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One of two U.S. National Guards Killed in Washington Identified; Death Toll in Hong Kong High-Rise Fire Now Past 100; Pope Leo Embarked on His First Apostolic Journey to Turkey and Lebanon; Americans Brace for Black Friday Deals Today. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired November 28, 2025 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BEN HUNTE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, wherever you are in the world, you are now in the "CNN Newsroom" with me, Ben Hunte, in Atlanta, and it is so good to have you with me.

Coming up on the show, the U.S. President says one of the two National Guard members shot in Washington has died. He's now calling for an immigration crackdown.

The death toll in the Hong Kong apartment block fire is pushing well past 100, the latest on that tragedy.

And Pope Leo is on his first overseas trip of his papacy. We'll have a live report from Istanbul.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from Atlanta, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Ben Hunte.

HUNTE: Welcome.

President Donald Trump says U.S. Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, one of the National Guard members shot near the White House, has died. He says he's spoken to Beckstrom's family and is open to attending her funeral.

Several local and federal law enforcement agencies lined the streets in Washington for a procession earlier. They saluted during the dignified transfer to the medical examiner. A source says Secretary of War Pete Hegseeth was in attendance.

The other National Guard member who was attacked, Andrew Wolfe, is still in critical condition after undergoing surgery. The President made the announcement a short while ago while on a Thanksgiving call with service members.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: I must unfortunately tell you that just seconds before I went on right now, I heard that Sarah Beckstrom of West Virginia, one of the guardsmen that we're talking about, highly respected young, magnificent person, started service in June of 2023, outstanding in every way.

She's just passed away. She's no longer with us, she's looking down at us right now, her parents are with her. It's just happened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: Marybel Gonzalez brings us the latest on the investigation.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARYBEL GONZALEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Twenty-year-old Sarah Beckstrom and 24-year-old Andrew Wolfe, the National Guard members who were shot Wednesday near the White House, were tasked with protecting the nation's capital. On Thursday, President Trump announced that Beckstrom died from her injuries.

TRUMP: She was savagely attacked. She's dead. She's not with us.

BRIG. GEN. LELAND BLANCHARD II, U.S. NATIONAL GUARD: We know that their lives, their family, their family's lives are all changed forever because one person decided to do this horrific and evil thing.

GONZALEZ (voice-over): Wolfe is still hospitalized in critical condition. His neighbors spoke about his character.

MICHAEL LANGONE, ANDREW WOLFE'S NEIGHBOR: You get the short office back to somebody. Just really good guy. We always looked out for each other.

TINA GESFORD, ANDREW WOLFE'S NEIGHBOR: Hopefully, you know, things work out good for him. He's a hard worker. Good kid.

GONZALEZ (voice-over): Authorities identified the suspected shooter as Ramanullah Lakanwal.

JEANINE PIRRO, U.S. ATTORNEY, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: He resided in Bellingham, Washington, with his wife and, we believe, five children.

GONZALEZ (voice-over): The 29-year-old Afghan national who worked with the U.S. government, including the CIA, came to the country in 2021 as part of then-President Biden's Operation Allies Welcome, a program aimed to protect vulnerable Afghans in the wake of the U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan.

He applied for asylum in 2024, and then the Trump administration granted it in April.

PIRRO: He drove his vehicle across country from the state of Washington with the intended target of coming to our nation's capital.

GONZALEZ (voice-over): The Trump administration says it will re- examine green cards issued to people from 19 countries of concern, including Afghanistan.

I'm Marybel Gonzalez reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTE: Donell Harvin, a former security official, says there were concerns the National Guard could be targeted after the White House deployed them in U.S. cities. Harvin is the former chief for Homeland Security and Intelligence in Washington, D.C. He spoke with CNN earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONELL HARVIN, FORMER D.C. CHIEF, HOMELAND SECURITY AND INTELLIGENCE: I have to tell you, in our history, this has never happened. In a year where we've used the word unprecedented, an unprecedented amount of time, this really rises to the level of unprecedented. This individual, very young person, very shining star, one of our best, was targeted simply because of the uniform she was wearing.

This is something that the Department of Defense has warned about, actually.

