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The Story Is with Elex Michaelson
Supreme Court Allows Texas to Use New Maps in Midterms; Grand Jury Declines to Indict Letitia James Again; French President Visits Area Known for Giant Pandas; CDC Advisors Delay Vote on Vaccine Practice for Newborns; One-on-One with the Creator of 'K-Pop Demon Hunters'; U.S. Strikes Another Alleged Drug Boat as Previous Strike Under Scrutiny; Putin to Meet with Indian Prime Minister Over Trade, More. Aired 12-1a ET
Aired December 05, 2025 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Elex Michaelson, live in Los Angeles. THE STORY IS starts right now.
[00:01:03]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON (voice-over): THE STORY IS a win for Texas Republicans. Supreme Court signs off on their gerrymandered congressional map. What it means for the rest of the country.
THE STORY IS another boat strike. President Trump releases video of another strike on alleged drug smugglers as questions on previous strikes mount.
THE STORY IS Putin in India. The Russian president meeting with the leader of India.
THE STORY IS "K-Pop Demon Hunters." Maggie Kang created the most watched film in the history of Netflix. She's here with us on set.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: Live from Los Angeles, THE STORY IS with Elex Michaelson.
MICHAELSON: The top story is redistricting. A divided Supreme Court has cleared the way for Texas to use nearly -- newly-drawn congressional maps that heavily favor Republicans in the upcoming midterm elections.
Under those new maps, Texas Republicans could gain as many as five congressional seats, boosting their chances of holding onto their razor-thin majority in the House of Representatives.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott cleared the court's decision -- or celebrated the court's decision on social media, saying Texas is officially -- and legally -- more red! The new maps better align our representation in D.C. with the values of Texas.
Meanwhile, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries blasted the ruling, calling it, quote, "further proof of the extremists will do anything to rig the midterm elections."
CNN legal analyst Elie Honig joins us now to talk about this. So -- so, break down, Elie, what happened when it comes to this Texas SCOTUS ruling.
ELIE HONIG, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: So, the bottom line, Elex, first of all, is that Texas will get to use its revised, more Republican- friendly congressional map for the 2026 midterms.
Now, Texas, of course, you know, made this sort of unusual mid-decade move to redistrict in a way that would favor Republicans for up to five additional seats. That was challenged in court.
Now, before this, a lower court issued a ruling saying that this redrawing of lines appeared to be unconstitutional, because it appeared to discriminate on the basis of race.
However, today, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 6 to 3 opinion, with the six conservatives in the majority, the three liberals dissenting. But the six conservatives in the majority said no. Texas's map does not appear to be unconstitutional, and they may revise it.
So, this is technically a temporary ruling, but it's also virtually certain to carry the day and to allow Texas to use that revised map in the 2026 midterms.
HONIG: Meanwhile, California did its own redistricting, because -- and there is legal challenge to that. Does this make it more likely that California will be able to continue with its map?
HONIG: Absolutely, yes. This is very relevant to California and any other states that are going through this potential redistricting process.
Because the basic principle here, the Supreme Court said a couple of years ago -- it was a controversial ruling -- but they basically ruled we, the federal courts, are not going to get involved in redistricting, in gerrymandering. That is an inherently political process. That is for the political branches of government.
Unless we need to step in to guard against racial discrimination or discrimination based on sex or gender or other prohibited classes.
Now, the lower court ruling here did say, well, this actually does discriminate on race. But the Supreme Court said, no, it does not.
So, the bottom line is the Supreme Court has given the states really broad authority to redraw their lines, so long as they don't violate the Constitution and discriminate.
MICHAELSON: While we have you, I want to get your thoughts on Letitia James, who, of course, is the attorney general of New York. A grand jury today declining to re-indict her, saying there wasn't enough evidence to do it.
What's next on this case? Because the Trump administration suggesting this may not be over?
[00:05:03]
HONIG: I don't know at what point the Trump administration is going to get the message on this one. I mean, they had the case thrown out by a judge on a technical basis just ten days ago. Today, a grand jury rejected the case.
I want you to understand just how hard it is for a prosecutor to walk into a grand jury and walk out without an indictment. All you have to do is prove your case by probable cause, not proof beyond a reasonable doubt.
You only have to win a majority of the grand jurors, not a unanimous jury like you would at a trial setting. There's not even a defense lawyer. There's no defense presence. It is a completely one-sided process.
And so, this is a real rebuke of the Justice Department and of its case against Letitia James.
Now, it could be that the grand jury just felt like the evidence wasn't sufficient. It could well be. We won't ever know this, but it could be that the grand jury is aware of the politics around this and is rejecting the Trump administration's effort to go after his perceived political enemies.
