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CNN This Morning

Zelenskyy Fails To Secure Tomahawk Missiles At Talks With Trump; Trump Commutes Sentence Of Former U.S. Rep. George Santos; Ohtani Leads Dodgers To World Series With 3 Home Runs; Government Shutdown Enters 18th Day; Federal workers Still On The Job Have A New Worry: Taking A Day Off During The Shutdown. Bessent Plans Talks with China to Ease Growing Trade Tensions; Trump's Tariffs Put Pressure on Furniture Industry; Alaska Storm Damage Leaves Thousands Without Homes for Months. Aired 6-7a ET

Aired October 18, 2025 - 06:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:00:32]

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: It's Saturday, October 18th. Good morning to you. I'm Victor Blackwell and welcome to CNN This Morning.

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy will be heading home without those Tomahawk missiles that he wants. More on what came from his meeting with President Trump and President Trump's message to Russia.

Former GOP Congressman George Santos is a free man. President Trump commuted his sentence last night, seemingly out of nowhere. We'll talk about the reason that Trump says Santos is free.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's going to get increasingly hard for me to keep food in my house. We are real people suffering and being hurt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Federal workers are now having to take up dishwashing jobs and drive Uber to make ends meet as the government remains shut down. And now we're learning some federal workers are even afraid to take a sick day.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We got to be really careful that the effort to save us doesn't do more damage than good.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: President Trump's tariffs on foreign goods could help us furniture manufacturers. But some executives worry it could do more harm than good as you heard there, their concerns are coming up.

OK, so no Tomahawk missiles for Ukraine. Instead, President Trump is telling both Ukraine and Russia to stop the war. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: I met with President Zelenskyy. As you know, today we had a very good meeting, very cordial meeting. In my opinion, they should stop the war immediately. You go by the battle line, wherever it is. Otherwise it's too complicated. You'll never be able to figure it out.

You stop at the battle line and both sides should go home, go to their families, stop the killing and that should be it. Stop right now at the battle line. I told that to President Zelenskyy. I told it to President Putin.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited Washington, D.C. yesterday, hoped to get long range cruise missiles. They would allow Ukraine to hit oil and energy facilities deep inside Russia. But he appeared to come away empty handed.

The meeting came a day after President Trump spoke with Vladimir Putin on the phone. And sources say Putin stressed the Tomahawk missiles would not have a huge impact on the battlefield. But they would damage the relationship between the U.S. and Russia.

President Trump later told reporters that he and Putin would meet in Hungary in about two weeks. CNN's Larry Madowo is with me now. So, Larry, President Trump has been encouraging both sides to, as we heard, end the war. The likelihood of that is slim. What's next?

LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. That's his latest offer after that meeting with President Zelenskyy where he came out empty handed. But at least President Trump has made some progress here. His relationship with Zelenskyy is a lot better since that disastrous Oval Office meeting. And President Zelenskyy said he had a pretty productive meeting with President Trump.

President Trump described the meeting as interesting and cordial, but he fell short of giving him the Tomahawk missiles that he needs. President Trump is also opening the door to the possibility that President Vladimir Putin might be playing him, and he's said that expressly. So that's some progress here. This is how President Zelenskyy, this is what he took out of their meeting in summary.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: Trust United States. We trust President that he wants to finish this war and is difficult. We think that it was also difficult to manage in the situation in the Middle East. And if president was successful in it, I hope that he will manage this situation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MADOWO: The president does not want an escalation. That's President Trump. And in that, he is right. The Tomahawk missiles that Zelenskyy came to D.C. looking for are ridiculously expensive, $2 million a pop. And even if they were to get them, it would take a few months before they had them in the battle zone. And President Trump fears that this would just drag out this war even longer when he's trying to end the war.

On the other hand, President Vladimir Putin hasn't had recent successes in this battle. And winter is coming, which makes this war extra difficult.

