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Flights Delayed Due to Weather Conditions across U.S.; Shoppers across U.S. Taking Advantage of Sales after Thanksgiving to Make Purchases for Holiday Season; Man Who Fell Off Cruise Ship in Gulf of Mexico Rescued after Approximately 15 Hours; Singer/Songwriter Irene Cara Dies. Aired 10-11a ET

Aired November 26, 2022 - 10:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[10:00:00]

MICHAEL SMERCONISH, CNN ANCHOR: They kept it all together, a well- regulated militia. OK, so it's pretty damn clear to me that this is militia speak. And if you're not living in an era of a militia, then you don't have that unfettered right. That's the conclusion.

Hope you had a great Thanksgiving. Thank you for watching. I will see you back here next Saturday.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. It's 10:00 a.m. and Saturday, November 26th. I'm Sara Sidner in for Amara Walker.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Sara, great to be with you. I'm Boris Sanchez. You are live in the CNN Newsroom. Thanks for joining us.

SIDNER: Well, it could be a stormy Saturday for the millions of travelers trying to get home after the Thanksgiving holiday. AAA estimates 55 million people traveled for Thanksgiving. Those numbers are nearing pre-pandemic levels. Good for the economy, might be rough on travelers as airports face a huge surge that they are expecting on Sunday.

SANCHEZ: Yes. Mother Nature could complicate the return home for people in the air and on the road. Nearly 900 flights already delayed across the United States. That number only expected to climb.

Let's go to the CNN Weather Center with meteorologist Allison Chinchar who has been tracking the latest developments for us. Allison, where is this weather headed?

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Right, so really you have got a lot of different spots because we have got multiple different systems. We've got heavy rain, severe thunderstorms, and snow. It just depends on where you are going to or coming from that could cause some travel problems. The main system right here across the center portion of the country, that's where we have the heavy rain and even the chance for severe thunderstorms. But that's going to be sliding its way into the northeast in the next 24 hours. Our secondary system in the western half of the country, that's going

to be sliding back into the center portion of the country. So for some areas you are going to get hit both days with some travel problems as we continue to go through the next 24 to 48 hours.

Here's a look at the areas where we anticipate delays for today in terms of the air. Dallas, Memphis, Atlanta, Kansas City, even out into the west, places like Seattle as well as Salt Lake may also be looking at the potential for some delays today. The main focus if you are on the roadways is going to be down towards the Gulf Coast region. Houston finally starting to see a lot of the heaviest rain showers begin to wrap up. It's still raining in Dallas, same thing for Oklahoma City. We're starting to see that heavy line push in through Shreveport towards New Orleans and then again making its way up towards Little Rock.

This is not a very fast-moving system. It also has a tremendous amount of moisture, which means the potential for flooding does exist from Houston all the way over through Pensacola and up into Little Rock. Similar geographical area also looking at the potential for some severe thunderstorms today as well.

Here's a look at the system, through, as we go through the rest of the day. Notice by tonight and early Sunday now it's starting to spread into the Ohio valley portions of the Midwest, also the eastern portion of that southeast region. So cities like Atlanta, Charlotte, but also Cincinnati, Chicago, Cleveland also looking at some very heavy rain at times.

By tomorrow, especially tomorrow morning in the afternoon, now you are starting to focus more that concern into the northeast. So, yes, unfortunately, that means New York, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., guys, all of those cities have the potential for some delays as well.

SIDNER: Allison, Allison Chinchar, even though that is depressing, your hair is giving me life. I love the curls.

(LAUGHTER)

SIDNER: Thank you so much for that.

Shoppers have spent billions shopping for deals since Thanksgiving morning, and the spending spree is expected to continue through Cyber Monday.

SANCHEZ: Yes, inflation, though, means less bang for your buck. We want to bring in a guest now who is an expert at retail analysis. We have Dana Tessley (ph) with us -- Telsey, with us, I should say. She is a retail analyst and CEO of the Telsey Advisory Group. Thank you for sharing part of your weekend with us, Dana. Obviously, inflation a major concern around the country for shoppers. But it doesn't appear that it's stopping people from actually going out and spending, right?

DANA TELSEY, CEO, TELSEY ADVISORY GROUP: Exactly. Thank you for having me. It is not stopping people from spending. Keep in mind this is a long holiday season. Christmas is on a Sunday. People haven't celebrated the holidays for nearly two years. So there you have the big travel statistics before. People are gathering. What they are doing, they are buying occasion apparel and they're searching for value. With the high inventory levels that retailers had, consumers know there is goods out there, there is goods out there for a deal, and they are going to keep getting deals all holiday season long.

