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Forget Thanksgiving, Let's Shop; The Rise Of "Brown Thursday" Shopping; Whole Foods Workers Protest Thanksgiving Hours; Pizza Hut Manager Offered Job Back After Being Fired For Not Opening On Thanksgiving; Macy's Parade Balloons Are Flying; "The War On Thanksgiving"; Mayor Gets A Second Chance
Aired November 28, 2013 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. Thanks for spending part of your holiday with me. Now grab your wallets and watch your elbows because it's time to shop. Doors at Kmarts across the country have flown open and the deals are pouring in. They opened at 6:00 am Eastern all for a chance to save a few bucks as we head into the holiday season.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why are you doing this to yourself?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just for the deals, you know, a couple hundred dollars going to help you out.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What did you buy?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A television, 32-inch.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How much did you pay for this?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's $179.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Bargain, 33 million shoppers are expected to ring up sales today, out among them, our own Nick Valencia, joining us from Kmart in Mapleton, Georgia. Good morning.
NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. Happy Thanksgiving, Carol. We got out here pretty early this morning. It was about 22 degrees. It felt more like 17. That was not enough to stop about 30 people from lining up. I spoke to the guy who was the first in line who got here at 11:00 pm last night. I asked him why he was doing it. He said, quite simply, it's the deals.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VALENCIA (voice-over): Black Friday has morphed into Black Thursday. Kmart, one of the handfuls of retailers open for business on Thanksgiving.
(on camera): You guys ready for it? UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think so. Yes, we're excited about it.
VALENCIA: For those who think it's something new, Kmart has been doing this for over 20 years. More retailers have followed suit and that's no coincidence according to the National Retail Federation.
KATHY GRANNIS, NATIONAL RETAIL FEDERATION: Shoppers still want to shop on Black Friday and get those amazing deals. We don't expect Black Friday to ever lose its lustre. There is a new player in town. Thanksgiving is certainly giving Black Friday a run for its money.
VALENCIA: Of the nearly 140 million people expected to shop this holiday weekend, nearly a quarter will hit the stores Thanksgiving Day.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm out here to get some great deals, man.
VALENCIA: Outside of Best Buy in Florida, tents were in place more than a week in advance of the sales. Just how serious are they? This man brought a generator to run his many electronics.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They do it every year and every year I say the exact same thing. It's just crazy.
VALENCIA: Crazy is one word for it. Angry is another. On change.org, more than 100,000 people petitioned Target to stay closed for the holiday, writing, quote, "Families should be more important than corporate greed or materialism and because it's the right thing to do." Back in Kmart in Mableton, Georgia, Store Manager Bill Bonsor says working on Thanksgiving is no bother. For him, it's about meeting the customer demand.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One thing to understand this year, we have one less week for shopping between Thanksgiving and Christmas than we did last year.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VALENCIA: Kmart could be getting credit for starting this Black Thursday craze. They've been doing this for over 20 years. This year, they're going to be doing it a little differently. They're not closing at all. Open for 41 hours, Carol. If you're bored after your shift, you can come out here and join me in Mapleton and check out the deals here.
COSTELLO: No, no. I vow never, never to shop on Thanksgiving. I can't imagine doing that. First of all, I'm going to go home and watch football. I'm going to eat a lot. I'm not going to feel like moving. I just don't understand it.
VALENCIA: That 70-inch TV, you could come out here. They have a lot of TV sales. That's what everyone here is showing up for.
COSTELLO: Well, maybe I should.
VALENCIA: You can get in line like the rest of them. COSTELLO: Nick Valencia, happy Thanksgiving. Thanks so much.
VALENCIA: You, too, Carol.
COSTELLO: Thanks. The idea of being without family for the holiday certainly not something everyone supports. Last night, Dozens turned out in Chicago to protest Whole Foods deficient to stay open on Thanksgiving Day.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We stock the food. We prepare the food in many cases and we also deserve to participate in the holiday.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Protesting employees are being backed by a local union group. Whole Foods says Thanksgiving hours are voluntary and those who do work will be paid time and a half.
In Indiana, Pizza Hut manager who says he was fired by franchise owners for refusing to open on Thanksgiving Day has now been offered his job back. Tony Rohr says when he refused to Thanksgiving hours for his employees, he was asked to write a letter of resignation. Rohr says Thanksgiving is important. Come on.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TONY ROHR, PIZZA HUT MANAGER: Thanksgiving and Christmas are the only two days that they're closed in the whole year. There are only two days that those people are guaranteed to have off to spend with their families.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Pizza Hut's corporate office now says it was an error in judgment to fire that guy. No word on whether Rohr has accepted the offer to stay on.
