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Two U.S. Soldiers, Civilian Interpreter Killed While on Patrol in Syria; Obamacare Premiums Set to Rise Sharply for Millions; Ex- Michigan Football Coach Charged with Home Invasion, Stalking; FDA Said to Put Most Serious Warnings on COVID Vaccines; New Epstein Photos Show Trump, Clinton, Gates and Others; Guardsman Wounded in D.C. Shooting Now Breathing on His Own; New Episodes of Variety's Series "Actors on Actors" Now Streaming. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired December 13, 2025 - 15:00   ET

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

[15:00:00]

JUSTIN BROOKMAN, DIRECTOR OF TECH POLICY, "CONSUMER REPORTS": There's an argument, right? I mean, we have consumer protection laws in this country. You can argue that it was deceptive that people would have wanted to know this. Instacart actually bragged in some of their earnings materials that, you know, the people don't know this is going on. And again, this is a relatively new practice and so, you know, using old consumer protection law, I think, you know, it's definitely worthy of investigation. But if it's not in fact illegal, then I think, you know, we need new laws to keep up with, like, the new economy.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Yes. Also, maybe it's just now the beginning.

Justin Brookman, thank you so much. Appreciate it.

BROOKMAN: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Later, this afternoon, we're takin an in-depth look at the economic challenges that every American is facing right now. Our panel of experts ready to discuss the rising prices, falling interest rates, and the end-of-the-year crush on your pocketbook. That's all coming up in the 4:00 Eastern hour right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN Breaking News.

WHITFIELD: All right. Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield, and we begin this hour with this breaking news.

Two U.S. soldiers and a civilian interpreter killed in an attack in central Syria earlier today. Three others were wounded. The Pentagon says they were killed in an ambush by a single ISIS gunman. Syria's national news agency says the group came under fire while on a joint patrol with Syrian forces.

CNN correspondent Julia Benbrook is at the White House for us. Julia, what are we hearing from U.S. officials, including the

president?

JULIA BENBROOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, President Donald Trump spoke with reporters here at the White House just over an hour ago now, as he left to go to Baltimore. He didn't speak with us for long, but his comments focused in on this attack in Syria. He said that he was mourning the lives lost, that includes two U.S. Army soldiers, two U.S. Army soldiers, excuse me, as well as one civilian interpreter. There were three others wounded.

He said he's thinking of them as well, and that they are doing well. He called this attack an ambush. He said that it was an ISIS attack, both on the United States and on Syria. He promised further action. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We will retaliate. This is an ISIS attack on us and Syria. And again, we mourn the loss and we pray for them and their parents and their loved ones. Very, very sad.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BENBROOK: And just moments after he made those remarks, he took to social media to reiterate that point. He said that there will, quote, "be very serious retaliation." He also said in that post that this attack happened in a dangerous part of Syria, one that they do not fully control, and that the Syrian president was angered by what took place.

Now, according to Syria's official national news agency, this attack took place as U.S. soldiers were on a joint patrol with Syrian forces and that U.S. helicopters intervened to help evacuate the wounded.

I also want to pull up a post from Sean Parnell. He is the chief spokesman at the Pentagon. He offered some more details. He said this, quote, "The attack occurred as the soldiers were conducting a key leader engagement. Their mission was in support of ongoing counter- ISIS counterterrorism operations in the region. The soldiers' names, as well as identifying information about their units, are being withheld until 24 hours after the next of kin notification. This attack is currently under active investigation."

Now, in another post, the secretary of defense said that the attacker was killed by partner forces. And he went on to say this, quote, "Let it be known, if you target Americans anywhere in the world, you will spend the rest of your brief, anxious life knowing the United States will hunt you, find you, and ruthlessly kill you."

Trump, as I mentioned, is now in Baltimore. That's for the Army-Navy game. Hegseth is also expected to be in attendance. And then, of course, top military brass will be there as well -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Julia Benbrook at the White House, thank you so much for that. Let's continue this conversation now with CNN military analyst, Major

General Spider Marks.

