Consulate and never coming out. And now an investigation into whether he was killed inside. And wheres the body . This is cnn breaking news. We begin today with breaking news in the politics lead. The resignation of u. N. Ambassador, nikki haley, surprising trump cabinet officials and disappointing both trump friends and foe. President trump just spoke about the major exit and speculation about who might replace haley. Were going to bring the tape in just moments. Earlier, the president appraised haley as a fantastic person and was describing her decision as something he said was a long time coming. Haley said it was simply time to step aside. And she preempted questions from the president , insisting shes not going to run for president in 2020. Lets get right to cnns jeff zeleny in council bluffs, iowa, where the president is holding a rally tonight. Jeff, the president just spoke on his way to the rally where you are, moments ago, and spoke about the speculation that his daughter, ivanka trump, might replace haley. He did, jake. And the president , of course, had glowing words for ivanka trump. He said she would be incredible. Said she would be dynamite. But he also said he would be accused of nepotism. Bringing her on as a senior adviser. He also said she would be the best person for the job. Wouldnt be able to find anyone better than that. So, of course, is setting up a difficult situation for whoever he does decide to put in there, if its not ivanka trump. Jake, this is coming on a day when it stunned many people inside the west wing. But the timing of the nikki haley announcement is much more interesting. She actually decided to resign last week, and was going to do it on october 3rd. Thats when her letter was dated. Of course, that was the day after the president was mocking Christine Blasey ford in the middle of all the kavanaugh hearings. So it was held until this morning. But jake, we have seen so many people dismissed from this white house. We have never seen someone dismissed quite like this in the oval office with a praise like this. So thats what was so striking by this. We have seen people unceremoniously fired on twitter. We have seen them essentially called out by the president. But the president decided to bring nikki haley in, and it was that 2020 comment that was certainly so interesting. That has been the dream of many conservatives, many republicans, that she would challenge President Trump. It seemed to be sort of a condition of her exit, if you will, by saying publicly, with him sitting right there, she said, i will not be campaigning in 2020. In fact, i will be campaigning and supporting you, the president. That was also something in her resignation letter, as well. But jake, were learning more exactly about what happened. The question now is, who is next . And the president will address that shortly. Jake . All right. Were going to take a listen to President Trump in remarks he made just a few minutes ago. Lets listen in. Hello, everybody. Were heading out to iowa, where we have a big statement to make, as you know, on ethanol and for our farmers. Likewise, were taking care of our refineries and our refiners and they have done a fantastic job. We want to get more fuel into the system, and this is a great thing. Great for our farmers, a promise i made during the campaign. And as you know, i keep my promises. Were heading out to iowa. I assume some of you are coming. Yes, please. [ inaudible question ] dana is certainly a person i would consider. Certainly under consideration. We have actually many names, and nikki has been great. Nikki is going to be working along with us and helping us with the choice. Plus shes going to help us with 2020. And nikki is a great friend of mine. Weve become real friends. Shes done a fantastic job. And so shell be involved. And dina certainly. And there are ive heard a lot of names. Ive heard ivanka. The people that know, its nothing to do with nepotism. But i want to tell you, the people that know, know that ivanka would be dynamite. But, you know, i would then be accused of nepotism, if you can believe it, right . Yes. Reporter [ inaudible question ]. I think ivanka would be incredible. It doesnt mean i would pick her. Because you would be accused of nepotism. Even though im not sure there is anybody more confident in the world. But thats okay. But we are looking at numerous people. And it is interesting. The name you just mentioned has been thrown about. Theres a lot of speculation about the timing on a day when you could be celebrating with kavanaugh. This administration does a lot. So youre right. Another administration would after, like, the kavanaugh victory, its really a victory for the people. Its not for me. Its a victory to have a great justice for hopefully many years. But a lot of people would celebrate. We go back to business the next day. And, you know, nikki and i talked about this a year ago. And we ought to she really wanted to be here for about two years. We finished our big week last week at the u. N. We had a tremendous success. It was great. And we finished 30 days out. But, you know, nikki is going to be involved with us for a long time. And shes going to help me also make that final pick. Were going to make a final pick. I want to get somebody really good. I think shes also brought a new level of prestige to that position. That position is in terms of people wanting it, easier now in a way than it was before. Nikki has brought obviously great confidence. But shes brought great prestige to that position. [ inaudible question ]. Thats a very good question. How do you keep your base energized now that you have the big kavanaugh victory . I would say that just by winning. Got to keep winning. Were doing a lot of winning. Were very happy with the u. S. Embassy, which is the i dont want to use the word nafta, because its a terrible word. It was a horrible deal for this country. But our deal with mexico and canada was fantastic. China wants to make a deal so badly. Well see where it goes. But i dont think theyre ready yet, personally. Mr. President [ inaudible question ]. There could be. A lot