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CNN This Morning
WH Official: U.S. And Ukraine To Resume Peace Talks; Trump Keeps Pressure On Venezuela, Says Airspace There Is Closed; 4 Dead, 10 Hurt After Shooting At Family Gathering In California; Gaza Death Toll Tops 70,000 As Crews Recover More Bodies; GOP Rep. Troy Nehls Won't Seek Reelection In 2026; Democrats Hoping Tennessee Election Will Boost Numbers In The House; ICE Protesters Clash With Police In New York; New Orleans Braces For Immigration Enforcement Surge. Opening Statements Set to Begin of Brian Walshe; Black Friday Sales Up 4.1 Percent from 2024; Community Supporting CA Businesses Damaged by Wildfire; Major Winter Storm Impacts Post-Thanksgiving Travel. Aired 7-8a ET
Aired November 30, 2025 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[07:01:00]
ISABEL ROSALES, CNN HOST: Good morning. It is Sunday, November 30th, and this is a brand new hour of CNN This Morning. I'm Isabel Rosales in for Victor Blackwell.
Here's what's new. Happening today, a meeting in Miami for peace. A delegation from Ukraine is set to meet face-to-face with top Trump administration officials. We'll get into what might come from it as Russia steps up their attacks in Kyiv.
Plus, all eyes on the skies of Venezuela, my country's leadership calling out President Trump for threatening to shut down their airspace. We have a report from Caracas.
And breaking news overnight, police in California, they're searching for a mass shooter. Four people are dead, and at least 10 others are hurt after gunfire broke out at a family party. We have reaction coming in from officials in Stockton.
ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And the system is not done yet. We have more rain and snow expected for today, but right on the heels, another system expected to hit some of the same areas Monday and Tuesday. We'll talk more about that coming up.
ROSALES: Talks to try to end Russia's war in Ukraine are taking center stage in Miami. A White House official says Secretary of State Marco Rubio will be joining President Trump's Special Envoy, Steve Witkoff, and Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, in those discussions. The talks come as dramatic body cam video, here it is, shows the frantic rescue of a 10-year-old Ukrainian boy. You see that? Trapped underneath the rubble. Russian strikes in Kyiv hit the child's apartment building. The stepped-up drone and missile attacks are part of Russia's largest air assault in Ukraine in a month. The strikes come as negotiators in Miami try to find a diplomatic end to Russia's war on Ukraine.
CNN Correspondent Larry Madowo joins us now with the latest. Good morning, Larry.
LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Isabel.
So this Sunday meeting expected to kick off in a few hours. Very important. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Steve Witkoff, and Jared Kushner meeting the Ukrainian delegation there. There's a new lead negotiator at the top.
After Zelenskyy's chief of staff was forced to resign Friday because of this corruption scandal, his home got raided, the new man leading the negotiation for the Ukrainians is Rustem Umerov. He is the secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council. He was former defense minister, so he's familiar with these topics.
And they have to find a counter-proposal and build on the work that happened in Geneva this past week to try and push back on the 28-point proposal brought forward by the Americans, which has been criticized for being too Russia-friendly. It appears to give Russia almost everything it's been asking for in this war.
And then President Zelenskyy will be meeting President Emmanuel Macron of France in Paris on Monday. France has been one of the key allies for Ukraine. And an American team expected in Moscow in the week ahead to brief President Putin.
The plan here is that as soon as they can work out a deal, then President Trump will meet both President Putin and President Zelenskyy at a date yet to be determined. President Zelenskyy has said that the Americans are being constructive in this negotiation, and he expects that they will hash out some of the finer details in this meeting Sunday in Miami.
And President Trump also, on his way into Miami, said that he was not giving a firm deadline, so he stepped back away from giving a date. But he says we will know when we know. But he's optimistic that there's progress being made here.
That happening as Russia has launched the largest aerial assault against Ukraine in more than a month. We saw some serious drone and missile attacks Friday night. And once again on Sunday -- on Saturday night, President Zelenskyy saying these attacks happen every day.
