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for every life-saving treatment, for every next step, for every care in the world. Cleveland Clinic. It's Friday, October 4th, right now on CNN This Morning. I'd love to be in Michigan. It is so good to be back in Wisconsin. All hands on deck. A little more than a month to go. Kamala Harris and Donald Trump getting high-profile help as they campaign in must-win states. Plus... We were out of work for two months. Now we're out of work for a few more days.

We're very excited to be back. Back to work. The port strike ends for the moment as union members reach a tentative agreement and... We did not believe they should strike nuclear sites. I mean, that's the craziest thing I've ever heard. How to retaliate the former president slams the White House's call for restraint as Israel weighs their counter to Iran. 6 a.m. here on the East Coast. A live look at Capitol Hill on this Friday morning.

We made it to Friday. Good morning, everyone. I'm Casey Hunt. It's wonderful to have you with us. There are just 32 days until Election Day. But make no mistake, voters are already voting. Male or early voting is now underway in about half of the states. More than 1 million ballots have already been submitted across 30 states.

New this morning, CNN learning that next week, Barack Obama will launch a battleground blitz in support of Kamala Harris and down-ballot Democrats. Aides say the former president is concerned by just how close the polls have been, and he views this election as a, quote, all-hands-on-deck moment.

In CNN's latest poll of polls, this is borne out. Harris and Trump effectively tied at 49 and 48% nationally. But this election, of course, it only matters in the swing states, really. Today, Donald Trump headed to Georgia and North Carolina. Harris is going to Michigan after campaigning in Wisconsin yesterday alongside a prominent Republican supporter. I ask you to stand in truth.

to reject the depraved cruelty of Donald Trump. I tell you, I have never voted for a Democrat, but this year I am proudly casting my vote for Vice President Kamala Harris. That, of course, former House Republican conference chair Liz Cheney, daughter of former Republican Vice President Dick Cheney, who has also announced he will vote for Harris. Donald Trump claiming those high profile endorsements could actually hurt Harris.

Well, Liz Cheney lost for Congress. She was terrible. Liz Cheney is a stupid war hawk. All she wants to do is shoot missiles at people. I really think it hurts. I think, frankly, if Kamala—I think they hurt each other. I think they're so bad, both of them.

All right, our panels here. Alex Thompson, CNN political analyst, national political reporter for Axios. Elliott Williams, CNN legal analyst, former federal prosecutor. Megan Hayes, former Biden White House director of message planning. And Matt Gorman, former senior advisor to Tim Scott's presidential campaign. Welcome to all of you. Thank you for being here. Alex Thompson, I

Let me start with you on the Cheney endorsement. Of course, we expected this to be coming after some remarks she had made, off-the-cuff remarks, if their campaign is to be believed or her staff is to be believed at Duke University. But really coming out and doing this formally now in the birthplace of the Republican Party, how does it help or hurt Harris' efforts here?

Well, there are a few things. Obviously Kamala Harris is trying to both pivot to the center, but also you can see this in the paid advertising too. The Harris campaign has really shifted from a bio-focus, especially those first few weeks, this is who I am, this is what my priorities are, to really a contrast

anti-Trump campaign. They want this race to be a referendum on Trump. The ads have gone from biographical and positive to much more negative against Trump. Now, in terms of Liz Cheney, they're obviously hoping to tap into the Nikki Haley, in their minds, the hypothetical Nikki Haley suburban woman vote. And it's still unclear if that will be successful. This is sort of an election of strange bedfellows, RFK Jr.,

RFK Jr. supporting Trump, Tulsi Gabbard supporting Trump, Dick and Liz Cheney supporting Kamala Harris, and both sides are hoping to bring in people that are not usually part of their coalition.

Yeah, I mean, stupid war hawks. I think there's my college mascot. But no, but no, like I look at Liz Kennedy vote for her. She wants I guess I'm not going to pretend that Liz Cheney's endorsement is going to have an effect on this race, except, you know, make extremely online liberals feel good about a Republican for for once. But then, look, I also think that the Kamala Harris team is smart in this regard. They know that Republicans attacking other Republicans going to be catnip for the mainstream media. So setting it in Ripon where the Republican

party was founded and doing something it's less about i think actually the list anything but crack trying to create a media moment that contrasts with trump i think that out his point but i think it is republicans a permission structure to vote for a democrat and it gives independent women and

ability to say like, oh, well, maybe she's not as liberal as they're painting her out to be. And this is an okay vote. And it makes it okay to vote for Kamala Harris in a world where maybe they wouldn't have otherwise. So I do think that it's helpful to have her there. There's nobody that votes against Kamala Harris because Liz Cheney is supporting her. Correct. But there might be people who could support her on account of Liz Cheney's support. Now, look, it's probably one lady in Wisconsin. It's not a white... One lady in Wisconsin. This is why...

