Hurricane Michael To Strike Florida Panhandle As A Major Hurricane; CNN Reality Check: President Trump's Best Week Ever?
CAMEROTA: President Trump is on a political winning streak, so do the numbers back up those recent successes? CNN senior political analyst John Avlon joins us with a CNN "Reality Check." What's the reality, John?</s>JOHN AVLON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Here's the reality, Ali. Four weeks from today, voters will be heading to the polls and just in time, the reality show president can claim his best week ever. There's no denying it. Trump's been on a bit of a winning streak in big areas of jobs, trade, and judges, which his party could definitely use after trailing in the polls. So let's start with jobs, always the core promise of Trump's presidency. On Friday, new job numbers came out showing a nearly 50- year low in the unemployment rate, hitting 3.7 percent in September. You've got to go all the way back to 1969 -- Woodstock -- to find a lower unemployment rate. And while it's fair to point out that this is the culmination of an 8- year recovery, this new low is on Trump's watch and that's great news for the country. Also, Trump fulfilled a major campaign promise successfully renegotiating NAFTA, rebranding it the USMCA. Now, this is no revolution. The basic premise remains intact but Trump played hardball and gave concessions that benefit workers. In particular, at least 75 percent of car parts will need to be made in North America and at least 40 percent of cars will be built by workers making at least $16 an hour by 2023. There are improved protections for intellectual property and increased access to Canadian markets for dairy farmers. All good news. Finally, of course, judges. With the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh, Trump can claim two Supreme Court seats. As many justices in two years as President Obama got in eight, thanks to the unprecedented obstruction of Merrick Garland. Yes, this was the narrowest confirmation vote in over a century and the court is more politicized than at any time in living memory, but a win is a win no matter how ugly. And with that, Trump made good on his promise to social conservatives who overlooked his personal behavior on the premise that he'd appoint the right judges. Now, the Supreme Court will have a decided conservative tilt for the foreseeable future. And that's not all. Trump and Senate Republicans have pushed through 69 judges to higher courts, more than any recent president. Add to this an increasingly tough line with China, including an ongoing trade war, continued talks with North Korea, and his passionate pen pal Kim Jong Un. Plus, a comparatively taped (ph) Twitter finger and you've got to acknowledge a presidency that's hitting its stride and delivering for his base. So it should come as no surprise that Trump has seen a job approval bump, gaining five points in the past month. But, before the White House uncorks a bottle of Trump wine to celebrate, it's still the lowest approval rating for any president on record at this point in their term, according to Gallup, and that's with a booming economy. So, cold shower alert. Heading into the midterms, a president with below 50 percent approval rating has lost an average of 37 seats in the House. But this unprecedented president knows a thing or two about defying polls and political history, and Trump can now credibly claim his best week ever and point to some big wins coming down the stretch. And that's your "Reality Check."</s>CAMEROTA: Really interesting, John. Maybe that's why people are so tired. They really are tired of winning.</s>BERMAN: You know Kaitlin Collins said --</s>AVLON: Or a second cup of coffee.</s>CAMEROTA: Yes.</s>BERMAN: Kaitlin Collins noted though, John -- it was interesting -- that if you're talking about the president's best week ever, that was the week when that "New York Times" had that giant expose on his finances and the fact that he wasn't exactly as self-made as he always claimed to be, so that's interesting.</s>AVLON: A lot of big stories that should have really hit and hurt, but the other stories -- the big narratives were elsewhere. So those big stories may still get him in the end. They may snowball their impact. But the attention was elsewhere on Kavanaugh, on Ford, and Trump benefitted from that momentum.</s>BERMAN: All right, John Avlon. Thank you very much. We do have some breaking news on Hurricane Michael, now a category two storm, so let's get the latest forecast now.</s>ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.</s>CAMEROTA: All right. Good morning, everyone. Welcome to your NEW DAY. It is Tuesday, October ninth, 8:00 in the east. We do begin with breaking news because the National Hurricane Center says Hurricane Michael has intensified in just the past few moments into a category two storm. Forecasters say it will continue to strengthen to a major hurricane before making landfall in the Florida Panhandle tomorrow. These are live pictures that you are looking at right now. You can see the surf kicking up. This is Panama City Beach. This, of course, is well ahead of the storm so people are still sprinkled on the beach a little bit there, though there is a mandatory evacuation now in effect for that very spot. Governor Rick Scott has a dire warning. He calls Hurricane Michael a monstrous storm that could bring total devastation. Millions of people are now under evacuation orders in at least 10 counties ahead of this hurricane.</s>BERMAN: And in 90 minutes, Justice Brett Kavanaugh will sit on the bench of the Supreme Court for the first time. Overnight, he took part in a White House ceremony.