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CNN This Morning

Biden Renews Call for Assault Weapons Ban; Warrant Issued for Friend of Woman Found Dead on Vacation; Biggest Shopping Day Begins with Tempered Expectations; Almost 1 Million Americans Under Winter Storm Alerts; U.S. Takes on England Today in Soccer Showdown; Heart Surgery Performed by Flashlight Amid Kyiv Blackout. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired November 25, 2022 - 06:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. Do not adjust your television sets. You will notice when we get closer that Kaitlan and I happened to wear the exact same thing.

[05:59:57]

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: This is what happens when Poppy is off. There's no one here to make sure that we're not dressed exactly alike.

LEMON: We walked into the studio, and everybody cracked up. Did you have a good Thanksgiving?

COLLINS: Like -- I did, I did. What about you?

LEMON: I had a great Thanksgiving. It is the day after Thanksgiving, though. It is Friday, November 25th. Poppy is off today.

President Joe Biden once again calling for a ban on assault weapons following the latest mass shootings.

COLLINS: And an arrest warrant has been issued in Mexico now after an American woman died while vacationing in Cabo. We have the latest for you on that.

LEMON: In the dark, Ukraine's struggling to restore power after Russian attacks on critical infrastructure. This morning, half of Kyiv is without power.

COLLINS: And we are also just hours away from David versus Goliath in the World Cup. The USA team is not the big dog in its match against England. We'll tell you the likelihood of a victory there.

LEMON: But first, we want to tell you what's happening with President Joe Biden railing against access to assault weapons in this country in the wake of the three most recent mass shootings, in Virginia and in Colorado.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The idea we still allow semiautomatic weapons to be purchased is sick. Just sick. It has no -- no -- social redeeming value. Zero. None. Not a single solitary rationale for it, except profits for the gun manufacturers.

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

BIDEN: I'm going to try.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What will you try and do?

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

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So what, if anything, can the president actually get done before Republicans take control of the House come January?

Let's bring in CNN's Jeremy Diamond for us this morning, live at the White House.

Hello, Jeremy. What can the president get done?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Not very much, Don, to be honest.

I mean, listen, President Biden is vowing to try and ban assault weapons, whether in the lame-duck session or after that. But the fact of the matter is that the president just doesn't have the votes. And he doesn't have the votes in the lame duck either.

You'll remember that President Biden, during these midterm campaigns, he repeatedly urged voters to elect more Democrats to Congress to be able to pass this assault weapons ban.

The reality is that, while Democrats are going to be losing the House of Representatives, even now with that majority in the House, the Senate, they just don't have the 60 votes to get over the filibuster to be able to pass that ban on assault weapons.

There's no question that the president is sincere in his desire to want to get this done, but the White House also sees some political value in talking about this and consistently calling for this ban on assault weapons.

They see it as something that is broadly popular with the American public and also something that, of course, is a galvanizing issue for Democrats and the Democratic base.

LEMON: And Jeremy, I understand President Biden, the first lady called the Club Q owners in Colorado yesterday. What was their message to them?

DIAMOND: Yes, that's right. President Biden calling the Club Q owners, according to the White House, reiterating his support for the community, as well as their commitment. His -- reiterating his commitment to fighting against gun violence and also against hate against the LGBTQ community. That's something that we've heard President Biden talk about over

these last several days, in terms of violence against the LGBTQ community. And also, of course, talking about wanting to change the nation's gun laws.

We know that earlier in the week, the president also spoke with Richard Fierro, that hero who tackled the gunman in that nightclub and saved, potentially, multiple lives -- Don.

LEMON: Jeremy Diamond, joining us at the White House this morning. Thank you, Jeremy.

COLLINS: This morning authorities in Mexico have now gotten an arrest warrant and have started the extradition process after 25-year-old Shanquella Robinson of North Carolina was found dead last month at the place that she and six of her friends had rented in Cabo San Lucas.

CNN's Ryan Young is joining us with more details.

Ryan, this had been a bit of a mystery at the beginning after she had been found dead. What are we learning this morning? And why has this warrant now been issued?

RYAN YOUNG, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Kaitlan, a lot of people across social media have been wondering about this. This went viral on social media, in fact, before we got to this part of the investigation.

There had been videos for weeks, showing this young woman apparently being beaten by one of her friends. We can't show you this video right now, because we have not been able to authenticate the video.

