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Thousands In Greenland Protest Against Threats Of Annexation; At Least 40 Killed In Spain After Two Trains Collide; State National Guard Mobilized To Support Local Law Enforcement; 1,500 Federal Troops on Standby for Possible Deployment in Minnesota ; Russia, Belarus Invited to Join 'Board of Peace'; France Decides Not to Join 'Board of Peace'; Iranian Kurdish Group Hopeful End of Islamic Republic in Sight; Chinese Internet Trend of Humans Imitating Awkward A.I. Videos Goes Viral. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired January 20, 2026 - 02:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:00:40]

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey everybody, it's great to be with you. This is CNN NEWSROOM, and I'm Polo Sandoval live in New York.

Here's what's ahead, not letting up. Donald Trump escalating his campaign to take over Greenland with its surprising twists about what may be his true motivation.

And Spain grappling with one of its deadliest railway disasters in more than a decade. And this, as investigators search for answers, we hear harrowing stories from some of the survivors.

And later, flipping the script, while many are out trying to figure out whether a video is A.I., you'll meet an influencer doing just the reverse.

ANNOUNCER: Live from New York, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Polo Sandoval.

SANDOVAL: All right, let's begin this hour with Denmark as it seeks to bolster its military presence in Greenland amid the Trump administration's efforts to take hold of that territory. According to a Danish spokesperson, there will be a substantial increase in the number of troops positioned on the Arctic island, with developments already underway. Despite this, President Trump is still arguing that the U.S. needs control of Greenland.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We have to have it. They have to have this done. They can't protect it. Denmark, they're wonderful people, and I know the leaders are very good people, but they don't even go there.

And you know, because the boat went there 500 years ago and then left, that doesn't give you title to property. So, we'll be talking about it with the various people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: And the U.S. president will soon be heading to Davos, Switzerland for the World Economic Forum. And in the days ahead, he'll be coming face-to-face with many of the same European leaders that he's been targeting with a new round of U.S. tariffs. The latest threats coming as key allies continue to challenge us claims over Greenland. In fact during a phone call with the British prime minister over the weekend, a U.K. official says that President Trump conceded that he may have been given bad information about European troop deployments in Greenland.

This comes as several NATO allies have conducted joint exercises around the island. U.S. president also tied his failure to win a Nobel Peace Prize to his Greenland ambitions.

In a text message to the Norwegian Prime Minister on Sunday, Trump wrote, considering your country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped eight wars plus, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of peace, although it will always be predominant, but can now think about what is good and proper for the United States of America, the president wrote.

As E.U. officials weigh potential off ramps from the mounting tensions, many continue stressing the need for dialog, and the Danish Foreign Minister made it clear why Europe has really been united behind this issue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LARS LOKKE RASMUSSEN, DANISH FOREIGN MINISTER (through translator): Because it's about sending that signal to the American president, you can't cross this line.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: Just a short time ago, President Trump posted a screenshot on his Truth Social account that he claims is a message sent to him by French President Emmanuel Macron, questioning Trump's position on Greenland. We do want to show you what that post is, again from the president.

He in that post, it reads, "My friend, we are totally in line on Syria. We can do great things on Iran. I do not understand what you are doing on Greenland."

Now, CNN cannot independently verify that message or that it was indeed sent from the French president, but in recent days, Macron has described Trump's tariff threat over Greenland as unacceptable.

CNN's Nic Robertson has more on how all of this is impacting the people in Greenland.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): Greenland's Prime Minister and his people are walking a tightrope at anti-U.S. protests over the weekend in the capital, Nuuk the biggest yet, trying not to inflame already overheated international tensions.

[02:05:00]

The Prime Minister not mentioning President Donald Trump by name, saying were all standing here together today to show that were united in not accepting what's happening to us. Many here feeling like bystanders to their own destiny.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right now, I think as a generation, we're kind of scared for the future because it feels like we don't have enough power to make our own decisions fully.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's scary to think about it, and it's scary at night to try to sleep and it's the talk of the day every day.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A couple days ago, we talked about buying a rifle.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, for defense.

ROBERTSON: Wow, that's serious.

