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Erie County, New York Death Toll Rises to 7 as Winter Storm Slams the Region; More Than 1,600 Flights Canceled So Far on Christmas Day; Trump Tax Returns to be Released After Christmas; Top 10 Crime Stories of 2022; Ukrainian Soldiers Find a Moment to Celebrate Christmas; Many Ukrainians Celebrate Christmas as Refugees This Year; Records Contradict GOP Congressman-elect's Claims and Education History. Aired 1-2p ET

Aired December 25, 2022 - 13:00   ET

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

[13:00:30]

PAULA REID, CNN ANCHOR: Merry Christmas. You are live in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Paula Reid in Washington.

It is a catastrophic Christmas for many Americans. Temperatures plummeting to life-threatening lows on this holiday. Freeze warnings still in effect in several states at this hour. Blizzard conditions battering states across the Great Lakes. At least 26 people have died from the Arctic blast across eight states.

In the hard-hit Erie County, New York, roads remain impassable after two straight days of snowfall. Still, a very dangerous situation. Driving bans still in place.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK POLONCARZ, ERIE COUNTY, NEW YORK EXECUTIVE: This was the first time in Buffalo Fire history that they were unable to respond to calls. We want to remind everybody, there was a period hours straight in which we could not send out emergency service crews, we could not send out Department of Public Works crews because it was too dangerous.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

REID: We will talk to that official in just a few minutes.

Plus, bitter-cold icing over the Christmas celebrations in the Midwest, East Coast and southeast this morning. Even Florida is feeling the chill, much of the state experiencing its coldest Christmas since 1983.

But let's start in Buffalo, New York. CNN's Polo Sandoval is braving the cold temperatures there.

Polo, Merry Christmas. And what is the situation there at this hour?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It really is sort of a recovery process right now. The sun finally came out today, a break in the wind. A little breezy still, obviously, but it is giving an opportunity right now to clear out these streets and what we can't show you, which is some of the highways that are still closed.

It's finally given an opportunity for public works officials with the plow trucks to actually get out and start clearing those roads and to get to folks who are still, Paula, believe it or not, still stranded according to county officials, and in your conversation with New York Governor Kathy Hochul recently, basically telling CNN that there are still people who are waiting to be rescued from their stranded vehicles.

The governor also confirming that among the now seven dead, confirmed dead, in and around Buffalo where some of those vulnerable, some homeless individuals, as well as some individuals that were found in their vehicles. And then also those that were perhaps experiencing a medical emergency and help simply couldn't make it to them during the height of the storm Friday and yesterday.

But today really this at least offering some hope for so many people, but I'll tell you what, though, the next chapter of this challenge will be the power issues. I have spoken time and time again to individuals who are having to turn to hotels for warmth because they've been in the dark for two days. Officials, though, saying that if they are safe at home, even if it's without power, stay in place.

The travel ban, those restrictions, they're still in place. And that's why I actually went up to the 19th floor. You can look down on these highways that you see up there. They are mostly clear. The only vehicles I'm seeing out there are emergency vehicles, public works folks, so that's a good sign. But still, you are seeing individuals, still out, and perhaps do things that they need to do. But it is Christmas Day. Obviously everything would be closed anyway, so hopefully folks are staying in place. Tomorrow, perhaps, some hope for a little more recovery.

Paula, back to you.

REID: Definitely some hope for better days ahead. Polo Sandoval, thank you.

For more, I want to go now to Erie County executive, Mark Poloncarz.

Mark, thank you so much for speaking with us during this very difficult time. Do you have an update on how the rescue and recovery efforts are going right now?

POLONCARZ: Good afternoon, Paula. We certainty have more pieces of equipment and apparatus, and individuals out on the streets than we did yesterday. As Polo noted, there is a clearing over the city of Buffalo now. The snow band which moved through extreme southern Erie County was falling at rates of two to three inches per hour actually has been moving northward. It's in the center of the county. We're hoping it doesn't come back into the city.

But it is still snowing pretty hard in that part of the county. So if it does come back, that will impact our ability to get out further there. As was reported, there are seven confirmed deaths by the Erie County Department of Mental Health Medical Examiner's office. We have unconfirmed reports of other deaths from individuals who were outside in these horrible elements, the sub-20 degrees -- minus 20 degrees windchills and blinding whiteout conditions.

They're going car to car, is basically what's happening. They're going to every car that they're finding parked on the road, abandoned on the road, to see if there's bodies in there, see if there's people who need rescuing.

[13:05:06]

As we said, seven confirmed deaths at this point, but we are fearful that it will go up.