[03:04:55]

In internal memos, that the deployment of National Guard in the streets of the United States of America doing policing operations is a cause for concern in the heightened threat environment that we have, whether they be from violent extremists or transnational terrorist organizations. And so, I think this is an opportunity, obviously we have to get some answers.

This could have happened to me. I was a sworn law enforcement officer in D.C. I could have been standing there, and it could have been me and my partner. So it wasn't the fact that there are National Guards, that they didn't have less capabilities.

It was the fact that this assassin chose what we call a target of opportunity. And who would think that, standing blocks away from the White House, that you would have to be hyper-vigilant for someone walking up to you and opening fire on you?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: We have an update on one of our top stories. Authorities in Hong Kong say the death toll in that high-rise fire has risen to 128, around 200 others are still unaccounted for.

The city's security secretary said a short while ago that the cause of the fire still has yet to be determined. And it could be weeks before we get answers.

CNN's Hanako Montgomery is live in Hong Kong. Thank you so much for being with me again. What's the latest that you're hearing now?

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi Ben, as you mentioned, at least 128 people are now confirmed dead, and the city government has said that they fear the death toll could rise in the coming hours, if not days, as there are still around 200 people still missing.

Now they haven't confirmed yet the cause of the actual fire. They're saying that the investigation will likely take three to four weeks, but they are providing a little bit more detail as to what caused the fire to spread from one building to the other.

Now as you can see behind me, this apartment complex was under construction at the time of the fire, and it's encased in mesh nets, also polystyrene, which is a highly flammable material, and also bamboo scaffolding.

Now the authorities have said that they believe the fire first started in the lower floor of one building, and as the fire continued to spread, the polystyrene material, which again is highly flammable, also caught fire. Then the polystyrene materials that caught fire caused the windows of the building to break, and then the fire spread inside the building, and the fire spread from one floor to the next, from one building to the next.

Now they're also saying that the bamboo scaffolding that again encases these buildings also caught fire, and that fallen debris also caused the fire to spread.

And now again, Ben, this police investigation is still ongoing, there are still lots of details and lots of questions that remain unanswered, Ben, but again, it's just a heartbreaking day for Hong Kong as they're dealing with this tragedy that continues to take many lives, Ben.

HUNTE: It's just absolutely awful, but thank you so much for your reporting, Hanako Montgomery in Hong Kong for us.

President Donald Trump says the United States will strike inside Venezuela, quote, "very soon." He made the statement while speaking to members of the U.S. military on a Thanksgiving phone call. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: In recent weeks, you've been working to deter Venezuelan drug traffickers, of which there are many. Of course, there aren't too many coming in by sea anymore, if you probably noticed that.

We'll be starting to stop them by land also. The land is easier, but that's going to start very soon. We'd warn them, stop sending poison to our country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: The U.S. has killed more than 80 people in strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean. The administration has offered no proof that the vessels were actually carrying drugs.

Alejandro Velasco is a historian and associate professor at NYU. He's joining us from Amherst, Massachusetts. Thank you so much for being here, how are you doing? ALEJANDRO VELASCO, HISTORIAN, AND ASSOCIATE PROF., NEW YORK

UNIVERSITY: Good. Thanks so much for having me.

HUNTE: Thank you for being here. Let's get into this.

President Trump says the U.S. is preparing to stop Venezuelan drug traffickers by land very soon. How seriously should we be taking this language and what does it signal about a possible shift in strategy?

VELASCO: That's a great question. The reality is that over the past two weeks, what we've seen is very contradictory discourse coming out of the White House and in fact, other members of the administration.

We have some hawkish elements every day seeming to either leak or directly state that they seek greater intervention in Venezuela directly. And of course, we just had the recent naming designation of the so-called Cartel de los Soles as another escalation into that end.

On the other hand, Trump has also said that he's not really interested in necessarily an intervention. He wants to talk with Maduro. Maybe there's room for negotiation.

So right now, this all seems like part of a larger psychological operations game or warfare to see if Maduro breaks.

[03:10:03]

HUNTE: The U.S. now has more than a dozen warships and 15,000 troops in the region. How unusual is this level of force around Venezuela and what message is Washington trying to send?

