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Key Ohio Republicans Criticize Ramaswamy's Attack Ad; El-Sayed, Rogers Square Off in Final Michigan Senate Debate; Russia Frees 74- Year-Old American Stephen Hubbard. Aired 10-10:30a ET

Aired October 22, 2026 - 10:00   ET

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

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PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now, speaking out.

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AMY ACTON (D), OHIO GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: I'd hoped he wouldn't sink this low, but of course he did.

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BROWN: Amy Acton is slamming the controversial ad from her opponent that features her estranged mother. Why the Democratic candidate is now calling Vivek Ramaswamy a, quote, danger. Bipartisan criticism swelling this morning. Hear from Acton in her own words straight ahead.

Plus, breaking overnight, reunited. 74-year-old Stephen Hubbard is now back on American soil after more than four years in Russian detention.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Also, new body cam footage. What happened in the moments before police officers fired into a car, killing one- year-old Kohen Wiley? The new video and the new questions it's raising, and why the Mississippi attorney general is now saying use of force was justified.

And later, flu alert. Why a mutated strain is causing new concerns, and what you need to know right now to stay healthy.

Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer with Pamela Brown, and you're in The Situation Room.

BROWN: All right, happening now, in-person early voting is underway in several key states. So far, more than 18 million Americans have cast their ballots as candidates make their final push to voters. And we're going to start this hour in Ohio. That is where the controversial ad featuring a candidate's estranged mother is now drawing new criticism from key Republicans in the state and drawing sympathy from supporters.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My heart goes out to you.

ACTON: Oh, thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can I give you a hug?

ACTON: Oh, yes. Yes, you can.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When I heard it yesterday, that's all I wanted to do was cry and hug you and tell you it's going to be okay.

ACTON: Thank you. Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're welcome.

ACTON: That means a lot. Well, I can speak to that a little bit, I guess. Yes, it's hard. It's the big elephant in the room, isn't it?

Yes, my brother and I had a mom who struggled. We experienced a lot of neglect and abuse beginning really around the age of three for me, when my brother was born. And I often talk about it. The reason I talk about my childhood when I do is just, one, I started to realize that it might give other people hope that you, you know, that you can get out of circumstances.

But I remember as a kid people looking the other way or systems not working, but I also remember more the people who didn't look the other way.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: The ad from Vivek Ramaswamy's campaign features Amy Acton's mother calling her daughter a liar and urged voters not to support her.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She lies about her past. She says she grew up living in a tent. None of that is true. She's lied her entire life. My daughter needs help, and she can't help you if she needs help herself. Don't vote --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Now, Acton has said she has not seen her mother since she was about 12 years old when she says a man her mother married abused her and faced criminal charges.

Ramaswamy's campaign has doubled down, announcing it would spend $4 million to run the spot. But key Republicans in Ohio are speaking out against the ad, including Republican Ohio Senator Jon Husted, who said he, quote, would not have run that ad.

Our Lauren Fox spoke to Amy Acton about the response she's getting and the lack thereof from other Republicans.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: What was your reaction, and when did you actually see this ad on Monday night?

ACTON: Thank you, Lauren. It was sent to me by my running mate who saw it post first. And my reaction was, you know, I'd hoped he wouldn't sink this low, but, of course, he did.

[10:05:03]

We had known that as I shared before, my mother has not been seen by me since I was 12 years old. This is a man who has said my childhood -- I had a childhood of extreme physical abuse and, and sexual abuse as a kid. My brother and I are frequent flyers in children's services, finally removed after a grand jury saw evidence that was so it was so, so shocking that we were removed from my mother's custody, age of 12. My brother was nine. But this guy just keeps saying it was something that was just done to me.

FOX: What do you think about -- there have been some Republicans in the state who've spoken out against this ad. There are other Republicans who have stayed silent about this ad. What is your reaction to your Republicans in the state, some of whom you've worked with, who are silent right now?

ACTON: Well, as any victim of abuse knows, silence is something.

FOX: Why do you think people aren't speaking out, though? Is it just people are afraid?

ACTON: Some people, some people are afraid, some people just don't have the courage. But this ad has crossed by everyone's summary any boundary that has ever been done before. And -- but I don't wait for people to do that.

FOX: I know you've talked about your childhood before.

ACTON: Yes, always been open about it.