[06:05:00]

So that Hungary meeting between him and President Trump, will they make more progress than in the Alaska meeting? We have two weeks to figure out if that does happen. But in the meantime, Zelenskyy got a lot of support after this meeting. He spoke with the European leaders virtually. They offered their steadfast support to him and they will do everything possible to support him.

But now President Trump needs this war completed so that he can add it to his column. Number nine is what he calls it, the number of wars he claims to have completed. So he will do everything possible to get that win. Victor.

BLACKWELL: Larry Madowo reporting for us. Thank you so much. The body of another Israeli hostage is now back home. Early this morning, a spokesperson announced that they identified the body of Eliyahu Margalit. He was killed in Hamas's initial attack on October 7, two years ago.

His daughter was also kidnapped but later released. And now the bodies of 10 hostages have been returned to Israel from Gaza under the recent ceasefire deal.

But 18 bodies remain there and frustration is mounting over how long it's taken to return them to Israel. Hamas says it handed over all of the hostage remains it could access. Israel says Hamas may actually know the locations of some of those hostages it claims are still missing.

Disgraced former Congressman George Santos. He's a free man this morning. President Trump commuted his sentence last night. Santos served in the House for less than a year before he was expelled from Congress. That was at the end of 2023. He was charged with an array of federal crime, including fraud, theft and money laundering.

Santos lobbied hard for clemency. The president says that he commuted his seven year sentence because the lies he told were not as bad as the ones allegedly told by Democratic Senator Dick Blumenthal of Connecticut.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We have a young congressman that's right now in jail for lying about where he went to college and other things. It was, you know, frankly, not good. It was pretty bad. But it was nothing compared to Blumenthal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: As also this, the president said that he commuted the sentence because Santos consistently voted Republican. More now from CNN senior White House correspondent Kristen Holmes.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: On his way to Palm Beach, President Trump announced that he had commuted the sentence of disgraced Republican Congressman George Santos, who had been serving seven years in a federal prison after pleading guilty to both identity fraud and theft.

Now this commutation is somewhat interesting and surprising given the fact that President Trump has been in office now for roughly nine plus months and he's been lobbied hard by Santos, but as well as some other Trump allies to give Santos a pardon or at least commute his sentence. He's shown no interest in doing so until now.

What he posted on Truth Social was essentially linking this commutation to Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, saying that Blumenthal had lied to and never had to go to jail. So why should Santos have to go to jail?

Now this is not the first time that President Trump has commuted the sentence or pardoned a former Republican politician. He also did so for Republican Michael Grimm, as well as a Connecticut governor, among others. But it was interesting given the fact that President Trump had been lobbied routinely and never done it before.

Now, one interesting point, unclear at this point whether or not this place played a role. But earlier this week, Santos wrote an open letter to President Trump once again asking for that pardon. He posted that on his Twitter now page. Kristen Holmes, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTPAPE)

BLACKWELL: All right, thanks for that report, Kristen. For more on the Santos commutation and so much that's happening in Washington, let's bring in now Joey Garrison. He's the White House correspondent for USA Today. Joey, good morning to you.

Did Santos have advocates in the White House? I mean, in addition to this open letter, were there voices pushing the president to consider this?

JOEY GARRISON, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, USA TODAY: Yes, I mean, clearly there were advocates of Jorge Santos who had the ear of Trump. And look, I mean, President Trump saw in George Santos or sees in him the way he kind of sees himself, a victim of the Justice Department.

And so he, you know, Trump in his post acknowledged that, yes, maybe Santos didn't do the right thing. He said he was maybe a rogue, that was Trump's word, but said, look, he shouldn't, you know, have to go to prison for seven years.

And so this, again, kind of just shows, you know, how Trump sees himself as kind of the ultimate arbiter here when it comes to, you know, whether folks who support him should receive, excuse me, should have, what their punishment should be. And again, this is just a really aggressive use of the clemency power of the president. Just highly unusual to have this happen, you know, this kind of commutation nine months into the first year of a second term.

