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The Story Is with Elex Michaelson
Florida, Alaska, Wyoming, California Pick Nominees for Midterms; Senator Darline Graham Admits National Security Not Her Thing; Election Results Filter in for California Seat to Replace Swalwell; Fraternity Pledges Made to Cut, Bag Cocaine for Drug Ring. Aired 12-1a ET
Aired August 19, 2026 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[00:00:00]
LAURA COATES, CNN ANCHOR: Orlando, Baby Lane Anderson at the MGM after the Mike Tyson fight, all in retaliation for an earlier incident miles away, where one rival gang member took the necklace off another. They still don't need the prosecutors to show the jury evidence specifically tying Keffe D to the crime, and spoiler alert, it involves his own words because he wrote a memoir, he's given interview after interview.
I'll be back tomorrow covering the trial for CNN All Access. Just go to the QR code on your screen to get there. Also, it's available on Amazon Prime and HLN.
All right. Hey, that's it for me tonight. Here comes Elex Michaelson and "THE STORY IS."
ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Elex Michaelson live in Los Angeles.
Time for my five favorite words. It's "Election Night in America." Our panel is standing by live. We got the special music, the special graphics, we'll take you to the states counting ballots right now.
Let's start in Florida. Ron DeSantis is term limited and leaving the governor's office in January. CNN can now project that Trump endorsed Congressman Byron Donalds will easily win his party's nomination for that governor's race. He will face off against former congressman David Jolly, a vocal critic of President Trump who left the Republican Party to officially run as a Democrat.
Florida also held a slew of House races. Among the notable wins there, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who CNN projects will be the Democratic nominee for the newly redrawn 20th House District. Wasserman Schultz, a white Jewish woman, won an historically black district which will not have a black representative in Congress for the first time in decades.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (D-FL): This is such a difficult and fraught time in our country. There is so much at stake in this moment, and I want people to know that representation matters. It matters. And I will fight to make sure that representation counts again. We will make sure that we ban gerrymandering.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right.
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: While California's main primaries are over, a special election is being held to decide who will serve out the remainder of Congressman Eric Swalwell's term after sexual assault allegations derailed his campaign for governor. He resigned his House seat. And look at how close this race is. Aisha Wahab ahead of Melissa Hernandez but only by about 1700 votes. The early numbers in on that. We will be speaking with Hernandez soon,
But we start off live in Orlando. That's where Claire Heddles, senior political correspondent at "The Miami Herald," joins us live after going to the Byron Donalds event earlier.
You've got a story out in "The Miami Herald." Let's put it up on the screen. David Jolly versus Byron Donalds. Can Democrats break 27 years of Republican rule?" So break down what they would have to do to actually do that.
CLAIRE HEDDLES, SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT, MIAMI HERALD: Yes, that is the question now. Can they actually pull it off? Byron Donalds has raised more than $110 million, whereas David Jolly has about $10 million. So he needs to overcome this massive fundraising disadvantage. Florida is a very expensive state to run ads in. And so part of the question is, can David Jolly raise enough money to define himself to Florida voters, or is Byron Donalds going to be able to run enough ads to define David Jolly for him in these next two and a half months?
The other major question is, what voters are going to turn out? You know, Republicans have a 1.5 million voter registration lead in the state. If, you know, there's a lower turnout of Republican voters, if we see people disaffected by Trump willing to switch parties or stay home and not vote, then that makes this race much closer than it looks on paper just by voter registration. But Florida has had a Republican governor for the past 27 years.
I think there are reasons why Democrats think this might be the year that they can break that and finally take back the governor's mansion. But it is a very steep uphill climb to get there. And Jolly has to overcome, you know, this voter registration disadvantage and this financial disadvantage.
MICHAELSON: And there's a challenge for the Democrats when it comes to the U.S. Senate race as well. Ashley Moody replaced Marco Rubio when he became secretary of state. She's the incumbent. She's running on the Republican side. And Angie Nixon won tonight, which was a surprise to some folks, over Vindman who was a hero of the resistance. Alex Vindman, Angie Nixon winning pretty handily there, 56 to 44. [00:05:00]
She is a member of the Democrats Socialists of America, but is the DSA sort of DOA in a statewide race where President Trump won the state by 13 points back in 2024?
HEDDLES: Right. I mean, her win, I think, was the big story of the night out of Florida politics. The governor's race was sort of expected what would happen. But in her
case, Vindman had sort of been the darling of the Democratic establishment. He had raised over $16 million, whereas Angie Nixon had under a million. And, you know, she pulled off this win tonight by a huge margin, by, you know, almost 12 points. After, you know, many of the other Democrats have been condemning Democratic socialism, two different venues in south Florida. You know, canceled her event with Rashida Tlaib over the weekend.
