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New York City Mayoral Elections; Sen. Bernie Sanders Joins NYC Mayoral Candidate Mamdani For Town Hall; Trump's Former Surgeon General Calls For RFK, Jr. To Be Fired; White House Downplays Jobs Report After Calling It "Disappointing"; RFK's Mission To Find The Causes Of Autism; Trump Says Some Hostages May Have "Recently Died" In Gaza; Several Countries Plan To Recognize Palestinian State This Week; Powerball Soars To $1.8B After No Jackpot Winner Wednesday. Aired 5-6p ET

Aired September 06, 2025 - 17:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:01:20]

JESSICA DEAN, CNN HOST: You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Jessica Dean here in New York.

And tonight, the fast-approaching New York city mayoral race making more and more headlines around the country with even President Trump posting about it. The city's current mayor, Eric Adams, is denying he had any plans to drop out of the race, despite reports this week Trump aides were working on a plan to offer Adams a job in the administration as a way to get him out of the race, clearing a path potentially for former governor Andrew Cuomo to beat the Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani.

CNN White House reporter Alayna Treene is joining us now. Alayna, there are so many layers to this. Of course, President Trump, a native New Yorker, this is your reporting. What did you find?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, I mean, this has really been a fascinating thing to watch, seeing how the White House is now potentially getting involved in this mayoral race. And look, a lot of it is because they do not want Zohran Mamdani to be successful in his bid to become the next mayor of New York City.

And we reported that earlier this week, Eric Adams sat down with one of the president's top officials, his Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff. They met together in Florida, and they talked about potential future positions for Adams in the Trump administration should he exit the race.

And I will caution you that our sources said that there was nothing that was formally offered to Adams. But they did discuss a potential ambassadorship. One of the countries that came up in the course of that conversation was Saudi Arabia.

But again, you did hear -- excuse me, you heard Adams yesterday. He came out. He said he wanted to speak directly to New Yorkers. He addressed them from Gracie Mansion and essentially said, I am staying in this race. He said, I'm planning to weigh this -- wear this mayor shirt for another four years.

I will say as well, though, while he insists that he's going to stay in the race, sources close to Adams and his team told us that it really has become untenable, his candidacy for mayor.

You know, a lot of his advisers telling him that it's unlikely he will have a second term. And so his position on this could change.

Now, I do want you as well, to listen to what we heard from the president yesterday in the Oval Office, because he was asked about this. And he essentially admitted that he believes having two candidates try to go after and defeat Mamdani would make it an unwinnable race. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: if you have more than one candidate running against him, it can't -- you know, can't be won.

If you have one candidate, if he's the right candidate, I would I would say that Cuomo might have a chance of winning if it was a one on one. If it's not one on one, it's going to be a hard race.

And we'll get used to a communist, and he's going to have to go through the White House and get approvals for everything. And we're going to make sure that New York is not hurt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: So you heard the president weighing saying, you think it will be hard if it's not just the former governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, going up directly against Mamdani.

And just to make this more clear, I think the bottom line here is that this White House does want to try and clear the field for Cuomo to try and beat Mamdani in the Fall.

All of this, as we know, Mamdani is starting to pick up more Democratic support. We know Senator Bernie Sanders is one who is going to be backing him. So it's an interesting space to watch for now. Adams saying he is going to be running. He's planning to stay in his seat as mayor, but that could still change.

DEAN: All right, more to come on this. Alayna Treene from the White House. Thank you so much for that.

[17:04:48]

DEAN: And as Adams and Cuomo try to position themselves as alternatives to Mamdani, we're seeing an interesting dynamic among elected Democrats, top Democratic leadership on the Hill, reluctant to endorse the Democratic socialist Mamdani, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. There is some pressure mounting on Democrats to support him,

considering that he got tens of thousands of young voters to come out to the polls, a demographic that Democrats have been struggling with.

And tonight, Independent Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. Sanders is joining Mamdani at a town hall in Brooklyn.

CNN senior reporter Isaac Dovere is there in Brooklyn covering the rally for us.

Isaac, help people understand the significance of Bernie Sanders joining Mamdani on stage tonight.

ISAAC DOVERE, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: Well look, Bernie Sanders is probably the most popular figure in the Democratic Party still. And he is back here home in Brooklyn at Brooklyn College, where he first started attending college, didn't end up graduating from here.

But there has been a real surge of passion and energy for Mamdani and for Sanders, he has been looking for who is going to continue the work of his political agenda past him.