[06:10:06]

BLACKWELL: There were more than 100 House Republicans who voted for his expulsion. This is only, what, 14 hours old now. But has there been much reaction or response from Capitol Hill?

GARRISON: Yes, I mean, you're obviously seeing a lot of pushback from Democrats on this, and I think you're going to, among some Republicans. It's still early to see what the whole reaction will be. But, yes, this was a pretty bipartisan, you know, response to him with that expulsion vote that you referenced there.

This was somebody who really kind of the Republicans had grown, you know, flat out tired with having to deal with him when he was a member of Congress. And so, you know, but again, as it is with so many of things that Trump does that might not please congressional Republicans. They're usually hesitant to criticize Trump by name here. And I think that's kind of what you're going to see on this situation, too.

I mean, Trump realizes he kind of can get a pass from his party if he wants to do something like this, something they might not embrace. But nevertheless, he thinks he can kind of get away with.

BLACKWELL: Today is No Kings Day to more than 2,500 demonstrations across the country in protest of President Trump's policies. Do we have the sound bite of what the president said on Fox Business about these protests in response to them? Let's play that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President, do you think that the government shutdown is all about this rally that's happening this weekend, the No Kings rally?

TRUMP: No. I mean, some people say they want to delay it for that a king. This is more than, you know, they're saying they're referring to me as a king. I'm not a king.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE:

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: The president there seems to brush it off. Congressional Republicans have done the same thing. Is that a true reflection of the feeling behind the scenes? I mean, the scale and scope of this is massive. Millions of people expected. Are they saying exactly what they're saying behind the scenes off camera?

GARRISON: Well, I think it's interesting how much Republicans have built up this round of No Kings rally. You'll recall there was one a couple months, several months ago. But this one has way more anticipation, and that's thanks to largely to the way Republicans in the last week have talked about it say, yes, this is the real reason Democrats in Congress, you know, want the government shut so they can talk about these issues in their big forums across the nation at these No Kings rallies.

And so, you know, I think that has put more of a spotlight on it than it would normally. At the same time, I do think, you know, expect Republicans to seize on any sort of, you know, clashes that could occur at these rallies. Last time we saw very largely peaceful protests.

But you know, if one of these -- if in one of these cities things get out of hand, you see law enforcement clashing with protesters. Perhaps as we get later in the night, you know, you're going to hear Republicans talking about this and you know, they're trying to paint this as Republicans that is, you know, these are not your law abiding Americans here. These are people who almost that they're threats.

And, you know, that could backfire if, you know, people look at the TV today and see, you know, Americans by and large just exercising their First Amendment rights.

BLACKWELL: Yes. Some Republicans on the Hill have called them Hamas supporters, the far fringe left on and on. And we'll see what happens today.

GARRISON: Karoline Leavitt had those comments saying this is, that's the constituency, the Democratic base. Democrats have bounced all over that comment.

BLACKWELL: Yes. All right, Joey Garrison of USA Today, thanks so much. All right. Chicago is now the center of the Trump administration's immigration crackdown. This weekend marks the first since a fence came down. This is outside the ICE facility in Broadview just outside the city.

A judge ordered its removal last week and called it a public safety hazard. More than 100 protesters gathered there yesterday. You see the clashing there. They were facing off with police and federal officers. At least 15 people were arrested. And a judge has ordered the head of ICE's Chicago field office to answer questions about whether his agency is violating rules on crowd control and the use of tear gas.

No Kings Organizers say more than 2,500 protests are planned across the country today. As Joey and I just discussed, the first round of demonstrations took place in June. This second wave is aimed at pushing back against what protesters call the administration's authoritarian policies, militarization of cities.

Some Republicans have called the movement anti-American. And both President Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson claim without evidence that the protests are tied to the ongoing government shutdown.