Gun store owners we've spoken with say they're not seeing a spike in sales, but purchases of camping stoves, gasoline, freeze dried food is going up. Driven, they say, by the crazy language President Trump is using and concerns that events here really are out of their control.

Now, Denmark's move to have NATO allies trained for Arctic security has further angered President Trump, who is threatening tariffs on the contributing countries.

Compared to other NATO partners, how tough are the conditions up here?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is very, very tough, and that's also why we have to train up here.

ROBERTSON: The Danish commander in charge tiptoes around the politics of it all.

As NATO commander are you personally surprised that a NATO partner could be threatening another NATO partner?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look, I will not go into politics, but I work perfectly together with the U.S. military. We have done that for decades in in Bosnia, in Afghanistan, in Iraq. And we do it also today.

ROBERTSON: As a Dane who suffered a lot of losses in Afghanistan, many per capita, as the United States, is it disappointing to you that we're in this position.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Frankly, it is. ROBERTSON (voice-over): Yet even while marginalized, no one here is giving up hope yet.

ROBERTSON: Do you think this is going to be resolved diplomatically?

SVEND HARDENBERG, GREENLANDIC BUSINESSMAN: I think so, well, all of us are hoping that that will be solved and the dialogue has started. And I'm assuming that that will go in a very positive direction for everybody.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Greenland-born exec, Svend Hardenberg is running point for his mining company to get a minerals and rare earth's project mired in local politics into production and turning a profit for Greenlanders.

HARDENBERG: We will be paying the Greenland government just on royalties equivalent to U.S. dollars 5.5 billion in that period of time. And then you have job creation, infrastructure investments.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): He is bullish about Greenland's potential, sees benefit in Trump's business first style, but even he is staying out of the red-hot diplomacy.

ROBERTSON: With the United States' help with that development if the United States had control in Greenland.

HARDENBERG: Well, that's a scenario some would speculate on. I would not speculate on that.

ROBERTSON: You don't think it's even a remote possibility that the United States is going to control Greenland at some point?

HARDENBERG: I don't think so.

ROBERTSON: Why not?

HARDENBERG: It's -- when I'm looking at how everything is transpiring. I don't see that as an option.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): In a land of uncertainty, Greenlanders are embracing what they can control, themselves, letting go of tensions on skis and skates, or escaping the geopolitical strains with music and comedy.

Hard reality, no one here is laughing for long. Still hoping Trump runs out of bluster.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Nuuk, Greenland.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: Global leaders, they are in Davos this week for the World Economic Forum. It's an annual event to address the most pressing international issues, and given everything we've covered just the last eight minutes alone, you can bet that this year's theme is being put to the test a spirit of dialog. Finance ministers from the European Union, they are meeting at this

hour. They are set to discuss different issues, including President Trump's tariff threats.

A reminder, he's currently calling for 10 percent tariffs on eight European countries who oppose his demand to his wishes to take Greenland. And the E.U.'s deputy chief spokesperson says that their goal is, "To engage, not escalate tensions on that matter."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OLOF GILL, DEPUTY CHIEF SPOKESPERSON, EUROPEAN COMMISSION: Should the threatened tariffs be imposed, the European Union has tools at its disposal and is prepared to respond, because we will do everything necessary to protect E.U. economic interests.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[02:10:02]

SANDOVAL: Let's get some expert analysis now and go live to Dr. Linda Yueh, she's an economic -- economist at Oxford University. It is wonderful to have you with us.

LINDA YUEH, ECONOMIST, OXFORD UNIVERSITY: Thank you very much. Good to be here.

SANDOVAL: So, I'm curious as you watch for any potential developments out of Davos this week, do you have any sense of where European leaders will turn in the face of these tariff threats from President Trump? You know, the Europeans can retaliate with their -- with their so-called economic bazooka, but it seems that they are looking more for an off ramp. Is that what your sense is?

YUEH: Yes, that is my sense too. But they certainly do have economic tools at their disposal. So, even without using the economic trade bazooka, so that's the anti-coercion instrument, the European Union could continue to impose tariffs that they were going to suspend in a couple of weeks.