MICHAELSON: Yes. What's the old joke about indicting a ham sandwich?
HONIG: I'm telling you, from experience, that is true.
MICHAELSON: Senior legal analyst of CNN, Elie Honig, thanks so much for joining us.
HONIG: Thanks, Elex.
MICHAELSON: Appreciate your insights.
HONIG: Appreciate it.
MICHAELSON: The U.S. military launched a deadly strike on another alleged drug boat in the Eastern Pacific on Thursday, killing four people on board. U.S. Southern Command says the strike happened in international waters. It says the boat was carrying illicit narcotics and was operated by a designated terrorist organization.
Now, this is the latest U.S. attack on alleged drug boats as part of the Trump administration's efforts to fight drug trafficking. At least 87 people have now been killed in strikes on 23 suspected drug boats.
That strike came on the same day as Pentagon officials briefing U.S. lawmakers about a deadly attack in September on an alleged drug boat that is drawing bipartisan scrutiny. In that attack, the military fired follow-up strikes, killing crew members who initially survived.
The U.S. Navy admiral who oversaw that operation says the two men who were clinging to the remnants of the boat that was destroyed did not appear to have a radio or call for backup. That is contrary to previous statements from officials who argued that the survivors were legitimate targets, because they appeared to be radioing for backup.
Top House and Senate lawmakers came out of the briefings divided along party lines.
As Ukrainian officials head to the U.S. for more peace talks, the president of Russia is vowing to take Ukraine's Donbas region by military or other means.
One of the Kremlin's main demands for ending the war is for Ukraine to surrender territory in the Donbas, which Russia illegally annexed but has yet to fully conquer.
As Ukraine stands to firm its opposition to giving up territory, prospects for peace look less likely.
President Putin's comments coming ahead of his arrival in India for meetings with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. We'll have a live report from New Delhi in about 25 minutes.
For now, though, we take you live to China, where French President Emmanuel Macron is wrapping up a trip in a city famous for its iconic giant pandas. Macron has been looking to secure economic cooperation with China.
Let's bring in CNN's Beijing bureau chief, Steven Jiang. Thanks for being with us. What are the leaders discussing?
STEVEN JIANG, CNN BEIJING BUREAU CHIEF: Yes, Elex, we're still trying to get more information, details about the day two of this summit between Macron and his host, Chinese leader, Xi Jinping.
But you mentioned Chengdu is famous for pandas, but it's also famous for spicy food. And perhaps within China, its more relaxed lifestyle. Already, we see this video of Macron doing his morning jog at a local park and saying hi to residents. So, he seems to have gotten the memo.
But now that he has switched his jogging shorts to business suit, I think, as you said, the focus, one of the big focuses is economic and trade.
Just as Donald Trump has been complaining about this trade imbalance between the U.S. and China, that's a long-standing complaint and grievance from Europe and from France, as well.
And so far, we've seen the concern is really not being addressed directly by his Chinese hosts, because, of course, as we have seen with a growing number of Chinese industries dominating now globally, flooding the world markets, including European markets, with cheap exports and products. Really, in some cases decimating local sectors and economy. That is something, really, Macron wants to talk about.
But it seems so far that is not something the Chinese are willing to address, because that's really about their economic structural reform.
Instead, they have been dangling some carrots in terms of the lure of the potential of this big market of 1.4 billion people. And we've also seen them talking about cooperation in areas like the green economy, which is perhaps why they are where they are. The two leaders are now sitting at the site of an ancient irrigation project. So, that's perhaps fitting in terms of the theme.
[00:10:04]
But in terms of concrete progress, even though Macron, you know, brought along with him some three dozen business executives, we have not seen any major deals.
As an aviation geek, myself, Elex, I even haven't seen a big deal with Airbus, that France-based European airplane maker, as we sometimes see when the Chinese are very good at playing Boeing against Airbus based on politics. But we even haven't seen that.
So, maybe the best Macron can hope from getting in Chengdu is a pair of pandas -- Elex.
MICHAELSON: Well, everybody loves the pandas. Steven, thank you so much. Appreciate your reporting.
A CDC advisory committee once again delayed a vote that could dramatically change the Hepatitis B vaccination schedule. The vaccine is normally given to newborns, but the committee could change that when they meet again in the coming hours.
Here's CNN's Meg Tirrell.
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MEG TIRRELL, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Elex, the committee voted to delay the expected vote on the Hepatitis B vaccine birth dose to Friday morning.
But there are concerns about what they will conclude there when they do actually take that vote. And we spoke with one man who's lived the consequences of what such a vote could bring. Take a look.
