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U.S. Federal Government Shutdown Looms Before Holidays; Looking at the Impact of Government Shutdown; Emotional Reunions as Syrian Refugees Return Homel; Zelenskyy Slams Putin as "Dumbass" Over Missile Duel Idea; Police Gather Evidence in the Wake of Madison School Shooting; New Details on UnitedHealthcare CEO Murder Suspect's Notebook; Fani Willis to Fight to Stay on Case Against Trump; Boston School Helps Homeless Children Thrive. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired December 20, 2024 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:00:12]
ERICA HILL, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Thanks for joining us here for the second hour of CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Erica Hill in New York.
At this hour, oh, to be a fly on the wall in Washington, D.C. with just five days left now before Christmas and frankly hours until a partial
government shutdown for the U.S. government. The way forward is unclear at this hour after the House rejected a revised funding bill, a bill that was
backed by President-elect Donald Trump. The latest from Trump, well, he just posted, if there's going to be a shutdown of government, let it begin
now, saying, as you see there, he wants it to happen under the Biden administration.
All of this as two of America's most recognizable brand names are facing challenges of their own in this busy holiday season. Contract delivery
drivers for Amazon on strike across the country, while Starbucks union employees are also walking off the job in three major cities. So how are
investors reacting to all of this? And today's release of new inflation data?
You see right there a whole lot of red on Wall Street. The personal consumption expenditures, price index or the PCE reflects how much
Americans spent on goods and services. And it does show price growth cooling a bit. So the inflation fight is working even if nothing else in
Washington seems to be.
We will get you up to speed, of course, on all the international headlines as well in just a moment. But we did want to take a closer look at some of
these U.S. economic headlines, starting with that chaos on Capitol Hill over government spending. The bill the House failed to pass included a
provision, this second bill, I should point out, last night, included a provision that would raise the debt ceiling, infuriating Democrats who are
frankly already fuming over the moves by Trump and Elon Musk to tank that previous bipartisan spending bill. Leaders of both parties had agreed to
it.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, Vice President-elect J.D. Vance holding what appeared to be a last ditch meeting with a group of Republican lawmakers
this morning in an effort to get another funding vote to the House floor.
CNN's Annie Grayer has more on Capitol Hill.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNIE GRAYER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The meeting that the speaker was having with J.D. Vance, his OMB director, and Republicans who were against the
vote last night, that meeting is breaking up behind me. As you can see, lawmakers are leaving, and one of them came out and said they think that
Republicans can vote as early as 10:00 a.m. this morning. But the question is on what are they going to be voting on.
Speaker Mike Johnson and his leadership team put a new plan on the floor last night. We saw 38 Republicans vote against it, and they're going to
need a lot of Democrats to get on board to get this to pass before government funding runs out tonight. Last night, we didn't see -- we only
saw two Democrats support it. Not nearly enough. So there's a lot of discussion about what could -- what they could put on the floor today that
could maybe get more Democratic consensus.
And, you know, there's no question of just the role that Donald Trump has played here looming large over all of this.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL: It is quite a role, that is for sure. A shutdown, too, would have wide-ranging impact. It would impact government services. It would impact
government employees. And of course, all of this happening at the peak of the holiday season as Arlette Saenz explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: An estimated 875,000 workers would be furloughed. Thousands more would be deemed essential and still
report for work but not be paid until this shutdown is over.
The White House started to notify their staff just yesterday on some of the guidance and instructions for how they should proceed if there is a
shutdown. They wrote, quote, if a shutdown occurs, employees should consider themselves furloughed unless told otherwise by their authorized
supervisor or component leadership.
Now, past shutdowns have shown us a little bit of what could be impacted. National parks and museums would shut down. There could also be issues at
the IRS just as tax filing season is about to begin. Then there's a lot of questions about holiday travel. TSA agents and air traffic controllers are
deemed essential, would have to continue to work. But in past shutdowns, some had called out sick, which caused delays to flights, really
complicating travel at one of the busiest seasons of the year.
Now, some things that would not be impacted, Social Security checks would continue to go out, Medicare and Medicaid benefits would also continue to
proceed. But if an agreement is not reached, it could also jeopardize relief for farmers and also critical disaster recovery aid that many
southeastern states still need in the wake of those hurricanes earlier this year.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL: Well, and amid all of this, as I noted, new inflation data is out today. The Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge moving slightly
higher in November, although not as much as economists were expecting. Those personal consumption expenditures rose 2.4 percent year over year.
That is up slightly from October's reading. Inflation has cooled substantially this year, but it's been moving sideways in recent months,
prompting the Fed to take a more cautious approach to rate cuts in the coming year.
[10:05:04]
Also happening in the U.S. at this hour, two major strikes across the country as this holiday rush is really getting underway. As of Thursday,
thousands of Amazon drivers are on strike. They're pushing for better working conditions and pay, and they also want to be recognized as
companies although the drivers actually work for companies that are contracted by Amazon, and Amason says for that reason, it isn't actually
required to negotiate with the drivers. It says it doesn't anticipate this strike will cause delays.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Will this impact shipping and deliveries for average Americans right now?