FOX: I'm just wondering, like were you prepared, was your brother prepared for the amount of attacks and an attack like this one in specificity here? Because you have a situation where your brother was very quick to come out. Did he do that on his own? What has that been like for your family?

ACTON: He -- actually, my brother, had done something sooner than we actually saw the ad because he really wanted to just all the things that my opponent's been saying on the trail, he wanted to refute. And my brother, you know, has not spoken a lot about it. You know, we -- it -- I share my story as a doctor and a public health person because I've been fighting to help victims of abuse, child abuse, domestic violence, human trafficking. But I am honored that my brother would. It's a lot you carry, and it never goes away your whole life.

But it also is a source of great strength. It gives you skills that people don't always have. But we knew my opponent will do anything and say anything, not just to get ahead. He's out for himself, but he's a danger.

What has also been remarkable to see, Lauren, is how many people are outraged by this because so many people have experienced some sort of trauma or abuse in their lives. And so I'm much more focused on a message that reaches them than on the antics of an out-of-touch billionaire who would be a danger to my state.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: And then a CNN poll of polls acting as leading Ramaswamy among likely voters by six points. Wolf?

BLITZER: And Pamela, there were two very key debates last night in battleground states that potentially could possibly swing the balance of power in the Congress. First to Michigan. Senate Candidates Abdul El-Sayed and Mike Rogers squared off and did not hold back. Listen.

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MIKE ROGERS (R), MICHIGAN SENATE CANDIDATE: If you are going to go to the United States Senate, we need to know, are you for America or are you for these terrorist groups overseas?

Now, you can grin and you can smile and you can talk real pretty, but I'm going to tell you what, that is a risk to our national security.

ABDUL EL-SAYED (D), MICHIGAN SENATE CANDIDATE: To bring into question my commitment to the Constitution is really beneath you. I am proud of America. I'm proud to be an American. I'm proud of our Constitution that guarantees all of us the right to pray as we choose to pray. And the question that you would ask that I think is actually really quite shameful.

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BLITZER: During the debate, Rogers tried to tie El-Sayed to the Muslim Brotherhood, saying he was bought off by the Islamist group. El-Sayed has repeatedly refuted any ties, but the charge comes as President Trump claimed the Democratic candidate is, in his word, a jihadist. But it was El-Sayed that weaponized President Trump against Rogers. Listen.

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EL-SAYED: You're going to hear the MAGA vision, where you stand hip- to-hip with Donald Trump on all of his worst policies, the policies that are raising the price of your gas, making it impossible to afford your groceries.

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And you're going to hear a form of MAGA bingo, because the thing about MAGA is whenever they're talking, they are trying to distract you.

ROGERS: He wants to make this about Donald Trump. I mean, the bingo game ought to be how many times can he put the word Trump in any answer.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Rogers, like some Republican candidates in other races, has made several pivots away from President Trump's policies, including the trade war with Canada and most recently the waiving of Russian sanctions. The latest CNN data shows a very tight race with no clear leader.

BROWN: And in Kansas, a different tone as incumbent Republican Senate candidate Roger Marshall touted his relationship with President Trump. But another name came up more than Trump's during this debate.

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ADAM HAMILTON (D), KANSAS SENATE CANDIDATE: We've heard Chuck Schumer mentioned I don't know, 50 times maybe.

I'm going to exaggerate. Maybe 20 times so far. Find that interesting. I've already said I wouldn't support Chuck Schumer for Senate majority leader if the Democrats took control of the Senate.

SEN. ROGER MARSHALL (R-KS): President Trump is not always right. But, but I do think that we -- It's, it's great that I have a relationship, that I can pick up the phone and discuss with him the, the pros and cons of what he's contemplating.

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BROWN: Democratic Candidate Adam Hamilton is trying to appeal to voters in what's seen as a deeply red state, presenting himself more down the middle compared to the rest of his party. Because of this, Kansas has become a surprise battleground state this midterm cycle. Wolf?

BLITZER: All right. Joining us now is CNN's Arlette Saenz. Arlette, I know you have some new reporting about the Senate seats most likely potentially to flip. Is Kansas on your list?

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, yes, Kansas is on our list. It made its debut last month and it's actually rising in this month's ranking. Democrats are feeling very enthusiastic about the prospects of potentially winning control of the U.S. Senate in November, but it's far from a sure bet.

