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Two Days Until Voters Decide Key Races In New Jersey, Virginia, And New York City; New Polling Shows Trump Approval Rating In The Low 40s; Supreme Court Tariff Revenue Case Kicks Off This Week; "SNL" Mocks Trump's White House Makeover; Unanswered Questions Around Alleged Terror Plot In Michigan. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired November 02, 2025 - 18:00   ET

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

[18:00:36]

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

We are just two days away from some high stakes elections across the country. On Tuesday, voters will go to the polls in over a dozen elections. Two of the key races CNN is watching are governor's races in New Jersey and Virginia. There's also a hotly debated race for New York City mayor and a redistricting measure in California that could have some big implications for next year's midterm elections.

So let's go to New Jersey. Recent polls have shown Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill leading Republican Jack Ciattarelli. Both candidates holding rallies on the final day of early voting.

CNN has correspondents on the campaign trails for all of us tonight, covering all these major races. Let's begin in Hazlet, New Jersey, with Arlette Saenz.

Arlette, walk us through Ciattarelli's closing message.

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Jess, Republican nominee Jack Ciattarelli just wrapped his event here in Toms River, New Jersey, in a state that is perhaps the most closely watched in this year's governor's races. This is a state that has typically voted Democrat. But last year, President Donald Trump did make significant gains here, only losing the state by six points. That is something that Ciattarelli is really looking to build off of, as he is hoping that rightward shift in the state will extend to him in this governor's race.

Now, he has criticized his opponent, Democratic Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill, arguing that Democratic policies here in New Jersey have hurt voters. And here was one of the critiques he had about the fact that she was not born here in New Jersey.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACK CIATTARELLI (R), NEW JERSEY GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: My opponent is not from New Jersey. She hasn't been here all that long. And what little time she's been there, she's been six years in Congress and somehow some way tripled her net worth. How about we elect a Jersey guy?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAENZ: Now, Sherrill was born in Virginia, but did move to New Jersey as an adult, where she later ran for Congress and flipped a long held Republican seat in her district. Right now, Sherrill is actually campaigning over in Camden with Senator Cory Booker. He is from here in New Jersey, but he just highlights the high profile Democrats who have hit the trail with Sherrill in this closing stretch.

Last night she campaigned with former president Barack Obama in Newark. We have seen others, potential 2020 contenders who have been here to the state with her, like Pete Buttigieg, Governor Josh Shapiro from Pennsylvania.

Ciattarelli has earned the endorsement of President Donald Trump. But Trump has not campaigned here in New Jersey, which Ciattarelli instead holding a tele-rally for him. But right now both candidates spent the entire day on the trail, and tomorrow they'll be back at it as they are pushing ahead to that vote on Tuesday.

DEAN: All right. Arlette Saenz in New Jersey, thank you so much for that.

Let's go now to Virginia's governor race, where Republican Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears is taking on Democrat former -- Democratic former representative Abigail Spanberger. Spanberger is leading in the polls and counting on heavy turnout in Northern Virginia, where she's currently rallying supporters.

Let's bring in CNN's Jeff Zeleny, who is live there now.

Jeff, Spanberger, also with former president Obama yesterday, as she was trying to get her supporters to the polls. What's her closing message today.

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jessica, Abigail Spanberger is behind me on stage right here at her final rally in Northern Virginia. Of course, driving up Democratic turnout in Northern Virginia is key to any Democratic victory here in the Commonwealth of Virginia. But some 1.4 million voters have already cast early ballots here during an extraordinary 45 days of early voting.

So there could be -- that could be about half of the actual amount of the full turnout here, strategists on both sides tell me, but there is no question that the former congresswoman Abigail Spanberger is trying to press the message on affordability. She is trying to make the case that Virginians need to elect someone to respond to the Trump administration. In just a few moments ago, Senator Tim Kaine and Senator Mark Warner both were on stage here, and they said that Virginia needs to send a message to the world.

Of course, Virginia, right across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C., site of the federal government shutdown that's having a big impact on Virginia voters here. There's no doubt about it. [18:05:01]

It is driving people to vote as sort of a referendum, if you will, against the Trump administration. So even though President Trump not on the ballot here, as we know, he is certainly in the minds -- on the minds of voters and a bit of a turnout method for both sides. Democrats hope he will excite their own voters. Of course, Republicans hope those Trump supporters will also turn out. But there is no doubt Abigail Spanberger is rallying voters here.

