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What We Know with Max Foster
Judge Dismisses DOJ Cases Against James Comey, Letitia James; Europe Puts Forward Counter Proposal To Trump's Ukraine Plan; U.S. Designates Maduro As Part Of "Terrorist" Cartel; Israel: Hezbollah's Chief Of Staff Killed In IDF Strike; DOJ Asks Judge To Unseal Epstein Grand Jury Testimony. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired November 24, 2025 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[15:00:27]
MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST: A huge setback for Donald Trump in his effort to go after his political opponents.
This is WHAT WE KNOW.
A U.S. federal judge has now dismissed the indictments against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. Both
cases have been tossed out after the judge found the appointment of interim U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan was invalid. Now, the judge said all actions
from Halligan, including the indictments against Comey and James, were, in her words, unlawful exercises of executive power.
The White House just released this statement saying the facts of the indictments against Comey and James haven't changed. And this will not be
the final word in this matter.
Kristen Holmes, live from the White House in Washington, of course, joins us now.
So, they're saying the case stands, but perhaps they accept that the person who brought it wasn't the right one, right?
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPNDENT: Yeah. And one thing to keep in mind here is that the judge did dismiss these charges without
prejudice, meaning that there can be a time in which the charges are brought again. It is not as though he dismissed this based on the charges
themselves or the evidence that was presented, but instead it was about how this interim U.S. attorney had been appointed. The judge finding this
invalid, and President Trump and the White House were deeply involved in every step of this process.
Months ago, there was another U.S. attorney in that same district, the Southern District of Virginia, who essentially had said and told colleagues
that he didn't feel like there was enough evidence in either the Comey or James case to bring those cases to a grand jury and seek an indictment.
That began a political pressure campaign from the White House, from Trump advisers that ultimately led to that U.S. attorney leaving his job, then
President Trump publicly asked the attorney general to put in place Lindsey Halligan. She is a former White House adviser as well as a former personal
attorney to President Trump, and said that she would be willing to take on some of these cases, particularly that against James Comey and Letitia
James.
And that's exactly what she did. Just days after she was brought into that office, she brought those charges in front of a grand jury against James
Comey, got those indictments, and then weeks later brought another case against or brought more charges against Letitia James and secured that
indictment there.
One thing to note is that she actually had no experience in front of a grand jury. She had to be trained on the spot to do this. It was clear that
she was put in this place or put in this position by President Trump as somebody who he knew would act on what she -- what he wanted, which was the
prosecution of his political enemies. So, where they go now, what the White House official or a White House official told me that everything in terms
of next steps is coming through the Department of Justice and the Department of Justice is going to have to decide, do they appeal this, or
do they figure out how to get in valid interim U.S. attorney into this office and then re-bring the charges?
Because, of course, again, as I said, this does not mean the charges are moot. It just means that the U.S. attorney who brought them is herself
moot, apparently. So, the question, of course, also being where does Lindsey Halligan go from here? If they appeal, it's likely she would stay
in the position until after the appeal. If not, then you would probably see her exit this office as soon as today.
FOSTER: Yeah, it seems likely. Kristen, thank you so much.
HOLMES: Thank you.
FOSTER: Now, the Kremlin is pushing back against the European counter to Donald Trump's peace plan in Ukraine, saying, quote, "it's completely
unconstructive and doesn't suit us." That remark comes after U.S. and Ukrainian officials met in Geneva over the weekend to discuss the 28-point
proposal, widely seen as largely favoring Russia; under that plan, Kyiv would have to agree to terms it's long rejected, including ceding its
territory, putting a cap on its military and giving up its NATO ambitions.
But after the talks on Sunday, both Ukraine and the U.S. struck an upbeat tone about the revised proposal.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: We will continue working with partners especially the United States, and look for compromises that
strengthen, but not weaken us, and we will continue explaining how dangerous it is to pretend that aggression is something one can simply
overlook and move on.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: During an interview today on CNN, the E.U.'s foreign policy chief says the focus of talks should be on what concessions came from the Russian
side.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAJA KALLAS, E.U. FOREIGN POLICY CHIEF: We welcome all the efforts to achieve this peace, but we shouldn't take the focus off who doesn't want
the peace, which is Russia? I mean, we haven't heard of Russia making any concessions or any concessions to be asked from Russia because, you know,
we should -- we should be discussing on how Russia would not invade again and how Russia would stop this war and not what Ukraine could or should
give up, because there's one victim and one aggressor in this war.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[15:05:21]
FOSTER: Jennifer Hansler joins us now.