VELASCO: It's unprecedented is what it is. Certainly it's the largest deployment outside of planned military exercises in the 21st century and even in the 20th century, it was an unusual deployment for this part of the region. I think what it says, obviously, is that the United States is prepared to intervene.

The real question is whether the person who has ultimate say in whether that happens, which is President Trump, has in fact agreed to do so. But he's positioned to be there. And to some extent, the fact that there is this massive deployment commits some kind of intervention, because without something changing in Venezuela, this might actually be seen as a victory for the Maduro government.

HUNTE: Well, while we're talking about things changing in Venezuela, the administration here has just designated Maduro and his allies as members of a foreign terrorist organization. What does that actually mean in practical terms?

VELASCO: It basically gives the administration more legal leeway to take actions that might not otherwise be permissible in a context of war or pre-war, if you want to call it that. It means that it has a greater arsenal and repertoire of action and engagement for people that it considers or designates to be part of this cartel.

It also means that it doesn't have to provide nearly as much information, either certainly to Congress, which it already hasn't provided enough information, but to the judicial system. And so it allows for a greater range of action than has been the case.

HUNTE: Can you tell me how are Venezuelans viewing this buildup and what impact could Trump's comments have on Maduro's domestic standard?

VELASCO: You know, Venezuelans have been through a lot, not just over the last five, 10, 15 years, but really over the last 25, 30 years.

The state of heightened crisis has almost been a kind of status quo. And so Venezuelans are going about their lives. Obviously, my friends and family who are there are anxious or concerned about potential actions.

Some of them are moving if they feel like they're close to military targets. They're finding elsewhere to stay. But for most people, it's, you know, it's getting into the holiday season.

And so they're trying to, you know, to live their lives. But it has also had significant impact because the U.S. has also said that airlines should not fly into or in Venezuela air territory. And so many airlines have not canceled flights.

And so that's affected the plans of many Venezuelans that they had, especially for holidays to travel. And so it's definitely an impact.

HUNTE: Okay, we'll leave it there for now, but let's see what happens next. Thank you for breaking it down, Alejandro Velasco. I appreciate it.

VELASCO: Thank you.

HUNTE: The U.S. is about to kick off two track negotiations over its peace plan for Ukraine, but Russia's President is already indicating he's not willing to make many concessions. That story ahead, see you in a moment.

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[03:15:00]

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HUNTE: Welcome back.

Hungary's Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, is headed to Moscow today for talks that will include peace efforts in Ukraine. That's happening as efforts to advance the latest U.S. peace proposal are about to shift into overdrive.

The U.S. army secretary is expected in Kyiv at the end of the week for talks of Ukrainian officials. Dan Driscoll already met President Vladimir Zelenskyy last week, while U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff is set to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow next week.

CNN's Paula Hancocks joins us live from Abu Dhabi. Thank you so much for being with me.

There have been so many twists and turns in this ongoing push towards peace. It's actually quite hard to catch up. How are we at the moment? Are we any closer to a peace deal?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Ben, we are still hearing very positive sounds from the Trump administration. We've heard the U.S. President talk about tremendous progress having been made in trying to bring these two sides closer together. But what we did hear on Thursday from the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, was probably the strongest indication yet that he is not willing to budge from his maximalist approach and demands.

Now, what we heard was a speech he made in Kyrgyzstan, where he said that the U.S. plan could form the basis of a future deal, but said the war will only end once Ukrainian troops withdraw from territories that are occupied, saying that if they don't withdraw, then Russia will take these territories by military means.

Now, he's talking about the areas that Russia currently have annexed, but not fully occupied. It's much, if not almost all of the Luhansk region, Donetsk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia. So there's about 20 percent of Ukrainian territory that is currently in Russian hands, although they haven't completely occupied these areas.

And what President Putin is saying is that he wants all of that, if not more than they currently occupy, in order to consider this peace deal. Now, this, of course, is a red line for Ukraine. It is a sign that there is very little, if any, flexibility on Putin's side.

Now, we're also hearing from President Zelenskyy of Ukraine, his Thursday nightly address. He did point out that there would be some key meetings at the end of this week.

