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Israel-Hezbollah Ceasefire Deal Now Very Close Despite Ongoing Attacks; New Femicide Report from U.N. Sends Shockwaves to Commemorate Int'l Day For Elimination of VAW. Trump Taps Scott Bessent as Incoming Treasury Secretary; Pro-Leagues Warn Players After Home Break-Ins; "Gladiator II', "Wicked" Debuts Strong in the U.S. Box Office. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired November 25, 2024 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

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ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world and to everyone streaming us on CNN Max, I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead, Donald Trump is determined to fill his cabinet with controversial nominees. We look ahead to the fight to get his picks confirmed by the Senate.

Israel and Hezbollah carry out cross-border strikes as diplomatic efforts are underway to reach a ceasefire.

And a string of break-ins targeting pro-athletes have the FBI on high alert. We'll discuss who's believed to be behind it. That's just ahead.

ANNOUNCER (voice-over): Live from Atlanta, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Rosemary Church.

CHURCH: Good to have you with us.

Well, the Thanksgiving holiday week is starting with a pretty clear picture of Donald Trump's cabinet picks. Now, Republicans are bracing for long confirmation battles ahead, especially for the president- elect's more controversial choices, like the nominee for Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, who faces allegations of sexual assault.

It could force Republicans to choose between loyalty to Trump and growing concerns about getting nominees confirmed in a narrowly controlled Senate. Some are vigorously defending Hegseth, but one Republican senator, while still defending Trump's vision, says it's fair to ask about the assault case.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. ERIC SCHMITT, (R-MO): Senators certainly are going to ask questions about it. They should. And he has a right to answer. Ultimately, this is a decision that President Trump made to bring in another disruptor. And I think if you look at this election, it was disruptor versus establishment. He ran on this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Meanwhile, Democratic Senator and combat veteran Tammy Duckworth questioned Hegseth's qualifications to leave the U.S. Department of Defense.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TAMMY DUCKWORTH (D-IL): He never commanded a unit. He never commanded a company, let alone battalions, brigades or whole armies. He was a platoon leader. He served at a very low level in the military. And we're talking about an organization that is three million servicemen and women and civilians and a budget of over $900 Billion. He does not have the experience to run an organization of that size.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Duckworth called Trump's pick to lead the intelligence community unqualified, saying former Democrat Tulsi Gabbard has no intelligence background. Duckworth also says Gabbard is compromised because of what she says are troubling relationships with Russia and Syria.

But Oklahoma's Republican senator is dismissing criticism of Gabbard.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MARKWAYNE MULLIN (R-OK): There's no document. There's no background there for her to see, for anyone to see. She is a true patriot of the United States. And there's no reason why the Democrats are going after her other than the fact they're upset that she left their woke party.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Ron Brownstein is a CNN senior political analyst and a senior editor at "The Atlantic." He joins us now from Los Angeles. Thank you so much for being with us.

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST AND SR. EDITOR, "THE ATLANTIC": Hi, Rosemary.

CHURCH: So as the confirmation showdown looms, President-elect Donald Trump continues to fill the final top spots on his new transition team. But shockwaves continue over his most controversial Cabinet choices.

Matt Gaetz withdrew his name, but concern remains over Tulsi Gabbard, Pete Hegseth and Robert Kennedy, Jr. Some Republican senators are now flexing their muscles when confronted with Trump picks they don't like. So how likely is it that Tulsi Gabbard will get confirmed to oversee America's intelligence agencies after repeatedly questioning U.S. intel and echoing Russian propaganda?

BROWNSTEIN: I would think that she would be the -- in the inner circle and perhaps the most vulnerable of the remaining nominees. You know, what happened to Matt Gaetz is important because even the most -- even the senators who are the most willing to establish distance from Trump probably have a number in their head that is pretty small of how many times they are willing to publicly vote against him.

And the fact that Matt Gaetz withdrew before there was a vote either in the committee or on the floor means they didn't have to vote against him in the Gaetz case. And thus, that bullet was, you know, was never used.

And I think that Gabbard is probably the most vulnerable of the remaining because she can be attacked from the right. I mean, you saw last week from Nikki Haley, who described her as an Iranian-Syrian- Russian-Chinese sympathizer.

