Return to Transcripts main page

CNN News Central

Columbia Doctors Use Red-Light Therapy to Help Embryos Develop; Trump Kicks Off Seven-State, Seven-Day Campaign Blitz in Kansas; Toss- Ups in Key Senate Races With 15 Days to Elections; Holmes Documentary Draws Sold-Out Crowds; U.S. Citizen Injured in California ICE Incident; A Scramble to Secure Art Inside Kennedy Center. Aired 2- 2:30p ET

Aired October 19, 2026 - 14:00   ET

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

[14:00:00]

HOWARD (voice-over): During IVF, only about half of fertilized eggs develop enough to be transferred into a uterus. But Kleo's fertility specialist says the new technology gives hope of possibly increasing the odds.

DR. SINEM KARIPCIN, FERTILITY DOCTOR, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY FERTILITY CENTER: It gives the hope from one egg retrieval, we could have more healthy embryos. I'm very encouraged by these really good outcomes that I see.

HOWARD (voice-over): HELIOS is still in its trial phase and for now, it's only available at Columbia.

WILLIAMS: The goal is ultimately, after we can show success here, that it could be available to patients everywhere.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: Our thanks to Jacqueline Howard for that report and a new hour of "CNN News Central" starts right now.

Voters in the Lone Star State head to the polls as early voting begins in Texas. But a pivotal group that powered Republicans to victory two years ago could derail their plans to keep Congress under GOP control this year.

And Kennedy Center donors on edge, worried about the preservation of art at the Performing Arts Center. One donor saying of one piece, quote, "I want to get that sculpture out of there."

And stock options for all, SpaceX CEO, Elon Musk says he wants to give one share of the company to every kid in America. But the proposal is thin on details. We're following these major developing stories and many more, all coming in right here to "CNN News Central."

SANCHEZ: Seven states in seven days, President Trump putting the pedal to the metal in his midterm push, starting off with a rally tonight in Kansas. With just 15 days to election day, the president's latest travel blitz will soon be taking him to several states where key toss-up races could decide which party controls Congress for the rest of his second term.

Today, the polls in eight more states are open for early voting, including Texas and Florida where some Republicans are finding themselves locked in competitive races. CNN's Carolina Peguero is live with voters in Doral.

But first, let's go to Texas with Ed Lavandera. Some polling sites are already seeing long lines there. Ed.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, we have seen some great deal of enthusiasm. We are in the northern suburb of Dallas, at a Ken Paxton event. He is on a 30-plus city tour, bus tour leading up to Election Day. We're in the town of Allen, Texas. And this is crucial, Boris, because this is Ken Paxton's backyard.

This is where he's from and this is where there's a great deal of concern for Republicans among suburban voters about where are they going to go in this election? So Ken Paxton spending a great deal of time. He's got an event here today in the Dallas suburbs, heading over to Fort Worth, Texas later this afternoon. And (inaudible) sample of what we've heard from voters here this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT JACOBS, VOTED FOR KEN PAXTON: I voted for Ken Paxton. I think he's done well with the A.G.'s office. I think he did well in legislature.

JESSICA HYNDMAN, VOTED FOR JAMES TALARICO: I'm tired of the way that Texas has been handled by the people in charge and I'm ready for a change.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAVANDERA: So, really kind of amazed just how long the lines were at that one polling location that we were at. The great deal of intensity that lasted throughout the morning. You know, of course, many of the voters still wrapping their head around this idea that possibly Texas is legitimately a battleground state. Ken Paxton used those words a few weeks ago at an event in El Paso where he described Texas as a battleground and Republicans are worried.

They are pumping in tens of millions of dollars, well over $100 million in these closing weeks of the campaign to support Ken Paxton. Obviously, a great deal of concern with the Democratic challenger, James Talarico, who is continuing to mount a great deal of support as well.

There are a number of polls out that show Talarico leading Paxton in this race. That's why you've seen President Trump here several times over the last few weeks. Ken Paxton just said that he's going to be campaigning with Bobby Kennedy later this afternoon in Texas as well. So I've spoken with a number of Republican advisers and consultants here over the last few days as well, who've told us that Republicans are legitimately nervous about what is unfolding here in Texas this cycle (ph). SANCHEZ: Ed Lavandera, thank you so much for that. Let's go to Doral, Florida now with Carolina Peguero. Carolina, what are you seeing there?

