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CNN This Morning

Officials Downplay But Acknowledge Concerns About Reported Drones; FBI And DHS: Many Sightings Appear To Be Manned Aircraft; Trump Announces More Administration Picks, Goes To Army-Navy Game; Congress Gearing Up For A Budget Battle; Downtown San Francisco Sees First Tornado Warning In History; Nancy Pelosi Undergoes Hip Surgery After Fall In Europe; Jamie Foxx Recovering After Physical Altercation At A Restaurant; Officials: Gunmen Kill American Couple Visiting Mexico. Franklin Fire 38 Percent Contained; ABC News Settles Trump Defamation Suit; Mangione May Stop Fighting Extradition; Anger Over Healthcare. Aired 7-8a ET

Aired December 15, 2024 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN HOST: Top of the hour here on CNN This Morning. We're glad to have you back with us. And if you're just joining us, hi. It's Sunday, December 15th. I'm Omar Jimenez in for Victor Blackwell.

AMARA WALKER, CNN HOST: Hi. Hi, Omar, good to have you back as well. I'm Amara Walker.

And here's what we're working on for you this morning. Federal officials looking into those mysterious drone sightings managed to both downplay but also legitimize concerns in a call with reporters yesterday. The conflicting messages that left many on the call with a lot more questions than answers.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Let's go home. Let's go home. Holy (INAUDIBLE). Oh my God. OK, oh my God.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

JIMENEZ: Severe storms ripped through California yesterday, flipping cars, snapping trees and injuring at least five people. We're going to have a look at the damage left behind and what to expect today.

WALKER: Plus, Jamie Foxx is recovering after a physical altercation at a restaurant. What we know about how it happened and his injuries.

JIMENEZ: And thousands of people were under evacuation warnings from the Franklin fire last week. But despite the warnings, students at Pepperdine University were urged to shelter in place. Why the school says they're safer on campus even as flames close in? This morning the federal government is downplaying the risk from a series of possible drone sightings across the Northeast. But officials are also acknowledging concerns. Yesterday, Massachusetts became the sixth state to report mysterious drone activity joining New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Virginia.

WALKER: There are more classified briefings scheduled on Capitol Hill this week and so far the White House says the drones do not appear to pose a threat to public safety or national security. That response has frustrated state and local officials who are demanding more information and resources from federal agencies.

They say the lack of information is causing fear among those who live there with many concerned about the potential safety risks.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

MAYOR RYAN HERD, PEQUANNOCK, NEW JERSEY: This is not about politics. We have drones that are flying over critical infrastructure. They're flying over our residents houses. They're flying over our houses, our families. They deserve to have peace of mind.

God forbid one of these drones the size of a car crashes into your neighbor's house and kills everyone. I don't ever want that to happen.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

WALKER: CNN's Betsy Klein joining us now from the White House. Betsy, I know you were on that briefing call with the White House and other federal officials yesterday. It doesn't sound like there was much new information.

BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE PRODUCER: That's right, Amara. I mean there have been a lot of contradictory messages from the federal government about these reported drone sightings. But the underlying message from the Biden administration as of now is that there is no national security threat, there is no threat to public safety, and importantly there is no nexus to any foreign government or entity at this time.

Now, as you mentioned, we heard a briefing yesterday from officials at the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, as well as the FBI where they both downplayed some of these reported drone sightings but also gave them legitimacy.

So, for instance, we heard from a Defense Department official who said that military personnel who are highly trained at a pair of bases in New Jersey, the Picatinny Arsenal and Naval Weapons Station Earl, saw those reported drone sightings.

They have not identified the origin or the operators of those drones, but this official starkly warned that whatever this activity is, is irresponsible. This official said, "We don't know if it's malicious, if it's criminal. But I will tell you that it is -- it is irresponsible. And you know, here on the military side, we are just as frustrated with the irresponsible nature of this activity". Now at the same time, officials linked some of this drone activity to similar flight patterns in the area. So, for instance, you might think you're seeing a drone but you're actually seeing a plane take off or land at Newark Airport.