[03:20:01]

It's currently Friday, so that is imminent, saying that the U.S. delegation and Ukrainian delegations will be meeting. You mentioned just earlier the army secretary, Dan Driscoll, expected in Kyiv. And he's also said that he will have personal involvement in these talks, saying it's important for him personally.

Now, we do know that he was hoping to meet with President Trump once again. He was hoping that he could talk to him about what was described as sensitive issues.

But President Trump has made it very clear that he doesn't want to meet either Zelenskyy or Putin until this deal is almost at the final stages. So it appears as though that meeting is not imminent.

The fact is, the two sides indirectly and through the United States are still talking. There is no expectation of an imminent breakthrough, though, when you consider that the two sides are very far apart still, with inflexibility shown from Putin on Thursday.

Also, some red lines we are hearing from the Ukrainian side when it comes to territorial surrendering, when it comes to giving up aspirations of joining NATO and also when it comes to limitations on the Ukrainian army. The original plan or proposal that we had seen leaked was something like 600,000 for Ukraine, which was unacceptable both to Ukraine and to Europe.

So what we're seeing at this point is really bargaining on both sides as the U.S. tries to change this deal and mold this proposal. So it's more palatable to Ukraine and also to much of Europe. It is potentially becoming far less palatable to Russia and to President Putin, Ben.

HUNTE: Okay, thank you for staying on top of that, Paula Hancocks. I appreciate it.

President Trump says one of the National Guard members who was shot near the White House has died. The President announced the death of Sarah Beckstrom a short time ago, and it prompted him to make a stunning announcement on curbing migration. More on that just ahead.

Plus the Pope's new warning about what he says is a danger to the future of humanity. Stay with us, see you then.

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[03:25:00]

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HUNTE: Welcome back to "CNN Newsroom," I'm Ben Hunte. Let's check some of today's top stories.

One of the two National Guard members targeted in a shooting on Wednesday has died. President Donald Trump says U.S. Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom was, quote, outstanding in every way. U.S. Air Force Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe is still in critical condition following the surgery, they were both attacked while on patrol just blocks from the White House.

The death toll has soared to 128 in that Hong Kong apartment block fire. Around 200 people are still unaccounted for. Authorities say the fire is now completely extinguished and the police investigation into what caused it could take about three to four weeks.

President Trump says U.S. military strikes inside Venezuela could happen, quote, very soon. The U.S. has more than a dozen warships and 15000 troops in the region. The White House designated a Venezuelan president, Nicolas Maduro, and his government allies as members of a foreign terrorist organization just earlier this week.

President Trump said he will end migration to the U.S. from, quote, "all third world countries." The President made the call in a long message posted to social media late on Thanksgiving night.

It came after he announced that U.S. Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, one of the National Guard members shot near the White House, has died. He says he's spoken to Beckstrom's family and is open to attending her funeral.

The suspect in that shooting is an Afghan national, and Afghanistan is among the countries that will be targeted as part of a new order from President Trump. An immigration official said that the U.S. will examine the green cards of people from 19 countries. Among the countries on the list are Venezuela, Haiti, Myanmar, Somalia and Yemen.

Earlier, I spoke to Natasha Lindstaedt, a professor of government at the University of Essex, and she explained to me why she thinks this move will not be effective.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NATASHA LINDSTAEDT, PROF. OF GOVERNMENT, UNIVERSITY OF ESSEX: This is, of course, in line with his MAGA agenda to try to prevent immigration. He thinks that this is the issue that he can really galvanize his MAGA base with. And I just see it as a misdiagnosis of what happened.

And it's a typical reactionary response from him to try to prevent everybody from Afghanistan or from other developing countries that he has designated from coming into the country when this is most likely an isolated event.

I mean, "The New York Times" reported that this man from Afghanistan was possibly struggling from mental health issues. And that doesn't mean that everyone coming from Afghanistan is going to do this type of thing. I think it's also important to highlight that a U.S. citizen is five times more likely to engage in violence than immigrants.

And most of the time when immigrants are imprisoned or incarcerated, it's 90 percent of the time it's because of immigration-related offenses. It's not because they commit violent crimes.

