Return to Transcripts main page

CNN News Central

Actress Selma Blair Hospitalized After Allegedly Injuring Flight Crew; Trump Heads to Ohio as Early Vote Suggests Democrats Enthusiasm; Ohio's 200 Plus Data Centers Become Key Election Issue; Trump Facing Bipartisan Backlash Over U.S.-Russia Diesel Deal; Kelly Clarkson feuding with Brooklyn Store. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired October 12, 2026 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:00]

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: The following breaking news into CNN. Actress Selma Blair has been hospitalized after reportedly injuring members of the crew on a flight from Los Angeles to New York.

ERICA HILL, CNN HOST: Officials say police responded to a call about a physically abusive passenger on board a Delta flight arriving in New York's JFK. That flight coming in from Los Angeles. Delta says law enforcement met the plane upon arrival.

According to dispatch audio obtained by CNN, medical personnel were requested to meet the flight for two crew members who needed medical attention. CNN's Leigh Waldman is tracking this story for us. So, Lee, what more do we know about what happened on board that plane?

LEIGH WALDMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Erica, Boris, good to be with you both. Like you mentioned, police responding after getting that call about an unruly passenger who Port Authority has now identified as actress Selma Blair on a flight Sunday night from LAX to New York City's John F. Kennedy Airport.

We know that two flight attendants have reported injuries. One of them was actually taken to the hospital to be treated for those injuries. At this point, we know that the FBI is investigating this incident, as they do with many incidents like this.

And Delta has released a statement that they do not tolerate unruly behavior from their passengers on flights. But you mentioned that dispatch audio from air traffic control. I can describe to you what we have heard in that audio.

In the audio, it says one flight attendant, one passenger sustained minor injuries, a bloody nose and some bite marks as well. They also described that unruly passenger, who now know has been identified as Miss Blair, that she was hitting her head on the bulkhead seat there on that plane. Now, we've gotten a statement at this point from Blair's representatives.

They said, "Selma experienced a medical emergency that led to the alleged conduct. Upon landing, she received immediate medical attention and is currently in stable condition." We know Blair is living with multiple sclerosis, sharing that in twenty eighteen on her Instagram.

She also shared a video recap of her recent travels, including traveling from Los Angeles to New York City again, posting that on Sunday around the time of this incident aboard that Delta Airlines flight.

SANCHEZ: Leigh Waldman, thank you so much for the update on that breaking news. At any minute now, President Trump is expected to leave the White House en route to Ohio. It's a quick 10 day turnaround to a state he won three times and where Democrats are now hoping to flip key races in the midterms.

The president is trying to energize base voters to turn out for Senator Jon Huston, who's locked in a tight reelection race against Democratic former Senator Sherrod Brown.

[15:35:00]

And gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, is facing Democrat Amy Acton, also facing political headwinds. President Trump's midterm rally this evening is being held in Youngstown, Ohio.

Joining us is former Ohio Democratic Congressman Tim Ryan. His district covered parts of northeastern Ohio, including Youngstown. Tim, thank you so much for being with us. How optimistic are you about Democrats' chances in a state that President Trump won three times in a row when the early data shows us that there is more early voting among Democrats as this point in a cycle than there was just two years ago?

TIM RYAN, FORMER U.S. REPRESENTATIVE (D-OH): Yes, I think we feel pretty good here. There's a lot of backlash to Trump. You know, this was this was a Trump state for sure.

And I think the war in Iran, a lot of folks feel betrayed. The economic piece, you can't underestimate that. Inflation, gas prices, all of those things, they feel betrayed by him and the constant chaos.

And he's not doing what he promised. They were lied to. And so I think that's really opened the door for Sherrod and Amy Acton.

SANCHEZ: So given what we saw just two years ago, that Democrats and independents responded to an economy that wasn't working in most Americans favor in the sense that one of the biggest issues was affordability. How do you think Democrats, now that you say that that door is open, approach it during this cycle when gas prices are much higher than they were just a year ago and affordability remains a lingering concern?

RYAN: Well, you put it right on Trump's lap. I mean, these were all choices that he made. Many, many presidents looked at should we start a war in the Middle East?

