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One World with Zain Asher
Trump Takes Questions as He Leaves WH to Head to Florida; Israel Begins Demolitions in West Bank City After Gun Attack; Netanyahu Vows to "Destroy This Place" After Hebron Shooting; Israeli PM Orders Closure of West Bank After 2 Soldiers Killed; Trump Announces $8B Plan to Help Farmers Amid Soaring Costs; Strong Winds and Heavy Rain Hit Taiwan as Typhoon Approaches. Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired October 23, 2026 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ZAIN ASHER, CNN HOST, ONE WORLD: All right, coming to you live from New York. I'm Zain Asher.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN HOST, ONE WORLD: And I'm Bianna Golodryga. I'm going to miss that. You are watching "One World". I say I'm going to miss that
because a quick personal note for me, today is my last day with CNN after nine wonderful years.
We'll get more into this later in the show. I've decided to leave for an opportunity that I couldn't pass up. We're going to talk more about this
later in the show. We've got two more hours together, but just wanted to address that at the top. All right. Well, President Trump is holding two
rallies in Florida today, with just 11 days to go until the midterm elections.
He's departing the White House right now for Joint Base Andrews. Let's listen in.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Horrible little reporter, aren't you? If my mother said bad things about me, do you think
the Democrats would put it up? I think so. But my mother thought I was wonderful. Thank you, Mom.
My mother would never, even if she thought them, she would never say. This is a person, a mother, a smart woman. I watch smart woman. She said her
daughter is a disaster. Her daughter is a liar, and she felt that she had an obligation. And she also said her daughter lied about her opponent,
which is Vivek Ramaswamy.
If I had that ad, I should be so lucky to have an ad like that. Why wouldn't you listen to a mother that says that? Why? Why would you miss
NBC? Why wouldn't you listen? Wait a minute, quiet. You have. I don't know anything about a stepfather. All you have.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: -- stepfather --
TRUMP: Well, this one just keeps talking. You just keep talking. You have a -- I don't know anything about stepfathers from many, many years ago. I
know that recently a mother got on television and said that her daughter should not be governor of Ohio, and she said, I love my daughter, but my
daughter lies all the time and lied about her opponent, and I can't watch it.
And the mother got up. This has nothing to do with the stepfather or anything else. This has to do with the fact that a woman got out, the
mother of a person running for governor of one of the greatest states, where I set records, and said that she's a liar. Her daughter's a liar.
She said her daughter lied about Vivek, and the mother couldn't take it anymore. She basically said her daughter should not. That's what she said.
Her daughter should not be the governor of Ohio. To me, that's something that's very much fair game.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. President, could you preview your trip to Michigan on Sunday?
TRUMP: My trip to Michigan is going to be very exciting. Every one of my trips is exciting. I think we did fantastically in Iowa. I think that
you're going to have everybody I talked about last night is going to be elected. You're going to have a great governor, great senator.
We're going to have a very big one, right now, they're saying the line is two miles long, or four miles, or five miles long. We're sold out at every
single place I go, and every single place I go, people that are down are now winning.
[11:05:00]
Thank you very much.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. President -- how does the U.S. military prevent these attacks that are happening on cargo ships and oil tankers in the
Strait of Hormuz?
TRUMP: They're competent. They're really good. The navy has done a great job. We have more. You just saw it on the front page of "The Wall Street
Journal". There's more oil coming out right now through the Strait of Hormuz than it was even before the war. We have done a hell of a job. I
hope someday we'll recognize.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- what --
TRUMP: To saving babies and bringing babies back home to their parents, and she's been able to do something that's great. She's been working very hard
on it. She wants to see babies come back to their families, and that's between Russia and Ukraine. And they worked a ceasefire in a very rough
place, by the way.
And babies are being exchanged. She's done a great job.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In politics, Kamala Harris was in Mississippi last night. Mississippi is a state that nobody really thought would be at play.
What does that have to tell you about the midterm?
TRUMP: Well, I won it by 32 points. They've asked me to go. I'm going there. I think on Monday.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, sir.
TRUMP: And I look forward to it. And Cindy Hyde-Smith. You know, Cindy Hyde is fantastic. She's very popular, and she's up in the poll. She's not
losing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You've been doing so many rallies. I'm just curious. Do you feel like the strategy is working? I know he's not your favorite, but
Karl Rove had an article the other day in the journal, and he said that there's a chance of backlash. Do you think the rallies is the best strategy
so close to the midterms?
TRUMP: Look, you have Karl Rove. He's a loser. He's a proven. He's been a loser all his life. Karl Rove doesn't know what he's talking about. Look,
every single place I've gone to, every single place, whether people were losing that were expected to win, when I'm leaving, look at Ohio.
