This Week with George Stephanopoulos Full Broadcast - Sunday, October 11, 2026

[0:00] just 23 days until the midterm elections and republicans are on defense this week starts [0:07] right now fiery debates so i've and he could not even muster i've condemned that i didn't [0:13] turn it out he did theater like you did not whatever donald trump says mike collins does [0:19] don't let him fool you he talks one way and he votes another way some republicans push back on [0:25] trump and i'll be president trump's ally when it is important for iowa but i will push back on him [0:31] lifeline for putin president trump says he'll lift sanctions on russian diesel critics say it won't [0:38] lower prices but it will help russia as it pits trump against ukraine and i think it's time for [0:44] ukraine to get a new president this morning a this week exclusive president zelinski responds we are [0:52] defending our sovereignty it's our rights so don't stop us trouble in the heartland for republicans [1:01] how much of a factor for you would be who donald trump has endorsed none we're on the ground in [1:07] ruby red kansas with the pastor who is hoping to be the first democratic senator from kansas in nearly [1:14] a century when were you a republican most of my life actually really as republicans spend millions to [1:21] keep kansas red what i see across the state are republicans coming home majority whip tom emmer [1:27] joins us as republicans fight to keep control of the house from abc news it's this week here now [1:37] jonathan carl good morning welcome to this week we have a major exclusive this morning ukrainian [1:45] president zelinski joins us to respond to president trump's stunning comments this week about lifting [1:51] russian sanctions and calling for a new president of ukraine but first major developments in the battle [1:58] for congress president trump has made the midterms a referendum on his job as president telling voters [2:04] over and over again to pretend that he is the one on the ballot republican candidates are facing voters [2:11] uneasy even angry about high prices and an unpopular war there's also growing uneasy over aggressive [2:19] immigration enforcement one of the latest incidents another ice shooting this week this one in new york [2:25] city a man shot in his car as his five-year-old son sat in the back seat trump himself is increasingly [2:33] unpopular and amidst the economic anxiety he is often focused elsewhere the arch the reflecting pole [2:40] the kennedy center the ballroom on friday the white house releasing this video of him touring his favorite [2:47] white house construction project he's been plastering his name and image on buildings in the capitol [2:54] in a new poll this week 72 percent of americans say it's inappropriate to name a federal institution [3:00] or building after a u.s president while in office and 71 in that same poll oppose adding trump's name [3:09] to the kennedy center something he's still trying to do only 11 percent of americans think that's a good [3:15] idea against that backdrop democrats appear to be getting closer to winning control of the house [3:21] and in the battle for control of the senate republicans are now playing defense and spending tens of [3:28] millions of dollars in some of the most republican states in the country president trump made a plea [3:37] to voters just after labor day so i'm asking you to pretend that i'm on the ballot i'm on the ballot [3:45] this week democrats did exactly that no thinking no thought whatever donald trump says jump he says how high [3:51] whatever donald trump says mike collins does she would not stand up and her republican colleagues would [3:57] not stand up to donald trump in races across the country republican candidates are trying to find some [4:03] distance from the president without alienating his base and i'll be president trump's ally when it is [4:09] important for iowa but i will push back on him in texas and ohio nebraska and iowa alaska and even south [4:15] carolina republicans are spending millions to defend senate seats in states that trump won by double digits [4:23] in 2024. even kansas perhaps the most surprising battleground of all democrats haven't won a senate [4:30] seat here in kansas in 94 years that's the longest losing streak for either party anywhere in the country [4:38] farmer steve bolin voted for trump in 2016 2020 and 2024. now he's struggling with high [4:45] prices for diesel and fertilizer and uncertain who he'll vote for for senate how much of a factor [4:52] for you would be who donald trump has endorsed none why is that i don't care who he endorses [5:01] again i want somebody that is talking for the american farmer trump won kansas by 16 points in 2024 [5:10] but a new york times sienna poll last week found 55 percent of likely voters there disapprove of his job [5:17] as president the senate race pits incumbent roger marshall against democrat adam hamilton adam [5:27] hamilton is not a typical democrat he's the pastor of the largest united methodist congregation in the [5:33] country with roughly 24 000 members and until february of this year he was a registered republican [5:44] pastor adam as many know him in kansas is soft-spoken and congenial but in a debate at the kansas state fair [5:51] hamilton hit senator marshall hard over the war in iran and trump economics farmers are talking about [5:58] the cost of terrorists this is not okay this is how washington is hurting us and he thinks they're [6:03] okay it's just no big deal the crowd turned on their republican senator the debate was one of senator [6:12] marshall's few open public events since early last year when a town hall meeting with voters angry about [6:19] doge cuts went viral on friday marshall made a rare publicly announced appearance not a town hall but [6:29] a tour of a radar manufacturing plant with transportation secretary sean duffy he dismissed [6:35] hamilton's rise among republican voters i think it's a very finite amount of people what i see across