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Early Start with Rahel Solomon
Heavy Snows Trap Nearly 1,000 Near Everest's East Face; Trump Tariffs On China Driving Up Halloween Costs; Mark Sanchez Under Investigation In Stabbing Incident. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired October 06, 2025 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[05:30:00]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: October is usually one of the safest and most predictable months for trekking -- cooler temperatures, clearer skies, and far less risk of heavy storms once the monsoon ends. But this time snow, rain, thunder, and lightning all arrived at once.
Further south in Nepal the same weather system triggered deadly landslides and flash floods. Roads and bridges were washed away and dozens of people died.
Officials are still assessing the full impact of the storm on Everest. Conditions do remain severe. Nature, of course, always calls the shots on the world's highest mountain. The weather decides when and how people come down.
Will Ripley, CNN, Taipei.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN ABEL, CNN ANCHOR: Authorities have learned what was behind the hot air balloons that forced them to shut down Lithuania's main airport on Saturday. It was smuggled cigarettes. Up to 25 hot air balloons entered Lithuania's airspace. Border police recovered many of them along with 18,000 packs of smuggled cigarettes. The disruption interfered with 30 flights.
And the incursion comes at a time when leaders are on high alert after a number of incidents with drones violating European nation's airspace.
Meanwhile, Russia's president is warning the U.S. against supplying Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles. Vladimir Putin says that move would lead to the destruction of U.S.-Russian relations. Ukraine's president has asked the U.S. government to sell the long-range missile system to European nations, which would donate them to Ukraine. If so, Kyiv would have the ability to strike deep inside Russia. White House officials have recently said President Trump is considering allowing that deal to go through.
A legacy pharmacy chain closing the last of its remaining locations in the U.S. Still ahead, the final outcome of Rite Aid's bankruptcy filing.
Plus, Americans can expect a fright this Halloween. Coming up, why President Trump's tariffs are devastating the Halloween industry.
(COMMERCIAL)
[05:36:45]
ABEL: Welcome back to EARLY START.
Let's take a look at the U.S. futures market. Right now, the Dow, the Nasdaq, and the S&P 500 all pointing to a higher open on Wall Street.
Now let's check some of today's other business headlines.
Costco is now offering the popular weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy at half-price for members who pay out-of-pocket. The medicine will cost $499 for a four-week supply thanks to a new partnership between Costco and Novo Nordisk.
More than 800,000 Uber and Lyft drivers in California now have the right to join a union. A new state law allows them to bargain collectively for better wages and benefits. Currently, rideshare drivers are classified as independent contractors. Unionizing could help them gain access to paid sick leave and overtime pay.
And after 63 years in business, it's the end of an era. The Rite Aid pharmacy chain has closed all of its remaining stores. The company filing for bankruptcy in May, marking the second time in less than two years. More than 1,000 other Rite Aid stores have been sold to rival pharmacies and grocery chains.
U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war is hurting American farmers and sources say the administration is considering a massive bailout ranging from $10 billion to $14 billion dollars to help them. America's largest agricultural export, soybeans, has taken a massive hit.
Last year the Department of Agriculture valued exports at more than $24 billion with about half of those exports going to China. But since May, the China exports have dropped to zero. That's because -- in retaliation to Trump's tariffs. Beijing has placed a 20 percent tariff on U.S. soybeans and it's purchasing the crop from other countries.
Here is what one soybean farmer had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CALEB RAGLAND, FARMER, PRESIDENT, AMERICAN SOYBEAN ASSOCIATION: Any time that we need assistance from the government that it is a last- ditch effort. We want to be able to make a profit from the market. And we need strong markets and need demand for our soybeans and right now we don't have that, unfortunately.
And the need for government assistance is certainly the last -- the last effort that we have because the government payments never make us whole. They never make us profitable. It's not something that we want but it's kind of something to keep the lights on because right now with the Chinese market completely gone, that's our largest export market. And that's half of our exports and about 25 percent of our total demand for our soybeans. And right now we need something to keep our bills paid.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ABEL: And now trick-or-treaters beware. The scariest thing this Halloween may just turn out to be the price tag on your costume. That's because President Trump's tariffs on China are leading to higher costs for many Halloween products.
[05:40:00]
CNN's Natasha Chen has more.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We do have a kid one right up here.
NATASHA CHEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): For Halloween, Reyna Hernandez's 6-year-old wants to dress as Carl from "The Walking Dead."
REYNA HERNANDEZ, HALLOWEEN COSTUME SHOPPER: It's just ridiculous. We cannot even afford this at all.