So targeting people in this way is not going to solve the problem. I think he is misunderstanding that it was by deploying National Guard troops there that were very vulnerable that made this more of that made this more likely to happen because they weren't well trained. Some of them were incredibly young, maybe first day on the job and National Guard troops themselves were very worried about this.

And it was a concern that they could attract unwanted acts of violence by different extremist groups by placing them there, that it was too provocative.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: Okay, Pope Leo says he's focused on unity and peace during his trip to the Middle East. We will have a live report from Turkey just ahead. See you in a moment.

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[03:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HUNTE: Welcome back to CNN, this is your Business Breakout.

Today is the last day of trading for the month of November in the Asia-Pacific markets and although the results are mixed, the markets appear to be on firmer ground. Investors are hopeful for the U.S. Federal Reserve will cut interest rates at its December meeting.

And these are the business headlines.

Food banks across the country are overwhelmed this holiday season with some reporting record demand. Experts say rising prices, stagnant wages and the earlier pause and snap benefits during the government shutdown are pushing more families to seek help.

It is the busiest shopping day of the year here in the U.S. The National Retail Federation says 130 million people plan to shop for Black Friday deals, the top items on people's gift lists include clothing and accessories, gift cards and toys. Despite a record number of shoppers, consumers are planning to spend less this year.

America's biggest retailers are trying to stand out this holiday season as consumers pull back their spending. For Macy's, that means more in-store experiences to win over wary shoppers, budget-friendly Old Navy is betting on designer collections and Walmart is promising a 30 minute turnaround from online order to delivery.

This is the second day of Pope Leo's visit to Turkey. It is his first overseas trip since becoming Pope. Earlier, he met with Catholic bishops and churchgoers at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit in Istanbul.

On Thursday, the pontiff gave an impassioned address to civic and political leaders in Ankara. He warned that, quote, "conflicts on the global level are endangering humanity." He said his trip is focused on unity and peace, as well as finding ways for people of different beliefs to co-exist.

CNN's Salma Abdelaziz joins us now from Iznik, Turkey. Salma, thanks for being with me. What else can we expect to see from this Pope's very exciting trip?

SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, and you mentioned already that he's completed his first event of the day, Ben. He visited this church, of course, in Istanbul. And I just have some video to show you because I think it shows you this sense of personality that he is really bringing out during his first overseas trip.

[03:35:07]

You see him high-fiving the faithful as he steps out of the Holy Spirit Cathedral in Istanbul this morning. In a very short time, he is due right here where I am standing in the town of Iznik. Behind me is Lake Iznik to commemorate something that's very important in Catholicism, and that is the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea. And this site right here is the site of the ancient city of Nicaea

where the first Ecumenical Council was held in Christianity. And that was a moment in which interfaith dialogue between those within the faith, was able to resolve a theological dispute.

And he's going to bring that spirit here today. He's going to be standing alongside the head of the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. He's going to be here to lead a prayer service with him.

Now, the ancient site where this Ecumenical Council took place 1700 years ago is mostly submerged under the water. I believe we have drone images to give you a sense of what that looks like.

So this is going to be an extremely picturesque, if you will, site. You can see the platform where he's going to be standing just over my left shoulder here. And he's very much going to bring up that spirit again of dialogue to resolve disputes.

He is trying to put force behind the message of his papacy six months in, which is peace, harmony, conflict resolution. All of this is extremely important to the tiny Christian community, of course, based here in Turkey. And it's extremely important as well that we are seeing him come to two Muslim-majority nations for his first overseas trip.

So it's going to be this moment where he's going to acknowledge the ancient Christian communities here that still play a pivotal role in Catholicism today. He's going to bring the lessons from the past, those of resolving disputes through dialogue, those of peace and harmony, and bring them forward to today.

He's already said earlier this morning how Turkey has a unique opportunity to serve the most vulnerable because there are so many migrants and refugees. Of course, Turkey is home to millions of Syrian refugees, among other populations as well.

And for Pope Leo, this is an opportunity to spread his wings, to showcase his style, his personality and his message all on a historic ancient site here in Iznik. Ben.

