Return to Transcripts main page

Connect the World

Nick Reiner's Past Examined Amid Arrest for Parents' Death; New Videos Released Amid Manhunt for Brown University Shooter; U.S. Military Says 8 People Killed in Latest Attacks; Zelenskyy Meeting with European Leaders in the Netherlands; Unemployment Rate Hit Four Year High of 4.6 Percent in November. Aired 9-10a ET

Aired December 16, 2025 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ELENI GIOKOS, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: This was the scene in Sydney earlier people mourning those killed in the Bondi Beach attack. As new

details emerge about the shooters, it's now 01:00 a.m. in Sydney. It is 06:00 p.m. here in Abu Dhabi. I'm Eleni Giokos. This is "Connect the

World".

Also coming up, charges could be laid as soon as today in the murders of Rob and Michele Reiner. Police say their son Nick is responsible for their

deaths. And fresh U.S. jobs numbers showing unemployment rose to a four year high in November. We'll speak to an economist live about what this

means for the American economy.

On that note, let's check in to see how the U.S. futures are faring. We're 30 minutes away from the opening bell. And of course, we had those jobs

numbers that came in a short time ago. As you can see, markets not liking what they saw on the numbers front NASDAQ is down four tenths of a percent,

S&P and DOW also in negative territory.

For the month of November, the U.S. economy added 64,000 jobs. That's after losing 105,000 in the month of October because of the government shutdown.

Unemployment ticking up to 4.6 percent. We're going to unpack those numbers later on in the show and importantly, how that's going to influence

interest rate decision making.

In the meantime, I want to start with the new information that we have on the suspect in the Bondi Beach terror attack. Australia's Prime Minister

saying the two shooters, a father and a son appear to have been inspired by Islamic state ideology. Police say they found two homemade ISIS flags in

the car of the younger suspect.

And that both father and son recently traveled to an area in the Philippines that is a hotbed of extremism. Here's more from the prime

minister.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTHONY ALBANESE, AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER: Radical perversion of Islam is absolutely a problem. It is something that has been identified globally as

a problem as well. ISIS is created by an evil ideology that has been called out, not just by the Australian government, but globally as well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GIOKOS: 15 people were killed in the mass shooting targeting Jews celebrating the start of Hanukkah. 22 others are in hospital now, three of

them currently in critical condition. There is also dramatic new video of the shooting, and I must warn you, the footage that you're about to see is

disturbing.

Now it shows the younger shooter on a bridge firing rounds at beach goers below. And police say the other shooter, the father who was killed during

the attacks, had a hunting license that allowed him to legally own the guns. There is also dramatic dash cam video that shows two bystanders

trying to disarm one of the suspects before the attack.

Australia's Nine News reports they were a Russian-Jewish couple from Bondi who were fatally shot and became the first victims of the rampage. We've

got Will Ripley, who's following the story for us, live from Sydney and where it is already early Wednesday morning, and joins us now.

Will, we getting all this new information we're understanding a little bit more about the father and the son, both radicalized. And we've also got

this update on the condition of the surviving suspect injured during the attack. What else can you tell us?

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, a lot of new information has been coming in today, Eleni. We know that the younger

shooter, the son who survived after being shot by police, has apparently woken up from a coma. And we don't know whether he has stayed awake,

whether he's communicating.

We do know that police have been guarding him at St. Vincent hospital here in Sydney. And that at some point he's likely to be charged at his hospital

bed, because he's still very much in serious condition because of the gunshot wounds that he sustained during the attack that he waged on this

community with his father, who died on that bridge when they were fighting off police officers.

Remarkable dash cam video, really that you mentioned just a moment ago, really revealing that there were more heroes in this story than we were

initially aware. Because in the first moments, perhaps the first seconds or minutes of the attack, this couple saw the gunman getting out of a car that

had the ISIS flag, what appeared to the ISIS flag draped on the windshield with a rifle and so you can see the man in the purple shirt just trying to

yank the rifle away from him.