Gladys and Kenosha is probably going to decide this entire election. However, you know, to your point, there's not going to be a major swing one way or another. Yeah, I think they're all not, they're all not that equal. Like, right, if Nikki Haley came out and supported Kamala Harris, which she didn't, but like if she did, that would be a little different thing. If like, if John McCain was still around and he was out there campaigning for, for, uh,

Kamala Harris in Arizona, I would take folks' point here, but I think not all Republicans are built alike, right? So trotting out random former Trump staffers or Liz Cheney, I think also, too, really, I think the power of endorsement also is when it's not as expected, right? Liz Cheney very clearly been a critic of Trump for many years now. Whatever you think about it and the issues that really propel

her have, I think in a large part, been baked in. So it's less of a surprise. Sorry, don't you think that some of these people are, all these voters are looking like, why aren't these people who used to work for Trump or used to support Trump, why are they now supporting Kamala Harris? Like, I think that just, it just,

it's building the case your point of a contract and building a contract of why they're not for a little bit i think there is a difference between list cheney and the people that work for trial right and you can see that the common hair says campaign does believe that many in their internal polling internal data that the the the fact that many people that work for trump are now no longer supporting him and think of him as dangerous just this week they put out an ad and they're spending actually real big money about you know people like john kelly admit now longer supported by one

RJ Tapper reported yesterday that Cassidy Hutchinson, Sarah Matthews, Alyssa Farrah Griffin, who's the only one of them that hasn't explicitly endorsed Harris, although she has been a longtime Trump critic, they're going to go to Pennsylvania and hold events with women, you know, aimed clearly at suburban women in Philadelphia. Does that make the difference?

I think it's clearly the media, right? It's a media moment. Again, Gladys and Kenosha, no disrespect to Olivia Troy or Sarah Matthews, I don't think Gladys and Troy is looking at Sarah Matthews like, you know, now I'm that Kamala voter. But actually, you should think about who the target audience is, right? And the target audience is not Matt Gorman. It's not...

I think they're not trying, I'm not saying you're supporting the former president, we haven't talked about that, right? But it's not Trump's support. No, it's the mothers of the kids that I went to high school with who voted Republican for many years. It's literally the mothers of those kids, this squishy swing vote in the United States that could be swayed by things like, oh wow, former Trump staff

are appealing. And it has to be geared towards the media because a lot of people who are taking their kids to school who you went to high school with and who are putting food on their tables are not able to go to events. So it has to be aimed at the media and they're seeing that and it's in all the battlegrounds. It's not just Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. There's no excuse me.

going for the media and their attention actually penetrate with a message to the voters through the media yeah I don't think that explicit yeah I mean I think I at my big picture question here is do these reminders what happened on January 6 to the combination of the report these people coming out at this moment here with 32 days to go at does that actually make a difference or not I think there's some evidence on both sides but

We're not going to figure it out. Still ahead here on CNN this morning, Israel's next move. The world waits to see how the country will respond to Iran's missile attacks. And Iran's supreme leader makes a rare public appearance in Tehran. Plus, 50,000 striking port workers are heading back to work. But a new deadline could result in another strike soon. And Donald Trump's legal woes back in the spotlight, taking center stage on the campaign trail a month out, approximately, from the election.

Donald Trump was willing to sacrifice our Capitol to allow law enforcement officers to be beaten and brutalized. I don't care if you are a Democrat or a Republican or an Independent. That is depravity.

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Oh, it's such a clutch off-season pickup, Dave. I was worried we'd bring back the same team. I meant those blackout motorized shades. Blinds.com made it crazy affordable to replace our old blinds. Hard to install? No, it's easy. I installed these and then got some from my mom. She talked to a design consultant for free and scheduled a professional measure and install. Hall of Fame's son? They're the number one online retailer of custom window coverings in the world. Blinds.com is the GOAT!

Shop blinds.com right now and get up to 45% off select styles. Rules and restrictions may apply. If we're wrong, we will be made fools of. But if we're right, a lot of them will go to jail. So let's have trial by combat.

Trial by combat. That was how Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani described his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. Special counsel Jack Smith puts it in different terms while detailing new evidence unsealed this week. In the 165-page legal filing, Smith says, while the defendant, Trump, claimed fraud without proof, his private operatives sought to create chaos rather than seek clarity at polling places where states were continuing to tabulate votes. Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump!