SANCHEZ: Yes. So, obviously, last year one of the major concerns was supply chain issues caused by the pandemic. It left a lot of stores with fewer items to sell. Do you think that retailers have fully rebounded from the pandemic?

[10:05:07]

TELSEY: It's a world of difference between this year and last year. As you said, last year you went in the stores, there wasn't enough goods on the shelves. Consumers knew they had to shop early. This year a complete reversal. There's more than enough goods. Retailers have to move goods through the season. They are over-inventoried. Goods arrived at the wrong time. Retailers have too much. The promotions are there, especially in the areas that cater to some of the lower to middle income consumers, that's where you are going to find some of the biggest deals.

SANCHEZ: So that's what I wanted to ask you about. What retail categories do you think we are going to see really succeed this holiday season and which ones do you think might disappoint?

TELSEY: For the ones that are going to succeed, where consumers are going for gatherings, people are buying cosmetics giving they are going out, they want to look their best. They are buying occasion- oriented apparel. That's working. There continues to be no stopping of luxury goods given the product innovation that's there. And where there is headwinds right now, some of the teen apparel areas. The teens don't have the flexibility of income and as much spending power certainly as their parents. So they have pulled back and they are looking to go out on experiences and go out and have fun, maybe, rather than buying goods itself. I think you are going to see some of the best deals with some of the teen apparel retailers and some of the mid-tier retailers out there.

SANCHEZ: Interesting. We'll keep that in mind. Notably, a lot of folks are dipping into their savings. They're using credit to make a lot of big-ticket purchases. Is that something you would recommend, or do you think it's probably better for consumers to hold off on that kind of spending, especially considering some of the economic uncertainty in the future?

TELSEY: Keep in mind consumers got a lot of stimulus dollars. They spent those stimulus dollars. They do have savings. And right now the job market, if you want a job, you can get a job. So it all depends on what the consumer's priorities are. But I think overall you have to watch your savings and be careful, especially at a time when daily living expenses are moving higher. Gasoline, rent are all higher today than they were a year or two ago, and so you have to be able to satisfy your daily living needs first. SANCHEZ: I have also seen some intense debate online. Some folks are

saying that Black Friday doesn't really exist anymore, that now you can find deals online all the time. Some folks are actually suggesting that customers should wait until December to make some of their holiday purchases. Where do you fall in that argument?

TELSEY: Here's what I'm thinking. I think the Black Friday deals began at the beginning of the week or even before then when we had the second Amazon Prime day in October and you had Target, Walmart, and Old Navy all participating in big discounts, the deals were there. You had more retailers participating in more deals this past week because it's Black Friday.

But with Christmas on a Sunday, the deals are only going to be maintained if not increased, and with Christmas on a Sunday you'll have that Friday and Saturday shop, too. It's up to the consumer how they want to shop and when they want to shop. But I do believe they are going back to stores. I think it's a social occasion. They have fun doing it, at least I do. It's a victory to carry a shopping bag. And I think we are going to see in-person shopping matter for holiday 2022.

SANCHEZ: It is something of a victory to feel like you got what you went out to get, right? Especially when so many other people are competing for the same item. Dana Telsey, thank you so much for the time.

TELSEY: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Of course.

SIDNER: The spending spree is expected to continue through Cyber Monday as shoppers hunt for deals and discounts. Let's go to CNN's Gloria Pazmino. She is in New York. Let's see that beautiful Christmas spirit out there, holiday spirit. What are you hearing from shoppers where you are right now?

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Sara, I don't know when you guys like to do your holiday shopping, but if you are like one of millions of Americans you are going to try to do some of that holiday shopping this weekend. Macy's right here behind me just opened its doors a few minutes ago, and there was a little bit of a crowd lined up outside those doors waiting to get in.

Now, the National Retail Federation put out some numbers on this just a couple of days ago, and it shows that there will be a significant increase this year in the number of people that will be out there shopping, 166 million Americans expected to go out there and do their holiday shopping. That's an increase from the previous year when there was 158 million. So we are seeing that increase despite what you were just discussing, the fact that the economy is very much in flux and that inflation and higher prices are still very much a concern for a lot of people.