She believes she's in command of this race. Even Republican strategists will concede that they do not have an obvious path to victory. But that is not stopping her from fighting for every vote here at this final campaign rally in Northern Virginia -- Jess.

DEAN: And Jeff, Jeff, regardless of what the outcome is on Tuesday, one of the candidates will be making history.

ZELENY: They will. That's because Virginia is one of 17 states that has never elected a woman to the governor's office here. So she, of course, she's running against Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears. So whoever wins on Tuesday, Virginia will elect its first woman governor. There are currently 13 women serving as governors across the country. So regardless of the outcome on Tuesday, Virginia will join that list -- Jessica.

DEAN: All right. Jeff Zeleny there in Falls Church, Virginia, on the campaign trail for us. Thank you so much for that.

And let's go now to CNN's Eva McKend. She is live in Hanover, Virginia, where Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears is speaking at a rally there.

And Eva, Earle-Sears obviously looking to pick up last minute voters, do whatever she can to get them to the polls. What are they saying today?

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jess, the lieutenant governor is going to take the stage here in just a little bit. We are in Hanover, and this is a community where four years ago Governor Youngkin did really well, really drove up turnout. And so in order for Earle-Sears to pull off an upset, she is going to have to replicate the success that he had in this county.

Something that we have noticed different from her in the last few days on the campaign trail is that for a long time she was focusing heavily on these social issues, how transgender children are governed in Virginia's public schools in terms of bathroom policies or policies as it relates to school sports teams. But I have noticed that she hasn't leaned into that as much in the closing days.

She's really shifted her focus primarily on focusing on the economy, on eliminating the state's car tax and talking about keeping taxes low more broadly. And that's really responsive to the concerns that you hear from many Virginians that life has just gotten too expensive. This state, of course, is heavily impacted because it has such a large federal workforce. And so they are feeling the economic strain.

What we see from Earle-Sears is really a pressure to speak to that. So Spanberger leads Earle-Sears in public polling. She has for the last several weeks. But Earle-Sears' allies will say that that polling does not reflect the support that she does have on the ground and the affection that she enjoys from conservatives.

And I'll end with this, Jess, right now the attorney general, the Republican attorney general, the incumbent, Jason Miyares, is up on that stage. And they are hoping that a controversy surrounding his opponent, Democratic attorney general candidate, Jay Jones, will ensnare the entire Democratic ticket. He sent violent text messages back in 2022 that were discovered. And the Republicans here are hoping that that not only impacts Miyares in his race, but that also drags down Abigail Spanberger as well -- Jess.

DEAN: All right, Eva McKend there in Hanover, Virginia. Thank you for that update. We appreciate it.

And of course, be sure to stay with CNN for results from all the critical races across the country. Our election night coverage begins Tuesday at 5:00 p.m. Eastern here on CNN and also streaming on our CNN app.

Still ahead, how the results in Tuesday's election could shape how the parties handle the 2026 midterms. Plus, President Trump's tariffs are a cornerstone of his economic policy. This week, the Supreme Court will start hearing arguments to determine if he can legally impose a number of them.

And an anxious community wants answers on whether there's a danger in their neighborhood days after the FBI announced an alleged terror attack plot.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:13:55]

DEAN: New polls out today show President Trump's approval ratings underwater. Polling from the "Washington Post" and ABC News shows almost six in 10 Americans disapprove of the job the president is doing with 41 percent approving. That's about the same from where it's been since mid-summer. A separate NBC News poll finding 55 percent disapprove of the president's job performance, while 43 percent approve.

Let's bring in CNN senior political commentator Van Jones and Scott Jennings. Van is a former Obama administration official. Scott Jennings is a former senior adviser to Mitch McConnell.

You both have had many other jobs as well, and our viewers are very familiar with you both, and I am certainly happy to have you here.

Scott, I want to start first with you. We have this new polling both around general approval, also around the shutdown, that CBS poll, that number went from 28 percent who said they were very concerned about the personal impacts of the shutdown would have on them in October, to 37 percent in this latest polling. Now we have these elections coming.

Where do you see Republicans being viewed right now as we get ready for these elections, the first that we've had since the presidents been back in office?