of those were paid protesters. You saw that. Theyre all unhappy. They havent been paid yet. Ive been calling it. They were paid protesters. That was professionals. That was orchestrated. When you look in the halls of congress and you see screaming like that, and its like chimes. One goes, the next goes. These are paid protesters. I dont know that their energy is great. I can tell you, the energy on the republican side, i dont think its ever been greater. Maybe 2016, where as you remember, the energy was very good. My man. [ inaudible question ]. Youve already got two Supreme Court justices through in your first term. How many more do you think you might get . A lot of theories on that. It could be three. Under one theory, it could be four. And then some people could say two could happen. So, you know, could be from i would say one or two to four much additional. So well see. Mr. President . I hope everyone remains healthy. Im very happy the way it is right now. And we put a great man, and i think going to be a great justice on the court. But, you know, its a guessing game. What is an honor is that there have been president s, many president s, that never had a choice. And here i am, not even two years, and we have two. And theyre confirmed and theyre on the court. I believe kanye west is coming to the white house. Hes been a terrific guy. He loves what were doing for africanamerican jobs, for so many different things. Median income, as you see at an alltime high. Poverty level at the best rate, meaning the lowest rate so far. And kanye is a smart guy. And he sees that. And also coming with him, he said you mind if i bring jim brown, big jim brown. Boy, would he be making a lot of money today, right . I call him unstoppable jim brown. And hes been a friend of mine. Hes been really with us. Because he gets it. He really gets it. He sees that africanamerican and by the way, hispanic and asian have never done better in this country. And he likes it. [ inaudible question ]. No, theyre just trying to get me a message. But those messages dont work. They dont work. But, no, i think they treated him with great respect, actually. You know, they had meetings besides just the News Conference and treated him with great respect. He had a great meeting with north korea. And china, it wasnt so much i guess he was giving them a message, and they were giving him a message to come back to me. Any updates i dont know anything. No, i dont have any updates, no. Sad situation. [ inaudible question ]. It was given to me. And i want to look at who drew it. You know, which group drew it. I can give you reports that are fabulous and i can give you reports that arent so good. But i will be looking at it, absolutely. Mr. President the kavanaugh nomination i think its fantastic. Hope, shes the greatest. I love it. I think hope is im so proud of her. And im very happy. Im very happy for you. Right . Was that announced officially now . It was, yes. Im very happy for fox, because they have a winner. Hope is a winner. And she has been. She was like literally right from first day. That was a small group. And im very proud of hope. And fox has themselves somebody who is really great. The Petroleum Industry opposes the use of ethanol yearround. They say its going to hurt their industry. What do you say to them . Well, i want more industry. I want more energy. I want more. Because i dont like 74. Its up to 74. And if i have to do more, whether its through ethanol or through another means, thats what i want. I want low prices. So im okay with it. You know, its an amazing substance. You look at the indy cars. They run 100 on ethanol. And you look at other certain forms of very modern energy. Its ethanolbased. And that meant a lot to me. But what really means is were helping our farmers. And were also going to be helping our refiners, and you know that too. Because theyre both very important. But the farmers have been so terrific, and they produce great product. So i think its going to be great. Mr. President and it has no impact 12 months. That was a misnomer. There really is no negative impact. In fact, there are those that say you do this and the air is cleaner. I agree with that. But they say, you go 12 months instead of 8. You go 12 months, and the air is actually cleaner. Mr. President yesterday there was an ethics complaint who did . [ inaudible question ]. No, i know nothing about it. I know nothing about it. I know nikki. This is one of the most honest human beings youll ever see. So i just i havent heard about that. [ inaudible question ]. Well, that all depends on who shes going to be running against. I mean, i could tell you, you have some two really good once there right now. So i dont see her doing that, no. [ inaudible question ]. Well, lindsay is a terrific guy. Certainly, i would. I think hes really happy. Ill tell you what. Lindsey really stepped up over the last two or three weeks. I thought it was fantastic. So lindsey is a popular guy, and tim is a popular guy. I think those are two people and nikki doesnt have that in mind at all. Is senator graham popular enough to be your next attorney general, sir . He is somebody that never asked me that question. I think hes very happy where he is. Hes having a good time. And he really stepped it up. Hes doing great. Mr. President [ inaudible question ]. Oh, yeah. 100 . Thats right. But i didnt know her. I mean,she supported somebody over in the primary. It turned out very well for me. She respected it. And after that, we got along as you would say, very well. She helped me in the election once i won the primary. And we really have been friends and we have been come com patriots. The United Nations is at a new level of respect. We have worked together. We had a tremendous week last week. So no, nikki wants to work with us. And also, to keep it going, she wants to work i guess she said today a few times, she wants to work on the 2020 election with us. [ inaudible question ]. Yeah, i think there were. I think there were. [ inaudible question ]. Yeah, im not going to say who i mean. Im just telling you, you had forces saying things that were