[10:10:02] But all points, all signs so far point to the fact that this will be a relatively strong shopping season considering everything else about the economy. Now, this weekend, Black Friday was yesterday, now it's Saturday. Some people may have more time off. They are hitting those stores. Today there is an estimate that at least 60 million people will go out there and shop. We spoke to one of those shoppers just few minutes ago who told me that this is a tradition for him. And, yes, he is a little bit thinking about the economy, but he is still out here making sure his tradition takes place and spending that money.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FRANK CORNACHIONE, TRAVELED FROM RHODE ISLAND TO SHOP FOR THE HOLIDAYS: We come every year on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and we leave on Saturday. We shop a lot around the city. We do Macy's, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Bloomingdale's. We love it.

PAZMINO: Considering inflation and some things have gone up and some may be a little bit struggling, is that in the back of your mind, or?

CORNACHIONE: No, not at all. I don't mind spending money. It's once a year and you only live once.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAZMINO: So that's one way of looking at it. You only live once, it's the holidays, you want to spend that money if you are able to do so. We are certainly seeing activities starting to pick up here this morning. As I said, a decent crowd of shoppers just rushed into those doors, and we expect to see more of that throughout the day. Sara, Boris?

SANCHEZ: Gloria Pazmino, looking forward to see what you get Sara and I for the holidays.

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: Thanks so much, Gloria.

So we have a Thanksgiving miracle to tell you about. A 28-year-old guy who was rescued after he fell overboard on a Carnival cruise ship and spent hours and hours, up to 15 hours, floating in the Gulf of Mexico. He is now recovering and in stable condition this morning.

SIDNER: It's unreal. And take a look at this video released by the U.S. Coast Guard showing the moment that authorities finally located him in the water. He can be seen bobbing in the water desperate for help before being hoisted to safety. CNN's Nadia Romeo has been following the details for us. Nadia, what more can you tell us?

NADIA ROMERO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is really remarkable, right, Sara and Boris. And usually if you think of someone going overboard on a cruise ship that they are a goner. But a U.S. Coast Guard member said never underestimate the will to live. And perhaps that's what we're dealing with here in this case. So let's talk about the timeline. This was supposed to be a cruise

with family for this young man and his sister to go on a cruise starting from New Orleans, and their first stop was Cozumel, Mexico. Sounds like a great way to spend Thanksgiving. The sister says the last time she saw her brother was about 11:00 or so on Wednesday night outside of a bar on the cruise ship, and she didn't think much of it until she didn't see him again, and then alerted that to the cruise ship authorities on Thanksgiving Day at around noon.

So first things first, you've got to search that big old cruise ship. No sign of him. Then they contacted the Coast Guard. And the Coast Guard spent hours trying to find him. Helicopters, airplanes, by boat, all looking for this man. And then they spot him in the water, pulled him out by helicopter. He was still alive and able to tell them, yes, I'm the guy that was on that cruise ship you have been looking for. So happy you're here. Listen to the U.S. Coast Guard talk about that moment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LT. SETH GROSS, SEARCH AND RESCUE MISSION COORDINATOR, U.S. COAST GUARD: I'll be honest with you, a 17-year career, this case is unlike anything I have been a part of. So I think it kind of blows the normalcy out of the water here, and really just shows the will to live is something that you need to account for in every search and rescue case.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMERO: All right, so he is in the hospital right now suffering from hypothermia, from shock, dehydration, all the things you might expect. Sara, the Coast Guard said that the water was about 70 degrees. So it wasn't freezing cold as you might imagine for this time of year because it was in the Gulf of Mexico. But still, how long was he actually in the water? How did he survive all of this time? We are hoping that he so chooses to speak with the media to answer some of those many, many questions. Sara, Boris.

SIDNER: It is amazing. That water is like bathwater during the summer. So that certainly helped. Nadia Romero, thank you so much.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(SINGING)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What a feeling, keep believing. I can have it all, now I'm dancing for my life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: That is the voice of Irene Cara singing her Oscar-winning song "Flashdance What a Feeling." Her publicist announced early this morning, something she said it's the hardest thing to ever do, that the actress and singer died. She died in her Florida home. Cara was also known for singing the theme song and starring in the 1980 movie "Fame" as a student of New York School of Performing Arts. She also starred in the 1976 musical "Sparkle."