So, 93 billion euros worth of tariffs, which accounts for over a quarter of what the U.S. sells to Europe. So, they could have broad, sweeping tariffs, that is one possible retaliation.

But indeed, the ACI, the Anti-Corruption instrument that was actually brought in at the end of 2023 or so, and what makes that a bazooka is that it gives them a wide range of tools that it can be imposed at the E.U. level.

So, the reason that's important is because, and you hear this a lot from American policymakers, who say that Europeans are very slow to act, because they normally have to get individual nations on board or a majority, but the ACI, this trade bazooka allows the European Union itself to impose everything from tariffs to investment restrictions to limiting other countries from being able to, say, compete in government procurement, which is a very big market. So, I think those are the things which are on the table. But yes, I

think they would hope to find an off ramp, because the tit for tat trade war hurts both economies.

SANDOVAL: And this leads us to the other question of what we could potentially see play out in the U.S. for consumers and for businesses. What do you see happening if European leaders decide to deploy some of the economic weapons that they have at their disposal? What sort of financial reverberations could we see here in the United States?

YUEH: Higher prices for consumers. So, there's already evidence that tariffs, which have been imposed are causing consumers to pay more for their daily goods. So, what happens with tariffs is that it's a tax on what Americans buy from abroad, and the businesses can choose to absorb it, and a lot of that did that.

When the tariffs were first came in last April, you saw less what's called pass through. But now increasingly, firms are struggling, because when they do absorb the costs, it affects their own profit margins.

So, the evidence is more and more inflation is being passed through. It's actually one of the reasons why U.S. prices remain elevated, because we've had a year of sustained tariffs and price increases.

So, American consumers are likely to feel the impact in their pocketbooks, but Europeans will also feel the impact as well.

SANDOVAL: And then there are the markets. And economists told me, yes on Saturday, that certainty is currency in the global markets, and that at any sign of any uncertainty, that repricing begins almost immediately.

So, how do you see the president's rhetoric on Greenland impacting markets here in the U.S., when they open today and around the world?

YUEH: Well, I think that uncertainty is already causing some loss in confidence in markets. Markets may have already processed some of this information. They could be in a little bit of a wait and see mode, but it's quite likely you'll continue to see markets feel that tension. So, could be a bit more of the falls. You see gold viewed as a safe haven, the prices of that has increased.

So, markets value certainty. We haven't had a lot of certainty over the past year or so. So, there is a slight sense that markets are beginning to operate a wait and see when there is uncertainty.

But depending on how the conversations go in Switzerland at Davos, if they really are going to hold a G7 type of meeting that would argue for a wait and see scenario.

But I think markets, if it escalates, this is quite a big change to put it lightly, I think you will see adverse market reaction if it doesn't feel like the conversations in the off ramp look likely.

[02:15:04] SANDOVAL: Yes, it is easy to overlook just the historic significance of this moment that we're all living right now as we wait to see what could potentially come out of these meetings that are happening as we speak. Linda Yueh, thank you so much for your time and letting us tap into your expertise. Have a great week.

YUEH: Thank you so much. You too.

SANDOVAL: Meanwhile, in Spain, a country mourning after a deadly train crash over the weekend ahead the latest details on the country's worst railway disaster in more than a decade.

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[02:20:07]

SANDOVAL: There are thousands that are once again without water and power after Russia's latest bombardment, Ukraine's Air Force reported a missile and drone attack in Kyiv earlier.

A CNN team also heard explosions in the city. The mayor in that city saying that at least one person is injured and more than 5,600 multi story buildings are without any source of heat. Russia launched a massive attack on Kyiv's energy infrastructure earlier this month, leaving hundreds of thousands of households, businesses, schools, all without power, amid below freezing temperatures.

And Spain's Prime Minister promising to get to the truth behind the cause of a deadly train crash this weekend. He's also declared three days of mourning. At least 40 people were killed and dozens more injured after two high speed trains collided on Sunday night.

CNN's Pau Mosquera has the latest from Spain.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAU MOSQUERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A high speed train collision in southern Spain, the country's deadliest rail disaster in more than a decade. Dozens were killed and many more injured when two trains collided at speed near the town of Ademuz.