HUNTE: Well, thank you so much for that, Salma Abdelaziz in Iznik. I appreciate it.

The Catholic faith is seeing a surprising rebound in popularity in Europe, especially among young adults. This is happening despite the Catholic Church's global child sex abuse scandal. CNN's Melissa Bell reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MELISSA BELL, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sharing the oldest of messages in the newest of forms on Instagram and TikTok, Sister Albertine leads prayers and offers advice to her more than half a million followers, part of a growing tribe of Catholic influencers who are speaking to a generation dusting off the solemnity of the past.

SISTER ALBERTINE DEBACKER, FRENCH CATHOLIC NUN AND SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCER: This is how God is doing. I think he's surprising us. How are we going to help these young people?

BELL (voice-over): Partly through song and dance. At this Christian festival in the foothills of the French Alps, a young generation has flocked, many followers of Sister Albertine who've come to hear her speak.

JEANNE FABRE, FESTIVAL ATTENDEE (through translator): She really makes questions of faith accessible. And in fact, she's really authentic.

BELL (voice-over): The 29 year old nun says she's inundated with questions. Her role simply to take to the space where the young spend most of their time.

DEBACKER: Jesus was going outside, Jesus was walking all the time, He was searching for encounter people. And now in 2025, to encounter people, we have to start with social media.

HUNTE: Over the last few years here in France, there's been a doubling in the number of adult baptisms with nearly half of those coming from families with no religious background. The starkest rise of all is amongst the very youngest, 18 to 25 year olds.

BELL (voice-over): The stunning rebuilding of Notre-Dame may also have added a new shine to the image of Catholicism. Audrey Bourges, who's 24, shows us where she was fortunate enough to be baptized on Easter.

AUDREY BOURGES, CATHOLIC CONVERT: So, yes, the church was really helpful because I joined just after COVID. I found friends, I found my boyfriend. I found everything I was looking for in my life, peace and some people I can rely on.

[03:40:00]

BELL (voice-over): Back at the festival, Sister Albertine, just back from the Vatican's Jubilee celebrations, tells the crowd of her chance encounter with Pope Leo. She'd been invited as one of more than a thousand influencers as the church moves to capitalize on this thoroughly modern megaphone to the young.

FATHER LUCIANO COUTO, HEAD OF YOUTH MINISTRY, CHEMIN NEUF COMMUNITY: They are eager for that. They are thirsty for that experience, God can talk to me and they are coming to the Catholic Church because we have a 2000 years tradition of teaching people to hear God's voice. And that's awesome.

BELL (voice-over): A religion, says Father Luciano, that is yet again showing its remarkable power of resurrection.

Melissa Bell, CNN, in the French Alps.

(END VIDEOTAPE) HUNTE: Bottles of syrup fell off the shelf in an Anchorage, Alaska coffee shop as a 6.0 magnitude earthquake rocked the region on Thursday. An employee took shelter under a counter to stay safe. There were no immediate reports of significant damage.

According to local media, this quake was the largest to hit this area of Alaska since 2021.

All right. For our international viewers, "World Sport" is next, and for those in the U.S. and Canada, I'll be right back with so much more "CNN Newsroom." See you in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:45:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HUNTE: Welcome back.

The NFL playoff race is heating up with the Dallas Cowboys winning their third game in a row.

Quarterback Dak Prescott got the Cowboys on the scoreboard with a first quarter touchdown pass to C.D. Lamb. Prescott would finish the day with 320 yards in the air and two touchdown parcels, Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs 4 to 6 and 6.

Mahomes hitting tight end Travis Kelsey for a touchdown here. Final score, Cowboys 31, Chiefs 28.

In Detroit, the Lions are fighting to keep their playoff hopes alive. David Montgomery opened the scoring for the home team with a three yard touchdown run. But it was Jordan Love who dominated the game.

The Packers quarterback threw four touchdown passes, including this 51 yard bomb to Christian Watson. Packers win 31-24. They will take on the division leading Chicago Bears next Sunday in Green Bay.

Now to Baltimore. Running back Derrick Henry opened the scoring for the Ravens in a division matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals.