So, in your view, you know, what do you think the president and the defense secretary mean when they say there will be a retaliation?

MAJ. GEN. JAMES "SPIDER" MARKS (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Well, when a leader of a nation makes a declaratory statement like that, you better believe him. But retaliation in my mind is not necessarily what they're going to do. What the United States is doing with several Syrian forces in country is they are conducting very aggressive counterterrorism operations, counter ISIS operations.

[15:05:02]

So I think the interpretation of what the president said, which frankly is pretty blunt, doesn't need much interpretation, is there will be ongoing operations against ISIS when you look at the details of this particular engagement, a single ISIS fighter ambushed this group very tragically for the group, but the point is that ISIS fighter had direction, was part of a larger organization. That's what the U.S. is there to do, which is to rip that organization apart and render it useless.

WHITFIELD: Right --

MARKS: So I think it's going to be more of the same. More operations will continue.

WHITFIELD: Right. So underscore the risks that come with counterterrorism activity like this in a joint operation, that's all we really know about what this is, a joint operation. Maybe you have more details on exactly what it entails?

MARKS: Yes, it's a -- to be precise, it's a coalition operation, which means another nation, portions of the Syrian Defensive Forces, forces that the United States have been working with for a while, pre-dating the fall of Syria. So this has been an ongoing operation. So there's trust, there's engagement, there's familiarity among the partner forces in this regard. But going after ISIS is always going to be a very difficult task.

And so -- and we've seen the downside, the very tragic downside of this. And a key leader engagement as it's been described, these are routine engagements where partner forces will engage with some other partner force trying to figure out what the next steps might look like. And every time you do that, security is very -- is very broad. There's an out -- what we call an outer ring and an inner ring of security.

But can a single fighter get in? Can somebody ambush that? Very tragically we've seen that this certainly can happen. But security remains objective number one. These forces will not -- the U.S. and the Syrian forces that they're working with will not stop doing what they're doing.

WHITFIELD: Israel has also been targeting ISIS and other terror groups in Syria recently. How much of a threat overall is ISIS right now?

MARKS: Well, ISIS has been treated considerably, but they're an ideology. They continue to provide challenges. And the bigger picture now, Fred, is that Syria, with a new government in place, a new leader in place, who used to be a member of ISIS, saddling up next to the United States primarily for partnership and that partnership means a ton of money he's hoping. But Syria remains ungoverned space, which is not an -- which is analogous to what we saw in Afghanistan pre-9/11. And bad things happen when it's ungoverned.

So you can have, if ISIS was allowed to do what it's doing without the constant pressure from the United States and the partnering Syrian forces, we could see things that are much worse than what we're seeing right now. So you maintain the pressure on ISIS. You try to control what you control. You draw lines between what Israel is doing in Syria, what we're doing in Syria. Clearly, the Turks are doing things in Syria. So you don't want to have fratricide, but you want to apply pressure to try to achieve some level of stability.

WHITFIELD: The president of the United States had the Syrian president at the White House recently. What will this situation and this joint operation do to that relationship that is still kind of in its infancy?

MARKS: Yes. Great question. Generally, it's one of two things. It either frays the relationship, right, or what happens is it brings it closer together. And in the case of Al-Sharaa, the new leader in Syria, previously an ISIS fighter, he and Trump I think have gotten off in the right direction. They have a similar azimuth. So I think there will be tightening of this relationship, more resources against trying to eliminate those challenges to the stability that he has to establish in Syria.

If anybody is going to take him seriously, he needs to be able to acknowledge, look, I'm in charge. I've got this. I'm making progress. Security needs to be job number one. Otherwise, nobody is going to join Syria. Dollars will not flow into Syria. Look, you've got to plant a flag of security. And if you do that, dollars will flow in and you can start achieving some degree of normalcy.

WHITFIELD: All right. Major General James "Spider" Marks, thank you so much. Great to see you.