That was the scene at a vote counting center in Detroit in 2020 with Trump supporters chanting, stop the count. Special counsel Smith alleges one Trump ally was told there would be unrest and he replied, quote, make them riot and do it.

As those efforts played out publicly, this special counsel alleges that behind the scenes, Trump allies were trying to get state lawmakers to go along with their plot. The new filing includes a text message from co-conspirator one, who CNN has identified as Rudy Giuliani. Giuliani attempting to send this text message to Michigan's Republican Senate majority leader, saying, quote, "So I need you to pass a joint resolution from the Michigan legislature that states that the election is in dispute. There is an ongoing investigation by the legislature."

Giuliani's efforts failed in part because he texted the wrong number. Elliott Williams,

There's been some sad news actually about Rudy Giuliani and that his daughter has come out and talked about how hard it's been for her to watch what's happened to her father in the course of this. But what do you think that we learned here from this filing that we didn't know before? I mean, obviously, there's some new granular details. The sort of broad strokes are very similar. But the special counsel did have access to a whole bunch of things that the January 6th committee didn't have access to.

Right, and there may be more in the form of grand jury information that's not public yet. We didn't, I'll be candid, we didn't learn a lot that wasn't already public. Now, what this filing did was put some of the meat on the bones that Jack Smith and the prosecutors would have gone or would go to trial with in the form of almost an opening statement. This is exactly what happened. But the broad contours of what happened on January 6th were laid out both in the public record and through the January 6th committee.

So, I mean, we were talking about this, this is in many ways a continuation of the conversation we were just having from a campaign perspective. Alex, I'm curious, kind of in your reporting,

what both of the campaigns view and and I suppose the Harris campaign in particular do they think that January 6 is an effective message for them and talking about it is something they should be doing or do they feel like it would be a waste of money to put that behind can't put money behind campaigns that ads around that I mean Democrats have been split on this question for the last two years now if you were if Joe Biden was still the nominee then you'd be seeing January 6 in almost every ad because Joe Biden's main top political aide Mike Donilon basically felt that

January 6th would be the equivalent to what 9/11 was to the 2004 election. And they felt that it would be the dominant image in voters' minds. Now Kamala Harris has not leaned in onto the January 6th and democracy stuff nearly as much as Joe Biden has. Now, at the same time, she does talk about it, but it's usually just a fleeting thing. She is much more focused, and the ads are much more focused on like the Affordable Care Act and preexisting conditions and sort of just his conduct in general. - You know, but again, back to what we were talking about in the last segment,

Is there any voter in America who does not have a fully cooked opinion of January 6th at this point in either direction? There's very few people. And again, we'll talk about Gladys and Kenosha the morning. I need to get her on the show. We need to. Who named her Gladys?

Okay, Judy and Racine. But point being, people are aware of this. Supporters of Trump certainly aren't going to be persuaded by anything that Jack Smith puts on paper now. There may be folks who are just tuning into American politics after four years. I don't know. But...

You know, it's just hard to see where things move right now. Nothing's all that new in that. I think this just goes to their strengthening of the contrast argument. And it's showing that Trump created all this chaos, regardless if it's the, you know, talking about the Affordable Care Act or January 6th. They are just trying to build a contrast of the leadership of what type of leader Kamala Harris will be versus Donald Trump if he gets back in the White House. So I don't necessarily agree with you that everyone's kind of baked in. But I do think it strengthens our contrast argument.

- Yeah, much of this was already new, I think, to Elliott's point. There's nothing that I suddenly say, "Wow, that's a game changer." And I think, look, there is a reasonable argument he made that he'd be doing this 30 days before an election. Like, what's going on here? What are the real motives? And even just like little small details, like, well, the fact they played the village people, YMCA not hailed the chief, has presidential immunity cut

connotations and consequences. It makes it a little like, it makes it kind of funny and mockable. - Can I just say, legally it's important. This whole why are they doing this 30 days before, that is entirely a function of the Supreme Court's calendar. There was a direction from the judge to make this filing. It's not, somehow the narrative has got out that the Jack Smith dropped some bombshell 30 days before election day. That's simply not accurate. This came from the court and it's a filing that's required to lay out the facts of the case.

All right. Still to come here after the break, while Israel considers how to respond to Iran, they continue to attack Lebanon from the skies. Plus, elephants in Thailand forced to evacuate amid a flash flood. Oh, look at them. That's just one of five things you have to see this morning.

All right, welcome back. A week after Hurricane Helene swept through parts of the southeast United States, aerial footage showing the stark contrast, the before and the after of the storm and revealing just how much damage was done in some communities. Really stunning. On the other side of the country, out in the west, experiencing a late season heat wave. Let's get to our meteorologist, the weatherman, Derek Van Dam. Derek, what are these folks looking at?

