battleground goes bionic? the lead starts right now. one of the most anticipated debates of the year. john fetterman versus mehmet oz as this political season kicks into overdrive for candidates nationwide. plus, distraction for democrats. the anger and outrage over a letter to president biden now retracted. and moscow shuts down an appeal to release brittney griner from a russian prison. is there any hope left to bring the wnba star home? welcome to the lead. we ll get to the midterms in just a moment. first, a significant step for the justice department and its investigation into the january 6th attack. sources tell cnn the doj is trying to force the testimony of pat cipollony and patrick philbin, the top two lawyers from donald trump s white house, and hear about their conversations with the former president. this is exclusive new reporting, so let s get right to cnn s sarah murray. this is an attempt to break through a firewall of sorts trump has used to avoid scr
ready to face-off. cnn is live in pennsylvania for the debate showdown between john fetterman and dr. mehmet oz. also tonight, president biden is warning russia that it would be a serious mistake to use a tactical nuclear weapon, vladimir putin raising new fears about his war plans as moscow doubles down on its disputed claim that ukraine is planning to deploy a dirty bomb. and corporate america turns on kanye west for his antis-semitic remarks. we ll take a closer look at the impact as adidas and the gap cut ties with the controversial rapper also known as yay. welcome to the viewers in the united states and around the world. i m wolf blitzer. you re the situation room. let s get straight to the midterm countdown right now. we re just, what, two weeks, two weeks out from election day. candidates in a slew of pivotal contests preparing to clash in high stakes debates tonight with millions of voters already casting their ballots early. cnn congressional correspondent jes