So she had faced a lot of pushback, but she pulled out this win, you know, by pitching a very progressive message and a Florida focused message. She's a longtime progressive organizer in Florida and was pitching, you know, Medicare for All for child care. Whereas, you know, Vindman was coming in as sort of a someone who had worked in D.C. and who had a lot of money and who the sort of national establishment saw as the kind of candidate that could win Florida.
But, you know, this was a -- an upset win that she pulled off tonight. And she did join the Democratic Socialists of America recently. They didn't formally endorse her in the primary, but she, you know, she is part of that party. And it's a good question how that's going to translate to voters across the rest of Florida outside the Democratic primary in November.
MICHAELSON: Yes. And a very different message from David Jolly as well. So that'll be interesting to watch.
Claire Heddles, starting us off in Orlando, Florida. Thanks so much for your reporting.
HEDDLES: Thank you, Elex.
MICHAELSON: Let's bring in our panel now. Ron Brownstein is a CNN senior political analyst and opinion columnist with Bloomberg. Democrat Katie Porter served in the U.S. House and ran for governor and Senate here in California. And Matt Klink is a Republican strategist as well as the owner and president of Klink Campaigns.
You've all been with us the last two Tuesdays. It's gone so well. We saw it three times the charm.
RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Back for more.
MICHAELSON: And Ron, let's start off with you. Big takeaway of the night.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes. Look, I think it continues the story we've talked about the last two weeks and all year, the divide in the Democratic Party. Centrists had some big wins in the House races. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Moskowitz. But the biggest win of the night went to the left. And, you know her win, I think it was always uphill in Florida for Democrats. It's more uphill now. But I think the Vindman strategy was an extreme version of what we have seen from other Democratic centrists this year.
He literally did not debate her. And I think what we've seen in other states is Democratic centrists have chosen not really to challenge the left candidates on the substance of their ideas more to make the argument they're not electable or they can't be passed. That is a failing strategy. I think it is very clear tonight.
MICHAELSON: Biggest takeaway from tonight?
KATIE PORTER, FORMER U.S. HOUSE DEMOCRAT: I didn't think Democrats were likely to win either of these races. I don't think David Jolly, regardless of the fact that he used to be a Republican, now he's a Democrat, I just don't think Democrats are going to be able to take Florida in these two races regardless. The registration advantage is big. It's been trending the wrong way. So to the extent that Democrats have limited resources both in terms of energy and focus and dollars, maybe this is a gift to send them focusing elsewhere, as Ron suggested earlier.
MICHAELSON: Meaning you weren't going to win the race anyway so now you are not going to spend the money there and spend it in Texas or Ohio or?
PORTER: I mean, look, Democrats are famous for doing this. I watched -- look at all the money that was plowed in a few years ago into trying to beat Marjorie Taylor Greene in a district that was, what, R plus like 7,000? I mean --
MICHAELSON: Remember the money to defeat Mitch McConnell?
PORTER: Right.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes. 2020.
MICHAELSON: Amy McGrath.
BROWNSTEIN: And yes. And South Carolina.
PORTER: And so, I mean, I am excited to see Democrats competing in Florida, having a primary in Florida. It's good for the Florida Democratic Party to do that. But I think we're a ways from being able to take these seats back. And I think Byron Donalds, I served with him, I think he is a formidable candidate. I don't agree with his policies, but I think he's very, very skillful. And I think he'll be tough to beat no matter who Democrats were to put up.
MICHAELSON: Big takeaway.
MATT KLINK, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Byron Donalds, I think that he did what he needed to do tonight. He ran a good campaign, a strong campaign. The press is trying to make hay of, you know, the governor didn't endorse him. Well, he was also running against DeSantis's appointed lieutenant governor. So I think that that endorsement is going to come soon. And --
MICHAELSON: He's not going to endorse David Jolly.
KLINK: No, absolutely.
MICHAELSON: No. That's not happening.
KLINK: Yes. And, you know, and if the Democrats could stop nominating former Republicans to run for governor in Florida, Charlie Crist before, now David Jolly, by the way, who was pro-abortion and pro-gun or -- yes, pro-life and pro-gun.
[00:10:04]
Now he's a woke Democrat. He's going to get slaughtered.
PORTER: And it's hard to reconcile a David Jolly with an Angie Nixon.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes, yes.
PORTER: So --
(CROSSTALK)
KLINK: They're going to love to see that.
