A CNN anchor used Monday’s broadcast to complain that coverage of the September 11 anniversary had become entangled with a Senate contest in Michigan, saying the day’s solemn purpose was being overshadowed by political sparring.
On “CNN This Morning,” host Audie Cornish said she wanted to focus on honoring the victims of the 2001 attacks but felt unable to because the conversation kept turning to the Michigan Senate race. “I can’t because we want to talk about the Michigan Senate race,” Cornish said. “It’s not that I don’t think that people who are upset about Hasan Piker can’t be upset. What I don’t understand is, is 9/11 not so massive on its own that we don’t need to drag random Senate races into it?”
The segment took place amid discussion of appearances by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Vice President JD Vance at 9/11 commemorations. Republican strategist Katie Frost argued that Democrats face a political liability tied to the attacks. “No one in the Republican Party has been seen campaigning with someone who said America deserved 9/11,” Frost said. “This is a serious issue that Democrats are having to answer for, particularly in Michigan, where you see the brother of the pilot who was on the plane that was flown into the Twin Towers is now doing an ad for Mike Rogers.”
Cornish pressed further, saying she was more interested in whether the country is safer now than it was in 2001 than in the political back-and-forth. “I understand what you’re saying,” she told Frost. “What I — the footprint I think I’m processing is, we’re in the middle where we’re concerned about AI cyberattacks. There [have] been some attacks by Iran on water. We have the 9/11 event itself, [in] which, thousands of people died, and I want to honor them, but I can’t because we want to talk about the Michigan Senate race… I can’t actually get an answer about whether we are better off — safer today than we were then. I cannot get that answer. Because I have spent the entire time hearing about a mayor who’s been in office for less than six months.”
Frost responded that the country has, in fact, made progress on that front. “I would say we are safer than we were,” she said. “And if you had gone back 25 years ago and said there would never be another significant terrorist attack on American soil in 25 years, no one probably would have believed you.”
Cornish returned to her original frustration, arguing the anniversary deserved to stand on its own rather than be folded into election-year politics. “But why not take that win? Why spend this time spinning our wheels looking at foolishness that has nothing to do with whether or not we’re safe or the lives of those people?” she said. “It’s been a news story that’s been, like, actually driving me legitimately crazy… why isn’t it okay for 9/11 to be 9/11? Why does 9/11 have to be 2026 midterms?”
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