[07:05:03]

But one Homeland Security official told us that many of these reported sightings are manned aircraft being misidentified as drones. But at the same time, that Homeland Security official said, we absolutely share New Jersey's concerns with the amount and type of activity being reported.

Now if this all seems confusing, I think an FBI official summed up a lot of this uncertainty perfectly when he said that he thinks there has been a slight overreaction from the American public. But at the same time, he's a resident of New Jersey and he and his kids also have questions.

Now, we should also note that there have been about 5,000 tips reported to an FBI tip line of reported drone sightings. But for some perspective here, only about 100 of those drone sightings have deemed worthy of additional follow-up. Amara and Omar?

WALKER: All right. People still looking for a lot of information there.

Betsy Klein, thank you so much.

And last hour, I spoke with CNN Senior National Security Analyst Juliette Kayyem, who worked at the Department of Homeland Security. And she says that this may simply be a case of drones becoming more popular and more people looking up and perhaps seeing the same reported sightings.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: There's a lot of drones in the sky at any given moment. Some are commercial, some are government, and then some are just recreational. And so being able to figure out, OK, is that drone, you know, a private sector legitimate drone because it's capturing weather patterns or whatever else, as compared to the guy down the street who's just having fun right now, that is hard to tell from this technology.

And so, I think part of it is that the system may be overwhelmed at this stage. I do think the government's messaging could be clearer in terms of saying both. We've looked at a lot of these cases. Most of them, if not all, are manned aircraft or known sort of known drone activity.

But there is a greater quantity in the sky. And I think that's what the FBI agent that we -- that you just quoted is talking about is, is there's probably just more activity. I will say there's also a phenomenon is we're all looking up and we may all be seeing the same thing. (END VIDEOCLIP)

WALKER: Well, a major concern that we're hearing from the people on the ground appears to be the size of these drones.

JIMENEZ: Yes, I mean, I think fair to say most people are familiar with the smaller drones that are used for photography, but large drones are typically used for both commercial and military purposes.

CNN's Clare Duffy reports.

CLARE DUFFY, CNN BUSINESS WRITER: Large drones like this do exist, and experts told me they can have a wide range of applications. Technically, you could even have a consumer hobbyist who uses drones for something like photography who could make or buy one of these larger drones.

But you do have to receive special approval from the FAA to fly a drone that weighs more than 55 pounds. And experts told me these larger drones can cost tens of thousands of dollars. So they're more often used for commercial or military applications.

Companies can use these large drones for things like agriculture to survey and spray fields or for infrastructure to survey roads or do mapping. They can also be used in some cases for commercial deliveries. But most of those applications would probably be happening during the daytime.

And as we've seen, many of these New Jersey sightings are happening at night. Some law enforcement agencies are also experimenting. They've begun using drones for search and rescue, although they don't necessarily have to be the big ones. And then, of course, the military can use these drones for surveillance.

They can attach powerful cameras or infrared sensors. Now, I want to be clear that we don't necessarily know that this is what any of these things are, what is happening in New Jersey. But it's worth knowing that these large drones do exist and that not all of the applications are scary ones.

Back to you.

JIMENEZ: Clare Duffy, thank you.

I want to turn now to the presidential transition because we saw a lot of administration picks from Donald Trump as he headed to the Army- Navy game in Maryland. He selected his presidential envoy for special missions, a couple ambassadors, deputy secretary of Homeland Security and a member of his Intelligence Advisory Board as well.

Some of these names are familiar for their roles in his previous administrations and others well known for their business dealings. And his choice to lead the country's top health department, RFK Jr., he heads to Capitol Hill this week hoping to get support for his confirmation. A lot to talk about here. I want to bring in Axios Congressional Reporter Stephen Neukam, who joins us now. So, Stephen, I mean, a lot of business leaders on that list of picks. Walsh, the head of a construction and real estate company.