REID: Well, as you noted, seven people have died as a result of this storm. There could be others. What has been the biggest challenge so far in terms of emergency workers trying to save lives?

POLONCARZ: Well, for nearly 12 hours, it was almost impossible to go anywhere in the vast majority of community. This is an area that has approximately half a million residents between the city of Buffalo and some of our suburbs. It was such that we had to pull emergency rescue vehicles off the roads. We had to send search-and-rescue teams, those that are trained for these very bad winter conditions to actually go and rescue first responders who went out to try to respond to emergency calls.

And so now we're getting to a point where we're trying to open up additional roads, so that we can get to those individuals who may have had an emergency call that we haven't been able to get to. And we're also working with National Grid and New York State Electric and Gas to restore power to areas that have not had power for two days. There are homes right now that we know are below 30 degrees because we're getting reports of pipes bursting from individuals who are at homes that unfortunately the temperature has gone below 32.

So what we're telling everybody is if you are at a home that doesn't have heat, and it's been like that, make sure you have your water running. It doesn't have to be a strong amount of water but you should have your water running so there's water going through the system, and your pipes don't burst. And then we also -- we're trying to get the power back as quickly as possible.

The biggest problem that National Grid is dealing with is a number of their major substations that support the city of Buffalo, not only were snowed in, but were frozen, completely frozen, suffered serious damage of equipment. And it's still going to probably be 36 to 48 hours before they can get to a point where they're going to be able to restore power for those areas.

REID: And we just learned that the Buffalo Airport will now be closed until at least Tuesday, so how is that impacting travel for the city especially as emergency services are trying to help? POLONCARZ: Well, we are able to get emergency services from other

parts of the state. They are authorized to drive into the community even though there is a driving ban throughout all of the county. It certainly isn't going to impact people's travel into the community, there's no doubt about that. I know from hearing the reports from the airport is that one of the reasons that they are closed until then is because of not just having significant snow on the runways.

They can actually handle the snow on the runways. It's snow that's piled up against the terminal and in other areas of the airport. So they just need to be safe so that before they can have any travelers go to the airport, it's in a condition where they don't have to worry about the safety of individuals.

REID: With so many roads that are impassable, I mean, how soon do you see those roads getting cleared, and getting your county back to normal?

POLONCARZ: Well, we are in a much better shape for the suburban and smaller cities. The city of Buffalo is the biggest problem. And it has a different type of setup. It has smaller and more narrow streets with cars on them. Lots of drifting issues in the city. And even though it's only about three feet plus of snow, the drifts are eight to 10 feet tall in some areas.

Last night we were getting reports of streets that were closed -- I mean, excuse me, streets that were open in the suburbs and then we got about a foot of snow, with the heavy winds that came, and now you had two to three-foot drifts going across these roads that had previously been cleared.

So I feel like we're in a much better position for some of the major towns, like the town of Tonawanda, the town of Cheektowaga, the town of West Seneca. But the town of Amherst and the city of Buffalo are still in a situation where it's going to take some time to clean some of these areas off.

And just once again, there is a driving ban. So if you're watching this in Erie County or one of the adjacent counties, please don't try to drive around. You will only impede our efforts to open up our community quicker.

REID: And you've been in touch with the Biden administration and the governor. How are the state and federal governments helping you at this point?

POLONCARZ: Well, I've had plenty of conversations with the governor. They have called up the National Guard. They also brought in additional statewide equipment from across New York state. I talked to some of my colleagues across New York state, county executives who've offered assistance, too.

Part of the problem is what we're really doing is in some ways a search-and-rescue mission, getting in there. We have to get tow trucks to pull vehicles out after we've been able to get in with a plow to get up to the vehicle. And I've also been in contact with the Biden administration and

they've offered additional assistance and they're seeing what they could get up here rapidly. We can't have assistance come two days from now, we really need it now, so I appreciate all the efforts and the thanks from everyone across the country who have our community in their hearts during this Christmas time.

REID: Mark Poloncarz, thank you so much for joining us.

POLONCARZ: Thank you. Merry Christmas to all.

REID: Earlier, I spoke with New York Governor Kathy Hochul about the rescue-and-recovery efforts underway in her state and the danger many are still facing. Here's some of what she said.

[13:10:06]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. KATHY HOCHUL (D), NEW YORK: Well, I'm a lifelong Buffalonian. I've lived through every main blizzard for the last 60 years, and for a city with the reputation for epic snowstorms this is the worst of the worst. And there are many reasons. We'll analyze the impact of climate change, but what we're seeing is extreme weather getting even extremer. Flooding from Lake Erie, the frost and the freeze that came down so quickly, the amount of snow.