But her father says it is his daughter who's being hit over and over and dragged through a room inside this villa. It is very difficult to watch. It's from that video were people really started asking for more help.

The FBI got involved, and the Mexican authorities have said this was a direct aggression. She suffered some spinal cord injury from this beating, and so many people want to know exactly why six friends could go to a place to have a good time and then all of a sudden, it ended in this kind of violence.

Take a listen to one of her friends in Charlotte, being upset about where we are.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm glad that -- that it's getting the attention that it needs. Because I wish it was like this from day one.

I'm more so disappointed that she was around people that she thought were her friends.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

YOUNG: Yes, the big conversation really is about how this moves forward, what happens next.

The name of the friend has not been released just yet, and the details surrounding this still are very murky.

But they're saying this happened over a month ago. And I can tell you, there's a lot of people paying attention to the idea that this 25- year-old woman could go away for a vacation in Mexico, get hit several times; there's video spreading all over the Internet; and it took this much time to make things move.

[06:05:09]

They're hoping to have more information as the time goes on, especially with the intense sort of scrutiny that's going on.

COLLINS: Yes. Just so awful for her family. Ryan Young, thank you.

YOUNG: Absolutely.

LEMON: Well, today, Black Friday. Usually the biggest shopping day of the year, and despite high inflation and low consumer confidence, American shoppers boosted spending in October, a sign of a strong economy. But many retailers did put out those special deals earlier in the week this year, this time around.

CNN's Alison Kosik joins us now from Macy's flagship store in New York City.

First of all, I can't believe the store is already open, and I think I see workers -- and I saw some shoppers streaming in already?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: More than that, Don. More than just some shoppers. I couldn't believe it either.

A couple hundred shoppers were waiting outside the door here at this iconic Macy's in Herald Square in New York City, waiting out in the cold, waiting out in the dark. Everybody thought in-shopping -- he in- shopping experience for Black Friday was over. I think this store shows that's not the case.

Macy's executives greeting shoppers as they walk in early this morning.

And contrary to what everybody may believe, I mean, I shop online. I'm a big online shopper, and so are a lot of other people. But the National Retail Federation says just today, Black Friday, 115 million people across the country will shop, and more than half, Don, will shop in store.

LEMON: Wow. And what about inflation, though? I mean, we're dealing with the threat of that inflation. Not the threat but the actual inflation. What does it have on shopping this time around?

KOSIK: Yes. Yes, you make -- you make a very good point. Inflation is kind of the elephant in the room, isn't it? And that's what's really hindering people in what they spend. You're probably going to see people spend a little less, because

they're sticking to budgets. But I think what you're also going to see is that they're going to be more -- you know, not just more cautious but they're going to be more value-oriented. They're going to be finding things that really mean something for the people they love.

But economists I'm talking to say they don't think it's going to hold back spending. Shopping is expected to actually still increase this year. Spending expected to increase 8 percent over last year, to total about 940 to $960 billion this year.

I don't think inflation is going to be the grinch that kind of steals the holiday. I think it's going to weigh on shoppers, and people are going to kind of stick to their budgets, maybe not buy as much but buy -- you know, buy the things that matter for the people that they love, Don.

LEMON: You better get going, because I see a sign behind you that says take an extra 20 percent off of whatever you buy, Alison. So --

KOSIK: Absolutely. There goes my -- my stuff.

LEMON: That's OK. We're done. We'll see you later. Get some shopping in there. Thank you, Alison Kosik.

COLLINS: All right. This morning just under a million people are under winter storm alerts. A new storm from the South might cause some travel headaches going into this weekend.

So for more on what you need to know if you are hitting the road, let's get to meteorologist Chad Myers, who is live in CNN's weather center.

Chad, I hope you had a nice Thanksgiving.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Thank you.

COLLINS: But if you're traveling today, what should you be expecting?

MYERS: Yes, I'm going to call this slick Friday, not Black Friday, because there's an awful lot of rain across the Eastern one-third of the country right now, and there's even snow in parts of New Mexico and Texas.

The live radar under the airport delays, we have none. Zero airport delays. But we do expect some on Sunday, unfortunately.

Look at the temperatures. So very nice to be out, even if you're going to be out shopping. I did a lot of mine online. As she was just saying, that's kind of the place to do it, especially if you're underneath all this rain. Why drive out there and get all wet in the parking lot?