White is the CEO of Constellations Group. Nunes, of course, the CEO of Trump's social media company, Truth Social. And CNN analysis of federal campaign records shows that about three dozen, a little less of his picks donated to his campaign or to outside groups that work to elect him.

I say all of that because how do you see this translating within the administration?

STEPHEN NEUKAM, CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER, AXIOS: Yes, well, it's obvious that the president-elect is tapping folks who are close to him and who are close to the campaign.

[07:10:04]

It's sort of an astonishing grouping and putting together of a lot of wealth. These are very wealthy people. It's one of the -- it's got to be the wealthiest presidential cabinet, presidential transition that we've ever had. A lot of those folks won't have any problem getting through Capitol Hill, getting through the confirmation process.

Of course, they need to be confirmed by the Senate, but a number of them will. And we'll see RFK Jr., I think, is one of the headline ones who is going to start his rounds on Capitol Hill this week. And it's going to be difficult for him to get through that process.

There's a number of doctors in the Senate on the Republican side who might bristle at some of his health proposals. So while some of those nominees are going to be pretty easy to get into those positions, other ones we've already seen are going to be a little bit more difficult.

JIMENEZ: And, look, we've seen some significant moments come from the sort of pre meet-and-greets. I mean, I think fair to say Matt Gaetz's bid for attorney general sort of fell apart in that meet-and-greet phase. People looking at Pete Hegseth to see what folks like Senator Joni Ernst would say about him. Doesn't seem like she's committed fully one way or another.

But RFK Jr., obviously, on the Hill this week to try to do sort of the same, drum up some support. And he has faced, as you've pointed out, some backlash after it was revealed a lawyer for his campaign petitioned the FDA to revoke approval for the polio vaccine.

So some of those medical views that he or people in his orbit have put out in the past could potentially hurt him on Capitol Hill this week. Do you see that as the case or do you see him facing less of an uphill battle compared to someone like Pete Hegseth, for example?

NEUKAM: I mean, we're going to have to see. I think that, in general, the Republicans on Capitol Hill, their default position has been to be receptive to the nominees, give them an opportunity to take a meeting and see where things go.

But when it comes to RFK Jr., even if you just look at his history, a former Democrat, you talk about the polio issue. We saw a lot of people on Capitol Hill come out and demand that he make his stance on that issue known.

Mitch McConnell, the Senate minority leader, the outgoing Senate minority leader, is a polio survivor. So there's all these dynamics that play out sort of interpersonally that can either be sort of a challenge or something that helps them, propels them to being confirmed in the Senate.

JIMENEZ: And, of course, a lot of them looking to see what the president-elect will think of the decision they make. But we're also seeing from Trump's side of things a little bit of back and forth on the issue of pardoning. I mean, Trump has promised to quickly work on pardoning at least some January 6th rioters, but attorneys say they're frustrated with inconsistencies in his messaging.

I mean, what do you, is there support among congressional allies or even otherwise for pardoning of these January 6th rioters? What do you see as the most likely outcome here?

NEUKAM: I mean, there's certainly support amongst some on Capitol Hill. I think that there's probably a subsection of the Republican Party, the more moderate centrist side, that, you know, a lot of the folks who were there on January 6th, who were attacked on that day, obviously, a very scary day, who don't want those folks to be pardoned.

So that's another thing that will split the party. But I think that there's, you know, a good chunk of the Republican base that would be OK with that, that see those individuals as people who have been politically persecuted and then prosecuted because of their political views. So, I think the president-elect would have some sympathetic ears on Capitol Hill if that was the route he chose to go.

JIMENEZ: You know, and another thing that might sort of split the GOP in some senses is it seems like Congress is haggling or going back and forth over another spending stopgap bill. And I know you wrote about that for Axios, that congressional Republicans are setting themselves up for a stressful first 100 days, especially with what seems like differing priorities, including a budget battle, too.

So, what do you see playing out here based on sort of what's been discussed to this point?