Jennifer, in the last hour, I spoke to the Spanish foreign minister. It does seem that European side is pretty much dismissing those three terms in
this proposal. So, it's getting pretty tough, this negotiation.
JENNIFER HANSLER, CNN STATE DEPARTMENT REPORTER: Indeed, Max. There has been a lot of back and forth. It's hard to overstate how quickly all of
these developments have come just over the past several days. But we have heard from U.S. officials, at least, and the Ukrainians, some tempered
optimism coming out of those talks in Geneva yesterday, we heard from U.S. President Donald Trump in a post on his social media site earlier today
that don't believe it until you see it. But something good may be happening on this front. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who led that U.S. delegation
in Geneva, said that it was the best round of talks in his opinion since the start of this administration on ending the war.
Now, of course, there is a lot still left to be negotiated. He described the peace plan as a living, breathing document. He said that the teams
would still be working to sort of close the gaps that remain on that front. Of course, that initial 28 point plan that came to light last week came
under immediate scrutiny by European officials, by Ukrainian officials, because it did seem to give all of the concessions to Russia, all of the
concessions from Ukraine.
Some of the points that outlined, of course, were Ukraine giving up some of its territory, U.S. de facto recognition of Ukrainian territory that had
been seized by Russia, limits on Ukraine's military size. So, there was a lot of concern, a lot of alarm around that. And then there was further
alarm coming after President Trump indicated that he wanted an answer, an agreement by the Ukrainians, by this coming Thursday.
However, Secretary Rubio, coming out of the meetings in Geneva yesterday, indicated there had been enough progress that that deadline could slide.
Take a listen to what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARCO RUBIO, SECRETARY OF STATES: The important point today is that we have made substantial progress. We have really moved forward. So, I feel
very optimistic that we're going to get there in a very reasonable period of time, very soon. Whether it's Thursday, whether it's Friday, whether
it's Wednesday, whether it's Monday of the following week, we want it to be soon because people are going to between today and the time we deal with
this, more people are going to die.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANSLER: So, obviously, still a push from the administration to quickly resolve this, especially on the heels of that Gaza ceasefire that the Trump
administration has been touting. They want to see a similar quick end to the war in Ukraine. However, of course, there requires agreement across the
board here, right, Max? It can't just be the U.S. saying this has to be agreement from Ukraine, from Russia, and of course, the Europeans who need
to be on board as well -- Max.
FOSTER: Jennifer, thank you.
The Trump administration officially designating the president of Venezuela and his allies as members of a foreign terrorist organization called the
Cartel de los Soles. The designation against Nicolas Maduro and his associates allows President Donald Trump the ability to impose new
sanctions against maduros assets.
But according to some experts, the Cartel de los Soles is not a cartel in a conventional sense, but rather a decentralized network of groups within the
armed forces that are linked to the drug trade.
Stefano Pozzebon joins us now from Caracas.
I mean, how would you describe the group?
STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, Max, I think that what Jeff told you in the last hour and how you presented it in the in this -- in this
question is frankly correct, that we know -- we've been known for years that there is widespread corruption and that Maduro sits at the top of a
government that benefits from illicit trafficking here in Venezuela. I'm not talking only about drugs. I'm talking about, of course, the illegal
trafficking of gold, for example, illegal gold mined in the Amazon rainforest here in Venezuela, other rare earth minerals, coltan, for
example.
But also, this was once the crime capital of South America, with thousands of kidnappings and extortion money that one way or another was funneled
into the coffers and the pockets of people close to the Maduro government. Maduro himself has members of his family being charged and found guilty of
trafficking drugs into the United States.
That doesn't mean that when we think of the Cartel de los Soles, we should think of it as the Sinaloa cartel or the Medellin cartel back in the days,
which are very structured, very organized and highly hierarchical structures that trafficked, had the trafficking of drugs as their primary
objective and goal. The Maduro government sounds more like a power structure, an institution that one way or another benefits from a situation
in Venezuela that in some aspects is almost akin to anarchy.