the [6:41] state are republicans coming home maybe but not lifelong republican and school bus driver bruce bateman [6:49] you voted for trump in 16. you voted for trump in 20. you voted for trump in 2024. and i voted for [6:54] reagan in 1980. so you've been voting republican for a long time correct but you're going to vote [6:59] democrat absolutely telling people to vote democrat in the senate race in this particular case yes yes [7:04] absolutely yes and rachel scott is with us now and rachel we saw the non-partisan political handicapper [7:11] the cook political report come out and shift a whole bunch of races in the direction of the democrats [7:18] what are we seeing in our ratings john major movement toward democrats and some troubling signs [7:23] here for republicans our abc news race ratings now show and have shifted this critical race that's [7:29] happening there in kansas from lean republican to a toss-up and not only that over here in north [7:35] carolina we have now shifted that race toward likely democrat i want to show you this pattern that is [7:41] happening not just here in the senate but also in the house as well these are all of the races that will [7:46] determine control of the u.s house and you can see here the colors represent which party currently [7:51] holds these seats well since labor day 33 races 33 have shifted towards democrats eight in just the [7:59] last week alone now this does not mean that democrats are going to win all of these races but it does mean [8:03] that things are starting to trend in their direction john and one of the things driving this is trump's [8:08] popularity or should i say unpopular yeah and we are seeing a new poll out from pew research and take [8:14] a look at these numbers john only 30 percent of americans approve of the president's job performance [8:21] right now a whopping 68 percent the majority of americans disapprove i want to show you how this [8:27] breaks down by different groups so for independence 77 percent disapprove hispanic voters which helped [8:33] fuel the president's return back to the white house in 2024 75 percent disapprove and that number [8:39] holding and remaining the same also for young voters at 77 percent but perhaps the most fascinating part [8:46] of this poll are where people stand that voted for president trump and supported him [8:50] the last time around i want you to take a look at this number right here 31 percent disapprove of the [8:56] president's job performance that is a troubling sign for republicans john yeah we have not seen numbers [9:01] like that before rachel thank you very much and it is those 31 percent of republicans who voted for trump [9:08] and now say they don't approve of his job as president that democrats like adam hamilton in kansas are [9:14] trying to win over in deep red states so here is my interview with the pastor hoping to be the first [9:20] democrat to win a kansas senate seat in nearly a century so obviously trump carried kansas three times [9:28] huge margins every time why do you think they may vote for a democrat this time yeah well first of all [9:34] that supports eroding in kansas so he's underwater here but if you look across the state the the normal [9:40] supporters for trump you know ag is a big supporter had been a big supporter they're paying six dollars [9:44] and forty cents a gallon for diesel fuel they've doubled the price of their fertilizer you know again [9:49] and again and again people who have been strong supporters of trump are paying the price for decisions [9:53] made in washington dc that are harming them and they're starting to say hey this is not okay and and they're not [9:59] you know champions for the president right now but they especially don't like a senator who only is [10:04] the president's yes man he just he you know recites what the president says he you know he doesn't stand [10:09] up for them and i think they feel like where's the champion for us you know we might have voted for trump [10:14] but we need a senator who's going to say mr president you know this is not good for my people and he's not [10:19] doing that because this is a conservative state this is a republican state i've heard you [10:23] say i think it is i i am a liberal and i am a conservative yeah absolutely what do you mean by that yeah well [10:29] to be liberal means to be generous of spirit and open to seeing things with new eyes everybody should [10:33] be that to be conservative means to be you know to hold on to things that are treasures the the [10:37] conserved values everybody should be that and so you know i tell people all of us are more liberal [10:42] compared to somebody and we're conservative compared to somebody else it means the willingness to [10:46] listen to understand and to hold together both of these values and i've been a republican i've been a [10:50] democrat you know i value things in the republican party i value things in the democratic party [10:54] and it's not that you don't stand anywhere it's that it's that you try to say okay let's bring the best of [10:58] these two parties together to really solve problems when were you a republican most of my life actually [11:04] really so yeah i was i i became a democrat during the obama administration when he was running [11:09] and uh and so for eight years i was a democrat he asked me to preach his second inauguration [11:15] the prayer service following that i was served in his administration for a couple years [11:19] but then i went back to being a republican you're in kansas and if you're going to vote in the primary most [11:22] of the time that's you know vote for republicans and and usually i was trying to find moderates [11:27] people who had character people who would represent my values and then i got in the voting booth and [11:31] and i have always said i want to try to find people in both parties i'm going to vote for [11:36] i'm looking for competency and character and values and so i voted for people on both sides [11:41] and i'm proud to be a