NEUKAM: Yes, I mean, one way or another, we're going to have the first 100 days of the Trump administration that is sort of breakneck on Capitol Hill. You're going to have to deal with government funding in the first 100 days.

This stopgap bill is going to run through March 14th, mid-March. You're going to have to deal with the debt limit ceiling. You're going to have to deal with Republicans wanting to get a border bill done. They want to extend the first Trump-era tax cuts. So there's a lot on the plate of the president-elect and congressional Republicans. And you have to remember that they're going to do this with Senate -- incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune, someone who's never been Senate Majority Leader, going to take over from McConnell.

[07:15:10]

And Speaker Mike Johnson, who's never governed with a Republican in the White House. So there's also a lot of inexperience on the Republican side on Capitol Hill. And, you know, it'll be trial by fire in the first 100 days.

JIMENEZ: And on the House side, a slim majority that could be even slimmer for a bit while some Florida special elections or otherwise play out.

Steve Neukam, thank you so much for being here.

WALKER: All right, let's turn to weather this morning. And parts of California were hammered by severe storms yesterday, even a tornado. Yes, a tornado in California. Touchdown in the town of Scotts Valley. That is about an hour south of San Francisco.

It was captured on this surveillance video from a local bar and grill. Look at that cloud. And you can see the damage that it left behind. Trees snapped in half. Cars damaged by flying and falling debris. And police say five people were hurt as a result. Some residents say they're just happy that they survived.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To be honest with you, I thought this could be the end of my life. It was that strong.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I heard someone scream, there's a tornado. So I ran out to the window to see. And there were things flying around, people screaming, cars making a bunch of noises.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

WALKER: And nearby downtown San Francisco, it experienced its first tornado warning in recorded history. The National Weather Service has ultimately did not find evidence of tornado actually touched down, attributing much of the damage from that storm to straight line winds of up to 80 miles an hour.

I mean, I've spent a lot of time in northern California as well. I mean, if there was a warning of a tornado, I wouldn't know what to do. By the way, I'm just in stunned to hear about that.

Meteorologist Allison Chinchar is here about that. I mean, wow.

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, it is. And it was probably a very frightening experience for some of them. You're getting the alerts on your phone. WALKER: Well, I do.

CHINCHAR: It's a California resident.

WALKER: Yes.

CHINCHAR: You may not have ever experienced that before.

WALKER: Right.

CHINCHAR: Absolutely. And, yes, we take a look at that confirmed tornado and all of the details from it. Here you can see what's location in reference to where it is for those who are unfamiliar with the town itself, but also to looking at the path of it.

This was only about a third of a mile long. It was not on the ground for very long. But in the time it was, it was able to cause some damage. The sustained winds there that peak winds up to 90 miles per hour.

Now, we also had similar winds, not from tornadoes, but from straight line winds. You can see 70, 80 miles per hour, including that 83 mile per hour wind at the San Francisco International Airport. Now, it was that wind that occurred during the tornado warning that was issued for downtown San Francisco again as a result ended up just being straight line winds, not a tornado warning or not a tornado.

But the tornado warning itself for downtown was, yes, the first of a kind, the very first one ever issued for San Francisco proper. This was earlier in the day on Saturday. Now, that system as a whole is starting to spread eastward now over the intermountain west for today in portions of the northern plains.

We're also keeping an eye on that secondary system. This is the one that caused all of those problems on the roadways yesterday across Midwestern states like Iowa now starting to spread into the Ohio Valley and eventually into the Mid-Atlantic and the northeast as we go through the rest of the day today.

Those temperatures are in the upper 30s, maybe lower 40s. So it's a very cold rain out there for a lot of folks. But this system will continue to progress eastward as we go through the day. And especially by tonight, those temperatures cool back down.

You're going to start to see more of that snow coming back in, especially to some of those northeastern cities. And then by tomorrow morning, as you start your commute, you may have some slick roads to deal with. So do keep that in mind as you're heading out into the morning.

And then are on the heels, Amara, yet another system that will be arriving just about a day and a half later.