Should we go to war with Iran? And they said, no, that would be a terrible idea. He chose this war. This was an elective war that is driving up gas prices. The constant back and forth on tariffs, all of that, which is raising costs for people here in Ohio, especially all the stuff with Canada, where there's a lot of commerce between the northern part of Ohio and really the whole state and Canada, which is driving up costs. So you put this right in Trump's lap.

This is a referendum election on Trump's performance over the last two years. And, you know, save the details for later. And I don't think people really want too many details.

They just want to check on Donald Trump right now.

SANCHEZ: In your state, the AI debate has become a central issue, especially in the Senate race. And Politico is out with new reporting that shows that Sherrod Brown's data center attacks on Jon Husted have actually frustrated some of the building unions that endorse the Democrat. They see data center projects as bringing in jobs, as bringing in opportunity.

How do you think Sherrod Brown can run against these data centers without losing those allies?

RYAN: Very carefully. I think that's how he got his lead against Jon Husted, because Husted, when he was lieutenant governor, he was head of economic development in Ohio. So he was pushing the data centers, providing tax incentives, tax credits, all of the things that needed to be done to land them at the time.

So he clearly has pinned him down on this issue. But, yes, there is a backlash to some of the rank and file union folks, because, you know, there's thousands and thousands and thousands of some of the best paying jobs in Ohio are the building and construction trades here. But Sherrod, I think, fortunately, has a really good labor record, a really good pro-union record.

So, you know, he's been with those workers for a long time, and he would need to tap into some of that credibility to make this particular argument, knowing that once he got to the Senate, he would continue to be a voice for organized labor.

SANCHEZ: I wonder how you see the issue of data centers generally, given that you were recently named to this new bipartisan AI commission focused on the American workforce, especially when you hear someone like Bill Gates warning that in the years ahead, quote, "We need to make a decision as a society, where do we want to make sure that human jobs are preserved?"

RYAN: Yes, I mean, that's the conundrum, and that's the work of the commission. I'll be on with Gina Raimondo and former Speaker Paul Ryan is to talk about how this will impact workers. And we all, all of us, we all freak out when there's this new technology like we did with the Internet.

It's going to erase every single job. But I think, you know, one, you got to make sure these data centers that are being built, that there's actually a race to the top, that they're using union workers, high wage workers, they're recycling the rainwater, they're using clean energy to be able to power it or natural gas. So make these steps and investments in the communities that aren't just transactional around the data center but have an impact in the whole community.

That's the first piece.

[15:40:00]

And the second piece with AI really is what are the benefits? I mean, we're all trying to get smart on this, the opportunity to get us healthy, to help us live like way longer than we're living now, because of what AI is able to do with understanding the genome and understanding what's going on with each of us individually and how we could be treated, what preventative measures we could take. That's huge. How we educate our kids.

AI is showing some significant opportunities to educate our kids in ways that even for poorer communities, if we could get AI into the schools and protect the teachers, that we could really move our workers into a skill level, a reading level, math, the way they are able to teach. There's a great school called the Alpha School that's doing some amazing stuff with AI.

So how do we balance all of this? It's not a black and white issue. It's not a bumper sticker. It's very complicated.

And so we've got to elevate our political discussion in the country so that we can solve this very big problem, put up the guardrails, make sure we're protected, but then tap into the benefits and make sure those benefits make their way to the poorer communities and middle class communities.

It's not just something that can be used by people who have a lot of money in the United States.

SANCHEZ: Former Congressman Tim Ryan, appreciate you sharing your point of view.

RYAN: Thank you. See you, Boris.

SANCHEZ: See you.

Ahead, a new warning from the Trump administration. Could Europe and Ukraine be cut off from U.S. intelligence and weapons purchases? What sources say the Pentagon and State Department are demanding when we come back.

[15:45:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HILL: There are growing questions at this hour about this energy ceasefire announced by President Trump between Russia and Ukraine. Of course, one of the main questions is, what is it? Because neither Moscow nor Kyiv actually confirmed it. Ukraine's president, though, did say he would support a ceasefire, but believes that Russia's actions show Moscow does not.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: Immediately after the pause, Russia launched a targeted strike on a power plant in Kharkiv. It was clear that Putin does not read Truth Social.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: So President Trump is increasingly blaming those record diesel prices we've been talking about on Ukraine's strikes on Russian oil refineries. And sources tell CNN the Trump administration is now warning Ukraine and European allies that the U.S. could actually halt intelligence sharing and sales of U.S. weapons if Kyiv doesn't stop attacking Russian energy facilities.