[10:15:07]

SANCHEZ: The publicist says that "Irene was a gifted woman whose body of work is loved by millions of people the world over. She became an icon for music lovers in the 1980s and inspired many of today's most influential singers. We are all mourning her death but will celebrate her legacy as a bright spot in our lives." Irena Cara was 63 years old. Truly the world losing a talent there. She had won a Grammy, a Golden Globe, an Academy Award, all for that song.

SIDNER: And here's the thing. I have to admit that, like, I had the leg warmers and the outfit.

(LAUGHTER)

SIDNER: And I sang "Fame" -- I'm still singing it, just FYI. It was really part of the soundtrack of my childhood, and I was surprised today to see this, and really saddened. She was only 63 years old. She is young in the world that we live in today. And she gave us so much. Those songs are iconic. So at least we have that to remember. And she will live forever through her music.

SANCHEZ: Yes, no question about that. Our hearts go out to her family members and all her fans. Irene Cara, 63 years old.

Stay with CNN. We'll be back after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:20:38]

SIDNER: Georgia is on a lot of people's minds today. Early voting is underway in parts of the state after the State Supreme Court refused to block counties from offering early voting. The ruling is a victory for Democrats, including Senator Raphael Warnock, in his runoff against Republican Herschel Walker.

SANCHEZ: CNN national politics reporter Eva McKend joins us live from Sandy Springs, Georgia. Eva may be qualified for residency given how much time she has spent there recently. Republicans in the state have argued that allowing early voting today, Eva, was unlawful. The court ultimately disagreed, and people are now heading to the polls.

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS REPORTER: That's right, Boris. More than two dozen counties here in Georgia offering early in-person voting today, including several sites here in Fulton County. We are in Sandy Springs this morning. That is a suburb of Atlanta, and it is, arguably, here where Herschel Walker has to drive up his numbers with moderate and independent voters that he failed to capture in the general election.

Walker for his part, not holding any campaign events this weekend. None listed. We reached out to his campaign, though, for an update. Senator Warnock, though, is going to be joined here in just a little bit by Senator Cory Booker. And getting a big name next week as well when former President Barack Obama returns to the campaign trail. Warnock enters this final stretch here with a significant fundraising advantage. From October 20th through November 16th, Senator Warnock raised $52 million to Walker's $21 million.

SIDNER: The Georgia Governor Brian Kemp was focused on his own campaign before the midterm elections, but it looks like we have seen now some campaigning for Herschel Walker. What created that change in him?

MCKEND: Well, it's not entirely clear, but they did not campaign together in the general election. Governor Kemp, though, joining Herschel Walker on the campaign trail now.

And this is important because Governor Kemp outpaced Herschel Walker in the general election by about 200,000 votes. So about 200,000 Georgians voted for Kemp but did not vote for Walker on that same ticket. So he is out on the trail now and even appears in an ad in support of Walker. Let's take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. BRIAN KEMP, (R) GEORGIA: Families are struggling because of Biden's inflation and Washington won't change unless we make them. Georgia's doing better than the rest of the country because we stood up for hard working families. Herschel Walker will vote for Georgia, not be another rubber stamp for Joe Biden. That's why I'm backing Herschel, and I hope you'll join me in voting for him, too.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKEND: Kemp's get out the vote operation in full force in support of Walker as well. But they will have to contend with a pretty robust get out the vote operation on the Democratic side as well. Both sides running out of time here. Early voting underway, but the last day Georgians have to vote, December 6th.

SIDNER: Eva McKend, you have been all over this story. Thank you so much for joining us this morning, this Saturday.

Georgia's runoff election is just a week-and-a-half away, as you heard. Control of the Senate is not on the line this time, but the stakes are still really high. Joining us now is Laura Barron-Lopez. She's a CNN political analyst and White House correspondent for the PBS NewsHour. Democrats scored a win when the Georgia Supreme Court refused to stop counties from holding early voting today. What does that mean, and how significant is it? Will it be good for Democrats?

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Potentially because of the fact that Democrats have really focused on early voting as much as possible, as well we saw they that they focused on absentee voting in the general election. So their ability to mobilize their base as well as voters around early voting is something that Republicans have struggled with a little bit more in states across the country, including in Georgia.

But one other thing that I wanted to point out that could also influence this runoff race is the recent ruling by the Georgia Supreme Court on abortion, saying that they were going to immediately reinstate the six-week abortion ban.

[10:25:02]

And we saw where abortion was a huge factor across the country in the general election. And so it could very well be an influencing, deciding factor for voters heading into this runoff.