TIRRELL (voice-over): At 16, John Ellis went to the doctor with severe stomach pain and left with a diagnosis no one expected: incurable chronic liver disease caused by the Hepatitis B virus.
JOHN ELLIS, HEPATITIS B PATIENT: You know, at 16 years old, there was conversations around what it would look like for me to get a liver transplant. To be blunt, I thought I was going to die.
TIRRELL (voice-over): John was born in 1990, one year before the U.S. recommended that all newborns receive the Hepatitis B vaccine, so he hadn't been vaccinated by age 3 or 4, the time his doctors think he contracted the virus, based on the scars on his liver.
John and his family don't know how he was infected. Hepatitis B is incredibly infectious, and people who don't even know they have it can transmit it to babies and young kids.
ELLIS: I would much rather vaccinations be available at birth than, you know, to -- to have someone else live the experience that I've lived.
TIRRELL (voice-over): But now, some people might. Advisers to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, handpicked this year by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., may recommend delaying the shots by months or years after expressing skepticism of the vaccine in previous meetings.
VICKY PEBSWORTH, CDC VACCINE ADVISOR: There are gaps in what we know and understand about the effects of Hepatitis B, particularly on very young infants. And I think that the conclusion that we know that it is safe is perhaps premature.
TIRRELL (voice-over): But experts say it has a more than three-decade track record of safety, and delaying the birth dose could result in an estimated 1,400 or more preventable infections in kids each year.
Dr. Anthony Fiore, a former CDC infectious disease specialist, tells CNN there's no rational justification for changing the recommendation.
DR. ANTHONY FIORE, FORMER CDC INFECTIOUS DISEASE SPECIALIST: We've seen tremendous reductions in childhood infections with Hepatitis B. This saves lives. We're afraid we're going to move back to the time when children were -- were slipping through.
TIRRELL (voice-over): The virus is strongly linked to liver damage and cancer.
John Ellis is now 35. Right now, his viral load is low, and he's been able to lead a generally healthy life. He hopes the vaccine that wasn't yet recommended for newborns like him remains available for newborns today.
ELLIS: The perceived fear of the risk of vaccination has outweighed the real fear of the Hepatitis B virus.
TIRRELL: So, that vote on the Hepatitis B vaccine birth dose is now expected to take place Friday morning, which will then be followed by the entire Friday agenda, which is set to talk about the whole vaccine schedule. That's the set of vaccines that are routinely recommended for all children in the United States.
Already, that agenda is drawing criticism for some of the people who are scheduled to speak, including an attorney who has close ties to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whose name is Aaron Siri. Senator Bill Cassidy, who is himself a doctor and chairs the Senate Health Committee and who cast a pivotal vote for Robert F. Kennedy Jr., criticized that presentation by Siri in a post on X, saying, quote, "The ACIP is totally discredited. They are not protecting children." Siri fired back and then challenged Cassidy to a debate about
vaccines. But after fiery and, you know, somewhat confusing day for day one of this meeting, more in store for Friday -- Elex.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAELSON: Meg, thank you. We will have an update on that tomorrow.
Up next, though, an all-girl singing group that also hunts demons trying to consume human souls. That's the premise of K-Pop Demon Hunters. It is the most watched film in the history of Netflix.
After the break, the creator is here to answer your questions.
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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's time.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The world will know you as pop stars, but you will be much more than that. You will be hunters.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: That is a clip from the most popular movie in the world this year, "K-Pop Demon Hunters." It is the most watched film ever on Netflix, with more than 300 million views.
It's the second most searched term on Google the entire year. The soundtrack, nominated for five Grammys. There have been four top ten hits on Billboard's Hot 100.
[00:20:10]
And with me now to talk about all this is the mind behind all of it. Maggie Kang is the co-creator, co-director, co-writer of K-Pop Demon Hunters."
MAGGIE KANG, CREATOR OF "K-POP DEMON HUNTERS": Single creator. Yes, yes. Not "co-." Single creator.
MICHAELSON: Welcome to THE STORY IS. Congratulations.
KANG: Thank you, thank you.
MICHAELSON: In terms of the way you process this, what does it mean to you in terms of representation, in terms of being seen, in terms of the Korean culture being exposed to the world in ways it never has before?
KANG: It's -- I mean, it's wild. I made a movie, because I wanted to see all the things in this movie, and I didn't really realize that so many other people wanted to see this, too, and so many other Asian people wanted to see Asian characters on screen. I think -- you know, we've all wanted that. And we've -- we've all
wanted to see our culture represented correctly. And in the modern world, because a lot of times in animation, we do -- we do see Asian cultures, but it's like a fantasy version or, you know, a more of a hodgepodge. And so, I -- we really wanted to show Korean culture on its own.
