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Chef Honored By Ukraine After Serving 180 Million Meals; Idaho Governor Pledges $1 Million For Investigation Expenses; Biden Reacts To Trump's Dinner With Kanye West And A Holocaust Denier; Interview With Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT); Early Voting Underway In GA Ahead Of Key Senate Runoff; Coast Guard Rescues Cruise Ship Passenger Who Went Overboard. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired November 26, 2022 - 15:00   ET

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

[15:00:29]

JIM ACOSTA, CNN HOST: You are live in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Jim Acosta in Washington.

And we begin overseas where the race is on to restore power to six million Ukrainians after a barrage of strikes on the country's critical infrastructure. The head of NATO says Vladimir Putin is trying to weaponize winter by cutting the power in the midst of extreme cold weather.

New satellite images from NASA shows the extent of the damage with Ukraine almost completely in the dark. Look at that. This image on the left is from January. The right is from this month. And this month we should also mentioned the U.S. said Russia and Ukraine have each likely suffered about 100,000 wounded or killed troops from Putin's war.

My next guest has worked tirelessly to help the Ukrainian people since that war began serving a remarkable 180 million meals through his organization World Central Kitchen. I'm talking about the award- winning chef Jose Andres. He was just honored by President Zelenskyy with the Ukrainian Order of Merit. And Chef Jose Andres joins me now.

Jose, great to see you as always. And I'm always happy to see you back in one piece after you go out to some of these very dangerous hot spots to do the work that you do and all the people that you work with. 180 million meals, that's incredible feat. What has it been like? And you're sort of our eyes and ears on the ground in Ukraine. What did you observe? What's going on?

JOSE ANDRES, FOUNDER, WORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN: Well, it's a lot of great people, not only Ukrainians but from Europe and America that they are trying to help in these very difficult times inside Ukraine. The 180 million meals we've done it having more than 4,000 or 5,000 Ukrainians. Helping feed Ukrainians. We need to remember Ukraine has food not only for themselves but to feed the world. The issue is that there's almost 50 million people displaced inside Ukraine or refugees outside.

And what we are doing at World Central Kitchen is making sure that we have -- we help with the logistics in this difficult time. I was in Kherson. Kherson was liberated on November 11th. The team of World Central Kitchen was able to go two days later, 24 to 36 hours later inside Kherson. We are talking 75,000 to 90,000 people in Kherson City that they had no food for over three weeks because that was the last moment that Russians brought any food if any into the city any.

And the situation was one of happiness. Happiness because they were liberated. Every child, every woman, every elderly, they're all wearing very proudly the Ukrainian flags with happiness in the air. But as the days move on and sometimes electricity was difficult, water, none available, everybody was going to their homes freezing cold temperatures, no supermarkets, no restaurants, no infrastructure, we see that now people are leaving slowly rightfully so, Kherson, trying to move to areas where they can put their child in a place that is warm.

So the situation again is one of happiness because they are winning. But at the same time the reality is that the Russians keep destroying the infrastructure. Vast majority of Ukraine is without electricity. Winter is not coming anymore. Winter is here. People are going to need the help of everybody to go through the next four months.

ACOSTA: You know, Jose, I got -- you know, you teased this next question perfectly because it seems like Russia is trying to crank up the misery. One thing that we have heard is that the head of NATO is saying that Putin is trying to weaponize winter by knocking out the power. And we're just showing these images, we'll show them again, showing the impact of Russian strikes on Ukraine's electrical system.

The image on the left from January. Image on the right this month. The country looks like they're in total -- almost total darkness at certain times of the day. What are you seeing? Does that match up with what you are seeing?

ANDRES: Totally. We need to remember that the Ukrainians don't want our pity. Ukrainians want our respect. These are very hard-working people. They are all uniting behind the idea of working and fighting for freedom and democracy not only for them but for everybody. Remember one thing, please. Remember one thing. Today is the 90-year anniversary of the Holodomor.

[15:05:05]

That this was under Soviet times when directly they tried to starve Ukrainians and millions of Ukrainians died in 1932-1933. Right now Putin is trying to do exactly the same. I don't think he's going to make it because Ukrainians are hard people. Everybody tried just to have enough harvest, to make sure they have enough food to feed their families. Ukraine is going to be fine. I'm more worried that it's not anymore that Ukraine is fighting a war defending their country, is that they are defending to feed the world.