He's in his 80s. He's about turned 80, rather. He is likely not so going to be in the Senate for too many more years, even though he was just reelected. And we will see what the future holds.

He is, in a sense, very much passing the torch to Mamdani here, among others in the political world. But doing it right on stage at Brooklyn College in a room that already we're about an hour out from when this event starts, that is really lively. A lot of energy here to see the two of them together.

I was with them earlier in the day as they marched in the Labor Day Parade here in New York, and huge excitement for both of them. It's just a lot going on with the connection between the two.

DEAN: Yes, and it is interesting more broadly for Democrats across the country, but also who, two of whom are from Mamdani's home state of New York, as they kind of wrestle with the fact that Mamdani was able to put together this coalition of voters, beat someone in the establishment like Andrew Cuomo in that primary.

And at the same time, he is a self-proclaimed Democratic Socialist and there are Democrats very uncomfortable still with his politics. What is he doing to try to bridge that gap?

DOVERE: Well, he's been reaching out to a lot of people, developers, money people, all sorts of other political leaders in New York.

But as you say, it's a quirk of coincidence, essentially, that both the Democratic leader in the House and the Senate are themselves Brooklyn residents. And so they are expected as local politicians to have a say in who they want the mayor of New York city to be.

They have not endorsed the Democratic nominee, and it's not clear if they will, when they will. That's creating a lot of tension in local politics.

But they're also thinking about how the electorates across the country might look at the Democratic Socialist platform that is running on and will implement if he wins and if he's mayor of New York City next year.

DEAN: And we were just hearing from our colleague Alayna Treene on the Trump of this -- of it all as well, that President Trump has -- seemed to insert himself in this race as well. Of course, he lived in New York City for many, many years. What kind of variable is that in what we're seeing go on?

DOVERE: Yes, Donald Trump is not very popular in his hometown, even though he did better in the presidential election last year than a Republican had done for a while. The mention of Trump's name is a sure way to fire up a lot of Democrats here.

And the Democrats that I spoke to, including along the parade route today, elected officials, union members, all are looking at, Trump's apparent involvement here and apparent movement to try to stop Mamdani as a way of actually galvanizing things for Mamdani.

Tish James, the attorney general, very popular Democratic figure in the state, told me that she sees both Eric Adams and Andrew Cuomo as essentially tools of Donald Trump at this point. And she's been rallying support for Mamdani. It does seem to, in a very convoluted way here, be helping Mamdani.

DEAN: All right. Isaac Dovere there live where we will see Mamdani with Bernie Sanders. Thank you so much for that reporting.

And were joined now by White House correspondent for Reuters, Jeff Mason. Jeff, thanks so much for being here with us.

I want to pick up there where Isaac and I just left off. And I want to get your sense of why the president is getting involved with this at all.

JEFF MASON, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, REUTERS: Well, it's a good question.

I think he's very interested in New York City. As you noted before, he lived there for a long time. He still has a penthouse apartment there.

I think he's also using it, as he does with many things, as a bit of a foil, painting them or calling -- calling-out the what he considers communist ideals from the -- from the Democratic nominee.

[17:09:46]

MASON: That's a message that he as a Republican leader and a Republican politician is happy to promote in terms of -- contrast with his own policies.

That said, he certainly hasn't made the political decision that it would be useful for him to have him in office. Otherwise he wouldn't be working behind the scenes or in some cases, sort of in front of the scenes to get another candidate to win the race.

DEAN: Yes, that is an interesting point you make.

I also want to ask you about some other news that we got. U.S. Surgeon General -- the U.S. Surgeon General during Trump's first administration, Jerome Adams, told CNN today that he believes that the president should fire Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the HHS secretary because, in his words, Kennedy is putting lives at risk.

Obviously, the White House is standing by him. We heard from the president this week after Kennedy was on the Hill saying he thought he did a really good job.

Take us inside their relationship and why Trump likes having Kennedy in that position, even though he gets blowback even from, you know, former administration officials and even some Republicans up on the Hill who are starting to waver on him.

MASON: Absolutely. And you certainly saw that -- that wavering during the hearing on Thursday. That was pretty explosive and certainly did not just have criticism from Democrats, but from some top Republican senators as well.

I'm happy to sort of bring you into that relationship. I wrote a story about that today. And I was told for my -- during my reporting that the president and the secretary speak regularly, that they perhaps don't speak quite as often as Trump speaks to some other cabinet officials. But the president likes him.