Literally five weeks ago, we had at least a four, five-day event where we had record amount of snow, the most amount of snow ever to fall in the state of New York in a 24-hour period had hit one month ago. It seems like every month we're having to break a new record. So it is extreme, it is dangerous, and it's deadly.

REID: What is the biggest challenge that you are facing right now in this area?

HOCHUL: Two major problems. One is we have hundreds of National Guard men and women ready to come in. We have 200 on the ground now. I need several hundred more. They get stuck themselves. We've had to have rescues for the National Guard, and our ambulances, and our fire trucks and our state police, they also fall prey to the zero visibility, the blowing snow drifts, and it's dangerous for anyone to be on the road. So we have overcome a great deal. We've had hundreds of rescues of people from vehicles.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

REID: So when will rescue operations get some relief from this catastrophic cold?

Let's turn to CNN meteorologist Britley Ritz.

All right, Britley, when will things warm up?

BRITLEY RITZ, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, give it a few days. We're noticing a small warming trend now. Most of us are above zero. So there's hope. Des Moines, 10 degrees, but the problem is we factor in the wind. And when that happened, you get what's called the windchill or the feels-like temperature. And it feels like nine below in Minneapolis, five below in Chicago, Columbus, Ohio, two below and near the wind gusts, over 30 to 40 miles per hour.

Buffalo, wind gusts at 33, 44 in Watertown. These are areas that are still dealing with blizzard conditions. Thankfully the windchill advisories have started to expire. See these light blue areas in parts of the Allegheny and the Appalachians there in West Virginia? That's what's left, very little still under advisories. And the hard freeze warnings that were in effect for Texas back through Louisiana have expired. Still have them, though, for parts of Georgia back into Alabama and Florida, where temperatures were in the upper 20s.

Now we're warmer because the sun's come up. But through the overnight and into tomorrow morning, we're going to do the same thing. Drop back into the 20s. Right now Mobile at 43 degrees. Afternoon highs in the 20s and 30s for the majority of the eastern part of the country. New Orleans, thankfully, being closer to the Gulf, you're at 44 degrees. That's it, but here's that warmer weather coming into play Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, and we're above average for many of us but, yet, it's still snowing.

And this is Watertown, New York. Again visibility down to near zero. Please don't travel. We have a lot of travel bans in place. It could save your life -- Paula.

REID: Absolutely. Britley Ritz, thank you so much.

And CNN's Carlos Suarez is at Atlanta's Hartsfield Jackson International Airport.

Carlos, it has been a rough week for holiday travel. I can see clearly you are not the only one at this airport on this Christmas Day. How are things looking there?

CARLOS SUAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Paula, there is a great deal of misery out here because of all of this cold weather and the number of cancellations. The folks here behind me they've all but given up hope on getting home just in time for Christmas. At this point, their biggest concern is whether they might be able to get home sometime in the middle of the week.

You're taking a look at where the line begins at this Delta rebooking counter. It goes all the way to the other side. The folks have been here for several hours, a lot of them are dealing with the reality that they're probably not going to be able to get home until Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday at the earliest.

What we're talking about actual flight numbers here out of Hartsfield Jackson International Airport, 214 flights have been cancelled today. When you take a look at the number nationwide, well, that is well over 1600 flights that have been cancelled because of all of this cold weather.

We caught up with one passenger, a woman, over on this Spirit terminal side of the airport. She was hoping to get to Houston to see her boyfriend after traveling in from Ohio, and she's now unsure where she's going to say because the airline told her, look, we're going to give you a voucher, but the earliest we can get you out of Atlanta will probably be on Wednesday. Here's what she told us.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAGGIE CHUNG, TRAVELER: The plan was to travel for Christmas and to try to go see my boyfriend. We're doing long distance. I live in Kentucky, he lives in Houston. So I haven't seen him in probably two months. So come from Ohio, I'm now in Atlanta and I found out that I'm here for another four days.

[13:15:06]

Apparently there's no flight. I find out after I get here that the flight is cancelled. And I'm informed that this is going to be until the 29th that there's another flight for me to go anywhere. And -- so I don't know where I'm going to be staying, no idea of how I'm going to get anywhere. And they're giving me money for the flight, though, so that's cool.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SUAREZ: All right. So your heart goes out to every single one of these folks that are making this line right now, with 214 canceled flights out of this airport while Atlanta now takes the lead with the total overall number of cancelled flights in the U.S. 214 of them have been canceled so far today. That is the most in the U.S. -- Paula.