I want to read a bit of a section of a tweet from President Zelenskyy a few hours ago. He says such attacks happen every day. "This week alone, the Russians have used nearly 1,400 attack drones, 1,100 guided aerial bombs, and 66 missiles against our people. This is exactly why we must strengthen Ukraine's resilience every single day. Missiles and air defense systems are essential, and just as crucial is active work with our partners for peace." And I guess that's why he's going to Paris one more time to meet with President Macron and make sure that the Europeans are involved in this process.
[07:05:06]
They did feel a little slighted when this plan initially came together when they were at the G20 Summit in Johannesburg, that the Europeans and the NATO allies had not been included and they want to be a very close part of these negotiations, Isabel.
ROSALES: Yes, and all of this on the backdrop of Putin just saying that he's demanding Ukrainian soldiers vacate the territory that they're occupying Ukrainian -- occupying Ukrainian territory, something that seems probably like a non-starter for Zelenskyy and for Ukraine. So we're going to have to see how these peace talks play out.
Larry Madowo, thank you.
Well, President Trump is keeping the pressure on Venezuela. In a social media post, the President says that Venezuelan airspace is closed to, quote, "airlines, pilots, drug dealers, and human traffickers." As CNN's Stefano Pozzebon explains, Venezuela's response was swift.
STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Isabel, the Venezuelan government has sent several statements across Saturday to reject that imposition, as they call it, from the White House. I'm going to read one to you from the Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez. He said that no foreign power has any faculty to interfere, block or condition a decision over the sovereignty of Venezuela, clearly signaling that tweet from Donald Trump, from the White House, calling for all the airspace on top of Venezuela to be considered as closed, as I'm quoting it.
It's something that definitely has rattled them. But at the same time, Isabel, it is remarkable that we are yet to see Nicolas Maduro himself, the Venezuelan leader is somebody who normally spends several hours on TV here. Well late on Saturday, he did send us a voice message. He published it on the app Telegram, talking about prices going down for food and other initiatives for the people to enjoy a good Christmas here in Venezuela, despite all these tensions going out.
But he did not address these -- the geopolitical tensions around the situation on the airspace. He knows the idea that the United States might indeed in fact take direct action inside the Venezuelan. And, of course, the fact that he did not appear on Venezuelan TV, but just sent a voice message is leading to several analysts and widespread speculation, frankly, over where he is.
At the same time, here in Caracas, all so far is quiet as of late on Saturday night, Isabel. But of course, if there is any development, we'll bring that to you. Isabel?
ROSALES: Stefano Pozzebon, thank you so much. Well, breaking news overnight out of California, four people are dead and 10 others are hurt after a shooting at a family gathering. And right now, a manhunt is underway for that suspect. This happened inside a banquet hall last night in Stockton, about 40 miles south of Sacramento. Stockton's mayor is urging anyone with information to come forward.
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CHRISTINA FUGAZI, STOCKTON MAYOR: You know, this is Thanksgiving weekend. This is when families come together, celebrate, share memories, give each other love. And unfortunately tonight, heaven is a little bigger with the individuals, children, and adults that unfortunately do not make it. Stockton is better than this.
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ROSALES: The sheriff's office says this may have been a targeted shooting. Children and adults were among those shot.
Well, this morning, if you're trying to get home after Thanksgiving break, you may run into quite a bit of a headache. Take a look at Illinois yesterday. Whiteout snow conditions, making it almost impossible to see out on the roads.
And this is Terre Haute, Indiana, right here. Pretty tree, but not pretty conditions. Officials are urging anyone on the roads to slow down and be extra cautious. And right now, by the way, there are more than 700 delays and over 400 cancellations at airports nationwide.
CNN's Allison Chinchar joins me now. And Allison, before we're even out of this thing, you're tracking another one right behind it.
CHINCHAR: Right, I was going to say, you've got a very short window to shovel that driveway and get it all out before the next round comes in. Yes, you know, here's what's left of the first system that we will call it that. You can see all of the purple color here. That indicates all of the snow.
The darker purple, the heavier the snow is coming down. You can see it's still coming down very heavy in some spots, especially along the Great Lakes region, states like Michigan, Pennsylvania, Upstate New York. Now, we've also got some pink color down through here.
