thanks so much for that report.

Still ahead, new video showing the terrifying moment a missile strikes the terminal at one of Saudi Arabia's busiest airports. The details on the strike when we come back.

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[15:23:40]

HILL: Just moments ago, Saudi Arabia says it intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched toward Riyadh earlier today. All of this, of course, coming after a weekend of deadly attacks on Saudi airports, including one airport that was hit twice by incoming missiles.

New video shows the terminal at King Khalid International being hit on Saturday. And I do want to warn you, before we show you that video, it is graphic. In the video, you see people lined up here to board their flight. This is just moments before the strike. And then suddenly, you see there, that is the blast. Part of the ceiling, as you can tell there, collapses, passengers scrambling to safety.

Now, that missile attack by Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen is the deadliest in Saudi Arabia in more than a decade. We have also images of that same blast captured by a different security camera. At least 13 people were killed in the attack. Another person was killed in a second strike on the airport yesterday.

Hundreds more injured in the blast. President Trump says he's actually considering now getting U.S. military forces involved. CNN's Nic Robertson is following the developments for us.

So, in terms of these attacks, what are we hearing from the Saudis and -- and this news of -- of an intercepted missile earlier today?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, and it's not clear if that missile was directed at King Khalid Airport again. If it had, that would have been the fifth attack in six days. And there were a couple of deadly strikes on Wednesday and Thursday last week, as well, leading up to the weekend.

[15:25:07]

The Saudis are getting more proactive, if you will, about issuing warnings about the potential of strikes. They issued a clearance warning about 10 minutes after the warning for people to -- to stay in a safe place, move to shelters, if they could. So, they are -- they do seem to be reacting more proactively. But we're also hearing for -- for staff at the U.S. embassy in Riyadh, they have to get specific permission if they are to go to a Saudi airport. That airport in Riyadh remains closed to the end of the week. The British embassy is issuing similar instructions to British citizens in Saudi Arabia, telling them not to go to any airports unless they absolutely have to.

So, the message is very clear, both for Saudis and international expats living there, that airports are a dangerous place to be. What the Saudis want to project at the moment is stability. They need international investment. They have a huge international investment conference in a couple of weeks' time, known as the sort of Davos in the desert.

And we heard from the energy minister today saying that no attacks are going to beat the Saudis down. And this is how he framed it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRINCE ABDULAZIZ BIN SALMAN, SAUDI ENERGY MINISTER: We value our commitment. We make sure that whatever happens, our resilience, our plans, our commitment to the world will be adhered to. There is no way that somebody will break our back. We are like a phoenix. We come out of the ashes all the time and every time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTSON: And they'll be hoping there'll be no more ashes to come out of, of course, and they're projecting that image of stability there. But what they also need to project, particularly if they want to defeat the Houthis, is strength. And that's something that we -- the Saudis, are doing right now through airstrikes in Yemen on Houthi positions, trying to take out the missile launchers, the ammunition stores for all those missiles.

The hard reality as we saw in Iran earlier this year airstrikes alone are going to have a hard time stopping all those attacks. So really the -- the position of the Saudis now is, what do they do about this Houthi threat other than just shoot down the missiles and miss some as they come?

HILL: Yes, an important question to be answered. Nic, really appreciate it. Thank you.

Still ahead here, President Trump set to rally in Ohio. Just as early voting data in the state shows enthusiasm among Democrats there is growing.

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