Ukraine exports enough grain to feed over 400 million people around the world. Many of them in Africa. If this war goes on and we don't get to support Ukraine and this war doesn't stop tomorrow, we're going to have a hunger issue maybe not in Ukraine but we are going to see it in many parts of Africa.

Again, these Ukrainians are hard fighting people. I've been in the first train that one not only to Mykolaiv but the first train that arrived to Kherson. For them every single achievement, doesn't matter how small it is, is a moment of celebration. Obviously they are defending the country. I'm not a military guy but I remember speaking in Madrid at the NATO Summit, President Sanchez, the president of Spain, gave me the opportunity to speak not only to the secretaries of defense and the state but also to the presidents.

And the message I gave them was this. Food is a national security issue. Every country needs to take care of food seriously. And right now the biggest war where food is at the heart is happening in the heart of Ukraine. That's the reason why Europe, America and all the democracies of the world need to be supporting President Zelenskyy, need to be supporting the people of Ukraine.

ACOSTA: Absolutely. What is happening there right now affects all of us all around the world. And Jose, we have to mention that you just received this great honor from Ukraine. You appeared alongside President Zelenskyy in Constitution Square. Look at that image right there. Just unbelievable. In Kyiv where there is now a plaque that bears your name.

Jose Andres, you know, as a Washingtonian, I mean, the way you've impacted the nation's capital here in the United States is something else. But what you've done in Ukraine unbelievable. I just want to get your thoughts.

ANDRES: My friend, this was never about (INAUDIBLE). When I came to America, especially to Washington, D.C., my first restaurant is open across the street from the National Archives. The documents of the creation of America. The nation that has been improving over the centuries but the nation that fights for democracy and freedom on behalf of for everybody. Three words that are inside the National Archives, "We the People." This is never about I the person but we the people. Working together.

Working alongside people that don't think like us but always respecting each other, trying to find common ground and trying to move not only America but the world forward. So this kind of celebration, this kind of honor from President Zelenskyy, I never saw it as celebrating me but the 5,000 Ukrainians and more that in this very dark hour, working alongside World Central Kitchen and other organizations.

I want to mention that USAID, on behalf of all the American people, is doing an amazing job. At World Central Kitchen, we are mainly supported by the American people. This recognition was not to Jose Andres the person but to the American people. We the people, we need to keep being next. You may be a Republican. You may be a Democrat. But Ukraine is defending themselves. We cannot allow a bad person, a very bad person to be killing children, women, elderly, and trying to freeze them to death and trying to leave them hungry.

We cannot allow him to be successful. We need to be fighting hate. We need to be fighting the people trying to bring the worst out of all of us. We need to bring the best empathy. And in America, I'm very proud. And many countries around the world, including Europe and Spain where I come from, we are next Ukraine. We need to make sure in this winter we don't forget Ukraine. Ukraine needs all the help they can get. We need to be next to them.

ACOSTA: Jose Andres, this is their darkest hour. But you've been a light for that country. You're a light for us. Appreciate it as always, my friend.

Jose Andres, thank you so much for being with us. We could go on and on. We'll do it another time. But thanks again. We really appreciate it.

ANDRES: Thank you.

ACOSTA: Be well.

In the meantime, the governor of Idaho is pledging up to $1 million to help pay for investigators' expenses as they desperately try to find out who is responsible for the deaths of four college students there.

[15:10:08]

Tomorrow will mark two weeks since they were found stabbed to death in their home. And CNN's Camila Bernal joins me now with the latest on the investigation.

Camila, just very stubborn situation in that case where just there aren't a lot of new developments. What can you tell us?

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: There really aren't. And it's so frustrating, not just for the families, for the friends of the victims but also for the community as a whole. They want answers. And at the moment they're not getting them. Authorities saying it's just going to take a little bit more time. As of now no motive, no weapon. Just no suspect and so many questions. Authorities saying what they need is to go over all of the evidence.

They're still processing the scene and authorities, when they last spoke to us, told us look, the things like blood, footprints, tire marks, all of that has to be evaluated. They've already collected about 100 pieces of evidence from that scene. And they've taken over 4,000 pictures. So they have to go over all of this evidence. And this is in addition to all of the tips they've received. More than 1,000 of them that they have to go over.