MARKS: Thank you, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Moving on now to an issue top of mind. Also today for tens of millions of Americans, the clock is ticking until Obamacare premiums set to lapse at the end of this month are projected to increase by as much as 100 percent or more. House Republicans feeling pressure from voters have just announced a new health care package they say will bring down costs, but leaves out key subsidies for Obamacare plans.

[15:10:05]

This comes as President Trump continues to downplay affordability concerns as a hoax. A new poll shows just 31 percent of Americans approve of Trump's handling of the economy. More than two-thirds disapprove, marking one of Trump's lowest economic approval ratings ever.

I want to bring in now Bloomberg Government's senior White House reporter Mica Soellner.

Mika, great to see you. So just how big of a problem, you know, are these numbers for President Trump?

MICA SOELLNER, WHITE HOUSE SENIOR REPORTER, BLOOMBERG GOVERNMENT: Thanks, Fredricka. This is a huge issue for President Trump, who continues to downplay affordability, as you just said. But inside the White House, a lot of the staff and people around the president are really trying to get a focused message on this topic as Democrats continue to hammer the administration, they're making this a huge campaign message ahead of the election, which is now less than a year away. So this is a really big problem. And I think we're going to see this into next year in the State of the Union and a big focus in the new year.

WHITFIELD: Oh, my goodness. And then, you know, what about President Trump, you know, claiming that affordability is a hoax. He and other Republicans continue to blame President Biden for the economic conditions and trying to kind of explain what he meant by affordability being a hoax. I mean, how is this resonating? How is, you know, with people? And then how is this perhaps handicapping the White House?

SOELLNER: Yes, absolutely. And I actually spoke with a number of House Republicans, some of who went on record. Austin Scott of Georgia, others such as Jeff Van Drew in New Jersey, who actually said focusing too much on Joe Biden is not a winning message for Republicans in general going into next year. Joe Biden is out of the political picture right now for Democrats, and they should be for Republicans as well.

WHITFIELD: This week you asked President Trump about House Speaker Mike Johnson's job as speaker, how he's doing. What did he say? What did the president say?

SOELLNER: Yes. So, so far, President Trump is sticking with Mike Johnson. I essentially asked if he still has confidence in the speaker's ability to hold his conference together. I mean, this comes as a lot of members in the Republican Party are starting to become very outspoken in the way that Speaker Johnson has governed, and there's a lot of frustration in the House, particularly among women in the House.

We saw Nancy Mace write about this in South Carolina, she's running for governor as well. Marjorie Taylor Greene, once a Trump ally, now a huge critic, very vocally critical of the speaker. And I think that there's a lot of fracture there. And so, but right now, the president is sticking with Johnson. I know that there's not a lot of options other than Johnson. A lot of members would agree as well. And it wouldn't, you know, I don't know how fruitful it would be for the president to start engaging with those disagreements as well.

WHITFIELD: And what about Johnson? Is there a feeling that he feels relatively confident that he still has the president's backing?

SOELLNER: I think so, and I think the main thing to remember is a lot of their power is tied together, particularly Johnson's rise in his power is really tied to Trump's bully pulpit and the bully that he has among, keeping a hold on Republicans. So, you know, as long as Trump is backing Johnson, I don't think he has anything particularly to worry right now. But these fractions are continuing for sure.

WHITFIELD: All right. Let me ask you, too, about what happened in Indiana this week. GOP lawmakers, you know, in that state blocked a Trump backed redistricting bill that would have netted Republicans two seats. Trump is vowing that every Republican who voted against it will now be primaried. Is -- does this exemplify that Trump is losing grip on the party?

SOELLNER: The president has certainly had some setbacks, especially in recent months. I think this is a big one for them. This was a huge push by the White House in their redistricting battle. And this -- Indiana is a red state. So I think that the president is really cognizant of that. He's very disappointed. He's been putting that out there, and they've had multiple meetings with the state legislature of Indiana.