A reminder that Democrats would need to pick up four Republican-held seats while holding onto all of their own if they want to win back the Senate majority. And if you take a list of our latest rankings of the states most likely to flip, one through five are currently all seats that are held by Republicans. In number four, Senator Susan Collins is facing one of her toughest re-election battles yet, but she has proven resilient in past races.

Then if you take a look at Texas, that is perhaps one of the states that has garnered the most attention in this campaign. The latest CNN poll of polls average shows that there is no clear leader in this contest between Democrat James Talarico and Republican Ken Paxton. This is a state that President Trump won by double digits in 2024, and it's one where Talarico has really made this very competitive. But still, he has to win in Republican ground, which could be a tall order.

Then at number six is the state of Michigan, which we just heard some of those clips from the very contentious debate that played out last night. This is a must-win state for Democrats. If they were to lose Michigan, which currently has no clear leader in the contest, that would require them to pick up at least five Republican-held seats.

Both of these candidates have major challenges. El-Sayed is still trying to win over black voters and Jewish Democrats who might be uneasy about his campaign, while Rogers is contending with the Trump factor and the deep unpopularity of the president, including in that state that he narrowly won back in the last election.

And then number eight is Kansas. It actually flipped spots with New Hampshire as Kansas has shown signs of growing even more competitive, something that we've seen play out in a lot of Midwestern states. Both parties are planning to spend big in the final two weeks.

And so that's a little bit of the landscape of this fight for the U.S. Senate. Democrats feel the mood and environment is on their, on their side, but the Republican-leaning map should not be underestimated here, really, with so many races in toss-up territory at this moment.

BLITZER: Arlette Saenz reporting for us. Thank you very much, Arlette. Pamela?

BROWN: All right, Wolf. Breaking news just into the Situation Room, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, a potential 2028 presidential candidate, and the head of the Democratic Governors Association, is closing out his midterm travels with an eight-state tour that will reach into deep red territory. Starting today and running through November 2nd, Beshear will visit Nevada, New Mexico, Georgia, Ohio, Wisconsin, Iowa, Kansas, and Oklahoma.

A spokesperson sharing the news first with CNN says he'll campaign with gubernatorial candidates in those states.

And some other breaking news, Democratic Virginia State Senator L. Louise Lucas has been indicted on drug and fraud charges. Several others have also been indicted, including members of her own family.

Let's go live now to CNN Senior Justice Correspondent Evan Perez. What are you learning, Evan?

EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is an investigation Pamela, that focuses on alleged acts by Louise Lucas to use her office, according to federal prosecutors to use her office to help build a marijuana business in the state of Virginia. What prosecutors and what the FBI is alleging here is that she and a number of others were part of a racketeering conspiracy, which was aimed at not only distributing marijuana illegally in the state of Virginia before it became legal, but also that that she was money laundering and that she was using her office to enrich herself, essentially bribery.

And so the number of allegations here that are -- there are a total of seven people that have been charged as part of this involve marijuana distribution, money laundering, honest services fraud.

Now, these are extraordinarily difficult charges to bring in court and to sustain. As you know, bribery cases are very, very tricky, so we'll have to see more about this. This is an investigation that began under the Biden administration and has now been concluded.

Now, according to prosecutors she took a $750,000 payment to try to essentially get a -- provide a license for one of these new marijuana businesses that are now going to be legal in the state of Virginia. They've now passed this.

She was Senate -- or she is a Senate -- the president of the -- pro tempore of the Senate, difficult word to say, actually.

BROWN: Yes, it is.

PEREZ: And so they are alleging that she used her office essentially to try to build this business, and she didn't disclose any of those interests.

As many as seven people have been charged. We know that Lucas has turned herself in this morning, and so we'll wait to hear from her when she's able to provide a comment.

BROWN: All right. Evan Perez bringing us the latest, thanks so much. Wolf?

BLITZER: And still ahead, homecoming. 74-year-old Stephen Hubbard is now back in the United States after more than four years in detention in Russia. President Trump is now linking his release to waiving sanctions against Russia. What?

BROWN: And later, data center outrage, protests, calls to police, even a fist fight. Why this issue is prompting such strong backlash and how one lawmaker is pushing for more regulation.