REID: Not so very Merry Christmas at the Atlanta Airport. Carlos Suarez, thank you so much for that reporting.

And this week, a document dump years in the making. Former President Trump's tax returns expected to drop just after Christmas. What we might be able to take away from that release, next.

Plus, crime and justice front and center in 2022. A look back at the top stories of the year. You are live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

REID: Well, former President Trump bucked years of precedent by failing to reveal his tax returns as while the candidate and while in office. You remember this argument, right?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT: Nobody turns over a return when it's under audit. While I'm under audit I would not give my taxes. There's no law whatsoever. You know, in the old days, no president gave tax returns.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

REID: Well, actually, he's wrong about that. In 1977, the IRS made it official policy that individual income tax returns for the president and the vice president are subject to mandatory review. More on that in a moment, but this week a report from the House Ways and Means Committee offered a new insight into Trump's tax history.

Here's what we know so far. He paid no federal income tax in 2020. His income surged in 2018 and 2019 after years of losses, and the mandatory IRS presidential audit did not occur under 2019 after Democrats took the House in the 2018 midterms.

[13:20:02]

And while we won't get the full picture until the committee releases the actual returns next week, there are already so many questions.

And joining us now to talk about some of those, investigative journalist David Cay Johnston.

Thank you so much for joining me. You're also of course the author of several books on the former president, including "The Big Cheat: How Donald Trump Fleeced America and Enriched Himself and His Family."

David, thank you so much for joining us. Merry Christmas. We know you've been tracking Trump's finances for years. What's your biggest takeaway from the House Ways and Means summary here?

DAVID CAY JOHNSTON, INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALIST: Well, it's actually the joint committee's summary and what it showed is that Trump actually paid no income taxes during the six-year period. That's because we have two tax systems for very wealthy people. The regular tax system and the alternative minimum tax. So Trump paid one half of 1 percent of his income, his positive income in federal income tax.

But on the AMT system, because he's in real estate, he got refunds of $2.8 million more than he paid. So in effect, Donald Trump turned our tax system that burdens all of us into a profit center worth $2.1 million over six years.

REID: So how do you explain the IRS ignoring its own policy to examine presidential tax returns for the first two years of Trump's presidency? Why weren't they doing their job?

JOHNSTON: Well, Steve Mnuchin who was the Treasury secretary, you'll recall, refused to turn over Trump's returns. The case had to go to the U.S. Supreme Court to get this resolved, even though the law first enacted in 1924 says that any tax return shall be turned over on written request to certain people in Congress, just as the president has the right to inspect any tax return. So I think the thing to look at is this lawless behavior of Mnuchin.

Now the IRS commissioner, Charles Rettig, was a Beverly Hills tax lawyer whose specialty was helping people suspected of tax cheating avoid indictment and reducing what they paid to the government by ginning up as much litigation trouble as possible. And this just shows lawless behavior. Mr. Rettig, the commissioner, didn't go along with this. He should have resigned as a matter of principle. He didn't, so I think we can lay a lot of blame on him, as the government official designated to turn over the tax returns.

REID: That's a good point. Will we ever really get a complete picture of former President Trump's taxes? And this is only a few years. What specifically do you want to know still?

JOHNSTON: Well, Donald Trump, each year of these six years, recorded about two dozen what are called Schedule C Businesses. My book writing businesses called a Schedule C. It's what freelancers used. And he had -- in these two dozen, most of them recorded zero income, about hundreds of thousands of dollars of costs or they recorded costs that almost equaled the revenue. We have every reason to think, and the joint committee's report suggests that these are completely fraudulent.

They're just made up. And Donald Trump has a history of doing this. We know this because I broke the story six years ago that Trump had been twice tried civilly for tax fraud. And the issues in those tax frauds was showing a Schedule C Business with no income, and in that case, more than $600,000 of deductions. So there's clear evidence here of fraud. And Alvin Bragg, the district attorney in Manhattan, now has really powerful evidence if he wants to go after Trump for additional tax fraud beyond that for which his company has been convicted.

REID: David Cay Johnston, thank you so much for your important reporting on this. I've covered the former president's legal issues for many, many years now, and I know this particular aspect, this is incredibly technical. We really appreciate your reporting and expertise. Thank you.

JOHNSTON: Thank you.