Baltimore managed to hold the visitors to only field goals in the first half, but Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, back from injury, came to life in the third quarter. He connected here with tight end Tanner Hudson for the touchdown. Burrow finished with 261 yards passing.

Final score, Bengals 32, Ravens 14.

And now to college football.

The Navy midshipmen have clinched at least a tie for the American Conference regular season title. Quarterback Blake Horvath led the team to a 28-17 victory over the Memphis Tigers on Thursday night.

Navy has now won back-to-back games after losses to North Texas and Notre Dame. The midshipmen improved to 9-2 on the season with a key matchup against Army on December 13th.

Thousands of Americans spent Thanksgiving lining the streets at parades across the country.

In Philadelphia, Santa fittingly switched the traditional turkey for an Eagles cap in support of the local NFL team.

In Chicago, celebrations proceeded under heightened security following a recent fatal shooting at the city's Christmas tree lighting ceremony.

In Manhattan, giant balloons filled the New York skyline as crowds watched the 99th Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Architects and designers in London have created a miniature and tasty version of my hometown. Check out these versions of Big Ben and other London landmarks.

The Gingerbread City is on display at London's Museum of Architecture. It features 50 architect-designed gingerbread buildings.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MELISSA WOOLFORD, FOUNDER, MUSEUM OF ARCHITECTURE: The theme this year is play. So we're putting play at the heart of urban life. So all the buildings behind me bring in different things like intergenerational working spaces where people can come together from different ages, we're looking at active spaces to promote health and well-being.

So how do we create more sports in our communities? How do we create more connections to nature?

So forest schools, rooftop gardens, places where people can kind of come together and do really kind of hands-on activities.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: So when you've had enough sweets, how about a little shopping too?

Today is Black Friday in Europe and here in the U.S. And it's not just the shoppers who could be seeing higher prices. It's the shops as well. CNN's Anna Cooban explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANNA COOBAN, CNN BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS REPORTER: I'm standing on the most expensive retail strip in the world. New Bond Street in London has overtaken Milan and New York as the priciest place to be selling stuff to the ultra-wealthy.

COOBAN (voice-over): According to a new report from commercial real estate company Cushman and Wakefield, rents over the last year on New Bond Street increased by 22 percent to over $2,200 per square foot per year. Rents in New York on Upper Fifth Avenue stayed at around $2,000 per square foot. And losing the top spot is Milan's fashion district via Monte Napoleone, again, there have been no rent increases this year.

So why are these luxury brands scrambling for a spot on this sidewalk?

COOBAN: Burberry. It's an iconic British fashion brand. And the company recently posted its first quarter of growth in two years. Now, its CEO Joshua Shulman has talked recently about the importance of going back to basics, displaying the iconic scarves and trench coats in the shop windows.

[03:50:06]

And the report by Cushman and Wakefield has made it clear how important it is for brands to really lean into their flagship stores. Being in person, smelling, touching, feeling the clothes, that is really good for business.

It's not just coats and scarves that are really pushing up the rents here. I'm here between Burlington Gardens and Clifford Street. Now this is the most hotly contested slice of retail real estate in the world right now.

And it's where you get your diamonds.

COOBAN (voice-over): It's so easy to get swept up in the glitz and glamour before you remember the price tag. I guess I'll just settle for a spot of window shopping.

COOBAN: Most people will do their shopping a stone's throw from here, neither Oxford Street or Regent Street. But even there, there have been double digit rent increases. So it's going to be an expensive Christmas, not just for shoppers, but for the shops.

Anna Cooban, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTE: Back here in the U.S., today is Black Friday, traditionally when holiday shopping season really gets going. The National Retail Federation says a record number of people are planning to shop for deals today and on Cyber Monday, too. But financial constraints could keep overall spending down.

Hitha Herzog is a consumer spending analyst and chief research officer at H Squared Research. She's joining us from New York.

Thank you so much for being with me, Hefa. How are you doing?

HITHA HERZOG, CONSUMER SPENDING ANALYST, AND CHIEF RESEARCH OFFICER, H SQUARED RESEARCH: Thanks for having me. I'm great on this late Black Friday, actually early morning, I should say. Feels like a late night.