How much better he's doing. Look at everyone. Look at Iowa last night with Ashley. She's -- they just came out with numbers right now. Every place I'm
going to, every place is full, loaded with people. Lines outside trying to get in. I'm going to Fort Myers right now.
They say there's a line of people that's five miles long. Every place I've gone to, I've helped, and every place wants me. The one problem is I'm one
person. This is a lot of work -- Let me tell you, this is a lot of work.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- So, how do you feel like though? Is it the juice worth the squeeze? Do you feel like you say you feel like you're the only
one doing it? Do you feel like other Republicans should be more fortunate?
TRUMP: Well, I'm the only one that can get 25,000 people to show up. That's you know whether it's Democrat or Republican. That's a proven fact. That's
been proven for 10 years. I'm the only one that can get the crowds, and I don't know why. You know, you'll have to tell me someday.
You'll write a book about it. But like in Fort Myers, they have thousands and thousands of people that were there yesterday. They were lined up
yesterday. So that seems to be a trait or an ability, I can, and I want to use it for good purpose. And if I don't think somebody's really worthy or
good job, I don't go.
But Mississippi, I'm going. Today, I'm going for a man who's going to be a great governor. I think he's going to be a great governor. So, Byron, we're
going to see him in a little while. We have -- but we have a tremendous crowd of people. I don't know if you're going, and you're doing a very good
job, by the way.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: -- Mr. President --
TRUMP: I'm going to be going to Michigan. I don't know. Is it Saturday, Sunday?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's Sunday, but sir, you're on. You're on the --
TRUMP: I look forward to Michigan. I can talk about a man who's a Muslim Brotherhood person, who's a jihadist, and who can't be in our Senate? He's
a fake. He's a fake guy. All you have to do is look at his statements from two years ago. I'm looking forward to going to Michigan.
And by the way, Mike Rogers will be a great senator. But I'm looking at a man who is with? I call him Mohammed, but Abdul, is Abdul. It's actually
his middle name is actually Mohammed. I don't know if you know that or not. His name is Abdul Mohammed. He's a fake.
He's a total fake, and we can't have fakes. And you -- can you imagine this guy? He was a member, probably still is of the Muslim Brotherhood. We can't
have him in Congress. We can't have him in the United States. We can't have him in the United States Senate.
And I look forward to -- I tell you what, I look so forward to Michigan, and I think it's going to be wild. But I look so -- because he's a total
phony. He's a little phony, and everything about him is fake, and he's a liar, and he talks about all these things about like he's a moderate.
He's not a rotten. He's a jihadist. He's a vicious, violent jihadist, and he has no place in our government.
[11:10:00]
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: -- they travel with --
TRUMP: No, I'm not. No, no. They took the money and they gave it to essentially a charity. No, that was. I just heard that. I think it's a very
nice thing, didn't you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. President, Mike Rogers --
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GOLODRYGA: All right. You've been listening to President Trump taking some reporters' questions there before he departs the White House for Florida.
He's going to be campaigning aggressively these in the last 11 days before the midterm elections, and noticeably again going to some ruby red,
typically safe states, states that he says he himself has won by double digits.
Obviously, the polling suggesting that Republican candidates are very much at risk of losing their races there because of how economists or the
economy has factored into voters' decisions. Let's listen back in.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TRUMP: -- any time ever had --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- what --
TRUMP: Well, I don't think he does. I think he does. First of all, he's a very good person. He's not going to do anything wrong. He's a very
brilliant person, or Starlink wouldn't exist. Another thing, but Elon will never do anything wrong. I know him very well. He's a fair person, and you
know it's an unusual situation where you're talking to private, a private company.
But he's not going to do anything that's wrong.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, ask you about Canada tariff. You're going to Michigan tomorrow. Mike Rogers has said that the Canada tariff war has to
end. Are you worried --
TRUMP: Well, Canada wants very much to make a deal because of tariffs. They want to make a deal, and as you know, they've been making 90 billion a year
for many years with us. They're making anywhere from 80 to 100 billion dollars. And I said, nope, I'm not doing that. And Canada now is very much
prepared to make a deal.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. President --
TRUMP: Really good. I finally had a nice group of people in my office the Catholic representatives, bishops, and others. It was a great meeting.
Well, they prayed. They mostly prayed. It was actually a very nice meeting. They're great. They were great people.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Any concerns about the NFL playing in France this week?
TRUMP: Glad you worry about it. It's got. I think maybe looking like tomorrow is going to be a bad day in France, so you worry about it. I would
have said the NFL could have probably postponed that match if you want to know, because France is really in trouble.