REID: Still ahead this hour, a break in the case. Several arrests made following a deadly shooting at Minnesota's Mall of America. The latest on the investigation ahead.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:28:04]

REID: We're learning new details about Friday's deadly shooting at the Mall of America in Minnesota. Police have now arrested five peoples in connection with the incident, including three 17-year-olds and two 18- year-olds. The victim, a 19-year-old man, was shot after authorities say there was an altercation between a group of people inside a Nordstrom store. Investigators believe the shooter is one of the adults who was arrested but they're not ruling out the possibility of another shooter.

The gunfire sent shoppers scrambling for cover and forced them all to go into lockdown during the height of a Christmas shopping season. Investigators say they don't know why the shooting happened because the people in custody are not cooperating. The suspects are expected to be charged with second-degree murder. The shooting at the Mall of America is just one of the heartbreaking

tragedies we experienced this year, and long-awaited justice for families of children gunned down in Sandy Hook.

CNN's Jean Casarez has a look at the top 10 crime and justice stories of 2022.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Mass shootings, explosive revelations in court, and the pardoning of thousands of Americans. The most gripping crime and justice stories of 2022.

Number 10, an inmate and his jailer together and on the run.

JIM ACOSTA, CNN ANCHOR: A manhunt is underway in Alabama.

CASAREZ (voice-over): Police say Lauderdale County, Alabama, Assistant Director of Corrections Vicky White helped Casey White escape, walking him out the door on the day she was set to retire. The two were not related, but may have had a clandestine romantic relationship authorities said.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She was a longtime trusted employee at our jail, and she just exploited the system.

CASAREZ: On the run for 11 days, the pair were eventually spotted in Indiana.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 3A51 in pursuit.

[13:30:01]

CASAREZ: Police there gave chase, which ended in the car crashing. Vicky White shot and killed herself, Casey White was charged with escape and taken back to jail in Alabama.

(On camera): Number nine, thousands of convictions for marijuana up in smoke.

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No one should be in jail just for using or possessing marijuana.

CASAREZ (voice-over): President Joe Biden pardoning Americans convicted in federal court of simple marijuana possession.

BIDEN: It's time that we right these wrongs.

CASAREZ: Biden also ordered a review of how marijuana is classified under federal law, which could be a first step toward easing criminal penalties.

(On camera): Number eight. An author facing a decades-old death threat attacked.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Salman Rushdie is still in surgery right now after he was stabbed.

CASAREZ (voice-over): The award-winning author was stabbed multiple times as he prepared to speak at New York's Chautauqua Institution.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was a lot of screaming and crying.

CASAREZ: The suspect, 24-year-old Hadi Matar was held down by the crowd until he was arrested. Rushdie lived in hiding after his novel "The Satanic Verses" was condemned by Iran's then supreme leader in 1989. Officials there denied any connection to the New York attack. Rushdie survived, but reportedly lost use of an eye and hand. Matar pleaded not guilty.

(On camera): Number seven, actors Johnny Depp and Amber Heard battle it out in a Virginia courtroom over defamation and domestic abuse.

AMBER HEARD, ACTRESS: He slapped me again.

CASAREZ (voice-over): Depp sued over a 2018 op-ed penned by Heard, saying she was a survivor of domestic violence. Heard counter-sued.

JOHNNY DEPP, ACTOR: She threw the large bottle and it made contact.

CASAREZ: Depp testified he was the one physically and emotionally abused. Both also denied the other's claims.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I understand we have a verdict?

CASAREZ: The jury found Heard liable for defamation of a public figure, a difficult thing to prove, and awarded Depp $15 million in damages. They also found Depp defamed Heard in a statement made by his lawyer and awarded her $2 million. Heard appealed, but later settled the suit.

(On camera): Number six, brutal killings in a college town.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: There are still no suspects in the killing of four college students at the University of Idaho.

CASAREZ (voice-over): Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves were stabbed multiple times likely in their sleep.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This incident has shaken our community.

CASAREZ: But the case remains unsolved. Police have not located the murder weapon or identified a suspect.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Every day you just wake up and think today is the day we're going to hear something.

CASAREZ (on camera): Number five, the life of a man who killed 17 in a Florida school spared.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Life in prison without the possibility of parole on all counts for Parkland killer Nikolas Cruz. CASAREZ (voice-over): He pleaded guilty to killing 17 people and

injuring 17 others at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in 2018. Jury split on if he should receive the death penalty which means he will not be executed.

STACEY LIPPEL, PARKLAND TEACHER AND SURVIVOR: You don't know me, but you tried to kill me.

CASAREZ: Cruz now in prison with no possibility of parole.

DEBRA HIXON, WIDOW OF CHRISTOPHER HIXON: You stole him from us and you did not receive the justice that you deserved.