All right, happy Friday, Casey. So we got another scorcher today to talk about over the western parts of the U.S., particularly the southwest. There's quite a contrast between what's taking place across the Pacific Northwest and what's happening across Southern California, for instance. Palm Springs.

all the way to Phoenix, Las Vegas, Fresno. All these locations will reach triple digits not only today but right through the weekend and it's going to last through next week as well. That's why the National Weather Service hoists all these weather alerts. These are heat alerts including excessive heat warnings for portions of Phoenix just outside of Los Angeles.

and it does include the greater San Francisco Bay region. When we hone in on what's happening in Phoenix, it's just incredible to see the type of year they've had. They had their hottest September temperature ever recorded 117, their hottest October temperature ever recorded 113. And over the past 10 days,

every day has had a consecutive daily high temperature broken. So yeah, it's been hot. Don't know how many ways to splice that. It's just uncomfortable and there's really no relief in sight. In fact, right through the weekend, this area is going to be impacted by the heat. So very different scenario taking shape across the East Coast. The good news is the Hurricane Helene relief efforts will stay unimpeded by rainfall and the temperatures well overnight will be cool. So we'll have sweaters as we're

working in that particular area and then there is no rain in that forecast so that's the good news but it will get wet across southern florida this weekend and into next week heads up fort myers naples to miami maybe some localized flooding so we're keeping an eye on that all right for sure all right derek van dam derek thank you very much have a great weekend

All right, 24 minutes past the hour. Five things you have to see this morning. A former NASCAR driver saves a man stranded by Hurricane Helene. Greg Biffle was flying in a helicopter to send supplies to residents when he saw the man trying to catch the pilot's attention using a big mirror. Wow, good for him. In northern Thailand, about 100 elephants were evacuated after flash floods swept through a popular elephant sanctuary. They had to wade through belly-deep water to get to higher ground.

First responders in New Hampshire freeing a moose from a swimming pool. Oh, look at that. The animal wandered into someone's backyard and got stuck under the pool cover. It walked off refreshed and unharmed. Plus this. King Charles getting jiggy? He's traveling to Samoa later this month, and to prepare, he got an impromptu dance lesson from a former Samoan rugby star.

God save the king. Eminem set to become a grandfather. The 51-year-old rapper making the announcement in the music video for his new song, Temporary. His 28-year-old daughter, Hailey, giving her stunned father a lion's jersey with grandpa written on the back and an image of her ultrasound. Congrats to Hailey and to new grandpa, Eminem.

All right, straight ahead here on CNN This Morning, Israel bombarding Beirut overnight. It comes as the world waits to see what that nation's next move will be against Iran. Plus, storm politics. Donald Trump claiming without evidence that Hurricane Helene's victims in red states are not getting help from the Biden administration. They stole the FEMA money just like they stole it from a bank so they could give it to their illegal immigrants that they want to have vote for them this season.

This week on The Assignment with me, Adi Cornish. We can make more housing. Like, it's not alchemy. Sonia Trouse and her organization, Yimby Law, sued a town in Ventura County in Southern California, not far from where we're sitting down for this interview. We don't have to just accept limits and fight with people. The language of that movement has spread to the presidential campaigns. Listen to The Assignment with me, Adi Cornish, streaming now on your favorite podcast app.

While Israel contemplates how to retaliate against Iran for this week's deadly missile attacks, the Israeli military has been pounding Beirut from the air. Overnight attacks battering Beirut's southern suburbs. Two soldiers from Lebanon's U.S.-backed army were killed. 1.2 million Lebanese people have now been displaced by the fighting. The State Department believes the Israeli war cabinet is still trying to decide how to strike back at Iran. President Biden hoping to avoid a major escalation.

Mr. President, how confident are you that an all-out war can be averted in the Middle East? How confident are you it's not going to rain? I don't believe there's going to be an all-out war. I think we can avoid it. There's a lot to do yet. The president has publicly stated he opposes attacks on Iran's nuclear sites. Donald Trump disagrees. I mean, to make this statement, please leave their nuclear alone?

I would tell you that that's not the right answer. That was the craziest answer. Because you know what? Soon they're going to have nuclear weapons, and then you're going to have problems.