And though he doesn't feel as strongly on some of these issues with regard to vaccines as Secretary Kennedy does, he trusts his judgment.

All of that said, you did see the president creating a little bit of distance between himself and the more strict or statements from Florida. The new policy or plan from Florida that was announced this week to do away with all mandates for vaccines.

That's a little bit more in line with where Secretary Kennedy is, although he hasn't said that specifically on Florida. But the president said he thinks you have to be careful.

So I think we can sort of study that and see that as an example of one place or one area where the two men may not be entirely aligned.

But the bottom line, all of that said, is he has not withheld his support. And that's what matters, because he's not creating any guardrails for Kennedy while he's working at HHS.

DEAN: Yes, it's really interesting. And I'm curious if you were able to get any read into President Trump's appetite. And it sounds like, obviously, what you're talking about with him and his view on what happened in Florida, kind of that he may think that's too far.

But his appetite on being any sort of backstop to any mega changes to the vaccine schedule that Kennedy might want to implement. MASON: You know, he hasn't -- again he hasn't put any guardrails

around him at all. I will say, though, that I spoke to someone else, Marc Short, in our story, who your viewers will know, who made a point of saying if anything becomes embarrassing for President Trump, he has a good way of being able to distance himself from that.

So there's political risk for Secretary Kennedy as well. And as I was saying before, there's clearly they're not fully aligned on this in terms of their passion for cracking down on vaccines or for causing doubt about vaccines.

But a sign of a breach would be President Trump stepping in and saying, no, this is not what I want. And that's quite the opposite of what he's done. He has publicly supported Kennedy and privately continues to support him as well.

DEAN: Yes, we also got this jobs report yesterday. It was another weak jobs report after Trump last month fired the top data chief over that month's job report. Yesterday, more blame game going around about whose fault it might be. Again, what are you hearing from your sources about how the president and the administration are viewing that jobs report and the numbers and the -- and the analyzing of those numbers?

MASON: Well, economic adviser Kevin Hassett yesterday said he was flummoxed by the report, but he and the president still feel very confident about this economy. The president referred to the real numbers coming out a year from now. We'll see.

I think certainly the president owns this economy now, and a year from now he will own it even more.

But those numbers are not positive for him, and they're not positive for his policies, because economists, whether the president or the White House likes this narrative or not, economists blamed these changes in the jobs figures on President Trumps tariffs on his administrations crackdown on immigration and the deportations that are related to that and the mass firings on the federal level in Washington, D.C. and elsewhere.

DEAN: Jeff Mason, great to have you. Thanks so much.

MASON: My pleasure.

[17:14:45]

DEAN: Still ahead, it has been one of RFK Jr.'s biggest promises since he took over the nation's top health agency -- finding the cause of autism. New reporting on what his HHS plans to unveil and why some doctors are quite skeptical.

Plus, a fiery Senate hearing raising new questions about promises the secretary made when it comes to America's vaccines.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MARK WARNER (D-VA): You're the secretary of Health and Human Services, you don't have any idea how many Americans died from COVID?

ROBERT F. KENNEDY, JR., U.S. HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES SECRETARY: I don't think anybody knows.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[17:15:16]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DEAN: A new "Wall Street Journal" report suggests an upcoming report from Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s Health Department is expected to draw a link between autism and using over-the-counter pain relievers during pregnancy. That report specifically highlights Tylenol and some vitamin deficiencies as two possible causes of autism.

But experts say there have been multiple studies that have not found any conclusive link, and that pain relievers like Tylenol are one of the few options available for expectant mothers dealing with pain.

CNN's chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, breaks down the science here, Sanjay.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, first of all, this entire conversation and possibility of acetaminophen or Tylenol being associated with autism is not a new conversation. People have been looking into this for over ten years. We've been reporting on this for quite some time.

Back ten years ago, the evidence was really mixed in terms of determining whether there was an association between Tylenol use and a child being subsequently diagnosed with autism.

These are really hard studies to do, first of all. Imagine that a child is diagnosed with autism. They go back and ask the mom, did you take Tylenol when you were pregnant? How much Tylenol did you take? When did you take it? It's very hard to remember. That's part of the reason these studies are hard to do.

There's also the issue of the fact that Tylenol is really commonly used. Some studies suggest 45 to 60 percent of women used Tylenol when they were pregnant. That -- that is, makes it very ubiquitous.