That's what happens when you go left. That's what happens when you allow unlimited numbers of people into your country from very unfriendly
countries. That's what you're going to have.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. President --
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GOLODRYGA: OK, you're listening to the president there. Take a few more questions before he departs there, Marine One headed to Florida to campaign
for Byron Donalds in his gubernatorial race in Florida. As the president noted, he will be going to a number of states over the course of the next
11 days before the midterm elections.
Michigan being one of them, the president had some fiery words for the Democratic candidate there, Abdul El-Sayed, doubling down on his criticism,
calling him a jihadist, a number of unsubstantiated allegations that he's made against him over the past few weeks, months.
And also, I think picking up specifically as it relates to the midterms and the elections, this ad that has become quite controversial in Ohio that
Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has run against his opponent Amy Acton that has received a lot of criticism from Republicans as well about
accusations against her stepfather, her mother speaking out against her.
Some really, really nasty personal dynamics in that race. The president supporting --
ASHER: Right. And we will actually talk a bit more about that later on in the show. We've got some political analysis coming up a little bit later
on. The Israeli Prime Minister has ordered the closure of a city in the occupied West Bank after two Palestinian gunmen opened fire on an Israeli
military checkpoint, killing two Israeli soldiers and wounding three others.
[11:15:00]
GOLODRYGA: Yeah, the IDF now says that it will carry out arrests of suspects and increase intelligence operations in Hebron. It all comes at a
time of extremely heightened tensions, just four days before Israel holds its first elections since the October 7th attacks.
And settler violence in the West Bank has hit record levels, driven by a sharp escalation around the annual olive harness.
ASHER: Hours after the attack, Israeli forces began to force out residents and begin demolitions in Hebron and areas near the city. Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu is vowing to destroy what he calls terrorist strongholds in Hebron and says he would consider doing it elsewhere in the West Bank as
well. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: We will act to destroy this place, to change it completely. But to do something that has not been done
until now, we are going to implement the successful and aggressive model we used in the refugee camps, which are essentially terrorist strongholds.
That is exactly what we will do here, inside a neighborhood in Hebron, from which the terrorists emerged. We will evacuate the residents. We will go
house to house. We will also confiscate the weapons there, and all terrorist infrastructure will be dealt with and destroyed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: All right. Let's bring in CNN's Oren Liebermann joining us live now from Jerusalem. Oren, it's important to note that, of course, yes, you had
these two Israeli soldiers killed in violence today, but obviously it comes amid a backdrop that you and I have spoken about several times, and that is
broader violence in the West Bank.
You have a lot of settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. At least 1,000 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank since October
7th, 2023. Obviously, this comes though days before the Israeli elections, and Mr. Netanyahu's particular brand of politics is that of security.
That is what he sees himself as sort of specializing in. He's doubling down on security measures that he's going to impose in the West Bank. How will
that affect voters' calculations going into the elections on Tuesday there in Israel, Oren?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Well, it's only four days now here, and the final round of polls will actually come out in just a couple
of hours here by law. It's unlikely that this so late in the game affects any voters and the decisions they will make on Tuesday.
A lot of that is already set, and repeated polls have suggested there's only a very small percentage of Israelis that aren't sure how they will
vote here. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has for years tried to portray himself as Israel's Mr. Security. He has repeatedly avoided taking any sort
of responsibility for the myriad failures that led up to and were ahead of the October 7th Hamas-led terror attack on Israel.
And here he is back once again, trying to portray himself as Mr. Security. Here is what he had to say when he visited the scene of the shooting attack
near the City of Hebron earlier today.
BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NETANYAHU: We warned a few weeks ago about attempts by our enemies to harm us, our citizens, and our soldiers ahead of the elections. That is what
they tried to do here. Israel Defense Forces soldiers blocked this with their bodies, and we were also wounded.
The soldiers not only stopped the terrorists but also charged heroically and eliminated them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIEBERMANN: In this case, Israel is moving very quickly. We have seen limited-scale demolitions carried out after an attack, normally targeting
the attacker's family and the gunman's family. In this case, Israel has made clear that they're going after an entire neighborhood, that they'll
evacuate that neighborhood, and then destroy anything that they classify as terrorist infrastructure.
And we saw that start very, very quickly. In fact, within just a matter of hours of the shooting attack itself, focusing on the neighborhood in
Hebron, where the attackers came from and to where they went. Now, one of the shocking things about the shooting attack itself is how long it lasted.