All right, joining us now is Edward Dredgen, former U.S. Ambassador to Israel and former U.S. Ambassador to Syria. Mr. Ambassador, thank you so much for being on the program this morning. We have heard from a number of former Israeli officials urging the Israeli government to seize what they view as an opportunity to strike these nuclear sites. Do you think that's what Israel should do? And how do you see this playing out, given your deep expertise and long experience in the region?

but kc i think it's abundantly in the national security interests of the united states many countries in the region and internationally that a major war in the middle east be averted at all costs

because that would be a march of folly that the consequences of which nobody can predict. So the main objective of diplomacy and statecraft now is to contain this conflict and get back to a agreement both on the Hamas front and on the Lebanon-Hezbollah front. And there are two

initiatives that the administration, Biden administration, has been working on. One, obviously, in Gaza to get a ceasefire and the release of the Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoner exchanges, and then stabilize the situation there and take steps to address the Palestinian-Israeli issue. And the second one is on the Lebanon front.

There's a UN Security Council resolution that was put in effect in 2006, which is a framework for getting Hezbollah to move north of the border with Israel to the Latani River to demilitarize the militias like Hezbollah in Lebanon and to start stabilizing Lebanese-Israeli relations.

The challenge now has to be getting back to the negotiating table and not weaponizing diplomacy as we've seen. The Israeli government has had very successful tactical strikes, decapitating the Hezbollah leadership with Hassan Nasrallah, the charismatic leader.

It's continuing to target as well as leaders as we speak in Beirut today and it still has finished the job in Gaza.

Sir, what do you believe are Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's imperatives here? And I think my central question is, is the Israeli prime minister taking advantage of the fact that there is this heated, we are in the heated final days of a U.S. presidential election? Is he pushing forward more aggressively in part because of that?

Absolutely, Casey. I think that he feels he has a relatively open field because of our upcoming presidential elections. It's very difficult for the Biden administration on the cusp of a very tight presidential race to alienate certain candidates.

important constituencies on our country, both the American Jewish vote, the Arab, American Arab vote in battleground states. So he knows the American political scene very well, like the back of his hand.

And I think he is taking advantage of the inhibitions of the Biden administration to be more assertive in reining in what he has been doing in really asking for total military victory in Gaza and now attacking Beirut and southern Lebanon. So that obviously is a consideration. It is in his personal interest to continue the warfare to certain measures.

Really fascinating perspective. Mr. Ambassador, thank you very much for being on with us this morning. I really appreciate your time. My pleasure.

All right, let's turn now to Hurricane Helene and the rising death toll. With more than 200 people now confirmed dead, hundreds more still missing, Helene now the deadliest hurricane to hit the mainland U.S. since Hurricane Katrina in 2005. President Biden and Vice President Harris touring hard-hit communities across the Southeast and earlier this week deploying active duty troops. Donald Trump preparing to make his second visit to Georgia today and claiming without evidence that the Biden administration is withholding aid from states including Georgia and North Carolina.

They stole the FEMA money just like they stole it from a bank so they could give it to their illegal immigrants that they want to have vote for them this season. You know, they're trying to get them on the voters' roll. We cannot let that happen.

the White House pushing back against those allegations releasing a statement that says this quote this is false disaster relief fund is specifically appropriated by congress to prepare for respond to recover from and mitigate impacts have natural disasters is completely separate from other grant programs administered by FEMA for DHS our panel I is back here now this is com clearly become a big flashpoint on the right Alex they're talking about that they're tying up basically immigration all the the places where they feel

stronger in with this disaster relief question.

over arching all of it is the fact that I mean the response has we're a week out now there's still people missing cut off from the world and he's coming we're just playing video of a man holding up a mirror to try to get attention from a helicopter pilot I mean this is happening in America that is a challenge for Biden and Harris yeah and Trump sees on it right away last weekend he was the first one of these three people to be on the ground when he went to Georgia last weekend meanwhile you know after the hurricane made landfall Joe Biden did go to her

did travel to Rehoboth Beach over the weekend. When he was asked about it, he said, well, I had a telephone and it seemed like a little bit flip. And then Kamala Harris also realized there was a problem because she was out on the West Coast on a fundraising swing and quickly sort of came back. And now you see that they are scrambling to sort of show that they are on the ground. Joe Biden making several visits to storm damaged areas just the last two days. And so they're trying to sort of play a little catch up

MEGAN, HOW WOULD YOU GRADE THE PERFORMANCE SO FAR? I THINK IT'S A LITTLE MORE NUANCE. THE RESOURCES THEY DRAW FROM GOING ON THE GROUND, THAT TAKES AWAY FROM PEOPLE DOING RESCUE AND

these active, you know, things that the people actually need, the police resources. So I don't think it's fair for them to be on the ground. I actually think it's a mistake for them to be on the ground. But what about going back to the White House as this is unfolding? I mean, the president can be the president from anywhere. So I like that falls a little flat. He shouldn't be so flipped, but that's his nature to say flip things. You just saw him say that about...