You know, Vice President Vance has tried to push them on this. Trump has been extremely vocal. But I think it's very interesting just to kind of see that, you know, that they were not afraid to go against the president on this contrary to what a lot of people thought was going to happen.

WHITFIELD: All right, Mica Soellner, thanks so much for being with us.

Still to come, stalking, home invasion and suicide threats? Disturbing new allegations about the fired Michigan football coach and the charges he's now facing. And new information today on the tragic death of a roller coaster rider. What investigators say happened.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:19:27]

WHITFIELD: All right. Welcome back.

We're learning new details about a man's death after riding a high speed roller coaster in Orlando earlier this year. A report from the Florida sheriff's office released this week says that Kevin Zavala's death at Epic Universe was accidental. His girlfriend told investigators that Zavala, who uses a wheelchair, flew forward during a rapid descent on the Star Dust Racers ride, hitting his head several times on a metal restraint.

The medical examiner's report revealed the 32-year-old had severe facial trauma once the ride stopped, plus fractures to his skull and thigh. [15:20:04]

The report also stated that workers follow procedures or were not careless nor neglectful.

All right, former University of Michigan head football coach Sherrone Moore is out of jail today after posting bond on Friday. He made his first court appearance yesterday, where prosecutors charged Moore with felony home invasion, misdemeanor stalking, and breaking and entering. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Prosecutors also released troubling details of the alleged incident that led to his arrest on Wednesday.

Whitney Wild has details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You may be seated.

WHITNEY WILD, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Charged with felony home invasion and misdemeanor stalking, ex-University of Michigan football coach Sherrone Moore appeared on Zoom at his arraignment Friday.

KATI REZMIERSKI, WASHTENAW COUNTY PROSECUTOR: The totality of the behavior is highly threatening and highly intimidating. She was terrorized.

WILD: Moore was arrested on Wednesday, just hours after being fired as head coach of the Wolverines, setting off a firestorm of reaction among sports commentators.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What the hell is going on in Michigan right now?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The whole situation itself is just sad and tragic.

WILD: The school says an investigation found credible evidence Moore engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a staff member.

REZMIERSKI: A risk to this victim.

WILD: Prosecutor Kati Rezmierski told the court Moore, who is married with three daughters, was in a relationship with this woman for a number of years and said the woman broke up with Moore on Monday.

REZMIERSKI: Eventually, she presented herself to the University of Michigan, cooperated in some form of investigation there.

WILD: After Moore was fired on Wednesday, Rezmierski said he went to the woman's apartment.

REZMIERSKI: Barged his way into that apartment. Immediately then proceeded to a kitchen drawer, grabbed several butter knives and a pair of kitchen scissors, and began to threaten his own life. I'm going to kill myself, I'm going to make you watch. My blood is on your hands. You ruined my life. And a series of very, very threatening intimidating, terrifying quite frankly, statements and behaviors.

WILD: 911 dispatch audio on Wednesday indicates an alleged assault. A CNN review matched the location of this call with the address of the alleged victim.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a male at the location in the house attacking her and states he's been stalking her for months.

WILD: The judge told Moore he cannot contact the woman upon his release.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are we understood on the no contact and no go to, sir?

SHERRONE MOORE, FORMER UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN FOOTBALL COACH: Yes, your honor.

WILD: Moore's attorney reminded the court he has no criminal history.

JOE SIMON, SHERRONE MOORE'S ATTORNEY: There's no evidence to suggest that he's a threat to the public safety.

WILD: In response to Moore's firing, University of Michigan president Domenico Grasso sent an e-mail to students and faculty saying, "There is absolutely no tolerance for this conduct at the University of Michigan. This breach of trust by Coach Moore is painful for many in our community."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Michigan can't escape the scandals.

WILD: Students reacted to the news.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just really bad overall. I think it's just getting worse as well.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's hard to want to support a program that does that, but I guess it's good to see the university addressing it and taking action.