Officials say a northbound high-speed train operated by private rail company Iryo was traveling from Malaga to Madrid with 371 passengers on board when its rear three carriages derailed and slammed into the front of an oncoming state operated train.

The impact violent. Both trains overturned, sending some carriages plunging down an embankment, according to news agency EFE. Video verified by CNN shows passengers scrambling out through windows. Others climbing onto the roof to escape.

Rescue crews worked through the night in near-total darkness, cutting through twisted metal to reach those still trapped inside. Survivor, Ana(ph), was pulled from the wreckage through a shattered window by fellow passengers who had already made it out. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Some people were fine and others were really bad, and we had them in front of us, and you could see them dying and you could do nothing.

MOSQUERA: Abdulrahman(ph) said, he rushed to the scene after learning of the crash, searching desperately for his sister-in-law, Amir(ph), who was traveling on one of the trains.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They say they don't know anything, and there are people who are missing and suffering. We went to the Civil Guard and they also don't know anything. They are doing DNA tests to find out where she is, but they don't know anything about her. On top of that, we are here with the little girl. We are tired and haven't slept.

MOSQUERA: Spain's Transport Minister says the cause of the crash remains unknown, noting the collision happened on a straight stretch of recently renovated track.

OSCAR PUENTE SANTIAGO, MINISTER OF TRANSPORT, SPAIN: The accident is extremely strange. It happened on a straight stretch of track. All the railway experts who have been here today at this center, and those we have been able to consult, are extremely surprised by the accident because, as I say, it is strange, very strange.

MOSQUERA: Andalusian officials warned the death toll could rise. Forensic teams work to identify the victims as families anxiously wait, fearing the worst.

Pau Mosquera, CNN, Adamuz, Spain.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: We also want to turn now to the immigration crackdown in the U.S. state of Minnesota. Sources are telling CNN that the FBI had briefly opened a civil rights probe into the federal agent who shot and killed Renee Good in Minneapolis earlier this month, but that the investigation has shifted away from the agent Jonathan Ross and now focuses on Good and her widow.

Some inside the Department of Justice see that switch as politically motivated, and at least six federal prosecutors in Minnesota have already resigned because of that. Good's killing has sparked public outrage and also kicked off days of protests against federal immigration agents in Minnesota.

Meanwhile, the Justice Department is appealing a federal judge's ruling from last week, restricting those federal agents from arresting peaceful protesters or from firing pepper spray during nonviolent demonstrations.

Now we should point out that those are some of the actions that the Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said over the weekend are not happening, according to her and even dismissed the order as ridiculous. All of this as 1,500 active duty soldiers have been ordered to get ready, to prepare for a possible deployment to Minnesota. Sources telling CNN that senior Trump administration officials are

discussing the potential use of the Insurrection Act, but as of now, it remains a last resort.

Cedric Leighton is a CNN military analyst and a retired U.S. Air Force Colonel. Welcome back to the program, Colonel.

[02:25:01]

COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: It's great to be with you, Polo.

SANDOVAL: So, just to remind our viewers, Minnesota's Governor Tim Walz, he has mobilized the state's National Guard while urging President Trump not to send in hundreds of active army troops.

So, essentially, you have two potential deployments. Here you have the U.S. Army, and then you have the Minnesota National Guard. Help us differentiate what their respective missions would be should we see deployments?

LEIGHTON: Yes, so on the streets, they might not people might not see that much of a difference. But the actual fact of the matter is, is that if there are two separate deployments, the Minnesota National Guard actually does have some law enforcement authorities that it could use under not only Title 32 but also under Minnesota state law.

So, that becomes in one of those interesting areas where the Minnesota guard actually would have some capabilities that the federal troops would not have. The federal troops, if U.S. Army troops were to be deployed, could be used to do things like protect buildings and protect personnel, federal personnel, like the ICE agents, pretty similar to what you saw in Los Angeles earlier, a few months ago.

So, those are the kinds of things that they could do, but it would be a assuming that the command authorities of each of those entities stays the same. You can see some very different missions from people who, because of their uniforms, would look fairly much the same.

SANDOVAL: Actually, let's pick up on that possible chain of command. Usually, you know, again, anything could change. But should we see deployments? I mean, who would issue orders to army personnel and then separately to the National Guard?