KELLY NANTEL, AMAZON SPOKESWOMAN: We're not expecting any delays to customer orders.
YURKEVICH: Do you consider this strike illegal?
NANTEL: There is no strike. This is a protest that has been facilitated by the Teamsters. There are no Amazon employees and no third party drivers who
pay dues to the Teamsters.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Well, meantime, at Starbucks, thousands of workers are striking in three U.S. cities today. They're demanding better pay. Their union warns,
though, that it could spread from those three cities to more areas through Christmas eve. The union itself represents more than 10,000 baristas.
Vanessa Yurkevich explains more about the timing of these events.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YURKEVICH: With both of these strikes obviously timing is everything, and for them, the timing is now around the holidays when Amazon and Starbucks
stand to make a lot of money. They're looking to disrupt this holiday season. Whether or not it works economically, we'll see. But just the
perception of all of us knowing what's going on raises the profile about what these two groups are trying to do.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: So what is the impact of all of this, the politics, the economic issues?
Joining me now, Mark Hamrick is a senior economic analyst at Bankrate, and Rina Shah, founder of Rilax Strategies and former senior congressional
aide.
It's great to have both of you here. There is all of this chaos, right? And especially if you're looking at this from the outside, I would say outside
the U.S., Mark, what is the broader impact of the chaos in Washington, the strikes that we're seeing, the economic concerns? What does that do to the
U.S. standing?
MARK HAMRICK, SENIOR ECONOMIC ANALYST, BANKRATE: It's very disruptive, Erica, and it's very worrisome because think about U.S. taxpayers as
essentially being stakeholders in the United States government. And this is the way of the house saying, in a sense, thank you for your service. In
other words, we're not exactly prioritizing delivery of services that the taxpayers have paid for.
But there's a far more serious and potentially damaging impact that these elected officials are flirting with. And that is a potential debt downgrade
of U.S. Treasury debt, which we are increasingly reliant upon. And if that were to happen, it would raise the cost of borrowing. It would make
essentially the U.S. economy more expensive to do business with. And it really lowers the global standing of the U.S. when we are asking everybody
to essentially help to finance the debt.
You know, you asked sort of what are the downsides of this? But what is the upside? It's toward what end? There is no positive end of this. And so it's
incredibly self-inflicted and unintelligent.
HILL: You know, I think you make such an interesting point. I mean I'd love to dive into this with you of what is the upside. There doesn't seem to be
a real plan or strategy here. I mean, you have Donald Trump and Elon Musk essentially, they tanked this bipartisan bill, right? So you had Democratic
and Republican buy in on that. That gets tanked. Option B doesn't work. We're not really sure what an option C is.
And then you have Trump this morning saying -- making it very clear what he wants to happen. He wants this government shutdown because he wants it to
happen under Joe Biden. Does this end up coming back to hurt Donald Trump as he's moving into his second term?
(CROSSTALK)
HILL: Go ahead, Reena.
RINA SHAH, PRINCIPAL AND FOUNDER, RILAX STRATEGIES: Yes. With the chaos on Capitol Hill right now there's no clear end game. Whether it's for
President-elect Trump or Speaker Johnson. At first, it seemed like this was about, you know, putting egg on the faces of Democrats. But in this next
month, in which Joe Biden is still very much the president and Democrats can have a seat at the table, I believe there was no need for Elon Musk to
inject himself at the 11th hour.
He forced the hand of Speaker Johnson and what it might result in, Erica, here is that Speaker Johnson could very well lose his speakership. When we
look at these razor thin margins that have defined this era of congressional lawmaking and have, frankly, made the House chamber look like
a place that gets nothing done, we not only see the congressional disapproval ratings drive up, but we see lawmakers scrambling to try for
the most extreme solutions. In this case, just yesterday, it was trimming a bill that was thousands of pages into a few hundred pages.
And that's where they -- they, meaning Speaker Johnson and Musk and Trump - - thought they could appease these conservatives that have been screaming about reckless spending from Washington.
[10:10:06]
No such deal. It failed on the floor of the House because Speaker Johnson did not take the pulse of his caucus. And frankly, Musk is an amateur and
doesn't understand how this works. It took weeks and months for a legislative compromise that was torpedoed at the 11th hour simply to try to
play reindeer games.
HILL: One of the reasons it was torpedoed, too, you know, 38 Republicans voting against it is because of this push to raise the debt ceiling.
Mark, how detrimental could that be?
HAMRICK: Well, in the very near term, I don't think it is because we have many months before the so-called X date occurs, when the rubber really hits
the road in the sense of the government truly not being able to meet its obligations. But the risk is there with respect to the rating agencies, as
I mentioned earlier, and every time our elected officials in the House in this case demonstrate their incompetence, that is watched by global
financial markets, participants all over the world who are investing in the United States, including in the equity market, as well as American based
investors and the rating agencies, and so it undermines trust in government.
And I want to mention one thing that's very important, erica, and that is the low trust in institutions we have in this country, which is essentially
a modern phenomenon. And elected officials in Washington rank toward the top of the list with the lack of trust. We did a survey of Americans at
Bankrate asking them about whether they expect their finances will improve in the coming year.