WALKER: Wow. All right, it's not over yet.

Allison Chinchar, thank you. Good to see you. Just ahead, we are learning more about former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's recovery after a fall in Germany. Details on her treatment is coming up.

Also new information about a California couple gunned down while visiting family in Mexico. Why the vehicle they were in may have been a factor in the attack.

Plus, Jamie Foxx is recovering after an incident at a Beverly Hills restaurant. Details on what left the actor with stitches.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:23:56]

WALKER: And here's some of the top stories we are following this morning. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi underwent hip replacement surgery yesterday at a hospital in Germany after falling on some stairs. This happened Friday during a trip to Europe to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge. Her spokesperson says she is, quote, "well on the mend".

And right now police are looking for a shooter who killed two teens and hurt three others at a makeshift club in Houston last night. Authorities say when they arrived, they saw teenagers running out of the club.

A 16-year-old boy died at the scene, while a 16-year-old girl passed away later at the hospital. A 13-year-old girl remains in critical condition. All of this, according to police. The assistant chief promised they are pulling out all the stops to catch whoever is behind this.

Oscar winning actor Jamie Foxx was injured Friday while celebrating his birthday at a Beverly Hills restaurant. A spokesperson for Foxx said someone threw a glass at him and it hit his mouth. Fox had to get stitches.

Initially, police responded to the incident as a possible assault with a deadly weapon, but later downgraded it to a battery case. No arrests have been made, and the incident comes after Foxx recently shared in his Netflix special that he survived a brain bleed and a stroke just last year.

Omar?

[07:25:14]

JIMENEZ: Now we're learning new details about an American couple shot and killed while visiting family in Mexico this week. Investigators are still trying to figure out the motive behind the murders.

CNN's Camila Bernal has more.

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Omar, Amara, this California couple Rafael and Gloria Cardona were gunned down in Michoacan, Mexico on Wednesday. And officials saying that Gloria Cardona died at the scene while Rafael was taken to the hospital and died shortly after.

They had gotten to the area of Angamacutiro on November 30th to be with family. We know that they have three children, and according to authorities, two minor children. They are with extended family. The State Department also in touch with their adult daughter as this investigation continues.

We know that local Mexican officials spoke to Rafael's brother, and he described the fact that they were driving a van that belonged to Rafael's brother-in-law. And his brother-in-law is a Mexican official in that area, and he took his job after his predecessor was kidnapped and killed in this area as well.

Now, Mexican authorities have not confirmed the motive behind the killings, but we do know that this is an area where there is gang violence and cartels. We know that this is also an area where a lot of farmers grow avocados. That's what a lot of this area is known for.

And according to a report from Inside Crime, a lot of the drug traffickers force many of the farmers in that area to grow marijuana and other drugs. Michoacan is also an area with a lot of violence. The homicide rate there almost double what it is nationally in Mexico, and already Mexico has one of the highest homicide rates in the world.

So just very disturbing numbers coming from that area. As officials continue this investigation, there was a mass held in the honor of Rafael and Gloria Cardona in that area in Michoacan, Mexico, on Saturday, as this family continues to ask why this happened.

Omar, Amara?

JIMENEZ: Thank you, Camila.

Just ahead, thousands of people in Malibu, California evacuated their homes last week after a wildfire burned through acres of land. So why is Pepperdine University telling students to stay put, even as the rest of Malibu flees? We'll explain, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:30:00]

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: The city of Malibu, California says the Franklin Fire is now 38 percent contained after it scorched more than 4,000 acres and forced tens of thousands of people in the area to evacuate from their homes. But while others were escaping, students at Pepperdine University were told to stay on campus and shelter-in- place. Authorities say there are good reasons for that, but not everyone agrees.

Joining us now from Edmond, Oklahoma, is former Pepperdine University President Andrew Benton. He's part of the group that came up with the policy, I think it was back in the '90s, right? Andrew, thank you for your time and welcome to the program. Tell us more about the thinking behind having the students stay put inside What was it like to be on campus and to be on the campus versus evacuating like everyone else?