CAROLINA PEGUERO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Boris, well, since early morning, we can even hear some people just already getting to file in here to the Miami-Dade County's election voting center, one of the main ones here in the county. We spoke to voters about several topics: Economy, affordability, high gas prices. And they also shared what their thoughts are on the current administration.

Now, I want to talk to you about those districts that are very important here in South Florida. And I'm talking about District 27 where incumbent Republican Congresswoman, Maria Elvira Salazar is running against Democrat and former news anchor, Eliot Rodriguez. We've spoken to him last week and of course, we're hearing now from voters and the governor's race of Republican Byron Donalds heading up against Phil -- heading up against a David Jolly which, of course, is getting a lot of voters also to talk about their run.

[14:05:00]

And something that's very important here in Miami-Dade County is that there's over a million voters that are registered, and of those 1.2 million, according to the Miami-Dade Board of Elections, 61.8 percent are Hispanic voters, which could have a huge impact in this midterm election. I want you to listen in to what some of the voters shared with us earlier today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VICTOR CRUZ, FLORIDA VOTER: Important to be here is be able to vote and let our politicians know that we have the voice. They hold the office because we're standing there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PEGUERO: And early voting, of course, starts today, but it will be until the 1st of November, where people can drop off their ballots or come in, in person, to vote.

And then, of course, we'll be covering everything heading up to November 3rd on the day of elections. Boris?

SANCHEZ: Carolina Peguero, live in Doral, thank you so much. Brianna?

KEILAR: I'm joined now by Dave Wasserman, Senior Editor and Elections Analyst for Cook Political Report. All right, Dave, so what are you looking for as early voting kicks off in Texas?

DAVE WASSERMAN, SENIOR EDITOR & ELECTIONS ANALYST, COOK POLITICAL REPORT: Brianna, Democratic enthusiasm is extremely high. And don't pay too much attention or read into some of the earliest numbers that we see out of these counties, because we don't know who voters are voting for, and we don't know what the makeup of the electorate is going to be in full until the polls close on November 3rd. But this is like the equivalent of a hot new Apple product going on sale. And 70 percent of Democrats, according to our Battleground District Survey, rate their election interest as a 10 out of 10, compared to just 58 percent of Republicans. And when you look at the individual dynamics going on in Texas, there are three things that need to happen for Talarico to be able to pull this off and make the math work.

He needs big defections from Cornyn supporters and white-collar Republicans in suburbs and places like Tarrant County. He needs big reversion to Democrats among Hispanic voters in South Texas, particularly the Rio Grande Valley, and then low Republican turnout in the rural areas of Texas. And we can see how those things are taking shape this year, to the point where he might be the narrow favorite right now.

KEILAR: Yeah, it's kind of stunning. On Friday, Cook shifted 11 more House races in Democrats' favor. That includes races in Ohio, South Carolina, Kansas, and Nebraska, all of course traditional Republican strongholds. What's driving those shifts?

WASSERMAN: This is the back-to-the-future election in some ways, because the places that shifted the most to Donald Trump over the last 10 years, whether it's Ohio, Iowa, South Texas, South Florida, they're also the places with the biggest potential for swings towards Democrats. And we're noticing acute problems for Republicans in some of these open seats, because Republicans with established brands, independent and distinct from Donald Trump's brand, many of them are still in the game.

But in these races where voters don't know the candidates well, Trump's low approvals are dragging down Republicans even more. So in New York 21 or Kentucky 6, or some of these races in open seats like North Carolina 11, these are acute Republican problems where the seat count for Democrats could go really high on election night.

KEILAR: And Cook analyst, Erin Covey writes some districts that voted for Barack Obama before swinging toward Republicans are now looking much more competitive this time around, sort of a back-and-forth effect we're seeing here. What's going on?

WASSERMAN: Well, in many of these districts that Trump carried by 10 or 15, even 20 points in 2024, voters didn't hire him because they were in love with him necessarily, but because they viewed him as the better candidate to rein in inflation. They were nostalgic for what things cost during his first term.

