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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Truce Holding, Hamas Expected To Release Hostages at 9AM ET; Black Friday: Millions Expected To Shop Online And In Stores; Biden Campaign Posts "Handy Guide For Responding To Crazy MAGA Nonsense This Thanksgiving. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired November 24, 2023 - 05:30   ET

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

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[05:31:13]

MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Thanks for getting up early with us. Kasie is off today. I'm Max Foster, in London, in for her.

And now we're monitoring events in Israel at this hour. It's just about 12:30 in the afternoon there and the four-day truce negotiated between Hamas and Israel appears to be holding.

Hamas has agreed to release the first 13 of the agreed-upon 50 hostage this -- hostages this morning around 9:00 a.m. Eastern time, which is 4:00 p.m. local time. In exchange, Israel is set to release 39 Palestinian prisoners housed here at Ofer Prison sometime today.

CNN's Oren Liebermann is live in Tel Aviv for us. So the hostage release -- it is on track to happen, as you understand it, according to the plan?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENGATON CORRESPONDENT: As of right now it is in about 3 1/2 hours. This was all a meticulous plan that has to follow a pretty meticulous timeline for everything to work as it's supposed to and that began with the pause in fighting at 7:00 this morning.

We did hear some Israeli artillery fire shortly after that. But just a few minutes later, some red alerts warning of potential incoming rocket fire. But by about 7:20, the skies above Gaza were clear and we didn't hear any more of the major fighting that has dominated Gaza over the course of the past nearly seven weeks.

From there, humanitarian aid began to flow into Gaza -- fuel, cooking oil -- desperately needed supplies that are just a fraction of what the -- of what Gaza needs for the dire humanitarian crisis that has unfolded there and deepened over the course of the past weeks.

That leads to the next stages and that's what we're waiting on right now. At 4:00 -- so in about 3 1/2 hours from now there will be the first release of Israeli hostages under this agreement -- 13 women and children -- that will play out by a very specific process. And then once it's confirmed that those 13 have exited Gaza there will be the release, as we understand it from an Israeli official, of 39 Palestinian women and children held in Israeli jails. They will return to their homes in the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem.

If this process works out today it will continue into tomorrow. U.S. officials very clearly view these first two days as a testing day to make sure this very sensitive and complicated agreement can work as anticipated to release what will be 50 Israeli women and children over the course of this agreement. And then, Max, is -- there becomes the potential of extending that. But first, you have to make sure this part works.

FOSTER: Yeah, absolutely. And Israel's Ministry of Wealth has released details, hasn't it, on instructions that people involved need to follow to care for released hostages. It gives this guidance to IDF troops.

"Children will ask questions such as, 'Where's mum? Where's daddy?' Soldiers shouldn't answer these questions, even if they know the answers. Any questions should be answered along the lines of, 'Sweetheart, I'm sorry, I don't know. My job is to bring you to Israel to a safe place where people you know will be waiting for you and will answer all your questions.'"

Just take us through this process. It's been written up by experts and it's all for the welfare, isn't it, of the -- of the real victims here.

LIEBERMANN: Of course. So how this process will play out -- Hamas will hand over those 13 Israeli women and children to the Red Cross. The Red Cross will then bring them to border crossings either through Egypt into Israel or directly into Israel. And then they'll come into Israeli military care.

It will be the soldiers that greet them first. The first Israeli faces they will see are those of soldiers; not their families -- although the families will see them as soon as is practical but that won't be immediate.

So the Welfare Ministry prepared this document on how the soldiers should address the children. Keep in mind as we have covered this over the course of the past 48 or so days, the hostages may not have known what has happened. They may not know their family members have been killed. So this has been to address that and let the children know they are in a safe place as they are brought into Israel and will slowly begin to learn what unfolded here as they see their families.

[05:35:10]

FOSTER: OK, Oren. Thanks so much for joining us in Tel Aviv.

Now, let's bring in CNN global analyst Kim Dozier. Kim, we saw there's still signs of fighting. There were shortly after the truce formally began. That's not unusual, is it? It has calmed down so it's looking really positive right now.

KIM DOZER, CNN GLOBAL ANALYST (via Webex by Cisco): Yeah. In the past, when they've had ceasefires like this during incursions there have been breaks. There have been minor skirmishes. But the Israeli Defense Forces Moda Operandi is to not respond unless it's a major attack on their troops or a major barrage of rockets heading towards Israel.