evil, that were bad people. And he is a very, very fine man. And what was said about him should never have been said. [ inaudible question ]. I know many. I know fellow americans that are evil. I know are you saying we shouldnt say that a fellow american is evil . Ive known some fellow americans that are pretty evil. [ inaudible question ]. Well, i like the low interest rate. The fed is doing what they think is necessary. I dont like what theyre doing, because we have inflation and we have a lot of good things happening. So i will say this. Were normalizing money. And thats good. But i think we dont have to go as fast. I want to be able to pay off debt. Also, very importantly, i think, the numbers that were producing are recordsetting. I dont want to slow it down even a little bit. Especially when you dont have the problem of inflation. And you dont see that inflation coming back. Now, at some point, it will, and you go up. I just dont think its necessary to go as fast. I have not spoken to him about that. I like to stay uninvolved. I have not spoken. How are you . [ inaudible question ]. Hes very talented. But no, i havent. Only because i know you people what would you do if i said that, right . What would they do . Jared how do you feel about ivanka . I think cnn would support her. [ inaudible question ]. Look, theyre two very competent people. But well, i guess hes going before congress. We had a very good talk yesterday. Hes going before congress. Well see how it works out. In the meantime, as you know, senator richard burr came out just recently and said there was no collusion. He saw no collusion after, what, a yearandahalf. And devin nunes, as you know, very smart people, he came out, theres no collusion. There is no collusion. So thats all i care about. [ inaudible question ]. [ inaudible ] all right. A very chatty President Trump taking many questions, speaking for about 16 of or so minutes, 15 or so minutes. Taking questions about Brett Kavanaugh, the newly seated Supreme Court justice, as well as the departure of u. N. Ambassador, nikki haley and potential replacements, including his daughter, ivanka trump. Lets talk about it with our team of experts. Kaitlan collins, the president saying i think ivanka would be incredible. Although noting that it would lead to accusations of nepotism, mainly because it would be nepotism. And then saying hes not sure there is anyone more competent in the world. He also did mention the former Deputy National security adviser, dina powell, as somebody being considered. Right. And with ivanka, he didnt say he wouldnt pick ivanka. He just said that would be the reaction. But he couldnt think of anyone better than her to do that job, saying that even cnn would like her there, at the end. It does sound like hes been watching the news reports about who could take that job. He kept saying, i heard ivanka, i heard ivanka. Back to dina powell, someone who is pretty much viewed as a contender in this, and a pretty serious contender. She is already in new york. She has told people she believes this would be her dream job. And President Trump saying there, she is on the list of consideration for people hes considering for this. That he said today, hes going to announce in two to three weeks. Who knows if thats a firm time line from the president. But it does sound like hes considering them. He didnt say rick greenel, someone else voted, the u. S. Ambassador to germany. Certainly a favorite among trump supporters. But it doesnt sound like hes settled on anyone to pick. Although he did say nikki haley told him a year ago she would be considering leaving. This morning, six months. Time is fungible with President Trump when he tells stories like this. Scott, you think that rick rainel would be a favorite among the red hat magazina crowd. No question, when picked for ambassador to germany, somebody people in the president s coalition really think has been one of the president s best and strongest supporters in the Foreign Policy space. Number one, do you have the confidence of the president . Do people believe you have the ear of the president. Are you tough enough to deliver messages in a hostile environment. Are you good at external communications . This is a publicfacing job. Those are the three criteria and the people named all check those boxes. The president actually in this particular case has an embarrassment of riches of people to choose from. I have to say that of those three, ivanka trump, dina powell and rick grinnel, dina powell would be a more traditional pick, more in the mold of a nikki haley. Do you think that nikki haley do you buy the explanation shes just exhausted of six years of being governor of South Carolina, during which she had challenges, two years of a very intense job at the u. N. , its just time to move on . What doesnt make sense about it is why not wait until after the election . Thats the only thing. And she said its not for personal reasons. It doesnt seem there is anything urgent she has to be stepping down for. It would be like if one of just went to jeff zucker and said, i think now would be a good time to leave. And he would be like, how about you wait until after the election thats coming up were all covering . Thats kind of something you would do. So for her to do this right before the election seems very strange to me. It is and nina, i have to point out. Quinnipiac poll from april found that 63 of the American People approved of nikki haley, including even a majority of democrats. This is one of the most popular people in the Trump Administration. If not the most popular. Is this will this hurt him, her departure . Im not sure. But, i mean, she certainly does have his confidence and faith out of everybody that has left that white house. She got the grandest sendoff of all. And i dont think that he will backtrack on her in the same way he has on others as he praises you one day, and shoots you down the next day. She definitely doesnt have to worry about that. But, you know, Governor Haley really held the hard line for the president. I mean, she went in, as you know, the first day i think in april of