In much of country, temperatures are below freezing this holiday morning. Here in Atlanta, it is the coldest Thanksgiving morning in more than 100 years. CNN's Jennifer Gray joins us. At least we're not alone in our misery.
JENNIFER GRAY, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I know, most of the country very, very cold. Even the Florida Panhandle in the 30s this morning and the northeast, of course, no different. New York City right now at 31 degrees, we are at 33 in Providence, Boston at 34, D.C. at 34 as well. Winds are starting to relax just a little bit, 9-mile-per-hour winds in New York with gusts up to 26. In Philly, 17-mile-per-hour winds with gusts at 28 and, finally coming down in Boston, we saw 40-mile- per-hour gusts early this morning. Now that is starting to taper off as well.
But when you factor in the windchill, it is cold, cold in the northeast, feeling like the low 20s. It feels like 23 degrees in New York and feeling like 13 in Pittsburgh, 25 in D.C. and it's going to stay pretty chilly all across the nation, throughout the rest of the day into tonight.
If you are heading out shopping, maybe you're already shopping or heading out first thing in the morning. Look at that up north. International falls, 18 degrees by tomorrow morning, 28 in Chicago, and here is what it looks like for Saturday. The nation is going to start to get a little closer to normal as we get through the weekend.
We'll still see cool temperatures, though, in the 50s across the south and possibly 65 in New Orleans on Sunday and we'll see temperatures around 52 in Albuquerque. I took a peek out the window at the parade just a few moments ago and a lot of happy campers out there that those balloons are flying.
COSTELLO: You're so right. Thank you so much. In fact, we're going to take a look right now because the parade is now underway and those giant balloons are up in the air although they're flying a few feet lower than normal because of the wind. But at least they're flying, as Jennifer Gray said, it's really cold outside. That doesn't bother Jason Carroll because he does this every year, and I know you enjoy it.
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. You're absolutely right, Carol. We have to keep this in perspective. They are flying, a little lower than normal. Take, for example, Spiderman, who is making his way down along Central Park here. Spiderman is flying much lower, I would say, than normal. Compared to what I've seen in years past.
But at least he is out here flying. He is one of 16 giant helium balloons that made it into the Thanksgiving Day Parade this year. As you know, there was some talk about whether or not these balloons would make it. The weather has actually turned out to be just perfect. The crowds are enormous.
People coming in here from Long Island, I was going to say Connecticut. You thought I was going to, but I said Long Island. We love Alabama, Alabama here as well. Mexico is back here. Hello, Mexico and also here, Tulsa, Oklahoma, this family here. You actually had people who were in the parade.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, my husband is one of the directors for Union Band.
CARROLL: So what did you think of the parade so far? Again, there was talk about whether or not the balloons would make it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're terrific.
CARROLL: Looking good. Any favorites so far?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Everything. Everything.
CARROLL: That was the right answer. How about you kids, anything you like that you've seen so far?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Spongebob.
CARROLL: Live television. It's a scary thing, my man. It is a scary thing. We all do the best we can. Thank you very, very much. Have a happy, happy Thanksgiving. Once again, Carol, the parade is about halfway through, still a bit more to go, still a lot of balloons to see. Everyone out here having a great time.
COSTELLO: Quit scaring children, Jason Carroll! That was really cute. I think that woman's brain was frozen. She couldn't think because it's so cold outside.
CARROLL: I know. I know. I put her on the spot. I feel bad, sort of.
COSTELLO: No, no, they look like they're having a bunch of fun. Thanks, Jason. We'll get back to you.
CARROLL: Yes.
COSTELLO: Still to come in the NEWSROOM, you heard about the war on Christmas. Hear why some are saying there's actually a war on Thanksgiving. We'll talk about that, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Checking our top stories at 13 minutes past the hour. Scary, right? A nine-hour standoff between a barricaded gunman and police in California now over. The gunman took his girlfriend and her teenage daughter hostage. He fired at police when they arrived on the scene. One officer was hit and another injured during a fall. Two hostages are safe this morning. No word on a motive.
Bare Naked Ladies has cancelled an upcoming concert at Sea World after watching the CNN documentary "Black Fish." It tells the story of a Sea World trainer who was killed at orca in 2010. After the Bare Naked Ladies concert was announced fans started an online petition asking the band to back out of the show. In a Facebook post, band members said they didn't feel comfortable performing at the venue, so they cancelled.