CASAREZ (on camera): Number four, it is being called the deadliest human smuggling incident in American history.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Human tragedy in San Antonio.

CASAREZ (voice-over): Fifty-three migrants died after being left inside an abandoned truck in the Texas heat. Others found alive, but barely.

CHARLES HOOD, SAN ANTONIO FIRE DEPARTMENT: They were suffering from heat-stroke, heat exhaustion.

CASAREZ: Two men were arrested and charged in connection with the transportation of migrants resulting in death. If convicted, they could face the death penalty.

(On camera): Number three, Alex Jones must pay.

BLITZER: A Connecticut jury's massive judgment against Alex Jones for spreading lies and conspiracies.

CASAREZ (voice-over): Families of victims of the Sandy Hook shooting and an FBI agent who responded sued Jones and his company for defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

ALEX JONES, INFOWARS HOST: The whole thing was fake.

CASAREZ: For years, Jones called the 2012 shooting where 20 elementary school children and six educators died, a hoax. In Connecticut, 15 plaintiffs awarded more than $1.4 billion, and in a separate trial in Texas, two parents got nearly $50 million. Jones has filed for personal bankruptcy and his company has done the same.

[13:35:06]

ROBBIE PARKER, SANDY HOOK PARENT: But I'm just proud that what we are able to accomplish was just to simply tell the truth.

CASAREZ (on camera): Number two, an average of nearly two mass shootings every day.

BOLDUAN: Communities across the country have been rocked by more deadly gun violence. CASAREZ (voice-over): Data compiled by the Gun Violence Archives shows

there were more than 600 mass shootings where at least four people were shot excluding the shooter in the U.S. in 2022.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: We begin today with a tragic shooting in Buffalo, New York.

CASAREZ: Ten killed in a racist attack at a grocery store in a predominantly black neighborhood.

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Police in Highland Park are responding to a shooting at the city's Independence Day parade.

CASAREZ: Seven died and dozens were injured on July 4th outside of Chicago.

POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: We are learning more about the suspected gunman who murdered five people and injured dozens more at an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs.

MICHAEL ANDERSON, BARTENDER, CLUB Q: I saw the outline of a man holding a rifle at the entrance of the club just probably about 15 feet from me.

CASAREZ (on camera): And now number one, children killed at school, law enforcement failures, and demands for accountability.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: The scene is still unfolding there at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas.

CASAREZ (voice-over): Police respond quickly.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shots fired inside the building in Uvalde.

CASAREZ: But for over an hour, they wait, not going into the classroom to confront the gunman.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As you stand there today, was this the right decision?

COL. STEVEN MCCRAW, DIRECTOR, TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY: For the benefit of hindsight, where I'm sitting now, of course, it was not the right decision.

CASAREZ: Law enforcement eventually entered the classroom and killed the gunman, but not before 19 children and two teachers were mortally wounded. A Texas House committee described the series of failures and an overall lackadaisical approach by authorities.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's mind-blowing because they had a lot of time.

CASAREZ: Robb Elementary will now be torn down, and 21 families will never be the same.

ANGEL GARZA, VICTIM'S STEPFATHER: She was the sweetest little girl who did nothing wrong. (END VIDEOTAPE)

REID: That was CNN's Jean Casarez reporting.

A fire on board a JetBlue flight forced more than 160 passengers to evacuate shortly after landing at New York's JFK Airport last night. One passenger describes how the captain jumped into action.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEAN WEED, PASSENGER: The captain came flying out of the cabin, he grabbed a fire extinguisher, and was doing like an O.J. Simpson over the seats and passengers, the guy was amazing, and he put the fire out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

REID: In a statement to CNN, JetBlue said the flight from Barbados was evacuated due to reports of a customer's malfunctioning electronic device or battery. The fire officials say passengers were evacuated using slides, and that five people were treated for minor injuries. The FAA and the NTSB are now investigating the incident.

At war for the holidays, Ukrainians spending this Christmas in a fight for their lives with Russia, as missiles rain down. But they're getting a gift from the U.S. that could make a key difference in the war. Details next.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:41:41]

REID: There has been no let-up in the fight in Ukraine this holiday weekend. Ukrainian military officials say Russia shelled the Kherson region more than 70 times on Saturday alone, hitting apartment buildings and medical facilities. At least 16 people were killed, another 64 injured. Even as the war rages, some Ukrainian soldiers were able to find a few minutes to celebrate Christmas with each other, and there was this moment.

Ukrainians singing traditional Christmas songs underground in the capital Kyiv.

Now CNN national security analyst and former CIA chief of Russian operations Steve Hall joins me now.