democrat but what matters to me more than the letter behind your name [11:47] is who you are what you stand for your character and um and i think there's a lot of people like [11:53] that in our state and i've heard you say that uh the geographic center of the lower 48 is in kansas [11:58] yeah absolutely exactly lebanon kansas is the geographic center and i love that because we are [12:03] the heartland of america we are the middle of our country and you know i think we tend to be cautious [12:08] about the people who are in the extremes on either of the you know of the coast and i think kansas has [12:13] a chance to send a message to america to say look we got to come together we got to work together i'll [12:18] only get elected with republicans voting for me but i i heard you say uh last month an exact quote [12:23] here there's a lot of things that we see in the national democratic party that in kansas just don't [12:29] fly yeah exactly that's not who we are so what what are those things yeah well so for example you [12:34] know i was asked when i got into this race are you a socialist or a communist and i'm like no i'm [12:39] just an independent-minded democrat who cares about people and cares about our country and so in kansas [12:44] you know if you're going to be a democratic socialist you're not going to get elected here [12:48] it's just that's not going to fly in kansas um you know i think over regulation of things is one of [12:53] those things where people i get asked this a lot by from the ag committee ag team they're like the ag [12:57] industry they're like just tell me you know i like you a lot i want to vote for you but are you going [13:01] to be in favor of over regulation of course not i think there needs to be you know enough regulation [13:06] to keep people safe from our worst instincts and at the same time i don't want to over regulate anything [13:11] i think people are looking for in kansas a pragmatism they're looking for leaders who are [13:16] going to care for both republicans and democrats and are going to fight for them all and going to [13:21] fight for what's best for kansas so i get asked like if chuck schumer tells you to do something what [13:25] are you going to do and my answer is if it's good for kansas i'm all in but if it's bad for kansas i'm [13:30] a hard no in fact you've said you won't support schumer for leader yeah no no disrespect you know [13:35] do i mean by that but we need fresh ideas we need fresh people and who would you like who would [13:39] you like to see the democratic leader i think there's a lot of great people that could be [13:42] in that position i think tim kane is one of those guys i really respect i think mark kelly's another [13:47] one elissa slotkin there's a number of people who i think are standing in that center ground and they [13:52] are thoughtful reflective people who i think could do a great job in the leadership role the vice [13:57] president came to campaign against you i consider that a great compliment that the second most powerful [14:02] man in america came here to try to save roger marshall i i thought okay but he he really went after [14:09] you he did i mean he he said uh he called your views left-wing radicalism dressed in the skin [14:16] suit of our religion yeah uh saying that of your religion of you of your beliefs that is not [14:22] christianity uh this was the president the vice president united states yeah taking aim at your [14:29] religious practice and your pastor very large congregation right what did you make of that well i [14:35] thought it was a sign of desperation and i thought it was really sad it was pathetic he doesn't know [14:40] me doesn't know anything about my faith he came in attacking you know when do we start attacking [14:44] people's faith but beyond that i just say i wake up every morning i slip to my knees i offer my life [14:49] to christ i pray for the holy spirit to lead me i read scripture i carry the bible with me everywhere i go [14:54] i mean this is just it is my defining story i memorize it i was reading the psalms this morning three of [14:59] them before i started my day i not only seek to be a follower of jesus but to practice that and how i treat [15:04] other people and i just would say examine my life examine the way i've tried to live and then i want [15:10] to see mr vice president let's compare let's compare theology let's compare our faith and the [15:15] impact we're having on the world and i just i mean i don't even want to compare myself to him i just want [15:19] to say i'm doing the best i can as a follower of jesus christ every day and i thought it was a sad [15:24] statement that the vice president united states would come here and attack the faith of the pastor of the [15:29] largest church in the state of kansas the largest united methodist church in the country i've written 36 books [15:33] on theology faith and scripture and i i just think it was a sign of desperation well let's look specifically [15:39] at what he said another quote democratic pastor adam hamilton thinks it's a sin to be white and a sin [15:46] to raise cattle and eat meat but he's okay with supporting groups that spit on god-fearing americans [15:52] and mock everything that we hold dear ladies and gentlemen that is not christianity yeah yeah so every single [15:59] line of what you just read was a lie it was a falsehood it was like 180 degrees different from the [16:03] reality so there was no part of what he said was true and uh and i you know i find it interesting let's [16:09] try to break it down so a sin to be white no it's not a sin to be white a sin to raise cattle and no it's [16:14] not a sin to raise cattle any beef so there was a sermon uh that i talked about repenting is changing [16:18] the way you think about things it's it's seeing literally the greek word is metanoia for repent it [16:23] means to see have a change of mind that leads to a change of heart that leads to a change of behavior [16:27] and i talked about racism and in the context