HUNTE: It definitely feels like a late night for me as well. Don't worry about it.

Let's get into this. We have seen that consumer sentiment just hit 51.0, that is the second lowest reading ever recorded. But what does that actually tell you?

HERZOG: It tells me that the consumer is still very wary about what to spend on and where the future lies for potential spending into 2026. We've seen this K-shaped economy really take hold. The upper part of the higher income earner is the one that's really supporting the U.S. economy right now.

They are the ones that are spending, they're the ones that are spending on credit. This is according to a Federal Reserve report coming out of Boston and these are the ones that are really just price agnostic.

You see prices go up on everything from strawberries to handbags. And that K-shaped upper part of the economy, that spender is not affected so much.

So the bottom part of the K, the lower income spender and earner, those are the people that are really wary and they're the ones that are pulling back a lot more. You're not seeing them spend as much in the stores and certainly not on their credit cards.

HUNTE: It seems like everyone's talking about the cost of living right now. How is that expected to hit Black Friday shopping? And if shoppers do cut back, what are they going to be cutting back on?

HERZOG: Right. You know, we're seeing this real sort of fear grip across all different generations. And according to this Afterpay study on holiday data for 2025, it was saying that Gen Z specifically is really just gripped by fears of how to spend and where to spend.

But yet 25 percent of them that were interviewed for this survey, they are the ones that went out and shopped almost to the tune of $1,000 on average and started in October. About 38 percent of them started in October for this shopping.

So what does that tell us? This consumer may be feeling wary, but they are not so secure with their credit cards. They may even feel this towards them.

And they are using things like buy now, pay later to finance a lot of their shopping. Mostly because with buy now, pay later, if you're if you're actually deciduous about it and making really good decisions, you're paying that off. But it also allows you to stretch out those payments over time.

HUNTE: Yes. I want to talk about discounts. Where are the real savings this year? And where are the deals feeling a bit weaker?

HERZOG: That's a really good question. So on average, I don't know if everyone knows this, but on average, discounts really range from about 20 to 25 percent, right? That seems pretty low, but that's just every Black Friday on average. That's what you're getting.

In the past, we've really seen retailers want to move that product off the shelf. So we were seeing discounts 50, 60 percent off. Sometimes it felt like a fire sale. This season, we're right back to the 25 to 30 percent off.

However, with the big box stores and we saw these promotions going on earlier and earlier. Right.

We saw Walmart start November 15th, Amazon started their Black Friday week, November 20th. Those discounts of across products, toys, electronics.

[03:55:07]

Those are some of in some cases discounted up to 50 percent. Also housewares and the real sleeper is apparel. So apparel is really discounted on these larger big box store platforms and stores up to 50 percent.

HUNTE: Okay, Hitha, before I let you go, I want to know what is on your Black Friday list. What are you buying?

HERZOG: What am I buying? I'm buying a lot of toys for my kids. I think "K-pop Demon Hunters" have really just taken grip.

I have two seven year old twins, I want to give them a shout out. They're probably sleeping right now. I hope they're not watching me right now.

But "K-pop Demon Hunters," we are looking at a lot of math games. They're into math, they're very smart, and books.

But I think in general, everyone's really kind of looking across the board at toys.

HUNTE: Well, I need some pots and pans and hopefully some skin care to help me with these late night hours. But for now, Hitha Herzog, thank you so much for that. I appreciate it, speak to you soon.

HERZOG: Thanks, Ben.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BECKY GILMOUR, SKATEBOARDER: A few years ago, I lost a close friend and we used to skateboard together by the sea in Port Rush. So I wanted a way to process that healthily for myself. And I thought I'd set out and I'd skateboard the wild Atlantic way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: Becky Gilmour is making a unique journey along the length of Ireland's west coast on a skateboard. After one of her friends died by suicide, Gilmour vowed to raise awareness of the importance of mental health.

She's planning to skate nearly 2000 miles and create a mural in each county she visits. Gilmour wants to spread the message that you're never alone. Love that. That's all I've got for you, thanks for joining me this hour, I'm Ben

Hunt in Atlanta. "American Pulse" is next and I will see you back here tomorrow. Thanks for being with me, see you around.

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