ANDREW BENTON, PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT EMERITUS: Succinctly, the year was 1986. A senior colleague and I were off campus having dinner with our wives. Heard about the fire and fought -- literally fought our way back on campus and discovered that our worst fears were true, and that was that there was really no one there with a planned response to the fire. And so, we decided that would never happen again.

And now, Pepperdine has experienced seven fires under the protocol we call remain in place. I can tell you about all of the preparations that have been undertaken, but the essence is students are safer on campus than they are on the highways and byways surrounding Malibu.

WALKER: For those who don't understand the geography of the terrain, I should mention, by the way, the L.A. County Fire Department supports this policy and they do agree that it's safer. Speak to us as to why, though, because if you do have students evacuating at the same time as the residents, I mean, those roads on Pacific Coast Highway are quite narrow. So, is one of the concerns that too many people escaping at once could lead them to being trapped there on the road?

BENTON: Well, in a fire, there are really only three ways to get into Malibu and three ways to get out of Malibu when the Fire Department takes over, and they do take over, their fully charged fire hoses make it very dangerous for cars to try to drive over them and it also impairs the firefighter response.

Meanwhile, on the campus, we've got 1.6 million gallons of water stored, food for 14 days stored, satellite phones, doctors, nurses, counselors whatever they could need for our small city during one of those fires.

WALKER: In those decades that the shelter in place rule has been in place, do you believe that many students lives have been saved as a result? I mean, there have been so many wildfires since.

[07:35:00]

BENTON: Oh, I'm very confident of that because, once again, Malibu has primarily Pacific Coast Highway and then Malibu Canyon Road and then Kanen-Dume Road. And when the fires get started it roars, it burns across BCH. You have to stop your car until the fire subside, then you burst through to the next fire. It's -- they just should not be out on the roadways. We've done a 200-foot setback all the way around campus so that the fire will have a hard time getting to our buildings and our students.

WALKER: And I understand that. You know, I do have to say that when I was watching our coverage and I was also a part of it last week, one of our programs -- one of our anchors spoke with some, you know, students who were sheltering in place. I think it was in the library. And you know, when you saw some of the social media video where they could actually see the glow of the fire. I mean, just not very far away, there's a video now, from where they were sheltering in place.

I mean, you know, they were saying that, you know, it was a bit concerning to be there, that it was calm inside. I think one of the gentlemen, the students said that there were 300 to 400 kids sheltering in place at the Pepperdine University Library. But I'd imagine that there are concerns that perhaps, you know, in such a small confined space that perhaps panic might set in. I mean, has that ever happened and is that a concern and some challenges that have been raised by other parents?

BENTON: Well, they can relocate to the library. They can relocate to the gymnasium. They have options. And it all depends on where the fire is and where the smoke is headed. But we communicate regularly to let them know what's safe.

WALKER: All right. Andrew Benton, we appreciate you joining us. Thank you so much for your time.

BENTON: Thank you.

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Still ahead, the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson is revealing American's frustration toward the high cost of healthcare. We're going to tell you what one expert tells CNN about the most effective way to bring real change in the industry, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:40:00]

JIMENEZ: Welcome back. ABC News says it is, quote, "pleased" it has settled a lawsuit with President-Elect Trump over claims the network and its anchor, George Stephanopoulos, defamed him. Now, ABC News has agreed to make a $15 million charitable donation to a presidential foundation and museum and issue a public apology to Trump. ABC News has also agreed to pay $1 million in legal fees to Trump.

Now, Trump filed the lawsuit after Stephanopoulos said 10 times in a single interview that a jury found that Trump, quote, "raped" writer E. Jean Carroll. Well, really, the jury in that civil battery and defamation case held Trump liable for sexual battery, not rape, as well as defamation. Now, Trump has denied any wrongdoing and has appealed that case.