They've already done about 150 interviews really just talking to whoever -- and whoever can shed any sort of light into this case. Not only will they need time but they're also going to need money. You mentioned $1 million from the state. The governor announcing that money but likely they're going to need so much more. It's local. It's state. It's federal resources as they continue to try to figure out who did this.

In terms of the timeline, they're keeping it pretty much the same. They say Kaylee and Maddie, they went out that Saturday night. They went to a sports bar, then they went to a food truck, got home at around 2:00 in the morning. Xana and Ethan, they went to a party, also came home at around 2:00 in the morning. But it was during those early morning hours that investigators believe while they were sleeping they were stabbed to death multiple times.

And authorities say they didn't get that call, the emergency call until about noon the next day when the surviving roommates and other friends that were there at the house reported an unconscious person. So there are still a lot of questions as to the 911 call as to exactly what happened that night. But so far investigators, the only thing they're saying is that they believe this was a targeted attack -- Jim.

ACOSTA: All right. Camila Bernal, thank you very much.

Former FBI profiler Jim Clemente joins us now. He's also a criminal behavioral expert and a former New York state prosecutor.

Jim, I know we've seen mysteries just stubborn as you know what, and it just takes forever to solve them. The governor of Idaho is directing up to $1 million in this investigation. It sounds like they're trying to ramp things up. They're trying to get something to shake loose. What are you thinking as you look at all this? Why is this case so baffling and perplexing and difficult to solve right now?

JIM CLEMENTE, FORMER FBI PROFILER: Well, I think, Jim, that post offense behavior in a case like this is probably leaving town. And 11,000 other people also left town. So I think that complicates it. But this was an extremely high risk endeavor to enter an occupied dwelling with six adults inside late at night when any of them could have had a gun, could have had other weapon, could have had a cell phone to call 911, could have attacked the guy coming in. All of that means that this person was goal directed and motivated. Probably a very targeted crime.

ACOSTA: And after everything we've learned so far about how the victims were killed and the timeline, you started to build a profile in who the killer could be. What can you tell us?

CLEMENTE: Well, I believe that this -- they tell us that the scene was very chaotic, that it was a mess. And that tells me the person is not criminally or forensically sophisticated. They did bring the weapon with them and leave with it. So that's a level of organization in this person. But this person may be known to carry a knife. He may have shown it off to friends. He may hunt. He may use that knife because he wasn't -- he didn't blanch at the fact that he had killed one or two or three and went on to the fourth person.

So this person probably has what we say is they have a propensity for the wet works. They don't mind getting their hands dirty. And so this kind of thing would be in his life, in his hobbies or in his work. Also, I think everybody should understand that this person's behavior must have changed after the event. I mentioned leaving town. They may have been late for work, they may have canceled, they may have had an emergency that just came up and they won't come back until it calms down. [15:15:07]

But before the event, they had to have the availability. I think this person either knew one or more of the people inside that house or was stalking one or more of them. They had to have the availability to do that and to commit these crimes. So we're looking for somebody who had the freedom late at night and early in the morning. Probably is not in a relationship or is not working nights at that point.

ACOSTA: And if you're someone who lives in this community, what should you be on the lookout for right now? You know, could there be a tell? Could this person slip up and get some kind of indication that he was involved in some way.

CLEMENTE: Well, I believe this person would be very, very interested in the news coverage, will follow it religiously, may even volunteer to help the police in the investigation. Really as an effort to find out what's going on in the investigation. I also believe that people will notice that behavioral change from the time of these crimes. Even before it was reported this person changed his behavior. I don't believe that he's done this more than once. I think this is his first offense given how reckless and how messy the crime scene was.

And I think that that cause the behavioral change immediately after it occurred. That's what they should be looking for.

ACOSTA: And if someone kills four people, how likely is it that they're going to be going about their daily business? Could this person be out hiding in the woods somewhere, that kind of thing?

CLEMENTE: Well, it's possible. But I think that would be an extreme type of behavioral change. In other words the person is probably trying to blend back into his life. And that's something that if he's hiding in the woods, that's obviously going to make him stand out. I believe he was sophisticated enough to know how to get into that place, to know how to navigate from room to room, to kill people and to keep on going.