And I think Republican senators who are going to be reluctant to dissent from Trump too often, given the magnitude of his hold on the party, may feel more comfortable opposing nominees when they can do so from the right.

[03:05:06]

CHURCH: And as some senators are bracing for what they expect to be fiery confirmation battles, many worry about Pete Hegseth as Trump's pick for defense secretary. Not only has he never run anything like the size of the Defense Department, he's also dealing with a potential sexual assault accusation. And he opposes women in combat roles.

Given all of this, how likely is it that Hegseth will be the next U.S. defense secretary?

BROWNSTEIN: I think it's a little harder for them to oppose Hegseth, right, because how can you say you're opposing Hegseth because of a sexual assault allegation and supporting Donald Trump, who has been adjudicated to have committed sexual abuse is the term in New York, but essentially a sexual assault?

You know, Hegseth, you know, in the, you know, what I've been calling the before times before Trump certainly would never have gotten off the ground, even in a Republican-controlled Senate.

But again, there are probably only so many times all but the most independent senators are willing to break from Trump and they are going to have to prioritize whether they view Hegseth as more of a risk than Gabbard.

I think for many Republican national security hawks, the thought of putting Gabbard, who has had such close relationships with Russian media, you know, parroting the Russian line for so many years, putting her in charge of national intelligence is just head spinning. And I've got to think that is even more of a concern than Hegseth.

CHURCH: Medical experts are particularly concerned about Robert Kennedy, Jr. heading up health and human services with his plan to remove fluoride from drinking water and his plan to modify vaccine mandates. Now, this is the pick that would directly affect most Americans.

So how likely is Kennedy's confirmation, do you think?

BROWNSTEIN: Well, I kind of rank them Gabbard, Kennedy, Hegseth in order of remaining risk.

Again, you know, there is the possibility of opposing Kennedy from the right. Mike Pence signaled that the former vice president, when he attacked him in social media the other day for his historic advocacy of abortion rights.

And I think it is easier for Republicans to come out, as I said, from the right rather than the kind of even if their principal motivation is actually, you know, his assortment of conspiracy theories and kooky views on vaccines and other health related topics.

That one might be a little tougher to derail than Gabbard, but I don't think it's out of the question at all.

CHURCH: And Trump's other top picks are not stirring up the same level of controversy, although concerns remain for some. But overall, how will this process likely proceed over the next two months? And what will you be looking for?

BROWNSTEIN: Yeah, no, look, I think, you know, Trump, you know, threw the rocks through the windows four times with Gates, Gabbard, Hegseth and RFK Jr. The other nominees are more typical of what you would get in a conservative Republican presidency, even if the choices at CDC and FDA might push things a little bit.

I think the focus will stay on the ones that we've been discussing. And as I said, you know, even Murkowski or Collins or the Republican where the Republican senator is probably most willing to establish independence from Trump. There's only so many times they are going to vote against him.

And I think their hands are going to be full with the ones that we've been discussing. And I can't imagine there being too much of a problem with any of the others.

CHURCH: Ron Brownstein, always a pleasure to get your analysis on all things politics. Thank you.

BROWNSTEIN: Thanks for having me.

CHURCH: Turning to the Middle East now, where a regional source says a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hezbollah is, quote, "very close."

But a spokesperson for the Israeli prime minister says while they're moving in that direction, some issues still need to be addressed. All this as we're seeing an uptick in strikes across the border.

On Sunday night, the Israel Defense Forces said they struck 12 Hezbollah command centers in Beirut's southern suburbs. Lebanese officials say dozens were killed in attacks across the country over the weekend. And since mid-September, Lebanon's health ministry says Israeli strikes have killed more than 3,000 people.

In Israel at least seven people were injured after the Israeli military says Hezbollah fired around 250 projectiles from Lebanon on Sunday. Some of them, as you see here, intercepted by Israel's air defenses.

In Iran, a senior adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei says Tehran is preparing to respond to recent strikes by Israel. Last month, Israel hit military targets inside Iran in retaliatory strikes after Iran launched a missile attack on October 1st.