MICHAELSON: And you said you were making the movie for the 12-year-old version of yourself.
KANG: Yes.
MICHAELSON: And clearly, there's a lot of 12-year-old versions of yourself.
But let's talk about the 12-year-old version of yourself. You grew up in Canada?
KANG: Yes.
MICHAELSON: Not a whole lot of Korean kids around.
KANG: No.
MICHAELSON: But you loved K-Pop, especially this group called H.O.T.
KANG: Yes.
MICHAELSON: How did they inspire this?
KANG: Oh, well, for the Saja Boys, they are kind of directly inspired by H.O.T. You know, this is growing up in the '90s. You didn't have Internet. So, when you saw H.O.T. come out with, like, they had this song called "Candy," which is very, like, cute and -- and bubbly.
And then they -- they went away for a while, and a month later they would show up, and they would change up their look completely. And it'd be, like, much more dark and very edgy. And as a fan, you were, like, very surprised and taken aback.
But you slowly were like, OK, I think I like this. I'm into it. And that was the feeling that I wanted to show through the boys when they perform "Your Idol," and they reveal this dark look.
MICHAELSON: And now you've kind of made that a reality.
KANG: Yes.
MICHAELSON: So, for folks that -- the few folks on the planet who haven't watched this movie.
KANG: There are -- there are some.
MICHAELSON: They've almost certainly heard this song, "Golden."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) (MUSIC: "GOLDEN")
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She's killing it out there.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Let's go finish this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: So, four Grammy nominations alone just for that song --
KANG: Yes.
MICHAELSON: -- including Song of the Year. What was the process of putting that music together? It was sort of an atypical band.
KANG: I mean, that was kind of my vision from the very beginning. Growing up, I used to do a lot of karaoke, and I thought that I could maybe pursue a career in K-Pop. I mean, just --
MICHAELSON: Really? You wanted to be a K-Pop idol yourself?
KANG: I think -- I think everybody does. I think when you're singing in that -- that dark room, you just feel like you can do it.
But, you know, I always thought it was a silly dream. And -- but when I got into animation, I saw it as an opportunity to create a band of my own and kind of live vicariously through the performers, which I am doing now.
But yes, it's been -- it's been amazing. Creating -- creating the music was -- was very challenging, because there's -- it's not just music. It's not just pop songs. They had to tell narrative story and develop characters. And all of that took a lot of time to craft.
So, it was -- it was very challenging. But, you know, really, you know, worth the effort.
MICHAELSON: Talk about the process of animating this film, because some of it involved filming yourself? Your face?
KANG: Yes, yes. So as a -- as a story artist, which I am, and as an animator, you're -- you're acting. You are playing an actor; you're acting out the roles of the characters.
And so, when we were in animation reviews, we -- the team put a camera right on my face, because it was all virtual. They were the team. Most of the team was in Vancouver and Montreal.
So, I would sit there and act out the expressions and the performance, and everybody would just sit there and study it and -- and just try to capture what I was performing.
MICHAELSON: And so, they would look at that video of you and then say, let's make that the thing.
KANG: Yes. MICHAELSON: So, you -- you basically -- did you basically play, like, almost every character?
KANG: I did, but also the animators themselves would do it, as well. They would -- they would, record themselves performing. And we would look at those videos and talk about what we liked from, you know, which of the performances and what we wanted to kind of capture.
[00:25:03]
MICHAELSON: Do you think this is sort of a landmark moment for anime?
KANG: I do think so. I mean, I wouldn't call our film anime.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
KANG: We were very inspired by it.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
KANG: But -- and we wanted to be inspired by it, but also just translate all of that inspiration in a 3-D format.
MICHAELSON: Right.
KANG: And not lean into 2-D. Yes.
MICHAELSON: So, I'm -- don't have kids yet, although I hope to one day.
KANG: Yes.
MICHAELSON: But most of our team are parents, and all of their kids are obsessed with this. So, we have a photo of my colleague Lynda Kinkade, one of our anchors. This is what was her Halloween costume this year.
KANG: Oh!
MICHAELSON: Those are -- those are her kids out, showing off their -- their different characters.
KANG: That's some good Rumi hair.
MICHAELSON: Yes, I know. Look, and --
KANG: That's hard to do.
MICHAELSON: -- there's Lynda and her husband, as well.
And so -- so we asked all of our producers' kids for questions. So, we're going to try to rapid-fire --
KANG: OK. Yes.
MICHAELSON: -- and see -- see if we can get them their answers. KANG: I love these kind of questions.