But he didn't kill everybody in the house. And that tells me he didn't have just murderous intent. He had some other intent. I don't know whether it was jealousy or some kind of insult or some kind of revenge. But for some reason this person targeted those kids in that house.

ACOSTA: All right. Jim Clemente, thanks so much as always. Hope to get back to you as this case develops. It is quite the mystery. Appreciate your time.

Coming up, we're getting some new reporting about a dinner that former President Donald Trump had with rapper Kanye West and a white supremacist and holocaust denier at Mar-a-Lago. You'll hear what President Biden had to say about it. He just talked about this a few moments ago. You'll hear that next.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:21:59]

ACOSTA: We are getting some new reporting about a dinner that former President Donald Trump had with rapper Kanye West and white supremacist and holocaust denier Nick Fuentes at Mar-a-Lago. A source tells CNN Trump was engaged with Fuentes and found him, quote, "very interesting." Particularly his abilities to rattle off statistics and data. During the dinner, Fuentes told Trump that he was familiar with Trump's base and that they prefer Trump being natural and himself speaking off the cuff and adlibbing.

At one point Trump declared that he liked Nick Fuentes. According to this source who spoke with our Kirsten Holmes, the dinner grew tense at various times including after Kanye West, who now goes by Ye, asked Trump to join his 2024 campaign ticket but as vice president which Trump laughed off, quote-unquote. Trump acknowledge the dinner in a posting on Truth Social but claimed that Kanye West had just showed up with friends that he knew nothing about including Fuentes.

And we're getting some reaction to all of this from President Biden. CNN White House correspondent Arlette Saenz is in Nantucket for us where the president is spending the holiday.

What did the president have to say?

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jim, President Biden was shopping in downtown Nantucket when a reporter asked him for his reaction to former President Donald Trump's recent dinner with a white nationalist. And President Biden held back a bit but he did respond. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Mr. President, what do you think of Donald Trump having dinner with a white nationalist? What do you think of that, sir?

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You don't want to hear what I think.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAENZ: Now while the president didn't elaborate on his thoughts, the White House has condemned this dinner. White House spokesperson Andrew Bates telling CNN on Friday, quote, "Bigotry, hate and anti-Semitism have absolutely no place in America, including at Mar-a-Lago. Holocaust denial is repugnant and dangerous and it must be forcefully condemned."

Now the White House doesn't always respond to every interaction or thing that former Donald Trump says. But it's no surprise that in this moment they have spoken out, especially since President Biden staked so much of his 2020 presidential campaign on pushing back on hate- fueled rhetoric and also prejudice. ACOSTA: That's absolutely right, Arlette. And of course the president,

he could have chosen to say nothing at all. But the fact that he chose to say something I think, even though it was a brief comment, speaks volumes.

In the meantime, Arlette, two mass shootings in the United States in the past week. Last week, Colorado. This week in Virginia. The president says he wants to get rid of assault -- access to assault weapons. What is he saying about that?

SAENZ: Well, Jim, President Biden has used these recent mass shootings as another effort to renew his calls for banning assault weapons. But he's also running up against the political reality that the votes simply don't exist to do that at this moment. But here is how President Biden reacted when he was asked about those recent shootings.

[15:25:06]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: The idea we still allow semiautomatic weapons to be purchased is sick. It's just sick. It has no, no social redeeming value. Zero. None. Not a single solitary rationale for it except profit for the gun manufacturer.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Can you do anything about gun laws during the lame-duck, sir?

BIDEN: I'm going to try.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: What will you to --

BIDEN: I'm going to try to get rid of assault weapons.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: During the lame-duck?

BIDEN: I mean, clearly, whenever -- I got to make that assessment as I get in and start counting the votes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAENZ: So the president says he needs to count the votes heading into this lame-duck session. Of course it will be much more difficult to get legislation passed once Republicans take control of the House come January.

ACOSTA: All right. Arlette Saenz, thank you very much.

And joining me now is Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut.

Senator, I want to ask you about the president's push for new gun laws or new gun measures in a moment. But first I do want to get your reaction to this new reporting about former President Trump dining with this white supremacist and holocaust denier at Mar-a-Lago. We also just heard the president a few moments ago. He could have said nothing. He chose to say you don't want to know what I think, obviously showing his disdain there for the former president.