We have seen these before, and normally they're over in a very short period of time. But first responders at the scene, the security forces that
responded there said that the shooting attack, the firefight between the two Palestinian gunmen and Israeli security forces, lasted upwards of 20
minutes, and that is an incredibly long period of time here.
Again, Israel now moving very quickly in the wake of the attack to evacuate that neighborhood. We have seen videos where Israeli forces shouted at
Palestinian residents that they have five minutes to evacuate, and already the demolitions have started. Israel has said, and Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu has said that they will replicate the operations they carried out in West Bank refugee camps.
Those displaced thousands as entire neighborhoods were evacuated and homes were destroyed here. But this appears to be an effort by Netanyahu to try
to shore up his security standing with just days to go until the elections.
ASHER: Oren Liebermann, thank you for that.
GOLODRYGA: All right, let's take a closer look at the violence, the repercussions with Firas Maksad. He is the Managing Director of the Middle
East & North Africa at Eurasia Group.
[11:20:00]
Firas, great to have you back on the program. So, we have this terror attack that led to the killing of two Israeli soldiers. And what's
interesting is the dynamic that Oren just laid out. On the one hand, most voters' minds have already been made up. On the other hand, we see Prime
Minister Netanyahu taking this decisive measure here, ordering the closure of Hebron, perhaps even larger parts of the West Bank.
Though it took 20 minutes, as he said, for this shooting to end, and so that may remind voters of the amount of time it took for Israel and its
defense forces and security to respond to the October 7th attacks. Another error, perhaps made by the government of the prime minister, who says that
he is Mr. Security.
Just talk about the impact in your mind that this could perhaps have for voters.
FIRAS MAKSAD, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF THE MIDDLE EAST & NORTH AFRICA AT EURASIA GROUP: Absolutely, Bianna. I don't think that it is a coincidence
at all. Far from it that this attack happened just four days before this very crucial Israeli election, the first Israeli election in the post
October 7 environment.
So clearly, the intention is to have an impact on the Israeli voter as they head to the poll on Tuesday. Again, just four days from now, whether that
actually will have the desired effect is an entirely different story. Most Israelis have already made up their mind. I don't think that this will sway
voters, one way or another in a significant way, but it can have an impact along the margin.
Certainly, the Prime Minister, Mr. Netanyahu, did not lose the opportunity, as we saw, to play this up, play up his credentials as Mr. Security,
showing up very quickly in the vicinity of the West Bank, flak jacket and all. And this can be an opportunity for him to galvanize right-wing voters
in support of voting for his coalition.
Obviously, there's also a fight, a political battle that is taking place within the right-wing coalition, supportive of Prime Minister Netanyahu.
Netanyahu needs the Likud party to emerge as the largest party on the right, and also to be able to steal, so to speak, votes from other right-
wing parties, so that the Yashar Party, headed by his political opponent Gadi Eisenkot, does not then emerge itself as the largest party and get the
first right -- at first attempt at forming a government in Israel.
So, it's complicated, but certainly what is apparent to me is that the timing of this attack very much has the Israeli elections in four days in
mind.
ASHER: Firas, the perception of Israel on the world stage is certainly a lot more complicated, shall we put it, after October 7th in the past three
years. And when you consider, I mean, it is an interesting juxtaposition. The response, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's response to the attack on
two Israeli soldiers, or the killing of rather two Israeli soldiers, compared to what he typically says in the aftermath of Palestinians being
killed in the West Bank by Israeli settlers.
I mean, obviously, we saw that horrific attack against "The Washington Post" Reporter Heidi Levine. As a result of these killings of two Israeli
soldiers. He's conducting obviously military operations. He's talked about forced evacuations, rage, searches, restrictions, closing the West Bank.
And yet, when Palestinians are killed by Israeli settlers, it is a bit of a different response. I mean, obviously there are promises, but he has
repeatedly downplayed the scale of the violence against Palestinians, and also talked about this idea that some of the violence or the perception of
the violence there is somewhat, in his view, exaggerated.
What does that do, and that sort of juxtaposition do to Israel standing on the international stage?
MAKSAD: Yeah, Zain, thank you for that question. I mean, obviously, this attack didn't happen in a vacuum. Attacks against Palestinians in the West
Bank have been up 240 percent increase in the past five years, according to OCHA, a humanitarian agency within the United Nations.
And much of that settler violence goes unaddressed. Here, it's a situation and a case where politics dictates, I think it's no secret to anybody that
the current Israeli government is the most right-wing government in Israel's history. And Netanyahu himself, Mr. Security notwithstanding, is
also captive to the politics of the coalition, where you have Ben-Gvir, Minister Ben-Gvir and Minister Smotrich being very outspoken, hawkish
advocates of reoccupying, or the West Bank is already occupied.