Again, even in places like Virginia and North Carolina, that's where we've got a little bit of that wintry mix taking place. And then farther down to the south, the main concern here is rain. However, it is very heavy at times.
We had very strong thunderstorms move through Houston not that long ago. Now you're starting to see some of those stronger thunderstorms move through areas of Louisiana.
[07:10:01]
But here's the thing. In the last 24 hours, there have been substantial snow reports that have come in. Take a look at this 8.4 is what they topped out at O'Hare in Chicago. That makes it the snowiest November day on record for Chicago. Des Moines and St. Louis also topping out at least their top five in the month of November.
So here's the thing. We're used to this snow in say January or February. This just happens to be very early in the season. But knowing that, here's a look at the system. But keep an eye down to the south too. So as we wrap up the rest of the day, most of that system finally exits.
Just kind of left with some rain along the eastern seaboard as we go through the evening hours tonight. By tomorrow morning though, take a look at this, new system really starts to take shape over the Ark-La- Tex region. That will continue to slide up and strengthen throughout the day, bringing more snow to places like Des Moines, St. Louis, and Chicago, all of the same places that just got done getting some snow.
ROSALES: What a mess. I can't catch a break here.
Allison Chinchar, thank you.
Well, this morning, deadly flooding is sweeping across parts of Asia after a rare cyclone dropped massive amounts of rain. Take a look at this. More than 700 people have been killed in Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Malaysia. Hundreds are still missing after the storm triggered landslides, destroying homes and cutting off entire towns. Rescue crews are working urgently, still trying to reach people trapped by those floodwaters.
And in Gaza, the death toll has now passed 70,000. That's according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. Emergency workers say they're still recovering bodies from collapsed buildings. More than 600 days -- more than 600, excuse me, since the ceasefire began six weeks ago.
Gaza's civil defense believes as many as 10,000 more people may still be buried in that rubble. Horrible. The ministry also says more than 350 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire took effect. Now, Israel disputes those numbers, saying that they come from Hamas- run ministry and don't separate fighters from civilians.
On Capitol Hill, House lawmakers say they are launching a bipartisan review of a U.S. military strike in the Caribbean that reportedly killed survivors on a suspected drug boat. The House Armed Services Committee says they want a full accounting of what exactly happened here.
Now, CNN previously reported that the U.S. carried out a secondary strike after seeing survivors in the water, something the Pentagon has defended as a lethal mission. Meanwhile, President Trump is warning airlines and pilots to avoid all Venezuelan airspace, calling it yesterday, quote, "closed in its entirety." Venezuela's foreign minister is blasting that directive, calling it a, quote, "colonialist threat."
New this morning, another member of the House GOP is leaving. Texas Representative Troy Nehls will retire after his term ends next year. He said on social media he's already endorsing his twin brother to campaign for his spot. Now, his announcement comes just days after this shocking news, that Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said she would retire in January.
Associated Press National Politics Reporter Meg Kinnard joins me now. Meg, thank you so much for helping us make sense of all of this.
So, Meg, we have yet another high-profile departure from the House. What does Congressman Troy Nehls' retirement tell you about the broader mood inside of Congress right now, if anything?
MEG KINNARD, NATIONAL POLITICS REPORTER, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS: Hey, good morning, Isabel. It's really good to be with you. It is always interesting to try to Monday morning quarterback some of these moves that we see this far ahead of the midterms. Sometimes it's a signal that the party, in this case, the Republican Party, feels good about being able to keep that seat moving forward.
And sometimes it tells us that there might be a bit of consternation and family feuding going on with Republicans in disagreement with what's happening at the top of their party. I don't think that's the case here. This is a longtime ally of President Trump, somebody who stood with him even when some other Republicans weren't as vocal in their support.
But with the margins so close in the House heading into those midterm elections next year, this is certainly something for House Speaker Mike Johnson to be looking at and thinking, OK, is this for sure a seat that I feel comfortable about, especially given Congresswoman Greene and some others who are heading for the exits already making their plans known this far out from the 2026 elections.
ROSALES: Yes. And zooming out, does this growing list of retirements change the landscape at all for Republicans heading into 2026?