[03:10:06]

The senior adviser says Iran's response would be aimed at, quote, "restoring deterrence."

And CNN's Paula Hancocks is following these developments for us from Abu Dhabi. She joins us now live. Good to see you, Paula. So what more are you learning about these preparations by Iran to retaliate against Israel?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, we have heard from the supreme leader previously that the response to Israel's attacks last month was going to be teeth breaking.

Now, we are hearing in this interview that the purpose of this retaliation by Tehran will be to try and create or reestablish deterrence. We heard in the interview that the military officials are being given the time to come up with a plan which can achieve that. So there's very little detail, as you might imagine, as to what that retaliation could look like or even what a time frame could be.

But it is in retaliation to what we saw at the end of October from Israel, where they took out a number of defense and military targets. So we understand it was missile manufacturing sites and aerial defense systems.

And since then, the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, also said that there was a component in Iran's nuclear program which was targeted as well. That launch and those strikes were in retaliation for what we saw at the beginning of October when Tehran launched around about 200 ballistic missiles on Israel, saying it was targeting military facilities.

So this is a tit-for-tat response, a very significant response, certainly the likes of which we have not seen between these two state players before. But we will have to wait and see what the Tehran response looks like.

Now, another issue we are following very closely is that potential ceasefire proposal between Israel and Hezbollah. We are hearing that it could be very close, according to a regional source. We're also hearing from an Israeli official that significant progress has been made. But we are being cautioned from many sides that we are not quite there yet.

We did hear, though, from the Israeli ambassador to the U.S., Michael Herzog, speaking to Israeli Army Radio, that the ceasefire could happen, quote, "within days." So it really does feel as though it could be imminent, although he did say Israel also reserves the right to respond if need be. Rosemary.

CHURCH; All right. Thanks to Paula Hancocks bringing us the latest on that. I appreciate it.

The White House is condemning the killing of an Israeli rabbi in the United Arab Emirates and calling it a horrific crime against those who stand for peace, tolerance and coexistence. That statement coming as authorities in the UAE arrested three people in connection with the death of Rabbis v. Kogan, who had been filmed by a friend days before his murder.

Kogan had been missing since Thursday and on Sunday, the UAE Interior Ministry confirmed his body had been discovered and the arrests made. Israel says he was killed in an anti-Semitic act of terror.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): The State of Israel will use every means to bring the murderers and their dispatchers to justice. None of them will escape accountability. I greatly appreciate the cooperation with the UAE in investigating this murder. Together, we will strengthen our ties in the face of attempts by the axis of evil to harm our peace relations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The wars raging in the Middle East and in Ukraine will feature prominently in the G7 foreign ministers meeting today in central Italy. The delegations will discuss those wars along with Indo-Pacific security and the ongoing security crises in Haiti and Sudan.

Ukraine's foreign minister will attend meetings on Tuesday. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Italy Sunday. It will be his last G7 summit before the Trump administration takes over the White House in January.

CNN's Clare Sebastian joins me now live from London. Good morning to you, Clare. So with the G7 meeting set to take place just hours from now, what's on the table regarding efforts to end the war in Ukraine?

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, look, this is now shaping up to be a pretty crucial meeting coming off the back of a very tense week, really, to put it mildly.

When it comes to the war in Ukraine, Ukraine's foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, will be heading there. He'll be holding some bilateral meetings. He'll be taking part in a broader G7 meeting. And then he'll also be holding a meeting with NATO on Tuesday that was sort of hastily arranged off the back of that Russian medium range missile strike on Dnipro on Thursday. [03:15:07]

So, look, Russia has signaled that this is essentially a new phase in the war with that missile strike. And that, I think, will form the broader context of that meeting.

They are willing to bring in a whole new class of weapons with this that essentially dwarf the range of the long range missiles that the West has provided to Ukraine and that they recently lifted the restrictions on using inside of Russia.

We're getting early reports this morning signaling that perhaps those missiles may have been used again on Kursk, unconfirmed as of this moment. But a freelance advisor to the governor of Kursk suggesting that Western-provided missiles were used on that region. Seven missiles used on Kursk this morning, according to the governor there.

