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One World with Zain Asher
Sources: IDF Ground Operation into Gaza City to Being Soon; Qatar Holds Emergency Summit on Response to Israeli Attack; Authorities Looking into Motive Behind Charlie Kirk Killing; "Adolescence" Wins Six Awards; Fed Expected to Cut Rates This Week; Catholic Church Experiencing Renewed Popularity in Europe. Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired September 15, 2025 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
ZAIN ASHER, CNN HOST, ONE WORLD: U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio is in Israel calling for the release of hostages and peace in the Holy Land. "One
World" starts right now. As Rubio meets with Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel intensifies bombing Gaza City, with sources telling CNN Israel ground
operation there is to begin soon.
Plus, new developments in the murder investigation of Charlie Kirk, as the FBI confirms, it now has DNA evidence linking the suspect to the murder
weapon. And Hollywood's brightest stars come out for the 77th Emmy Awards. We are live for you in Los Angeles with a look at the biggest wins and
upsets of the night.
All right, coming to you live from New York, I'm Zain Asher. You are watching "One World". The U.S. Secretary State is in Jerusalem in a show of
support, days after an Israeli strike targeted Hamas leadership in Qatar, a key American ally. As Arab leaders hold an emergency summit to discuss the
fallout, Marco Rubio sidestepped questions about the Israeli strike at a news conference with Benjamin Netanyahu, while the Israeli Prime Minister
remained unapologetic about the attack.
Rubio called on Qatar to play a constructive role in ending the war in Gaza. He condemned Hamas and said, all the hostages have to be released.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We want all the hostages out, all of them, every single one of them, both living and deceased, all of There
should never have been hostages. This should never have happened. OK. This happened because on October 7th, these animals, these barbaric animals,
conducted this operation.
And against innocent people there had nothing to do with any of this, and that's where this all started. We've forgotten that. People have forgotten
that that's where this all began.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Meantime, an Israeli official tells CNN, Israel's ground operation into Gaza City is imminent. This as the IDF intensified its air offensive
across Gaza on Sunday. Local officials say at least 61 Palestinians were killed Sunday as Israeli strikes hit high rise buildings.
The Former Chief of the Israeli military said more than 1 in 10 Palestinians have been killed or injured since the war began. Prime
Minister Netanyahu spoke about the goal of eliminating Hamas and the importance of the Gaza operation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: The Gaza should be demilitarized. Demilitarized is different from just laying down your arms,
because you want to make sure that arms are not smuggled into Gaza and arms are not produced in Gaza.
So, demilitarization is the third point, overriding Israeli security responsibility is the fourth point to make sure that there's no resurgent
terrorism Hamas or from any other organization.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: CNN's Jeremy Diamond joins us live now from Jerusalem. So, Jeremy, just explain to us what was Marco Rubio trying to signal by visiting Israel
at this particular point in time, and what came out of the joint press conference between the two men?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, despite the fact that the Secretary of State, you know, barely raised the Qatari strikes in
public, certainly didn't condemn Israel for carrying them out. There's no question that his visit to the region is very much about the diplomatic
fallout that Israel has left in the wake of that strike in the Qatari capital.
And that's because we're seeing the Secretary of State not only on this hastily arranged trip to Israel, but also tomorrow, set to travel to Doha,
as this council of Arab and Islamic States is meeting today to discuss a joint response to those Israeli strikes. And so, behind the scenes, the
question really is, what is Secretary of State Rubio getting or discussing with the Israeli Prime Minister?
And what can he then bring to Doha tomorrow by way of trying to defuse these latest tensions and also finding a way forward for Qatar to remain
involved as a key mediator of these Gaza ceasefire and hostage release talks? It was quite clear today that Secretary Rubio does want to see Qatar
continue to play that role going forward, even as he himself really downplayed the possibility of a diplomatic solution reaching an end to the
war in Gaza.
And in particular, eliminating Hamas from the Gaza Strip, which is not only the Israeli Prime Minister's goal in Gaza, but also one that Secretary
Rubio said the United States very much agrees with. Now for the Israeli Prime Minister's part, he certainly made no apologies for Israel strike in
Qatar.
[11:05:00]
He compared Qatar hosting Hamas' leaders to Afghanistan harboring Al Qaeda terrorists in the wake of 9/11. The key difference being, of course, that
the United States and Israel both have tacitly approved Qatar's role hosting Hamas leaders for years now, well before October 7th.