[18:15:05]

SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, I think these states are unique. You know, Virginia has a lot of federal workers. And so the shutdown, obviously, for them is front and center. New Jersey, fewer. But you know, look, it's still a thing for a lot of people. If you're in and around the Newark Airport, obviously this is going to be a major impact on you. So I think it's really individualized.

Truthfully, for a lot of people out here, we've had a government shutdown going on for over a month and you know, I'm not, I'm not sure all that many people are that worried about it in some places. I mean, you know, they look up on their television screen, they see Donald Trump in the Middle East negotiating peace. They see Donald Trump in Asia cutting trade deals with China, and they see him renovating the White House. It doesn't look all that shut down to them.

So I think these things are, you know, very personal. If you're a federal employee and you're having to show up for work at the airport, you're not getting paid, you're probably pretty darn mad about it. Politically speaking, we'll see. You know, these tend to be bluish, purplish, bluish states. So we'll see how it turns out next week. Democrats typically have an advantage in these places.

DEAN: Yes. And Van, you know, look, Scott, I hear you. But also like if you go to the -- an airport right now, there's a good chance your flight could be delayed. You know, millions of people are maybe not going to have access to food access that they typically have.

Van, where do you think Democrats are right now as they kind of continue to find their way forward? In that ABC News poll, 68 percent of people see the Democratic Party as out of touch with the concerns of most people in the U.S. today. That kind of gives us a jumping off point for that. But what are you looking for as we head into this week, and what we might be able to glean if anything from these results?

VAN JONES, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, both of these parties are unpopular. Democratic Party obviously is going through a period of internal reassessment. But, you know, I do see it a little bit differently than Scott in that I do think that there is growing concern about this disconnect between what's happening with, obviously, federal workers, people who rely on federal programs, and what's happening with energy prices going up and what's happening with cost of living going up.

And Donald Trump, you know, charitably gallivanting around the world and tearing up the White House and putting in gold stuff. It's like there's some weird disconnect between the guy that ran. Donald Trump saying he was going to do something about the grocery prices, and he's kind of, you know, bolden ballroom boondoggle. And so I think that you're going to see a lot of motivation on the part of Democrats to come out and show that they want to move away from Donald Trump.

Now, look, if the Democrats win in places like Virginia and New Jersey, it's not that big of a deal because, to Scott's point, these are blue-leaning states. If Republicans were to win, that would send a much bigger message that the Democrats are kind of beyond repair. So -- but I think what I'm going to be looking for is where are the independent voters? Are young people stepping up because of this, you know, Mamdani factor?

There are certain things to look for. But from my point of view, I don't think Donald Trump is doing himself a great service while the government shutdown being all over the world. It looks good to Republicans. I don't know if it looks good for just regular voters.

DEAN: Scott, do you -- what do you say to what Van is saying there? This disconnect between, you know, people are having a hard time feeding their families because of the government shutdown and the president's, you know, renovating a bathroom or something like that. Do you think that there is a disconnect there?

JENNINGS: I mean, I don't know. I guess I just don't see -- I don't draw lines between things like that. I mean, there's always construction going on in Washington. Presidents always have some kind of renovations going on at the White House. I mean, the president I worked for did. President Van worked for did. I mean, it's always going on up there. To me, I think most people look at Congress and I agree with Van. I think it's a sort of a pox on both houses in some ways.

They look at Congress and they wonder why they can't come together and do something. Of course, I would just have to note, as the Republican here, Democrats keep voting to keep the government shutdown. Republicans are the ones voting for the clean CR to give them some space to negotiate full funding. But again, I think we've lived through these things so many times that people just look at Washington and they say, well, the parties are fighting again. I guess they'll get it worked out someday.

I will say, I do agree with one thing you said, Jessica, about the travel. It does feel like we may be on the brink of major disruptions and possibly a meltdown the closer you get to Thanksgiving. That will start to affect a lot more people than it has I think for the last month. The more you get into the holiday travel season, and if this is not solved by then, people are going to be super PO'd about that out there because, you know, for a lot of folks, that's the only time during the year they do travel and they want to go see their family.

DEAN: Right.

JENNINGS: And they'd rather not in an airport all night about it.

DEAN: Yes, I do want to get to this new clip from "60 Minutes," who interviewed President Trump. I'll just play it.

[18:20:02]

It was a question about ICE tactics. This was his answer.