KINNARD: It may to some extent. Again, we still have a year to go, and the primaries for these races will really be an indicator telling us what kind of candidates each party is putting up for those general elections.
In some circumstances, I know in South Carolina, where I do most of my reporting and where I live, there are some districts where Republicans feel very confident about them, so it's really the primaries where some of the most fierce competition happens heading into elections.
[07:15:10]
But when you do zoom out and think about the Republican Party writ large, these congressmen and congresswomen are the ones who are campaigning, who are on ballots, who are having to defend and in a lot of circumstances really have deep conversations about some of President Trump's policy priorities and debates happening in Washington.
He's not on ballots next year, but these members of Congress are. And so sometimes when there is disagreement or uncertainty about some of those policies, it's these members of Congress that really have to be hearing from constituents and bearing out those conversations. And some of that is difficult when there are disagreements, as there are almost all the time on the policies being handed down from the White House.
ROSALES: Yes, and throughout the year we've seen those spicy town halls for sure. Let me turn to another important political story, the final special House election of the year in Tennessee's 7th District where Democrats are hoping to flip the deep red district. Can you walk us through why this race has suddenly drawn so much national attention?
KINNARD: These off-year elections, and in particular the special elections like this one, always get a lot of attention because as we saw earlier this month, those were the first round of major elections since Donald Trump's return to the White House. And so, those contests in New York and in California, New Jersey, and Virginia were seen as the first opportunity to really gauge how voters are feeling in the first year of the second Trump administration.
This Tennessee special election is the next iteration of that. And yes, it is one contest. It is one House seat out of hundreds, but it is an opportunity for some major players in both parties to really get out front to kind of take the temperature of voters as they look toward the midterms next year.
And we have seen those major players, those top names in both parties, really coming in to make their cases known, to speak on behalf of these candidates, sure, but really to kind of see how voters are feeling before they really get deep into the midterm contests. And we will see how it all plays out here very, very shortly. But all eyes have been on Tennessee, and it's really interesting to watch, particularly given the good results that Democrats got in those other contests happening earlier this month.
ROSALES: Yes, I think it's striking that Democrats entered this race with national approval ratings near historic lows, yet they've been outperforming expectations in every special election this year. We're going to have to see how they do in this district, where Republican Mark Green won in 2024 by just over 20 points.
Meg Kinnard, thank you so much for your time.
KINNARD: Definitely a big margin for Republicans, most recently, for sure. But yes, Democrats are running hard, so we'll see how it goes.
ROSALES: Thank you, Meg.
Well, still to come, protesters chanting "ICE out of New York" in Manhattan. Coming up, details on what happened during that incident.
Plus, the Brian Walshe murder trial begins tomorrow. We are going to discuss the unique angles of this case and the challenges of proving the murder charge.
And Black Friday retail sales are up. What this says about our economy. All of that is ahead.
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ROSALES: Welcome back. More than a dozen protesters were arrested in New York City on Saturday for trying to block federal agents from conducting immigration enforcement.
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CROWD: ICE out of New York!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ICE out of New York!
CROWD: ICE out of New York!
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ROSALES: The protesters locked arms, and you're hearing them right there chanting, "ICE out of New York," blocking federal agents from exiting their garage. Some officers were seen using pepper spray to subdue demonstrators.
A Homeland Security spokesman slammed the demonstration, claiming that social media posts summoned, quote, "agitators" to the ICE location, putting a target on the backs of agents.
President Trump is escalating his anti-immigration crackdown. The next city the administration is expected to target is New Orleans, after recently sending agents to Charlotte. Some immigrants there say that they're already staying home and hiding out ahead of the Border Patrol operation. And local officials are questioning why their state is even being targeted.
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MATTHEW WILLARD, LOUISIANA STATE REPRESENTATIVE: We're not bordered by any other country, so for Border Patrol to come into the state of Louisiana really makes no sense.
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ROSALES: Let's go live to New Orleans and bring in Lindsey Navarro, she is the founder and executive director of El Centro, a nonprofit helping Latino entrepreneurs. Lindsey, thank you so much for being on CNN This Morning.
LINDSEY NAVARRO, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND FOUNDER, EL CENTRO: Thank you for having me. It's a pleasure to be here.