Israel about, are you confident it's not going to rain? So that's just his nature. Is it appropriate? Probably not. Should he choose a different tone? Sure. But that is his nature. But I do think he was very quick to put out disaster relief declarations. They are very quick to do that. That is always something they do. He's always in touch with the governors and the mayors on the ground. I don't think anyone on the ground is saying that their actions are slow.

but being there. Governor Kemp did complain that not enough counties were covered by disaster declaration, said he had to call Jeff Zients, chief of staff, and then get it expanded. Totally fair. But I also think, though, that optics do matter, and being on the ground matters, and that's what people remember. And so I do think, you know, it is hard. The resource argument is a

fair argument, but it is hard to show people and tell people that when they don't have lights, they don't have cell coverage, their family members are missing. Yeah, I think they want to see leadership. And even last night, he was saying, what's storm zone? And people are very happy. And you're right. It certainly doesn't look like people are happy on the ground, but Governor Kemp wasn't happy with the

the limited scope of the FEMA declaration. And there's also been mixed messages from IORCIS and DHS and FEMA about this. Three months ago, they were saying, we have plenty of money, we'll be fine. Recently saying, we don't have enough to get us through hurricane season. And so that mixed messages is just, I think it's been a lackluster response across the board for a storm that is sneakily historic. Yeah. All right. Straight ahead here on CNN This Morning.

The ever so famous October surprise, it can shift a race in the final weeks. Could any event this month be as pivotal as October surprises of the past? Michael Smirconish is here to discuss. Plus, the boss backing the Dems for Springsteen speaks out on why he's voting for Kamala Harris. It's perhaps the most well-known moment from the 2016 presidential campaign, the now infamous Access Hollywood tape. We of course have to warn you, it contains graphic language.

I'll admit it. I did try and . She was married. I moved in her like a . I couldn't get there, and she was married. You know, I'm automatically attracted to beautiful-- I just start kissing them. It's like a magnet. I just kiss. I don't even wait. And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Whatever you want. Grab them by the .

It's been a minute since I've actually seen that tape, which was released in October of 2016, just one month out from Election Day. Many thought it would end Donald Trump's chances of becoming president. It was a so-called October surprise. That term was coined by Ronald Reagan's campaign manager in 1980. The Reagan campaign was allegedly fearful President Carter would stage an October surprise, gain the hostages release, and win re-election.

The term October surprise, of course, describes a late-breaking story that could shift the race just before voters head to polls. Between Jack Smith's new January 6th filing and the conflict in the Middle East, could any news event this month be as influential as October surprises past? We've got some breaking news I want to bring to our viewers right now. A new possible investigation by the FBI into Hillary Clinton's emails. There are 47% of the people who have voted for the president have not won them.

There are 47% who are with him who are dependent on government who believe that they are victims. 24 years ago I was apprehended in Kennebunkport, Maine for a DUI. That's an accurate story. I'm not proud of that. I often times said that years ago I made some mistakes. I occasionally drank too much and I did on that night.

Joining us now, CNN political commentator Michael Smirconish. He's also the host of CNN's Smirconish. And because it's Friday, he is here. Michael, wonderful to see you. Thank you so much. Fascinating look at October surprises past. I'm curious if you think any of the things, I mean, I've covered most, not the 2000 election, but the others that we saw stacked with Hillary Clinton, Romney. I remember where I was oftentimes, Washington.

Me too. Trying to write an AP lead about that Romney list, running to a camera at the bureau at NBC where I was working at the time when the Comey letter dropped. What do you think we're looking at this time? I mean, frankly, the intensity of potential crises is very high compared to those previous cycles.

So the Access Hollywood, by the way, great to see you. Always great to see you on a Friday. The Access Hollywood tape that you played, I think, represented the ninth time in that cycle where I said, well, Trump's done. He's never going to come back from this. And of course, I was wrong in every one of those instances. We all were, Michael.

What I think is significant is that was the 2016 cycle, and he won that election. And as I evaluate, Stephen Collinson has a great piece at CNN.com right now about the October surprises that are on our plate. And it's the port strike, which has now been suspended, as you've been reporting. It's the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. It's the situation in the Middle East. It's that filing by Jack Smith situation.

My opinion is there's a lot in play, but none of it is going to matter. This is the most insane,

cycle that I've ever seen in my life. Do you remember Kristi Noem and the goat? Do you remember Kristi Noem and the dog? Do you remember RFK and the bear, RFK and the whale, RFK and the journalist? I mean, I can't keep up with all these things, but none of them seem to move the needle because when it's all said and done, we're at 50-50 and it comes down to seven states and they're all within the margin of error.