MICHAELSON: And it's interesting because, to that point, and let's play some sound from tonight, both of them talked tonight about that. Jolly was on MS NOW and was asked about this idea of the DSA and Angie Nixon was on with Laura Coates in the last hour here on CNN. Let's play both of their soundbites back to back.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is this a state, Florida, that can elect you as governor, but also elect progressive Angie Nixon for the U.S. Senate at the same time?
DAVID JOLLY, DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE FOR FLORIDA GOVERNOR: Well, we're going to find out. We're going to find out. Look, I reject the DSA. I reject socialism. I'm a capitalist. And I think capitalism provides the greatest amount of economic mobility. I have been with Angie on the trail. And I'll tell you this, she's a fighter.
ANGIE NIXON, DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE FOR U.S. SENATE FROM FLORIDA: It's not about people's labels for me. I'm a single mom. I was a single mom for, you know, 12 years. I'm a mother now. I'm an organizer. I'm a community organizer. But more importantly, it's about the needs of the people. And what people need is they need housing, right? They need universal healthcare. They want universal childcare.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: So she was asked about the socialism word. And she says it's not about labels. Wasn't exactly a full throated endorsement of the DSA.
KLINK: Which is what Democratic socialists say to soften the blow of the term socialist in a state with a lot of communist refugees from Cuba.
PORTER: I will say, I mean, she went into policy answers, and I think that is -- that's exactly where Democrats are falling short.
KLINK: That's where she needs to go.
PORTER: So going to housing, talking about childcare, talking about Medicare for All. David Jolly, why? Why would a Democrat be enthusiastic about that? To your point, not only am I not sure he shares some of my core values as a Democrat, I'm not sure he gets what my problems are in life like economically, in terms of what I need, housing, jobs for my kids, retirement, healthcare. Where is he on all this stuff?
BROWNSTEIN: You know, I mean, if you're in the center of the Democratic Party, you have to be worried about the way this primary season is ending and what it portends for 2028, because it has been a pretty close fight all the way through. But as we talked about, the left is finishing strong. I mean, El-Sayed in Michigan, Peggy Flanagan in Minnesota this year. And I do think that by and large the center candidates, even here in California with Becerra, have chosen not really to engage the left on the substance of their agenda.
MICHAELSON: That's an understatement on Becerra.
BROWNSTEIN: Right. Right. You know --
MICHAELSON: He's chosen not to engage on anything at all.
BROWNSTEIN: And look, he -- clearly he had doubts about Medicare for All, but he would not raise that in those debates. He would just kind of avoid the question. Haley Stevens, their campaign felt that talking about healthcare at all was in El-Sayed's turf. And then Vindman choosing not to debate at all, ultimately, and this is very similar to what Hillary Clinton did in 2016 against Bernie Sanders, when she basically would not engage the substance of ideas because she was afraid of alienating his voters and instead said, well, you can't pass them or you can't get elected promoting them.
That is a really defeatist message, I think, for a lot of Democrats. And so the lack of that debate, I think, is a real lesson for centrists coming out of this.
MICHAELSON: Can I push back on the centrist thing, though? Because we do see centrist success in North Carolina with Roy Cooper.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes. Totally.
MICHAELSON: We see with Jon Ossoff in Georgia.
BROWNSTEIN: What I'm saying --
MICHAELSON: We see it, James Talarico.
BROWNSTEIN: Neither side -- right.
MICHAELSON: We see it in Iowa.
BROWNSTEIN: And even tonight.
MICHAELSON: I mean, there are plenty of examples.
BROWNSTEIN: As I said, neither side has had a knockout in these primaries. I mean, Turek and in Iowa, Becerra here. I mean, like each side is winning its share of races. But I think in many of these closely contested races that progressives have won, the center has not had the courage of their convictions. I mean, they have not been willing to engage.
PORTER: The courage of their convictions, I still am struggling with what the convictions are.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes, right. Right.
KLINK: That's the point. Elex, you just said it, though. Ron is saying that you see the energy from the left and the centrist candidates that you talked about, they have that energy. It's people want elected officials to do something, not just point a finger and say Donald Trump is bad. And right now, the only -- the majority of the people on the left that are talking about doing things, they're crazy things, are the Democratic socialists and the moderates that are doing it are getting publicity from it.
That's probably something that my Democratic colleagues should pay attention to, and maybe Xavier Becerra as well, who's been hiding since he won the primary.
MICHAELSON: But to his credit, Xavier Becerra, when you're ahead by 25 points, maybe hiding is a good thing.
KLINK: But voters deserve to see who you are.
MICHAELSON: We would love to host a debate here on CNN. I'll put that plug in right now, which I've said publicly and privately.
All right. We're going to have a lot more to discuss with the panel, including very interesting comments from Darline Graham tonight that's getting a lot of attention. I'm really fascinated to hear what you all have to say.