But essentially dismantling the Palestinian Authority and expanding settlement movement and settler violence against the Palestinians. And so,
there's been a great deal of reluctance and political pressure not to prosecute those who are perpetrating violence against Palestinians.
[11:25:00]
And I think the numbers, again, by U.N. agencies and others, speak for themselves in terms of the increasing trend of settler violence against
Palestinians in the West Bank.
GOLODRYGA: All right, Firas Maksad, thank you so much for joining us. Appreciate it.
ASHER: All right. We are following a drive-by shooting in France, where one person has been killed and at least four others injured.
GOLODRYGA: Yeah, you can see emergency services here at a gas station just outside of Paris, where the shooting took place earlier. French President
Emmanuel Macron said on social media earlier that a suspect had been arrested. The shooter's motives so far are unclear.
ASHER: Melissa Bell is joining us live now from Paris. I mean, obviously, the shooting comes at an interesting time because obviously there's so much
tension right now in France over separate protests. But just walk us through what we know about what happened as Bianna was mentioning, we don't
necessarily know much about the shooters' motives yet.
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: But a pretty horrific scene that unfolded this morning in those two small satellite towns to the
southwest of Paris, Trappes and La Verriere. You just showed there the images of that petrol station.
That was one of three different places that the gunman stopped in his car. It was it was him that was driving the car. He was using a military grade
or automatic weapon certainly, and he stopped at several locations. First of all, that petrol station. He also stopped outside a clinic, and he
stopped at a playground chillingly.
What we know from French authorities, for now, is that an anti-terror investigation has been opened. That they believe this may have been
racially motivated. We don't know a great deal more about the gunman, apart from that, he's a 39-year-old who's now in police custody.
What we understand happened during that shooting spree, again with an automatic weapon on those quiet suburban streets of the Greater Paris
region at about 10:30 a.m. was that he just indiscriminately opened fire on passerby. The result is that one person is dead, and several others are
wounded.
A few of them critically, including a 12-year-old girl who was shot no fewer than eight times. So, this was particularly violent shooting that
took place this morning, as you say, in the context of a particularly tense country bracing once again for protests tomorrow.
GOLODRYGA: Going to be another intense weekend there for sure. Thank you so much, Melissa Bell.
ASHER: Yeah, we appreciate it. All right, we have more breaking news this hour in Jordan. The public security agency says at least six people have
been killed in a horrific mass shooting.
GOLODRYGA: Yeah, multiple gunmen reportedly opened fire at a church in the Karak province. Witnesses say dozens of people were inside attending a
funeral when it happened. Right now, officials are pursuing the unidentified gunman. Shootings like this are incredibly rare in Jordan.
Let's go straight to Jomana Karadsheh, who is joining us live from London. Really disturbing story here as we're learning more. Jomana, what do we
know at this point?
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Bianna, we've just heard from the Jordanian authorities who are describing this as an unprecedented
terrorist attack on certainly on Jordan's minority Christian population, at least seven people have been killed.
This is the latest figure. Again, you know we've heard from officials revising this death toll throughout the day, but right now they're saying
at least seven people were killed, and at least 27 others were injured. Now, what we know is people had gathered at this church in southern Jordan,
in a small town of Hamud that is predominantly Christian.
This is a Greek Orthodox church. People had gathered for a funeral. Estimates put it at 150 to 200 people who were inside the church when these
gunmen attacked, and we have seen CCTV footage from outside the church that captures the moment as these gunmen opened fire on people out there in the
courtyard of the church.
Really chilling video there, Bianna, that we have seen. And a short time ago, I spoke with a survivor, a woman who was inside the church when the
attack happened, she said it was shortly after 02:00 p.m. local time. As people brought in the coffin for this funeral, the priest was about to
start the prayers, and that is when shooting erupted.
She said we could hear automatic gunfire outside, and then these gunmen yelling Allahu Akbar. And she describes a very chaotic scene in there.
People screaming, people frightened, people dialing 911. She said that she was in the front pews, and then she ended up going and hiding with others
behind the altar in the church.
[11:30:00]
She says she did not -- she couldn't imagine how she was going to get out of that church. But according to this eyewitness survivor, she says that
the shooting took place for several minutes. It was outside in the courtyard where people were still outside before coming into the church,
and that the gunman did not come inside.
And she describes the scene there, Bianna, as a massacre, and says that she had never imagined she would see anything like this in her life in Jordan.
This most certainly is a very rare occurrence in a country that is known for being a stable and relatively secure country in a very turbulent
region.