ROSALES: Thank you. What is your biggest concern as we approach the start of this operation? And are you having these conversations with the undocumented community? How are they feeling and preparing for all of this? NAVARRO: Yes, there's a lot of anxiety. There's a lot of fear in the community. And the fear in the community is beyond those that are immigrants, beyond those who are undocumented. Even individuals with permanent residence, even citizens are concerned. There's a fear for the economy and how this will impact small business owners.
[07:25:00]
As early as last week, we were already seeing business owners mention that their staffers weren't able to come into the office. They were planning on staying home. Some have already left the city. And that the reality is that business owners are buckling down, working the hours that they can with the staff that they currently have who are able to be in those spaces.
And organizations are working to inform the community about knowing their rights and raising awareness, not just amongst business owners, but also in the general public about how they can support really the undocumented community and the immigrant community that's going to be affected by what's to come.
ROSALES: I want to dig in a little bit more into the economic impact of all this. But first, I want to give people a sense of New Orleans and the numbers there, the demographic there. There's about 23,400 immigrants that live in the city. That is 6.5 percent of the population. Over half are noncitizens and about half are Latinos.
Now, you mentioned some of the despair that these business owners are having with this. CNN has spoken to business owners who report being short-staffed, closing early, even losing half of their revenue with immigrant workers too afraid to come into work. Customers, too, that are Latino, that are undocumented also hunkering down at home.
We saw over in Charlotte, there was a survey done where they lost an average of $2,500 a day, these businesses. How do you see the possible economic impact of this?
NAVARRO: Yes, very similar. And -- very similar. Yes, the reality is that Latinos tend to frequent Latino-owned businesses. This would be a little different if the majority of Latino-owned businesses were frequented by the 95 percent of the population, which is English- speaking.
And so, I mean, I think at this point in time, what we are trying to do is encourage our neighbors, encourage those who live in the community to support these business owners who have limited staff and now have limited income. I was at the flea market a week or two ago. And the moment I was there, I snapped a photo with a customer of ours who was open.
She was maybe one of two businesses that were open inside the flea market, which is typically a vibrant hub for Latinos and Latino business owners. And they, too, were just concerned with the news about ICE and CBP coming to the area. And so, you know, that post essentially got a lot of attention online. And so individuals started considering buying out business owners, you know, determining what amount of revenue they need to generate in a single day to ensure that they can continue --
ROSALES: Wow.
NAVARRO: -- to feed their families and the people that they support.
ROSALES: Yes, I saw somebody describe it as, with these communities, as preparing for a hurricane, like they're hunkering down. Now DHS says that these operations are about public safety. But according to the New Orleans Police Department, during the first quarter of 2025, violent crime is down in the city by 20 percent. I mean, that's a major number.
From your perspective, why is the Crescent City being targeted here?
NAVARRO: Obviously, because we are a blue city in a red state. I mean, I believe the administration has been very clear and candid about who -- what cities they intend to send troops to and or to send enforcement to. And so this isn't a surprise.
But the reality is that this isn't about safety. This is about the separation of families, of individuals who have no prior criminal history. They are here to make a life for themselves, to create futures. I mean, and that's the terrible part of this.
We are seeing -- I mean, I've had customers who were picked up from their immigration hearings, from immigration court hearings, mothers of three, four children, fathers who were essentially being pulled over on their way to work and aren't coming home to their children. And so the separation of these families is quite -- is creating despair, I think, and additional fear and trauma and anxiety in the community.
And so that's why, you know, we are intending to be prepared, to prepare for the worst and to hope for the best.
ROSALES: Right.
NAVARRO: And at this point, what the community needs is solidarity.
ROSALES: Yes. Lindsey --
NAVARRO: You know, we would encourage those who can support these business owners, those who can support these families to step in in any way they can.
ROSALES: Lindsey Navarro, I know your community is going through a lot of fear right now. Thank you so much for giving us your take.
Well, Brian Walshe admits that he disposed of his wife's body but denies that he actually killed her. Ahead, we'll discuss what to expect when his murder trial begins tomorrow.