And there's this thing called the paradox of ubiquity, meaning when you have something that's that commonly used, its then hard to go back and pinpoint that that's the singular cause of something. So these studies are hard to do.

Having said that, there was a study in 2019 coming out of Johns Hopkins where they decided to look at umbilical cord blood. They figured, hey, that's a better way of actually figuring out how much acetaminophen was actually being used, how much acetaminophen exposure was there.

And they actually did find that the higher acetaminophen exposure was associated with a higher rate of autism. And I think that got a lot of people's attention.

In August of this year, August of 2025, there was a meta-analysis of 46 different studies. And in 27 of those studies, they did find that there was an association between acetaminophen use during pregnancy and subsequent diagnosis of autism.

But again, to be really clear, these are associations. And when you have something that's that commonly used, it's going to be associated with lots of different things.

Somebody was taking Tylenol. Well, maybe they had a fever. Could the fever be the culprit? You sort of -- you sort of get the idea. So it's very hard to sort of go back and then pinpoint that Tylenol itself might be actually leading to this.

So that's sort of where we are with this discussion. The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, again, they have known about these potential associations for some time. They released a statement on this.

They said acetaminophen has long been established as a safe pain reliever for pregnant women during pregnancy. There is no clear evidence that proves a direct relationship between the prudent use of acetaminophen during pregnancy and fetal developmental issues. Neurodevelopmental disorders, in particular, are multifactorial and very difficult to associate with a singular cause.

Best guidance is that -- is that if you have a fever as a pregnant woman, it is better to treat that fever than not treat that fever. And using Tylenol for the shortest -- the smallest dose for the shortest time seems to be the best advice.

Keep in mind again, I know I've said this twice, but association versus cause and effect. One of the researchers of the study said, look, that's like saying in the summertime people eat more ice cream and in the summertime there is more violent crime.

Both those things happen. They are associated, but obviously there's no cause-and-effect relationship here.

We'll see what this new report out of HHS shows, I'm sure in the days and weeks to come. And if there's more information in there, well certainly bring it to you.

DEAN: Sanjay, thank you.

And we are joined now by CNN medical analyst and professor of medicine and surgery at George Washington University, Dr. Jonathan Reiner.

Dr. Reiner, thanks for being here with us. I think women specifically watching this might be very nervous now. And they're trying to kind of sort through the information. Sanjay laid it out really well there.

I just want to hear from you about how you assess any credible studies or science that show that these over-the-counter pain relievers, like Tylenol, are a cause of autism. DR. JONATHAN REINER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Yes, Jessica. As Sanjay

said, this has been a topic that has been reviewed for more than a decade. There was, Sanjay mentioned, the most recent study from August that looked at 100,000 pregnancies.

[17:24:44]

DR. REINER: There was a study out of Sweden last year which looked at 2.4 million pregnancies and found no association between acetaminophen use and autism.

So it's a very complicated -- it's a very complicated topic.

And I would completely agree with Sanjay that pregnant women should feel that it is safe to use acetaminophen, you know, should they require that.

Acetaminophen is the only over-the-counter pain reliever that pregnant -- that is safe to use during pregnancy. And having people sort of unilaterally stop using it when we don't have the science to say that, is dangerous.

It's not great for a pregnant person to have a fever. It's not great for the baby, you know, for mom to be in severe pain. So the bottom line for everything is, you know, talk to your doctor about it. If you have concerns about it, talk to your doctor.

But my concern is that one of these -- that a report coming out of HHS is going to dissuade a lot of pregnant people with pain or fever from using the drug, and that might be more harmful than beneficial.

DEAN: Right. Because there is this question of having a fever while pregnant and what kind of risk that puts the baby or what kind of impact that might have on the baby as well.

DR. REINER: Right. So, so once again, I think for any drug use during pregnancy, first of all, check with your obstetrician to make sure that it's -- that it's safe for the baby -- for you to use it.

And then, like any medication in any person, pregnant or not pregnant, the lowest effective dose used for the shortest period of time is always the best -- is always the best strategy.

DEAN: And we now have -- we saw this week the secretary sitting for a rather combative hearing with Senate lawmakers. He did that Thursday. And he took -- he took pushback from not just Democrats but some Republicans as well.

I want to play a clip.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MARIA CANTELL (D-WA): Sir, you're a charlatan. That's what you are. You're the ones who conflate chronic disease with the need for vaccines.