And I can tell you, the Christian population in Jordan has very much felt that it was immune to the kind of violence that we have seen jihadist
groups use target Christian populations over the years in neighboring countries. We also heard from the Jordanian monarch King Abdullah in a post
on egg, saying that the terrorist attack will be met with the harshest retaliation.
We will strike with an iron fist against those who dare to threaten our nation, Bianna.
GOLODRYGA: Just so devastating, and obviously the Christian minority community there left shaken as well. Jomana Karadsheh, thank you. Still
ahead on "One World".
ASHER: Yeah, we speak to two farm union leaders for America's farming heartland about Donald Trump's multi-billion-dollar plan to help them.
Question is, though, will it be enough?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: I'm also pleased to announce that the Department of Agriculture will be launching a new harvest fuel relief program, providing our farmers with
$8 billion in support.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:35:00]
ASHER: All right, welcome back to "One World". I'm Zain Asher.
GOLODRYGA: And I'm Bianna Golodryga. Here are some headlines we're watching today. Israel has begun demolishing buildings and forcing residents to
evacuate a neighborhood in the occupied West Bank hours after two Palestinian gunmen opened fire on an Israeli military checkpoint.
Two soldiers were killed and at least three others injured. It comes just four days before Israel holds elections.
ASHER: One person has been killed and at least four injured in a drive-by shooting in France. The incident took place at a gas station in a district
near Paris. French authorities say a suspect has been arrested, although a motive for the shooting has not yet been established.
GOLODRYGA: At least seven people have been killed in a shooting at a church in Jordan. That is according to state media, who say armed men opened fire
inside the church inside Jordan's Karak province. Officials are currently pursuing the gunman involved.
ASHER: Restrictions on Elon Musk's Starshield satellite system are still complicating Kyiv's war effort. The Ukrainian Defense Ministry tells CNN,
as of this morning, they are still observing signal loss. Ukrainian officials say at least nine people have been killed from overnight Russian
attacks.
And the Starlink CEO is looking to bolster Republican candidates, pumping another 76 million dollars into their midterm campaigns. Musk has now
donated more than 440 million dollars. It's something that a lot of people are talking about. With just 11 days to go before the elections, new data
shows that more than 20 million Americans, though, will have already voted.
GOLODRYGA: Yeah. Also looking to shore up Republican support, President Trump sets out just moments ago to hit the campaign trail. President will
head to Florida from Joint Base Andrews. While in the red state, Trump is expected to stump for Republican gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds.
ASHER: This as voters are faced with soaring gas prices. Michigan drivers are paying $4.77 a gallon. That's up 33 cents in just the past few days. An
Illinois refinery outage is being blamed for the spike less than two weeks before Election Day.
GOLODRYGA: Yeah. Let's see where Brent crude, the oil market's global benchmark, stands right now, 2.5 percent. The U.S. benchmark, WTI, up over
3 percent today.
ASHER: And some breaking news just sent to CNN. The Trump Justice Department has preemptively filed a lawsuit seeking to block certification
of Alaska's U.S. Senate election if the Republican incumbent loses.
GOLODRYGA: Yeah, it alleges the presence of a candidate named Daniel J. Sullivan could confuse voters. The Alaska race could decide the balance of
power in the Senate. CNN's Alayna Treene joins us from the White House with more. We have heard this concern, Alayna, from Republicans before about two
candidates sharing the same name.
But now that the Justice Department is involved, this clearly takes it to a much more significant state. Tell us what they are arguing.
ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, this is pretty remarkable, given that this is a preemptive lawsuit from the Justice
Department, saying that they will, you know, push to block certification in the Alaska Senate race should the Dan Sullivan name issue.
And just to point it out again, you broke it down great Bianna and Zain, but Daniel J. Sullivan is running in this race and is on the ballot. But
the Incumbent Senator, Republican Dan Sullivan, both of them sharing the same name, is also going to be on the ballot. There's been a lot of
consternation about the confusion, of course, that arises from having two candidates of the same name and how that could impact the election.
The Justice Department arguing that if they vote for the wrong Dan Sullivan, or if this the name issue creates problems in this election, they
are going to try and block the certification of that race. And I think part of the reason this is so remarkable, as I pointed out, is one the fact that
this lawsuit is coming beforehand.
And two, it's really not up to the federal government to determine how states handle the certification process and other specifics of these types
of elections. Elections are handled by the states and the governors in the states, and so that's been something that we've already seen some criticism
of, in light of this breaking news and this decision.
I also think this opens kind of a broader area of concern for some people about what this could mean about the election results overall. There's been
a lot of questions over how Republicans, how the president, how this administration are going to handle the election results and whether or not
the president will commit to accepting the election results, partly because, of course, we know that President Trump has repeatedly, in the
past, falsely claimed that elections that he's been involved in were rife with fraud.