And then since October 7th, of course, Israel has benefited from having Qatar as a key mediator in these negotiations, leading to two ceasefires
that have brought dozens of Israeli hostages back home. But of course, all of that is very much in question going forward as the entire region is
still very much dealing with the aftershocks from that Israeli strike.
And again, as we are waiting to see how this council of Arab and Islamic countries chooses to react in a joint response that could potentially
include concrete actions against the Israeli state.
ASHER: And Jeremy, as you point out, Rubio didn't condemn the Qatar strike by Israel in this joint press conference, but the fact that Israel didn't
notify the United States prior to these strikes. How does that impact the level of trust and coordination between the alliance?
DIAMOND: Well, there was, of course, as you know, Zain, notification, you know, very shortly before this strike took place, and it went through the
military channels, not through senior diplomatic and political channels that are, of course, very much alive between the U.S. and Israel.
And that seems to have been intended by the Israelis to prevent the Americans from notifying the Qataris ahead of that strike actually taking
place, which the U.S. did, it seems try to do, but far too late to actually have any kind of actual impact. And so, there's no question that this has
revealed some tensions between the U.S. and Israel.
We heard President Trump, of course, make very clear on several occasions last week that he was not thrilled with anything about these Israeli
strikes in Qatar. At the same time, of course, we've heard the U.S. make clear that they do support broadly the goal of striking Hamas' leaders.
They simply seem to have objected to the location where these strikes actually took place, because it happened in a country that also hosts the
largest U.S. military presence in the entire Middle East. So, there's no question that despite the kind of papering over that we're seeing publicly,
there are some rifts behind the scenes over this issue.
And certainly, at a minimum, there is a big effort by the United States to now try and carry out some shuttle diplomacy here and smooth things over
with, you know, in terms of a dispute involving two key U.S. allies.
ASHER: All right, Jeremy Diamond, live for us there. Thank you so much. Right, no progress, that's what the Kremlin is saying about setting up a
trilateral summit with Ukraine and the United States. U.S. President Donald Trump raised the prospect of such a meeting when he met face to face with
his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin in Alaska last month.
The Kremlin is now insisting on conditions before it can happen. Trump has said his patience with Putin is running out now. He's issuing an ultimatum
to NATO allies stop buying Russian oil. CNN is also hearing that the European Union might go ahead with a Russian tourist ban.
The European official says the new ban would be part of the EU's next sanctions package against Moscow. All right, time now for a commercial
break, we will be back on the other side of this with more news. Don't go away.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:10:00]
ASHER: All right, as we mentioned before the break, Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary of State, is in Israel after the fallout from those Israel
strikes in Doha targeting Hamas leadership. We know that Marco Rubio is set to visit Doha tomorrow. Let's bring in CNN Political and Global Affairs
Analyst Barak Ravid, who is also a Global Affairs Correspondent at Axios.
Barak, thank you so much for being with us. One of the issues and the fears, I guess, among U.S., sort of senior sort of political figures, is
that there is the possibility that Qatar's role as a mediator, as a really important mediator in all of this, could be threatened. What does Marco
Rubio need to say when he visits Doha to ensure that doesn't happen?
BARAK RAVID, CNN POLITICAL & GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: I think the main issue right now for the Trump Administration, what they're trying to do is to try
and see how this does not continue to boil this crisis around the Israeli strike in Qatar, and what needs to be done by all the parties concerned to
stop this from boiling over.
That, I think, was the focus of Rubio's meeting today with Prime Minister Netanyahu and with other Israeli officials. And I think that's going to be
the focus tomorrow, when he meets the Qatari Emir and the Prime Minister of Qatar in Doha.
ASHER: During the press conference with actually seeing a video from the press conference. The press conference between Marco Rubio and Netanyahu,
he chose not to condemn, for obvious reasons, the strike in Qatar by Israel. That was probably a key and important decision that he made.
What does he need to actually say, though you talked about what the agenda is going to be when he gets to Doha? What does he need to say to the Qatari
officials there?
RAVID: I don't think he needs to be the one to say that. I think what needs to be said is by the party that conducted the strike. The U.S. did not
conduct the strike. It was an Israeli strike. And therefore, if anybody needs to do something to cool down tensions. This is the Israeli
government.
When it comes to the U.S. government, the Trump Administration. Rubio and Vice President Vance were both instructed by President Trump to meet the
Prime Minister of Qatar in Washington last Friday. Trump himself and Special Envoy, Witkoff, met the Qatari Prime Minister at the Trump Tower
for dinner later that day.