WILD: Whitney Wild, CNN, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. And straight ahead, a new CNN reporting on the FDA's possible decision to add a black box warning on COVID-19 vaccines?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:27:56]

WHITFIELD: All right. A new flu variant has been adding to an early and very busy flu season, particularly in Asia, Australia and Europe. And the U.S. could be next in line for a more severe outbreak. The first week after Thanksgiving, the number of people going to their doctors for flu like symptoms rose to 3.2 percent. Disease experts say that's above a national baseline that they call the epidemic threshold. It's a signal that flu season is officially underway.

The FDA is working on a plan to put its most serious health warning on COVID-19 vaccines. The so-called black box warning is prominently displayed on medication labeling. It's meant to alert health care providers and patients about serious risks, such as death or disabling reactions that should be weighed against the potential benefits of a drug. The Department of Health and Human Services says that any news about a warning label is just speculation right now.

Dr. Lipi Roy is an internal medicine physician and she's joining us right now.

The FDA has not confirmed that they will be adding these warnings, but do you think it's necessary? Is it a good idea?

DR. LIPI ROY, INTERNAL MEDICINE PHYSICIAN: Fredricka, great to see you. And sorry about this cold climate, but this is a good reason to talk about COVID, because we're going to be seeing a rise in respiratory illnesses during this time of the year. And look, these -- just so the audience is clear. Black box warning is basically designed to convey the most serious risk associated with a medication, a substance. So like benzodiazepines, Xanax, Ativan.

It would say high risk of addiction. Ibuprofen, high risk of serious GI bleeding. With COVID-19 vaccines, the current FDA leadership is trying to make this connection between the COVID vaccines, particularly the MRNA technology ones, with a supposed risk of pregnancy, safety risk with pregnancy and children's safety and deaths.

[15:30:04]

The thing is that there is really no evidence for that. We don't know what data they have. I think they're going by theirs, which is the vaccine adverse event reporting system data. But, I mean, anyone can report something like I can report a rash after I took acetaminophen, Tylenol. But it has to be investigated. There have to be scientists and researchers investigating that. What data does the FDA have? What research have they done? What clinical data do they have?

So that's my concern right now, Fredricka. And that's the concern of most public health professionals and scientists. There's no data. And this is not surprising, to be honest, Fredricka, because back in August, the HHS released a report saying that they are winding down MRNA technology vaccine development. So this is kind of consistent with the frankly misinformation that HHS started with RFK been putting out for many, many months sadly, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: OK. Dr. Lipi Roy, great to hear from you. Thank you so much.

All right. This weekend, a powerful arctic blast is going to put much of the U.S. in a deep freeze and bring the first snowfall of the season to multiple cities in the northeast.

CNN meteorologist Allison Chinchar has more on what to expect. ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: More than 70 percent of the U.S.

population is going to see those temperatures either at or below freezing over the next week. Again, you can see that highlighted here by all of that blue color. But we're not just talking a few degrees below average. In some of these cases, it's 10 to 15 degrees below where they normally would be this time of year.

Now one thing to note for places like Minneapolis, Chicago, St. Louis, all along the Midwest, yes, it's cold. It's going to stay cold even into Sunday and Monday. But by Tuesday, we finally start to see those temperatures getting back closer to normal. However, for the northeast, it's going to be a bit more of a delayed effect where you're going to have to wait until Wednesday or Thursday before you start to see those temperatures rebounding.

Because the cold air is there we also have some snow in the forecast. Much of the morning hours it was spent over the Midwest and the bulk of it really continuing to spread into the northeast as we finish out the rest of the day today. Overnight, we're still going to be looking at some of those heavy showers, but now starting to hit right there along the Eastern Seaboard. So places like Boston, New York, Philadelphia, looking at some of that snow to continue to creep up.

