Malcolm Gladwell on How Both Sides of Gun Debate Traffic in Dishonesties

Anderson Cooper (0:02)

Good evening from the newsroom tonight with Midterm Elections. Just five weeks from tomorrow, what does it say that the president is planning to campaign in a state he won by more than 2 to 1 or 34 points just two years ago? The state is Oklahoma. He'll be there on Thursday and campaigning in other red states in the days ahead. Alabama for one, which he won by 30 points. Also Texas, Florida and Ohio, all of which went for him by double digits in 2024

In addition, according to Politico, he'll be hitting other red states, Alaska and Iowa, as part of a campaign schedule that could keep him on the road almost every day next month. He was asked about Iowa today after unveiling plans for a Minnesota company to build a $15 billion steel mill in the state.

SPEAKER_2 (0:44)

Sir, you won Iowa by 13 points.

Some of the polling though for some of the races right now in the Senate, and also some of the House races, a little closer, much closer in fact. Why are Republicans, do you think, having to work so hard to hold on to these seats?

SPEAKER_3 (0:58)

I don't know. I love Iowa. I've always been very strong with Iowa. There's been some things that the Democrats have done that are very bad for our country. You know, they had high prices. I've reduced the prices, but they like to say affordability, but they're the ones that caused the affordability problem.

Anderson Cooper (1:20)

Well, to keep it honest, the inflation rate was 2.7 percent when the president took office. It's 3.4 percent now. He also called the Iowa polling, quote, fake. But both that polling and his own polling are real enough, and inflation is real enough for Iowa Senate candidate Ashley Hinson, who was with him in the Oval Office today, to be running campaign ads like this one recently, touting her bipartisan credentials.

Barrett Berger (1:43)

Used to be that reaching across the aisle wasn't just okay.

Sabrina Singh (1:46)

It was expected.

Barrett Berger (1:47)

Some people in Washington forgot that. I never have.

Anderson Cooper (1:52)

Earlier this month, the congresswoman Hinson stayed away from a campaign rally, headlined by Vice President Vance. And there's really no mystery as to why she and other Republican candidates have been trying to distance themselves from the administration. Just a few numbers kind of explain it. The president's job approval, 33% in recent CNN polling. Gasoline, almost $4.50 a gallon. Diesel, almost $6.50 a gallon. And a war with, which is neither popular with voters nor over yet, no matter how many times the president says things like this.

SPEAKER_3 (2:21)

We're going to win that war very soon. It'll be over, and the gas prices will come tumbling down. So nobody else could have done that. Nobody else. The inflation is coming way down. And when you see what happens, as soon as that war ends, inflation is going to be eradicated totally.

But nobody talks about that.

Anderson Cooper (2:43)

Well, what many in the political world are talking about are a pair of taxpayer-funded White House TV spots, which are billed as public service announcements. But look and sound for all the world like campaign ads.

Late tonight, a source familiar with the matter told CNN the president was personally involved in orchestrating them. This is part of the second one which aired during at least two NFL games yesterday.

SPEAKER_6 (3:05)

We will liberate America from these villains once and for all.

Anderson Cooper (3:12)

Well, the White House today said that the administrations of both parties have used public service announcements to explain policy. But this was no public service announcement. It was a campaign ad, literally, word for word, which the president first posted online in January of 2024 when he was running for office.

SPEAKER_6 (3:30)

We will liberate America from these villains once and for all.

Anderson Cooper (3:41)

So the two spots are identical with one exception. The one from 2024, as you just saw, has the Trump 2024 campaign logo. The latest one says paid for by the US government, meaning all of us.

The same as those ads glorifying former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, the one she spent more than $200 million taxpayer dollars to make, including CNN has reported $20,000 for a rental horse and $4,000 for hair and makeup. Tonight, Senate Republican Leader Thune said he liked these latest ads message, but taxpayers shouldn't pay for them. Louisiana Republican John Kennedy said this.

John Kennedy (4:18)

I don't think any public official, including President Trump or Kristi Noem or John Kennedy, should spend public money on private ads for themselves. Now, the White House sees it differently, but I think there ought to be a rule that you can't, well, there probably is a rule. You can't spend public money to promote yourself.