And so, you know some people question could this be teeing some of that up?
[11:40:00]
We'll have to see whether or not we're going to see a much broader fight, but I think in Alaska specifically, the idea that this is a lawsuit coming
preemptively suggests that perhaps we could see a lot more of these fights to come.
GOLODRYGA: Alayna Treene, you've been very busy this morning covering this breaking story and also just asking the president some questions him making
news saying that he supports Elon Musk on the issue of how he has played a role here in controlling Starlink and Starshield for Ukraine's defense.
TREENE: Yeah.
GOLODRYGA: Thank you so much, Alayna.
ASHER: Right, the Trump Administration has announced an $8 billion plan to help farmers across the country here in the U.S.
GOLODRYGA: Yeah, the package is meant to help balance the soaring costs of diesel and fertilizer, and it follows another $12 billion aid package for
farmers just 11 months ago. That one was announced in the wake of trade disputes over tariffs.
ASHER: Yeah, Trump announced the plan at a Kansas rally on Monday, just two weeks ahead of the midterm elections. The war with Iran has disrupted 1/3
of the world's supply of fertilizer and farmers have seen the cost of diesel, which they use in their equipment, soar to record levels this year.
Let's dig deep into all of this. We've got our local impact segment here with us now. Are two people from America's farming heartland, fifth
generation farmer and President of the Iowa Farmers Union, Aaron Lehman, and also joining us, the Executive Director of the Kansas Farmers Union,
Nick Levendofsky, who also grew up on a family farm and was formerly secretary for the Global Nonprofit Institute for Agricultural and Trade
Policy.
You two men are absolutely the perfect people you want to talk to about this. Obviously, you have the Trump Administration announcing this $8
billion relief package for farmers, and as we know, farmers have really been hit hard by rising diesel costs, rising fertilizer costs.
As I mentioned, farmers absolutely rely on diesel for their irrigation machinery as well. And just explain to us, though, this relief package.
Yes, it will. You know, by the sounds of it, provide some relief. But given the other headwinds that farmers are facing right now, how much relief will
this actually provide?
AARON LEHMAN, PRESIDENT OF THE IOWA FARMERS UNION: Well, thank you for being here. I'll jump in if --
ASHER: Thank you. Sorry about that. Go ahead.
LEHMAN: It really the war in Iran has really dug a hole that farmers are in with higher diesel prices and higher fertilizer prices. It we feel it every
single day, especially this time of year when we're using so much diesel fuel to harvest a crop and fertilizer to put on the ground for next year's
crop, it's hit us at a terrible time.
But you know, when you're in a hole, usually the first way to the first rule is stop digging the hole deeper. And we have seen no indication that
we are stop digging this hole that we are in with the war and with chaotic trade policies that have also hurt farmers in this area. So, yes, relief is
very necessary for farmers.
But the first thing we should be doing is fixing the problem that we're in the first place.
GOLODRYGA: And it is unusual, typically, for Republicans to be supporting and promoting and enacting now two times in a short period of time, subsidy
packages. So, no doubt that this will be a short-term relief. I know Nick, you've called this a band-aid, though, on a bullet wound, and you've said
that the current predicament and environment have led some farmers that you speak with to question if they're going to vote at all, and how they're
going to vote.
So, is what you're hearing that farmers that maybe typically or historically lean Republican will now think about voting for Democrats, or
are they considering just staying at home and not voting at all?
NICK LEVENDOFSKY, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE KANSAS FARMERS UNION: I think it's actually both. I think you know a lot of farmers are probably not
going to decide until election day or maybe right before. I voted a little over a week ago. I got it over with, and I'm glad I did.
But you know, in the conversations that I've been having with our members and with farmers all across the state, and frankly across the country,
that's what I'm hearing. I'm hearing that they are upset. Some of them are not happy with either side, frankly. But you know, I think a lot of them
are probably not going to decide until the day of or when they walk into the polling booth.
ASHER: Aaron, let me go back to you because I just want to understand whether or not you feel heard and understood by this administration. J.D.
Vance, you know, obviously has been asked many times about the affordability crisis in this country, and at times he has told voters we're
working on it.
You have Donald Trump many times has downplayed the affordability crisis.
[11:45:00]
At one point, even calling it a hoax. And then insisting that you know prices, of course, going to come down when the Iran war ends, and God knows
when that will be. So, just give us your perspective, Aaron, on whether or not you feel that this administration truly understands what farmers like
yourself are actually experiencing right now.