The majority said they did not expect they would improve in the coming year. And among the top reasons that they cited was the work done by
elected officials or to translate perhaps some of the work that's not done by elected officials.
HILL: Yes. I think it is important to translate to that what is not happening. You know, which sets up, I think very well, some comments that
we just heard from Dusty Johnson. I just want to play those and then get your take on the other side.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. DUSTY JOHNSON (R-SD): Well, I don't see any real value in pessimism. Everybody around here is always, oh, woe is me and everything is going to
heck. The reality is we need to get this done. It will be exceptionally stupid if we don't get this done. And I always believe that cooler heads
will prevail and that we will actually do our job around here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: It sounds great. The idea of it, cooler heads will prevail. We're going to get this done. The reality is, we know compromise has become a
dirty word on Capitol Hill.
Rina, I mean, it's almost quaint what we hear from the congressman there. Has that ship sailed?
SHAH: I don't think so. And maybe that's why, as a former creature of the House and somebody who still works in politics, I'm optimistic that
something can be crafted. But this was a most unusual moment. We've always seen Congress get to the point where they have to kick the can down the
road, extend again, and keep the government open for only a finite period of time at which they have to meet again and come to this legislative
compromise.
I just am not sure that we can find our way out of this era of 11th hour governing and essentially trying to serve the American people by inserting
oligarchs into the equation. I mean, it's amateur hour when you think you can kill a bill and something will just crop up out of nowhere. At the end
of the day, though, I do think that today they will sit down. They meaning Speaker Johnson and his allies, and try to not only get to what at the
heart of what the Freedom Caucus folks want, but also bring Democrats back to the table, which they were not at when Musk and Trump injected
themselves into the picture.
Democrats were pushed away from the table, not even invited. That's not how Washington functions. And at the end of the day, the only thing that will
change all of this is true systemic reform. I know a lot of people out there are feeling really like all hope is lost if one party really controls
all three branches as it's been put, but the House is a place where compromise is necessary and vital to legislation getting passed.
I am hopeful that, as the congressman put it, cooler heads will prevail in these next few hours so that we will not be shut down at 12:01 tonight.
HILL: We will be watching.
Rina, Mark, appreciate it. Thank you both.
SHAH: Thank you.
HILL: Just ahead here on CONNECT THE WORLD, the rebels in charge in Syria right now working on just how to lead this country following years, of
course, of dictatorship. I'm speaking with the Syria expert about how the international community can help those efforts. Plus, a deadly strike in
Ukraine's capital. The latest on what the foreign ministry is calling a barbaric attack.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:16:40]
HILL: The Pentagon is now saying there are about twice as many U.S. soldiers in Syria as had been previously disclosed. About 2,000 of them,
according to the Defense Department, were there to help in the fight against ISIS. A U.S. delegation meantime making the first official visit to
Damascus since the fall of dictator Bashar al-Assad, and this is the first time, of course, in more than a decade.
A top State Department official, Barbara Leaf, is talking with Ahmad al- Sharaa, the HTS leader who's also known as Abu Mohammad al-Jolani. In the last hour of CONNECT THE WORLD, I spoke with Syrian columnist Haid Haid,
who's a consulting fellow at Chatham House in London. He also has family living in Aleppo, and I asked him about the importance of these meetings as
they're happening with Syria's new leadership.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HAID HAID, CONSULTING FELLOW, CHATHAM HOUSE: This is important for different factors. One of them is that, as you mentioned, has been over a
decade that there has not been direct contact with the sort of authorities in Damascus. Second, that now this issue could potentially or this
engagement could potentially shed some light on how to engage with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and its leader, al-Jolani, as they are sanctioned as, or
designated as terrorist group and leader.
And then the third one is related to I think making sure that there is clear sort of understanding for what should come next. And regarding what
might come out of it at this stage, I think it's difficult to really expect any concrete sort of agreement or results that the statement or the
discussion most likely will focus on just ensuring that the transition in Syria will be inclusive and highlighting some of the key issues related to
fighting ISIS and dealing with key files like the chemical weapons file.
HILL: There is all of that. There's also this, you know, new refrain I think that we've heard from a number of world leaders over concerns about
HTS, right, and being in charge and the importance of this being an inclusive government and certainly moving forward a democratic effort, and
that they essentially walk the walk, not just talk the talk in terms of promises.
Where do you see the best pressure campaign coming from to make that happen?
HAID: I think it will be -- the best one will be if you have a unified not only messaging but also coordinated efforts to make sure that all the
discussions are happening jointly and in direct coordination among each other vis a vis the group and its leader.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Well, the United Nations says about 100,000 Syrians have already returned to their homeland from abroad since the fall of the Assad regime.
There is concern, though, about what is waiting for them. Potentially more chaos and even danger upon their return.
Here's CNN's Salma Abdelaziz with more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Before Ahmad Morjan hugs his mother for the first time in 13 years, they both kneel in prayer.
[15:20:04]
Gratitude for a reunion they never believed would come.
This is one of many emotional homecomings across Syria after the sudden fall of the Assad regime. At just 19 years old with security forces hunting
him down, Morjan fled his family's home in Aleppo. Here he is in 2016.