[09:05:00]

Then he took the rifle and he didn't try to shoot him, but he started kind of swinging it like a bat, trying to hit him as his wife looked on,

unaware, apparently, that the gunman had packed many more weapons in the vehicle. So, the gunman grabbed another rifle from the vehicle and shot at

point blank range, the man and his wife and they both died there, right on the side of the street together.

The first two victims of this unspeakably terrible attack that also claimed an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor and a 10-year-old girl who was reportedly

playing on a playground by the beach on what was an absolutely beautiful, sunny Sunday here. It's been pretty cold and gray in the days since, Eleni,

there have been a lot of investigators on the scene from various countries trying to figure out where these men were radicalized.

We learned today, as you mentioned, that they traveled to the Mindanao region of the Southern Philippines, landing in the Southern City of Davao

on November 1, stayed there for about four weeks, receiving what the Philippines government describes as military style training before flying

back here to Sydney about two weeks before they opened fire on the innocent Jews who were celebrating the first day of Hanukkah here at Bondi Beach.

You see behind me, this memorial just continues to grow. There's actually so many flowers they put here. They had to start another memorial in

another area behind the building where I'm standing in front of right now, because otherwise you wouldn't be able to even walk through.

That's how many people have come out to show their respects. The local flower shop down the street is basically completely sold out. You've had

dignitaries coming throughout the day here speaking words of support for the Jewish community, showing solidarity for the families who are now

beginning the painful process of funerals to say goodbye to their loved ones.

And those funerals expected to continue and to pick up, in fact, in the days ahead, Eleni.

GIOKOS: Yeah, Will, I'm really tragic story there. Thank you so much for that update and for being on the ground. Much appreciates for your

reporting. Well, today, Los Angeles police are expected to turn over the shocking double homicide case of Rob and Michele Reiner to prosecutors, and

they say the couple's son Nick Reiner is responsible for their deaths.

The 32-year-old was arrested Sunday night on suspicion of murder. He's currently being held without bail. Now it will be up to the district

attorney's office to charge him. A source tells CNN, Nick Reiner was seen arguing with his father on Saturday at a holiday party hosted by Conan

O'Brien.

We're told the couple's daughter discovered their bodies a day later inside their home in L.A.'s Brentwood neighborhood. Meanwhile, we're also learning

more about Nick Reiner and his troubled past. The 32-year-old spoke frequently about his struggles with addiction.

Nick Reiner co-wrote the 2015 film "Being Charlie" inspired by his own experiences, including homelessness and stays in rehab, which he described

as part of his dark years. It was directed by his father, and the two appeared together on the AOL program build to discuss the movie and their

own relationship.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROB REINER, DIRECTOR: You know, the parent is, your main job is to keep your child safe. So, I would do anything.

NICK REINER, CO-WROTE THE 2015 FILM, "BEING CHARLIE": We didn't bond a lot as a kid. Like, he really liked baseball, I like basketball, and he could

watch that with my brother, but baseball, but I just when I saw him do that, and it was something that I'm interested in, I was like, wow. Like,

he really knows a lot, and like it made me feel closer to him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GIOKOS: Well, CNN's Stephanie Elam is covering the latest from Los Angeles for us. Stephanie, authorities so far have not elaborated on how the

Reiners died or how they determined their son was involved. What are you hearing?

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We will likely learn more today, Eleni, because we are expecting that the Los Angeles Police Department is going to

take what they have found and hand it over to the district attorney's office, and in which case they will decide what to charge Nick with in this

case.

So, at that point, that's when we may learn more details about how this transpires and why they worded it. The Los Angeles Police Department worded

it saying that he was responsible for the deaths of both of his parents. So that's the only time we may learn more before we go further with this case

from law enforcement at this point.

I was out there yesterday outside of the Reiner home. They had already removed the caution tape from the street. They had opened the street back

up, signaling that they had finished their investigation there at the home. So yes, still a lot of questions that do need to be answered.