WARNER: Do you accept the fact that a million Americans died from COVID?

KENNEDY, JR.: I don't know how many died.

WARNER: You don't have any idea how many Americans died from COVID?

KENNEDY, JR.: I don't think anybody knows.

WARNER: How can you be that ignorant?

SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN (D-MA): You promised that you would not take away vaccines from anyone who wanted them. You just changed the classification of the COVID vaccine.

(CROSSTALK)

KENNEDY, JR.: I'm not taking them away from people, Senator.

WARREN: Did you hold up a big sign saying that you were lying when you said that?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Dr. Reiner, I'm curious what your biggest takeaway was from his testimony. And I think part two of that, too, is just how much of this, as we kind of thought it might, is centering around vaccines now.

DR. REINER: Well, I think it's all centering around vaccines. Senator Tina Smith from Minnesota, asked, Mr. Kennedy, which was true. His statement that there was no such thing as a safe and effective vaccine or his statement that he is not anti-vax, which he said at his confirmation hearing earlier this year. And he said both are true.

So to me, that was eye opening. This was for the first time in his tenure as secretary of HHS. Mr. Kennedy, acknowledging that he believes no vaccine is safe and effective.

And if you've been listening to RFK over the last 20 years, you know, that's his belief. And that person is now in charge of vaccine policy.

But maybe the biggest takeaway of this week, following his hearing, was what President Trump said yesterday during his presser. When he -- when he went out of his way to say, look, we have vaccines that just work. He says they just work.

So this was the president basically creating some distance between him and his HHS secretary.

And this really correlates with the president's history. He has not been anti-vax. And Operation: Warp Speed to create the COVID vaccine, which RFK Jr. has called the deadliest vaccine ever, was a massive success. And we've seen this this week, the president say that twice.

DEAN: Interesting stuff. Dr. Jonathan Reiner, thank you so much for your time. We appreciate it.

DR. REINER: My pleasure.

DEAN: Coming up, a cloud of leaflets raining down on Gaza this morning, as Israel is warning residents there to evacuate ahead of more military strikes.

Plus, a direct message from Tel Aviv to President Trump as the families of Israeli hostages grow desperate.

Stay with us. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

[17:29:33]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:33:57]

DEAN: Thousands of people gathered in Tel Aviv's Hostage Square earlier calling for the immediate release of all the hostages still being held by Hamas.

The weekly protest rally comes as Israel is preparing an all-out assault on Gaza City, and President Trump says some of the 20 hostages thought to still be alive in Gaza may have, in his words, recently died.

Israel says 47 hostages taken by Hamas on October 7th, 2023 are still in Gaza with 27 of seven of them thought to be dead.

Yesterday, Hamas released video showing two Israeli men who were taken from the Nova Music Festival October 7th. The group says that they are being held in Gaza City, and warned Israel's impending assault on the area could put their lives at risk.

I want to bring in columnist and geopolitical analyst, Bobby Ghosh.

Bobby, thanks so much for joining us on this Sunday evening. Really appreciate it. We don't know where President Trump is getting his information on the hostages regarding what he said earlier. We do know that he is been pushing for a hostage deal, and he said that failure to get one would lead to a, "tough situation".

[17:35:00]

DEAN: I'm curious what your read is on where things stand for the possibility of getting a deal, a cease fire at this point.

BOBBY GHOSH, GEOPOLITICS ANALYST: Well, the deal is already on the table. Hamas has agreed to a deal. It was a deal that was proposed by the Trump administration and also by the Egyptians and Qataris. The Israelis have not yet responded fully to that proposal.

Israel's overall goal, stated by Prime Minister Netanyahu, which is to completely eliminate Hamas remains the goal. And as long as that is the goal, I don't think these two things can basically coincide. You can't have a deal while Hamas still exists, and by common consent, not just my opinion, but the opinion of many Israeli military commanders, it's impossible to actually fully eliminate Hamas from Gaza.

So, as long as that goal remains, I can't see Netanyahu agreeing to make this deal. And so, we will, I suspect, continue in this sort of strange limbo where there is a deal on the table, there is no progress on actually achieving that deal, and the military operations by the Israelis against the Palestinian population continue.

DEAN: Yes. Because there is that sticky point that you bring up, which is, Israel does not want Hamas to remain in power. That is part of the thing -- that is what they have really been hard line on. Hamas does not want to relinquish that power. And therein lies a very tricky situation. How do you -- how do you get those two sides to a deal, if that's where both of them are?