AHMAD MORJAN, SYRIAN: Allahu Akbar. Allahu Akbar.
ABDELAZIZ: Reporting for an opposition-based media network as barrel bombs rained down from the sky. Later that year, Morjan filmed the exodus as
thousands withdrew from the last remaining rebel enclave in Aleppo.
We are leaving with our dignity, Morjan says in this clip, and we will return one day. That promised return is now finally on the horizon. Morjan
says he is planning to move back to Aleppo from Gaziantep, Turkey where he currently lives with his wife and their two young daughters.
What is your dream now for Syria's future?
(Voice-over): I'm optimistic about the future, he says. And I have huge hope that the country will be better than before.
But not all are keen to hurry back to an unstable country with an uncertain future, says this human rights defender.
HUSSAM KASSAS, SYRIAN ASYLUM-SEEKER: There's no sustainable peace, which makes me really afraid of getting back there.
ABDELAZIZ: Hussam Kassas, who is seeking asylum in the United Kingdom, is among tens of thousands of Syrians whose applications for asylum were
suspended after the U.K. and other European countries paused the process to reassess now that the threat of Assad is gone. For years, Kassas has
documented potential war crimes committed by all major parties to the conflict. If he goes back, he says, his family could be targeted or worse.
Why do you not feel safe to return?
KASSAS: We expect that a lot of revenge killing will happen. Those soldiers will seek revenge from the people who were trying to hold them accountable
actually.
ABDELAZIZ (voice-over): Many Syrians in the diaspora long to return and rebuild. But this moment of great hope brings with it great uncertainty.
Salma Abdelaziz, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL: Turning our attention now to Ukraine. At least one person is dead, at least a dozen others wounded after intense Russian missile strikes on the
capital. Several embassies in Kyiv were damaged in that attack, which also started fires across the city. Meantime, Ukraine's president really
ditching the diplomatic language, calling his Russian counterpart a, quote, "dumbass," in this social media post.
Zelenskyy was responding to Vladimir Putin's idea of holding what he called a duel between Ukraine's air defenses and Russia's new Oreshnik missile.
CNN's Nathan Hodge spent years as our Moscow bureau chief and joins me now with more.
Certainly ditching the diplomatic lingo with that. Just walk us through, first of all, what we know about these attacks intensifying, it would seem,
but this attack on Kyiv.
NATHAN HODGE, CNN MOSCOW BUREAU CHIEF: Yes, Erica, what we know right now is that these missile attacks targeted the very center of Kyiv and also
caused damage to nearby diplomatic buildings. This is an attack that, you know, Kievans have become used to in the past, you know, several months as
Russian forces have targeted Ukrainian infrastructure, especially in the run up to winter, targeting all of the infrastructure, power generation,
basically to make life miserable for Ukrainian citizens.
And it comes one day after Putin, in his annual marathon press conference, basically boasted about the capability of this new intermediate range
missile system, the Oreshnik, a nuclear capable missile which can carry multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles. In other words,
multiple warheads. And he basically sort of made a quite brazen joke during this press conference saying that, you know, there could be a sort of a
21st century high tech duel between Russia and its Western backers basically testing out the Oreshnik against Western supplied air defenses
that Ukraine depends upon to defend cities like Kyiv from Russian attack from the air.
Now the Oreshnik was not used in this instance, but it was just this kind of language, this sort of almost smirking delivery that we saw from Putin
yesterday I think that may have provoked this kind of harsh language from Zelenskyy. And it wasn't just Zelenskyy responding in this post on X. He
also had some pretty choice words in a press conference as well in Brussels yesterday.
And Putin, it's worth noting, also kicked off this press conference with some rather flippant remarks, basically saying, well, you know, war kind of
-- you get bored in life, and war makes it interesting.
[10:25:10]
It's interesting when the bullets are whizzing past your head. So I'm paraphrasing there, but I think, you know, Ukrainians probably would have
seen that as a pretty ghoulish statement to make -- Erica.
HILL: Yes, certainly. And unlikely not just Ukrainians. I would think a number of people would feel that way looking at it as well. And also, as
you pointed out, as he was holding that annual marathon press conference, you also had Zelenskyy in Brussels there. Of course, he's been meeting with
E.U. leaders, he's been meeting with NATO, to continue the push, right, for more support, as we're also hearing the head of NATO raised the alarm over
the next four to five years and concerns over what it could mean in terms of a threat from Russia. All of these things happening at the same time.
HODGE: That's right, Erica. And of course, this is also happening at a time when all eyes are on the incoming administration in Washington with
President-elect Donald Trump basically saying that he intends to, you know, bring a settlement to force these -- the warring parties to the table here.
And there's a lot of anxiety, I think, certainly in Kyiv, about what that means. And the Russians, I'm sure, as well find this to be a very
unpredictable situation.
And I think Putin, both in his public pronouncements as well as with these sort of shows of force, lethal shows of force, wants to show that he is in
a strong bargaining position if it does come to sitting down and talking peace to negotiate from a position of strength, especially considering in
recent weeks we've seen massive setbacks on the foreign policy front for the Russians, particularly with the ouster of Syrian dictator Bashar al-
Assad, who was a client of Russia, who has now taken refuge in Russia.