of racism you know part of what you're trying to do [16:30] is see the world through somebody else's eyes and never talked about repenting for being white you [16:34] can't find that in anything i've ever said or repenting for eating beef i will just say that's [16:38] what's wrong with our country today with our politics with what's happening in washington dc [16:43] it's a reminder of the corruption and the chaos that's happening there that the vice president is [16:47] willing to say things like that one issue you'd like to talk about a lot is transgender issues what's [16:51] your approach to those issues yeah well first of all um i don't believe that men should be [16:56] competing in women's sports i believe that there are two genders i believe that people may see [17:00] themselves in different ways but i believe that there are two biological genders and then people [17:05] might identify in different ways here's what i said here's what i think two things first of all the [17:10] president has taken a group of people that represent a very tiny minority of people who are bullied and [17:15] picked on and harassed and he's trying to make them a campaign issue and he's trying to use them in order to [17:21] somehow make uh make the case that people should be afraid of trans people as well as uh democrats [17:27] and i think that again is pathetic i don't we're not a nation that believes in bullying people [17:31] our president believes in bullying people even in his own party or the press or trans people [17:36] and here's for me what it comes down to i don't fully understand everything there is to know about [17:40] trans issues i know that there are people when they're hurt i'm going to stand by them and i'm [17:44] going to say it's not okay to hurt people that's not what it looks like to love your neighbor so um [17:49] looking ahead uh what if democrats win the house and the senate yeah what do you think the last two [17:58] years of trump's uh presidency looks like well um i don't spend a lot of time thinking about whether [18:05] we're going to win the house and the senate i'm focused on kansas and trying to take care of the needs [18:08] of the people here i do think that for me i'm not in favor of trying to spend two years [18:14] in trials and uh and looking at you know how are we going to get vengeance on people i think [18:20] no impeachment well the house may choose to impeach and the senate has to deal with it if they do [18:24] but my real focus is how do we fix the problems we have today one last question i i've seen that [18:30] you've said that you will still be a practicing pastor if you become senator or part-time yeah very [18:36] part-time so so my full-time job will be the senate and by the way there are others that have done that [18:40] yeah yeah lawfield warning is doing that right now i think i think lankford yeah yeah absolutely so [18:44] uh so yes i you know i'm i'm going to washington not to be the chaplain of the senate or to somehow [18:50] force my religion on other people i'm going to fight for the constitution and the rights of all [18:53] people when i come back to kansas city i look forward to preaching once in a while at resurrection i look [18:57] forward to helping mentor our next generation of leaders and i'll tell you this too showing up at [19:01] the hospital to care for people who are sick sitting with people who are dying in hospice listening [19:05] to people's problems will make me a better senator than people like roger marshall never come back and [19:10] listen to the people of kansas our thanks to adam hamilton we requested an interview with senator roger [19:17] marshall he did not respond up next a big and important this week exclusive ukraine's president [19:23] zelinski responds to president trump we're back in two minutes i think you heard about the oil deal with [19:33] russia that is a big deal that is massive amounts of oil coming into our country and i want to thank [19:40] president putin zelinski could have settled this war many times many many times and he chose he [19:48] chooses not to and i think it's time for ukraine to get a new president those stunning comments from [19:54] president trump expressing gratitude to vladimir putin and calling for a new president for ukraine [20:01] came after trump announced a deal to lift u.s sanctions and buy diesel fuel from russia it's a [20:07] deal that appears to violate a law congress passed shortly after the russian invasion of ukraine in [20:13] 2022. some experts say the deal would only marginally affect diesel prices here in america but it could [20:20] provide billions of dollars to fund russia's war machine and we are joined right now by ukrainian [20:27] president zelensky and abc exclusive president zelensky thank you for joining let me get right to [20:34] what president trump just said what is your response he says it's time for a new president of ukraine [20:42] thank you very much first of all good morning and thank you for this dialogue so this week was very [20:50] difficult for us not only geopolitically first of all because of massive attacks russian attacks on our [20:58] civilian infrastructure so they attacked 196 times our energy sector it's only electricity plus 20 times [21:10] gas and oil and uh they killed for now 153 civilians so i think this is an answer what's going on really [21:21] what's going on and it's a signal that russia doesn't uh feel real pressure they want to continue [21:31] about energy i said it to to president trump to president teams uh to his team and to his people [21:37] several times so we want peace we are ready for ceasefire we are ready to begin from any kind of steps [21:46] of de-escalation we are ready for energy ceasefire not to attack energy both sides and if the russians [21:55] want us not attack their diesel their refineries and etc we are asking president trump give them signal [22:05] not attack energy infrastructure of ukraine it's fair deal it's not the best deal the best deal not [22:12] not to have a war