[06:15:08]

This morning, Colombia's president is condemning what he calls an unacceptable attack outside the U.S. Embassy in Bogota. Officials say four police officers were hurt when demonstrators used explosives and flares and arrows against security forces. The U.S. Embassy is open, but running with limited staff and warning Americans to avoid that area.

Dangerous round of storms is taking aim at the Mississippi River Valley cities like Little Rock and Memphis and Shreveport. They could see damaging winds and even a few tornadoes later today. CNN's Chris Warren is with me now on what to expect tornadoes in mid-October.

CHRIS WARREN, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Right. And Victor, it's been a while since we've had to deal with the threat for severe weather. And this is actually the time of year, we call it the second severe weather season. The storm track starts going a little bit farther to the south. There's still warm air out there. Ingredients come together, not as intense as spring, but similar in the sense that we can end up seeing everything on the table here.

Damaging winds, large hail and yes, tornadoes, a possibility. You can see the threat zone here going into parts of the east coast by tomorrow. But this is the area today. Damaging winds, small hail, some areas could see even large hail. But generally speaking, the storms that are going to come through with will have some hail, very heavy rain and yes, tornadoes a possibility. Here's where thunderstorms are firing right now.

While lightning is not technically a severe weather item, it is dangerous and absolutely can be deadly. Right now storms moving into the western suburbs of Chicago later during the day as more fuel, more heat gets into the atmosphere. These storms are expected to get more intense.

And the orange and the red on the radar, the future radar here gives us a sense of how the atmosphere may be playing out and where some of the stronger storms are expected to be. This is 7:30 tonight Central Time. Storms continuing overnight getting through Atlanta first thing in the morning. Not quite as much of a punch during the day tomorrow, but still the chance, Victor, for some showers, thunderstorms, damaging winds. Just be on alert today because, yes, it's been a while and it is October.

BLACKWELL: All right, Chris, thank you. We're approaching the World Series and once again it's going to be showtime. The Los Angeles Dodgers are headed back to the Fall Classic to defend their title. They completed the sweep, the Milwaukee Brewers in the NLCS.

Last night in Game four, Shohei Ohtani had what some are calling one of the greatest performances in playoff history. He hit three home runs, struck out 10 batters and got the win for the Dodgers. He spoke after the game with the help of a translator.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHOHEI OHTANI, NLCS MVP (through translator): It was really, you know, fun on the both side of the ball today. You know, really as a representative, I'm taking this trophy and let's get four more wins.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: The Dodgers will take on the winners of the ALCS between the Seattle Mariners and the Toronto Blue Jays. Mariners are leading that series three games to two.

The political stalemate continues on Capitol Hill. Caught in the middle of this shutdown are those essential federal workers who are still on the job, while many are worried that even calling out sick just one day could cost them the job.

Plus, a mix of hope and fear in the furniture industry, hit hard by tariffs, how it could drive up your living room price tag.

And after a string of scandals, Prince Andrew gives up his royal titles. What this means for the monarchy.

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[06:23:19]

BLACKWELL: Day 18 of the Federal government shutdown. Republicans, Democrats are digging in. No signs of compromise.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: So the shutdown continues. It's a Democrat shutdown. It's a Schumer shutdown because his career has failed and it's over.

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY) SENATE MINORITY LEADER: We still have not heard crickets out of any negotiation with Johnson or with Thune. The Republicans are on the defensive. They keep changing their stories and changing their arguments, but we are on the side of the American people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: The FAA announced Friday three more airports are facing air traffic control or staffing shortages. That brings the total number to 10. And while the cause of the shortage is not clear immediately. Earlier this week, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said some employees are taking unscheduled time off. He said it's to protest not getting paid during the shutdown.

The Office of Management and Budget director said the Army Corps of Engineers is pausing more than $11 billion worth of projects because of the government being closed. And CNN has learned that Senate staffers got an email last night letting them know that they will not get their paycheck Monday or for the remainder of the federal shutdown. GOP Senator John Kennedy thinks the shutdown will last through

Thanksgiving. Both sides, as we said, are digging in now for the long haul. But government workers are struggling now.