[00:15:02]
Also, we're going to have a lot more from around the country. Stay with us. You're watching "Election Night in America" right here on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MICHAELSON: Global and oil. U.S. gas prices are climbing as hopes of a resolution on the war with Iran fade. Oil futures up on Tuesday. So are U.S. government bond yields as traders anticipate that the war and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz will keep energy prices high.
And a day after claiming that administration officials were backchanneling with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, President Trump wrote on social media that, quote, "There are no talks or conversations going on or scheduled with the Islamic Republic of Iran."
[00:20:06]
The president's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, has a different take.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JARED KUSHNER, U.S. SPECIAL ENVOY: I will say that the conversations between the U.S. government and different areas of the Iranian government at all areas is probably more robust than it's maybe ever been. And so there's been a lot of good dialogues, which I think is very, very helpful.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: President Trump's approval rating is at the lowest level of his presidency. A Reuters-Ipsos poll finds just 33 percent of Americans approve of his job performance. That's down two points from earlier this month and ties with his lowest rating during his first term.
Georgia Senator Jon Ossoff has been going after President Trump over the war with Iran, rising costs and corruption. For months now, Ossoff has stuck to a clear playbook, holding campaign rallies where he criticized his Republican opponent, Mike Collins, and President Trump.
Here's what Ossoff had to say about the president's treatment of Arizona Senator Mark Kelly, who has had his own disputes with the White House.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JON OSSOFF (D-GA): I don't think anything illustrates the times more aptly than that the draft-dodging crook president.
(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)
OSSOFF: Who has plunged our nation recklessly into a war he knows not how to end or to win, tried to imprison this man who embodies American heroism.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Let's bring back in our panel Ron Brownstein, Katie Porter, and Matt Klink.
We will talk about Ossoff and his future in a moment. But first, I want to talk about Darline Graham, who is the new senator from South Carolina after her brother Lindsey Graham died. She had no political experience before. Last week, she officially made it to the runoff, which is next week.
You suggested that she may make some mistakes during that process. You suggested that she was going to win, and you suggested that this -- she was going to lose. So here's what happened tonight. She's on a debate stage. You haven't seen this yet so we're going to get your reaction to it. Roll the clip.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, DEBATE MODERATOR: Are Taiwan and the South China Sea national security issues for the United States? And if so, why or how?
SEN. DARLINE GRAHAM (R-SC): I'm just going to be honest here. I'm not on national security that -- I'm not that informed on national security so -- but I do support the military. My brother was in the Air Force for 33 years. So I will do everything I can to support the military. My dad was in the Army. I'm not a polished politician up here. I'm -- national security is not my thing, not my area of expertise. But I do support the military.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: First reaction?
PORTER: This was my first day back in the classroom, and I just thank the Good Lord that my students had better answers than that to me. That was truly terrible. I mean, I think what I said last week was this woman needs a lot of polish and she needs it really fast. Republicans were not fast enough putting it on her.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes.
MICHAELSON: I mean, you're -- put yourself in the position, you're her strategist. She comes off the stage after that. What do you do now?
KLINK: Wow. I mean, this -- I mean, this is one of those mistakes that it's, you can't walk it back because not only -- she said it twice in the same sound bite.
MICHAELSON: National security is not my thing.
KLINK: Is not my thing. Yes. Given what her brother's expertise was.
MICHAELSON: He's known for that.
KLINK: For that. So, I mean, look, I would have prepped her so that she pivoted national security is not my strong suit. I want to talk about what South Carolina families are concerned about and gone into more domestic politics. But she looked like a deer in the headlights. And I think that this is -- there are a few things in politics that are fatal. You know --
BROWNSTEIN: As a singular. Yes. KLINK: This is -- this is if not, this is right there.
MICHAELSON: Well, but usually, Ron, when something is fatal, it is a distillation of something that people are already worried about. Right?
BROWNSTEIN: Right. Potato.
MICHAELSON: And the concern about her is, does she have the juice? Is she experienced enough? Can she do this job? And what's the answer --
BROWNSTEIN: That's the most dangerous thing in politics is when you confirm a preexisting narrative, when you validate a preexisting narrative. Dan, you know, Al Gore misspelled potato in 1992, people would have said he was tired. Dan Quayle misspelled potato in 1992 and people said, you know, he doesn't have the candle power to be president or vice president.
And so, yes, I mean, I think it's very -- look, her vote last week signaled she was Lindsey Graham's sister with Donald Trump's endorsement. She got, what, like a third of the vote or a little over a third of the vote. That said to me that it was going to be hard for her to get over the top in a one-on-one race. And by the way, if she does lose next week, we had two Donald Trump endorsed candidates for the House in Florida lose tonight.