GHOSH: I think that has been the problem from day one, from the -- from the eighth of October, two years ago, in fact, long before that terrorist attack. Actually, Israel has -- Prime Minister Netanyahu has said himself and other senior members of his Cabinet, they want Hamas to cease to exist. It's not just a case of power. They want Hamas to cease to exist, and that is a very, very difficult and probably impossible thing to achieve in the context of what Hamas is and where and the history of Hamas in Gaza.

It is part of the political fabric of Gaza. It exists in every street corner in Gaza. Gazan citizens may or may not like that fact, but they have had to live with that for decades now. And so, to say that this has to be completely eliminated, well, there's no actual history of any other conflict against a terrorist group or a political group, whatever, however, you want to define it, in which that has been stated as a goal, and that goal has been achieved.

That's never happened in history where you can say, well, we want every last member of such and such group to cease to exist. That's never been achieved before, and I can't imagine why anybody would think that can be achieved in Gaza with Hamas.

DEAN: Let's look ahead to next week. Several countries have indicated plans to recognize a Palestinian state at the U.N. General Assembly. That's going to be happening here in New York City. Israel has rejected these calls and said that they are not helpful to negotiations. Some countries have hoped, though, that it would bring pressure on Israel as they expand that war in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis there continues as we bring everyone here to New York. How do you think that's going to play out?

GHOSH: I think it's going to be a big flash point. These countries: Canada, the U.K., France, these countries have said that they will recognize Palestine. Now, in New York, the rubber will meet the road. This will be the test of whether their leaders follow through and have the courage of their convictions.

Because it's not just Israel that is supposed to be to this formal recognition. It's also the United States, and the Trump administration doesn't like that, and I expect to hear more from the president as the UNGA. draws close, criticizing this and encouraging these countries to turn back and drop the plan to recognize, because it would otherwise be quite an embarrassment for President Trump if this happened in New York, in the United States, in what used to be his hometown. It would be quite a, quite an embarrassing situation for him.

So, I can imagine that he would press very hard on Macron, on Starmer, to desist from doing this, and that's when we will know whether these leaders of these countries are absolutely are willing to follow through on the rhetoric that we've heard so far.

Now, we know the Trump administration is going to make it very hard for Palestinians, including those from the official Palestinian designation that was coming to the UNGA. It's going to make it very hard for them. Visas are being denied. So, it might be that Palestine is not fully represented at the UNGA, but Palestine will be the dominant topic at the gathering, regardless of whether or not the Palestinians are here.

DEAN: A flash point. It will be interesting to see how that all plays out.

[17:40:03]

Bobby Ghosh, thank you for your time. We appreciate it.

GHOSH: Anytime, Jessica.

DEAN: Still to come, a massive ice raid at a Georgia car manufacturing plant. What we're learning about the nearly 500 people who were arrested. Stay with us here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DEAN: Lottery fever is spreading as tonight's Powerball jackpot reaches $1.8 billion.

[17:45:01]

People are lining up across the country for their chance to win what amounts to the second highest jackpot ever in U.S. lottery history. The prize amounts -- amount keeps climbing because no one's won Powerball in the last 42 drawings.

CNN's Natasha Chen is joining us from a California gas station that sold the largest winning ticket ever.

Natasha, it was lucky once. I think people look like it -- they are hoping it's going to be lucky again. I guess we'll see.

NATASHA CHEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Jessica, This is insane that we were here since 9:00 a.m. when the line inside the store had gotten to the door. But now, if you take a look and follow where the line has gone, it is around the corner. And we just spoke to the owner, Joe Chahayed. He says that people call him Papa Joe.

And, you know, the reason people actually want to come here to buy their tickets is not just a matter of the fact that the last largest winning Powerball ticket was sold here nearly three years ago. It's also that this store survived the deadly Eaton Fire, which happened in January.

We're here in Altadena. It was devastating for this entire community, yet this place stands. And so, there's a bit of that survival and previous luck that people are really into.

Here is what Mr. Chahayed told us about whether someone might win tonight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSEPH CHAHAYED, OWNER OF GAS STATION WHERE BIGGEST WINNING POWERBALL TICKET WAS SOLD: Somebody got a winner tonight.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.

CHAHAYED: You have a feeling.

CHEN: You have a feeling.

CHAHAYED: I can -- I can feel it. I can smell it. I can put it in the ground.

CHEN: Were you expecting this kind of turnout?