to stop putin but the first step is ceasefire energy ceasefire okay if they want [22:20] energy ceasefire we are open for this don't attack us don't kill our children we will stop attack your [22:27] diesel and i think it's fair fair deal president trump said that um that we need ukraine needs new [22:36] president so first of all with all respect to president trump uh it's up to our society [22:44] up to our people to choose one or another leader yes we are in war and now to do elections is really [22:53] difficult not only that it goes absolutely uh not secured and it goes out of our law out of our [23:03] constitution but the main thing is to have security infrastructure for this to give possibility people [23:12] to vote of course it's up to ukrainians when to vote how to do it and to choose one or another person [23:20] but if to answer on this question i know that putin wanted very much to change the president in ukraine [23:27] i understand it and if president trump uh really wants to have some changes in during elections i i [23:36] also shared it with his team so please tell putin give us two months 60 days of total ceasefire 60 days [23:47] and we will organize elections of course we will be ready for any choice of our people exactly ukrainian [23:55] people it's not just president trump we also heard from elon musk saying zelensky has gone too far why are [24:03] they blaming you for the continuation of this war because these people can't find a key how to stop [24:15] putin because it's more difficult to stop putin than to pressure others because it's more simple to speak [24:29] about the prices and connected with ukraine when everybody in the world understands because of the [24:39] war in middle east the prices are rising they increasing they increasing because of the war in [24:49] middle east of the blocking or moose because of these reasons everybody understands it and if we want to [24:57] speak with people fairly if we want to be clear if we want to speak with our nations openly we have to [25:05] stop i mean these people have to hear reality don't play games with people the the president has announced [25:15] this deal he says to buy diesel fuel from russia you've called it a birthday gift to putin explain why [25:25] because it gives putin money and he spends money only on this war kill us kill our children i was uh this [25:38] week in one small city they killed there just attacked the building no military goals no no even [25:46] something close to this building attacked killed 22 people about around 60 been wounded and five children [25:56] five children small children were killed and he has a lot of money much money for this war how long can [26:06] ukraine continue to defend itself it's been almost five years of war we we need to do it i mean to stop [26:19] this war as quick as possible we count that united states will help us to do this i hope so we count on [26:28] president his team involving to stop putin but to stop putin and i think this is the main goal to stop [26:35] him this is the main deal to stop this war and we count on american support then and of course we count [26:44] on our european partners and i hope that we will save this unity europe and the united states it's not [26:51] simple by the way really not simple we work hardly each day to save this but in any way we we we will defend [27:01] ourselves because otherwise we will lose our life and homes our freedom independence ukraine [27:17] we can't lose it and the the truth is on our side president zelensky thank you for taking time to talk [27:28] to us of course thank you so much you can watch more of my interview with president zelinski on [27:36] abcnews.com up next republican majority whip tom emmer we're back in two minutes but inexcusably [27:45] even nato countries have not cut off much russian energy and russian energy products which as you know [27:54] i found out about two weeks ago and i wasn't happy europe has to step it up they can't be doing what [27:59] they're doing they're buying oil and gas from russia while they're fighting russia it's embarrassing to [28:08] them well that was president trump speaking at the united nations almost exactly one year ago [28:15] blasting europe for buying russian oil of course the president announced on friday that the u.s [28:21] now plans to do exactly the same thing i'm joined now by house majority whip tom emmer thank you for [28:28] being with us before we get to the midterms what what do you make of this plan to buy russian [28:33] diesel you were obviously you've been a strong supporter of ukraine you voted for those sanctions [28:38] what do you think of this well it's another example of our president thinking out of the box [28:45] you know he's listening to the american people john the american people are hurting because of this [28:50] world market when it comes to diesel and and fuel in general our president is trying to find every [28:56] answer possible to help the american people literally move it forward and when he talks about ukraine [29:02] and russia there is no one else john who is going to get this thing resolved donald trump thinks outside [29:08] of the box put the american people first but at the same time he is the president of peace i think he's [29:15] he's two steps ahead of the press all the time he's thinking about how you get these conflicts resolved [29:22] conflicts by the way that were caused by president joe biden and his failed foreign policy [29:27] and date back to president obama and his failed foreign policy so again i think donald j trump is [29:33] the best negotiator on the face of the planet i think this is just another step of trying to get that [29:38] resolved i mean most energy market analysts say this would have almost no impact or very little impact [29:45] on the price of diesel in the united states but it certainly would be a lifeline for putin but let me [29:50] ask you one other thing from the president uh and from the from the administration this week [29:54] this idea of live