[00:25:05]
We had a Donald Trump candidate for governor in Wyoming lose tonight. We had a Donald Trump endorsed ,you know, the pillow guy, in Minnesota lost. I mean, you know, he is still obviously a big force in the Republican Party, but he is not as unbeatable as he has been. And in the same way that the left is kind of finishing strong, I mean, you are seeing Trump's grip on the Republican Party demonstrably loosen here in this final round of primaries.
MICHAELSON: I mean, you know what it's like to be on a debate stage. You know what it's like to prep for something like this. You know what it's like to have a clip that you wish wasn't out there. Sort of how do you think about that moment and maybe see that differently than other people see it?
PORTER: Well, I think this is not -- often when you have a mistake like this, it's in a moment, you're rushed, you're tired. Something kind of -- you have more of an emotion. That's not what this is. This might be just dumb, like just not very --
(CROSSTALK)
BROWNSTEIN: -- speed on the issue. It's a Kinsley Gaffe. It's a Michael Kinsley Gaffe. It is saying what you actually mean, right? I mean, that is -- that's what he famously described as a Washington gaffe, when you say what you actually believe. And she was just --
MICHAELSON: Being honest.
BROWNSTEIN: She was just being honest.
PORTER: Well, she was honest. National security is not her thing.
MICHAELSON: Right.
PORTER: But --
BROWNSTEIN: And she doesn't know much about it. That's what -- that was as honest, which was honest.
KLINK: But what the interesting part, though, is the Republicans standing next to her, Ralph Norman says nothing.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes.
PORTER: Yes, well.
KLINK: Because don't interrupt the soundbite. Let her keep talking. I'm willing to bet that the ad is already cut and will be in circulation tomorrow.
PORTER: Well, and, Matt, he's not the sharpest tool in the shed either.
(LAUGHTER)
PORTER: I mean, this is a pretty -- this is -- there's no A plus in this crowd, OK, like of those two.
KLINK: He just needs a consultant who knows how to manipulate social media.
PORTER: But if I'm Darline Graham like, and I have one week left.
MICHAELSON: Yes. What do you do?
PORTER: And I'm her consultant, you said you're trying to, you know, have her prep her more or whatever. I'm just hiding her, like, I don't think you can prep that fast enough.
KLINK: I'd run a lot of Lindsey Graham-Darline ads.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes. And Trump endorsement. But, you know, look, I mean, there's also the -- in some ways, this is similar to what is happening in Iran. I mean, Trump's belief that he is infallible, that no one can stand up to him. And the only reason, you know, that other presidents didn't get their way is because they didn't have his will, his kind of -- and like here he picked someone who has no business being in the Senate.
I mean, it seems like a perfectly nice person. But, you know, and he basically thought he could just push it through with no other reason.
MICHAELSON: And also if she would have just been a caretaker.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes. MICHAELSON: Nobody would see --
BROWNSTEIN: Right.
MICHAELSON: I mean, she would be -- go off into the sunset. But senator very different. But when she decided, I'm going to run for this on my own, then you do get those kinds of questions.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes.
MICHAELSON: And that's part of -- that was her decision to do that, too. And he backed that as well.
All right, panel sticking with us. We want to put up on the screen right now some numbers from California. There is -- well, those are not numbers from California. They would actually probably be worse if you were -- if you actually were just polling California voters. But there is a special election which is happening between Aisha Wahab and Melissa Hernandez to replace Congressman Eric Swalwell in the 14th District.
There are those numbers. We see how close that race is. Melissa Hernandez is with us live when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: Residents of California's Bay Area are voting in a special election to replace former Congressman Eric Swalwell in the 14th District.
[00:33:19]
Joining me now is Melissa Hernandez, one of the Democrats competing in that race. She's currently about 1,700 votes behind. But this race is very close, and there's a lot more counting to go. Melissa Hernandez, welcome to THE STORY IS.
MELISSA HERNANDEZ (D), CALIFORNIA CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: Thank you. Thanks for having me.
MICHAELSON: How do you read these initial numbers? Where do you think you're at in this race?
HERNANDEZ: Reading the initial numbers right now, we're -- we're, you know, creeping up steady. And I'm -- I'm good with the numbers right now. Because as you see what has happened in the last several races, in the last elections, we have closed the gap.
MICHAELSON: What do you think, at the heart, this election is really about? What do you see as the biggest difference between you and your opponent here?
HERNANDEZ: I truly believe that the biggest difference is people know who the Melissa Hernandez is and who the Melissa Hernandez has been. And so, when I knock on those doors, it's definitely me being able to engage with voters to be able to engage with residents within this district, and they get to know who the real Melissa Hernandez is.