So it looks like Ukraine may be continuing with those efforts in spite of that Russian effort to sort of restore the international view of its deterrent last week.

Look, perhaps still more importantly, the context here is that Russia is still advancing on the front lines, particularly in the east and southeast of Ukraine. The U.K. defense ministry described this as the most unstable the front lines have been since 2022. So I think all that will come into play.

President Zelenskyy said last week that Ukraine is discussing new air defense systems with its allies to protect them against new risks. And I think one other headline that we may look for out of this meeting, Rosemary, is any progress towards providing Ukraine with that $50 billion loan backed by those frozen Russian sovereign assets?

The commitment from the G7 has been to provide that by the end of the year. And of course, that would give Ukraine much greater financial security going into next year and, of course, into the next U.S. administration.

CHURCH: All right, our thanks to Clare Sebastian bringing us the very latest there. I appreciate it.

We are following a developing story out of Lithuania, a cargo plane flying from Germany crashed just outside the Vilnius airport at about 5:30 a.m. local time.

Public broadcaster LRT reports that one crew member was killed and at least two others were taken to hospital. Reuters is reporting that the plane is a DHL aircraft. Emergency workers and firefighters are on the scene.

The mayor of Vilnius told LRT the plane narrowly missed hitting a house and crashed into a nearby courtyard. We will bring you more details as they come in to us.

And this story coming to us out of Tennessee, county officials are advising residents of one community to evacuate any homes within a mile of a building fire involving unknown chemicals. Now, this is taking place in Rogersville, about 60 miles northeast of Knoxville. CNN has contacted the Hawkins County Emergency Management Agency for additional information.

The Menendez brothers head back to court for the first time in years. What to expect at Monday's hearing. That's just ahead.

And shocking statistics mark International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. We will discuss, when we return.

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[03:20:00]

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CHURCH: The Menendez brothers will face a judge today as they fight to be released from prison decades after being convicted of killing their parents. The case has drawn renewed public interest since the release of a hit Netflix show this year and growing support for Lyle and Eric Menendez from celebrities.

CNN's Camila Bernal has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This status hearing is the latest step in the brothers bid to freedom after the Los Angeles County District Attorney recommended their resentencing. It is the first time that we'll see them in nearly 30 years after they were convicted and sentenced to life in prison for the killing of their parents.

And it is nearly 30 years later that this judge will also decide what happens, whether they appear in person or virtually. It is likely that they will appear virtually.

And it is a hearing that will start at 10:30 a.m. at a Van Nuys courtroom here in the Los Angeles area. The judge also setting very strict rules around what happens in this hearing. There will be no cameras and no cell phone. In fact, the cell phones will be sealed in bags.

Journalists will be allowed to attend, but only 16 members of the public will be allowed in that courtroom and they will get their seats via a lottery. There is huge attention and interest in this case, especially after a 2023 docuseries on Peacock, where a member of the boy band Menudo also alleged that he was a victim of sexual abuse by Jose Menendez, the father of the two brothers.

So that, along with a letter that Eric Menendez wrote before the killings, describing the sexual abuse is what the defense team says should be used and is why they are asking a court to reconsider the sentence and the conviction.

And so the district attorney here in Los Angeles agreed with the defense. The problem for the defense is that that district attorney was essentially voted out of office. Nathan Hochman, the incoming district attorney here in Los Angeles, sees this case a little bit different. Here's what he told us.

NATHAN HOCHMAN, LOS ANGELES COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY-ELECT: Now, as to whether or not I'm going to support that particular motion or not, you've got to do the hard work to make that decision. You've got to review thoroughly the facts in the law. You need to actually speak to the prosecutors, speak to law enforcement officers, speak to the defense counsel and speak to any victim family members as well.

Only after I do all that work will I be in a position to weigh in on the Menendez case because then I'm not only going to weigh in on it, I'll have to defend that decision in court.

BERNAL: And the question here is not whether the brothers killed their parents. They have admitted to doing so but have said that they did it in self-defense after years of sexual abuse, emotional and physical abuse.