SIDNER: What do you make of Governor Kemp going on the stump now for him? Do you think that's going to give Herschel Walker a boost?

BARRON-LOPEZ: It certainly is helping Walker with the get out the vote machine that Governor Kemp has. He handed all of that along with his data analytics over to Senator Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, and that super PAC, McConnell's super PAC is helping Walker. But that flip is pretty striking because of the fact that after the 2020 election Walker directly criticized Governor Kemp, and Walker is a known election denier. And Kemp during the general election had tried to distance himself from former President Trump and the lies around the 2020 election but now appears to be wholeheartedly embracing a candidate who has repeatedly spread election denial lies about the 2020 election.

SIDNER: It seems Kemp was worried about making sure he got elected first, and now it seems he is standing up for Herschel Walker.

There is some new information that CNN uncovered. Basically CNN's learned that Herschel Walker is getting a tax break that's intended for his primary home in Texas. Does he need to explain this to voters, or will it matter to those who are already very much on his side?

BARRON-LOPEZ: Those who are on his side it may not matter much to, the hardcore Republican base. But it certainly could be a deciding factor for independent voters, those independent voters that he is trying to win over that voted for Kemp but didn't vote for him in the general election. We saw that in Pennsylvania these accusations of not having true local ties to the state that you are running in in the case of Dr. Oz hurt his candidacy for Senate in Pennsylvania. And this could very well be politically detrimental to Walker because of the fact that voters may view it as him still having this primary residency in Texas versus the state that he is running in, in Georgia.

SIDNER: We should give full credit, because it's CNN KFiles that unearthed that. I do want to ask you what the stakes are. A lot of people say, OK, the Democrats now have control of the Senate, but this is a six-year term. So 2024 is not that far away. What are the stakes with these two Democrat and Republican running for this Senate seat right now?

BARRON-LOPEZ: It's true that this won't determine Senate control. Democrats have already maintained control over the Senate. But what this does do is it influences how big that majority is. So if it is a 51-50 Senate, in favor of Democrats, then they have the majority on committee assignments. Then they are able to actually have subpoena power, which is something that Democrats haven't had in a 50-50 Senate.

Now, of course, if Republicans are able to win this seat and maintain that 50-50 Senate, then it makes it harder for President Biden to potentially pass some must-pass bills. It also makes it so they don't have subpoena power or the ability to really have the majority on these very influential committee assignments.

SIDNER: Laura Barron-Lopez, thank you for joining us this morning.

BARRON-LOPEZ: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Still ahead, an update to a really unsettling story out of Idaho. The search for a killer continuing almost two weeks after four University of Idaho students were murdered. Now a lot of students are wondering if they are even going to return to campus after the Thanksgiving holiday. An update on that when we return.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:33:18]

SANCHEZ: We want to update you on some of the top stories we're following this morning. Almost a month afternoon the death of 25-year- old North Carolina native Shanquella Robinson while vacationing in Mexico, prosecutors have now issued an arrest warrant for one of her friends.

SIDNER: Authorities also say her death was not an accident, but the result of a, quote, direct attack that involved one of her female friends.

And this morning we are learning new details about the gunman in Tuesday's deadly mass shooting at a Chesapeake, Virginia, Walmart. Police have released a note the shooter had on his phone entitled "Death Note," discussing people he says harassed or betrayed him and hinting at what was to come. The gunman shot and killed six people, the youngest just 16 years old at the store where he worked as an overnight supervisor. The suspect used a gun that he legally bought the very same day and then finally turned that gun on himself.

SANCHEZ: Meantime, a remarkable rescue in New York City. Take a look at this dramatic police bodycam video that shows a good Samaritan and a team of NYPD officers pushing on to the subway tracks a man that had accidentally fallen from the platform and was laying on the tracks just before that happened. An incoming train arrived. They were able to hoist him on the platform safely. The man was taken to a local hospital where he is listed in stable condition, fortunately, with only minor injuries.

SIDNER: And new this morning, investigators in the fatal stabbings of four University of Idaho students say they are now reviewing more than 260 digital media submissions along with over 1,000 tips received from the public.

[10:35:02] SANCHEZ: Yes, but the campus community remains on edge because authorities still don't have a suspect in custody. They don't have a murder weapon. They don't have a motive in mind. It's still a wide- open case. CNN's Camila Bernal is live for us in Los Angeles this morning. Camila, what are authorities saying about this case?