MICHAELSON: In terms of what's interesting about this particular race is not only are the two of you competing against each other right now, which is for the remainder of Eric Swalwell's term, the next couple of months.
But then the same two are competing in November for the full term next time around, which includes a different district because of redistricting in California.
How do you see the difference between those two, and -- and where do you think you potentially have more of an advantage?
[00:05:00]
HERNANDEZ: Correct. You're absolutely correct. I would have more advantage on the last fourth (ph) election. And the reason is because I gained Dublin back. And so, being able to be part of that district.
So, remember that there's a little bit of a district change. We have asked so -- so many folks have reached out to me saying, why cannot -- why -- I'm going down to the register of voters. I cannot vote. Why can I not vote?
So, this race has been very confusing for so many voters. And I was walking yesterday. I was walking today and a lot of folks did not know that they had to vote today.
Many people are on vacation. They're getting the kids back to school. And so, there's a lot of stuff going on.
And, again, this has been a race that we never thought would work out the way it has been because of the fact that you, you had congressman, former congressman Swalwell resign. And then we went on to, the election and created a special election that was -- was being created.
So again, a lot of folks are not aware that they had a vote today.
MICHAELSON: So, it sounds like what you're saying is, regardless of what happens tonight, you're more confident even about the fall?
HERNANDEZ: Absolutely. We will keep working hard for the next 11 weeks, just when initially this race got started.
MICHAELSON: Melissa Hernandez, joining us from a loud victory party, potentially. Who knows? We'll see what happens. But we appreciate you joining us tonight. Thanks so much.
HERNANDEZ: Thank you so much.
MICHAELSON: And of course, we would love to hear from Aisha Wahab and have extended an invitation for her, as well. Hope she'll join us during the next 2.5 hours here on THE STORY IS.
But joining me right now is Democratic Congresswoman Haley Stevens, who we saw, of course, two weeks ago here as she was running for the Senate from Michigan.
Great to have you back. Welcome back to THE STORY IS.
REP. HALEY STEVENS (D-MI): So good to see you. And my goodness, you know, I'm seeing you -- you interview, Melissa, and who's -- I've heard wonderful things about her, by the way.
And man, I was right where she was.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
STEVENS: You know, watching those votes come in, watching them get counted. It's another exciting primary night in Michigan, American -- or not Michigan. Sorry. Across this country.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
STEVENS: But for me, everything feels like Michigan.
MICHAELSON: Well -- well, people in -- people in Michigan are watching CNN right now, so they can see you.
So -- so -- well, let's talk about what it's like in terms of an election night. You've won elections; recently lost a close election. You've had election night experiences from both. What's it like from the perspective of a candidate? Put us in your shoes.
STEVENS: Well, you know, I love that we're spending the time talking about the votes and watching the votes come in.
I think, you know, we've got year-round, you know, major breaking news. you know, a lot of governing either trying to happen or sort of run in circles around that.
You've got 63 percent of Americans, by the way, right now, living paycheck to paycheck. And, you know, we get these elections. And there's a lot of commentary around the election, but it really just comes down to the votes, right?
Forget the polls, forget the money, forget the tweets, forget the commentary. We're watching people in this country exercise their right to vote. And let every vote be counted. Then let's -- you know, were seeing that in real time play out in states across this country right now. It's exciting.
And we're certainly going to see a lot of that that first Tuesday in November, when every single state comes to the polls to vote in these midterm elections.
MICHAELSON: Yes, which is going to be a lot of fun. We know Israel is an important --
STEVENS: It's a neat thing.
MICHAELSON: Yes. Israel was an important part of your election. AIPAC, the American Israeli Political Affairs Committee, spent big on your election. They spent big for Melissa Hernandez against Aisha Wahab.
We don't know what's going to happen in that election. They spent big for Jared Moskowitz in Florida. He won. Here's some of what he said about that issue earlier tonight on CNN.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JARED MOSKOWITZ (D), FLORIDA CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: You've got to remember: 25 percent of this -- this district is Jewish. Twenty percent of this district is Hispanic. People have escaped socialism.
And when they hear folks from the DSA go on television and talk about, you know, how they want to abolish the Senate, which, you know, don't give Trump any ideas. And they -- you know, they want to get rid of prisons. And, you know, no borders.
You know, most Americans hear that stuff, and they say, what is going on?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: What do you see as -- as AIPAC's role in American elections? And how do you also see the divide in the Democratic Party right now?
[00:40:03]
STEVENS: OK. Well, look, I think Jared Moskowitz is a phenomenal congressman, and I'm really proud to serve with him. I'm thrilled he won his primary.