By early Sunday morning, most of the system is finally now starting to exit back out over the water. But you could still be looking at a few lingering snow showers, especially across portions of the Cape and very extreme eastern New York. By the time we get to Sunday evening, the large system is out, but you do still have some of the smaller lake effect bands that could still be moving along much of these areas.

Overall widespread, most of these areas about one to three inches where you see the dark purple color here. That's where you could be getting, say, five or even six inches of snow total. And then a few of these spots where you see the pink, especially in the higher elevations not out of the question to get eight or even 10 inches of snow before everything finally moves out. Along with that cold air is the wind, and that's making the wind chill feel absolutely brutal in some cases.

If you have plans to go out to Chicago for the game tomorrow, take a look at some of these temperatures. OK, so at noon, the temperature itself will be eight degrees, but the wind chill is going to make it feel like eight below. Even into the afternoon, temperatures will be warming, but only slightly. You're looking at maybe a high of about 11 or 12 degrees total for the Chicago versus Cleveland game.

And then same scenario for Baltimore versus the Bengals. Now this game again is at 1:00 p.m. The temperature at kickoff is 10 degrees. But that wind chill is going to feel like minus four. So definitely bundle up. Whether you're going to the game or out for any other activity, make sure you bundle up.

WHITFIELD: My gosh, that is a serious football fan to sit in that. All right. Thank you so much Alison. All right. Coming up, ahead of a deadline for the U.S. Justice

Department to release the Epstein files, photos from the estate of the convicted sex offender shed new light on his relationship with President Trump and other high profile celebrities. We dig into the new evidence next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:34:04]

WHITFIELD: All right. Newly released photos show some of the powerful people who were in the orbit of the late convicted sex offender, Jeffrey Epstein. President Trump is included in some of the pictures. In one photo, he is seen smiling with six women whose faces are redacted. In another, he is seen with Epstein at some sort of social event there. Other power players in the photos include former president Bill Clinton, billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates and former Harvard president Larry Summers.

None of the images released depict any sexual misconduct, nor are they believed to show underage girls. And none of the pictured men has been accused of any wrongdoing.

I'm joined now by Neama Rahmani. He is a former federal prosecutor and president of the West Coast Trial Attorneys.

Neama, great to see you as always. So let's dissect what we know. About 90 photos from a trove of some 95,000 images from Epstein's e- mail were released by Democrats in the Oversight Committee.

[15:40:03]

So what do these images say about any potential road ahead in an investigation maybe?

NEAMA RAHMANI, FORMER FEDERAL PROSECUTOR: Fred, the optics are terrible, but these aren't the Epstein files. These are from Epstein's estate. And of course, the House Oversight Committee, they do have subpoena power. The Epstein files were hoping to get from the Department of Justice tomorrow, but at a minimum, they're images of rich and powerful men rubbing elbows with a convicted pedophile. So certainly a bad look.

Obviously not enough for a criminal case or a civil lawsuit. We need an accuser for that. But definitely the last thing anyone wants is to be associated with Jeffrey Epstein. So these pictures are pretty damaging to their reputation.

WHITFIELD: Yes. And then no context was really provided with these images. So as these images are being released from the estate, but what does that say and what should that mean to people?

RAHMANI: Well, it's tough because obviously Trump and other individuals here, they were friends with Jeffrey Epstein. So you have that association now. There are some e-mails and other documents that suggest, obviously don't prove, that they may have known that he had or was sexually abusing young girls. So that's the next step. And of course, the worst would be actually participating in those sex acts.

I would expect that we're going to see more of these types of redactions. Obviously, most of the women who are in these pictures, their images, they're blacked out. Now, we don't know if there were victims. The Democrats on the House Oversight Committee seem to suggest that they wanted to take a very broad view of those redactions to protect the identity of anyone who may have been a victim of the sex abuse. So the question is, when we do get Epstein files, are we going to see similar redactions next week and the following weeks?