CHAHAYED: Of course.

CHEN: You were expecting this many people to come out.

CHAHAYED: Yes, because the number is almost a billion dollars, so -- and the people never forget this gas station. Never forget the big winner.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHEN: And he loves people. We could just tell that. You know, he opened up early this morning by himself at the cash register. We watched him stand there for hours, selling these tickets with absolutely zero breaks. And he just loved it, and told each person, good luck.

This has been quite a year for this community. He remembers the day that the Eaton Fire happened, watching the smoke billowing over here, and he said he prayed, and he told me that was also a lot of luck that ended up with his store still standing, and all these people able to come today. Jessica.

DEAN: Yes. Well, and it's a really nice, fun moment for everyone, and hopefully somebody in that crowd is lucky, we'll find out.

Natasha Chen, thank you so much. Really appreciate it.

A celestial event on tap in the night skies this weekend. This NASA timeline shows what to watch for. A total lunar eclipse that could cause the moon to take on a deep reddish hue.

Here is the catch, though. This blood moon eclipse will be visible in Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia. For stargazers here in the U.S., though, we might see a bright, full moon, nicknamed the Corn Moon, because it aligns with the harvesting of the corn crop.

Still ahead. The latest job report raising major concerns about the economy. Why experts say the job market is slowing to a "dangerous speed" during the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:52:46]

DEAN: Dr Sanjay Gupta has spent decades treating people's pain as a trauma neurosurgeon, but it wasn't until pain touched his own family. He truly understand the -- understood the life changing toll that, that can take. He talks about this in his new book, a documentary, "It Doesn't Have to Hurt", where he looks at innovative and unexpected ways to treat and manage pain. And here's a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAMYANTI GUPTA, MOTHER OF DR. SANJAY GUPTA: I never experienced that kind of pain in my life.

GUPTA (voice over): Meet my mom, Damyanti Gupta.

S. GUPTA: If you had to rate it on a scale of one to 10, what would it fall?

D.GUPTA: Out of 10, it was like 80. At 80.

S. GUPTA: Do you remember what you said to me?

D. GUPTA: What?

S. GUPTA: You talked about the fact that if this pain didn't go away, you didn't think you wanted to live anymore.

D. GUPTA: I could not even stand on my two feet. I could not brush my teeth, I could not change my clothes, I could not comb my hair.

S. GUPTA: I remember, like, kind of that your stomach sort of dropping a bit because you're like, well, she doesn't complain about anything. If she's complaining about this, this has got to be bad. Whatever it is.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Sure to tune in. "DR SANJAY GUPTA REPORTS: IT DOESN'T HAVE TO HURT". It airs Sunday at 9:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.

And all this week on CNN, and next Saturday at 10::00 p.m., you can catch our special, "CHAMPIONS FOR CHANGE SERIES".

Eight CNN journalists spotlight the inspiring stories of change makers who've had a lasting impact in their communities. And here is a quick preview of that. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: Do you get to eat it sometimes?

GUPTA: Join us for "CHAMPIONS FOR CHANGE".

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: When was the first time you went to Africa?

GUPTA: As CNN journalists spotlight eight trailblazers creating a better tomorrow.

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: My champion gives hope.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Love it, man. Thank you so much.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think I'm crazy enough to think that change can happen.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Create a community where young people could be their best self.

LAURA COATES, CNN CHIEF LEGAL ANALYST: Do you feel that energy?

GUPTA: Experience the very best of humanity, as these champions challenge today's uncertainties, making breakthroughs across communities.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are literally changing the way that drug development research is done.

GUPTA: Q what motivates them?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I believe in doing work that's greater than me.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Everyone should have access to equitable maternal health care. It's like a workout.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Morning.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And making the school busses safer, reliable, and efficient.

[17:55:00]

BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT: All right. I'm Bill.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And how their actions are making a positive impact.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am fighting every day for people with mental health disorders.

GUPTA: CNN journalists introduce you to their champions.

BURNETT: It means a lot to all of us.

GUPTA:"CHAMPIONS FOR CHANGE" next Saturday at 10:00 on CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DEAN: You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Jessica Dean in New York.

[17:59:59]

And happening right now, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders is in Brooklyn at a town hall with Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic socialist running for New York City mayor.

Just two months now until election day, President Trump is weighing in, which has many Mamdani supporters, saying it's time to the Democratic Party and its entirety to get behind Mamdani and his campaign.