Van, I'll start with you when we come out on the other side.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NORAH O'DONNELL, "60 MINUTES" CORRESPONDENT: More recently, Americans have been watching videos of ICE tackling a young mother, tear gas being used in a Chicago residential neighborhood, and the smashing of car windows.

Have some of these raids gone too far?

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No, I think they haven't gone far enough because we've been held back by the judges, by the liberal judges that were put in by Biden and by Obama.

O'DONNELL: You're OK with those tactics?

TRUMP: Yes, because you have to get the people out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Van, what do you think about that?

JONES: I think he's misreading the public. I think a lot of people, including people in the Latin community, were very supportive of Trump, saying, look, the Democrats haven't done enough about immigration. We've got these cartels in here. We've got some real bad guys in here. Trump wants to get them out. I think they gave him a chance.

I think if you look at the numbers that he has in the Latin community now, they're not going in the right direction because this has been a real nightmare for people who are just regular folks, people who are workers, hard workers, people who are, you know, doing everything from roofing to helping folks in the old folks' homes to being nannies that are living in terror. And I think a lot of people are going to churches and who are hearing about some of this stuff. Their own workers are living in fear.

I think this is not going well. I think Trump is -- he's identified the right problem perhaps when it comes to immigration. But these kind of heavy handed solutions, I think, are not going to go well. There are people who are very, very upset about it, including Republicans.

DEAN: And Scott, we're out of time. I do want to let you respond, though. Do you think --

JENNINGS: Yes. Look, I think in the CBS survey that came out today, he had a 52 percent to 48 percent on immigration enforcement. So he was still right side up on that issue in at least that one survey. I do think it's a polarizing issue, but a lot of people realize that we weren't enforcing federal immigration law. Now we are. And, you know, there's a heavy debate going on, but I don't know anybody who voted for Donald Trump, who's all that unhappy that he's essentially doing what he said he was going to do, which is simply just enforce the law. We haven't passed any new laws. He's just enforcing the ones that are on the books.

DEAN: I do, again, I'm sorry we're out of time. But, Scott, I know you wanted to talk about this briefly. We in the political arena, there was a loss of a heavyweight today. Setti Warren, the director of Harvard Institute of Politics, and I know you knew him well. I'm so sorry.

JONES: Yes, we just learned about this. For those of us who've been fellows at the Harvard Institute of Politics and for those of us who move in these circles.

Van, I know you knew Setti as well. He was a public servant. He was a military veteran, and he was running the Harvard IOP. I just saw him a couple of weeks ago. I was just up at Cambridge to do an event on campus. And it has shocked a lot of us. A lot of people in the CNN political contributor family knew Setti and we love Setti, and so we're very sad. I'm not entirely sure what happened. I just know it was sudden and I know it was sad.

I know I speak for all of our political family here at CNN when I say we're going to miss Setti. We're shocked by this and we're saddened by his loss.

JONES: Amen. Amen.

DEAN: Van, I'm sorry for you, too. I know, I know you were all close with him.

Scott and Van, thanks again for your time tonight. I really appreciate it.

JONES: Thank you.

JENNINGS: Thanks, Jess.

DEAN: U.S. businesses have paid billions due to President Trump's tariffs. Now we are looking at the Supreme Court beginning to hear arguments over whether some of these tariffs have been imposed legally. We're going to talk more about that case when we come back.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:27:59]

DEAN: The Supreme Court this week will hear two challenges to President Trump's sweeping global tariffs. The tariffs have been a centerpiece of Trump's second term economic agenda, announced in what the administration called liberation day back in April. The White House is urging the court to uphold them, but says they are working on what they're calling backup plans.

We're joined now by legal affairs correspondent for NPR, Nina Totenberg.

Nina, thanks so much for being here with us as we prepare for what will be a really interesting week at the Supreme Court. This case really centers on the authority that Trump used to impose these tariffs. Walk us through these arguments.

NINA TOTENBERG, NPR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, they're both statutory and constitutional arguments. The statute is the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, which is the reason I have these glasses on so I can read that to you. But it's known as IEEPA. IEEPA. So this is the statute that the president says authorizes him on his own without the permission of Congress to impose tariffs.

Now, tariffs, and I have to admit, I did not really fully understand this until they became such a big deal. Tariffs are paid not by the country that is being held to account. If the president imposes a 25 percent tariff on, say, Canada, it's the Canadian -- it's not the Canada that pays the price. It's the importer here who pays the tariff. So, as you can imagine, most of small businesses anyway, and a lot of big businesses as well, they're up in arms about this.