They expect that there might be the occasional militant that Hamas does not have control of -- maybe a member of Palestinian Islamic Jihad -- who might try something.

So right now, their job is to hunker down. They will be moving around for the positioning for future operations but it's to try not to respond.

One thing, though, that's a bit of a flashpoint is that they have leafleted to Palestinians that they're not supposed to try to move north on the one route that's open. And already, there have been reports on the ground of Israeli troops having to use tear gas and other non-lethal means to try to keep Palestinians from surging north to revisit their homes or, in some cases, to try to find loved ones who are lost in the rubble in the flight south.

FOSTER: Yeah, because there has been talk, hasn't there? If you're from the north you'll want to go back to your home in this window, but the message is clearly don't even try it.

What do you think happens next here?

DOZIER: Yeah.

FOSTER: Should we expect more negotiations of the release of the remaining hostages? I mean, are talks continuing?

DOZIER: Well, the hard part is for Israel is what if this goes well? At the end of the four agreed days, there could still be 180 hostages being held by Hamas. Do they just start fighting again?

There will be pressure from the Israeli families and from the U.S. because from what we understand only three of the 10 Americans being held are going to be released in this first tranche. And there will be pressure from the international community. Why not keep the guns silent until you -- we get more aid in to the Palestinian people after this long drought without regular aid coming over the southern border?

There is also going to be criticism of Israel for this process of telling Palestinians that they should move from one area to the other, depending on wherever the fighting is. Aid groups normally want to try to organize one or two safe spaces where they can stockpile things like tents. It's getting cold in Israel and the Palestinian areas. They'll want to provide shelter for people if and when fighting starts again.

FOSTER: We should probably mention the northern border as well between Lebanon and Israel because the fighting is pretty intense there. It's now getting more intense while all this unfolds in Gaza.

DOZIER: Well, bizarrely, Hezbollah says that they intend to honor the same truce that Hamas is honoring even though they weren't any part of these negotiations. Some analysts in the region in Israel are seeing this as a face-saving way of Hezbollah stepping back from the brink of war with Israel, especially with U.S. warships off the coast. But Israel has said if they see a small team, as it's usually done, of Hezbollah militants preparing to fire from north to south they will respond.

FOSTER: OK. Kim Dozier, as ever, thank you so much, indeed, for joining us this morning.

Former President Trump taking advantage of a pause in the gag order in his New York civil fraud case, calling the judge a psycho on social media.

And it's the morning after Thanksgiving, better known as Black Friday. So how are Americans feeling about the economy? New data just ahead.

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[05:43:43]

FOSTER: Now, if you're up early with us this morning, well done, first of all -- but there's a good chance it could be to do with some Black Friday shopping as well.

The National Retail Federation is expecting some 182 million people to cash in on the holiday deals through the weekend. That is 15 million more than last year. But the data suggests that shoppers may not be spending like they used to.

Here to explain all, Claire Tassin, retail and e-commerce analyst at the Morning Consult. You're up early as well doing some shopping as well -- I hope as well as being on CNN.

CLAIRE TASSIN, RETAIL AND E-COMMERCE ANALYST, MORNING CONSULT (via Webex by Cisco): Absolutely.

FOSTER: We were just discussing -- I mean, from our end here in London, we were looking at the deals this morning. We thought we could get in there early because we're in so early. But the deals weren't actually that great. Are you seeing the same in the U.S.?

TASSIN: Well, what I'm really noticing in the U.S. is that these deals have been available for quite a few days now and, in many cases, a week. A lot of retailers rolled out many of their Black Friday promotions earlier in hopes of scooping up as many of those consumer dollars as are on offer today.

FOSTER: I also just noticed that Amazon was advertising Black Friday Week. So it's not a day anymore, so there's no rush.

TASSIN: No. I saw -- I saw Black Friday language as early as July this year, so it really just means a really good sale at this point.

[05:45:02]

FOSTER: OK. Inflation obviously a lingering issue. It really does unsettle people,

doesn't it, because they worry they might be able to get something cheaper later on depending on which way inflation is going to go. But what impact will that have on holiday shopping?