And Rubio is now going to Doha to continue discussing the U.S.-Qatar Defense Agreement. So, I think when it comes to the U.S., there is a very
clear sign that the U.S. wants to enhance relationship with Qatar and move forward with this defense agreement that the Qataris want to give them more
security assurances from the U.S. and something that's more tangible than just words.
ASHER: And in terms of the U.S.'s relationship with Israel, the fact that Israel did not coordinate, did not coordinate with the United States, the
Israel did not coordinate with the United States prior to launching these strikes in Doha. How does that affect the sort of level of trust between
both parties?
RAVID: So first, I think there's still a question mark over this issue. I don't think we know everything about what happened on the morning of
September 9th.
[11:15:00]
I think we need to learn more about what exactly happened there, but definitely what we do know is that it created tensions between the U.S. and
Qatar, because the Qataris, I don't think, thought that Israel would do such a thing without the U.S. knowing. And I think they were very
surprised, because they thought that the U.S. will not allow such a thing to happen.
And I think it created a lot of tensions between the U.S. and Israel, regardless of the fact that publicly, people are not showing it, and are
trying to, you know, to talk, you know, business as usual and we have good and strong relationship. I think there will be a scar from this incident,
from this strike, that will not go away very quickly.
ASHER: Is there a tangible impact as a result of the tensions that you bring up now?
RAVID: I think that the tangible thing is that I think there's less trust than there was before and then -- but you're right that there's still a
question of, how is this going to affect U.S. policy towards Israel. At the moment, it did not. And if at the end of the day, it ends with, you know,
people venting their frustration, either internally or in the press, but no change in U.S. policy, then I think you know, Netanyahu, can look at this
whole incident and say, you know what was worth it.
ASHER: You've also got the Council of Arab countries meeting to discuss the fallout from the strike in Doha, just in terms of the U.S.'s relationship
with regional allies across the Middle East. How will the strike in Doha impact that?
RAVID: I think a lot of countries in the region, especially the GCC countries, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, again for them,
they always -- they see the U.S. as country that can or maybe the only country in the world that Israel listens to, and they know that the U.S.-
Israel relationship is very, very close.
Therefore, I don't think you could ever convince anybody in the Gulf that the U.S. was not part of it, either intentionally or unintentionally. And
that therefore, I think there's also a lot of question marks in the Gulf about the U.S. role in the region, and those question marks will have to be
answered by the U.S.
ASHER: Right, Barak Ravid, live for us there. Thank you so much.
RAVID: Thank you.
ASHER: No progress. That's what the Kremlin is saying about setting up a trilateral summit with Ukraine and the United States. U.S. President Donald
Trump raised the prospect of such a meeting when he met face to face with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Alaska last month, but the Kremlin is
now insisting on conditions before it can happen.
Trump has said his patience with Putin is running out. Now he's issuing an ultimatum to NATO's allies stop buying Russian oil. CNN is also hearing
that the European Union might go ahead with a Russian tourist ban. A European official says the new ban would be part of the EU's next sanction
package against Moscow. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh has more.
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: The incursion of what seems to be a single Russian drone into Romanian
airspace, a reminder that since at least 19 Russian drones crossed into Poland last week, the threat of that has not remotely reduced, and indeed
any suggestion that NATO's plan to launch something called Eastern century.
And that's increased assets in their airspace on the eastern border to shoot down any Russian drones that crossed the program announced after the
incursion into Poland. Any thoughts that might have changed the Kremlin's thinking made them more cautious to avoid what some might say were
unintentional or probing incursions like those we saw over Poland.
That simply hasn't happened. One drone though potentially easier to subscribe to an error, but certainly a sign that Moscow is not doing its
utmost to try and avoid that kind of mistake from happening again. But attention also turning now to what sanctions may particularly follow in the
days ahead.
President Trump has long been telegraphing his readiness for a second or another package of sanctions against Russia and potentially the purchase of
its carbohydrans India and China. He said he was ready for that last weekend, but this weekend, he pulled pressure upon Europe, still purchasing
reduced but significant amounts of Russian hydrocarbons.
[11:20:00]
Remember, geographically Europe so much closer to Russia that it's more dependent on that market and finds it harder to peel itself away. But
essentially Trump saying that if NATO as European, NATO doesn't wean itself away from purchases from Russia and implement tough sanctions itself.
He won't do that from the United States' perspective, possibly a sensible, logical argument there, that if Europe wants United States to put heavy
sanctions against Russia, Europe should at least do that itself. But critics of Trump may indeed argue this is another case of a tough decision
against Putin looming and Trump instead choosing to pressure his allies.