MICHAELSON: OK. So, one of them -- from one of the kids, what's your favorite song?
KANG: Oh, my brain loves -- my K-Pop fan loves "Your Idol," but my heart loves "What It Sounds Like."
MICHAELSON: OK. Next question. Does Rumi's story symbolize the LGBTQ+ community?
KANG: We talked about that a lot while making the movie and crafting her story. And I think, yes. And -- and there's so many other ways that people have interpreted it, as well. And so -- so, yes, of course.
MICHAELSON: OK. In the sequel, do we find out how Huntrix was formed?
KANG: Pass.
MICHAELSON: Sounds like, an Andy Cohen bit.
And the last one: in the sequel, will Jinu return? The love interest.
KANG: Hard pass.
MICHAELSON: OK. So, I guess we've got to stay tuned. Sequel planned for 2029, right? You haven't started working yet?
KANG: I think that's just random numbers that people just threw out there.
MICHAELSON: OK. When -- is there a date?
KANG: No, no. There's no -- no --
MICHAELSON: OK. Right now, you're enjoying the ride.
KANG: Yes.
MICHAELSON: And part of that ride is potentially winning some Grammys. And part of that ride could be winning an Oscar, as well. We're sort of in the phase right now where people are thinking about voting for that.
KANG: Yes.
MICHAELSON: What would that mean to you, an Oscar for this movie, for this moment, for this message?
KANG: Yes. I mean award -- an award like the Academy would -- it's so meaningful, because it's an award from your peers. But -- and that would just be icing on the cake or the cherry on top.
But I feel like the success of the film has already done so much, and it's just inspired so many artists, touched so many people's hearts. And as a -- as a filmmaker, you just want to share your story and have
it be seen by people. And millions of people have seen it. So that's -- yes.
MICHAELSON: Hundreds of millions of people.
KANG: Yes. Hundreds of millions. And --
MICHAELSON: Usually, people want to win the Oscars, so then it will encourage more people to watch the movie. I don't know if there's anybody left at this point, which would be something.
By the way, I've often said that the Academy Awards would be better served to highlight films that people actually like watching.
So, wouldn't it be a great moment? Not only is this movie great, but it's a movie that so many people love.
KANG: Yes.
MICHAELSON: So, on behalf of all the kids, thank you for bringing so much joy. I mean, it really is a beautiful, beautiful world.
KANG: I just want to thank all the fans, because this movie wouldn't have reached this scope, you know, that many people around the world, if it wasn't for the fans who really found it, and believed in it, and supported it, and basically just told everybody about it. That was the only way that it could have happened.
MICHAELSON: Yes, because it wasn't a -- it wasn't a big promotional thing.
KANG: No, it wasn't. It wasn't.
MICHAELSON: This was done the old-fashioned way.
KANG: It was organic. Yes.
MICHAELSON: Which is people telling their friends, you've got to check this out.
KANG: Yes.
MICHAELSON: Which is ultimately what -- how it has so much staying power, as well.
KANG: Yes.
MICHAELSON: Maggie, congratulations.
KANG: Thank you so much.
MICHAELSON: You, of course, can watch it, if you want to, on Netflix. We'll be back with more of THE STORY IS right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [00:33:38]
MICHAELSON: Welcome back to THE STORY IS. I'm Elex Michaelson. Let's take a look at today's top stories.
After almost a five-year-long manhunt, Brian Cole Jr. of Virginia was arrested on Thursday and charged in connection with pipe bombs found in Washington, D.C., before the U.S. Capitol riot.
Grainy surveillance video showed a man placing bombs near the Democratic and Republican Party headquarters. But his identity was unclear.
No details about a possible motive were made public.
U.S. Supreme Court has cleared the way for Texas to use its newly- drawn congressional maps in the upcoming midterms. The conservative majority overturned a lower court ruling that the maps were unconstitutional, based on race.
Texas Republicans could gain five additional congressional seats, boosting their chances of retaking control of the House in 2026.
The U.S. military has carried out another deadly strike on an alleged drug boat, killing four people on board. U.S. Southern Command says the strike happened in the Eastern Pacific in international waters. It says the boat was operated by a designated terrorist organization.
At least 87 people have now been killed in strikes on suspected drug boats as part of the Trump administration's efforts to fight trafficking.
Let's talk about that and more with our political panel tonight. Melanie Mason is a senior political reporter for "Politico." And Peter Hamby is the host of Snapchat's "Good Luck America" and founding partner at "Puck News."
Welcome back to you both. Good to have you here.
[00:35:03]
Peter, let's start with you. Your thoughts on the fact that President Trump went forward with another strike at a time when the previous strike is under so much scrutiny?