LEIGHTON: So, if the National Guard stays under state control, in other words, it's not being federalized, then Governor Walz of Minnesota would actually be the commander in chief of the Minnesota National Guard. So, he would be issuing orders to the National Guard to do things like perhaps crowd control or to disperse people from certain areas, to augment the state patrol in Minnesota, or the local police forces, the sheriffs of the local Minneapolis Police. So, those would be the kinds of things that Governor Walz could do.

The chain of command for the U.S. Army troops, assuming they would come through for deployment, like has been suggested, that would unless the Insurrection Act is imposed, the chain of command would be through the President of the United States, and in the case where the Insurrection Act is imposed, it would still be through the President of the United States, but he would also potentially control the National Guard as well.

So, it all depends on whether or not the National Guard is federalized, and that really becomes a potential constitutional issue where you have two different chains of command and the militaries of the state. In other words, the National Guard would basically be doing a different job than the as compared to the federal forces from the U.S. Army.

SANDOVAL: And as you were speaking, we're seeing some images of uniformed service members, some of them wearing bright colored reflective vests. I thought it was interesting.

Over the weekend, you saw the Minnesota State officials send out that message to the general public that should they be deployed, that their personnel would be wearing those reflective vests, so that they could differentiate them from other law enforcement personnel or potentially federal troops.

Now, you have the potential for U.S. Army soldiers, National Guard, you mentioned local police and Sheriff's Department, not to mention ICE. I mean, I can't help but wonder, in the event of multiple -- these multi deployments, isn't there potential for chaos?

LEIGHTON: There certainly is. And this is one thing where the local commanders, the on scene commanders are really going to have to work with each other, no matter what the rules are or the directives are from on high, whether it's from the president or from the governor.

So, in order to avoid chaos, which may be what some people want in this particular situation, they will definitely have to coordinate on the local level and determine in which areas they're each going to work in, and if they do that, they can avoid that chaotic scene and perhaps diffuse the situation.

But if they don't do that, then it could very well be a problem, and things could get very much out of hand, and that would be a real difficulty.

SANDOVAL: And finally, Colonel, what would be the normal protocol in the event that a state governor needs support from the federal government? And when was the last time that you saw that play out? You mentioned Los Angeles, but in that case, that was Trump essentially sending in these troops.

LEIGHTON: Yes, in that case, that was the most recent deployment to Los Angeles. But Los Angeles was actually the place in 1992 where the Insurrection Act was last invoked, and that was at the request of Governor Pete Wilson, who was the governor of California at the time. This was in the wake of the Rodney King riots.

In that particular case, things get out of hand. Local law enforcement could not cope with the situation, and Governor Wilson asked at the time President Bush, George H. W. Bush, to provide federal troops, and he provided Army and Marine assets to help quell the riots that occurred in Los Angeles at that time. So that was the last time that was used.

[02:30:00]

Before that, federal troops were used in local situations in the '50s and '60s in cases of desegregation and the riots that were associated with that during that period. So those forces would deploy to places like Washington, D.C., Detroit, and some of the other cities.

But in this particular situation, the governor has not requested federal troops, and the situation is definitely not at the level that we saw in Los Angeles in 1992.

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN ANCHOR OF "CNN NEWSROOM": Colonel Cedric Leighton, as always, really appreciate your expertise. Thank you.

LEIGHTON: You bet, Polo. Thanks so much for having me.

SANDOVAL: And still to come here on "CNN Newsroom," the recent unrest in Iran, it is raising hopes among Iranian Kurdish rebels that the end of the Islamic Republic may be in sight. We'll take you inside one of their training camps.

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[02:35:35]

SANDOVAL: Welcome back. We are learning new details about who has received an invitation to join President Trump's so-called 'Board of Peace' that will oversee reconstruction of Gaza. Among the names, Russian President, Vladimir Putin. The Kremlin says that Putin is now reviewing said invitation and is hoping for more information from the Trump administration. French President Emmanuel Macron was asked to participate, but a foreign ministry spokesperson says that France has decided not to take part.