Europe, though potentially hours, if not days, ahead of another sanctions package against Russia, told by a European official. This 19th package may
involve further restrictions on tourist visas for Russians to travel to the European Union, possibly restrictions on its diplomats travel with inside
that bloc as well, along with maybe more sanctions against banking the shadow fleet.
That moves Russian hydrocarbons around crypto exchanges and possibly export bans as well. Another package potentially designed to show Washington that
Europe is engaged and bringing its own tough sanctions in. But this talk also coming at a time of frailty for Ukraine on the front line.
Russian sources and bloggers suggesting some key villages may have changed hands in the past days, but a significant outage of the Starlink internet
service reported early on Monday morning. Maybe just a couple of hours, but it certainly impacted Ukrainian servicemen on the front lines who are
desperately dependent on that internet service to communicate between each other, but also to help pilot the significant number of drones they used to
make up for their manpower shortage and hold back the Russian military.
It's a key part of their defense. Late July, that internet service went down for also just a matter of hours, there was significant anxiety. Then
many work arounds seem to have been rushed to the fore. And also, some servicemen I spoke to said, look, Starlink is key for us.
But ultimately, we knew this might happen, and we had work arounds ready, and they seem less perturbed than I had expected, a second outage, though
potentially a sign of this frailty may indeed continue, and maybe a reminder too, of the need for future proofing against Starlink's
vulnerability, but also his ownership by Elon Musk and his own political sensibilities.
But still, all eyes on sanctions, and whether or not that will form part of a changing of the Kremlin's calculus, particularly when it comes to
incursions into NATO airspace. Nick Paton, Walsh, CNN, London.
ASHER: Right, the man accused of gunning down Charlie Kirk last week apparently left a note behind which may reveal some information about why
he killed. The Conservative Activist Utah Governor confirmed to CNN that authorities are examining a note left by suspect Tyler Robinson.
He said more details about the note would likely be revealed when Robinson is charged on Tuesday. Spencer Cox adds investigators are looking into
Robinson's connection to gaming and dark internet groups, which may have contributed to his radicalization. Meantime, the Director of the FBI says
they are collecting DNA evidence that will conclusively link Robinson to the shooting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KASH PATEL, FBI DIRECTOR: And I can report today that the DNA hits from the towel that was wrapped around the firearm and the DNA on the screwdriver
are positively processed for the suspect in custody.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: More on the investigation, let's bring in CNN Chief Law Enforcement and Intelligence Analyst, John Miller. So, you've got a note potentially
left by Tyler Robinson. You've got potential DNA evidence as well. In these sorts of investigations, walk us through the type of evidence that is most
critical early on?
JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: Well, there's two kinds of evidence. One is the physical and forensic and
eyewitness evidence, and that's what we've been talking a lot about, and that is what most of this affidavit filed by investigators goes into.
It's really about the time and place of occurrence, how they can document that he was there, what evidence they have that he is the alleged shooter
in this case. But that is to reach probable cause, to say to the court, to the judge tomorrow, we have enough to charge this person with felony
murder, felony use of a firearm.
What it doesn't get into in any detail is motive. Now that's an important distinction, because motive is not a requirement of proof. If you can prove
the person did the crime, and you can prove that through the evidence, motive is not a factor. However, it's important to us in terms of what is
behind this story.
And it's usually important to juries who want to know not just who done it, but why. It helps them get to their decision. And that is where we know
less than we do about the evidence that the FBI Director just described in terms of the different things that tie the shooter to the crime.
[11:25:00]
ASHER: All right. John Miller, live for us there. Thank you so much. In just the next hour, see how connected Charlie Kirk was to the White House
and especially to Vice President JD, Vance. Vance says he's actually going to be hosting today's edition of the "Charlie Kirk Podcast", the program
which brought Kirk's views to millions of followers.
Vance says he's doing it to pay tribute to my friend in his words. With more on that continued fallout from the killing of Charlie Kirk, let's go
straight now to the White House, where we find Kevin Liptak. Kevin, thank you so much for joining us. So just in terms of the message that JD Vance
is trying to convey through this tribute, walk us through that.
And also walk us through the relationship that these two men had, because Vance actually credits Charlie Kirk with him actually ending up as vice
president.
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yeah, and it was interesting. The day after Charlie Kirk died, the Vice President put out, I
think it was almost 1000-word post on social media, sort of laying out both his remembrances of Kirk, but also his credit to Kirk for introducing him
to Trump's sort of political sphere.
And actually, encouraging him, even before that, to run for Senate in Ohio, when Vance admitted he was something of a rusty candidate, Kirk provided
him some feedback encouragement. Also introduced him very critically to some of the Donor Network that he had cultivated as part of Turning Point
USA.