One TikToker posted this video showing what meal prep looks like right now, a struggle that others say is only getting worse.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANIEL SCHARPENBURG, FURLOUGHED IRS WORKER: I'm not sleeping at night. It's really hard. And I have a 15 year old boy at home and I don't know if you know anything about teenage boys, but they eat a lot. So it's hard. It's going to get increasingly hard for me to keep food in my house.

[06:25:04]

We are real people suffering and being hurt by what's going on in Washington now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: To make ends meet, some are turning to gig work. We're talking ride sharing and food and Amazon deliveries.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bills are always due, so we got to make a couple bucks here and there wherever we can. A more fortunate situation than most. Because, you know, I'm furloughed, I can try to make a little money on the side. There are a lot of people out there who are working without pay right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Now some communities are showing up to help these workers. One restaurateur in New Orleans is offering meal discounts for furloughed workers and free ones for his own workers pulling double duty.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVEN YOUNG, GENERAL MANAGER, RUBY SLIPPER: I have a dishwasher that worked here as well, and he actually worked at the airport at nighttime overnight cleaning planes. And he like, you know, I'm not, I said, well, you can go sit down and eat whenever you get ready.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: More than 1.4 million federal workers are either furloughed or working without pay. The pressure on essential employees still working during the Shutdown that's building. CNN's Rene Marsh spoke with critical employees who say they're being asked to make some really difficult choices. Rene.

RENE MARSH, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Victor, CNN, spoke with several federal workers caught in the middle of this shutdown, including a Social Security Administration employee who didn't realize her upcoming surgery would be upended in all of this. She had a procedure scheduled for early October but postponed it, afraid that taking two weeks off to recover might actually cost her job.

A union representative told CNN that multiple Social Security Administration employees have been warned by supervisors that if they are essential and do not report to work, they could be terminated. And that has really left workers feeling that they have to choose between their health and their job.

At both the Social Security Administration and the say that managers have said if they take leave while designated as essential, they could face disciplinary or adverse actions on their employee record, something that union leaders say is unprecedented during a funding lapse.

And as a reminder, essential employees are in critical roles. They have to continue working during a government shutdown without pay. Now, a spokesperson for the Social Security Administration told CNN that the agency has followed standard practice during a lapse in appropriations.

But across several agencies, essential employees say requests for leave, even for medical reasons, are being forbidden. At the IRS campus in Atlanta, internal messages obtained by CNN instructed essential staff that any absence, even for surgeries, would be considered absent without leave. And that could result in termination.

Now, CNN spoke with experts who call this situation highly unusual and say that this is a piling on of mistreatment upon mistreatment for these federal employees. Victor.

BLACKWELL: Rene Marsh, thank you for the report. We'll talk more about the shutdown that's coming up on First of All, the president says that Democrats have made one big mistake in this shutdown. I'll play for you what he said and then get a response from South Carolina Congressman James Clyburn. I'll also get into the No Kings protests that are planned for today with my panel. That's at 8:00 a.m. Eastern on First of All.

Remote villages in Alaska will be feeling the effects of last weekend's flooding for some time. The governor reveals how long evacuees could be kept from their homes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:30:00]

BLACKWELL: U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says he'll meet next week with China's Vice Premier to talk about trade issues. The two spoke yesterday, they described their talks as frank and detailed. Bessent says that both sides want to avoid what President Trump has called an unsustainable tariff fight. CNN's Dianne Gallagher shows how those tariffs are already reshaping the furniture industry in the U.S.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALEX SHUFORD, CEO, ROCK HOUSE FARM FURNITURE: We are third generation sawdust in our veins. North Carolina furniture manufacturer --

DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN REPORTER (voice-over): Dubbed the furniture capital of the world. Years after outsourcing, sent more than half the jobs overseas, North Carolina still produces more furniture than any other state. Custom made couches, chairs and tables helped Rock House Farm Furniture in Hickory survive.