And the statute is 50 years old. It's never been used this way by any president, not President Reagan, not President Obama for that matter.

[18:30:02]

None of them thought they could use this statute. They spent a lot of time negotiating with Congress to get permission to impose certain tariffs on people. So the president maintains that he has a national emergency power, both a -- not just a statutory power and a constitutional power, but his power as president of the United States because these are -- these are emergency times, because of trade deficits and because of the importation particularly of fentanyl, and those are the conflicting ideas that will be before the Supreme Court.

We can walk through them if you want, but that's the essential part of it.

DEAN: Right. And what are you gathering from the justices around how they're looking at this? Obviously, we'll learn more this week.

TOTENBERG: Well, the justices don't tell us how they're -- what they're thinking about this. You know, on one side, we have the president who says the statute gives him the power to regulate, even though it doesn't use the word tariff. And that he also has the power under the Constitution to impose tariffs in order to prove -- to protect the national security. On the other side are an immense array from left to right of 37 Friend of the Court briefs representing 400 organizations and individuals.

From the Chamber of Commerce on the right and the Washington Legal Foundation, which is normally with Trump, for example, to on the left, every, you know, lots of other folks who disagree with the president. So there are only six briefs in comparison that are -- that defend the president's position. But the president not only contends that he has the power to impose tariffs under these circumstances because of the imbalance of trade and because of fentanyl, but that the courts don't have the power even to review his decision.

His opponents say that's just nonsense, that that's why we had a revolution. The Tea Party was over taxes imposed by the king, that the country rose up against. If you look at the briefs, there's a great imbalance. On the other hand, this court has been extremely deferential to executive power, and that's why it's a close case, because he's claiming that these are international questions, national security questions, and therefore that he has the power under the Constitution.

On the other side, they say not only is there no word tariff in this statute, the Constitution gives Congress the power to authorize tariffs, not the president.

DEAN: Yes, it will be, it will be interesting to see this all unfold.

Nina, always good to see you. Thank you very much for that. We appreciate it.

TOTENBERG: Thank you.

DEAN: After the break, making room for a ballroom at the White House was comedy gold for "Saturday Night Live." But there are many out there who don't think the renovations are any laughing matter.

You're in CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:38:14]

DEAN: President Trump's White House makeover got the "Saturday Night Live" treatment this weekend with a parody of the home renovation show "Property Brothers."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MILES TELLER, ACTOR: Donald and Melania moved into this house nine years ago. They were evicted for four years, but they moved back in. Donald has a strong eye for interior design.

JAMES AUSTIN JOHNSON, COMEDIAN: I put these gold urns everywhere, like 100 in every room. And that makes me happy. It's very important to be happy these days. Really dark stuff happening in the world. Some of it me.

TELLER: They also paved the Rose Garden and turned it into what looks like outdoor seating at an Olive Garden. But Donald and Melania still feel like something is missing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The house is only 55,000 square feet and the 132 rooms.

JOHNSON: We need more space.

TELLER: We showed Donald our plan for a ballroom that would match the current proportions, but he kept clicking enlarge.

I think the fence is into the street.

JOHNSON: They can drive around it. Oh, and I want a ring for MMA fights. Official ones, but also casual fights in the backyard.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: Joining us now, CNN presidential historian Tim Naftali.

Tim, good to see you. Obviously, some comic relief there, but look, this has gotten a lot of attention. Some Americans really take big issue with any changes to the East Wing. And also to this idea of putting this ballroom in place and using private donations in order to fund that.

Help us understand the historic context of the changes the president is making and what presidents normally do at the White House.

TIM NAFTALI, CNN PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: Well, here's some of the context, Jessica. First of all, presidents and first ladies have the right to alter the private parts of the White House, the residence. Presidents historically have changed the colors, the rugs, the look of the Oval Office, of their Oval Office, and those Oval Offices have usually end up -- ended up in some form in their presidential libraries.

[18:40:13]

What's a bigger deal is when the first family wants to change the architecture of the campus. That has happened, and a number of times in our history. But usually there's a process and there's some buy-in. Most, until now, most of these, these changes have been paid for with federal money or public money. And as a result, Congress has been involved. Since 1910 you've had a fine arts commission that has been involved in discussions about major changes to the White House.