And then eventually down the line, introduced him to Donald Trump Jr., to President Trump himself, sort of inserting him in to the president's inner
circle, really suggesting that Vance wouldn't have had a national political career without the assistance of Kirk.
And we were talking earlier today to the Producer of "Charlie Kirk's Podcast", who said that JD Vance actually reached out and said that this is
something that he wanted to do to host his podcast today here, from here at the White House. And certainly, I think you could expect that Vance will
offer some of those remembrances, talk about some of what Kirk meant to him.
But also talk about sort of the environment that we are now in, in the United States, this sort of febrile fraught situation where you see the
president talking about political violence as a problem exclusively on the left. Listen to what the president said last night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: The problem is on the left. When you look at the problem, the problem is on the left. It's
not on the right, like some people like to say, on the right, the problem we have is on the left. And when you look at the agitators, you look at the
scum that speaks so badly of our country, the American flag burnings all over the place that's the left, that's not the right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIPTAK: Now, in reality, here, both Democrats and Republicans have been targeted by political violence over the last several years, whether it's
the lawmakers in Minnesota who are Democrats or the Governor of Pennsylvania whose house was subject to arson also a Democrat.
It's obviously targeted people on the right, including President Trump himself, and so when he says that this is a problem only on the left, we
just have to be clear that that doesn't reflect the reality of political violence in the United States, but what it does reflect is the president's
desire to use this moment to continue going after his political rivals.
And you hear the president and a number of White House aides talk about investigations into people who have been critical of Kirk after his
assassination, talking about potentially going after Democrats who weren't necessarily favorable of what Kirk was talking about.
And I think it just underscores that the president in this very sort of tense political moment is not looking at it as an opportunity to try and
bring the country together, to talk about unity. It's really a moment for him to sort of channel some of the anger that you're hearing from the
right, that you're hearing from some of Kirk's supporters in the aftermath of the event.
But it will be interesting to see whether Vance adopts that tone in that podcast today. You know, Vance is not someone who necessarily goes lockstep
with everything, at least in terms of tone that the president is saying. But obviously Vance is someone who is very, very close to Kirk, very close
to Kirk's family.
You saw him out in Utah escort the casket from the Salt Lake City area back to Arizona, where Kirk lives with his family. So clearly this is quite a
personal moment for him, as he watches into this podcast in about half an hour from now.
ASHER: All right, Kevin Liptak at the White House for us. Thank you so much. Right, still to come, last night's Emmy Awards were epic for so many
winners, one young actor there he is even set a record. See who and want to come an award next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:30:00]
ASHER: All right. Welcome back to "One World". I'm Zain Asher in New York. Here are some of the headlines we are watching for you today. U.S.
Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, met Israel's Prime Minister in Jerusalem early and show American support days after Israel attacked Hamas targets in
Qatar.
Rubio will next head to Qatar, which is hosting an emergency meeting of Arab leaders to discuss the fallout. Meantime, sources say Israel's ground
offensive into Gaza City will start soon. Utah's Governor says the man accused of shooting Conservative Activist Charlie Kirk left behind a note.
Authorities are still looking into the contents of the note, but we could learn more about it when the shooter is charged on Tuesday. And China says
chip giant Nvidia violated antitrust laws, significantly escalating its trade stand for standoff with the U.S.-Chinese regulators say the U.S.
company breached the terms of a conditional approval for acquiring an Israeli chip designer.
No further details were given this as Washington and Beijing are set to hold a fourth round of talks in Madrid this week. And New York Governor
Kathy Hochul is endorsing Zohran Mamdani in the race to be New York City's next mayor. She described a 33-year-old Democratic Socialist as, in her
words, a leader who is focused on making New York City affordable.
Hochul is the latest high-profile Democrat to back Mamdani's campaign after initially refusing to endorse him in June this year. All right, last night
saw the 77th Emmy Awards for television, some surprise victories, some edgy outfits and a whole lot of unmistakable love for Stephen Colbert.
One of last night's biggest winners was Netflix's "Adolescence". In particular, Owen Cooper, who won Best Supporting Actor in a limited
anthology series or TV movie. The 15-year-old is the youngest ever winner of any Emmy Award for acting. "Adolescence" picked up a total of six
awards, including outstanding limited series.
Let's bring in CNN Entertainment Correspondent Elizabeth Wagmeister to talk about the winners a little bit more so Owen Cooper, just 15 years old, he
had some words for other young aspiring actors.