GIOKOS: Yeah. Look, once the case gets handed over to the DA, it's up to prosecutors to determine those charges, which you've mentioned, but

importantly, to look at the evidence. Give me a sense of what that process is going to look like.

ELAM: So, we have been checking in, and we do know that the Los Angeles Police Department did say that today would be the day that they'd hand that

over.

GIOKOS: Yeah.

ELAM: And what then will happen is the district attorney is going to look at and decide how they're going to proceed.

[09:10:00]

Whether or not they're going to charge him in the homicide, will it be first degree? Was this a planned attack? Do they have enough evidence to

say that this was in the heat of the moment? Those are the kind of things that they have to figure out, because that will decide which degree of

murder that he will possibly be charged with.

But that's why we need more details, and we need more details to come from the district attorney's office to let us know that.

GIOKOS: All right. Stephanie Elam, thank you so much. And I want to move to the urgent manhunt entering day four, the suspect wanted in connection with

the deadly shooting at Brown University. Law enforcement releasing these new surveillance images of a person they want to identify.

The FBI saying this person of interest is male, approximately five foot eight inches, with a stocky build. Here's more from an FBI official.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TED DOCKS, FBI: It's painstaking work. We are asking the public to be patient as we continue to run down every lead so we can get victims,

survivors and their families and all of you the answers you deserve.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GIOKOS: Yeah. Thanks. Later. CNN's Leigh Waldman is following the story for us from Providence. Lee, It's day four. You know, we've got this new

surveillance footage. We saw the initial image of a man wearing black yesterday. How is this investigation progressing?

LEIGH WALDMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Eleni, we know that these agents with the FBI, U.S. Marshals, the law enforcement in this community.

Yesterday, we saw it for ourselves, knocking on doors, sifting through snow, using K-9 units to try and uncover any new evidence around this area.

We're right outside the building where the shooting actually happened. Inside of that building, agents from the FBI from Quantico, are trying to

reconstruct that scene, go over any kind of physical evidence that's left behind. We know that they're going to continue asking the public here in

the community around this university, asking them to contribute any surveillance video that they have.

Anyone who is around this building, the university is putting out a desperate call, give information to investigators, set up an interview,

because they're saying at this point, no amount of information is too small with those new videos and pictures that were released yesterday at that

press conference.

It's the first time we're actually seeing part of this person of interest face. Very first time. Otherwise, we've seen him from across the street or

seen the back of him, but we're starting to see his face here. I asked the attorney general, how significant is this when it comes to trying to solve

this case? Take a listen to what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER NERONHA, RHODE ISLAND ATTORNEY GENERAL: Prosecutors today have been working with the law enforcement agents and police officers to advance this

investigation, and I would describe today's work as making steady progress to identifying the person that we saw in the video that was released

yesterday.

And the sooner we can identify that person, the sooner we can, I think, blow this case open. But that's work that has to happen in the next 24 to

36 hours.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALDMAN: Really pulling at those threads here to try and unravel this case. The attorney general saying that expects over the next few days, the number

of videos that they receive from the public to keep ramping up. Now that people are home from being away from over the weekend, businesses opening

up looking over the surveillance video that they have.

GIOKOS: Yeah, I mean, I'm sure the community, they're absolutely rattled by this. There's been a lot of mixed messaging from authorities, and

importantly, there's a person, a person of interest, that is currently on the run. So, describe the mood there right now.

WALDMAN: I'm really glad you bring that up. You know, we've seen most of the Brown University students leave. Their finals were canceled. Classes

are canceled. They've been sent home for break early. So, the campus itself has really cleared out, but this is where people live.

Their homes border this university, and we were talking to people yesterday as those agents are searching through their community, and they say they're

scared, they're anxious. The mayor saying there's no threat at this point to this community. But we also know from the FBI that this person is

considered armed and dangerous and is on the loose.

So, people here are scared. They don't have no sense of safety right now, because this person is on the loose. We spoke with a student who not only

went through this Brown University experience, she was actually shot six years ago at a shooting at her high school. And I texted her last night.