This is, no matter how Putin has spun it, and he has said that Russia has accomplished its mission in Syria, it's still a major setback. It threatens
the Russian presence in the Mediterranean, its naval presence, and it shows, you know, that it will be difficult for Russia to sort of dictate
terms in a way that it would it would so choose -- Erica.
HILL: Yes. Nathan, so true. Appreciate it. Thank you.
Well, one young student is dead, others wounded in an attack at an elementary school in Croatia. The attacker went into a first grade
classroom and attacked the teacher and several children with a knife. The Associated Press reporting a 7-year-old girl was killed. The suspect, who
is believed to be a former student, is in police custody.
Still ahead on CONNECT THE WORLD, paraded in front of the cameras, the man accused of gunning down a CEO in Manhattan will spend his first full day in
a federal prison. What is next now in the case against Luigi Mangione?
Plus, major questions about whether the 2020 election interference case against Donald Trump can move forward in the state of Georgia. How the
disqualification of the district attorney there could actually spell the end of that case altogether.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:30:29]
HILL: Welcome back to CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Erica Hill in New York.
CNN has learned the identity of a California man who police say was communicating with the suspect in this week's school shooting in Wisconsin.
It's alleged the two were plotting a mass shooting together. That's according to reporting from the Associated Press.
Here's CNN's Josh Campbell with more on the developments.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The FBI is now investigating a man with possible links to 15-year-old Natalie Rupnow, who
authorities say was planning a coordinated attack on a government building in California.
Natalie, who went by the name Samantha, died by suicide after the mass shooting Monday at the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison,
Wisconsin. According to an emergency protective order used to seize guns, 20-year-old Alexander Paffendorf of Carlsbad, California, allegedly
discussed plotting a mass shooting with the Madison shooter. CNN has tried to reach out to Paffendorf or an attorney representing him without success.
But the gun violence emergency order obtained by CNN states that Paffendorf admitted to the FBI that he told Rupnow that he would arm himself with
explosives and a gun, and that he would target a government building. The document also states that FBI agents saw the messages between the two.
Meanwhile, investigators say they will continue to dig through Rupnow's communications.
CHIEF SHON BARNES, MADISON POLICE DEPARTMENT: We're also be looking through her effects if she had a computer, cell phones. And that will give us an
idea of what type of planning.
CAMPBELL: Local law enforcement in Carlsbad requested a restraining order against Paffendorf using a California red flag law that facilitates gun and
ammunition seizures to search for weapons at his home.
Authorities searched Paffendorf's home Tuesday night. His neighbor says he witnessed law enforcement entering the apartment and bringing items out.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And they're carrying out a big black box. It looked like a gun case of some sort.
ALEX GALLEGOS, NEIGHBOR: They had their full guns out all over the street. There's cop cars. There's about 15 cops here, I'd say.
CAMPBELL: Rupnow, seen in this photo at a shooting range in Wisconsin, was found dead at the school after the shooting Monday with two guns. And
investigators are still searching to find out how she got access to both weapons found at the scene.
BARNES: I do not believe that 15-year-olds should have access to weapons that they can bring to school and potentially hurt someone.
CAMPBELL: Using a handgun, Rupnow killed a 14-year-old student Rubi Vergara who her family described as an avid reader and member of the family band.
And 42-year-old teacher Erin West, who enjoyed family camping trips and spending time with her daughters and her husband.
The female shooter also opened fire on five other students and one teacher. Two students remain hospitalized with life-threatening injuries.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL: And our thanks again to Josh Campbell for that report.
There are also new details emerging in the case against Luigi Mangione, the man who officials say gunned down UnitedHealthcare CEO on Manhattan's
sidewalk earlier this month. A federal document unsealed on Thursday describes a notebook the suspect had. In that notebook detailed plans for
killing Brian Thompson. Officials say it also contained several handwritten pages expressing hostility toward the health insurance industry and toward
wealthy executives in particular. These revelations come as Mangione is facing a slew of new federal charges, including murder.
CNN's Brynn Gingras following all these developments for us from here in New York.
So, Brynn, walk us through some of these new charges.
BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. So basically what the feds are saying here, Erica, is they have proof in that nine-page complaint that
Mangione used cell phones, used computers to basically stalk Brian Thompson for several hours, even some days prior to this killing. And again, now
they are charging him with four federal charges. So that is what we saw yesterday when he appeared in court for the first time in front of a
federal judge not entering a plea, but facing those federal charges.
Currently, he is now being held in the MDC, it's a federal prison here in New York city, but we are understanding that those 11 state charges. If you
remember, that indictment was unsealed earlier this week on Tuesday. Those charges are actually going to take precedent according to sources telling
Kara Scannell. So at some point, we do expect Mangione to go in front of a judge on those charges. It's unclear when that court date will actually
happen. But Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney, said that these cases will work sort of in parallel.
Now, I will say during the federal hearing yesterday, even Mangione's own attorney, Karen, basically said, you know, what is happening here, are
there two joint investigation or two separate investigations, or is there a joint investigation? And so she was trying to get clarity on what happens
next. The judge not really answering her at that, saying that was not the time to sort of answer that question.