SHUFORD: We're seven different brands, and 1,700 people --

GALLAGHER: Though he'll likely benefit, Alex Shuford is worried President Trump's plan to bring the industry back could backfire.

SHUFORD: There's certainly segments of the industry here today that some form of tariffs can help protect. But we've got to be really careful that the effort to save us doesn't do more damage than good.

GALLAGHER: In effect, as of Tuesday, our 10 percent tariffs on softwood lumber and timber, and 25 percent tariffs on kitchen cabinets, vanities and upholstered wooden furniture, those are set to increase on January 1st. On their own, these new tariffs could be positive, says Dixon Mitchell, the CEO of Fairfield in Lenoir.

DIXON MITCHELL, CEO, FAIRFIELD: That specific tariff on upholstery, imported upholstery probably helps us. I think my concern, I think many in our industry are concerned is, is this a short-term policy or is this going to be sustained over a period of time, long-term policy.

GALLAGHER: Manufacturing creates stability, and the Trump administration's trade policy has been anything, but --

[06:35:00]

MITCHELL: Extremely difficult to plan for. You know, it's 170 percent, then down to 30 percent types of things like that.

GALLAGHER: Shuford says that 80 percent of RHF sales are from North Carolina-made furniture, but it still imports certain materials and uses some foreign labor. He's already absorbing steel and country- specific tariffs.

SHUFORD: In an industry where profit margins are typically 4 percent or 5 percent, we've been eating half of the global tariff rate, for now, 5 months or 6 months, and we simply don't have the margins to do that. So, eventually, that's why this gets passed along to the customer.

GALLAGHER: Retailers feel it first.

MITCHELL: Furniture demand is -- I mean, for the home, it's a discretionary purchase.

GALLAGHER: But even if Trump's tariffs do instantly increase demand, there's another obstacle. SHUFORD: Probably 50 to 75 job openings at my company right now for

upholsterers and seamstresses and finish technicians and woodworkers.

MITCHELL: It takes three years to become above-average upholsterer.

SHUFORD: If the President would take a slower approach, industry experts say tariffs combined with investments in training could eventually, realistically revitalize the furniture capital of the world.

SHUFORD: My fear is, we don't want the medicine that's intended to help us to end up causing so much harm that in the end, it ends up killing us.

GALLAGHER: Dianne Gallagher, CNN, Hickory, North Carolina.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: This morning, Alaska's governor says storm damage from a typhoon is so severe that many evacuees may not return to their home for at least 18 months. Look at this, the storm made landfall earlier this week. It slammed western Alaska with hurricane-force winds and flooding. Entire villages appeared to be wiped out.

One person was killed, dozens rescued, but two people are still missing. And more than 2,000 people were forced to leave their homes, and many now are sheltering in Anchorage as officials work to find long-term housing. Chris is back with me now. So, why is this region, seemingly seeing this more often and so severely?

CHRIS WARREN, METEOROLOGIST: Well, first off, when you look at that video, you can see where these homes are built. They're really close to the water, and there's not a lot of elevation either. So, just looking at this, you can see where the homes are, the structures are, and where the water is. And this is after the storm, right? So, very similar as you mentioned, to a hurricane.

Category one or Category two, not just the winds, let's remember, one of the huge dangers of hurricanes is storm surge. So, when you get what was a former typhoon into these, you know, systems that are strong anyways, in Alaska, you can get a lot of water rise, and that's what we saw here, was that water rise.

I mean, it doesn't take much, 10, 11, 12, you know, feet to get that and getting above record levels, Victor. This is something going forward as always tough. How do you plan for something that we haven't seen before?

BLACKWELL: Yes --

WARREN: Right, you can look and see, OK, we've had a record of this, but how do you -- first, as a meteorologist, it's hard to predict records. You're like -- they're hard to get, right?