CHEN (voiceover): This hat would work as part of her son's costume, but it costs $30.00 alone.
HERANDEZ: I'd rather just do it ahead of time, little by little, you know? Paycheck from paycheck.
CHEN (voiceover): The Halloween and Costume Association says roughly 90 percent of Halloween products contain at least one component made overseas, most often in China. Because of tariffs imposed on most Chinese imports, suppliers and retailers say this Halloween's products will cost a little more and you'll see less variety.
CHRIS ZEPHRO, PRESIDENT, TRICK OR TREAT STUDIOS: We're all kind of on edge but we're trying to stay positive.
CHEN (voiceover): Chris Zephro's business, Trick or Treat Studios, designs and produces all things scary and fun.
ZEPHRO: Horror is not necessarily Halloween; it's really a lifestyle.
CHEN (voiceover): But the real-life horror flick for him has been the overnight jump in costs this year.
In April, President Trump increased tariffs on most Chinese goods to a whopping 145 percent. That made a lot of people cancel production orders right then and there. Then in May, when tariffs on Chinese goods fell to 30 percent, some production in China resumed. But the stoppage had already caused a delay or shortage of items for the season.
All told, Zephro's tariff bill --
ZEPHRO: Upwards of almost $800,000.
CHEN (voiceover): -- meant he had to lay off 15 employees.
ZEPHRO: It was one of the worst days of my life.
CHEN: There's a trickle effect. Importers, like Trick or Treat Studios, who design and supply costumes, props, and masks are paying an extra 30 percent for everything coming in from China, which they then have to share with their retail customers.
Like Phantom Halloween, who then sells the products to customers. Now the owner here is also making a tough decision about how much of the extra costs to absorb and how much to pass on.
RYAN GOLDMAN, OWNER, PHANTOM HALLOWEEN: The majority of kids' costumes have probably gone up $3.00 to $4.00. The majority of adult costumes have probably gone up $5.00 to $8.00.
CHEN (voiceover): Ryan Goldman's family started Phantom Halloween stores in the 1980s.
GOLDMAN: The idea is to hold as many prices as we can.
CHEN (voiceover): Some items made in Mexico, Vietnam, India, or the U.K. won't see a price hike. But anything involving plastics or textiles is predominantly made in China.
GOLDMAN: I'm not that political so we just are dealing with the aftermath of it, and the aftermath isn't pretty.
CHEN (voiceover): But Zephro is clear about who is responsible.
ZEPHRO: I would love to have a conversation, closed doors, with Trump because if you really want manufacturing to come back here you have to look at why manufacturing left and start there.
CHEN (voiceover): Policies and regulations, he says, that have made manufacturing in the U.S. extremely difficult and inefficient.
For now, both he and Goldman have stopped bringing in items made too expensive due to tariffs.
CHEN: If it's $150 more for you, how much more is that for the customer?
GOLDMAN: At least $300. And that's the reason why he didn't get reordered this year.
CHEN (voiceover): And there are certain products, like one-sixth scale action figures, that Zephro won't even produce.
ZEPHRO: No one is going to spend $400 for an action figure. CHEN (voiceover): The only ones available in his warehouse came in before tariffs.
CHEN: So what you have here is it.
ZEPHRO: That's it until maybe the mid-terms (laughing).
CHEN: A White House spokesperson responded to my request for comment saying, "Real prosperity is good jobs and thriving communities for everyday Americans; not cheap Chinese imports." He also says President Trump pledged to use tariffs to level the playing field and address fentanyl smuggling.
Now the most in-demand costume this year, KPop Demon Hunters characters, and because that's a recent phenomenon it's going to require a quick turnaround to produce those outfits. The owner of Phantom Halloween told me the cost of that turnaround time, plus flying it in, and the tariffs on top of that -- it'll cost parents about $70 or $80 for those costumes.
Natasha Chen, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ABEL: Still ahead on EARLY START, what we know about a knife attack involving former NFL quarterback Mark Sanchez that landed him in the hospital and in jail.
Plus, Taylor Swift's new smash hit. She's done it again, turning her new album into a box office blockbuster.
(COMMERCIAL)
[05:49:00]
ABEL: Welcome back. I'm Brian Abel. Here are some of stories we are watching today.
Indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas are set to begin in Egypt today. Delegations, including from the U.S., hope to finalize a ceasefire deal based on Donald Trump's Gaza plan. The U.S. president says he expects discussions to go on for a couple of days.