But according to our sources, it wasn't as if Trump just ignored this Nick Fuentes person during the dinner. Apparently they had a very engaging discussion as repugnant as that might sound. What is your response to this?

SEN. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (D-CT): Repugnant is the right word. It is almost beyond abhorrent for a former president to be entertaining this kind of lowlife is absolutely beyond words. He should have no place at a civilized place and certainly he is no cause for any civilized conversation. Fuentes is virtually a Nazi. He's anti-Semite, he is a bigot, and to condone or legitimize his presence at Mar-a-Lago I think is very revealing about Donald Trump, not in a good way.

ACOSTA: And, I mean, what does it say about where we are as a country right now that Trump is trying to run for the presidency one more time and he's having these kinds of meetings?

BLUMENTHAL: It says that he has learned nothing since he pronounced that there were good people on both sides in Charlottesville. On one side people bearing Nazi insignia and spouting anti-racist kind of jargon. And I think that, you know, it says about our country that there is a hard-core Trump support. But it is far less than majority and clearly the elections speak louder than words.

Trump's candidates by and large fared very poorly. And I think the America electorate is tired of Donald Trump's toleration and condoning of racism and other kinds of really anti-democratic names.

ACOSTA: And Senator, I want to turn to these recent mass shootings and President Biden saying that he wants to try for an assault weapons ban. You yourself have spoken about gun control failures after Sandy Hook in your home state. But is there any muscle that the White House that the president could put behind this? Could the president put some muscle behind this during the upcoming lame-duck session? Are there perhaps some other kinds of measures that could be tried, perhaps raising the age for purchasing these kinds of weapons and so on?

BLUMENTHAL: There are a number of measures that we ought to explore. The president is absolutely right that counting the votes indicates that it's going to be uphill in seeking a ban on assault weapons. I have been in favor of such a ban since the early 1990s when I was state attorney general here in Connecticut. I'm ardent advocate of ban on ghost guns, high-capacity magazines, repealing the sweetheart deal that the gun manufacturers have complete immunity under the PLCAA Act.

These kinds of measures can also be addressed. And the hope is that we can bring together both sides as we did in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. Nobody gave us much of a chance back in the days of Sandy Hook. Ten years later, we did a bipartisan bill that will help to save lives with mental health and support for crisis intervention, red flag laws, which I've advocated consistently and now 19 states have.

[15:30:00]

So the progress is step by step. And the country is ahead of the Congress because more and more states heed the wishes of more than 90 percent of the American people who want better background checks and similar kinds of common-sense measures.

So assault weapons are far from the only kind of metric we could see. Tightening the background check provisions, ban on ghost guns. I think Congress should be ready for it.

And we can also take a try at assault weapons. I would be for it.

ACOSTA: And let me ask you this. Because you did mention a bipartisan effort that was taken to at least tighten some of the restrictions out there on purchasing these kinds of weapons.

But given that, do you think there's going to be an appetite on the Republican side of the aisle to find some common ground again?

BLUMENTHAL: If we can muster some support from the outgoing members of the Senate, perhaps enabling us to reach 60, I think we have a lot of unity on our side.

Democrats are strongly in favor of common-sense measures to stop gun violence. All 60 of us voted for the Safer Communities Act and attracted more than the 10 Republicans we needed.

So I have that hope. But I think it will be a push uphill to achieve it. And I do think the country is more than ready for it.

The verdict from these last elections in states where our incumbents were challenged on Second Amendment grounds was uniformly they have been re-elected in the Senate.

And of course, we have one more to go in Georgia. And my hope is he will be -- Raphael Warnock will be re-elected as well. I think that that verdict and the people of America speaks volumes to the United States Senate.

ACOSTA: And I do want to ask you about the recent fiasco with Ticketmaster and Taylor Swift tickets. I know you worked on some of this. You sit on the Judiciary Committee.

You actually want to hear exactly from Ticketmaster executives because you think there are practices going on there that sound very much like a monopoly situation, which is what a lot of Americans feel right now. They are just fed up with all of this.

What can be done about this do you think?

BLUMENTHAL: They're right to be fed up. Because it not only looks and sounds like a monopoly, it is a monopoly.