Just a short time ago, President Trump had this reaction.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Well, nobody wants him because he's going to be out of office very soon. So, you know, that's all right. What I'll do is if they feel like (inaudible), I'll put a 200 percent tariff on his wines and champagnes, and he'll join. But he doesn't have to join.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: Yeah, the president threatening yet again with some tariffs. We have learned that President Trump has also invited Israel to join the board as a founding member state. President Trump is expected to chair this board.

Let's go to Iran now, where the recent wave of unrest is being viewed by some rebel groups as proof that the Iranian regime's days are numbered. CNN's Ben Wedeman has new reporting from northern Iraq, where he visited an Iranian Kurdish military training camp.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The instructor puts fresh recruits through the paces of how to handle their AK-47 assault rifles. The men and women in this unit call themselves Peshmerga, Kurdish for those who face death, fighters with the KDPI, the Kurdish Democratic Party Iran.

With the bloody nationwide protests that began late last month, 42- year-old Hemant (ph) says the end of the reign of the Ayatollahs is approaching. The government has economic resources and military power, he says. But now, we can see they're slowly losing power and popular support.

The KDPI is the largest and oldest Iranian Kurdish rebel group. For 80 years, they've fought for Kurdish rights in a country where they make up about 10 percent of the population. These rugged mountains in northern Iraq have long served as a safe haven for the Kurds and a launching pad for their fight, first against the Shah, and for the past 47 years, the theocratic rulers in Tehran.

WEDEMAN: This is just one of a variety of groups which has been preparing for decades for the day when the regime in Tehran falls.

WEDEMAN (voice-over): Party Leader, Mustafa Hijri shows me where he was born in Iran, but he hasn't been back in decades. Ultimately, he believes it's up to the Iranians alone to change their leaders. Help from the U.S. and Europe for the Iranian people is heartwarming, he tells me. But the people won't put their hopes in the decisions and actions of Mr. Trump or any other international leader.

19-year-old Farina (ph) fled her home in Iran to become a Peshmerga. She's training to be a sniper. In Iran, she says, we have no rights, especially as women. That's why I became a Peshmerga, to defend my rights as a Kurd and as a woman.

Another generation is treading a well-worn path of struggle against their oppressors.

Ben Wedeman, CNN, in northern Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: Just ahead here on "CNN Newsroom," CNN's John King speaks with voters in a rural Iowa town just one year into President Trump's second term, what they're feeling and the clues that they're offering ahead of this year's pivotal midterm elections.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:44:18]

SANDOVAL: Well, so much has happened that it's really hard to believe that today marks just one year since President Trump started his second term. A recent CNN poll conducted by SSRS shows a majority of Americans, some 58 percent, consider his first year in office a failure; 42 percent calling it a success. In that same poll, Americans chose the economy as the country's top issue, notice it's not immigration. And more than half are saying that Trump's policies have worsened economic conditions.

In the first year of his second term, President Trump has moved quickly to reshape the U.S. to his vision. And there have been few checks on his power so far.

[02:45:00]

But 2026 brings with it midterm elections and the possibility of Democrats retaking control of not one, but possibly both chambers of Congress.

CNN's John King returned to Iowa to see how voters are feeling about the president's performance and also the upcoming elections.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A new year and a new election cycle.

BETSY SARCONE, IOWA VOTER: What I'm really happy with is that Donald Trump is not OK with the status quo.

CHRIS MUDD, IOWA VOTER: We need to win in November because I think they're going to try to impeach him.

KING: You're open to voting for a Democrat?

SHANEN EBERSOLE, IOWA VOTER: Of course. I wish that Washington could get along like House.

KING (voice-over): And we begin in Iowa again.

KING: This was our first group, August 2023, when we started "All Over the Map." Our first big question was, could Donald Trump come back after January 6th? Did he still have his grip on the Republican Party? So, why are we back now? He's been back in the White House for a year. And that one-year anniversary happens to coincide with January of a midterm election year.

KING (voice-over): First stop, the Ebersole Cattle Farm, rural Kellerton.

(LAUGH)

KING: How are you?

EBERSOLE: It's good to see you.

KING (voice-over): Calving season before election season.