[10:35:05]
But certainly we're going to have to see how this moves forward. It's not unheard of that there are federal and state charges, two separate cases,
but certainly it is a unique situation for Mangione.
HILL: Yes, it definitely is. It was also a little bit of a -- it felt a little bit like a circus when he arrived in New York City yesterday. Even
the mayor showing up. Right?
GINGRAS: Yes, I mean, it certainly was something that, I mean, I've been in local news and, Erica, you've been around here for a long time, too. You
know, they don't call them perp walks. They call them prisoner transports technically here in New York, but I've never seen one like that. Obviously,
just from the scale of the amount of law enforcement that was there, the helicopter brought in a bunch of drama.
The length of the walk that actually happened while he was shackled. I mean, there's a number of reasons. When I talk to sources, they talk about
the security aspect. You know, they go back to the way he sort of handled the moment he walked into that courthouse in Pennsylvania. They wanted to
make sure that he didn't do anything sort of out of the norm. They also wanted to secure him in case there was anyone who wanted to maybe come
after him.
So it was certainly grand and optically, but it's not unheard of to have what we say in the industry a perp walk, of course, here in New York City.
But having the mayor there, it was definitely interesting. I'm not sure what the reasoning was for that. You know, I think Twitter can answer that
question. But certainly that that was unlike anything I've ever seen.
HILL: Yes, it really was. Brynn, appreciate it. Thank you.
GINGRAS: Yes.
HILL: Well, the team for the Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis says she will fight to stay on the case against Donald Trump and his
alleged co-conspirators in Georgia. This, of course, is related to their efforts to overturn the 2020 election in that state. An appeals court found
a significant appearance of impropriety was enough to potentially taint the case against Donald Trump in the public eye. The election interference case
was already on hold, but this long awaited decision is raising serious doubts about whether it will in fact move forward.
Donald Trump, for his part, insists the matter is now closed, telling FOX News Digital, quote, "It should not be allowed to go any further," adding
she has been disqualified and her boyfriend has been disqualified and they stole funds and went on trips.
CNN legal analyst, former U.S. attorney Michael Moore spoke with my colleague Kasie Hunt a short time ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL MOORE, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: In essence, this case is so deep on life support that it will be hard to bring it back as it relates to Trump.
Remember that the ruling only dealt with disqualification of the DA's office. It did not dismiss the indictment. It did not do away totally with
the case. So there's still a chance that a prosecutor, through the process set up by the state and the prosecuting attorneys council, will make a
selection, and they'll essentially see if there's any interest by a D.A. somewhere in the state to take this case forward.
I think that's going to be a long shot. I mean, that's -- who would want that job, right? I mean, that would be like saying, you know, I've had this
beautiful horse. I've now taken it out to pasture. Why don't you just go clean up the barn? And that's sort of what the prosecutor would be left
with, is just cleaning up the mess after the fact. And so, you know, while the case is not technically dead, I think the reality is that Trump is
partly right, and that is that the court has made a pretty, you know, strong statement that, in fact, there was so much of an appearance of
impropriety that there was no public confidence in the D.A.'s office should be disqualified. And, of course, she was the one driving the case forward.
KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. Can you help us understand a little bit about why this happened now? This has obviously been going on, this case has been
going on for years. And what it was about this particular court, if there are any politics involved at all, you know, I think that there may be
viewers out there who found it surprising that this is where we landed, you know, here after all of this time.
MOORE: Well, the case got a late start. I mean, I think the D.A. took so long to investigate the case. You may remember we had a special purpose
grand jury. There was years of investigation from the initial phone call that is sort of the crux of the matter with the secretary of state that
Trump had, or asking him to find those 11,000 votes. So some years later than the case is brought, it goes through the criminal process. There's
motions and appeals and all this stuff going on.
There's people challenging whether or not they should be brought into state court or federal court. So the case took a slow roll to get to this point.
Well, there was a hearing obviously in this trial. Judge said, look, I don't think the D.A. has to be removed, but I think Mr. Wade needs to step
out, that way it will look a little better. And the court of appeals, the Trump team appealed that. And then the court of appeals said, look, you
can't sort of halfway fix this problem. You can't put the Genie back in the bottle just by getting rid of one of the Genies.
You know, you've got a situation where the whole case is being viewed through the lens of this perceived and at least a possible conflict of
interest. And we just think that it's too big of a mess to move forward. One thing most judges will agree on is that there should be public
confidence in the judicial system and in the outcomes of cases. And so this appeals court said, look, we're going to pause this thing. They set the
case for oral argument actually. And then that was set right after the election.
[10:40:02]
Then they removed the case from the oral argument calendar. That is, the court of appeals took the case off the calendar. My guess is at that point,
the three judges that have been selected to be on the panel to make the decision had already sort of reached a majority consensus. And we see that
in the order.
We've got good judges here in the state. I will tell you that most of them, the vast majority of the appeals court judges, are Republican appointees.