Since 1964 you've had a committee on the preservation of the White House, which is supposed to be involved in these discussions. And yet the White House Historical Association, none of these organizations apparently participated in President Trump's large scale change of the campus.

I think what's touched a nerve among many Americans is the demolition of the East Wing. Presidents have added to the campus, but very few presidents have actually dismantled part of the campus. In the 1860s, some of what Jefferson had put in place decades before was dismantled. And much closer to our day in 1902 as part of the construction of the West Wing, Theodore Roosevelt's team dismantled some greenhouses and a conservatory. The destruction of the East Wing is pretty unprecedented. It's a much

larger scale operation, and there was no buy-in. And because Congress hasn't appropriated any funds, Congress has not had any oversight. So it's a real sense that the first family on its own is changing an historic building. And I think that rubs a lot of Americans the wrong way because it's unprecedented.

DEAN: And the private funding, I think, is another piece of it. Again, that is for the ballroom specifically, and taking funding from various companies and corporations.

NAFTALI: Well, until now, Americans have traditionally cared about public corruption. They have wanted their representatives to be focused on their interests and on the promises that their representatives made in gaining election. People have worried if money comes from lobbyists, from friends, will that money alter the way in which people use power in Washington? If you keep secret the names of people who have contributed to the new ballroom, you are opening the possibility of corruption.

Are those bribes? If that money comes from companies, are those companies going to get federal jobs as a result? Federal appropriations? That's why I think the public really needs to have transparency as to where the money is coming from. There is no reason for contributions to a public building like the White House to be anonymous. So that's an element to this story that I think has complicated it.

Once again, if Congress were paying for this ballroom, there would be a lot of oversight. There'd be a lot of buy-in, and it would be truly a national effort. With private enterprise anonymously contributing a lot of people have the right to wonder who's benefiting and for what reason.

DEAN: Yes. All right, Tim Naftali, thanks for that context. We appreciate it.

NAFTALI: Thank you, Jessica. My pleasure.

DEAN: Yes. Still to come, the unanswered question about the alleged terror plot the FBI thwarted this week. We're live in Michigan next.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:48:24]

DEAN: More questions than answers in Michigan tonight after an alleged ISIS inspired terrorist attack was foiled on Friday. Law enforcement sources telling CNN two people have been taken into custody, while three others are being questioned. The FBI has yet to announce any charges.

CNN's Leigh Waldman is live in Dearborn tonight.

And, Leigh, I know you spoke with an attorney representing one of the men tied to the case. What are you learning about the investigation?

LEIGH WALDMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jessica, we sat down with Amir Makled today about his 20-year-old client who's still in custody days after this FBI activity at two different locations here, Dearborn and another location in Inkster, Michigan. And he said there's just still a lot of questions here. They've heard almost nothing. They haven't been able to see the criminal complaint.

No charges have been filed even days later. He said all he's been able to see is just the search warrants at this point. He says that his client and the other men involved, ages 16 through 20 years old, have all been cooperative with the FBI throughout this investigation, turning over their electronics. But he said, also, there's a lot of misinformation coming out of here, pointing specifically to FBI director Kash Patel's initial tweet about this thwarted terror attack or terror plot, rather, here in Michigan, saying that Kash Patel initially put out there that two people were arrested, three others questioned.

The attorney says that's not the case. Three people have been arrested, two others have been questioned. He also is saying that these allegations to this community mean a lot more because the Dearborn, Michigan, community is home to one of the largest Arab and Muslim populations in the United States. And he says allegations like this have big ramifications for this community.

[18:50:03]

Take a listen to part of our conversation.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AMIR MAKLED, ATTORNEY REPRESENTING ONE OF THOSE IN CUSTODY: What are the -- what are the feds want to do here? Because they haven't done anything yet, which is odd. Generally, we'll have a criminal complaint immediately and we have seen nothing yet. It's amazing that they're monitoring the Arab Muslim community so much. But the Federal Bureau of Investigation has never been able to thwart a mass school shooting. Why is that?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALDMAN: And we asked him, you know, when should we expect to see charges filed since they haven't been filed yet? He says the U.S. attorney's office has until tomorrow, Monday, to file these charges. We asked, what would you like to see happen if no charges are filed in this case?

And Jessica, he said he's demanding an apology from Kash Patel himself.

DEAN: All right. Leigh Waldman for us there in Dearborn, Michigan. Thanks for that reporting.