The prosecution at the time argued that this was premeditated and that the brothers did this for the money and because they wanted their parents' money. So again, we'll have to wait and see what the judge on Monday decides to do.

[03:25:00]

But there is also another hearing that we're waiting for that is scheduled for December 11th. And that is the sentencing hearing, which could be more consequential for these brothers as this case continues to move through the courts.

Camila Bernal, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: In Spain, four men have been convicted in connection with the homophobic murder of a 24-year-old nursing assistant. They were found guilty of targeting the victim, Samuel Luiz, because they assumed he was gay.

Luiz's death sparked protests across Spain and abroad. He died after being assaulted outside a nightclub in July 2021. The prosecution is requesting jail terms between 22 and 27 years.

A disturbing report is underscoring why marking the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women today is more important than ever. According to the U.N., last year a woman was killed every 10 minutes by a partner or family member.

People are taking to the streets to show support for the cause and anger at the shocking statistics. The report shows that globally 85,000 women and girls were killed intentionally in 2023.

Much of the violence against women and girls happens in the home. 60 percent of all female homicides are committed by intimate partners or family members, with 140 women and girls on average losing their lives to domestic violence every day. Now U.N. Women is calling for accountability and action from decision makers.

Kalliopi Mingeirou, the chief of the U.N.'s Ending Violence Against Women section, underlined the need for greater progress in basic safety for women, and she pointed out the most violence against women still goes unreported.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KALLIOPI MINGEIROU, CHIEF, ENDING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN, U.N. WOMEN: We know that less than 40 percent of the women who experience violence seek help of any sort.

And just to mention that less of these women, less than 10 percent who seek help appeal to the police. There's so much stigma for survivors of violence to really report the violence that they experience.

And you know it's really difficult for women just to report on the partners that they are with. Sometimes they're so much afraid of their own lives, they're afraid that they're going to lose the custody of their children. So it becomes very, very difficult to report such violence. So we really see only the tip of the iceberg.

We have seen some progress though in the last few decades. Member states have been working and governments have been working very hard to implement laws, policies, and to put services in place to address violence against women and girls.

And now we have as of 2023, we have 104 countries that they have comprehensive laws addressing domestic violence. And we have seen some increases of budgets in order to implement these laws. However, this is not enough.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And that was the Chief of the U.N.'s Ending Violence Against Women Department.

Still to come, Donald Trump's cabinet picks are preparing for heated Senate confirmation hearings. But his choice for Treasury Secretary may be fighting even tougher battles once he's confirmed.

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[03:30:00]

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ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back everyone.

U.S. Republican Senator Rand Paul says he is leaning towards being supportive of Donald Trump's pick for Treasury Secretary, billionaire Scott Bessent. But he doesn't like the President-elect's proposal to sharply raise tariffs.

Bessent has expressed support for more gradual tariffs. He advised Trump on economic policy during the campaign. If confirmed by the Senate, Bessent will face many challenges on day one, including pressure to address the federal debt limit.

Well earlier I spoke to Ryan Patel, a senior fellow at the Drucker School of Management at Claremont Graduate University. I asked him how Scott Bessent will handle Trump's high tariffs without spooking the markets.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RYAN PATEL, SR. FELLOW, DRUCKER SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT-CLAREMONT GRADUATE UNIVERSITY: I think there's a couple of things. I think, one, a rhetoric that Bessent has already used as a negotiating tactic. That's one. I think the right to worry is anytime you go with tariffs and you're taxing somebody, we've seen there's never a middle ground to this.

I think what Bessent wants to do, I think he has a relationship that bridges Wall Street for the last 30 years. I think that helps the market with some kind of ease, but it's not about who you know, it's about what you do in these types of conversations.

And so for him on day one, he's got to set a real great tone globally on what he's going to do.

CHURCH: And I will come back to that point in just a moment. But what about Trump's planned tax cuts? What impact could they potentially have on the U.S. economy and beyond?

PATEL: Yeah, and this is going to be a big portion of what he needs to do, I think, especially with moderate Republicans and moderate Democrats, where they look at him on, yes, he's going to be, you know, trying to extend the tax cuts, which is clear, that's what he's going to do. The middle is asking of him from both parties is also decrease the U.S. debt.