LEHMAN: Well, I feel a huge disconnect, and I think farmers around our state are just feeling a huge disconnect with what is reality on the farm.
What is reality in our rural communities? You know, it's fine to say lovely things about farmers and pay that lip service, but you know that doesn't
help you when you're sitting down with your banker and you're trying to line financing up on a year where you're expected to lose money.
All your neighbors are expected to lose money. It doesn't help you when you're trying to line up affordable fertilizer from your fertilizer dealer
in the fall or pay all the other bills, which have been going up and up and up. The rhetoric is not matching the reality a lot of our farmers feeling.
GOLODRYGA: Nick, I'd like to go back to something that you just said because it caught my attention. You said that you went out and you voted
already, and you quote, got it over with. That didn't sound like a ringing endorsement for whichever candidates, the Republican or Democrat that you
voted for.
Feel free if you're comfortable to share with us who you vote for. But that's less my question and more about this feeling of antipathy. Perhaps I
don't know that you have maybe just to politicians in general that if the incumbent isn't doing the job that you are hoping they will. Do you see the
opponents offering a better solution?
LEVENDOFSKY: Well, I think certainly in the case of the Kansas Senate race, that is exactly it. And you know, I have personally been a strong supporter
of Adam Hamilton. I think he brings moderation. I think he appeals to a number of individuals across the State of Kansas who are fed up, upset with
this administration, upset with Congress.
He's willing to listen. He's willing to compromise, and that's something that we need in our government, we also need to return checks and balances,
accountability, all of those things that make up good government. And what we have right now is not good government.
It's extremely frustrating to see this administration and this Congress just going lockstep with what they claim to be good priorities and all
that. I have a bumper sticker on my car that says America needs new direction and new priorities, and I proudly drive that car all over the
State of Kansas.
And I hope that people see that message, and that's the message that I want to carry on between now and November 3rd.
ASHER: Yeah, I mean, so many farmers feel that there is this disconnect, right? That they do feel unheard by this administration. That so many of
the policies that are coming from the top are trickling down, and it's affecting business. It's affecting affordability. It's affecting your
ability to provide for your families, et cetera.
And so, thank you so much for raising those concerns, and we'll see what happens in November. Thank you both, Aaron and Nick. We appreciate it.
We'll be right back with more after this short break.
LEVENDOFSKY: Thank you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:50:00]
ASHER: Strong winds, heavy rain hitting Taiwan as the country braces for Typhoon Champion.
GOLODRYGA: Yeah, according to news platform TaiwanPlus, more than 1,000 residents have been evacuated, and hundreds of flights have been canceled.
Authorities say one person has died after being swept out to sea on Thursday.
ASHER: Yeah, new data shows Europeans suffered brutal heat waves this year. One researcher calls the summer of 2026 one of the quotes, worst on record
for heat-related mortality.
GOLODRYGA: Yeah, and according to the journal Nature Health, an estimated 50,000 people died across major European cities. About two-thirds of the
deaths are directly attributed to climate change. The stark death toll comes just weeks before international leaders gather in Turkey for the
annual U.N. climate talks.
ASHER: A deadly and powerful earthquake has struck southwest China's Tibet region.
GOLODRYGA: Now the U.S. Geological Survey says the Magnitude 7 quake struck at around 10:30 in the evening local time. State media reports 16 people
are dead and dozens injured. More than 300 homes have collapsed and train services were suspended. A rescue team has been dispatched to the quake's
epicenter.
All right. We'll continue to follow the story. In the meantime, we'll be back with more.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GOLODRYGA: All right, we have some bad news for cheese lovers.
[11:55:00]
Millions in mozzarella revenue is lost because of protests in Italy.
ASHER: Yeah, truck drivers in southern Italy have been on strike over the rising prices of diesel caused by the war in Iran that led to production of
the famed Buffalo mozzarella to come to a halt, costing about 3.4 million dollars. Shame.
GOLODRYGA: All right. Finally, before we go this hour, the Milwaukee Brewers are set to face off against the Tampa Ray Bay -- Tampa Bay Rays. My
son will be -- I didn't get that right -- in the 127th Baseball World Series Finals.
ASHER: Yeah, neither team has ever won a World Series title. So, whoever prevails will be making history. The teams will play the best of seven
games to determine the winner of this year's Fall Classic. The first game is set for Milwaukee tonight at 8 o'clock in the evening Eastern Time.
GOLODRYGA: Zain will be watching. All right, stay with us.
ASHER: You know me so well.
GOLODRYGA: Eating your mozzarella. We'll have more "One World" after the break.
ASHER: So funny.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