I was looking earlier; he came in along with Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
I mean, look, there's a political process in this country. There's organizations that -- that people participate in politics. And, you know, AIPAC is one of those groups.
It's an organization of 6 million people. You know, they certainly have a huge Jewish population in my district. I'm deeply proud to have a very treasured relationship with the Jewish community.
And I think more so, what you are getting at is the fact that Donald Trump, this has nothing to do with, you know, anything other than his poor management.
You know, tonight we got another headline about him and tariffs, and Canada. OK, we've had that herky-jerky.
He's started this war in Iran, you know, kind of on his own volition. You now hear Republicans -- I think Nancy Mace might be one of them, who's saying that the president needs to give answers.
You know, you've got this open Senate seat in South Carolina. And I just heard one of the, you know, candidates -- I guess she's Lindsey Graham's sister -- saying she didn't know too much about foreign policy. MICHAELSON: National security is not her thing.
STEVENS: Yes. National security is not her thing. And it's kind of like, guys, what are we doing here? Right?
I mean, you've got all this money, you know, that the federal government's sucking up. You've got the president closing down the Department of Education.
You've got, in my state, which I can talk to very clearly. You've got people being billed to death. I mean, you've got utility bills that cost as much as a mortgage. It's just like enough -- and the country is being run by billionaires.
So, you know, look, maybe there's ire, you know, because we've got super PACs in this country. I know my good friend Katie Porter is on your panel. You know, she was a leader in terms of calling out dark money and special interests.
You know, decades ago, they created these little PACs that get, you know. We have a Planned Parenthood PAC. You've got a Ford Motor Company PAC. You know, they give $5,000 to campaigns each.
MICHAELSON: Sure.
STEVENS: OK. But people want change in our system.
MICHAELSON: Yes.
STEVENS: They just want change.
And what's happening right now is incredible. People are going to the polls. We're being surprised at elections. You know, there's -- you can make a ton of assumptions, but gosh, long live the will of the American people and the ballot box. That is personal; that is private; that is sacred.
MICHAELSON: Lastly, we're out of time, but just real quickly, about your future. What's next? And does it include being a TV commentator?
STEVENS: You know what? I love watching you, you know, and your crew up there.
But no, I -- participating in the deliberation of the discourse of this great nation, you know, from the halls of the House of Representatives --
MICHAELSON: Yes.
STEVENS: -- to wherever I go next, is always an honor. Godspeed. Thank you for having me.
MICHAELSON: OK. Yes, that sounded something the Founding Fathers said a long time ago. I loved it. Thank you.
STEVENS: Yes. Just, you know, poetic. Poetic inspiration from Haley Stevens. You know?
MICHAELSON: All right. Haley Stevens, great to see you. Thank you so much.
STEVENS: Thank you.
MICHAELSON: We'll be following election nights throughout the night.
We want to get you up to date on some other stories, too, including the details of an alleged college drug ring -- this story is wild -- at Penn State University. And wait till you hear the nickname of the guy behind it. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[00:48:30]
MICHAELSON: Duane Davis, the man accused of orchestrating the fatal drive-by shooting of Tupac Shakur, back in court for day two of his trial.
Davis has denied the allegations and pled not guilty.
The jury heard testimony from two men who previously worked security for Marion "Suge" Knight, the founder and CEO of Shakur's record label.
Knight was driving Shakur the evening that he was shot. The former head of security at Knight's club, 662, pointed to gang warfare, but admitted he did not initially realize how badly Shakur had been injured after leaving the nightclub.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAMES MCDONALD, WITNESS, FORMER HEAD OF SECURITY AT CLUB 662: The majority of the people was coming -- was leaving and then coming back. Because that night, they said Tupac was going to be all right. And even Suge came back with a little bandage on his head, and we thought everything was good. People kept partying.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Prosecutors showed jurors graphic, never-before-seen photos from Shakur's 1996 autopsy, including a bullet fragment removed from his body.
Some members of Shakur's family left the courtroom before the images were shown. Davis had no visible reaction.
Forensic pathologist Dr. Lindsay Gavin, a Clark County medical examiner, shared her assessment of that evidence.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. LINDSAY GAVIN, CLARK COUNTY MEDICAL EXAMINER: He died of gunshot wounds of chest and abdomen. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And do you have an opinion as to the manner of
death?
GAVIN: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And what is that?
GAVIN: Homicide.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When a medical examiner uses the term "homicide," what does that mean?
[00:50:03]
GAVIN: The simplest form is death at the hands of another.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Meanwhile, in Massachusetts, jurors are getting a deeper look inside the mind of Lindsay Clancy.