And now, they give him low marks on all three of his campaign promises to extract America from foreign conflicts, usher in an economic golden age, and not make major changes to entitlement programs, including Medicaid. And so they were with Trump on borrowed time. Didn't mean they were realigned into the Republican coalition.

Now we're seeing them swing back to Democrats. The question is by how much? Because there are still about 5 percent to 7 percent of voters who are not firmly committed to their vote choice with less than three weeks to go.

KEILAR: Dave, of course, the House is always, right -- it was always going to be the easier lift here for Democrats.

[14:10:00]

And I think once we started talking about the midterms and the Senate, like very much at the beginning of it, it was, oh, it's going to be really tough for the Democrats to switch the Senate up. But that possibility is just becoming more and more real, right, for them at this point in time. What are you seeing in terms of their chances at that? Why has that become so much more of a possibility?

WASSERMAN: Well, Democrats have always needed to pick up four Republican seats and defend all their own seats. And Michigan is the most tenuous of Democrats' defense states, but it's still looking like el-Sayed is ahead.

North Carolina's in the bag for Democrats. Republicans have pulled out. And then, Alaska and Ohio look like their next best opportunities. The races that are really the closest right now are Texas and Maine. Those are the bubble states that, in my view, will determine Senate control, followed by Iowa and then Kansas and then Nebraska as the real long shot.

But it's easy to see how, if this becomes a huge night for Democrats, they could end up with 54 Senate seats. If this is a polling error and Republicans come out to a stronger extent than we think, Democrats could be left with 48 or 49. The median outcome, in my estimation, is 51 Democrats and 49 Republican seats, in which case, John Fetterman of Pennsylvania would be the big wildcard.

KEILAR: Yeah, we'll be looking for that. Dave, I can't believe it's just a couple weeks to go here. Thanks so much for chatting with us.

WASSERMAN: Thanks, Brianna.

KEILAR: Still to come, a controversial new ICE altercation. Police say a man called to report suspicious unmarked vehicles in California, but ended up injured and detained by federal agents.

Plus, Republicans could face pushback from Latino voters over immigration policies. Ahead, what it could mean for the midterms.

And then later, sold out screenings, rave reviews, and more than $15 million at the box office. Why audiences are flocking to the new Elizabeth Holmes documentary, "You Can See Everything." We have that and much more coming up on "CNN News Central."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:16:50]

SANCHEZ: There's now more fallout from another controversial ICE incident, the latest one happening over the weekend in California. The mayor of Long Beach says a former city employee named Ricardo Gonzalez was among several people who called 9-1-1 to report suspicious unmarked vehicles. When police arrived at the scene, they found Gonzalez handcuffed and bleeding while being detained by ICE agents.

CNN Correspondent, Leigh Waldman joins us now. Leigh, what are you learning about this incident?

LEIGH WALDMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Boris, we're still waiting for details about what actually led up to this interaction between Ricardo Gonzalez and those ICE agents. But you showed that video. Let's actually take a listen to that video. What he was asking of the people who were taking video of this interaction with himself and with ICE agents.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICARDO GONZALEZ, CONFRONTED ICE IN CALIFORNIA: It's broken. What the [expletive]? Help me. Help me. My arm is broken.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALDMAN: You hear him. Help me. Help me. My arm is broken. You see those federal agents on top of him, his handcuffs, his arms placed behind his back asking people there who are watching for help.

We know that Gonzalez, according to Long Beach Police, actually called 9-1-1 because of unmarked vehicles in the area and a crowd gathering there. When Long Beach Police arrived after also being called by those ICE agents because of a disturbance and vehicle vandalizing, they said that they found a man who was bleeding and handcuffed, needing medical assistance on the ground there.

We know, following this video, he was taken to a local fire station where those cuffs were removed and then he was taken to a hospital for medical treatment for that broken arm. We're hearing from witnesses in the area who say that they saw him being tazered by those federal agents, but no one can seem to point out exactly what led up to this interaction at this point.

Obviously, this is causing huge fallout in the Long Beach area. We have a statement from Representative Robert Garcia, who is the former mayor of Long Beach. He posted on X and in that statement, he says that Long Beach wants to abolish ICE. ICE is not welcome there. But he also mentioned he is proud of the neighbors who documented and stood up for the family being terrorized by ICE.