this year to her colleagues in the u. N. , basically saying, we are making a list and checking it twice, going to find out who is naughty or nice. You have to vote our way or else. So she really pushed a very hard line, especially when it came to israeli and palestine. An argument for rick grinnel, by the way. If youre looking for somebody who is a very hard bombastic kind of person, hes actually full disclosure a friend of mine. But he is that is his public persona. Hes very more of a john bolton type. Yeah, he has no problem with confrontation. He also worked at the u. N. For i think eight years, one of the longestserving people at the u. N. He was a spokesman there, yeah. Definitely a world he knows well. And kaitlan, we know that nikki haley handed in her resignation last week. During that time, over twitter, on the weekend, she sent out a photograph of herself, voting with her husband and former Deputy National security adviser, dina powell. And her husband. And im wondering if, given the fact that Ambassador Haley knew that she had resigned and would be announcing in the coming week that she was on her way out, if this is any sort of tacit endorsement. Remember, President Trump just a few minutes ago said that he would be consulting with nikki haley as to who to pick. The question is, did she tell her, by the way, im stepping down. Im telling the president is going to announce it next week. We also know that dina powell is close with secretary of state mike pompeo. So theres questions about that, what that relationship would be. We did scenicy haleys status diminish since pompeo came on board as secretary of state, because when Rex Tillerson was secretary of state, he would go to her for advice. Now pompeo has filled that void and with bolton as the National Security adviser, it took away two people the president feuded with, Rex Tillerson and hr mcmaster. So nikki haley wasnt fulfilling that role as this informal adviser to the president. So it would be interesting to see whoever takes her spot if it is a dina powell, someone close with pompeo, if she goes up and is back to that elevated status oh are what that would be the outcome there. You know whats great about haley in this particular case, i always hate it when good people leave. But in her case, she has been under a lot of restrictions because of her job on what she can talk about politically. As you pointed out, shes very popular among republicans and democrats. She will become one of the president s best surrogates. She will be in high demand at party events between now and through 2020, expect to see nikki haley a lot. She can now do things and make speeches and say things about a lot of issues she wasnt able to do in her job at the state department. If she wants to be president in 2024, i take her at her word she is not running to challenge President Trump in 2020. She was a i wouldnt call her never trump, but she was anti trump in the primary. She endorsed marco rubio. But she said negative things about him even after he was clearly going to be the nominee. And she even gave him a bless his heart tweet, which is which is about the harshest thing a woman from South Carolina can say to somebody. So if she wants to be president in 2024, run for president in 2024, she did herself, just politically i understand you disagree with a lot of the policy she implemented. But politically, she did herself a lot of good in winning the respect of the trump supporting Republican Party. Yeah. Definitely no doubt about that. And, again, even in her state although from a policy position. She still was highly respected. She did carry herself as the professional she is. Policies aside. So all of this, in my mind, is a setup to 2024. Interesting. Everyone stick around. We have a lot more to tack about. Mark sanford will join us live. He will talk about who could possibly replace nikki haley at the u. N. Stay with us. music throughout you dont always use your smartphone for directions. Are we there yet . Hey guys, up there. Or to laugh out loud. But when it matters most, you count on tracfone to keep you connected for less. Our smartphone plan gives you talk, text and data with unlimited carryover starting at 15 a month, no contract. All with nationwide 4g lte coverage. Get top smartphones or bring your own phone. Tracfone. For moments that matter. You know i miss playing catch with the. Grandkids and teaching them how to give a good handshake. Now look at me. Im all bent out of shape. vo tv if you have bent fingers and cant put your hand flat, talk to your doctor. It may be dupuytrens contracture. gary see ya hand youre all about friendly service, and you wont even shake hands . Come on vo your hand is talking. Isnt it time you listened . Learn more about dupuytrens contracture. At factsonhand. Com. The information could be quite handy. Were back with the breaking news in our politics lead. U. N. Ambassador nikki haley leaving the building, and there is speculation about who might be replacing. President trump saying minutes ago that his daughter, ivanka trump, would be dynamite, but if he did pick his daughter, he would be accused nepotism. Joining me now is the former governor of South Carolina, who served before haley in that post. Hes now republican congressman, mark sanford. Congressman, thanks so much for joining us. We appreciate it. Earlier today, you said something smells funny here with the timing. What do you mean by that . Well, i mean, the obvious. Which is the timing here, i think would strike most political observers as unusual. Its not the normal kind of thing to announce the resignation like this a month before the midterm elections. Do you think shes trying to get ahead of what Many Political analysts predict will be a blue wave with democrats taking over the house . Is that what youre suggesting . Or just noting its unusual . I dont know. Youre referring to an earlier press i did earlier, and i just made the i guess, stated the obvious. Which is john learner is her head political guy, he was my head political guy when i was governor. He reads the political winds very, very, very well. And i didnt