For the first time in 20 years, people in Oklahoma can enjoy Black Friday in their own state. State lawmakers repealed a law that forbade retailers from selling items for less than they paid. Until now stores had to mark up items by at least 6 percent.
Many of us will be enjoying this Thanksgiving holiday with friends and family and, of course, lots and lots of food. But for employees at Wal-Mart, Target and other big-name stores, today is very much a day on, not off, as retailers cash in. It's all part of what my next guest calls the war on Thanksgiving.
And in a column for the "Daily Beast," he writes in part, opening retail chain is a stake through the heart of the holiday. Just to be clear, if you shop at a retail chain on Thanksgiving Day, you're contributing to people not being with their families. Think of that as you reach for that greatly reduced holiday sweater at Kmart," end quote.
Dean Obeidallah is a contributor for "The Daily Beast" and a political comedian. He joins me now from New York. Good morning.
DEAN OBEIDALLAH, CONTRIBUTOR, "THE DAILY BEAST": Good morning. Happy Thanksgiving. I'm sorry you're working.
COSTELLO: Me, too. But, OK, let's get right into it. I'm going to be a little cantankerous. Come on, a war on Thanksgiving? Is that really what it is?
OBEIDALLAH: Look, all we hear day in and day out in the holiday is the war on Christmas. People complain about it, write books on it to make money. This war, frankly, the war on Thanksgiving has a casualty, American families. On Thanksgiving Day, approximately 1 million people have to leave their homes to go to or report to work at retail chains. This is not something that's been going on for generations.
This is new. We have stores opening for the first time ever such as Wal-Mart opening earlier at 6:00 pm. You have stores opening for the first time all day, Kmart, Target opening all day. You have the Gap opening for people who desperately need those khaki pants. It's inconsiderate to families who want to spend their time together on this special day.
The vice president at Costco, a store which will be closed Thanksgiving really said it best I think. He said our employees work especially hard during the holiday season and we simply believe that they deserve the opportunity to spend Thanksgiving with their families and that's what my point is.
COSTELLO: Well, I think that's very nice of Costco and those other stores, but let's be clear about this. This is a profitable endeavour. Last year, Wal-Mart reported its best-ever Black Friday, selling 5,000 items every single second and they're going to do well on Thanksgiving Day. So, don't fool yourself. They're going to make lots and lots of money. So, why wouldn't they open a day earlier especially in these depressed economic times?
OBEIDALLAH: Why wouldn't they open all day Thanksgiving 24/7? At some point you have to balance profits with sensitivity. There are 27 other shopping days between now and Christmas. There's Black Friday, the whole day --
COSTELLO: But this isn't a religious holiday.
OBEIDALLAH: Right. And I think it's actually more important. I think Thanksgiving frankly is the quintessential American holiday. It's not about faith or ethnicity or political persuasion. It brings us all together. Honoring and recognizing a day to give thanks. I don't think our current Congress could even agree on that, frankly. It's been a day that we come together. We give thanks. Spent time with your family, which can be painful.
COSTELLO: You can spend time together in the store, shopping. OBEIDALLAH: You can shop online, Carol. People are like, I've got to shop. Today's my day to shop. Sit around the computer. You can post things on Facebook. You can shop all day. The stores should have a little bit of concern and I think compassion, frankly, for their workers. It's not just me saying this.
If people Googled Thanksgiving Day workers upset, you'll find pages and pages of news stories of workers from red states, blue states, everywhere in between, Target employees have a petition, over 100,000 people signed. They don't want to work.
COSTELLO: Here is the thing, Dean. Employees don't want to work. They're upset. Shoppers aren't upset. By and large, thousands and thousands of people going to head out on Thanksgiving morning or Thanksgiving late afternoon and they'll go to the store and it's like the people have spoken. There's no going back now.
OBEIDALLAH: I think there is because this year is the first year we have this numerous new chains opening up and it's all about business. Carol, you're right. It's all about making money. I get that. You can still make the money if you're a big chain and you are a CEO who is not going to be at the store with your workers, but probably with your family on Thanksgiving.
Why not let your workers have that same sort of family structure at a time when you can all unite, sit there, talk about loved one whose have passed, like I do about my father. It's an important day to many, many families. You can still make money. Why does it have to be four, five hours in the middle of Thanksgiving?