Ticketmaster and Live Nation merged 11 or 12 years ago. We warned at the time it was a bad idea because it gave them market dominance. And since then, they have only increased that predatory power. They've

acquired venues, sponsorships, promotion powers, as well as booking authority. So they now dominate this industry.

And my point is that consumers, artists should not be at the mercy of a single seller. The kind of fiasco -- exactly the right word for it - occurred last week because there was no choice involved. Artists, consumers, venues have no choice but deal with Ticketmaster.

So my hope is that the Department of Justice will not only investigate but take action to break up or unwind the merger.

We will hear from these executives sometime in December, a hearing of the Judiciary, for anti-trust, headed by Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, what they think is the solution if it isn't a breakup.

Because, so far, they have thumbed their nose at the Department of Justice, violating two separate sets of consent agreements. These consent decrees were supposed to condition that merger on their actually heeding the interest of consumers, artists, venues.

And so far, they have just flagrantly and blatantly violated the terms of the agreements.

ACOSTA: Senator, I know you are also calling for an investigation into the new owner of Twitter, Elon Musk.

You sent a letter to the FTC in which you warned Musk had taken alarming steps that undermined the integrity of the platform.

I'm just wondering what your reaction is to this news that Musk, after holding a Twitter poll, has decided to restore previously banned accounts. He did this with Trump. He's doing it with others.

BLUMENTHAL: He is taking this into the gutter. And I think the FTC has a responsibility to investigate the violations there of previous consent decrees as well.

Remember, Twitter has a history. We urge that certain conditions to preserve Democratic access and fair competition be taken there and to uphold norms and rules of law. And Elon Musk seems to be flouting them.

[15:35:06] So the FTC ought to be investigating what Elon Musk is doing. It's a threat not only to consumers but also to our national security.

I hope there will be a searching, penetrating investigation. It's long overdue.

ACOSTA: All right. Senator Richard Blumenthal, thank you very much for your time. We appreciate it.

BLUMENTHAL: Thank you.

ACOSTA: All right. We'll be right back. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:39:53]

ACOSTA: All right. Georgia is on a lot of our minds these days as early voting begins ahead of the key Senate runoff. Democratic incumbent, Raphael Warnock, and his Republican challenger, Herschel Walker, are in a sprint to their runoff election on December 6th.

The Supreme Court rejected an emergency request from Republicans to block early voting on the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

CNN's Eva McKend joins me now from Atlanta.

Eva, who will be joining each candidate in this final campaign stretch? I assume they're bringing out some big names.

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS REPORTER: Yes, Jim. Earlier today, in Sandy Springs, Senator Warnock was joined by Senator Cory Booker. Next week, former President Barack Obama will return to Georgia to stump for Warnock.

Meanwhile, Herschel Walker has been campaigning with a slew of Senate Republicans as well as, notably, Governor Brian Kemp. They did not campaign together in the general election.

Warnock with a pretty busy schedule this weekend. Herschel Walker has no listed campaign events.

But this early voting component, Jim, is really key. Something Democrats fought hard for. They not only won in terms of Saturday voting. You can see it's under way behind me at this polling site in Atlanta.

But they also wanting it to be a really galvanizing issue for Democratic voters. Democratic voters, especially in Georgia, really sensitive to anything that even hints at voter suppression.

Take a look at how Senator Warnock is looking at this on the campaign trail.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. RAPHAEL WARNOCK (D-GA): Here's how you know your vote is powerful. We had to sue. We had to take them to court just so you could vote today.

We had to go to court three times in the last week just so you could vote on this beautiful Saturday. Tell everybody in your circle it's time to vote.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKEND: So this afternoon, Jim, I met two college students who told me, if not for this Saturday voting, they might not have been able to vote -- Jim? ACOSTA: Wow. And that is a statement right there. Because a lot of

people they really rely on this kind of early voting. And Saturday voting, just to be able to cast their ballot and participate in this democracy. Very important.

Eva McKend, thank you very much as always. We appreciate it.

Coming up, a remarkable rescue after a passenger goes overboard while on a cruise. Wait until you hear how long he was in the water before he was pulled to safety.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:46:27]

ACOSTA: A cruise ship passenger is lucky to be alive today after going overboard and floating alone in the water for as many as 15 hours. This is the amazing moment he was scene floating in the gulf of Mexico by rescue crews from the Coast Guard.