know if there was another shoe to drop from the trump standpoint, mueller standpoint, mid election standpoint. But is it about exiting stage left before something comes on that front . Something we dont know . Or on the contrary, is it something from her end . You know, all kinds of rumors are swirling down here in South Carolina. Is it, you know, this report that came out or this i guess letter of query of private plane hu usage that came out over the weekend or monday. Is there something there she just wants to exit so she doesnt have to deal with that as a public figure . Other people saying money. Other people saying, no, what it is is, Lindsey Graham is going to be appointed attorney general, and this is setting up so the governor can make the appointment with her to the u. S. Senate. There are all kinds of rumors going on out there. All i know is that something is going on, probably more than meets the eye, given the timing of this particular announcement. What did you make of the fact that at this event, which was obviously well choreographed, she submitted her letter of resignation last wednesday. It was announced today with her and President Trump together. And she preemptively said to reporters, im not going to run for president in 2020. Obviously, theres speculation and a desire from some never trump republicans that she challenge him. Im not going to run. The only thing im going to do in 2020 is campaign for President Trump. What did you make of that . Its the obvious. I mean, shes been a strong supporter, as is everybody on his team. Theres a real penalty that goes with going against the president. And one of the things you cant do is to challenge i am too heartily. And we see a long list of folks who have left the administration because in some cases they have done so. So i think its simply the price of admission. And she knows where the bread is buttered, as does everybody in the administration. And youre going to say the appropriate thing at the appropriate time on your exit. Obviously, you have been critical of President Trump, and i know in your view you paid a price for it when he endorsed your opponent during a republican primary, and she defeated now narrowly. Do you think that Ambassador Haley has not stood up to President Trump sufficiently . Ive seen other people make the case that it was almost as if she was running a different Foreign Policy when it came to issues such as russia. Maybe there are a handful of very slight departures, but they have been nuanced at best. I think the reality of this administration again, in fairness to any administration out there, is that you have got to tow the line on the big things. And i think she has done so, just as every other cabinet member has done, based on the the absolute bearing that this president has on directions that he wants to go. So i dont begrudge her that. It just is what it is. What do you make of President Trump today when asked about people floating the idea of his daughter, ivanka trump, serving as u. N. Ambassador . He said there is no one who would be more competent than her. He did seem to bemoan the fact that appointing his daughter would lead to accusations of nepotism, i guess mainly because it would actually be nepotism. What did you make of him basically saying theres no one that would be better at the job than my daughter . Are you kidding me . I mean, the nature of the american political system is that weve got roughly a pool of 300 Million People to pull from, and we ought to. And there are a whole host of talented people, some with very considerable Foreign Policy experiences that could be pulled from with a post like this. And the idea of circling the wagons and saying, you know, were going to run this like a again, a Crime Organization is not the right example. Im not using that. But were just going to pick from family. Its crazy. That is again, its happened in a couple of instances in this country. It is the outlier, and i dont think its a model that should be replicated, ba us ecause it against this idea of meritocracy of ideas and instead to the idea of blood being the strongest of all ties. Ultimately, what ought to tie us together in the political environment is the merritt of her ideas and ability to advance those ideas in making arguments, rather than simply a blood tie. What do you make of people making the argument that nikki haley might be a strong republican candidate for president in 2024 . Well, i think thats the obvious. I think shes running. I dont think john lerner would be attached the way she is to him for as long as he has been. I mean, thats in essence his job. Thats what he focuses on, is the political world. And i it would seem to me she is running. I dont think you would find a lot of observers out there saying i dont think shes running. I mean, if it smells, tastes and looks like something, it probably is. In this instance, you could look at a lot of different markers laid out, well done on her part. Again, shes very competent, and she, again, has done a good job in this posting that lay out i think a very strong road to the presidency in 2024. Republican congressman, mark sanford of South Carolina, always good to see you. Please send my regards to your sons, marshal, landon, bobo and blake. Youre phenomenal to remember them. I appreciate it. Moments away from the next update on Hurricane Michael as it continues to make a beeline for the gulf coast. Stay with us. Hey, darryl hey hey, how much would you pay for something you dont want . Nothing. Is this a test . No. Do you like getting stuff you like for free . Yes. This feels like a test. Its not. vo get six months free apple music on the network you deserve. Now get up to 300 off our latest phones. Your dads gonna do you think youre coming back . [ dramatic music builds ] first man. Rated pg13. In the national lead, a race to save lives as Hurricane Michael gets ready to strike the gulf coast. This is a powerful category 2 storm, poised to gain more strength before it slams the Florida Panhandle. Evacuations currently under way as the governor, rick scott, makes this alarming prediction. Hes saying