Yeah, it honestly makes me wonder if there is any such thing as an October surprise anymore.

I think that I've been saying on radio for a year that there are people whose names we do not know and events that we could never anticipate that are about to play out. And even this close, four weeks from Tuesday till the conclusion, I still think there are going to be some shockers. I don't know what they'll be, but my hunch is that if you and I are having a conversation the Friday before the election, and I hope that we are, we're probably going to say, who the hell knows? It's 50-50 and it comes down to seven states and they're all within the margin of error.

I hope, I definitely would love to see you on that Friday and let's revisit this and see from here on out because this, I mean, there have been so many surprises through this campaign with, of course, Harris changing at the top of the ticket. Briefly, Michael, before I let you go, can we talk about Pete Rose for a second? Because he just passed away, as you know, and he is a baseball great. And there is this question about whether he deserves a spot in Cooperstown. It does seem like by our modern standards, he should, but I'm curious your take.

I say put him in with the asterisk. He died without the privilege of being accepted, admitted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, and I think that's significant. He has to be there by the merits. I mean, what, 22, 23,000 have played that game and only one got 4,256 hits. So I think this is the appropriate ending. Put him in. There's an asterisk on the plaque, but put him in at long last.

All right, Michael Smirconish, always great to see you. Thank you so much for being here. You too. Talk to you soon. Thank you. To all our viewers, don't forget to tune in to Smirconish tomorrow morning, 9 a.m. Eastern, right here on CNN. All right, 51 minutes past the hour. Here is your morning roundup. Port workers returning to work today after a three-day strike. The union representing the striking workers came to a tentative deal with the management group that represents shipping lines, terminal operators, and port authorities. It's going to last until mid-January.

Country music star Garth Brooks has been accused of sexual assault by a former hair and makeup artist. She alleges Brooks raped her in a hotel room on a work trip in 2019. Brooks claims he is being extorted and says the accusations were made after he denied the alleged victim's request for salaried employment and medical benefits.

New York Congressman Mike Lawler now apologizing for a photo taken in 2006. The photo, seen here, was obtained by the New York Times. It shows Lawler in a Michael Jackson costume complete with a face darkened by makeup. Lawler is fighting for reelection in a competitive district and said this last night about the controversy. I can't change what happened 18 years ago.

But I certainly, with wisdom and age, understand that that is not something I would do today and certainly understand why people would be upset or offended by it. And for that, I'm sorry. So, Elliot, he also went on to say that he was paying homage to Michael Jackson and that that made it different from he referenced minstrel shows that were mocking and derogatory.

How do you evaluate how he's navigating this? It's not a minstrel. It's not Song of the South that he was engaged in here. But let's be clear. It just shows poor judgment when he was actually an adult. And I think we forget when assessing the conduct of people in the past that he ought to have known better at the time. Certainly, maybe he was attempting to respect Michael Jackson. But I think at a certain point, you got to know you just don't do blackface. In 2006. In 2006. You know, look, is this...

The voters can assess what they want in that district between him and Mondaire Jones, what makes the most sense for them. But it's really just a question of judgment more than, oh my God, the racist story of 2024. It's really not. All right. Let's turn now to the growing list of Kamala Harris's celebrity endorsements. Hi, I'm Bruce Springsteen. Friends, fans, and the press have asked me who I'm supporting in this most important of elections.

And with full knowledge of my opinions, no more or less important than those of any of my fellow citizens, here's my answer. I'm supporting Kamala Harris for president and Tim Walz for vice president and opposing Donald Trump and J.D. Vance. Kamala Harris and Tim Walz are committed to a vision of this country that respects and includes everyone. That's the vision of America I've been consistently writing about for 55 years.

The boss has spoken. Rock star Bruce Springsteen revealing in that Instagram video he'll be voting for Harris next month. Music legend has been a longtime Democratic donor. He has joined candidates like John Kerry, Barack Obama, and Hillary Clinton on the campaign trail over the last two decades. And he's also publicly criticized Donald Trump, making this prediction about a Trump presidency back in 2016. This is a man whose vision is limited to little beyond himself.

who has the profound lack of decency that would allow him to prioritize his own interests and ego before American democracy itself. All right, our panel is back. Megan Hayes, I was at that rally, actually, on Independence Hall, a mall, and he was one of a number of celebrities. That was actually one of the events when I look back on covering the 2016 campaign that sort of

previewed what was going to happen, even when many in the pundit class thought Hillary was going to win. There was no question that she was going to win. The energy-- I mean, you could see it there in that clip, right? His energy was kind of low. It wasn't like a Bruce Springsteen rock star concert. It was almost a ballad. The crowd was, yes, fired up in the way that you can't help being when you're with other people, but it was not the sort of raucous Obama '08 the way that it can be.