Joining us now is Steven Pifer, former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine. He's also with the Center for International Security and Cooperation at Stanford University. It's good to have you here. There's a lot to unpack on this Monday in terms of what we've seen over the last couple of days and what the president has said. In addition to the bipartisan backlash to this diesel deal that the president touted, the reality is it doesn't make a meaningful difference for prices in this country because it's a drop of what the U.S. uses.

It does, however, for Russia, suspend sanctions. Zelenskyy has called this a, quote, investment in Russia's war. What do you make of it based on the details that we have?

STEVEN PIFER, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO UKRAINE: No, I think it's a deplorable and wrongheaded decision. First of all, as you said, I mean, the amount of diesel fuel that the United States will receive in October amounts to one half of one day's U.S. consumption. That's not going to have much impact on the price of diesel in the United States.

What we're doing now is we'll be sending American dollars to Moscow. Some of those dollars will go to fund the Russian war machine, so we'll be helping the Russians buy missiles, drones, and bombs to attack Ukrainian cities. But moreover, Mr. Trump has undercut his mediation effort. It's been very clear for months now that while the Ukrainians are prepared to make some substantial concessions and compromises to achieve a settlement, the Russians are not.

In fact, Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman a few weeks back, said the Russian position has not changed since summer of 2024. And instead of increasing pressure on Moscow to negotiate seriously, we now have Mr. Trump easing that pressure. It makes no sense.

HILL: Mr. Trump also saying after President Zelenskyy criticized the diesel deal that Ukraine should, quote, get a new leader who can make a deal, that is something that Russia would like to see. What does this tell you about the potential for any negotiations, given how President Trump seems to feel about President Zelenskyy in this moment? PIFER: Well, if you look at the course of the negotiations again, I think the Ukrainians have indicated they're prepared to make some very painful compromises to reach a settlement or a ceasefire. The Russians are not. The deal that the Russians are demanding is basically Ukraine's capitulation.

And if you look at our mediation effort, I have to say it's almost becoming a farce. You have a chief U.S. mediator who is pro-Russian. He's put forward positions that are pro-Russian.

He's been to Moscow, what, nine times and only to Kyiv once. How do you mediate a solution when you're prepared to talk to only one side? And we've never seen reports that our mediators are pushing the Russians to make changes.

All the pressure seems to be directed at Kyiv. And that's not going to do the deal.

HILL: I was also struck by this reporting. Sources telling CNN, the administration is now warning both Ukraine and European allies that the U.S. could halt intelligence sharing and sales of U.S. weapons if Kyiv does not stop attacking Russian energy facilities. What should allies make of that moment?

[15:50:00]

It may not come as much of a surprise to Ukraine, based on what you just laid out there, but in terms of that threat extending to European allies?

PIFER: Well, no, I think the Ukrainians have had an understanding over the past year and a half that Mr. Trump is not their supporter. And you've seen it when he cut virtually all American assistance to Ukraine from the Biden administration. You've seen it in this mediation effort, which really does not appear to be very serious.

And if you now take further steps, we're basically moving the United States to Russia's side in this war. And I think European countries will be appalled by that. But I also believe that European countries understand, in a way that Mr. Trump does not, that if Russia prevails in Ukraine, Russia becomes a greater threat, not just to Europe, but also to American interests. And so I think Europe will continue to support Ukraine. It just makes the road a little bit tougher for them.

HILL: Steven Pifer, great to have your expertise and your insight this afternoon. Thank you.

PIFER: Thank you.

HILL: Boris.

SANCHEZ: Now to some of the other headlines we're watching this hour. Health officials in Pennsylvania are reporting a sixth measles- associated death in that state. The Franklin County coroner says the 39-year-old woman had several underlying conditions, including a past diagnosis of measles with treatment. Franklin County is about two hours west of Lancaster County, the epicenter of that record-breaking measles outbreak in the Commonwealth. This is now the deadliest year for measles in the U.S. since 1991.