that Hurricane Michael might be the most destructive storm to hit the Florida Panhandle in decades. Lets go to allison chinchar. This hurricane is coming in strong and fast. Yes, absolutely. Were already starting to see some of those outer bands begin to skirt the florida coastline, as we speak. The track does make landfall across the Florida Panhandle late afternoon, early evening on wednesday, as a category 3 storm. It will quickly start to decrease those wind speeds as it pushes inland, but georgia, north, South Carolina, expected to be impacted. We are talking about consistent winds at the surface. A lot of tourist cities there along the florida coastline have a lot of highrises, hotels, condo buildings, things like that. And what the wind speed at the base is not the same as higher up. So when youre talking about a building 30 stories high, you start to notice an increase of those winds. Lets say hypothetically at the surface, 125 miles per hour. 30 stories up, that jumps to 150 miles per hour. So that can be an indicator of some of the damage that may take place, along some of those higher rise buildings. Storm surge is also going to be a concern. We have the storm surge warnings in effect, up and down the western coastline of florida, especially north of tampa, where we could see as high as 8 to 12 feet of storm surge. Even a city like tampa is expected to perhaps have that storm surge of about 2 to 4 feet. But in addition to that, we are also talking about the rain as this thing pushes inland, its going to take a lot of that rain with it to states like georgia, the coarolinas and towards virginia. Storm surge a big threat. We talked about tampa, as well. Here is the rain. Jake, the thing i want you to note, not just along the coastline, but also states like north and South Carolina, where we could see 4 to 6 inches of rain. The concern is you still have several river gauges that have not gotten back down to normal levels from florence, and now were adding more rain on top of it. Allison, thank you so much. Hurricane michael is forcing many candidates in florida to put a pause on politics at this very crucial time with only four weeks until the election exactly. Instead of campaigning for the u. S. Senate, republican governor rick scott is overseeing hurricane response in tallahassee, the capital. The incumbent senator, democratic senator, bill nelson, is trying to shore up federal emergency assistance. And the florida governors race to replace scott, the democratic candidate, Andrew Gillum announced hes going to focus on his day job as mayor of tallahassee, running against ron desantis, who is repurposing his Campaign Events into relief drives. Cnns ryan nobles is live in tallahassee, where all of the talk is on this hurricane. And ryan, we should note, politics has not stopped for every candidate. Reporter yeah, thats right, jake. You can see behind me, folks here preparing for this storm, filling sandbags, but even while they prepare for this storm, they really cant escape politics. As you mentioned, ron desantis, the republican candidate for governor, the former congressman, he and the Republican Party still running ads here, critical of the mayor of tallahassee, Andrew Gillum, democratic nominee for governor, because of his leadership in prior storms. Democrats say those attacks are unfair, but they really show just how high the stakes are in this race for governor between two candidates from opposite sides of the political spectrum, battling over the vote in one of the most important swing states in america. Aaron ward runs a barbecue food truck in one of the most important states on the midterm map, and he thinks floridans are sick and tired of both republicans and democrats. I think people are pretty much hammered with politics. Reporter political fatigue could be a big problem, especially for the two candidates for governor, who won their primaries by appealing to the bases of their respective parties. I believe were going to win this. Not by capitulating on what we believe. Reporter on the left is democrat Andrew Gillum, the mayor of tallahassee. He won his primary with the support of bernie sanders, calling for abolishing i. C. E. In its current form and plugging a multistate medicare for all plan. Gillum believes that policy portfolio will attract voters of all stripes. I actually think we talked about the issues through the primary, and will in the general that whether youre an independent or a reasonable thinking republican or a democrat, that you care about. Reporter gillum is drawing big crowds of enthusiastic democrats, such as tony and belva mcnair. Appreciate the support, yall. Reporter impressed with his bright blue politics and the fact hes promised to take on President Trump. Starts from trump ask goes down. Reporter for many floridans such as megan morris, just being opposed to trump isnt enough. So youre not a fan of trump, but you think the focus on him is too much. I think there is a lot of focus on him, probably more than any president ever. And i would like to see the issues addressed more. Reporter separating this race from the president wont be easy. Especially for the republican, ron desantis. Then mr. Trump said, youre fired. I love that part. Reporter desantis ran arm in arm with President Trump during the gop primary, opposing tax increases, supporting construction of a wall along the border with mexico, and voting to repeal the Affordable Care act while in the house. We need a governor who is going to work constructively with the Trump Administration to advance floridas priorities. Reporter he too has gop based voters fired up, and his republican supporters believe that desantis can attract middle of the road voters by just being himself. What people really need to listen and follow him for that. Because he was the best for the people. He was the best for florida. Reporter but at a time of fierce polarization, the middle lane in Florida Politics may be up for grabs. And for ward, who talks to voters every day, the candidate able to attract the middle and hold their bases effectively just might be the winner on the election