The search began Thursday after the man's sister reported him missing off of the Carnival Cruise ship.

CNN's Nick Valencia has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SETH GROSS, U.S. COAST GUARD: I think it kind of blows the normalcy out of the water here.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A miraculous Thanksgiving rescue at sea --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE)

VALENCIA: -- after a Carnival Cruise ship passenger went overboard.

The passenger, seen here waving at a Coast Guard helicopter hovering over him, while he fights to stay above water.

The cruise company said the 28-year-old man was reported missing Thursday around noon. He had last been seen around 11:00 p.m. Wednesday by his sister leaving a bar on board the ship, which had left New Orleans bound for Cozumel, Mexico.

GROSS: Any point from 11:00 p.m. on Wednesday on, he could have entered the waterway. So he realistically could have been in the water for 15-plus hours before we were able to successfully rescue him.

VALENCIA: Since so much time had passed since he was last seen, the rescue operation was particularly challenging.

GROSS: Understanding that we did have a big-time delay. The longer that somebody is in the water, the greater the search area is going to be. So time was certainly of the essence. VALENCIA: Ultimately, the crew aboard a cargo vessel located him about

20 miles south of Southwest Pass, Louisiana. But the Coast Guard was able to helicopter in and hoist the man out of the water to safety.

He's in the hospital undergoing medical evaluation and is reportedly in stable condition.

GROSS: He was able to identify his name, confirmed that he was the individual that fell overboard. He was showing signs of hypothermia, shock, dehydration.

VALENCIA: Carnival Cruise Line expressing their gratitude in a statement, reading, "We greatly appreciate the efforts of all, most especially, the U.S. Coast Guard and the mariner who spotted the guest in the water."

GROSS: The will to live is something that you need to account for in every search-and-rescue case.

VALENCIA: This man's will to survive, leaving him and those who rescued him in awe.

GROSS: This is, like I said, one of the absolutely, the longest that I've heard about, and just one of those Thanksgiving miracles.

VALENCIA (on camera): The U.S. Coast Guard tells CNN the water was roughly 70 degrees Fahrenheit and could have potentially contributed to keeping him alive for the hours he was floating in the gulf.

Meanwhile, investigators are looking into how exactly he went overboard and what he did to survive.

Nick Valencia, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA: He is certainly lucky to be alive.

[15:48:57]

All right, a quick break and we'll be right back.

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[15:53:24]

ACOSTA: What holiday movie do you watch every year? Settle in with CNN for the stories behind everything we love to watch at Christmas.

Here's a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: I can't think of Christmas and Christmas Eve without thinking of "It's a Wonderful Life." It's my childhood. When I was little, I would get into the big chair with my dad and we

would watch the movie because it was my dad's favorite movie.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I remember seeing it the first time with my family and crying and being shocked and a little bit embarrassed by the emotions.

RON HOWARD, PRODUCER: I don't know how many times I've seen "It's a Wonderful Life." I always see something new.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: "TIS THE SEASON, THE HOLIDAYS ON SCREEN" premiers tomorrow night at 8:00 right here on CNN.

The top-10 CNN Heroes of 2022 have been announced, one of whom will be named the CNN Hero of the Year by you, our viewers. So we are re- introducing our top-10 as you vote for your favorite.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're going to talk about putting the sheeting on the roof today.

NORA EL-KHOURI SPENCER, CNN HERO: The students learn a little bit of everything, the basics like safety, tools and materials, construction math. And then we go into hands-on stuff, carpentry, electrical, plumbing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: One-twenty-six and three-fourths.

SPENCER: So our program is actually solving two problems at once. We're training women for living-wage paying jobs and the construction trades.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is where it gets fun.

(LAUGHTER)

SPENCER: And we're also helping older adults age in place. That's really a win-win. You get to watch something come together that you built.

[15:55:00]

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Does that feel like it's going to work for you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Great.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is awesome.

SPENCER: There's just such a feeling of accomplishment.

If we don't see women out there doing this, other women, they'll never see this as an opportunity. If you can't see it, you can't be it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Go to "CNN Heroes" right now to vote for her for CNN Hero of the Year, or any of your favorite top-10 heroes. You only have two more weeks to vote.

And we'll be right back.

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