I said, Mia, how are you doing? Her name is Mia Tretta. And she said she's scared. She doesn't know what's happening. She's looking forward to going

home, but there's an air of uneasiness hanging over all of Providence right now.

GIOKOS: -- can imagine. Leigh Waldman, thank you so much for your reporting.

[09:15:00]

Well, still ahead on the show Congress is expected to get a classified briefing on U.S. strikes against alleged drug trafficking boats in the

Caribbean and Eastern Pacific, will tell you who is expected to attend, that story coming up. Plus, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is in

the Netherlands for more talks with allies. We'll unpack the key issues on the table for European leaders today.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GIOKOS: U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth are expected to provide a classified briefing to Congress today on

strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean and the Eastern Pacific. It comes as the U.S. military says eight people were killed

following a strike on three alleged drug trafficking boats on Monday.

At least 95 people have been killed since September as part of the Trump Administration's campaign against what it says is narcotics trafficking. I

want to bring in CNN's Arlette Saenz live from Capitol Hill. Arlette, great to have you on. As we mentioned, about 95 people have lost their lives

these ongoing strikes on so called narco-boats ongoing.

This is the latest. We're going to get some details on what exactly transpired. So, what are you expecting here?

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, lawmakers are looking for more answers from the Trump Administration, not only about that double tap

strike that killed survivors on an alleged drug trafficking boat back in September, but also about the U.S. military buildup in the waters near

Venezuela.

Many lawmakers have questions about this campaign that the administration has been waging. And this will be the first time that Secretary of State,

Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth are briefing all senators and all members of the House in a classified setting on these tactics now.

In the past, what they've done is Admiral Bradley, the admiral who was overseeing that double tap strike back in September, he came and briefed

the heads of relevant committees. Last week, we saw Hegseth and Rubio here on the hill briefing the Gang of Eight that's the top Democrats in the

House and Senate and on the intelligence committees.

But one big question for the administration and for many lawmakers is whether the Defense Secretary will release the full unedited video of that

double tap strike. That is something that lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have been pushing for weeks now. They believe that to be more

transparent, the administration needs to release this full video so people can see exactly what happened here.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has only said he is reviewing that video to determine whether they can release it, but that is something he could be

pressed on in this briefing. There are various committees who have said that they are interested in conducting oversight into this matter.

[09:20:00]

Just yesterday, Hegseth was up here on the Hill meeting privately with the Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee Roger Wicker. And so there

still remain these bipartisan questions for the administration about that strike, but also the approach to Venezuela writ large.

There are lawmakers in both the House and the Senate who have said that they are interested in potentially seeking war power resolutions. That's

something that would need to be voted on by both chambers, as some have expressed concern about the way that the Trump Administration has been

handling not just the strikes, but also the potential for action against Venezuela.

GIOKOS: All right. Thank you so very much for that update, an important story that's playing out. And of course, we'll bring you an update as it

happens. Now, I want to go to the Netherlands, where Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is meeting European leaders for another day of peace

talks.

He's speaking to allies about potential compensation for Ukraine and the damages that has suffered during the war. Today's meeting follows two days

of talks in Berlin, where Zelenskyy also met with U.S. delegation to discuss a possible peace deal. Earlier, he told the Dutch parliament that

Ukraine and the U.S. had worked in great detail on documents that could stop the war and guarantee security.

And here's what he said about what's next for the two delegations.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE: The American partners have received European direction yesterday, and now I think that after all of

that, the Americans will reach out to the Russians, and then they're -- a meeting will follow between Ukraine and America -- in America on the level

of negotiating teams, maybe on weekend, maybe a bit later, but the sooner the better.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GIOKOS: Well, for the latest on these talks, I want to bring in CNN's Melissa Bell, who's following the story for us, from Paris. Melissa, really

good to see you. I mean, a lot of talk about security guarantees, what that ultimately means. But of course, territorial concessions, there's a big

question mark around that. So how European leaders leaning in, to this issue that is clearly holding things up?

MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, clearly with a great deal of optimism about the fact that those security guarantees,

strong security guarantees, platinum, they were described by one American official that have now been given to the Ukrainians, these sort of Article

Five like guarantees that will help, not just ensure that Ukraine feels safe from potential future Russian aggression, but also that mechanisms

like how the cease fire is policed and monitored take place.

Also, this idea of a multinational force that would be on the ground with American backing. We don't know much about the American back stop to their

security guarantees, apart from the fact that they would not involve American troops on the ground. So, a lot of progress is felt has been made

there.

The big question now is they take these talks back to Moscow, what the Russians are going to have to say about this Ukrainian revised 20 points

now peace plan and the next steps. Of course, territorial questions remain extremely thorny. And there is this idea of an American, this American

idea, rather of a sort of compromise between the Russian, Ukrainian positions that would involve an economic free zone.

But a lot of questions about the detail of that. Certainly what we have heard from Moscow, for the time being, through the mouth of the Deputy

Foreign Minister, Sergei Ryabkov, is that speaking earlier today, is that for now, Moscow does not know what is inside the latest version of the

plans, but will hold firm on things like the questions of what it wants, territorially, also excluding the idea of any NATO troops on the ground in

Ukraine.

So, you see, there's a fair amount of distance still between the Russian position. But what you've seen today really is a great deal of optimism

expressed by the United States through the mouth of Donald Trump himself, the Europeans, the Ukrainians, that this is really the closest we've been

to be able to find a compromise that might, in theory, be able to lead to peace, Eleni.

GIOKOS: All right. Melissa Bell, thank you so much for that update. I now want to get you up to speed on some other stories that are on our radar.

President Trump says he feels so badly for Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai. Lai was found guilty on national security and sedition charges on

Monday.

Trump says he asked Chinese President Xi Jinping to consider his release. The verdict is seen as a sign of shrinking freedoms under Beijing. You're

looking at video showing a Levee Breach along the Green River in Washington state that's near Seattle. Crews are desperately working to repair the

Levee, which failed on Monday, a flash flood warning was issued for more than 45,000 people in that affected area.

[09:25:00]

Organizers of the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles have promised that there will be affordable tickets for the summer games there. Reuters reports at

least 1 million of the tickets will be priced at $28, the decision comes amid widespread criticism of soaring ticket prices for next year's FIFA

World Cup.

And coming up on the show, the delayed jobs data from the U.S. government shutdown is finally out. We'll take a look at what those numbers tell us

about the state of the U.S. economy and how markets are reacting? Plus, our Chief Media Analyst breaks down the merits of President Trump's defamation

lawsuit against the BBC. So, stay tuned for that.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GIOKOS: Welcome back. I'm Eleni Giokos in Abu Dhabi, and you're watching "Connect the World". These are your headlines. Australia's Prime Minister

says two shooters who carried out the Bondi Beach terror attack were inspired by ISIS. Police say the father and the son recently traveled to an

area of the Philippines known to house insurgent groups.

15 people were killed while they were celebrating the start of Hanukkah. 22 remain in hospital, three in critical condition. Today, police in Los

Angeles are expected to turn over to prosecutors the double homicide case of Rob and Michele Reiner. They say the couple's 32-year-old son is, in

their words, responsible for their deaths.

Nick Reiner was booked on suspicion of murder and is being held without bail. Authorities are releasing additional surveillance footage of someone

they hoped to identify as the investigate the deadly Brown University shooting, the FBI says he's approximately five foot, eight inches tall, and

has a stocky build.

They're appealing to the public for any information that may help them locate this person of interest. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio and Defense

Secretary Pete Hegseth are expected to brief Congress on U.S. strikes against alleged drug trafficking boats. The military says eight were killed

in the latest strike in the Eastern Pacific.