And that is kind of very hard to do when you're extending tax cuts. And so that's going to be what he's going to be judged on as well. So there's a balance that needs to happen for him, if he's going to try to decrease the U.S. debt, which is a priority as well.

CHURCH: So how does Bessent balance Trump's protectionist rhetoric with global economic realities and could he perhaps try to convince Trump to make his tariffs more gradual, not to not put such high tariffs in place?

PATEL: I think the first thing that Trump is, you know, he wants to see successes. So if Bessent comes out and starts to see a little more economic policy with other countries, which Bessent is known for, especially with China, let's just be very honest, it's that's the conversation that he needs to have and to have some kind of movement.

I think Bessent gets a little bit more leeway when it comes to that. However, I think the some other key areas that I would say to, you know, that goes into this, that's kind of not talked about is the crypto advocacy.

You know, he will be the first, I believe, Treasury, U.S. Treasury to actually shift toward embracing cryptocurrency and the openness to it, which does play into kind of the overall strategy. Another wrinkle to that conversation as well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[03:35:00]

CHURCH: Residents of Northern California are coping with record rainfall brought by an atmospheric river. The rainfall total in downtown Santa Rosa, just north of San Francisco, was enough to qualify for a one-in-1,000 year event for the city.

Meanwhile, some areas received nearly 23 inches of rain in three days. Winter storm warnings have also been issued the Sierra Nevada mountain range could receive nearly seven feet of snow.

Well back-to-back storms threatening Thanksgiving travel this week just as tens of millions of Americans are set to hit the airports and roadways for the holiday.

Rain, wind and even snow are in the forecast for major cities and heavily traveled interstates across the country. AAA predicts a whopping 80 million people will head 50 miles or more from home over the Thanksgiving holiday period.

CNN meteorologist Allison Chinchar is tracking the weather that could impact your plans.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Mother Nature not making it very easy for some folks for this big holiday travel week.

We start off the day Monday with this new system here impacting portions of the Midwest down through the Mississippi and Tennessee Valley area region that's going to have rain on the south side and some snow showers farther to the north.

Out to the west we are going to have a series of systems moving their way through. This is expected to bring some heavy rainfall along the coast and some very heavy snow especially in the Sierras could see two to three feet over the next few days.

By late into the day Monday again you'll start to see that first system begin to spread into the areas of the mid-Atlantic as well as the northeast overnight into early Tuesday. Also looking at some showers along the southeast coast too.

The other system we're watching that's the one that moved into the west coast now starting to overspread into the Rockies and eventually into the central portion of the country once we get towards Wednesday.

This is going to have mostly rain here as the temperatures won't quite be cold enough for snow. You're really going to have to go pretty far north to get the snow into the mix. But by overnight Wednesday and into Thursday those temperatures

starting to creep down in some areas allowing a few more spots to get some snow or even a rain snow mix. Heavy rain at times possible across the Tennessee Valley even cities like Nashville, Atlanta and Knoxville could have rain in the forecast.

Then by midday Thursday you're looking at more of that moisture over spreading into the northeast and into the mid-Atlantic. So any last minute travel or local travel on Thanksgiving Day itself the biggest concerns are going to be the northeast stretching all the way down into the gulf coast where you're going to have the bulk of that really heavy moisture.

So then the question becomes okay, what about the famous Macy's Day Parade? Here's the thing we've got that rain coming in the heaviest will hold off till the afternoon and evening hours of Thursday.

So the first few hours of the parade should in theory be okay but those rain chances go up very quickly for the back half of the parade. Temperature wise also not exactly going to be very warm; you're looking at those temperatures likely only in the low 40s.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: And despite the foul forecast there's still hope for those trying to make it home for the holidays. For those planning to catch a flight this week Brian Kelly founder of travel website The Points Guy offers this advice on how to beat the travel chaos.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIAN KELLY, FOUNDER, THEPOINTSGUY.COM: In general I recommend try to leave on the first flight of the day generally weather hits later in the day so the earlier you can get out a lot of airlines will actually let you move your flights earlier.