Now, this week, we could learn whether the man accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson will be extradited back to New York. The Manhattan D.A. says Luigi Mangione may soon stop fighting his extradition from Pennsylvania.

WALKER: But the killing has brought to light simmering anger over the U.S. healthcare industry. Here's CNN Correspondent Brian Todd.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Along a Seattle area highway, a digital sign says, one less CEO, then many more to go. In New York City, posters were put up praising the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson with a red X across his picture, other posters singled out another executive.

In Florida, police say a woman who was on the phone talking with Blue Cross Blue Shield about recently denied medical claims said to the representative, quote, "delay, deny, depose. You people are next." Those words were written on the shell casings found at the scene of Brian Thompson's murder. The woman has been charged with threats to conduct a mass shooting or an act of terrorism.

TAMI LUHBY, CNN SENIOR WRITER, HEALTH POLICY: What we're seeing has been unleashed on social media and elsewhere is just all of this pent- up anger and frustration. I mean, we're talking about people's health. This is a life and death situation.

TODD (voice-over): The head of the healthcare conglomerate Brian Thompson worked for, UnitedHealth Group CEO Andrew Witty, tried to address some of the growing frustration with an essay in The New York Times. He praised Thompson as a brilliant, kind man who was working to make health care better for everyone, and wrote, we know the health system does not work as well as it should, and we understand people's frustrations with it. Our mission is to help make it work better.

Witty said his company is willing to partner with anyone to deliver better care at lower costs, but acknowledged, quote, "Clearly, we are not there yet." Witty did little to appease thousands of people who replied to his op-ed with comments. One person writing, to think that the healthcare providers do not also seek to maximize their profits is simply naive. Another saying, I don't know how he sleeps at night on his bed of blood and suffering.

KEVIN O'LEARY, "SHARK TANK" INVESTOR: At this point, social media is now the jury. And it doesn't like what it sees. So, if you're an executive, you know, in interim management, United Health Corp or any other health company, you've got to read the room.

TODD (voice-over): UnitedHealth Group is a for profit company that reported over $100 billion in revenue in the third quarter of this year, and is the largest provider of health insurance in the United States. It has been facing a class action lawsuit since before the Thompson shooting, accusing one of its subsidiaries of using algorithms to deny care to seniors. United says that assertion is false, but the horror stories seemingly never end.

[07:45:00]

Arete Tsoukalas tells CNN she needed a specific drug to treat the leukemia she was diagnosed with. She said her insurer, one of the nation's largest, refused to pay for the drug entirely at first, then said it would pay part of it, but she'd have to pay a $13,000 a month copay. Tsoukalas says she went without the drug for three months, then got it with financial help from the drug manufacturer.

ARETE TSOUKALAS, LEUKEMIA PATIENT: No one should have to fight cancer and insurance at the same time. Some aspects of the cancer treatment felt a lot easier to deal with than insurance. TODD (on camera): CNN's Tami Luhby says she spoke to several health policy experts who told her the most effective way to bring about real change in the industry is only if the current consumer outrage is sustained. She says they told her if that ever dies down, then the insurers will have less incentive to make any real changes. Erica.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: Brian Todd, thank you for that. Let's go now to America's Capitol for more on America's Game.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yes, the 125th edition of the iconic Army-Navy Game. Just the second time ever it was in the nation's capital. Coming up, we will show you the highlights. We'll get the reaction from the coaches and the players. One who said he felt like Captain America. Coming up after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:50:00]

JIMENEZ: Any fan or athlete is going to tell you, there is nothing like beating your biggest rival. Blowing them out though?

WALKER: Navy pulled off a big upset win over Army last night and all the bragging rights that come with it. Of course, our Coy Wire was there. And now, he's here with us, or he's there in D.C. this morning. Hi, Coy.