day. How do you merge those together to come out to what is it this one state wants . Thats tough. Youre going to get a ton of different back grounds trying to merge. Sometimes they vote republican, sometimes they vote democrat, because its shifting, right . Absolutely. Reporter and back to how this impacts the storm. Ron desantis repurposing some of his Campaign Events. An event scheduled for veterans has become a relief drive, collecting goods for victims of the storm. And here people filling sandbags. Some decked out in Andrew Gillum for governor shirts. They are still thinking about politics. Jake . Four weeks until election day. Ryan nobles, thank you so much. Tune into cnn this month for special events leading up to the midterm elections. Next tuesday we host a debate between governor rick scott and bill nelson. Thursday, we host a town hall in texas with congressman beto orourke. And sunday, october 21st, i host the florida governors debate between mayor Andrew Gillum and congressman ron desantis. The surprising start to Justice Kavanaughs tenure at the Supreme Court after one of the most contentious confirmation battles in history. Stay with us. That kinda put us in a hole. Go someplace exotic . Yeah, bermuda. A hospital in bermuda. A hospital in bermuda. What . What happened . I got a little overconfident on a moped. Even with insurance, we had to dip into our 401 k so it set us back a little bit. Sometimes you dont have a choice. But it doesnt mean you cant get back on track. Great. Yeah, great. Id like to go back to bermuda. I hear its nice. Yeah, id like to see it. No judgment. Just guidance. Td ameritrade. When i walked through a snowthats when i knewtte, i had to quit. For real this time. Thats why im using nicorette. Only nicorette gum has patented dualcoated technology for great taste. Plus intense craving relief. Every great why, needs a great how. Your company is and the decisions you make have far reaching implications. The right relationship with a Corporate Bank who understands your industry and your world can help you make well informed choices and stay ahead of opportunities. Pnc brings you the resources of one of the nations largest banks, and a local approach with a focus on customized insights. So you and your company are ready for today. Justice Brett Kavanaugh making his presence known on his first day on the Supreme Court today. The newest justice laughing with colleagues as he settled into his new role. Despite the contentious, emotional and often quite ugly process of his confirmation. Cnns Jessica Schneider outside the Supreme Court. And jessica, we heard from Justice Kavanaugh today. What did he have to say . Reporter quite a bit, jake. Justice kavanaugh asked several questions, even chatted up his liberalleaning colleague, elena kagan. It was a cordial courtroom after a contentious confirmation fight. Newly confirmed Supreme Court justice, Brett Kavanaugh, wasting no time. The juniormost justice asked several questions on about seven different occasions during his first day on the bench. Chief Justice John Roberts started the session, saying it was a great pleasure to welcome kavanaugh to the court, and wished him a long and happy career in our calling. I, brett m. Kavanaugh reporter he was ceremonially sworn in monday night by the monday whose seat hes taking over, anthony kennedy. Justice kennedy was notably the courts swing vote. But Justice Kavanaugh could sit much farther to the right, both literally and figuratively. Hes expected to vote consistently with the conservative block on key issues like immigration, abortion, gun rights and health care. While also sitting in the most far right chair on the bench, right next to him, liberal justice, elena kagan, who hired him at Harvard Law School years ago. The atmosphere was cordial inside. Kavanaugh is not welcome here reporter while outside a handful of protesters persisted, expressing their outrage that kavanaugh has ascended to the nations highest court after allegations of Sexual Assault and misconduct. Kavanaugh tried to turn the page on the sharp partisan fight during his swearing in. The Senate Confirmation process was contentious and emotional. That process is over. Every american can be assured that i will be an independent and impartial justice. Devoted to equal justice under law. Reporter and Justice Kavanaugh even had his own cheering section of sorts inside the courtroom today. In the front row, Justice Anthony kennedy. Of course, Justice Kennedy retired earlier this summer, opening up that seat for Justice Kavanaugh. Jake, also in the front row watching, Justice Kavanaughs wife and two daughters. Jake . Jessica schneider at the court for us. Thank you so much. Obviously, were waiting to see how Brett Kavanaughs confirmation affects the mid terms. Republicans say their base is energized. A new cnn poll, however, shows democrats in a much better position in that generic congressional ballot. 54 of likely voters say they prefer the democrat district. 41 say they prefer the republican. Scott, this poll was partially taken after kavanaugh was confirmed. But it doesnt look like the brett bounce that republicans are talking about has manifested itself. Look, this is a little bit of an outlier to a rlot the nationl polls. I tend to look at the polling averages. Look, there is no doubt, its going to be an uphill battle for republicans to hold the house. Ive been realistic about that all year. Especially in these districts. Theres 25 that Hillary Clinton carried in 2016 that republicans represent in the congress. I do think an individual battleground polls, if you talk to strategists, theyre seeing some different results than the national generic. And in the big red rural Senate States, youre seeing, if you talk to people running those campaigns, republicans finally getting a sense of what life would be like if you let the angry mob take over. I think youre seeing in the big red rural Senate States a focus by republicans on whats at stake here. And nina, this is really interesting. Democrats dont just hold this generic advantage. Take a look at the breakdown of women voters. When asked about their choice for congress, 63 of women polled say they support a democratic candidate. 