[11:35:00]
He said, I was nothing about three years ago, step out of your comfort zone. Who cares if you get embarrassed? It's the sweetest thing to say.
Just walk us through that so young 15. We don't -- how long ago did he even started acting? Just what an incredible achievement.
ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: It really is an incredible achievement. And I have to tell you, I was in the room in the
theater last night, and everybody loved this moment. As you said, he made history at 15 years old, becoming the youngest male Emmy winner of all
time. His speech was so good, Zain, that we have to take a look at it. We have a clip.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OWEN COOPER, ACTOR, "ADOLESCENCE": Honestly, when I started these drama classes a couple years back, I didn't expect to be even in the United
States. Never mind here. But I think tonight proves that if you listen and you focus and you step out your comfort zone, you can achieve, you can
achieve anything in life. I was nothing about three years ago. I'm here now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WAGMEISTER: Just really so heartwarming. And again, a moment where everybody was really in awe of this young, talented actor and "Adolescence"
swept every category that they were nominated in. So, a huge night for them. Now, also a big night for the pit, which is a medical drama starring
ER -- Noah Wyle, who won for Best Actor in a Drama.
The show "The Pitt" also winning four Best Drama, and on the comedy side, the studio, which comes from Seth Rogen, who co-created the show and stars
in the show, the studio making Emmy history, winning 13 awards last night, becoming the biggest comedic Emmy winner in a single year in Emmy's
history.
Now, I actually caught up with Seth Rogen, Zain, on the carpet before, and I asked him about the show and how Hollywood really feels about it. Take a
look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WAGMEISTER: Does this mean that Hollywood actually likes to make fun of itself?
SETH ROGEN, ACTOR & COMEDIAN: Everyone likes to be made fun of I think in some ways, honestly, I think it's like, if it feels well observed, and I
think we tried to observe it well, and then, and also, it's a show, I think, again, that is sort of, in many ways, a love letter to Hollywood,
and I think we try to strike that balance. So, it seems though people could feel that in watching it, yeah.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WAGMEISTER: Now also some big wins last night for the show's "Severance", also for "SNL's 50th Anniversary Special" and "The Penguin". And, of
course, Stephen Colbert having undoubtedly the biggest moment of the night. His show, winning for the first time. Of course, this comes after his show
was canceled by CBS.
By the way, here in America, CBS was the network that aired the Emmys last night. Could have been an awkward moment, but instead it was just a huge
moment. The audience standing up, giving Stephen Colbert a standing ovation, chanting his name, and he also got a standing ovation at the top
of the show, because, Zain, he was actually the first presenter who came out.
So, they really got in front of that last night. And again, just big moment for him and his show.
ASHER: Yeah, what a great night all around. Really, I mean, I'm still thinking about Owen Cooper's speech there. So authentic, so heartwarming a
young kid. All right. Elizabeth Wagmeister, thank you. Appreciate it.
WAGMEISTER: Thank you.
ASHER: U.S. stocks are bucking the trend, hitting record highs despite a raft of recent bad news for the American economy. What investors are
betting on just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:40:00]
ASHER: All right, let's take a look and see how U.S. stocks are faring this morning. Let's take a look at. OK, slightly mixed, although the DOW is down
ever so slightly, basically flat, as you can see there. The NASDAQ and the S&P are only marginally higher as well. Markets clearly in wait and see
mode.
We get the fed decision this week, and markets are also sending bit of a mixed signal about the health of America's economy. Some major stocks have
been repeatedly hitting record highs, even as data shows hiring is at a standstill and inflation is actually on the rise again.
Let's bring in Matt Egan, joining us live now. So Matt, the big news this week is, of course, what's going to happen with the fed, the market is
actually pricing in at least a 25-point basis cut.
MATT EGAN, CNN REPORTER: Yeah, Zain, that's right, and that is really one of the major reasons why we've seen such a positive mood over on Wall
Street. The stock market has really just taken off like a rocket ship ever since April 9th, when the president paused and then dialed back his
Liberation Day tariffs.
The S&P 500 has added almost $14 trillion in market value since those closing lows on April 8th. And you see the NASDAQ up again today, up by
Almost 1 percent the NASDAQs on track for its sixth consecutive day of gains. Now we know the mood on Main Street has been anything but euphoric,
right?
Consumer sentiment down again in September, according to University of Michigan. And what's notable is we know there's a partisan divide sometimes
in those numbers, so that's why I like to look at what independents are saying, and independents at this point of President Trump's first term,
consumer sentiment was way higher.