PETER HAMBY, FOUNDING PARTNER, "PUCK NEWS": I mean, he's owning it. It is, I think, a -- a distraction. He -- I mean, Donald Trump has long said that, you know, illicit -- the illicit drug trade, illegal immigration, border security. These are his things.
He can't really -- he's designated Mexican drug cartels terrorist organizations, but he can't go strike inside Mexico. The president of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, has done a pretty good job managing Donald Trump from afar.
Bada bing, bada boom. You've got Venezuela. You've got Marco Rubio, who for a long time as secretary of state, has been an opponent of Venezuela.
Maduro. Look, Maduro is a bad guy. Joe Biden put a bounty on Nicolas Maduro's head. But -- and this is -- 8 million people have left Venezuela over the last ten years. Moving, putting a lot of pressure on countries in the region.
But, you know, this makes for an easy target for him. There's not fentanyl coming out of Venezuela. Fentanyl is coming up through Mexico.
But again, this is, you know, Donald Trump's -- I do think he's just owning it right now, because that's kind of his only choice.
MICHAELSON: And after "bada bing, bada boom," what do we think about Pete Hegseth's future as secretary of war?
MELANIE MASON, SENIOR POLITICAL REPORTER, "POLITICO": Well, I mean, what we're seeing from the secretary of "war" is that he's taking the exact same tactic that the president does, right? He is also owning it.
So, he's tweeting out memes about, you know, blowing up these so- called narco-terrorists. And I think that the question is, is you know, how much is that endearing him to, you know, congressional Republicans, including Senate Republicans who, remember, were a little queasy about confirming him in the first place.
And so, you know, we always say, like, how much are congressional Republicans willing to stand up to Trump? And I'm not sure.
MICHAELSON: And you think the answer is not very much?
MASON: Not very often.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
HAMBY: I mean, the -- Roger Wicker from the Senate Armed Services Committee; Mike Rogers, House Armed Services Committee, they put out joint statements, expressing concern over these boat strikes.
But I am curious to what Melanie was saying. How far are Republicans going to go here? Are they going to hold hearings? Are they going to bring the admiral before, you know, these committees?
Are they going to bring Pete Hegseth to Capitol Hill? And there's going to be pressure from Donald Trump to not investigate these things.
MICHAELSON: Right. Well, and that's why this fight over the House is so important for next year, because if the Democrats were in control of the House, a lot of that stuff would be happening.
And news today on -- from the Supreme Court backing Texas's maps, which means that they're going to have probably five more Republican members from Texas.
California's maps still going through the legal process.
What do you see as the significance of what's happening right now when it comes to gerrymandering?
MASON: Well, first, I think it's pretty significant, the fact that this ruling is not all that surprising. I think it was very anticipated.
And I think that that just says a lot about how people are viewing the Supreme Court right now, and maybe the sort of partisan lean of the Supreme Court.
And, of course, we saw Democrats blasting this decision.
I do think -- and I say this as a California reporter, and from my vantage point -- it just underscores how significant Gavin Newsom's redistricting measure was.
Because if that hadn't happened, and these maps in Texas had gone through, that would have given Republicans just a significant jumping off point for next year's midterms.
But instead, there's these California maps. Yes, you said there's still a legal process going through. But in the Supreme Court's ruling tonight, it actually looks like that gives a signal that California's maps would also sort of pass muster.
So, I think that, in that way, you have California counteracting Texas, which was Gavin Newsom's justification all along.
MICHAELSON: And to that point, there was a post on X from the governor's office tonight. We want to put this up on the screen, basically saying, "Are you going to drop your lawsuit against us?" to the Department of Justice?"
And Pam Bondi and the Department of Justice, the attorney general says, "Not a chance, Gavin. We will stop your DEI districts for 2026."
HAMBY: The Supreme Court just said this is not a racial gerrymander in Texas. So, by Pam Bondi's logic, like California would be a racial gerrymander, too? It doesn't make sense. I think California is going to be fine.
And I think what Melanie said is exactly right. Four or five months ago, I think Democrats would have been really scared about what's happening.
But it's not just Prop 50 passing and sort of, you know, erase or sort of counterbalancing Texas. It's that also Donald Trump's approval ratings have gone down. We had the government shutdown. The generic ballot numbers have increased for Democrats.
And so, if you look back at 2018, heading into the midterms, last time Trump was president, Democrats won the national popular vote by nine points. They won 40 seats.
Fast forward to 2022. Joe Biden's president. Republicans win the national popular vote by about three points, win nine seats.