Also, a federal judge says the Trump administration can no longer air those controversial taxpayer-funded ads that promote President Trump's agenda. The judge granted a temporary restraining order after a nonprofit watchdog group challenged the ad buys. In a filing, the government says $19 million in taxpayer money had already been spent. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have expressed concerns.

And a popular and historic tourist spot in Paris has been destroyed. A fire gutting the city's oldest covered food market, which dates back to the year 1615. The fire broke out overnight and is still smoldering hours later. The cause right now is not known.

Coming up, Kelly Clarkson, a Brooklyn store, a fake dancing bird, collision course, the feud over the pretty woman treatment we never saw coming when we come back.

[15:55:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: It's a showdown between a superstar and a small business and apparently a talking bird. Kelly Clarkson went on social media to call out a Brooklyn shop. She says that she had her eye on something at the store.

And if you've seen the film Pretty Woman, you know the scene.

HILL: Yes, big mistake.

SANCHEZ: Big mistake. She goes in. The clerk kind of doesn't treat her well.

She says she got the pretty woman treatment.

HILL: She says she did. The store, though, is pushing back, saying the item Clarkson wanted to buy was not for sale. CNN Entertainment reporter Lisa Respers France joins us now.

This is lighting up the socials, my friend. There is a lot happening online.

LISA RESPERS FRANCE, CNN SENIOR ENTERTAINMENT REPORTER: There is. And I thought my algorithm had failed me, you guys, because when I went on this weekend, I saw Kelly Clarkson's upset because she couldn't buy Molly. And I was like, what?

What is happening? But Molly is actually the name of a bird. It's an automatic bird that sings and dances in this store in Brooklyn called Art of Play.

And Kelly Clarkson went on social media, and she posted that she drove all the way to Brooklyn to, you know, check it out because she said she thought they had some really rad things. And she said, you know, she was given this treatment where she was treated as if she couldn't afford it. And she said, you're an idiot and just lost a huge sale.

But y'all should go check out Art of Play in Brooklyn if you enjoy being treated like Julia Roberts' character in Pretty Woman. So for sure, check it out.

So the store then came back, and they had a response and they were explaining that Molly is not for sale, according to their response, and that, you know, they, you know, were happy to have a conversation with Ms. Clarkson. And they said, "Molly is permanently attached to the wall and isn't for sale. However, the negative experience Kelly described on Twitter would resonate with anyone who has ever felt judged in the shop." They also said, "We're going to keep our heads down and hopefully we can clear things up with Kelly someday. As a talented popular singer once said, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger."

And when I tell you that the Kelly Clarkson fans were not happy with that response, they felt like they really were, you know, being kind of snarky. And, you know, they don't like for people to be snarky to Kelly Clarkson.

Kelly Clarkson is beloved, you guys. So she did not get Molly. She also came back and said, you know, interesting to her that it wasn't for sale because there's a price tag there.

So there's been a lot of back and forth. Right. Because if it's not for sale, the question then becomes, why is there a price tag on it?

Right. So.

SANCHEZ: Well, I'm looking at a post from Art of Play Now. This is from February of last year. And it says that I guess they had to repair the bird.

But apparently -- yes, that's the bird right there. It honestly, I don't think our viewers could see it.

It doesn't really look that special, sorry

HILL: It's very small. It's a tiny little bird.

SANCHEZ: But apparently, it has a sign that says do not touch and it's very expensive. And so I don't know. Was it for sale?

Was it not for sale? Did it have the price tag? These are the important questions.

FRANCE: Watch this space. Right.

FRANCE: Exactly. I mean, $15,000. She could afford it. And again, the fans do not play about Kelly Clarkson.

So they are definitely team Kelly when it comes to this. HILL: Wow. Yes. I mean, I saw some stuff over the weekend where people are standing outside the store.

[16:00:00]

It looked like they were they may -- they were AI generated telling you what showed up in the feed. Not the last we've heard of this.

SANCHEZ: I wonder what Molly thinks of all this. Lisa Respers France, thank you so much for bringing us this report.

And thank you for joining us this afternoon. Erica, great to be with you.

HILL: Great to have you. Maybe tomorrow Molly will be here.

SANCHEZ: We'll find out. "THE ARENA" with Kasie Hunt starts right now.

END