Steve, Merry Christmas. Thank you for joining us. Russian forces are clearly not easing or ceasing their attacks. Are they trying to gain territory at this point or just trying to gain a psychological edge for these attacks?

STEVE HALL, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, I think it's probably more the latter. I think Putin -- one of the things that Putin and his military have learned over the past couple of months is that it's really hard to do a lot of damage to the Ukrainian military on the ground. They have failed at that time and time again. And so what they're limited to is basically rocket attacks or cruise missiles attacks, stuff that you launch at the country from a distance.

And of course, you know, they don't have a whole lot of really very well-targeted weapons left. And so what's happening is they're just bombing the heck out of them to try to, I would say, sap the morale out of the Ukrainian population and the military as well. So I think it's more psychological effect at this point than an actual military accomplishment that they're engaged in.

REID: And Ukraine's President Zelenskyy visited the U.S. this week. He implored the White House and Congress to continue to support Ukraine.

Do you think that he achieved his goal? Did he get what he needed politically out of that trip?

HALL: Well, I think we'll see. Is this coming your -- you know, it sort of opens up and we see what the plans of the new Congress are. But I was very pleased with Zelenskyy's speech. He said something that I'd like to see out of a lot of other American politicians, reminding -- I think Americans who are making very common-sensical questions. Like, how many billions are we giving to Ukraine, and, you know, my bridges are not being repairs or my schools are not in the condition? Why is the money not flowing to the United States as opposed to Ukraine?

And I think that Zelenskyy did a really good job pointing out that there's two things about this. There's a moral aspect to it. Of course, we should be supporting Ukrainians. They've been invaded by Russia. But there's also something that's in the interest of the United States, and that is the maintenance in maintaining democracy worldwide. That is a direct benefits to the United States and other Western democracies as well. So I think Zelenskyy did a really, really good job of reminding us that this is not just charity. This is actually an investment in things that are good for the United States and its allies.

REID: Well, of course, Zelenskyy isn't likely to get a lot more of the sophisticated weapons that he's looking for, but the White House did approve the Patriot air defense. The Russian president Vladimir Putin said delivering those Patriots will just prolong the war. What do you think the consequence is of supplying this kind of advanced air defense system?

HALL: Well, first of all, to get the obvious out of the way, whenever Vladimir Putin says something, you can pretty much discount it as either inaccurate or disinformation. In this case, the provision of, you know, these types of weapons systems, whether it's Patriots or other advanced Western systems, will indeed make the war longer for Russia.

[13:45:09]

But if we think that because we're not going to provide -- if we are to provide fewer weapons to Ukraine, that that would shorten the war? That is certainly not the case.

Look, I think it's clear that what the Ukrainians really need right now is help with air defense, and the Patriot missile system is one of those other Western-NATO style weapons systems that would help them accomplish that. Now that's what they really need. And I hope that, you know, we continue -- we, the West, continue to support the Ukrainians.

REID: Steve Hall, thank you so much for joining us.

HALL: My pleasure. Merry Christmas.

REID: Millions of Ukrainian refugees are celebrating their first Christmas since Russia invaded their country. The U.N. has counted about 7.8 million of them across Europe. Many are fearing for loved ones near the front lines. But as CNN's Lynda Kinkade reports, their host countries are trying to make the season a little brighter.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): For the Berezhko family from Kyiv, this Christmas is about getting together with the Polish family that took them in soon after Russia invaded Ukraine.

SERHIY BEREZHKO, UKRAINIAN REFUGEE IN WARSAW (through translator): We arrived here with just a couple of bags, and with the things we had on ourselves. We left all necessary things in Ukraine, and all that we have now is thanks to the Poles.

KINKADE: More than one and a half million Ukrainian refugees have registered for temporary protection in Poland. Many with help from strangers.

MAREK MIODUSZEWSKI, HOSTED BEREZHKO FAMILY (through translator): It was a natural impulse to help, it was in the first days of the war. We met on a freezing night outside my house. I invited this family to my house and I hugged them to my heart.

KINKADE: Traditionally, Ukrainian Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas on January 7th, but today many celebrate on December 25th. And Ukraine has made it a public holiday as part of a larger break with Russian traditions.

People all over Eastern and Central Europe are helping refugees enjoy new traditions. These Prague residents organized a party for refugee children.

HANA HILLEROVA-HARPER, CAROLING ORGANIZER IN PRAGUE: We felt like these kids, there's 132 children living here, and they're spending their Christmas not at home, but at a strange dormitory, so we're just trying to make it a little bit better for them.