This is the day, though, on Sunday that we're worried about, everybody trying to come home. And those orange planes across the Northeast mean moderate to pretty severe airport delays possible when the weather is right over your particular airport. So keep that in mind, Kaitlan.

COLLINS: Yes, I've got a football game in Alabama that I'm going to tomorrow, and I made sure to pack my rain jacket.

MYERS: Yes.

COLLINS: Chad Myers.

LEMON: Yes.

COLLINS: Thank you.

LEMON: Get ready to lose.

COLLINS: OK, Don.

All right. So you just heard Don talking to Alison about what it is looking like on Black Friday. What exactly are Americans spending their money on? We'll bring you some data in real time to tell you.

LEMON: Yes. And we're going to take you live to Qatar, ahead of one of the most anticipated matchups in the World Cup, the U.S. versus England.

Your travel (ph) is a Slick Friday.

COLLINS: Slick Friday.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Well, today is the day. Today is the day. The U.S. Men's National Soccer Team will face one of the sport's powerhouses. We're talking about England here.

The last time the two teams met in the World Cup was in 2010. They tied 1-1. The only time the United States beat England at the World Cup was in 1950, which is considered to be one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history. Could the U.S. do it again?

I know some folks who know. They're going to tell me what the odds are.

So joining me now, "Wall Street Journal" senior editor Jonathan Clegg and "Wall Street Journal" European sports reporter Joshua Robinson. They're also the co-authors of the book "Messi vs. Ronaldo: One Rivalry, Two GOATs and the Era that Remade the World's Game."

That's a long title for a book, guys. And it's early this morning. So we appreciate you joining us. So look, I would ask you who's going to win, but I won't. But this is a pretty significant match. This is historic, right?

JONATHAN CLEGG, SENIOR EDITOR, "THE WALL STREET JOURNAL": Yes. A huge, huge match. Probably the most anticipated in the World Cup so far. And a real chance for the U.S. team to make a statement going up against England, one of the tournament favorites. No -- no getting away from it, America heads into this match as a big

underdog. But as you mentioned, they have never lost to the -- to England at the World Cup. Just met twice before. That famous win in 1950. The English sports writers thought the score was mistaken when it came in, thought England won 10-nil, when they actually lost 1-nil

[06:15:11]

So, you know, the omens -- omens look good for the U.S.

COLLINS: Is this a must-win game for the U.S. Men's team? Or is there a little bit of wiggle room here?

JOSHUA ROBINSON, EUROPEAN SPORTS REPORTER, "THE WALL STREET JOURNAL": The U.S. really needed that three points from some of the opening game against Wales, but if they lose, it's still not over. So it's -- it's a nearly must-win game for them. It's tough to qualify with four points, if they -- if they won the third game. But they know what they have to do tonight.

LEMON: So they're playing for a win. They're not playing for a tie, correct? That's -- they need this -- or are they playing for a tie?

CLEGG: That's right. Yes, no, England won its opening game. The U.S. drew with Wales. Only two teams from the four teams from the four in the group get through. So the U.S. really needs to get a win tonight to head into the final round of games for the group, to show (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

LEMON: You know, a lot of people are going to be looking to these two teams, especially considering everything that's going on over there regarding social issues, LGBTQ, the arm bands, whatever. So what do you think is going to happen when we see these two teams? Do you think we'll see some sort of protest or some -- at least something that will recognize what is going on?

ROBINSON: Both of these teams have been pretty -- pretty quiet about their plans going into this game. We know that they scrapped plans to wear a "one love" arm band with a rainbow design on them, because FIFA threatened to punish any captain who wore it with an automatic yellow card.

England did, however, kneel before their first game. And I think they'll probably plan to do that again as a general statement about social injustice.

COLLINS: What's it like on the ground there? Both of you are there covering this and reporting on it. What is -- what's -- with all these games, all of these matches happening, everyone is watching so closely, but also all these issues that Don is just talking about. You know, what's it like to be on the ground?

CLEGG: You know, I think to a large degree, we're sort of shielded from a lot of that, you know, stuff over here that there's a sort of FIFA machine that you go through as a reporter. And it keeps you, you know, mostly in -- in the sort of sanitized media centers and in the stadiums where you sort of don't really see much of that.

But, you know, it's -- it's -- it's been fine. You know, the -- the organization of the tournament so far has been good. You know, no logistical issues. You know, it just remains to be seen, you know, what happens with the protests.