TASSIN: We're certainly seeing, of course, ongoing deals-seeking behavior from consumers. I track this on a monthly basis. I'm noticing that I'm actually seeing an uptick in U.S. shoppers looking for deals and discounts, shopping a discount stores, buying generics. So that's actually been increasing over the last couple of months despite inflation moderating somewhat. The holidays are a pretty expensive season, so people are still going to try and find the best deals that they can.

But we also track consumers' response to most retail -- major retail sales events and they still believe -- most people still believe that they will get the price all year on Black Friday.

FOSTER: Are they doing it online or are they going to shop, or are they doing a bit of both this year?

TASSIN: A bit of both. About 37 percent of people think they'll get the best deals online, which is a pretty big shift from the Black Fridays I remember about a decade ago where people would line up early outside the stores. Now people are shopping in their pajamas maybe with some leftover pie in the morning. But most people just keep looking for the best deals --

FOSTER: Are we not going to see any big --

TASSIN: -- online or --

FOSTER: Are we going to see -- are we not going to see those amazing queues though, and people fighting over TVs?

TASSIN: Those days are long gone. If there's a really desirable item, a lot of people might use buy online and pick up in store so that you can reserve that special item just for you without have to sort of elbow people out of the way in the store.

FOSTER: OK. It's a safer place. Black Friday is safer. That's the headline.

TASSIN: Yes.

FOSTER: Claire Tassin of the Morning Consult, thank you so much for joining us today.

TASSIN: Thank you.

FOSTER: We'll let you carry on shopping.

This year, most Americans were hoping that politics wouldn't be served at Thanksgiving dinner in a time of strong partisan division. President Biden acknowledged this yesterday, dialing into the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade with a call for unity.

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JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: To the rancor. You know, we have to bring the nation together and we have to treat each other with a little bit of decency. And so -- and I think that's what the vast majority of the American people want.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: But just in case, the Biden campaign also posted the, quote, "Handy Guide for Responding to Crazy MAGA Nonsense This Thanksgiving." The guide included advice on fielding arguments about the economy, border security, and abortion. Useful for some, no doubt.

But let's bring in CNN national political reporter Daniel Strauss. Thank you so much for joining us.

I mean, how do you think that message about unity landed at a time when everything is so divided in the U.S.?

DANIEL STRAUSS, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER (via Webex by Cisco): It definitely sticks out because most politicians of either party right now are preaching some kind of argument that is sort of more us versus them. But this is also a definite preview of what the Biden campaign would like to be the setting for the general election.

Notice both that he used -- that the White House -- or, excuse me, the Biden reelect campaign used the phrase "MAGA" and that Biden himself is calling for unity. This is the argument that Biden wants to make in this general election, which is that he represents a side of coming together, of moderation. And the opponents -- probably Donald Trump -- are some kind of extremist "MAGA" followers that will -- are more interested in hard-right conservatism than anything else.

FOSTER: The guide -- interesting strategy, isn't it? One thing it said was that Reagan, Clinton, and Obama all faced similar approval ratings ahead of their reelection. It also said that polls were wrong about Republican prospects in the midterms last November.

What do you make of those arguments in that document?

STRAUSS: I mean, that's -- look, that's the hope and the viewpoint of the Biden reelection campaign -- at least, publicly -- that his poll numbers are dire but that he's still hardly a longshot from winning reelection and that many of the past few successful presidents in American history have been in a similar situation. They're really betting that polling, once again, for Biden is not really showing some underlying currents in his favor.

FOSTER: A very Trumpian moment yesterday. I'm sure you were completely across it. Donald Trump taking to Truth Social. He wanted to wish the judge overseeing his civil fraud trial a very Happy Thanksgiving. So that was one side of it. He did so then by calling Judge Arthur Engoron a psycho and accusing he and his clerk of political bias. [05:50:03]

So all of this coming as this gag order issued by the judge temporarily paused, isn't it?

STRAUSS: Yeah, and this is all part of former President Trump's legal strategy to make -- to make this as public as possible and to frame anyone who might be involved in his legal cases against him or ruling against his favor that they are part of some kind of witch hunt. That they are biased in some ugly way. That they are -- I don't know -- like you said, crazy in some way or -- excuse me, psycho.

And I -- look, this is what Trump has been trying to do throughout all of these legal proceedings, which is frame this as some sort of personal persecution that's actually outside the rule of law. And he is eager to keep that going. He does not -- he very much feels that the way to win this is not through some kind of legal argument but in the court of public opinion.