So if you're flying through New York this Thursday you may want to do that or even call and ask the airline to leave the night before.

Also understand the DOT in October now instituted new rules if your flight is delayed three or more hours domestically or six or more internationally just know that you're owed a full refund.

So if you're in the airport your flight keeps getting delayed you want to get home for the holidays you can actually book yourself on another carrier and know that if the delay qualifies you will eventually get a full refund for your other flight which gives a little bit of peace of mind.

If you're starting to say you know what I don't want to travel this weekend if the weather is going to throw things out of whack, you can always call the airline most airlines are pretty lenient these days with letting you make changes, and if there are weather waivers so if the storm hits airlines will say hey we are encouraging people to rebook later so I say get ahead of the action instead of going to the airport and hoping for the best. I also recommend if you are going to end up traveling and there is

weather coming even if it's not in your home city, weather elsewhere can impact your flight so always sign up for app updates with the airline you're flying and then I use an app called Flighty.

Flighty often will let me know if my flight's delayed before the airline does. So getting that intel seeing where your plane is coming from can give you that inside scoop to say, hey, look and try to call the airline and switch to a different flight that day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: At least three people are dead and tens of thousands of homes and businesses lost power as storm Bert hit the British Isles this weekend. The weather system brought strong winds snow and rain to the region. Britain's chief meteorologist called it a multi hazard event.

[03:40:02]

Storm Bert triggered flood warnings across the United Kingdom and Ireland. Storm Bert is expected to clear from the region by Tuesday but for now many people in the U.K. and Ireland are working to recover from the storm's damage.

Our Michael Holmes has our report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Snow, wind and rain.

The so-called multi-hazard event named Storm Bert whipped across Britain and Ireland over the weekend disrupting airport ferry and train services across the British Isles.

In Wales emergency services waded through flooded streets and residents tried to bail water from their homes after some parts of the country were drenched with more than 10 centimeters of rain.

UNKNOWN: You see on news you know happens in Spain globally and then it happens to you and it's like oh right well how do we handle it and it's just you know some of them having a cuppa some like me panicking going away.

HOLMES (voice-over): In North West Ireland tens of thousands of people were without power after high winds and floods swept through the area. Sandbags were still out on the streets as people braced for more rain and tried to mop up during a break in the storm.

THOMAS PRINGLE, IRISH M.P.: (inaudible) The river just basically flowed down the street and flooded the whole street here right up to halfway up the hill towards the main street there and it was just devastating for everywhere.

HOLMES (voice-over): Heavy snow covered parts of Scotland and central England where snow ice and flood warnings were in place. The U.K. Met Office said some rural communities could be cut off with

up to 40 centimeters of snow expected in higher elevations. Forecasters say wind and rain could continue to be a threat before storm Bert finally clears the region on Tuesday.

Michael Holmes, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: When the athletes are away the burglars will prey. When we come back how criminals are targeting some of the biggest names in pro sports.

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[03:45:10]

CHURCH: Several professional sports leagues are delivering a clear warning to their athletes: protect your homes.

This after a string of robberies targeting high-profile stars including Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs. These robberies are not believed to be random. This video was shot at the home of Milwaukee Bucks player Bobby Portis.

He's now offering a reward for anyone who can help return his stolen items. Investigators say the burglaries could be the work of sophisticated organized transnational criminals. They're thought to be using public records, social media and news reports as well as surveillance drones and jamming devices.

Juliette Kayyem is senior CNN national security analyst and former assistant secretary at the Department of Homeland Security and she joins us now from Cambridge Massachusetts. Good to have you with us.

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN SR. NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST AND FORMER ASST. SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: Thanks for having me.

CHURCH: So the homes of top football and basketball athletes are being targeted by skilled burglars and the NFL and NBA are warning of organized crime being behind this. What do you make of the details we know so far?

KAYYEM: So this is serious. The FBI is said to have briefed both the NBA and the NFL leagues to tell them of what they're seeing which is targeted, concerted, well-organized likely South American gangs that are in here either on visas or unlawfully that are using public information.

Where is the team playing? Who is with the quarterback or the players of the family's going?