At least 95 people have died since September in the administration's campaign against alleged narcotics trafficking. All right, we are a few

seconds to the market open in the United States, and of course, they're going to be reacting to the jobs data that was out about half an hour ago.

I want to take a look at those numbers, because they're going to be very pivotal in driving market sentiment. So, the unemployment rate rose to four

year high of 4.6 percent you've got the non-farm payrolls numbers for the month of November showing an increase of 64,000 jobs.

[09:30:00]

And importantly, if I look at that October number, and this is was really fascinating here, you saw those non-farm payrolls dropping by 105,000. The

reason we saw October numbers being so bad was because of the government shutdown, and importantly, the job losses on the federal front as well, and

that impacted those numbers.

So, what we've also seen is a lot of people coming back into the market looking for jobs, and that's the sound of the opening bell in New York. And

of course, market participants are going to be looking at what this is going to mean for potential rate cuts down the line.

All right, let's look at how the markets are faring as we get into the trading day on this Tuesday. DOW JONES is slightly negative, not too bad.

And of course, we're starting to see how markets are now anticipating and possibly pricing in what these numbers are going to mean for the FOMC come

January.

The DOW is down, NASDAQ as well as S&P in negative territory. On that note, I want to welcome Dean Baker, who's a Senior Economist for the Center for

Economic and Policy Research, and he's here to break us down. Break down the numbers. Take us through what this ultimately means.

It's really good to have you with us. I mean, and frankly, I'm looking at the non-farm pearls for November, 64,000 higher in October, down 105,000.

You've got unemployment at 4.6 percent. How is this playing into the health of the U.S. economy, and does this show signs of whether things are perhaps

getting slightly back on track?

DEAN BAKER, SENIOR ECONOMIST FOR THE CENTER FOR ECONOMIC AND POLICY RESEARCH: Well, it's hard to make sense of these two months in isolation,

because he did have the shutdown, which is a very unusual event, the government shutdown.

GIOKOS: Yeah.

BAKER: Of course, but if you look at the longer-term trend, we clearly have a weakening labor market. So many of us, meaning economists, we're focused

more on the household survey, the unemployment data, because we know the labor force is growing much less rapidly due to conscious policy

immigration.

We've reversed. The Trump Administration is trying to deport people and slowed immigration to a trickle, but a 4.6 percent unemployment rate is

unambiguously bad news. And you look inside that, you know different measures, the employment rate, Trump's made a big point of saying, OK, we

care about native born workers.

The unemployment rate for native born workers is three tenths of a percent above the year ago level. You look at other measures, the number of people,

multiple job holders, it's at 5.8 percent the highest it's been since the 90s. That suggests people feel they need additional jobs.

Wage growth has slowed 3.5 percent year over year. It had been around four with an inflation rate around three. We'll find that on Thursday, that

means very little real wage growth. So, it's definitely a weakening labor market. So, the last two months, again, are hard to figure but taking a

longer period, there's no doubt the labor market is definitely weakening.

GIOKOS: Yeah. I mean, it's very messy on the data fronts as you say. I want you to listen to Karoline Leavitt yesterday, after Kaitlan Collins had

asked a question around why the Trump Administration is paying down the cost-of-living experience for Americans. Take a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: If the economy is as strong as the president has said it is, then why is he telling parents two

weeks before Christmas that they should only buy two or three dolls for their children.

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Look, what the president is saying is that if we want products made right here in America, if we want

them to be made from American small businesses, which is a large part of the reason the president has effectively implemented tariffs, then we're

going to have better quality products right here at the United States.

Maybe you'll pay a dollar or two more, but you will get better quality, and you'll be supporting your fellow American.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GIOKOS: So, Dean, this is super interesting because she's talking about re industrializing the economy and increasing manufacturing jobs. By the way,

manufacturing jobs are actually coming under pressure. And then, of course, she actually went on to start talking about inflation, that it's slightly

lower, but it is still sticky.

I'm wondering whether you believe the Trump economic policy is causing short term pain. Would you say it's longer-term pain that is going to be

inflicted?