Is almost double where it is right now. And what's notable is that the stock market continues to shatter records, even though we are seeing
evidence buildup of some trouble, possibly in the U.S. economy, right? We know hiring is weak. It's the weakest it's been really since COVID.
We've seen unemployment and jobless claims tick higher, and inflation is at this seven-month high. But investors, they don't really seem to care right
now, right? The focus is on the fact that corporate profitability is better than feared. It's on the AI boom and all the companies benefiting from
that, and yes on the fed, right?
Investors are increasingly confident the fed is going to come to the rescue, not just by cutting interest rates this week, but possibly a series
of interest rate cuts over the coming months. And rate cuts are usually cheered by investors, right? Because they tend to make stocks look more
attractive than bonds.
They tend to make it cheaper to borrow, and sometimes they even speed up the U.S. economy. Unfortunately, though, the fed is not cutting interest
rates right now because inflation has been defeated. They're cutting interest rates in large part because they're concerned about cracks in the
job market.
That's why Market Veteran, Art Hogan, he told me that celebrating the fed coming to the rescue is almost like celebrating the ambulance arriving to
your house early. Until you realize, of course, why you needed an ambulance in the first place. And so, Zain, right now, there's a lot of focus on the
fact that the fed is likely to cut.
There's a lot less focus on the economic weakness that's causing the fed to cut.
ASHER: I love Art Hogan. I mean, that's such an art thing to say --
EGAN: It is. It's a classic --
ASHER: -- classic comes out with these great one liner every time I speak to him on the phone or in person. All right. Matt Egan, live for us there.
Thank you so much.
EGAN: Thanks Zain.
ASHER: Right, joining us live now is Economics and Public Policy Professor at the University of Michigan, Justin Wolfers. Justin, always -- it's been
a while. Always good to see you, my friend. Just in terms of the fed's likely decision to cut interest rates this week, we're expecting possibly
25 basis points.
[11:45:00]
And walk us through the sort of decisions and the various factors weighing on the fed's decision here, especially when it comes to a slowing labor
market.
JUSTIN WOLFERS, PROFESSOR OF ECONOMICS AND PUBLIC POLICY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN: Yes, so let me give a bit of background perspective. We're
coming from a place, actually, where the fed has had its foot lightly on the brake. It's actually been slowing the U.S. economy, and that was
intentional, because when inflation was high in the post COVID era, it was trying to get rid of that inflation.
Now we're in a complicated place right now. The economy is slowing, and that would normally lead you to cut interest rates. But at the same time,
inflation starting to rise, and we know there's a lot more in the system because of the tariffs, that would normally lead you to raise interest
rates.
So, on the one hand, you want to raise rates, on the other hand, you want to lower them. And basically, what the fed's doing is just taking its foot
off the brake and moving back so that we can coast in neutral. So, I think it's important to understand, the fed has not put its foot on the
accelerator.
In fact, what President Trump has asked it to do is put the pedal to the metal and go flat out, cutting rates all the way down to one percentage
point. Look, we spent a lot of time talking about the fed, but I think it's important for folks at home, really, to realize, when we're talking about
whether it's a quarter point here or a half point there, it doesn't make that much big of a difference.
It's important that we're in the right ballpark, and then the extra quarter points here and there aren't a huge deal. What I worry more about is if the
fed were to do something catastrophic. Now this fed will not, but the president's attempt to put loyalists on the fed that suddenly puts us at
risk of that sort of catastrophe.
ASHER: You bring up so many important points. I do want to ask about inflation, but just to your point about President Trump wanting to put
loyalists in the fed. Just -- I mean, walk us through that, because obviously Lisa Cook has come under a lot of pressure President Trump
accusing her of mortgage fraud, then you have this idea that you know, Jerome Powell's term is set to expire in May 2026.
What can we expect to see after Powell's term expires? And what sort of impact will that have on monetary policy going forward?
WOLFERS: Right. So let me tell you how I would have answered that for any year in the previous four decades, which is I would have said, whoever's in
the White House, left or right is going to appoint a very serious economist, a serious steward of the responsibility, the awesome
responsibility the American people give.
They would appoint someone regardless of their partisan colors. And in fact, President Biden reappointed President Trump's pick, which was Jay
Powell. And I would have said that things that move -- as we move from Bernanke to Yellen and from Yellen onto Powell, things actually remained
remarkably similar.
That's what I hope. That's what Wall Street wants. It's not what the White House wants, and so pretty much everything's on the table if the president
were to appoint a crank or a charlatan. I have good news and bad news. The good news is, if you look at the history of people, President Trump has
tried to add to the Federal Reserve Board.