BLACKWELL: Sure -- WARREN: So, when a record does happen, it's like it's tough because

it's hard to get there, but we're seeing that more often getting those records. And so, it's really hard to plan for that.

BLACKWELL: Yes, I mean, this brings up the question of resilience and making sure that the infrastructure in the home can take what's coming in the future. And also where to rebuild. A question that on the coastal U.S. mainland has been asked for decades after these major storms. All right, Chris, thanks for helping us understand it.

No paychecks, no answers for those furloughed during the government shutdown. But there are four urgent calls that every worker who is furloughed or working without pay will have to make. We'll talk about the financial lifelines next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:40:00]

BLACKWELL: It's day 18 of the federal government shutdown, and federal workers have questions. Well, my next guest says there are four phone calls that furloughed workers cannot afford to skip during the shutdown. With me now to talk about all of this, Michelle Singletary; Personal Finance Columnist for "The Washington Post" and author of "What to Do with Your Money When Crisis Hits: A Survival Guide".

They need that this morning. Michelle, good morning to you. All right, to make sure we get through all four, I'm going to just start with the first one, and you tell me why they're making the call. All right, first call of the four, the state unemployment office.

MICHELLE SINGLETARY, PERSONAL FINANCE COLUMNIST, THE WASHINGTON POST: Yes, so furloughed workers and also federal contractors are most likely eligible for unemployment benefits. So, you want to call now because it can take a little while for the -- for you to put in the application and get that check that you're going to need.

So, make that call, put in that application. I will say, this is a little bit of warning, when you go back to work and you get your back pay, you will have to pay that money back. But you can set up a payment plan or if you are in dire straits, you know, you -- things were really terrible. You might be eligible for a waiver and then you wouldn't have to pay the money back.

BLACKWELL: But she also said there's no guarantee that those federal contractors will get back pay. As many of them did not after the 2018- 2019 shutdown, second call to the primary lender.

SINGLETARY: Yes, so, if you've got a mortgage or an auto loan, you want to call them right now, even if you'll be able to pay that, make that payment, you want to call and see what if I can't make it? What are my options? Can I get on a payment plan?

[06:45:00] Can I get a deferral for this next month? You want to know what your

options are and call now. And people, when things like this happen, they kind of retreat because, you know, they're scared, they're like, I don't have the money, why should I call? But all the lenders that I've ever talked to says you need to call, let us know what's going on so that we can walk through. What are your options if you can't make that payment?

BLACKWELL: Third call, the primary bank or credit union.

SINGLETARY: Yes, so many of us have our paychecks direct deposited into our account, and many banks and credit unions, and particularly those who service military service people and people for the federal government like Navy, federal credit, USAA are offering 0 percent, 0 percent loans, sort of a bridge based on the payments that you were direct depositing into your account. And so, you know, how I am about debt. But --

BLACKWELL: Yes --

SINGLETARY: Listen, if you need that money to pay the bills and put food on your table, this is a good way for you to get the money, when you get your paycheck, you'll pay that loan back and it's 0 percent interest.

BLACKWELL: Fourth call is to a nonprofit counselor.

SINGLETARY: Yes, so, you're going to hear those ads, you know, if you're in debt, call us, you know, we'll get you out pennies on the dollar. Don't make that call. Make the call to a nonprofit credit counseling agency. And you can go to the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, nfcc.org, talk to a nonprofit counselor. They can help you with budgeting.

They can figure out what you need to cut out right now, so you can make that money last longer. They can help you with budgeting, and you know, listen, I work with people all the time. You know, Victor and I talked about this, I have a ministry at my church for people who are in, you know, trouble.

And I always find that they just sort of, you know, shut down, and it's understandable. But call to get the help that you need to go through your budget so that whatever money you still have from that last paycheck, you can help make it last a little longer while we're in this shutdown.

BLACKWELL: Michelle, is there a general rule of thumb of when crisis hits, as the book references, what to cut first, what you let --

SINGLETARY: Yes --

BLACKWELL: Go into 30 days, 60 days late if necessary.