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ROSALES: Welcome back. Opening statements are set to begin tomorrow in the trial of Massachusetts man Brian Walshe. Now Walshe is accused of murdering his wife, Anna, back in 2023. And in a surprise move that shocked the courtroom, the defense, he pled guilty to the illegal disposal of his wife's body. But his lawyers insist he is not admitting to her murder.
With me now is retired judge and court TV anchor Ashley Willcott.
ASHLEY WILLCOTT, ANCHOR, COURT TV AND RETIRED JUDGE: Thank you so much for being with us. Thank you, Isabel, for having me. What a case.
ROSALES: It's been two years in the making.
WILLCOTT: Yes.
ROSALES: There's been so many twists and turns. We had this 11th hour shocking admittance that he disposed of his wife's body.
WILLCOTT: Right.
ROSALES: That he misled police.
WILLCOTT: Right.
ROSALES: But saying, no, I didn't do it here. How do you defend that?
WILLCOTT: How do you defend that? Well, we don't know yet. We may find that out in the opening statements trial slated to begin, of course, tomorrow, December 1st.
[07:35:00]
And are they going to say self-defense? Are they going to say that she died from natural causes and he panicked? We don't know, and that's what we're waiting to see.
ROSALES: Is there a strategy here by his defense team where he could be pleading to a lesser charge?
WILLCOTT: I think it's absolutely a strategy that he already pled to the two lesser charges, right? Saying, I didn't murder her, but I did these other things. Because that means the prosecution doesn't get to admit evidence as to those other two charges. And that may have been evidence that made him look bad. It may have been that the defense said if they present that evidence, the jury is going to say you murdered her. So, let's get that out of the way.
Is he going to admit to a manslaughter charge, for instance? Number one, we don't know if that's been offered. But number two, as it stands at this point, he is claiming, no, I did not kill her.
ROSALES: Bonkers, but there could be strategy at play here.
WILLCOTT: Sure.
ROSALES: And it's my understanding that Massachusetts law, by the law, he cannot plead guilty to first-degree murder.
WILLCOTT: Because in pleading guilty to the first-degree murder, they won't give him that as an offer. That's correct. And so, they would have to go to trial, and they would then have to present all the evidence to convince the jury beyond a reasonable doubt, keeping in mind there's no body.
ROSALES: Right.
WILLCOTT: Anna's body has never been found.
ROSALES: This is a big deal.
WILLCOTT: It's a big deal. So, they first have to prove there's even been a murder, much less by this particular man or husband.
ROSALES: How difficult is it to prosecute a case like this where you don't have the body?
WILLCOTT: We see that not that unoften. That's not the right way to say that. But the point is there are successful prosecutions without a body. Adam Montgomery did it, and that Harmony was his daughter, and there was no body. And he was convicted of her murder. So, it absolutely can happen.
ROSALES: Interesting. But the bar is higher.
WILLCOTT: Yes. Sure, sure.
ROSALES: To prove a lot more. Judge, the Commonwealth has this surveillance footage. They have blood evidence. They have digital searches. What sort of evidence would be the most helpful, carries the most weight in a trial like this where there's no body?
WILLCOTT: Well, often it's going to be anything that the jurors can see. So, for instance, there's surveillance video that allegedly shows on January 2nd, they say she died on January 1st. On January 2nd, the defendant purchased $450 of cleaning supplies and a tarp. When you see that surveillance video, if that's what it shows, that's pretty compelling evidence. The second piece is DNA evidence of the victim found on items belonging to the victim found in a trash bin, allegedly, right, in a dumpster close to the defendant's mother's home. Those kinds of things, when you add it all together, might convince a jury beyond a reasonable doubt.
ROSALES: And it's a little bit of a mess here because he was already in prison for something completely different. Talk to us about that.
WILLCOTT: So, he was in prison for federal charges of forging Andy Warhol paintings and then selling them, right? And so, he was serving that time, and some allege that that might be part of the motive, that she had allegedly said to him, you need to resolve this criminal charge, and then also allegedly told a friend she was having an affair and wanted him out of her life. These are things that may have been involved in a motive.
ROSALES: Does the prosecution actually have to present a motive here?