Half the time they've been exactly that sort of serious character, someone who's got our best interests at heart. The bad news is, half the time there
have been cranks and charlatans. Perhaps the good news is the president is sorry the senate has stopped the worst of those appointments.
So, we are at an uncertain point. Normally, I would say, don't worry too much. Right now, actually, I'm white knuckling it a little bit, and I'm
kind of worried.
ASHER: Don't worry too much, would certainly be famous last words at a time like this. But just in terms of what you said about inflation, you know,
you point out that obviously the fed isn't quite at the 2 percent inflation target that it wants. On top of that, you've got tariffs and all sorts of
fears about what that could do to rising costs.
So is there a fear that the fed might end up cutting interest rates too quickly. What is the right pace for them to cut rates at a time like this,
when there's so many different factors involved here?
WOLFERS: So, there's no perfect answer, and let me explain why. Tariffs cause the economy to shrink. That's the sort of thing you'd normally cut
rates for. Tariffs cause inflation to rise. That's the sort of thing you'd normally raise rates for. The easy way, the result is, we're seeing the
early signs of stagflation.
The easy way to solve this would be to not impose tariffs. So, there is a policy problem and a policy solution. The problem is the White House won't
play ball, and so then the fed is trying to do guide us towards the least bad outcome, but it's going to involve some combination of inflation being
uncomfortably high and some combination of people being out of work, and both of those are pretty awful.
So those folks are going to be doing the best they can, but realize there's a much simpler solution to a problem that's caused by White House policies.
ASHER: All right. Justin Wolfers, thank you so much. Appreciate it. All right, still to come, the Catholic Church is getting a surprising boost in
popularity, but what's behind the surge? We'll take you to Europe to find out.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:50:00]
ASHER: All right many mainstream religions in Western countries have been charting a sharp decline in youth engagement, but in Europe, Catholicism is
witnessing a surprising rebound. This despite the Catholic Church troubled past and global sex abuse scandal. CNN's Melissa Bell has more on what's
inspiring this youth revival.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sharing the oldest of messages in the newest of forms on Instagram and TikTok
sister Albertine leads prayers and offers advice to her more than half million followers. Part of a growing tribe of Catholic influencers who are
speaking to a generation dusting off the solemnity of the past.
SISTER ALBERTINE DEBACKER, FRENCH CATHOLIC NUN AND SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCER: This is how God is doing. I think he is surprising us. How are we going to
help these young people.
BELL (voice-over): Partly through song and dance, at this Christian festival in the foothills of the French Alps, a young generation has
flocked many followers of Sister Albertine who have come to hear her speak.
JEANNE FABRE, FESTIVAL ATTENDEE: She really makes questions of faith accessible, and in fact, she's really authentic. The 29-year-old nun says
she's inundated with questions, her role simply to take to the space where the young spend most of their time.
ALBERTINE: Jesus was going outside. Jesus was walking all the time. He was searching for encounter people. And now in 2025, to encounter people, we
have to start with social media.
BELL: Over the last few years here in France, there's been a doubling in the number of adult baptisms, with nearly half of those coming from
families with no religious background. The starkest rise of all is amongst the very youngest, 18- to 25-year-olds.
BELL (voice-over): The stunning rebuilding of Notre Dame may also have added a new shine to the image of Catholicism. Audrey Bourges, who's 24
shows us where she was fortunate enough to be baptized on Easter.
AUDREY BOURGES, CATHOLIC CONVERT: So yeah, the church I was really, really helpful, because I joined just after COVID. I found friends, I found my
boyfriend, I found everything I was looking for in my love piece and some people I can rely on.
BELL (voice-over): Back at the festival, Sister Albertine, just back from the Vatican's jubilee celebrations, tells the crowd of her chance encounter
with Pope Leo.
[11:55:00]
She'd been invited as one of more than 1000 influencers as the church moves to capitalize on this thoroughly modern megaphone to the young.
FATHER LUCIANO COUTO, HEAD OF YOUTH MINISTRY AT CHEMIN NEUF COMMUNITY: They are eager for that. They are thirsty for that experience. God can talk to
me. And they are coming to the Catholic Church because we have a 2000 years tradition of teaching people to hear God's voice, and that's awesome.
BELL (voice-over): A religion, says Father Luciano that is, yet again, showing its remarkable power of resurrection. Melissa Bell, CNN, in the
French hours.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: Right, stay with CNN. There's much more "One World" with my colleague Bianna Golodryga, after this short break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