Why not start it at midnight on Black Friday, as they did for many in the past. You're taking away workers from their families. If you have it where people volunteer and want to work, that's one thing. Employees are complaining of being essentially forced to work for fear of losing their jobs, being docked a day of pay or potentially hurting their career advancement.
COSTELLO: Dean Obeidallah, thanks for the debate this morning. I appreciate it.
OBEIDALLAH: Thanks, Carol.
COSTELLO: Spirited one. Here's to you, Dean.
Still to come, Boston's mayor elect hits rock bottom and gets a second chance.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Drinking a lot, drinking almost every night of the week, but going to work, functioning, functioning alcoholic.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Martin Walsh's journey from detox to head of one of America's largest city. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi. My name is (inaudible) Jones. I'm stationed at Marine Corps Air Station in South Carolina with Marine Wing Squadron 273. I would like to wish my mom, dad and little brother in Alabama a happy thanksgiving.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: These days when a politician talks addiction, it's usually on the way out of office. Not so for Boston mayor-elect, Martin Walsh. He's on his way in. He sat down with CNN's Poppy Harlow and shared his story of addiction and redemption.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARTIN WALSH (D), BOSTON MAYOR-ELECT: You made Boston a place of comebacks and second chances.
POPPY HARLOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Martin Walsh wasn't shaping up to be mayor of Boston.
(on camera): You drove drunk?
WALSH: Yes.
HARLOW: Blacked out?
WALSH: Yep.
HARLOW: Got kicked out of a Bruins game?
WALSH: Couple of times. I didn't have a shut-off valve. When the party was over, I didn't want to go home.
HARLOW (voice-over): He dropped out of college to work construction.
WALSH: Drinking a lot, almost every night of the week, but going to work. I was functioning, functioning alcoholic.
HARLOW: He says at 22, he was arrested after a night of drinking, for what he calls being a punk. He hit bottom in 1995.
WALSHI: Three-day bender that wasn't good and then the following Monday that I went to work, my boss suggested I make a phone call that I didn't want to make and they recommended I go inpatient to detox. I had no intention of doing that.
HARLOW (on camera): You were making the call to make him happy?
WALSH: Just to make him happy.
HARLOW (voice-over): Now he is 18 years sober, he was a state representative for 16 years and went back to night school to get his college degree at age 42. It was a narrow victory for Walsh with significant ties to labor, critics question whether he can fairly negotiate with unions. So did votes from the recovery community tip the balance in his favor?
WALSH: I think it helped. Part of getting elected is your story. People say he's promoting stuff. I don't.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was a rally before the election and, wow, most of these people were in recovery.
HARLOW: Recovering addict, James Taylor, vividly remembers the day he met Walsh nine years ago.
JAMES TAYLOR, RECOVERING ADDICT AND WALSH SUPPORTER: It was a Sunday and it was 13 degrees below zero. He said get your bags. You're going with me.
HARLOW (on camera): Where did he take you?
TAYLOR: To the Hello house.
HARLOW: The halfway house?
TAYLOR: Right.
HARLOW: What did he do for you?
TAYLOR: He saved my life. I believe God put him there that day to help me specifically.
HARLOW: That's when you started getting sober?
TAYLOR: Exactly.
HARLOW: Another Walsh supporter Caroletta Shaw-Boyd is now 13 years clean, after beating her addiction to crack cocaine.
CAROLETTA SHAW-BOYD, FORMER ADDICT AND WALSH SUPPORTER: I think that him being in recovery will broaden the horizon of people who he understands. Will it make him a better mayor or a better person? I couldn't say that. But in order for you to understand where I'm at and where I've been, you have to have gone through what I've gone through.
HARLOW (on camera): Do addicts still call you for help?
WALSH: I got a call yesterday, trying to help somebody get into a halfway house.
HARLOW (voice-over): He says he'll keep taking those calls as mayor and keep going to AA meetings. He has had his second chance.
WALSH: If you told me in detox that I was going to be sitting down 18-1/2 years later, having an interview on CNN as the mayor-elect of Boston, I don't know what I would say. I would probably say, yes, OK.
HARLOW: Now he has to prove himself to the people of Boston.
WALSH: Anything is possible if you get sober.
HARLOW: Poppy Harlow, CNN, Boston.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: What an amazing story. Thanks to Poppy Harlow for that.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM, empty carts? Not for long. You're looking live at the CNN cartcam from Kmart in Burbank, California. Kyung Lah takes a shopping after a break.
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