WILLCOTT: That's a great question. No, Isabel, they don't. They absolutely don't. But keep in mind, jurors want to know why. They want to know exactly why a person has done something. So, it's always helpful to have a motive.
ROSALES: Judge Willcott, thank you so much for your time and for breaking this complex case.
WILLCOTT: Thank you as well. Thanks for having -- I can't wait to watch.
ROSALES: I know.
WILLCOTT: That's tomorrow.
ROSALES: We'll be watching.
WILLCOTT: Thank you.
ROSALES: Thank you so much. Well, business owners in California, they are reopening just in time for holiday shopping. Coming up, a look at how the California neighborhood is trying to recover and rebuild after these devastating wildfires that they experienced earlier this year.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[07:40:00]
ROSALES: New this morning, just released data shows that Black Friday sales rose 4.1 percent compared to last year, that's according to MasterCard Spending Pulse. Adobe Analytics shows online sales shot up more than 9 percent. But wait on -- wait a second here. The big disclaimer is that these figures do not take into account higher prices because of inflation, which is running at 3 percent annually. So, spending could actually be flat here.
The Federal Reserve also recently noted that low- and middle-income consumers are curbing their spending. But those with higher incomes keep buying. That's a K-shaped economy. And speaking of shopping, one community is showing up to support small downtown Los Angeles businesses that were ravaged by those devastating wildfires earlier this year. You might remember that. CNN's Julia Vargas Jones has that story.
JULIA VARGAS JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Isabel, it's a really important day here in Altadena. There's still a lot of recovery to take place. This building behind me here is one of the examples. This whole strip is small businesses. They're counting on people coming out and spending their money during their holiday shopping on small businesses in Altadena.
You know, nationwide small business Saturday can account to as much as 20 percent of some businesses' earnings for the whole year. And last year, in 2024, $22 billion were moved around on that day for small businesses.
[07:45:00]
Now, just to put that in perspective for our context here in California, Los Angeles County estimates that $10 billion, between $5 and $10 billion, were lost in these fires. So, this community needs a lot of help. So far, though, a lot of business owners have told me that they're overwhelmed how many people have come out to spend their money in Altadena to help their community, not only to get their holiday shopping, but also to just help their neighbors. Take a listen to what one of them said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ADRIANA MOLINA, OWNER, SEDECCA: It's awesome to see people walking in the door, just seeing cars on the street. I intentionally wanted to reopen for this season to give people a reason to come up here. I think everyone needs to see and see the rebuild and/or just be patient with all the businesses here who are trying to make it. Small businesses supporting small businesses is like, you know, our -- it's our true passion to be a little small mom and pop shop. So, we love it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
JONES: And I have to say, Isabel, it's been so great to see this community coming together, supporting each other, because it was at this very intersection about 11 months ago that we were here reporting on the fire, showing just the sheer destruction that ripped through Los Angeles County. And now seeing the holidays, people coming together and supporting their community is just wonderful to see. Isabel.
ROSALES: What a beautiful show of support. Julia Vargas Jones, thank you for that. Well, next, a major shakeup is expected in the college football coaching ranks. Plus, travelers driving home after the Thanksgiving holiday. They're facing snow covered highways like this one. What a mess. More on the massive storm pummeling parts of the country. That's coming up. You're watching CNN This Morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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ROSALES: Welcome back. This morning, millions of people are under winter alerts. The storm has been marching across the U.S. all weekend, slowing down post-holiday air travel and shutting down stretches of highways. Look at that. CNN Meteorologist Allison Chinchar is back with us. Another one.
ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And I wish I had better news. I know, but really, as soon as this one's done, we have another one right there on its heels.
So, let's get right to it. This is where we're still looking at the main system. You can see all that purple color. That indicates where the snow is. Remember, the darker the purple, the heavier the snow. You've also got some pretty heavy bands moving across areas of the Great Lakes. Down to the south, we've got a little bit of a wintry mix here across North Carolina, Virginia, even into Maryland.
And then down to the south, the main concern has been very heavy rain. We had some very strong thunderstorms move through the Houston area just about an hour or two ago. This line will continue to slide east as we head through the rest of the day.