WIRE: Good morning, lovely people. Yes, bragging rights for a lifetime. We're talking 125th edition of the Army-Navy Games. One of the greatest sporting spectacles in the world. And it was in the nation's capital for just the second time ever. It was awesome. The pageantry, the tradition, dating back to 1890 on full display. Players burst onto the field. Cannons were firing. The flyover. You had that national anthem where tears were flowing. President-Elect Donald Trump, Vice President-Elect J. D. Vance, Elon Musk, and others there, the cadets and mids saluting them throughout the game.

Star of the game, quarterback Blake Horvath, having an Army-Navy Game of a lifetime, scoring four touchdowns, two rushing, two passing, and those two passing touchdowns mean that Horvath now tied the Navy's single season record for TD passes in a season.

Navy wins the 125th game, 31-13, taking a Commander in Chief's Trophy. This is like their Super Bowl. We caught up with their leader, their head coach, Brian Newberry and the mid shipment after the game. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIAN NEWBERRY, NAVY HEAD COACH: It don't get much better than this, man. I'm so happy for this football team. They've worked their tails off. We talked about deserving success all the time. Don't always get it on the scoreboard. We did the night. It couldn't be more happy for our guys.

WIRE: You scored four touchdowns today. What -- are you feeling like Superman or what?

BLAKE HORVATH, NAVY QUARTERBACK: Yes. You know, more like Captain America, I think. But no, so it's just awesome, honestly, to have been banged up all season, to get back out here and just playing for the seniors and playing for everybody, and, you know, it's awesome. It's all I can say.

ELI HEIDENREICH, NAVY SLOT BACK: You know, obviously on top of the world. Just excited how our team came out and play today. You know, both sides of the ball. Just, you know, playing our butts off for our brothers. That's all we can ask for.

NEWBERRY: We said it didn't have to be close, you know, and I think we put an exclamation point on it. We still got a football program in Annapolis. I'll tell you that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WIRE: A rivalry like no other highlighting military members serving all around the world and the future defenders of this nations. Congrats to Navy.

All right. Last night in New York, the Heisman Trophy awarded to the best player in college football went to Colorado's Travis Hunter. The two-way star beat now Boise State's Ashton Jeanty, Oregon's Dillon Gabriel and Miami's Cam Ward. Hunter could become the number one overall pick in next year's NFL draft. He played both wide receiver and cornerback at all American levels. Hunter thanked coach Prime Deion Sanders, his current and former teammates at Colorado and Jackson State, and of course, his family. So, congrats to Travis Hunter. Playing offense and defense is just wild and incredible what he's been able to do. On top of that, a straight A student, an impressive young man.

WALKER: Incredibly well rounded and very impressive. Coy, it's good to see you. Thank you so much. We'll be right back.

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[07:55:00]

WALKER: New artificial intelligence weather models are making weather forecasts faster and more accurate than ever.

JIMENEZ: But they might struggle a little when it comes to predicting extreme weather events. Meteorologist Chad Myers explains why.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, we've all seen weather maps that look just like this, but how do we know it's going to be clear in Texas? Well, the weather models tell us this. We look at them. And this is one that I made a long time ago. I was an intern with the National Weather Service in Silver Spring, Maryland, 39 years ago and this is what the weather model looked like.

Now, we used some human intelligence and sorted that Celsius to Fahrenheit and kind of figured some things out and knew it was going to be a 55-degree low. But then supercomputers took over and everything changed. It wasn't just digits. It wasn't just numbers. Now, we could make graphics. Now, we could take all of this data and push it forward, five, seven days, make it so much better. But this was still human intelligence. Now, we have artificial intelligence.

This is what our model looks like right now. This is how good we've come from just numbers to this. But can artificial intelligence make this even better, make it more accurate? And the answer so far is yes. The Google GenCast looks like out to 15 days, it will help our old models do even better. In fact, outforecast them in many locations.

Now, the problem here with this artificial intelligence model is that we're only looking back 40 years and saying, OK, if this happened today, what's going to happen tomorrow? But is the last 40 years really going to be indicative of what the next 40 years really is going to look like? Maybe not. But at least we have some hope, some increased accuracy hope that we could see things get better with artificial intelligence and the human element here --

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