ROBINSON: And one thing we do know is that there's this sort of adjusting on the fly. Wales fans, we found out yesterday, that they'd be allowed to bring in items of rainbow clothing or rainbow flags into their game today. So it's -- it's very much a trial and error situation here.

LEMON: Yes. We'll watching. Jonathan Clegg, Joshua Robinson, appreciate it. Good luck, have fun. Don't forget that part.

ROBINSON: Thanks.

LEMON: Thanks a lot.

Well, the Coast Guard -- this -- have you seen this story?

COLLINS: It's wild.

LEMON: This is fascinating when I read this overnight. Hoisting a man to safety after he fell overboard a cruise ship, but he was in the water for a while. How they tracked him down. That's straight ahead.

COLLINS: Also this morning, Ukrainians are forced to make do without after Russian air strikes have knocked out power. We have more on the incredible video, also, of heart surgery being performed during a blackout. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:23:06]

COLLINS: Half of Kyiv is in the dark this morning after Russian strikes knocked power out of much of the country. Bad weather now slowing down repair crews who are racing to restore that power as Ukrainians are now being told to prepare for more blackouts.

That means there could be more remarkable scenes like this one. Doctors in Kyiv performing heart surgery basically by flashlight, because their hospital had no lights.

CNN's Clare Sebastian joins us now.

Clare, these images coming out of what life is like for these Ukrainians now, as they are dealing with what Russia is doing, which is basically this terror campaign, as you've heard the NATO secretary general describe it as. They're just remarkable.

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Kaitlan. Extraordinary scenes.

This came from the head of medical services at the Kyiv Heart Institute. This is a child undergoing emergency open heart surgery. They were only doing emergency operations at this institute.

And the operation was already underway when the lights went out. But you can see from those images, the doctors kept going. They used their head lamps, and they continued with the surgery.

They worked through the night, according to the head of medical services, and they did not lose, he said, a single patient. Even more extraordinary is the fact that this was not an isolated incident.

I think we can show you another image from another hospital in the city of Dnipro in Central Southern Ukraine. There, the head of that hospital said that there was an operation on a 23-year-old man. Also, a similar scenario. The lights went out, but he said that patient made it.

But these are extreme conditions. It just shows that Russia's attacks on the power system is literally creating these life-and-death scenarios.

LEMON: And I understand you have some new reporting on the efforts to restore power in the region. What's the latest?

SEBASTIAN: Yes, Don. So we heard from the electricity transmission operator in Ukraine this morning. They are now -- they've now restored, they say, 70 percent of demand for electricity in the country. That's up from 50 percent yesterday evening. So it shows that they have been working through the night.

The nuclear plants, which crucially, for the first time in decades, were taken offline, off the grid, earlier this week by these attacks, are now back online, gradually ramping up their own electricity generation.

[06:25:11]

But those efforts to restore power are being hampered by bad weather. Yet another challenge they face.

And I really want (ph) to point out these satellite images that we have now. On the left, January this year; on the right November. You can see that the lights have been taken out across the country.

This underscores the challenge that Ukraine now faces.

But of course, those scenes from those medical facilities show that they have no choice but to keep trying to restore electricity, even as the risk remains that it's going to get knocked out again.

COLLINS: Can we put those images back up that you just showed there, Clare? This is remarkable. These are -- this is what you can see from space. You can see just how bad the blackouts and how severe they are.

This is just remarkable to see the side-by-side images of that, of what these Ukrainians are dealing with, what these emergency services are dealing with.

LEMON: Yes.

COLLINS: And the fact that winter is setting in, and they're dealing with this. It's really remarkable.

SEBASTIAN: Yes. And it's ramping up, as well. You know, the attacks started on sort of substations connected throughout the grid. Now they're attacking the sort of generation capacity itself with these nuclear plants, hydroelectric plants.

And all, as you say, as winter really starts to set in. People are dealing with this on a day-to-day basis, having to sort of conserve energy, save water, all of those things.

And for regular people, as well, they keep doing it, even when the water comes back, because of course, they feel that it could disappear again at any moment.

COLLINS: Yes. Clare Sebastian, thank you.

Ahead we are going to speak to the NATO secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, about Ukraine's power crisis and the renewed concerns about nuclear attacks, as well.

LEMON: How much money has been spent online so far this Black Friday? Well, we're going to have live data. That's next.

COLLINS: We're also getting up close and personal with the Moon this morning, courtesy of Artemis I. These images are just stunning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)