So, this means by the time we get to tonight, the vast majority of this system is well offshore. You're really just looking at some of the rain showers that are left right there along the eastern seaboard. But by tomorrow morning, we're already prepping for the next system.
Here you can take a look starting to form down there along the Ark-La- Tex region. It will intensify throughout the day so that by the time we get later into the day Monday, take a look at this. You've got a lot of heavy rain across the south, even a level one potential there for some excessive rainfall and flooding for some spots and more snow. Yes, we're talking some of the same areas that just got hit over the weekend, Chicago, ST Louis, Des Moines, all of these areas likely to get additional snowfall late into the day Monday before the system heads off to the northeast on Tuesday.
ROSALES: And with those storms, any potential tornadoes?
CHINCHAR: Not necessarily with this one like we had yesterday.
ROSALES: Got it. Thank you so much, Allison Chinchar. Well, there is a healthy dose of rivalry happening in college football this weekend. CNN's Carolyn Manno joins us with those highlights. Carolyn, good morning.
CAROLYN MANNO, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning, Isabel. Well, let's start with the biggest college football question mark, and that is where Lane Kiffin is going to be coaching next season. An announcement was originally expected on Saturday, but Kiffin stayed quiet and now reports are suggesting that we could learn whether he's moving on from Ole Miss later on today. ESPN reporting that that's likely the case and the expectation that he's going to be heading to LSU.
There have been a lot of reports of an offer on the table that eclipses $100 million over a seven-year period, which would make Kiffin one of the highest paid coaches in the sport. Of course, with that comes the pressure of delivering a national championship, and Kiffin just finished in 11 and one regular season with Ole Miss, which all but assures them a spot in the college football playoff. If he accepts this high-profile job at LSU, he likely will not be at the helm for the Rebels in the postseason.
Some thought that Kiffin might be able to coach the Rebels in one more game if he clinched a spot in the SEC championship next weekend, but 10th ranked Alabama eliminating Ole Miss with a win over rival Auburn on Saturday night. Bama jumping out to a 17-nothing lead, but Auburn fought back. This one was back and forth. Tied at 20 in the fourth quarter, less than four minutes to go in the Crimson Tide securing their spot in the SEC title game on this critical fourth and two play.
Quarterback Ty Simpson throwing a six-yard touchdown to Isaiah Horton, who had three touchdowns on the night. Bama wins 27-20. They're going to face number four Georgia next week for the championship.
Another question heading into Saturday was whether Ohio State would be bested by Michigan again in one of college football's biggest rivalry. The perfect regular season, the spot in the Big Ten championship on the line for the top-ranked Buckeyes, who proved to be too much for the Wolverines on this snowy cold day in Ann Arbor.
Quarterback Julian Sayin throwing three touchdown passes. He looked phenomenal, including a 35-yarder to Jeremiah Smith on fourth down in the second quarter. Sayin finishing with 233 passing yards on the day. Ohio State winning 27-9. Snaps their four-game losing streak to their arch rivals, which was the big question. The Buckeyes next face Indiana in that Big Ten championship game next weekend.
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RYAN DAY, OHIO STATE HEAD COACH: I'm just happy for our players. You know, they worked really hard. I'm happy for our coaches. You know, they worked really, really hard and, you know, we had a good energy this week. We had confidence coming in and, man, the guys played tough. They played physical. We won a lot of scrimmage and I'm just happy for our guys.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MANNO: And lastly, in the NBA Pacers and Bulls coming down to the wire last night the game tied with just seconds left on the clock Pascal Siakam taking the inbound, bringing the ball up and draining a 14-foot jumper over two defenders at the buzzer for the win, led the Pacers in scoring, finished with 24 points and nine rebounds. Indiana winning back-to-back games for the first time this season.
And, Isabel, Allison is talking about the weather, had me just kind of thinking about all the snowy weather we have in the football field yesterday, it was so fun to watch all those snowy college games as we get set for the national championship and selection Sunday which is coming up fast. But football, snow, Thanksgiving, it's all here this weekend.
ROSALES: It's all giving it to us this season. Carolyn Manno, thank you so much. And thank you for joining us on CNN This Morning Weekend. Inside Politics is next.
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