WHITFIELD: Yes. OK. And, are you feeling confident that the DOJ is going to meet that deadline of next Friday, you know, to make public, you know, its investigative files about Epstein or at the same time, do you see that this, this release by, you know, some Democrats of these images from the estate as kind of like a safety net if they don't meet the deadline, then just kind of know there's this ultimatum? There is more stuff that they might have access to? Is that how this is being played out?

RAHMANI: Fred, I'm not confident at all because if the DOJ wanted to make the Epstein files public, they could have at any time. They hold the privileges, the law enforcement, the deliberative process privilege. They didn't need the Epstein files transparency act. Pam Bondi, with the stroke of her pen, could have made those materials public. And we're talking about the materials from the first and second Epstein prosecutions, as well as the Ghislaine Maxwell prosecution.

So the fact that these promises were made by Trump, Bondi, Patel and others and those promises weren't kept, I don't have a lot of faith that come next week, we're actually going to get everything in possession of the Department of Justice. I hope I'm wrong, but I think we've been down this path a very long time, and I think the American people, they're also skeptical. And I think images like this, they do play into those conspiracy theories that there's a cover-up to protect Jeffrey Epstein and those who were associated with him.

So in the interest of transparency, I hope the DOJ does what they're supposed to. But I'm still skeptical.

WHITFIELD: All right, Neama Rahmani, great to see you. Thanks so much.

RAHMANI: Great to see you, Fred. Have a great weekend.

WHITFIELD: All right. Still to come, we're tackling the affordability crisis facing many Americans right now. An in-depth discussion about your money with a panel of experts straight ahead in the next hour. Stay with us.

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[15:48:29]

WHITFIELD: All right. The National Guard soldier who was shot in the head in D.C. two weeks ago is making a miraculous recovery. Doctors say Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe is now breathing on his own and standing with assistance.

CNN's Brian Todd has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's a recovery that doctors are describing as miraculous. National Guard Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe, 24 years old, one of two Guard members shot and wounded in a brazen attack on the streets of D.C. on the day before Thanksgiving, is now breathing on his own and can stand with assistance. This, despite suffering a gunshot wound to the head.

That's according to Dr. Jeffrey Mai, a neurosurgeon at MedStar Washington Hospital Center in D.C. Dr. Mai, in a news release from the hospital, said the improvements are, quote, "important milestones that reflect his strength and determination," unquote. Dr. Mai said Wolfe is now ready to transition from acute care to rehabilitation. Wolfe's family has chosen not to disclose where his rehab therapy will be.

Dr. Mai said, quote, "While this remains an early phase of healing, his progress gives us every reason to feel hopeful about what lies ahead." Wolfe's parents, Melody and Jason Wolfe, also issued a statement thanking the staff at MedStar Washington Hospital Center for the care that he received, saying of the doctors and nurses there, quote, "The care has been remarkable and they have told us Andy's progress is miraculous," end quote.

Now, in giving this update, Dr. Mai also shared new details of the emergency treatment that Andrew Wolfe received in those critical moments after the shooting, saying he was airlifted to Washington Hospital Center, where trauma teams performed emergency surgery to control bleeding and remove pressure on his brain.

[15:50:07]

Wolfe, along with fellow Guard member Sarah Beckstrom and others, were performing what were called high visibility patrols when police say the gunman rounded a corner near the Farragut West Metro Station in Washington and fired at them from close range. Beckstrom died on Thanksgiving Day the next day as a result of her injuries. The alleged gunman, an Afghan national identified as 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal, has pleaded not guilty to charges including premeditated murder and assault with the intent to kill.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:55:15]

WHITFIELD: All right. Welcome back.

Britain's King Charles is giving a rare update on his cancer fight. The 77-year-old monarch says he is responding well to treatments, and that those treatments will be scaled back in the new year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHARLES III, KING OF THE UNITED KINGDOM: Today I am able to share with you the good news that, thanks to early diagnosis, effective intervention and adherence to doctors' orders, my own schedule of cancer treatment can be reduced in the new year. This milestone is both a personal blessing and a testimony to the remarkable advances that have been made in cancer care in recent years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: King Charles announced his cancer diagnosis in February of 2024 after undergoing a prostate procedure. Doctors described his upcoming treatments in the new year as, I'm quoting now, "precautionary phase," end quote.