And then a lot of surveillance to determine whether the house is empty, whether there's a dog, whether there's fences or anything that would be hard to get over and they are going into the houses at those times to take a lot of expensive goods and materials and clothing and purses and everything else.

CHURCH: So when authorities are dealing with organized crime what do they need to be doing to put an end to this and perhaps capture the criminals behind this?

KAYYEM: Yeah, so a couple things are happening. So one, a lot of this is defense actually, Rosemary, what we're learning is a lot of these players have home alarm systems. They're not using them. They probably need to get more surveillance.

The FBI is said to have told them, you know, get a trusted house sitter if someone can be in the home because it does not look like these are intended to be physical encounters.

They just want to get the materials and to take things from these players and their families and so a lot of it is just reinforcing defense. Some of that may be also social media in terms of not saying who's coming, maybe not putting kids or pictures on social media.

On the offense side the FBI and other law enforcement agencies in particular potentially international law enforcement agencies seem to have a sense of at least what this group is.

They don't think they're from China or they're from the United States, that they do have some ties to South America. So we have to believe that there is a concerted effort to disrupt this group.

They are sophisticated, this group. They are known to use things like drones to get an assessment of what the house is like and then go in so that they can go in quickly, get what they want and leave.

So this is very serious. I've been in sports security for a while or been involved with it. I've never seen a bulletin by sports leagues like this before. For the most part they try to keep them quiet and I think they wanted to get the word out that all players have to be careful.

CHURCH: And so now that the word is out, can we assume that these criminals will move on to other groups perhaps and broaden these skills that they have to try to target others?

KAYYEM: Yes, and I think one of the reasons why the NBA and NFL and players associations went public with these briefings, I mean they sort of put out a lot of details, was to say to the criminal enterprise we have a sense, we are aware, we are protecting our players and their families and their homes and to sort of essentially expose the fact that we know what's going on, that the law enforcement knows what's going on.

[03:50:03]

And then unfortunately these criminal enterprises can adapt. There are other rich people, people who are celebrities, who make their presence known publicly. Where are they going to be? Are they on vacation? They put stuff on Instagram in real time. We're in Hawaii for two weeks or whatever it is.

So I think it's a lot of disciplining. We're so used to putting everything out there but that can have consequences for as other, as nefarious people and people with illegal intent read those public statements and then utilize them for crime.

CHURCH: Right, and probably a wakeup call to everyone using social media, right, to just be careful what you put out there. Juliette Kayyem, always a pleasure to chat with you. Many thanks.

KAYYEM: Thank you.

CHURCH: It was a blockbuster weekend at the box office. Just ahead, the big money totals for Hollywood heavyweights "Wicked" and "Gladiator II." Back with that in just a moment.

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CHURCH: Millions of turkeys will be consumed across the U.S. this Thanksgiving Thursday but two birds to be spared that fate by President Joe Biden are Peach and Blossom.

[03:55:02]

They were introduced on Sunday as this year's National Thanksgiving turkeys and they are set for their official presidential pardon at the White House in the coming hours. Peach and Blossom will then retire at a farm in Minnesota to live out a quiet life. Lucky there.

Well, Hollywood is seeing green thanks to November blockbusters. The box office got the one-two punch it needed this weekend with the debut of "Gladiator II" and the long-awaited film adaptation of "Wicked." David Daniel runs down the weekend's top five films.

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DAVID DANIEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT, "HOLLYWOOD MINUTE": "Venom: The Last Dance" fell to fifth place grabbing $4 million for a domestic total of 134 million.

"Bonhoeffer" about the German pastor who worked to overthrow the Nazi regime opened in fourth place with $5.1 million.

"Red One" dropped to third place collecting $13.3 million for a 10-day domestic total of 53 million.

"Gladiator II" entered the box office fray in second place starting strong with $55.5 million.

A magical debut for "Wicked" which topped the chart with $114 million. The biggest opening ever for an adaptation of a Broadway musical.

In Hollywood, I'm David Daniel.

(END VIDEOTAPE) CHURCH: And thanks for your company this hour. I'm Rosemary Church. Have yourselves a wonderful day. CNN NEWSROOM continues next with Max Forster in London.

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