That means they were appointed by our Republican governor and then have to sit for an election later. And so was there politics involved? I'd like to
say no. But I also think the judges oftentimes think, well, if I happen to be the one that writes the opinion that finds favor with the president, who
knows, I might get to be a federal judge or a federal appellate judge somewhere who of course those positions are appointed by a president.
So, these are, you know, I don't want to sort of taint the order or give it the appearance that there was something wrong at all with the order. You
know, this is something I've been saying for a while. This situation should have been fixed by the D.A. herself. Don't really care about her personal
life at all. That could be personal. But when it comes into a case and when you have a situation where the appearance is so strong that there may have
been something that shouldn't have been happening, she could have herself removed herself from the case, but she chose not to do that. And so we're
here at this place now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Our thanks again to Kasie Hunt and Michael Moore for that.
Just ahead here, Notre Dame and Indiana University ready to make history in this year's college football playoffs. A closer look at what all the buzz
is about on the other side of this break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HILL: In the U.S., this is a very big weekend for college football. The first round of the new expanded playoff system bringing winner moves on,
loser goes home football to campuses for the first time. The first game kicks off just hours from now. Notre Dame facing off against Indiana
University. It is all happening in the Hoosier State.
CNN's Andy Scholes joining us now from South Bend, Indiana, with a preview.
Andy, I think you know this, but I am married to a Hoosier, so there is a whole lot of interest in what is happening. And my husband may or may not
be wearing those candy striped cream and crimson overalls later today.
ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I'm sure he's going to be locked in, Erica. And this is such a cool way to kick off the first ever
12-team college football playoff here in the state of Indiana. And it's certainly going to look like Christmas. You got snow on the ground. You got
Indiana fans all wearing red. Notre Dame fans wearing green. And you know, sometimes in European football, you know, they cancel games due to snow and
bad weather. Not an American football.
The cold frigid temperatures just add an extra element to the games. And Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti he is all for a winter wonderland game
here tonight because he said his quarterback, Curtis Rourke, is built for it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CURT CIGNETTI, INDIANA HEAD COACH: I hope it snows a foot and a half. We have a Canadian quarterback.
[10:45:01]
Did you see him throw the ball against Purdue? I mean, this guy grew up like in the frigid north. He looked pretty good to me that night. So I
don't think it's going to bother him very much. And so much revolves around that guy, right? Everybody else will find a way to stay warm. But it's not
a concern.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: Yes, and Rourke is from Ontario, Canada. So the weather not going to bother him one bit. Kickoff temperature is going to be below freezing
for this one. And you know, not a lot of college quarterbacks come from Canada. So pretty much the entire country has some rooting interest in this
game tonight, going to be cheering for Indiana. But this game going to be the first of four playoff games in the quarterfinals that we have this
weekend.
You got three more games tomorrow, Erica. Three of the four super cold because in college football, you know, all of these teams they all play
outside pretty much. And their games, though, they usually end in November. That's usually when it's the coldest. But with this new college football
playoff system, you're getting home games in December. Something that these fans are not used to.
But, Erica, it has not deterred any of them. They were lined up at 6:00 a.m. to get into these parking lots to start tailgating, to get ready for
the game.
HILL: That's how you stay warm, right? You start the tailgate early with a cocktail, and then you don't have to worry about the cold, Andy Scholes.
Thank you.
SCHOLES: Yes, and you stay next to the grill.
HILL: Yes, exactly. Warm those hands on the grill. Andy, thank you.
Well, as holiday travel ramps up across the U.S., there could be significant delays on the horizon. Just ahead, what you can expect. We'll
take a closer look. A little snow there as we saw in Indiana. What else is happening in weather? Stick around.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HILL: Five days until Christmas, of course. But it is not the only holiday approaching. There is an expected record number of people across the U.S.
set to maybe travel, and that means they're going to run into some winter weather. Combined with a possible government shutdown, we could be looking
at some major delays here.
Meteorologist Derek van Dam joining me now from the CNN World Weather Center.
I think the best way to travel is just to hitch a ride with Santa at this point.
DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And pack your patience, right, Erica? I mean, this is what travelers do not want to see, especially when they're
hitting the airports.
You're looking at the current flight traffic. This is Flight Radar 24, where, by the way, at Chicago's O'Hare Airport, we had a ground stop
earlier this morning because of the snow that was falling. This is a fast- moving clipper system that, you guessed it, is headed towards the major East Coast cities. And it could potentially impact places like Washington
to New York through the course of the day and into early Saturday morning. The regional airports, let's say Syracuse, perhaps into Albany, they could
be feeling some impacts from this as well. So double check your flight as you head outside.
Let's go back 24 hours. This storm was impacting the roadways in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Look at how snow covered they are. And if this is
just a teaser or a taste of things to come, you can see what we're planning on here across the Ohio River Valley as that same storm system moves from
the Great Lakes and heads towards the East Coast. It's already dropping visibility. You saw it in South Bend, where the Hoosiers and the Fighting
Irish are taking their battle to the football field this evening at 8:00 p.m., and we have just a half a mile of visibility just to the south and
east near Fort Wayne.
Now this storm system is going to evolve. It's kind of a complex storm.