All right, $1 billion Powerball jackpot is up for grabs tonight. It's the second jackpot that has reached $1 billion this year. Most winners choose a lump sum payment, which is estimated at $457 million. Both figures are before taxes. Tonight's drawing is set for 10:59 p.m. Eastern time.

All right. New episodes of Variety's "Actors on Actors" now premiering exclusively on CNN All Access. The Emmy Award-winning franchise pairs Hollywood's biggest actors together for candid conversations. And in today's episode, Michael B. Jordan sits down with his former co-star Jesse Plemons.

CNN's Elizabeth Wagmeister joins us with a preview.

ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Fred. So one of the most fun things about "Actors on Actors" is oftentimes you get to stage a reunion between two stars. And for today's episode, Michael B. Jordan and Jesse Plemons sat down together, and fans of "Friday Night Lights" might remember that these two were on that hit show way back when.

Let's take a look about them talking about their reunion.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JESSE PLEMONS, ACTOR: Here we are, "Actors on Actors."

MICHAEL B. JORDAN, ACTOR: You know? Decades later, what's up man?

PLEMONS: This is wild man. It's crazy that this is what it took to see you again, but I'm glad nonetheless.

JORDAN: The universe brought us together once again, man.

PLEMONS: I know. All these years later. I feel like last time I saw you was probably for about two minutes at one of these industry parties, but --

JORDAN: It would have to be. In my mind, I'm going back to Austin, Texas.

PLEMONS: I know.

JORDAN: As the last time that we really like, you know, had a real convo. You know what I'm saying? Without all the bells and whistles, you know?

PLEMONS: I know. In these last few days, so many memories have been flooding back. It was a good time. We were kids.

JORDAN: We were. We were.

PLEMONS: We did not know that. We thought we were grown.

JORDAN: Definitely thought I was grown.

PLEMONS: I was speaking for myself.

JORDAN: No, no, no.

PLEMONS: You know? Yes.

JORDAN: Very accurate, very accurate. "Friday Night Lights" days.

PLEMONS: "Friday Night Lights" days.

JORDAN: You're like the original. The OG cast. I'm like the new addition that popped in.

PLEMONS: Yes, but we needed it. We needed it at that point.

JORDAN: OK.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WAGMEISTER: Now, the actors also talked about their current projects, and Jesse Plemons took the time to congratulate Michael B. Jordan on the immense success of his film "Sinners," which he stars in and produced along with filmmaker Ryan Coogler. "Sinners" is one of the biggest box office hits of 2025, making over $360 million at the worldwide box office. And also just this past week, one of the most nominated films at the Golden Globes with seven nominations.

Take a look at what Jesse told Michael B. Jordan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PLEMONS: I just have to say, congratulations, man.

JORDAN: Thanks, man.

PLEMONS: We spoke a little bit before. That movie on a box office level and on an artistic level truly gave the entire industry a sense of hope. Yes, so thanks for that.

JORDAN: Hey, man, kind words, bro. (END VIDEO CLIP)

WAGMEISTER: And of course, there is so much more in their "Actors on Actors" conversation. This is one you are not going to want to miss -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: Oh, that is so sweet. You could feel their genuine admiration for one another and respect. All right. You can watch Variety's "Actors on Actors" exclusively on CNN All Access.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Step in time. Step in time, step in time, come on, mighty, step in time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Oh, my gosh. A favorite moment. Dick Van Dyke dancing across the rooftop of London as Bert, the chimney sweep in the iconic movie "Mary Poppins." The beloved actor is celebrating 100 years. It's his birthday today, 100. He's also known for classic movies like "Bye Bye Birdie" and " Chitty Chitty Bang Bang," again --