And I just, I guess part of what I took away from it is that this stuff doesn't really matter that much at all. It doesn't say a lot necessarily, but I'm curious your thoughts. No, I don't think that these endorsements matter. I mean, I don't think this is a surprise to anyone. I mean, Joe Biden's been using a Bruce Springsteen song for his walkout for many, many years now. So like, this is not a surprise.

prize to anyone. I think the endorsement that did matter with Taylor Swift in registering 300,000 voters or getting people to be engaged there. So I think that she moves the needle here. But I mean, it's a great endorsement. He will do rallies for her and go out and do some concerts. And it will be great for everyone to drum up support. But I don't think it's going to move the needle.

How does it cut, Matt, to, in terms of, one of the things we've been seeing on the Republican side is this embrace of anti-elitism, right? And the sense that, you know, Hollywood and the coasts, et cetera, are all in it together and they're not looking out for you.

I think Republican voters and certainly Republican operative class are very used to this sort of thing. I mean, Bruce has been doing this for 20 years. I'll still see his show. It's seen 21 times, twice in the last month. I was going to say, you were just in Europe. Oh, yeah, yeah, exactly. No, I saw him two weeks ago or whatever. But, yeah, no, this is baked in in so many respects.

where, you know, in '04, I think it was the first election where, and it was the first election really Springsteen endorsed, and he was campaigning with John Kerry. It was Kerry's song, "No Surrender," that was his campaign song, that really tilted in a large way. If you remember, in 2000, like, you had Britney Spears perform at the inauguration. It was much more bipartisan than it is right now. - Yeah, it is. And, I mean, Alex, is this,

the Trump people have found their sort of celebrities, but they're, I mean, Kid Rock. Kid Rock and Hulk Hogan, right? Like ripping his shirt off. It is a different vibe. Incredibly different vibe. And, you know, to both of their points, I mean, Bruce has sort of a mixed record of success, right? He did, he supported Obama, but he also supported Kerry and Hillary Clinton. So Democrats have had a mixed record of success.

success. That's true. I give Bruce that sort of power. He has it. They call him the boss for the reason. So, you know, it is interesting, though, to the anti-elitism point. The Trump campaign actually cut a new ad which features heavily Kamala Harris dancing that they've been putting on the air. And they basically say, we don't need a TikTok star in the White House. And sort of this, like, you know, it reminds me of that DJT dancing video on a loop at the Republican National Convention. I

which I don't understand. Maybe it's because people find it relatable to be a bad dancer, but for whatever reason. - But to the earlier point, is this moving Gladys or Judy? - No. - Are they moved by any of this? - Literally no one turns on their TV and sees the boss. It's setting up a kick-ass concert for the night before election day, but that's probably it. - Correct. - I'm interested to see if it's... - It's gonna be, yeah. Beyonce and Bruce.

It'll be fun to watch, but no one's changing their mind. Probably better than the Philly one in Philly. Yeah. I mean, it was a huge crowd in Philly. Don't get me wrong. You can see the optics there, but man, energy was really interesting. All right. I'll leave it with this. After an impressive rookie season, understatement, Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball star, Kaitlyn Clark, receiving this well-deserved honor. The best is yet to come. So congratulations, Kaitlyn. You are the 2024 Kia WNBA Rookie of the Year.

The Indiana Fever star, the new WNBA Rookie of the Year, receiving 66 out of 67 votes for the title after Indiana chose Clark as the first overall pick in the WNBA draft. She had a momentous start, breaking a number of WNBA records, including assists in a single game with 19, the most in WNBA history. Her bragging rights taking center stage on Saturday Night Live right before the WNBA draft to address some of the haters.

The University of Iowa announced that basketball star Kaitlyn Clark will have her jersey retired and replaced with an apron. Since you're such a big fan, I brought you a souvenir. It's an apron signed by me.

Pretty awesome. Megan Hayes, watching women's basketball just explode into the cultural consciousness has been really fun to watch. Absolutely. And it's super engaging for people, them selling out actual arenas where the men play. I mean, I hope that we get to a point where they're being paid as much as the men, but here we are. Right. Here we are. No, I mean, it's...

between women's soccer. I mean, we've got women's soccer here now too in D.C. and I have a lot of friends who are spending a lot, you know, taking their daughters. It's just the sort of evolution of this has been really fun. All right. Thanks, guys, for joining us today. Thanks to all of you also for being with us. I'm Casey Hunt. Don't go anywhere. CNN News Central starts right now.

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