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Boris, Sara. It really is unbelievable to think that two weeks later you are still hearing no motive, no weapon, no suspect. Of course, these students and this community is worried. They are scared. They are frustrated. But police say there is just still so much to be done here in addition to all of the tips that you mentioned, more than 1,000, and they have already done 150 interviews.

They are still processing that crime scene. They say it takes time to review the blood, the footprints, the tire marks. All of that stuff is going to take some time. And police saying, look, when you look at the totality of all of this, you understand why this case is so complex and why it's taking so long. But what they are also saying they'd rather take their time and be right in order to do justice to these victims and the families.

In terms of the timeline, things have stayed pretty much the same. We know that Kaylee and Maddy, they were out on Saturday night, went to a sports bar. Then they went to a food truck. They got home at around 1:45 or 2:00 in the morning, more or less. They got a ride home from someone that brought them home.

And then the other two, Xana and Ethan, they were out at a party, also coming home around 1:45 in the morning. They are believed to have been killed early morning hours on Sunday, November 13th.

And then we also know that they were likely killed during those early morning hours. Then what happens is that the 911 call, that comes in at around noon on Sunday. Police say there were multiple friends in the house when they called 911. They are ruling a lot of these people out, but they still say there is so much to be done here.

SIDNER: Camila Bernal, thank you so much. I know this has been really hard on that whole community, but especially for those families. Appreciate it.

BERNAL: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Still to come this morning, Elon Musk says he is ready to bring back banned Twitter accounts starting next week. Up next, we're going to talk to an expert who says that Musk's move would be like opening the gates of hell. That story next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:41:42]

SANCHEZ: Elon Musk says he will begin restoring previously banned Twitter accounts next week. After posting a Twitter poll Musk declared amnesty begins next week. This is the second time that Musk used a Twitter poll to make a major decision related to the platform. Remember earlier this month he restored former President Donald Trump's account, but he has faced sharp criticism for his actions.

Online activists, safety and national security experts, and others argue that restoring the accounts could lead to online harassment and real-life danger. Joining us to discuss is Alejandra Caraballo. She's a clinical instructor at Harvard Law's Cyberlaw Clinic and an LGBTQ activist and researcher.

Alejandra, thank you so much for taking time for us this weekend. Shortly after taking over Twitter, Elon Musk said that he would create a content moderation council and that no major content decisions like re-adding accounts that had been suspended would be made until it was in place. But as far as we know, there is no evidence that this council is in place, right?

ALEJANDRA CARABALLO, CLINICAL INSTRUCTOR, HARVARD LAW'S CYBERLAW CLINIC: No, absolutely not. In fact, on Twitter he actually said that there was some kind of deal between him and civic society groups that he would use a moderation council to bring back accounts, but then he blamed civic society groups for allegedly going after his advertisers and advertising revenue. So, therefore, he blamed them and went ahead and brought back trump's account along with a plethora of other accounts.

But there is no indication that there was actually any sort of deal. This is just him tweeting this out. The indications are that this is what he wanted to do all along, especially given the account that he brought back first, "Babylon Bee." There was a report in "The Washington Post" that showed that was his first concern on the day he took over. Within hours of taking over Twitter he was asking about reinstating the "Babylon Bee," which has been cited as one of the main reasons for buying Taylor.

SANCHEZ: So how concerned are you that it seems he is making these critical decisions based on Twitter polls?

CARABALLO: Right. He said that his -- the saying he keeps using is Vox Populi, Vox Dei, but he keeps leaving out the rest of the quote, which basically says it's the voice of madness. And there is no indication that any of these polls in any way scientific. They are entirely driven by bots and others of his followers that dropped without warning. And so essentially, this is just being driven by random posts that he is putting up with polls.

And so the more dangerous aspect is that he said that he is going to bring back accounts that haven't engaged in any unlawful behavior or spam. Well, in the United States unlawful behavior basically means just about anything except for directly inciting violence or other kinds of potential speech that may break the law, which is usually a very, very small subset. So, for instance, any account that has posted an activist's address underneath them, others that have engaged in directed hate speech, calling for the death of a certain minority group, that is all legal speech.

[10:45:05] And any account that had been previously suspended for stating those things could be immediately brought back. He is saying there is a manual review, but given how many accounts have likely been suspended over the years, it could take a team years to probably manually review every single account. And there is no disclosure on the mechanism and what review process other than what he stated on Twitter, and there is no nuance to it.

SANCHEZ: Yes. It seems that would be especially challenging given that he laid off half of the staff. So the team that was in place before, only about half of it is there.