streaming the execution of the fort hood uh shooter the uh the u.s conference of [30:02] catholic bishops called it a barbaric promotion of the culture of death are you in favor of that idea of [30:08] live streaming a a firing squad execution well personally i'm not in favor of the death penalty but [30:16] i'll tell you this i am so happy that we have a president a chief executive in this country who will [30:22] make a decision he'll make a decision which is in the best interest of the american people uh he will [30:28] hold the criminals and the terrorists accountable and frankly if you come to this country uh or you're [30:33] radicalized in this country to kill americans and disrupt our way of life there should be significant [30:40] consequences all right let's let's turn uh to the midterms the president has been telling supporters [30:45] over and over again pretend please that i am on the ballot is that the way you see the midterms is this [30:51] a referendum on president trump i don't think that's what he's saying i think the midterms [30:59] you typically have the party that wins the white house is satisfied donald trump has sealed the [31:04] border that was wide open under joe biden donald trump and republicans have made sure that americans [31:09] didn't get the greatest tax increase in our history uh literally he and republicans have been pulling the [31:16] economy out of the ditch nobody seems to want to report on the fact that real wages are are up on the [31:22] rise that poverty is at the lowest level ever nobody wants to report the good news that is in our [31:28] economy and this is what donald trump and republicans have done the message is if our people will turn [31:34] out you may be satisfied uh but that doesn't mean you shouldn't vote uh you show up and vote we're gonna [31:40] be fine john so i mean we certainly are hearing americans concerned about rising prices rising gas prices [31:47] rising food prices uh are you saying that they just don't get it i mean we're seeing this in poll after [31:54] poll after poll going on i was just in kansas uh i i certainly heard it there are you saying people [31:59] don't get it that the economy is much better john i hate to point the finger at you and the other [32:06] journalists but have you reported that under joe biden it was uh the average was over five dollars a [32:13] gallon under uh uh donald trump he's pulled it all the way back even with the uh the action that had to [32:21] be taken to make sure that iran never has a nuclear weapon it's closer to four dollars it's about a 13 [32:27] percent lower below what uh joe biden had grocery inflation under biden it was 13 point something [32:35] under donald trump it's two percent it's 11 points better but you guys don't report this stuff so i'm not [32:41] saying the american people don't get it they don't get the truth from the people that are reporting it [32:46] yeah i mean look as you well know the price of gas is higher today than it was the day that joe biden [32:54] left office so uh certainly inflation was a huge issue in the last administration uh it's also a big [33:01] issue to the american people here right now let me ask you that the president wait john yes john i would [33:06] i would say this on that four dollar gas six dollar diesel entirely unacceptable we we republicans [33:14] agree on that but it's not enough to vote for communists so um and i i think i think most democrats [33:21] would say they're they're uh they're there's not communists um so there aren't a lot of communists on [33:26] the ballot well you're wrong in these meetings you do have some democratic socialists okay let me get [33:30] to the president john john you just called them what they want you to call them there's nothing democratic [33:36] about socialism for a hundred years they wanted us to call them progressives when in fact they were [33:41] socialists and it wasn't cool to admit you're a socialist they are now communists and marxist take [33:47] a look at the dsa platform okay i i've i've i have and we've talked about that they want to defund [33:53] prisons they want government only health care and they want uh the green new deal which will cost [33:58] every american family another three hundred and fifty five thousand dollars that's what we should be [34:04] talking about president trump uh posted this week that the u.s quote will not be attacking iran at [34:09] any time prior to the midterm elections um was that a a relief to you and is it is it appropriate for [34:17] the president to be setting a timeline on attacks based on the electoral calendar look what the iran war [34:27] donald trump took the action that no one else would take for 47 years and he took it because they [34:33] were on the cusp of having nuclear capability which could destroy uh not only their region as they [34:40] showed us they've got ballistic missiles that can hit western europe and if they can hit western europe [34:45] john they can hit the homeland right here in the united states of america donald trump has taken the [34:50] action that's necessary and i wish people would actually confirm instead of trying to show that uh [34:55] there's a question their navy has been destroyed their air force has been destroyed they are [35:00] basically uh hollowed out uh he has done everything that needs to be done and i expect it's going to [35:07] be resolved soon uh when that is i don't know but he'll make those decisions all right uh republican [35:14] majority whip tom emmer republican of minnesota thank you very much for joining us on this week [35:20] appreciate thank you john up next the roundtable analyzes the final push to the midterms [35:26] as president trump tries to defend deep red territory we're back in two minutes [35:33] and the roundtable is here former dnc chair donna brazil puck news capitol hill correspondent mariana [35:38] sotomayor washington free beacon editor-in-chief eliana johnson and former new jersey governor chris [35:45] christie all right donna democrats