Obviously, this is receiving some pushback from the U.S. attorney for Central California. Also posting a statement on X where he mentions that Garcia is a sitting member of Congress encouraging people to obstruct immigration agents enforcing laws enacted by Congress. Shame on you. He also stood with ICE in that statement.

We're hearing from Gonzalez's family. His daughter creating a GoFundMe to help with those medical costs that he's now enduring, saying that her father is a U.S. citizen. So Boris, we're working to get more information. There's a press conference happening right now with Representative Garcia. I'll listen in to that and bring more information.

SANCHEZ: Leigh Waldman, thank you so much for the update in that story.

[14:20:00]

Still to come, a CNN Investigation. Donors fear priceless artwork inside the Kennedy Center could be at risk during renovations. We'll look at the scramble to protect some historic treasures.

Plus, Barack Obama calling the Trump administration's investigation into Representative Ilhan Omar appalling. Ahead, his warning that the government is being used to intimidate a political critic. That and much more coming your way on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:25:00]

KEILAR: Now to a CNN Exclusive about the Kennedy Center. As the court fight progresses over whether its doors will stay open, donors fear what's behind the doors may also be at risk. They're worried about whether hundreds of precious works of art and artifacts will survive as President Trump seeks to renovate the center.

Questions now mounting over how those pieces are being protected and stored. The Center houses irreplaceable sculptures, tapestries, and much more gifted by foreign countries or benefactors like this. It's a 3,200-bulb crystal chandelier from Austria.

CNN's Sunlen Serfaty is with us now on these exclusive details. All right. What did you hear from donors and families, Sunlen?

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Brianna, they are very concerned. I think this really speaks volumes about how they perceive the status of the Kennedy Center, the actual building, that they're questioning the very safety of these irreplaceable pieces of artwork inside.

You went over a few of them, but this building really houses hundreds upon hundreds of artwork, some donated, some gifted in honor of JFK's assassination. In essence, why this building was started in the first place, and there's tapestries, there's chandeliers. There's two carved double doors from a 700-year-old tree in Nigeria.

These are priceless pieces of art, including the JFK bus, which is that iconic imagery that we all know from the grand foyer, where it's eight-feet tall, 3,000 pounds, made of bronze. It was installed and commissioned by the Kennedy family itself, so these are priceless pieces of art.

And these donors and families, they're worried given the fears that President Trump has put in their brains that he could potentially demolish the building. They're wondering what their artwork -- what will be done during the renovation, potentially the long-term future of the building, and they're reaching out directly to the Kennedy Center asking very specific questions, saying, what's the plan short- term for the art when this renovation happens, and what's the plan long-term as well? One person telling me, I want to get that sculpture out of there.

KEILAR: OK, so what's the Kennedy Center saying?

SERFATY: Well, the Kennedy Center is saying that they're working with the families, with the donors, and they say that the artwork will be fully safeguarded during the two-year renovation. They do say that some pieces will be temporarily relocated and stored and wrapped. We know that the iconic bust of JFK, it likely will be put over a tarp and protected by some barrier of some sort.

They say they want to make sure that everything is protected and safe. They say that we remain in regular contact with the foundations and entities who have donated art to the Center, that's according to a Kennedy Center spokesperson. But the fate of many of these objects, will they return to the center after this renovation, is still a big question mark, and these families, donors, want to know what their future is for those priceless pieces.

KEILAR: Yeah. Sunlen, great reporting. Thank you so much.

Police in Wichita, Kansas say the driver who hit multiple people during a youth soccer game was released from custody without being charged, pending the results of a toxicology test and an inspection of her vehicle.

A six-year-old boy and a 35-year-old man were killed after that truck sped onto the field Saturday. Ten other people were hurt, including five kids, none of their injuries appearing to be life-threatening. Authorities say two of the 34-year-old driver's children were in the truck with the driver at the time and that she is cooperating in the investigation.

Officials are still working to determine more about what happened, how this happened. The district attorney's office plans to conduct an initial review of the case later this week.

And still to come, a significant shift, the GOP seeing support plummet among a key group of swing voters, the possible impact on the midterm elections.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)