33 republicans. Does that surprise you . Not necessarily. And women have shown they are upset. Some would say mad as hell and theyre not going to take it any more. Jake, ive got to get back to something scott said. I know you wanted to. Theyre out there exercising their First Amendment right. They are not an angry mob. They looked angry to me. Clawing the front door of the Supreme Court. They have a right to show emotion in their disappointment, but calling them mobs in the way that the leader mcconnell has done is just wrong. Yeah. I mean, i just i remember the people of the civil rights movement, scott, im sure that folks didnt want civil rights to happen in this country for africanamericans called those people angry mobs. Without going to that era, one can say, look, when the Tea Party Revolution was going on, there were people who were paid to organize, and there were a lot of people who were angry. There were americans, same thing, going on here. I want you to take a look, if we can go back to the number with the women for a second. Majority of women are supporting a democrat in the generic ballot. We have to note, you know, numbers looked really good when it came to Hillary Clinton running against donald trump, too. Ultimately, donald trump lost women, but won white women. Right. Because the other thing, if you look at a national poll, thats not going to tell you whats going on in the state. What matters more, i think, when you look at the senate, is whats happening in those states. And where are democrats fighting . And unfortunately for a lot of them, theyre fighting in red states. And so in that that means its probably not going to be good for them. I think that republicans are definitely energized by it. We cant say, is everybody equally energized, right . But i think its fair to say democrats were very energized before this happened, and they were much more energized. And now we have two sides that are both pretty energized. And kaitlan, take a look at this. An interesting gender breakdown when it comes to Brett Kavanaugh. Cnn polls show only 29 of women have a positive impression of judge kavanaugh. 53 have a negative impression of Justice Kavanaugh. Compare that to men. Evenly split. 41 positive, 41 negative. And the white houses impression is that Brett Kavanaugh is going to help them with the midterm elections. President trump had become resigned to the fact that democrats could take back the house. He kept making these remarks, kind of preparing his supporters for it, saying it happens every time. Once a president of a Certain Party comes into power, they take back part of congress so he had been preparing them for that. Now with the kavanaugh drama, we see President Trump himself energize, and hes starting tonight in iowa. Four rallies on his calendar this week. He puts Brett Kavanaugh front and center, essentially saying, if you dont go out and vote for more republicans, we dont have enough of a majority, that this is going to continue to happen in the future. So hes trying to use that as a messaging tactic. The white house feels they have energized republicans with this. But whether or not they can sustain that energy for a month is a big question. Is that smart . I mean, if Brett Kavanaugh is under water with women voters, 29 like him. 53 have a negative impression. Is it smart for President Trump to make Brett Kavanaugh the you know, the rallying cry at his rallies . I think a gender gap already exists in this election. It was clear in all of the national polling. What was a problem was energy. Democrats have had energy since they lost to donald trump. They have been chomping at the bit to get to this election. Republicans were a little complacent. This focused in republicans on whats at stake. So their only hope in holding either chamber is to get enough republicans. There is enough popcorn in the bowl for republicans to hold this thing. They have just got to pop it. And that is what donald trump is trying to do. I think the other thing hes doing is making it about donald trump, not about Brett Kavanaugh. So hes basically saying, this is about me, and you have to come out and vote. He is once he injected himself into it, and instead of sort of being the handsoff, oh, shes an incredible person and got in there and became the street fighter and now got his people up, and weve got this for trump. Ultimately, Brett Kavanaugh is in the Supreme Court, which might ive heard people high paththise inflate democratic intensity. Is that what youre seeing in ohio . Just a little bit. Democrats are going to continue to be energized by this, no matter what. As we know, every election comes down to turnout, turnout, turnout. And i think democrats are going to have a pretty strong really strong turnout this midterm. If it were me and i were running one of these big campaigns somewhere, i would get video of this angry mob and put it in every one of my ads for the rest of the election. Oh, my god. Scott. Thats what it is. They have got to keep these republicans engaged. I actually think that if you really take a step back and sort of look at the wreckage of the last few weeks and try to be objective about it, i think the republicans probably won the messaging game. And its precisely because of what youre doing right there. The angry mob, the angry mob, the angry mob. Even though these were just peaceful protesters. They were. And people can be mad. Okay, im sorry. Five seconds left. Thanks so much for watching. Stay with cnn programming. Youve been watching the lead with jake tapper. Happening now, breaking news. Fast and furious. Hurricane michael. Growing stronger and barreling toward the florida coast. 20 Million People are under storm warnings and watches. And millions more could be impacted. We have a new forecast breaking this hour. Haylees comment. Ambassador to the United Nations nikki haley resigns. Dismissing speculation she might run for the white house in 2020. Why is the president giving her special treatment . Gender gap. Just weeks before the