are really confident is there a risk that they're too confident [35:52] well first of all i'm wearing red because i'm seeing more red districts go from being lean republican to [35:58] tulsa if you would have told me john in early september that i would be looking at south carolina one [36:05] montana one arkansas two colorado three look for the first time democrats are not just campaigning on [36:12] each coast chris and that's pretty good for us we love the coast but you know what we're campaigning [36:18] in the heartland we're campaigning in kansas we're campaigning in nebraska so no we're not over [36:23] confident we are fighting like hell and here's the thing that keeps me up at night since last week george [36:28] asked me this question and i've had a hard time sleeping ever since he said what's keeping you up [36:33] down i said you know what i don't know but guess what i know now 54 million americans have requested [36:38] their ballots mail ballots and only 2.5 million people have turned their ballots and get those [36:45] doggone ballots in or i'ma come and knock on your door it's gonna be trick-or-treat early and you heard [36:50] tom emmer say it's all the democrats are a bunch of communists but i was just out there as you saw with [36:55] adam hamilton democrat in kansas lifelong republican now democrat uh if you've gone into a lab chris and [37:03] try to design a democratic candidate who could win in kansas it would be pastor adam hamilton yeah and [37:09] let's remember something about kansas they they haven't elected a democrat to the senate since the [37:13] early 1930s but they've elected democratic governors currently now yep they have one now and and they've [37:19] had them before but look as a republican i sat here shaking my head at the political malpractice that [37:26] was committed on this air with you by tom emmer here is the republican argument for the last three weeks [37:35] it's okay to sell or to buy oil from a thug kgb dictator in russia that will use it to kill free ukrainians [37:45] the american people don't get the fact that the economy is great and so when they have to pay all [37:50] they have to pay at the grocery store and at the gas station they just don't get it and by the way [37:55] it's okay to live stream a murder by the united states government executing on the death penalty [38:02] those are our three closing arguments to try to maintain our majorities in the house and senate [38:07] this is malpractice and and the fact tom is smarter than that he knows better than that [38:13] but what you heard throughout it is this absolute requirement that you must stand by everything [38:20] donald trump says and does if you want to remain in leadership in the house or the senate and it is [38:27] it is malpractice to good republicans all across this country who care about the issues we care about [38:33] and then we have guys like tom who know better on the air on his knee in front of donald trump [38:40] as he is saying things like he said in the lead in here that he can say the stupidest things in the [38:44] world and people will believe him it's not true anymore aliena what are you hearing privately from [38:49] from republicans what are they embracing for well i think it's absolutely true the democrats are [38:55] expanding the map at the same time there are seats that should be safe democratic seats um you know a [39:01] republican senator hasn't been elected in michigan since 1996 spencer abraham mike rogers has no business [39:08] being competitive in that race right now why is he competitive because democrats have a nominee [39:13] in abdul al-sayed who can't say that israel is a lesser threat than the greatest sponsor of terror [39:20] iran in minnesota where a cascade of taxpayer scandal has accrued on lieutenant governor peggy [39:29] flanagan's watch so those races are now competitive and i think that's what republicans are focused on [39:34] and that would be a solid message for republicans to be out there talking about and what are you hearing [39:39] well from republicans they are incredibly nervous i mean we have seen almost since labor day that was [39:44] always the mark and i even heard from tom emmer himself earlier this year that if the iran war [39:49] was still ongoing if prices were still high all of these different issues that are still happening [39:56] that would be a problem for republicans and frankly it is now becoming not a question of if the house [40:02] will flip but how big of a majority democrats are likely to have and on the senate side i mean eliana is [40:09] right that there are some races you have to yeah exactly where voters are just so angry and of course [40:15] they're blaming the white house they're blaming congress but you know something that i think is worth [40:20] watching is states that have been in republican control for a long time as well as democratic control [40:25] for a long time voters could also be rebuking those in office who have held power for a long time [40:31] because of that voter anger so as much as democrats are trying to expand the map and look at different [40:37] places and they do have the momentum and as you mentioned some of these candidates behind them [40:41] there are some states where they should still pay attention probably devote some money to before [40:46] widening their eyes john can i can i help donna about what you should be lying awake at night about [40:50] you should be lying awake about abdul al-sayed you should be lying awake about chris pappas you should [40:56] be lying awake about troy jackson these are awful candidates awful candidates in states where they [41:03] should be winning they should be winning in those states and they're not and the reason they're not [41:08] is because they have nominated these extreme left-wing candidates in the democratic party who also have [41:15] no record to speak of or if they do have a record it's a really bad one and and so you look at that [41:21] that's the stuff that should keep you up at night not the