She does not deny that she fatally strangled her three children in January of 2023. But the defense argues that Clancy cannot be held criminally responsible, claiming she was suffering from postpartum psychosis and extreme mental illness.
A psychologist visited Clancy while she was detained in a hospital after the killings, and he says that Clancy revealed that she had heard a voice instructing her to kill her children, then herself, which he categorized as an auditory hallucination.
Her former psychiatrist also testified that Clancy may have minimized her symptoms, because she was afraid that her children would be taken away from her.
The defense pointed out that Clancy was denied critical help on several occasions while questioning Clancy's mother-in-law.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEVIN REDDINGTON, ATTORNEY FOR LINDSAY CLANCY: The Women and Infants Program in Rhode Island that specializes in perinatal and postpartum.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
REDDINGTON: You know that she went there, right?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Correct.
REDDINGTON: You know, she was turned away, because she was overmedicated, right?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
REDDINGTON: You also know that they gave her numbers to call suicide hotlines, right? UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
REDDINGTON: She called twice -- not once, but twice -- and again was turned away. Isn't that right?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAELSON: Authorities in Pennsylvania say fraternity brothers and pledges were required to cut and package cocaine as part of an alleged drug ring operating out of Penn State University.
Fourteen people, including current and former students, have been charged in that scheme. The details are wild.
CNN's Danny Freeman has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Disturbing allegations out of Happy Valley this week, as state prosecutors announce a sweeping cocaine trafficking bust at Penn State University.
DAVE SUNDAY, PENNSYLVANIA ATTORNEY GENERAL: This is very serious criminal conduct. There was nothing junior or childlike about this type of conduct.
FREEMAN (voice-over): A grand jury charging 14 people. Thirteen were students when the alleged drug trafficking occurred in 2023 and 2024.
The 14th was a father of one defendant, accused of tampering with evidence and hindering the investigation.
SUNDAY: This was an upper-level trafficking organization for this region in Pennsylvania.
FREEMAN (voice-over): According to Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday, the drug crimes centered at two off-campus fraternities at Penn State: Delta Upsilon and Sigma Chi.
Accused ringleaders Agostino Abbatiello and Thomas Robinson would make regular trips to Philadelphia and New York to get large quantities of cocaine back to State College.
Other fraternity brothers and pledges then would assist them in preparing and packaging the cocaine for resale.
SUNDAY: In fact, we found a pattern of events that showed cutting and bagging cocaine was, for some pledges, an indoctrination into the Delta Upsilon and Sigma Chi fraternities.
FREEMAN (voice-over): The cocaine was largely sold on campus to other students, according to prosecutors.
In a statement, Penn State's vice president for student affairs said, quote, "We are horrified by these serious allegations against current and former students. Criminal activity, including hazing such as this, has no place at our institution, and we will cooperate with law enforcement any way we can."
The university said it put Delta Upsilon on interim suspension and noted Sigma Chi is not a recognized organization and operates outside of the university's support and oversight.
CNN reached out to the local chapters and international headquarters for both fraternities. Delta Upsilon International told the Associated Press it was aware of the allegations, and those involved in the drug ring were expelled or suspended if they did not resign.
Sigma Chi International told CNN this conduct is an egregious violation of its values, and involved members have been suspended.
Agostino was denied bail after surrendering Tuesday. An attorney for Agostino had no comment when reached by CNN.
Attorney information for Robinson was not immediately available. His bail was set at $1.5 million, according to court documents.
SUNDAY: It's extremely serious. Law enforcement takes it extremely seriously, and we will continue to investigate and prosecute individuals that decide to deal drugs on college campuses.
FREEMAN (voice-over): Danny Freeman, CNN, Philadelphia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FREEMAN (voice-over): Up next, back to our election night in America coverage.
In just a few moments, we're expected to get our first results from Alaska's Senate primary, where the Republican incumbent is facing a challenger with the very same name. And a former congresswoman is hoping to give Democrats a chance at flipping that seat.
Stay with us for that, as we continue our coverage right here, live on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[00:59:28]
FREEMAN (voice-over): Welcome back to THE STORY IS. I'm Elex Michaelson. Let's take a look at today's top stories.
The U.S. president says he has paused the 50 percent tariff he had threatened to impose on Canada, posting on social media that Donald Trump announced a deal with Canada that appears to involve the Keystone XL Pipeline.
He says the pause will take place for three days and that the deal is, quote, "subject to the finalization of documents." South Korea says its joint military drills with the U.S. will end five
days early, at the urging of the U.S. president. The annual exercise was meant to last ten days but will now end on Friday.
President Trump announced the scale-back just hours before the drills were set to begin, citing, quote, "my very good relationship with Kim Jong-un of North Korea."