EBERSOLE: And then they'll calve in a pasture just like this. These are all of our old mama girls. KING (voice-over): Shanen Ebersole speaks politely but plainly. There are signs of Trumpsaution (ph).

EBERSOLE: We definitely have choices. We can -- we can say calm down.

(LAUGH)

EBERSOLE: We can say talk nice.

KING (voice-over): Ebersole was a Nikki Haley supporter, but reluctantly backed Trump in the end. Three out of five is her first- year grade. The economy feels a little better and illegal immigration is way down. But Trump's big Argentina beef bailout didn't feel so America First, nor does talk about somehow taking Greenland.

(LAUGH)

EBERSOLE: I don't agree with that in any way, shape or form.

KING: That's not what you voted for?

EBERSOLE: No.

KING (Voice-over): Ebersole's take on Washington? Trump picks too many fights. And people in Congress, she says, worry too much about money and power and too little about family farmers or finding compromise.

EBERSOLE: There is a lot of that. You know, you don't have to walk through it. You have to wade through it because it's like knee deep in your neck of the woods.

KING (voice-over): She says that frustration includes her Republican Congressman, Zach Nunn.

KING: OK, cows, raise a hoof. Who thinks Zach Nunn is doing a good job in Congress?

(LAUGH)

KING: Nobody.

EBERSOLE: I would probably agree there.

(LAUGH)

EBERSOLE: That is one call that I might make.

KING: You're open to voting for a Democrat?

EBERSOLE: Of course. I think that you have to vote for the person that best meets your goals.

KING: The 2026 midterm stakes here in Iowa are enormous. The state is picking a new governor, a new United States Senator, and all four of its House seats, of course, are on the midterm ballot. There's two ways to do this. You do it the fancy GPS thing or you do it the old-fashioned way. And you know what? I like old school.

KING (voice-over): Next stop, Des Moines and its fast-growing suburbs.

SARCONE: There's that saying Trump was right about everything and that's kind of how I'm feeling right now.

KING (voice-over): This breakfast conversation, our sixth visit with Betsy Sarcone dating back to August 2023, her shift beyond dramatic. A DeSantis, then a Haley voter, said she would vote for Joe Biden if Trump won the Republican nomination. But she changed her mind.

SARCONE: I think Biden probably changed me more than Trump. I think watching nothing be done, you know, for four years about an open border --

KING (voice-over): Now she gives Trump an A-minus, loves the immigration crackdown, just closed a big real estate sale, and thinks the economy is picking up. Sarcone laughed at Trump's 2020 election fraud claims when we first met, another big change.

SARCONE: I'm starting to question the election of 2020, right?

KING: He lost the election in 2020.

SARCONE: I don't know.

KING: He lost the election in 2020.

KING (voice-over): The suburbs revolted against Trump in his first midterm and Democrats are banking on it again. But Republicans don't have to worry about Sarcone. She likes Congressman Nunn and loves that her daughters can use the school choice plan passed by state Republicans.

SARCONE: They've done a lot of great things for us in Iowa.

KING (voice-over): East now, 120 miles from Des Moines to Columbus Junction, Louisa County is rural, a tiny piece of Iowa's most competitive congressional district.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, I'm Jill.

KING: Hey, John. How are you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Nice to meet you.

KING (voice-over): Local Democrats held this potluck to begin their midterm organizing. They know the math. Donald Trump won 70 percent of the county vote last time.

KING: Pressure bother you or pressure excite you?

MICHELE PEGG, LOUISA COUNTY DEMOCRATIC CHAIR: Pressure is pressure. You're kind of like a little duck out here. You got to paddle like hell underneath and smooth sailing on the surface. That's what you have to do.

KING (voice-over): Michelle Pegg is the new County Democratic Chairwoman, eager to register new voters, happy to knock on doors with Trump flags. In the end, though, she says Democratic candidates need to win back rural voters who feel forgotten.

PEGG: You want the office? You have to sway the voters. It's how your message is packaged. And can you get out here? I mean, there's beef farmers.

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Go down a rural county. Go down a highway. Go down a gravel road. Go down a Class B road. Knock on a door. We'll see how it goes.

KING (voice-over): One more stop, 140 miles north.