The U.S. Supreme Court begins a new term today after an oddly-packed summer break. Some of their first cases back will involve hearing arguments on transgender rights and checks on President Trump's executive powers.
A sudden and rare October storm has hammered the Himalayas, stranding hundreds of trekkers near Mount Everest. Chinese state media says most have been guided to safety with the rest being escorted down in stages with the help of locals working to clear snow from hazardous trails.
[05:50:00]
More now on the U.S. government shutdown. Congressional leaders are doubling down on who they are blaming for the lack of movement in Washington. A new round of voting to fund the government is set to begin in the coming hours but it doesn't sound like it will be productive.
Senate Republican leader John Thune says the situation is a stalemate. Democrats are demanding to keep health care subsidies that are tied to the Affordable Care Act. Thune says that's not reasonable and not realistic.
Meanwhile, Democrats have largely refused to vote for the Republican measure to temporarily fund the government.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TAYLOR SWIFT, SINGER-SONGWRITER: Singing "The Fate of Ophelia."
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ABEL: That, right there -- Taylor Swift's new song "The Fate of Ophelia." The music video was released Sunday night -- you see it here -- and it already has more than seven million views on YouTube.
That's just one of the events surrounding the release of Swift's 12th album, "The Life of a Showgirl." It became Spotify's most streamed album of the year just 11 hours after its release. And Swift topped the weekend box office. The 90-minute film version of her new album spent three days in theaters. It brought in $46 million worldwide. She continues to dominate.
Well, there's no more undefeated teams in the NFL. Coming up, we'll take a look at the final minutes of the Bills-Patriots matchup.
(COMMERCIAL)
[05:55:55]
ABEL: Former NFL quarterback Mark Sanchez is under investigation after a video showed fresh evidence in a stabbing incident.
CNN's Leigh Waldman has details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEIGH WALDMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: In just a matter of hours, former NFL quarterback and current Fox Sports analyst Mark Sanchez went from being seen as a stabbing victim in the hospital to now being identified as the aggressor by surveillance video.
This all happened just after midnight on Saturday. Police talked to that 69-year-old victim who was working at the time. They say that the victim didn't recognize Sanchez but noticed the smell of alcohol on his breath and slurred speech. He says that Sanchez tried to get inside of his truck. The surveillance video, according to police, shows Sanchez grab this man and throw him against a wall.
Now in an affidavit, the man says that he used pepper spray to try and get away from Sanchez. That didn't work, which is why he then drew his knife. The affidavit quotes the man as saying, "This guy is trying to kill me."
Now shortly after this, police were called to a bar nearby and that's when they found Sanchez with those stab wounds.
Take a listen to the police scanner audio.
DISPATCH AUDIO: One of the officers on scene inside the bar. Let's make sure we lock that bar down and treat it as the crime scene. Don't let anybody in or out for now.
WALDMAN: Sanchez was still being treated for his injuries on Sunday but is now facing three misdemeanor charges, including battery with injury, unlawful entry of a motor vehicle, and public intoxication.
We got a statement from the Marion County prosecutor saying, "What began as a disagreement between a 38-year-old former professional athlete and a 69-year-old man should not have escalated into violence or left anyone seriously injured. As with any case, we will the facts and the law wherever they lead."
Court records show that Sanchez has paid a $300 cash bond, and he'll be in court on Tuesday morning.
Leigh Waldman, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ABEL: The New England Patriots taking down the Buffalo Bills in a nailbiter Sunday, handing them their first loss of the season.
The two teams trading blows throughout the first three quarters before the Patriots pulled away at the start of the fourth quarter. Buffalo clawed their way back coming within striking distance, but the stall on a late-game drive that could have given them the lead. The Bills were forced to settle for Matt Prater's 45-yard field goal, tying up the score at 20. But with just 15 seconds left in the game New England's rookie kicker Andy Borregales buried the 52-year -- 52-yard field goal, lifting the Patriots to the win 23-20.
And hundreds of hot air balloons filled the New Mexico sky on Sunday. It's part of the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta which started back in 1972. Organizers say it's the largest of its kind in the world. More than 500 balloons will take part in the nine-day fiesta.
And in Germany, the 190th Annual Oktoberfest has wrapped up in Munich after welcoming more than 6.5 million guests over 16 days who drank more than six million liters of beer. That could be a big reason why they lose more than 4,000 objects, including wallets, clothing, umbrellas, and mobile phones. Prost!
Thank you for joining us here on EARLY START. I'm Brian Abel in Washington, D.C. "CNN THIS MORNING WITH AUDIE CORNISH" starts right now.