FOSTER: Well, that -- him versus the establishment isn't recent, is it? It goes back to since before the election that he won and his whole campaign. And for many people, that was really refreshing because they did feel that the establishment wasn't serving the American public properly.

But is it -- is it working in the same way this time in the run-up to the next election?

STRAUSS: Well, in terms of the next election -- I mean, look, there is a strong sense of grievance, at least in the base of the Republican Party but really across the political spectrum in general. So this is what Trump is trying to energize and use as a rallying call to his side.

We have seen slippage in polling. And it's -- look, it's true that just outside of general voters there are Republican figures who no longer see that Trump is sort of the north star of the Republican Party, and now they're running against him.

FOSTER: Absolutely.

Daniel Strauss, always busy on your beat. Thank you for joining us.

Just ahead on "CNN THIS MORNING" we'll be live at a children's hospital in Israel that could be welcoming those newly-released hostages today.

And much-needed humanitarian aid trucks crossing the border into Gaza. What that means for residents there after six weeks of war.

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[05:57:05]

FOSTER: Welcome back.

The Dallas Cowboys feast on the Washington Commanders during a Thanksgiving Day NFL triple-header. See what we did there?

Coy Wire now joins us with more in this morning's Bleacher Report featuring Dolly Parton.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: It was a little more difficult to button my belt buckle this morning, Max. I hope you all had a great feast. Food and family are great but for millions of Americans, Thanksgiving Day means a full plate of football, too.

And one of the traditions is watching America's team, the Dallas Cowboys. This one turned out to be a beatdown in big D. Dak Prescott tore the Washington Commanders' defense apart throwing for 331 yards and four touchdowns. And he tore it apart in a turkey leg, too, during the game on the sideline.

How about a piece of NFL history. Daron Bland putting an exclamation point on the 45-10 blowout with an NFL record fifth interception for a touchdown in a season. The 22-year-old making a strong case for Defensive Player of the Year honors. His five touchdowns on defense are just one shy for the most by any Cowboys offensive player this season.

And --

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DOLLY PARTON, SINGER-SONGWRITER: Singing "Jolene."

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WIRE: The legendary Dolly Parton stole the show during her halftime performance. Seventy-seven years old, Max, taking center stage in a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader uniform and absolutely rocking it. She's a force of nature.

She's been busy all week. On Saturday, she sang in her home state at the University of Tennessee in their game against top-ranked Georgia.

Seattle hosting San Francisco, and 49ers star Christian McCaffrey, part machine-part man. He said he felt like Frankenstein after they had to work on his helmet issues. He was a monstrous, scary sight for the Seahawks' defense all night. Nineteen rushes, 114 yards, and two rushing touchdowns putting him at 11 on the season. That's a new 49ers franchise record. And there's still six games to go.

Not only did San Franciso run away with this game 31-13, they ran away with the whole turkey. George Kittle taking the traditional post-game Thanksgiving feast back to the locker room but sharing with some lucky fans along the way.

The long day of football started in Detroit where the Lions were looking to end their six-game losing streak on Thanksgiving. But Jordan Love, their quarterback, and the Packers -- man, they had other plans. Love throwing for a career-high-tying three touchdowns in a game they never trailed. The Pack dominating both sides of the ball.

Simone Biles' husband, Jonathan Owens, given a perfect 10 for picking up a fumble and returning it for a 27-yard touchdown.

And Rashan Gary -- he finished with a career-high three sacks. This, Max, just one year after tearing his ACL on this very same field. Coach Matt LaFleur presenting the game ball to him afterward -- after this 29-22 win -- and Rashan was overcome with emotion -- listen.

[06:00:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATT LAFLEUR, GREEN BAY PACKERS COACH: I have one special game ball -- a year ago. You came back -- you came back with a vengeance, man.

RASHAN GARY, GREEN BAY PACKERS LINEBACKER: I'm tired of crying around y'all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WIRE: That is what it's all about.

We have some more action on Black Friday -- the first-ever for Amazon doing this today, Max. And they're doing little QR codes to put on the screen there so that you can shop and watch football on the same -- in the same beat. Good luck.

FOSTER: There you go. There are some Black Friday deals and Coy found them for you. Thanks -- brilliant stuff.

Thanks for joining me. I'm Max Foster. "CNN THIS MORNING" starts right now.