You're in The Situation Room, and we'll be right back.

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BROWN: Happening now, 74-year-old Stephen Hubbard is back on U.S. soil this morning after being imprisoned in Russia for more than four years. President Trump posted this picture of Hubbard holding an American flag aboard his flight home. Moscow accused Hubbard of fighting for Ukraine when he was captured during Russia's invasion in 2022. The U.S. says that is false, and he was working as an English teacher.

His release comes after face-to-face talks between U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Russian President Vladimir Putin. President Trump has said Russia did not require anything in return for Hubbard's release, but then later tied the release to waiving sanctions on Russian fuel.

CNN Chief National Security Analyst Jim Sciutto joins us here in The Situation Room. And you have some new reporting, Jim, on Ukraine's air defenses. What can you tell us?

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: So, last night was another night where Russian missiles fired at Ukraine, this of course happens every day, but where the Ukrainians were not able to intercept a single one of them.

And this has been happening more and more because of a shortage of Patriot interceptors. So, I reached out to Ukrainian officials and I said, Why? Why were you not able to intercept them? And they said, because we, we don't have the interceptors to do so. But in addition to that, they said, because -- precisely because there was another delay in delivery of those interceptors.

And as you know, the administration, there's been a lot of reporting about the administration holding these back. Pete Hegseth said recently that, listen, in his words, our guys need them, and we know post-Iran war or in the midst of the Iran war, the U.S. has expended many of them there. So, that's having a direct impact on Ukraine's ability to defend itself, and we should take that in tandem with the other developments of the last 10 days.

The slowdown in Starlink Starshield speeds, that has a direct impact on interceptor drones, their ability to, to intercept incoming Russian jet power drones. And then the other piece is interruptions in U.S. intelligence sharing. Now, I know the U.S. has claimed that these are technical issues. They've even told Ukrainians it's weather issues. But Ukrainians frankly don't believe it. They believe that the combination of these things is part of a pressure campaign to get them to give in to administration demands, Russian demands, and to get them to the table.

And, you know, from the Ukrainian perspective, each of these is impacting lives and leading to a human cost on the ground there. Because if they can't intercept a missile, it strikes its target and it kills people.

BROWN: Yes. And they're saying this all happening at the same time. It's just too coincidental for it to just be.

SCIUTTO: And following, you'll remember the story we had about ten days ago CNN reported and the F.T., that the administration had explicitly warned Ukraine, that if it does not stop striking Russian energy infrastructure, diesel in particular, the president's very focused on diesel prices, if it did not stop striking those targets, that the U.S. would do two things. It would suspend intelligence sharing, what have we seen, and that it would also suspend weapons purchases via what's known as the Pro program.

But anyway, those weapons purchases which include interceptors. So, they get a warning, these things happen, they pay for it, and Ukrainians connect the dots and say, The administration's applying pressure on us, and it's costing lives.

BROWN: And in the meantime, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is calling Vladimir Putin a humanitarian.

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SCIUTTO: Yes.

BROWN: What reaction have you gotten about that? I mean, you saw Zelenskyy's tweet, too, kind of mocking that.

SCIUTTO: Zelenskyy -- I mean, I spoke to the Ukrainian Nobel laureate who won the Nobel in 2022 for documenting Russian war crimes. All of them are exasperated by that description of a man who launched a war that has killed so many Ukrainians, and every day is killing Ukrainians.

But they also don't see it as an isolated comment, because you'll remember just a few days before that the president himself said Russia has been fine on Ukraine in the midst of one of the deadliest weeks for civilians in Ukraine as Russia strikes civilian targets.

And even before that, as we've seen the president apply more pressure on Ukraine than on Putin, describe Putin as a friend, describe him as a great and a strong leader, they see that humanitarian comment as the administration position here, that, in effect, they're giving Russia a pass while Ukraine is suffering, and at the same time, applying enormous pressure on Ukraine. It's just, you know, you would understand if you or I were under these daily missile and drone attacks, we might think similarly.

BROWN: Jim Sciutto, thank you so much for bringing us your new reporting.

In the next hour, we want to note, we're going to be joined by CNN chief international anchor Christiane Amanpour to bring us her new interview with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy.

BLITZER: And coming up, new body cam footage. What happened in the moments before police officers opened fire on a car, killing a one- year-old boy.

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