Voting is underway for the 2025 CNN Hero of the Year. And in the meantime, we are catching up with previous CNN Heroes whose work keeps growing and creating positive change.

We first met Mama Shu in 2023 and watched as she turned an abandoned street near Detroit into a vibrant community hub.

Anderson Cooper shares how she and her organization are moving onward and upward.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHAMAYIM "MAMA SHU" HARRIS, 2023 TOP 10 CNN HERO: Now look at this block, like, wow. Man, if we just clean up this block and do this and do that, and I just had dreams about it, I really did.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): In 2007, Mama Shu lost her 2-year-old son when he was hit by a car. Determined to turn her pain into purpose, she began buying abandoned lots in her beloved highland park and building a better future for her community.

HARRIS: We kept buying the land because it was so many things inside of my head that I wanted to actually build for the people.

COOPER: In 2023, she was honored as a CNN Hero for her remarkable efforts to transform her block into Avalon Village. Today, it covers dozens of lots and includes a homework house, basketball court, stem lab, and community gardens. And Mama Shu isn't slowing down any time soon. She hopes to build a cafe and laundromat in the village. Recently, she completed the addition of bleachers around the basketball court, giving the community a space to gather and renovations on the village healing house are set to begin soon.

HARRIS: I remember every inch of how this whole block used to look. Folks hated to come over here. Now they're like bringing their children over and stuff. It's just really a beautiful thing to see.

You can change your environment. You really can. Sometimes I just sit and I just smile. But then I say, you know what? I'm not done yet.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: Amazing. And to learn more and vote for the CNN Hero of the Year, go to CNNHeroes.com.

Still ahead in our next hour of CNN NEWSROOM, President Trump is on his way back to the White House after spending the weekend at Mar-a- Lago in Florida as Congress remains deadlocked and the pain for the government shutdown skyrockets.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:57:47]

DEAN: In this week's episode of "BREAKING BREAD," award-winning Tony -- award-winning actor Tony Shalhoub takes viewers to his home state of Wisconsin, where he enjoys a grilled cheese at Lambeau Field, visits a local dairy farm, and cooked a meal with three generations of the Shalhoub family.

I sat down with Tony to talk about family and flavors that make this place feel like home to him. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: So you go home in this episode, you go to your home state of Wisconsin, which is where your father, who we've now followed from Lebanon to Marseilles.

TONY SHALHOUB, AWARD-WINNING ACTOR AND HOST, TONY SHALHOUB BREAKING BREAD: To Marseilles, to New York.

DEAN: To New York.

SHALHOUB: To Wisconsin.

DEAN: To Wisconsin.

SHALHOUB: Right.

DEAN: And so what was it like to be there for you?

SHALHOUB: Well, I go back to Wisconsin quite often because I have family and friends there of course. It was terrific because we didn't just do Green Bay, which is where I'm from. We explored other parts of the state, some of which I was not that familiar with. And it was great reconnecting with family there. We went to Lambeau of course. That was such a big part of my growing up, and it's part of my life. I'm a season ticket holder.

I got to meet one of my heroes, Leroy Butler, who is the guy that invented the Lambeau leap. He told me that he always has to have a grilled cheese before a game. And this started from when he was very young. I don't know, his mother or his sister or somebody made him a grilled cheese sandwich. And he had a -- he must have had a great game. When he was playing away games. he had to kind of sometimes struggle to find like, where am I? Where's the grilled cheese coming from? I got to --

DEAN: Yes.

SHALHOUB: Where is it? When is it coming? I need it now. I made it with him. His system, his formula, which has to do with cheese. You know, between the bread and cheese on the bread. Because it's Wisconsin.

DEAN: More cheese the better. So you're with your family, your sisters, your daughter, your grandson. You guys got to make some meals together, too, right?

SHALHOUB: Right. Because I'm from a big family and we try to do -- every year, we try to do a big reunion. Lots of us now, generations. And that a lot of times revolves around people making food. And we did a kind of mini version of that. I got to sort of show them off in a way, on camera. DEAN: I mean, you would want to do that anyway, and now you get to

share it with everyone.

SHALHOUB: Well, they're my favorite people so.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: Be sure to tune in to the new episode of the CNN Original Series, "TONY SHALHOUB BREAKING BREAD." It airs tonight at 9:00 p.m.