I'm cribbing from Nate Cohn at "The New York Times" here. But he did estimate around these redistricting efforts, Democrats have to win the national popular vote by around 4 percent to overcome some of these gerrymandering redistricting efforts. Right now, it looks like the Democrats probably will.
I think if you talk to House Democrats, they're very confident they'll take back the House. Mike Johnson only has a four, five, six, seven- seat majority.
[00:40:16]
I mean, most people on Capitol Hill think Democrats are going to win the House and overcome these efforts.
MICHAELSON: And it's interesting to see some of the Democrats in Texas now scrambling to try to figure out where to run. And Republicans in California trying to scramble to figure out where to run, including Darrell Issa. His future looks uncertain at this point.
Sticking in California, the governor's race, which you cover so much; you both cover so much. We have a new poll that just came out from Emerson that showed, basically, it's really, really tight at the top. Everybody within a statistical margin of error.
Steve Hilton, Katie Porter, Eric Swalwell, and Chad Bianco, essentially in a four-way tie. Technically, it shows Bianco ahead, but this race is as wide open as it gets.
MASON: Yes. I mean, what is the No. 1 vote-getter right now? It's "undecided."
MICHAELSON: Undecided.
MASON: And I think that that has been --
MICHAELSON: Or maybe not paying attention. Who -- who the hell are these people? Is probably the No. 1 vote-getter, right?
MASON: I think that's exactly right. I mean, what this says to me, particularly on the Democratic side, is it just underscores the lack of a superstar, right? The lack of a real, true frontrunner.
I mean, Katie Porter has been leading the pack, but nobody really saw her as a dominant frontrunner like Gavin Newsom was in 2018, for example.
So, you do have all of these people clustered together. And what's it going to take for somebody to -- to break out of the pack when you have seven, eight, nine Democrats all clustered together, and all of them are thinking to themselves, well, why not me? I have just as good a chance as everyone.
And so, I think that that is going to be the challenge for Democrats going forward is like, how do they traffic cop this?
MICHAELSON: And how do they -- how does somebody break out of the pack?
HAMBY: Money.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
HAMBY: Money. I think -- I think my friends at "Politico" reported this, that Tom Steyer cut a $20 million check to his own campaign.
My wife was telling me she goes to the gym every morning, and she sees on mute Tom Steyer ads running during "Good Morning America.: NFL games last weekend, Tom Steyer ads.
Money buys name ID and name recognition in every state. But obviously, here in California. It's incredibly important. And no one brings that kind of money to the table.
Here's the other thing. A lot of Democrats think Tom Steyer is a little corny, a little cringe, kind of thirsty. He's been running for office. He ran for president.
I thought about this today. The flip side of that is he has run for president. He's been on debate stages. He's -- he didn't win any votes, by the way, when he ran for president in 2020. But, you know, being in the spotlight, he does have some experience up there, jousting with other candidates, dealing with the media.
Again, not a perfect candidate. There is no star, but there's not anyone else with that kind of money either. Which is why there's two Republican frontrunners in the high teens.
MICHAELSON: But the group that does have money are the unions, and is there somebody who can get that union support going forward?
Really, really quickly? Last thing. Just one word response or short. The drunk raccoon. Did you see this video in your home state of Virginia?
There is a raccoon who breaks into a store and drinks moonshine, rum, some whiskey, some vodka, and then ends up passed out next to the toilet.
HAMBY: They have ABC stores in Virginia. I think I've been to that one in the great commonwealth. He also drank some peanut butter whiskey, and I would -- I've had that. It's not good. And I would have ended up on the floor, too.
MASON: Who are we to judge this drunk raccoon? Who amongst us?
MICHAELSON: I mean, we all may be at this point with everything going on in the world. Can't blame the raccoon.
MASON: Yes. MICHAELSON: All right. Melanie, Peter, thank you guys so much. That was fun.
Coming up we take you live to New Delhi where Russian President Vladimir Putin is meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This is a live picture we're looking at there. Will Ripley there when we come back.
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MICHAELSON: We're looking live in New Delhi right now. You see there the prime minister of India, also joined by the president of India, and they are preparing any moment now to welcome the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, who is there for a high-stakes meeting.
This is a live image. We just saw Mr. Modi arrive a short time ago himself. This visit comes as Prime Minister Modi tries to balance his trade relationship with the U.S. and his ties with Russia.
We see right now it looks like some folks on horseback that are arriving, as well.
As we look at these live pictures, I want to bring in CNN's Will Ripley, who is in New Delhi. Will, what do we expect from this meeting today?
WILL RIPLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, what we're seeing right now is Vladimir Putin arriving fashionably late, as usual.
He's certainly a leader not known for his punctuality, but he is known for his charm. And that may be one factor why Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi did something extraordinarily rare last night.