BAKER: Well, it's only causing short term pain, and we continue to lose manufacturing jobs. You got about 70,000, year over year. We lost jobs in

November. Manufacturing jobs in November. It's maybe they'll turn around. It's hard to see that. Again, I refer to wage growth slowing.

That's not a good story. We'd like to -- as economist, we'd like to look at what people are doing rather than what they're saying. I think I mentioned

before, with number of multiple job holders rose to 5.8 percent the highest we've seen since 1999 and that's a long time.

Very different labor market. People aren't quitting their jobs. The quit rates down to share of people quitting unemployment due to quits is 11

percent it was at 13.8 percent back in 218, 219 when we had a comparably strong labor market.

[09:35:00]

These are not signs of a strong labor market. So again, sure, anything could happen going forward, but it doesn't look good with all the data we

have in front of us.

GIOKOS: You know the fed cutting rates by 25 basis points last week. Are you expecting that these numbers are perhaps, you know, showing that

there's a need for more rate cuts and deeper rate cuts in 2026?

BAKER: I would, you know, given the data we have today, I would say more rate cuts would certainly be warranted. Now, on Thursday we get the

inflation data, we'll have to see what that looks like. Myself, I'm always much more concerned about unemployment than inflation, but I understand the

fed has to be concerned about both which I am as well.

And we've been above the fed's 2 percent inflation target for about five years, and there's no reason I think we're about to get down to it anytime

soon. So, they have a tough call. Again, for me, I consider the unemployment issue far more important. I mean, inflation is not about to

take off, even though it's higher than their 2 percent target, but if they take the 2 percent target seriously, that's a real problem for them.

GIOKOS: Yeah. Dean Baker, great to have you with us. Thank you so much for your insights. Well, the already big power ball jackpot in the United

States just got bigger. It rose to an annual sized one and a quarter billion dollars after no tickets matched all six numbers in Monday's draw.

This now becomes the second jackpot to reach the billion-dollar threshold this year, $1 billion guys. But we should point out that if a winner

chooses a lump sum payment, which most almost they basically do. They'll have to settle for a mere $572 million before taxes, and the toughest part

of all of this beating the 290 million to one odd, so stay tuned.

Who knows, maybe we'll have a winner by the end of the day. In the meantime, Manchester United have been up and down the season, and their

match on Monday was no exception. An eight-goal fest that left fans wanting more, details on that story just ahead. Stick with CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:40:00]

GIOKOS: I just when you think you've seen it all, Monday's Premier League match at Old Trafford gave us an eight-gold thriller. Manchester United,

we're headed to a second straight win until a late twist. For more of this, we're joined by Patrick Snell, eight goals until. Tell me what happened.

PATRICK SNELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: Hi, Eleni. Yeah, just incredible scenes. Opponents Bournemouth, making an amazing game of this against Manchester

United on Monday night at Old Trafford in North West England.

GIOKOS: Yeah.

SNELL: Bournemouth were going for third straight win at Old Trafford, which would have been incredible. It was back and forth all the way. Bournemouth

never gave up the fight, and, in fact, could even have win it. They had two really good chances, Eleni, in deep into injury time.

They could have won it, five, four, which just would have been heartbreaking for Man United fans. There's a chance there. Right at the end

there, that the United keeper, Senne Lammens keeps it out, just kicking it away with his foot -- with the hair style. And United have this amazing

record at home going back to 1984 that when they've had the lead at half time in a league fixture, they've never lost.

Well, that was on the line as well last night, fortunately for United, they did avoid defeat. So that record going back to 1984 remains intact. Back to

you there in Abu Dhabi.

GIOKOS: Yeah. I mean very -- I mean very good images there, and I'm sure lots of excitement having a draw of that level. But Patrick, you've got

more sports for us right after the short break. And of course, I'll be back at the top of the hour with more news. Stick with CNN. Lots more in store

in the next 20 minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:45:00]

(WORLD SPORT)

[10:00:00]

END