[10:50:02]
We do believe that there will be a couple of inches right along that I-95 corridor. So anyone getting an early start to their travel plans for this
holiday week, upcoming holiday week, we could have a few inches of snow that could create some slick spots in the lower Hudson Valley, but a large
majority of this will be a non-impactful snow event. We'll call this kind of the movie setting snowfall, right? The festive flakes, we like to call
this, because it will fall from the sky.
It will look nice, but will it qualify as a white Christmas? Probably not in the Big Apple, even though regardless of how much we want it. And this
is the stark reality. Even though we have below average temperatures with this passage of the storm system, look what replaces the blues. Lots of red
on this map, Erica. Any snow that does fall from the sky, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, will likely melt relatively quickly.
Back to you.
HILL: Well, I'll take it. You know, a little, what did you call it? Movie set snow. I'll take a little bit of it. Still looks pretty. Even if it
melts on the ground.
VAN DAM: Me too. Festive grounds.
HILL: All right. Thank you.
Well, during the holiday season, there is, of course, always a focus on giving. And many families really need that extra help this year. Following
years of a decline, family homelessness in the United States actually increased by 15 percent between 2022 and 2023. But there are a number of
organizations hoping to help, including one in Boston working to help some of the most vulnerable.
Here's Jake Tapper with part of our "Homeless in America" series.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): You'd never know it by looking at them but the children in this school have at one point or another
experienced homelessness.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you tell me how you feel so far since you've gotten here? Tell me with your thumbs.
TAPPER: Five days a week at Horizons for Homeless Children in Boston, more than 200 kids are given free access to education, playtime and meals.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What have we been doing every day in community meeting? We've been doing what? We've been --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Breathing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've been breathing. And what kind of breathing have we been doing? We've been doing what? Triangle breathing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Triangle.
TAPPER: The program has been a lifesaver for moms like Karian, who struggled with postpartum depression and anxiety after the birth of her
second daughter.
KARIAN, MOTHER OF CHILD ENROLLED AT HORIZONS: I was really bad. I was all over the place. I couldn't concentrate.
TAPPER: Karian and her daughters moved in with a family member, but when that got too crowded, they moved into a shelter where they live, doubled up
with another family.
KARIAN: It wasn't really ideal, you know, it was too crowded. We were all in one room, so we were all cramped up.
TAPPER: Karian worked overnights at a fast food chain to make money for her family while caring for them during the day, but her youngest daughter
started to struggle.
KARIAN: She was very like in her shell. She wasn't really growing, you know, like her developmental growth wasn't doing good. She has speech
delays and everything.
TAPPER: Developmental delays are a common problem for children experiencing homelessness. It's an issue that the CEO and president of Horizons, Kate
Barrand, has been trying to address for years, not just as a housing crisis, but as a public health crisis.
KATE BARRAND, PRESIDENT AND CEO, HORIZONS FOR HOMELESS CHILDREN: At the age zero to 6, your entire brain is being formed. If you're homeless during
that period, it can cause significant challenges to your brain development. So children who have experienced a period of homelessness are four times
more likely to have developmental delays. And if those developmental delays aren't remediated, that will follow them.
TAPPER: Last year, families with children made up about 30 percent of the homeless population across the United States and more than half of all
families experiencing homelessness live in the nation's largest cities.
BARRAND: Cities like Boston are a perfect storm for family homelessness. We have high housing costs. We have a huge gap between the minimum wage and a
living wage in the city of Boston. We have significant child poverty. So when you put all those together with the high cost of child care on top of
it, it's impossibly difficult for families.
TAPPER: Karian learned about Horizons through the shelter she was staying in. Then her family's life changed dramatically.
KARIAN: She's going to age out of here. So that gives me like, OK, a sense of security. She's going to stay here until she goes to kindergarten and
she's getting everything she needs. You know, the nourishment, the warmth, not only education, the warmth. You know, that makes me feel, you know,
calm.
TAPPER: Karian now has her own apartment, her GED and a new full time job. Most importantly, she's now on the same schedule as her children.
KARIAN: They're extremely happy now. They have that consistency. You know what I mean? It's a huge sense of relief, you know, that we're all in the
house at the same time.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL: And our thanks to Jake Tapper for that report.
We leave you with this, one of year's most impressive holiday spectacles, and a place you may not expect. Kosovo's capital, Pristina, is 95 percent
Muslim. That doesn't stop people, though, from enjoying a Christian celebration. They are flocking to three Christmas markets in a display of
cultural diversity.
[10:55:01]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL SEHISTEDT, CHRISTMAS MARKET VISITOR FROM SWEDEN: I think it's very clear that, you know, Kosovars will take any opportunity for a social
gathering, even if there is no religious connection to Christmas or anything like that. Any opportunity to be outside to meet and to see other
people, I think will be popular here in Pristina.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: The markets include plenty of symbols of Christmas and yuletide, little Santa Claus, Father Christmas, depending on where you live,
activities for kids. Pardon me. It's also seen as a real chance to set aside differences -- my apologies. And it's getting me all choked up.
I'm going to have to leave it there because I can't talk anymore. Hope you have a great weekend. Thanks for joining us on CONNECT THE WORLD.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