red states you'll flip but the blue states [41:26] that'll flip the other i was up last night because lsu lost in overtime so let's be clear [41:30] losing to kentucky you shouldn't be able to sleep for a week after that absolutely but georgia beat [41:35] alabama that's another conversation but look i'm not i'm not going to sleep on the fact that uh in [41:41] michigan uh there's no question that al-sayed is making sure that the democratic party is unified and he's [41:48] going to have to run the numbers on getting young people to vote i think in maine the same is true [41:54] susan collins is an is an institution in maine i don't feel i feel as though mr jackson is going to [42:00] have the closing momentum and yes i am excited about texas mr tallarico is back on the campaign trail [42:06] and in alaska miss patrola is doing a fantastic job in arguing the case but i want to correct mr emmers [42:13] he also said gas prices was higher on divide when mr trump came into office uh a regular gallon of [42:20] unleaded gasoline was three dollars and eight cent and a regular diesel three dollars and 90 cents so [42:24] what mr trump is doing and capitulating to mr putin is not going to help farmers and ranchers across the [42:29] country and by the way there's a new york times uh piece that caught my eye over the weekend uh could the [42:35] oregon governor's race oregon that's a pretty democratic place right uh be a republican hope so yeah let me [42:42] tell you christine drazen this is the republican candidate for governor of or in oregon she ran [42:48] four years ago i campaigned with her four years ago in oregon and the democrats played a trick that [42:53] gets played in politics at times they got a an older retiring democratic female state senator to run [42:59] as an independent she was a moderate she took nine percent of the vote christine drazen lost to tina [43:05] kotak the most incompetent governor in america by three points christine drazen is smart she's tough [43:13] she's articulate and i think she's going to be the next governor of oregon and that's going to be a [43:18] big surprise on election night to see the governorship of oregon go red but tina kotak has been so [43:25] incompetent iliana and i were talking about this you know the provision of homeless services in oregon [43:30] is a disgrace which is what kotak ran she faced headwinds but you know what we're going to see a [43:36] democratic night in our win and uh and and also in ohio skipping over oregon well you know if the [43:42] republicans are clinging to oregon that's going to be but this goes to mariana's point about the [43:46] revolt against incumbents oregon has had democratic leadership for decades and kotak's approval rating [43:52] is at trump levels it is at 37 percent she ran on the provision of homeless services and homelessness is [43:58] up in okay so let me ask you let me since we talked about the democratic troubles let me a couple [44:03] republican troubles if you don't mind if we go back uh um you probably saw uh two key players in trump's [44:10] orbit two key political players chris lasavita who helped run his campaign in 2024 james blair who until [44:17] recently was his political director in the white house uh they were in serbia um working for a a uh [44:27] pro-russian uh uh candidates on republic republic serpska and the president had this reaction chris [44:35] lasavita and james blair are outside consultants they do not work for me other than as outside consultants [44:41] i do not have any idea who else they work for but will on reflection ask them and if i have [44:47] if there's a conflict i will terminate them immediately what's going on with chris lasavita [44:52] and james blair they're making money it's just that it's just until the election why are they in [44:58] john because donald trump is a declining asset for them donald trump you're going to start to smell [45:05] rotting flesh soon out of the white house from a political perspective and they're they're getting as [45:10] much money as they can off the table before he has completely declined to lame duck them right so [45:18] this is what's going on and you're going to see more and more of this over the next two years [45:22] that people are running away from donald trump but staying just close enough to grab the money [45:28] and why are they doing that because that's the example that's being set at the top [45:31] and are you surprised by that to see them i was a little surprised by it but i have to say i think [45:36] this particular class of story gets a lot of oxygen in washington dc it's kind of stuff we like to [45:41] gossip about and has less traction kind of across like across the country and less a truck for voters [45:48] but yeah i do think the corruption stinks so i do think it underscores a broader concern among voters [45:54] that this white house is sort of surrounded by scandal and corruption and that's something that [45:58] shows up in the polls most recently in a reuters poll in august voters are concerned about and democrats [46:03] are campaigning on it and very quickly marion we're almost out of time but what what are you hearing [46:07] what's what kind of reaction are you hearing to this idea of publicly live streaming this execution [46:12] i mean there is bipartisan just discussed at the idea of doing this we saw congressman [46:18] austin scott from georgia very pointedly say that this is something that countries have terrorism do [46:24] this is something that terrorists do why does the u.s have any business doing this i mean the u.s catholic [46:31] bishops have also condemned this there has just been a roundabout condemnation and just [46:37] privately too from republicans total aghast by this possible decision and we'll see if it actually [46:43] happened trump says it will be his decision ultimately whether or not it goes forward [46:47] all right that's all for today thank you for sharing part of your sunday with us [46:50] check out world news tonight and have a great day