KINKADE: In this Bucharest shelter, Ukrainian refugee children decorate trees with ornaments while families wait in line for packages. Many refugees are saving money for their relatives back in Ukraine, like this family now living in Prague. VASIL KHYMYSHYNETS, UKRAINIAN REFUGEE IN PRAGUE (through translator):

As refugees, we didn't have any possibilities. We had to think if we can afford to buy a Christmas tree or not. That's why we decided to just use some branches for the decoration so that it looks good and makes the children happy.

KINKADE: A few simple decorations that carry a lot of meaning.

Lynda Kinkade, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

REID: Coming up, questions surrounding credentials, an incoming GOP congressman facing serious criticism over his resume. When can we expect him to clear things up?

Well, you're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:51:43]

REID: Incoming Republican Congressman George Santos now says he's ready to address mounting questions about his life story, he'll do so later this week. This comes after news outlets found some real discrepancies when it comes to his past.

More now from CNN's Jason Carroll.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GEORGE SANTOS (R), NEW YORK CONGRESSMAN-ELECT: Look, as I always joke, I'm Jew-ish.

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Throughout his campaign, Republican Congressman-elect George Santos would refer to himself as half Jewish or a Latino Jew often telling his grandparents' story. How he says they survived the holocaust as Ukrainian Jewish refugees and converted to Catholicism, changing the surname to survive.

Here is how Santos explained it just last month in an interview with the Jewish News Syndicate.

SANTOS: I'm very proud of my grandparents' story. My grandfather fleeing Ukraine, fleeing silence persecution, going to Belgium, finding refuge there. Marrying my grandmother then fleeing Hitler, going to Brazil. That's a story of perseverance.

CARROLL: It's a story that may not be true. His misrepresentations of his family history first reported by the Jewish publication "The Forward" and his story contradicted by numerous sources reviewed by CNN's K-File. Records from the Holocaust Museum and the International Center on Nazi Persecution which keeps records on Jewish refugees show no mention of Santos' grandparents.

One genealogist who helped research Santos' family tree at CNN's request said there is no sign of Jewish and-or Ukrainian heritage and no indication of name changes along the way.

SANTOS: I'm so proud to be able to keep our family going forward and showing that not only did we survive, but now I am able to go advocate and fight for other Jewish people.

CARROLL: Santos has not responded to CNN requests about his family history and discrepancies with his resume and biography.

JOSHUA A. LAFAZAN, NASSAU COUNTY LEGISLATOR: People are perplexed. They're asking me how could somebody possibly tell this scale of lies and get elected?

CARROLL: Among the seeming misrepresentations first detailed by the "New York Times" and confirmed by CNN, Santos' biography has at times claimed he earned degrees in finance and economics from Baruch College and New York University. CNN found he also said in at least two separate interviews he received an MBA from NYU.

SANTOS: Today I stand very proud with a bachelor's and master's degree, all New York educated. Baruch College and NYU for my MBA.

CARROLL: A spokesman for NYU telling CNN something different. The university records do not reflect anyone with that name having attended NYU. While a spokesperson for Baruch College anyone with his name or birthday ever attending the school.

The record of his work history also murky. The campaign bio mentioned stints at Citigroup and Goldman Sachs. Neither Citigroup nor Goldman Sachs have any records of his employment. Santos listed on his 2022 financial disclosure a salary of $750,000 and claimed he made the same amount last year.

[13:55:03]

Income he says he earned from a Devolder Organization which he says is his family's firm. A search showed the firm was registered in Florida last year. The state temporarily deemed it inactive for failure to file required annual reports. CNN found Santos filed the required report Tuesday. Santos' attorney said Santos represents the kind of progress that the left is so threatened by, a gay Latino immigrant and Republican who won a Biden district in overwhelming fashion.

The Nassau County Republican Committee chair called the issues being raised serious adding, "Every person deserves an opportunity to clear his or her name in the face of accusations and I look forward to the congressman-elect's responses to the news report."

SANTOS: My parents came to this country in search of the American dream. Today I live that American dream.

CARROLL: Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

REID: We're keeping a close eye on the extreme winter weather across the country. Here's a live look at upstate New York where the death toll is now up to seven as the result of a storm there. We'll have the latest from upstate New York coming up.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

REID: Merry Christmas. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Paula Reid in Washington.

We begin this hour with that dangerous, extreme winter storm causing chaos on this Christmas Day. Right now freeze warnings remain in infect in several states. Blizzard conditions are pummeling states across the Great Lakes. The Arctic blast now being blamed for at least 26.