SINGLETARY: Yes, such a great question, and I talk about this in the book. Think of your finances like if you were going into an emergency room at a hospital, they triage patients, right? The most critical, that's what you need to do, pay the most critical bills, your mortgage, your auto loan, because you don't want them to come take your car.

You know, you want to pay your utilities and food and, you know, again, I'm not saying you want to share(ph) some of your debts, but your credit card debt, you know, anything -- maybe you're on an aggressive debt payment plan.

BLACKWELL: Yes --

SINGLETARY: You're going to pause those. You're going to call the creditor and say, I can't make these payments, but just pay the things that are going to keep your lights on, food on the table, and a roof over your head.

BLACKWELL: Michelle Singletary, always useful information. Thank you so much. We'll take a break and we'll be back.

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[06:50:00]

BLACKWELL: Tomorrow, there's a new episode of CNN's original series, "TONY SHALHOUB BREAKING BREAD", here's a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TONY SHALHOUB, ACTOR: How did you eat? What did you do? I remember the food in France. It was delicious. Garlic and hummus, you know --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is that right?

SHALHOUB: Yes, I remember the bread.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Who fixed it? Who made it?

SHALHOUB: Yes, the odor, the smell of, you know --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Who brought it exposed(ph), Sophie --

SHALHOUB: I mean, you know, part of the reason why I wanted to do this food show was because I mean, he was great with food, with all kinds of food. But bread was really his thing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know.

SHALHOUB: And just the fact that, he says, I remember the bread. But now we're doing the bread.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes --

SHALHOUB: That is so amazing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: A new episode of "TONY SHALHOUB BREAKING BREAD" premieres tomorrow at 9:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific on CNN. Misty Copeland has captivated audiences and broken barriers in ballet. On Wednesday, she will take her final bow with the American Ballet Theater. But her work continues.

Through her foundation, Copeland is opening doors for young dancers who might not otherwise have access to ballet. Anderson Cooper shares how she's expanding the art forms, reach and impact.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MISTY COPELAND, BALLET DANCER: With ballet, the reason I got into it was because of the joy that it brought me this beautiful escape.

ANDERSON COOPER, ANCHOR, ANDERSON COOPER 360: Ballet star Misty Copeland broke barriers as the first black female principal dancer with American Ballet Theater. Now she's working to make the art form more accessible for the next generation.

COPELAND: I started The Misty Copeland Foundation in 2021, really with the idea of bringing dance to under-resourced, underserved communities. I wouldn't be who I am if I hadn't been introduced to this incredible art form. I'd have boys and girls club. I just felt like we have to keep this going and give other children the same opportunity.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Up --

COOPER: Be bold is a free after school ballet program offered at community centers in the Bronx and Harlem, serving more than 500 children of color, ages 5 to 12.

COPELAND: It's really with the idea of introducing them to moving their bodies. The vocabulary of basic ballet technique and live music.

[06:55:00]

What's different about this from just your traditional ballet class is that this framework was made with black and brown children in mind.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Majority of other kids, they don't get to do this stuff like I do. I've learned how to respect myself and others, and I've learned to just be yourself.

COPELAND: It's not about creating professional dancers, that would be fantastic. But this is about creating future leaders.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Go up.

COPELAND: There's so many incredible skills that you learn by being a part of dance, but ballet in particular. It's dedication, it's discipline, it's community, it's empathy.

ANDERSON: Misty's foundation recently expanded classes to include people over 50, demonstrating that ballet is truly for everyone.

COPELAND: Eventually, I want to have this program in community sites all over the United States and maybe beyond. You know, we say we want to take over the world one play(ph) at a time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: All right, there's much more ahead in the next hour of CNN THIS MORNING WEEKEND including why women are leaving the workforce at alarming rates. The hidden struggles behind the so-called she-cession.

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