I wanted to ask about a recent Twitter exchange you had with Elon Musk concerning the danger posed by this general amnesty. He says that these suspended accounts are going to be slowly reinstated, that any incitement of violence will result in suspension. How confident are you in that process? And what do you make of the argument that not that many Americans, not that many people are on Twitter, so whatever happens there doesn't have that much effect in real life? What would you say to that?

CARABALLO: Right, so this comes after him responding to Tim Pool on Twitter, and Tim Pool on Wednesday was blaming the Club Q victims, essentially for their own deaths. He stated, quote-unquote, that they were engaged in a grooming event. So, therefore, he is essentially justifying the murders of LGBTQ people at Club Q. That tweet is still up. And the next day Elon Musk joked around with him and responded to one of his tweets.

So I have no confidence that the kinds of incitement of to violence is going to be taken serious, particularly against LGBTQ people. And if you have even what has been going on at LGBTQ events, at drag events throughout the summer and into fall, so much of this violence has been organized on Twitter. Libs of TikTok in particular created a mega drag thread back in June, and several of the events were disrupted by Proud Boys, actual neo-Nazis and other far-right Christian nationalists that were coming often, sometimes even armed to these events, particularly in Texas. And there have been a plethora of violent events. There was the donut shop in Oklahoma that was attacked for even hosting a drag event. So we're already seeing violence, and so much of it is being driven on Twitter. So there is no choice for LGBTQ folks to just log off and ignore it because what happens on Twitter inevitably has an impact on what happens in the real world.

SANCHEZ: Alejandra Caraballo, we have to leave the conversation there. But thank you so much for making your case. We appreciate it.

CARABALLO: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Stay with Newsroom. We're back in a moment.

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[10:52:24]

SANCHEZ: The second Saturday of the World Cup is in full swing, and while most Americans are focused on Tuesday's do-or-die game against Iran, the rest of the world is waiting to see whether Argentina and their superstar Messi can bounce back.

SIDNER: Poor Messi. CNN World Sports anchor Amanda Davies joins us from Qatar. Amanda, we'll talk about the U.S. in just a bit, but all the pressure is on Argentina right now after what is by all accounts a pretty shocking loss to Saudi Arabia in their opener. Messi has never been able to clinch the title. Is it going to happen?

AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORT ANCHOR: Well, here we are at the biggest stadium, the biggest venue of this tournament, expecting the most sizable crowds that we have seen so far in very good voice, as you can probably hear behind me. And it's not exaggeration to say this is the match potentially with the biggest significance so far because of one man and what it means for his quest to win that one piece of major silverware he hasn't yet been able to do in his career. In short, if Argentina loses, it brings to an end Lionel Messi's quest to win this World Cup. And the atmosphere is very much building. They are up against a Mexico side with whom also a whole lot of history. Argentina actually played Mexico in the first ever edition of the World Cup back in 1930.

And to add a little bit of extra spice, Mexico are being led by an Argentinian, no less. Gerardo "Tata" Martino used to play for Argentina. He formerly coached Argentina. He played at the same club as the Argentinian boss today, and of course, also managed Lionel Messi at Barcelona. Can you imagine what this moment is going to be like for him? He said he feels he needs to do the impossible tonight and lead Mexico to the victory. There is just his whole nation hoping he won't be able to do it.

SANCHEZ: And Amanda, we mentioned the do or die game for the United States against Iran on Tuesday. What are you looking for in that match?

DAVIES: Well, it was an amazing atmosphere last night. I was able to be there. And the U.S. man of the match, Christian Pulisic, said he really hopes that he and his team did their fans proud at home. They absolutely outplayed England. It may have been a draw, but they contend that they had the better chances.

[10:55:03]

And now it is all about Iran, a match which has so much importance on and off the field.

SIDNER: Amanda Davies, thank you so much. It sounds really exciting out there.

SANCHEZ: Thanks.

SIDNER: And a quick programming note for you. Settle in for CNN for the stories behind everything we love to watch at Christmastime. "The Holidays On Screen" premiers tomorrow night at 8:00.

Thank you so much for watching. SANCHEZ: And before we go, Sara, just smile real quick. I've got to

make sure we get this for the gram. There we go.

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: Thanks so much for being with us. We'll see you again tomorrow. There is still much more ahead in the next hour of the CNN Newsroom. Our friend Alex Marquardt is up next.

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