KING: Two of Iowa's four house races were blowouts back in 2024. This is Shell Rock in the second congressional district. The Republican margin of victory here was about 63,000 votes in 2024. In the fourth district out in western Iowa, it was more than twice that. But two of the districts are pretty competitive. In the third district in southwest Iowa, the Republican incumbent won by just shy of 16,000 votes. And in the first district, just south of here in eastern Iowa, the margin was tiny, 799 votes.

KING (voice-over): Midwest Solar is installing the new panels on this Shell Rock car dealership. Chris Mudd is the CEO and a Trump guy from the beginning. On the drive out, a new twist to a familiar conspiracy.

MUDD: I think this election fraud, I think information is going to come out on that. Maybe Maduro is going to be able to offer some information about some of those things that happened in 2020. Like I told you long ago, I believe that the election was stolen from him.

KING: This is one on which we disagree.

MUDD: Yeah.

KING (voice-over): Business took a hit when Trump killed Biden clean energy incentives, but high electricity prices are driving sales now, and Mudd's support of Trump is unflinching.

MUDD: My life is similar, OK, but my optimism is greater because I believe the things that Trump is doing are good for our country.

KING (voice-over): Mudd's gut tells him Trump's support is down just a bit. He knows Republicans struggle when Trump is not on the ballot. He's nervous about 2026, even here.

MUDD: I am a Trump guy, but I am concerned about -- we need to win in November. Because I think they're going to try to impeach him. And it's going to cause havoc for the country.

KING: 99 counties.

KING (voice-over): It was Iowa that launched Trump on his 2024 comeback. Now, Iowa gets a big say in whether even Trump country wants a midterm reset.

KING: Back in 2024, Donald Trump won 94 of Iowa's 99 counties. So it is a steep climb for the Democrats. But, Iowa is a fascinating midterm test. Do the suburbs swing back the Democrats way like they did in 2018? And critical in Iowa and elsewhere, can Democrats finally claw their way back to be a little bit more competitive in those critical rural areas? That's a big test in Iowa and elsewhere.

Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: Our thanks to John King and his team. We are just about two hours away from a historic speech in London. Mike Johnson, the top Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives, is expected to address the British Parliament. This will be the first time ever that a U.S. House Speaker addresses the Parliament. It's also part of the commemorations to mark the 250th anniversary of the U.S. independence later this year.

When that happens, we'll bring that to you live here on CNN. Also, still ahead here at the -- during the next few minutes, you think you can spot an A.I.-generated video? Well, up ahead, the Chinese influencer that's putting that to the test as he imitates the imitators.

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SANDOVAL: A.I.-generated content, it is becoming unsettlingly hard to identify, mimicking humans and becoming more and more lifelike as the technology develops. But one Chinese influencer has decided to flip the script by creating videos that imitate A.I.

Here's CNN's Kristie Lu Stout.

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KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Take a guess. Was this generated by A.I.? Turns out it is human-made. They're so good that even Douyin, China's TikTok, warned the imitations could be A.I.- generated. This is the man who has tricked the platform. His name is Mu Tianran, an actor and a pro at imitating A.I.-generated videos.

MU TIANRAN, CHINESE INFLUENCER (through translator): It's quite hard. Quite hard. You need to film many times.

LU STOUT (voice-over): A.I.-generated videos are everywhere as the technology becomes more mature and widespread. But in China, the new trend on social media is to imitate them in sloppy ways. As a pioneer who started in late 2024, Mu shared his tips on imitating A.I. TIANRAN (through translator): I think I focus on some very specific details. For example, A.I. characters' eyes look kind of dazed and drifty. For example, when facing someone, they won't look at that person but will stare somewhere else. They seem to be talking but are looking somewhere else.

LU STOUT (voice-over): But in 2026, that imitation is getting harder for Mu.

TIANRAN (through translator): So, I think when A.I. goes viral on the internet again in the future, I might not be able to find a single flaw. There will really be nothing left for me to imitate.

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SANDOVAL: That was Kristie Lu Stout reporting. From the entire team, thank you so much for watching the last 60 minutes of news. I'm Polo Sandoval in New York. The news continues with my colleague Rosemary Church after a very quick break.

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