He actually went to the airport and waited to greet Putin when he arrived and got off his plane. You almost never see Prime Minister Modi do that.
He also gifted him with a very famous book of Hindu scripture, a significant gift religiously, also politically, for Prime Minister Modi, because the vast majority of Indians are Hindus. So, they were happy to see him hand over that gift to the Russian leader, who is a close friend. And that warm relationship has been on display.
We're now seeing the two of them shaking hands, along with India's president, all of them standing there. And in just a few moments we're expecting to see the honor guard and a spectacular welcome, Elex.
So, I think, obviously, there are lots of things these two leaders are going to be talking about: trade, new trade deals, military tech, energy sales.
But the bigger deal here -- and you're seeing it unfold right now with these live pictures, Elex -- is the optics, the optics of this warm relationship. And they're counting on the fact that President Trump and the White
House is probably watching all of this. They want him to know that -- that they have a close relationship. They have economic ties, potential new military ties, sharing of military tech.
And they have options, frankly, no matter how things go with the U.S. The Russians trying to figure out if they can resolve the Ukraine war with the United States. They've had talks.
And of course, there are -- there's a trade delegation from the United States coming here to New Delhi next week to try to see if they can sort out a trade deal and get those 50 percent tariffs knocked down.
So, a lot happening. And it's very deliberate what we're seeing right now, Elex, this -- this show of friendship and this state welcome, this -- this glamorous welcome here in New Delhi.
MICHAELSON: Yes. Let's see if we can listen in for a moment.
(MILITARY BAND MUSIC)
MICHAELSON: That we are listening to right now. Putin getting this embrace.
And Will, can we talk? You just mentioned it: Ukraine. Obviously, we have seen Putin in negotiations with the U.S. in the last few days. We know the U.S. is doing that.
How does India fall into that? In a lot of ways, they've tried to sort of play both sides, right?
RIPLEY: Yes, India has tried to kind of be strategically neutral in this whole thing. But one thing that you can't deny are hard numbers. And the numbers don't lie.
Before the Ukraine invasion, India was only buying about 2.5 percent of its oil from Russia. But after the Western sanctions basically cut off Russian oil from much of the global market, India, from a position of supposed neutrality, they took advantage of that.
And they snatched up huge quantities, massive quantities of Russian oil to the tune of, at one point, around 35 percent. Although we're still trying to figure out exactly what percentage is being purchased as of right now. But it was as high as 35 percent, up from 2.5 percent.
That's one of the reasons, the main reason, perhaps, that President Trump used when he slapped the 50 percent tariffs on Indian exports to the United States, saying that it's just not fair, and that here in India, they are far too reliant on this this cheap Russian oil. And they're actually helping fund Vladimir Putin's war machine.
President Putin gave an interview with Indian state media where he disputed that fact. And he said it's hypocritical for the United States and President Trump to criticize India's purchases of Russian oil, because he says the U.S. is still buying nuclear fuel, uranium from Russia to power nuclear reactors in the U.S.
So, that's one of the major issues, certainly, that they're going to be discussing with the U.S. trade delegation when they come here to Delhi.
Putin and Modi will also be talking about energy sales and also the exchange -- this is very interesting -- of military technology. We know that Russian jets have long been the backbone of India's air force. But now Vladimir Putin is actually talking about sharing the technology with India so they can domestically produce those jets here.
That is very significant. That is a sign of deep trust, deep cooperation between India and Russia.
And so, even though the Ukraine war has left Vladimir Putin a pariah around much of the world, Elex, as you are seeing play out in real time right now, that is certainly not the case here in India. They are welcoming Putin with open arms and a red carpet, literally.
MICHAELSON: Literally a red carpet, and a band, and everything else you could potentially think about that we're watching live.
Will Ripley, thank you. We will go back to you in our next hour here on THE STORY IS as we continue to watch these live pictures, this celebration of Russian leader Vladimir Putinm 11:24 a.m. in New Delhi.
We're going to sneak in a commercial break. We'll have more coverage of this and other news when we come back.
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[00:59:28]
MICHAELSON: Art lovers and people that don't really love art that much -- they just love big parties -- are gathering in Miami Beach, Florida to kick off Art Basel.
The art fair kicks off Friday with nearly 300 galleries from dozens of countries. One installation getting lots of attention involves wandering robot dogs fitted with the realistic looking heads of billionaires and such artists as Andy Warhol.
The creepy canines leave behind photos instead of typical pup waste.
All right. One of the most striking venues is a 50-foot revolving library and reading room that serves as a shared space for reflection during Miami Art Week. It includes 2500 books. How about that? That's it for this hour.