And it's also interesting to point out that there is not that much trafficking here. According to the figures from the DEA, the Drug
Enforcement Administration from the United States, only less than 10 percent of the drugs that enter the United States actually come through
Venezuela, which is one of the points that the vice president of this country made very, very clearly when she spoke reporters rejecting those
accusations. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DELCY RODRIGUEZ, VENEZUELAN VICE PRESIDENT: Venezuela is neither the producer nor the trafficker of drugs. No, this has been stated in all the
United Nations reports for 27 years from the United Nations office on drugs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
POZZEBON: And on top of those -- of those remarks, Delcy Rodriguez, which was the vice president of Venezuela, once again was welcoming international
guests of the government here as the government has really think, Max, over the last weekend, for example, over the last few days, the message from the
government is business as usual. The message has been that Venezuela is not as isolated as the Trump -- as the Trump White House would like it to be
perhaps.
It's not a situation that is akin to a crisis, and you definitely don't feel like, especially from the government narrative, that we are on the
brink of an escalation, a military escalation here in Venezuela, despite, of course, those images of a what is more than a flotilla actually is a
proper armada with at least 10,000 soldiers and seamen sent down from the United States to put pressure against Nicolas Maduro.
I think that in the last few days, we have seen maduro taking more of a stance and showing that he is the person in charge that is not ready to
bind to that pressure -- Max.
FOSTER: Okay, Stefano, appreciate it. Thank you.
Brazil's former president, Jair Bolsonaro denies he was trying to escape house arrest. On Saturday, Bolsonaro says hallucinations due to a medicine
change led to him to tamper with his ankle monitor. This incident comes just before Bolsonaro was to start serving a 27-year sentence, a prison
sentence for plotting a coup after losing the 2022 election.
Lebanon's president is urging the world to intervene forcefully after Israel carried out the first deadly strike in Beirut in months. Israel's
military says it killed Hezbollah's second in command, accusing the chief of staff of leading the groups build up and armament efforts. Although
strikes in Beirut are rare, Israel frequently targets Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, despite a nearly year old ceasefire.
Nic Robertson is in Jerusalem with more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: This call from the Lebanese president for the international community to put pressure on
Israel, if it is manifesting itself. It's certainly not happening in a public domain, and I think as well, you know, it's a ceasefire that was
agreed a year ago. It's a ceasefire that has come under increasing strain recently. It's a ceasefire, the terms of which the Lebanese government
always felt that they were going to be under pressure because the terms were that Hezbollah would pull out of the border area near Israel's
northern border and the Lebanese army would be responsible for moving into those areas and ensuring that Hezbollah didn't come back.
But the Lebanese army has been woefully underfunded underequipped and fundamentally under ready for this task. When it was first handed to it.
So, I think Lebanon has always felt on the back foot in trying to in trying to sort of meet Israel's expectations and sources I've talked to in Lebanon
have said that they think Israel's expectations are disproportionately high. Nevertheless, the view in Israel is that Hezbollah shouldn't be
allowed to regroup. And over recent weeks, we've seen an increasing number of strikes. Israeli strikes into southern Lebanon, targeting what they say
are locations where Hezbollah is either storing weapons or regrouping, where it shouldn't be per -- per the peace agreement.
You know, I think if you look at the dynamic moving forward, it just tells you the level of stress and strain that the ceasefire is under. And, and
Israel also, you know, on its own side of the border has been having drills, military drills in the north as well as elsewhere to prepare for a
possible Hezbollah counter maneuver. These are drills, by the way, that have been planned for some time, but it's definitely in Israel's mind that
there could be a retaliation from Hezbollah.
But play into that dynamic, if you will, that the pope is visiting Lebanon next weekend. I don't think anyone would expect a massive crescendo, an
escalation of force in the intervening period. But after that, you know, the question of the ceasefire and the question and if you will, demand from
the prime minister of Lebanon, the president of Lebanon, rather for this international move to sort of put some diplomatic shoulders to it behind
the scenes.
[15:15:12]
I think that will -- the need for that may well come into play more as we get deeper into December
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: Our Nic Robertson reporting for there.
Coming up, will the Epstein file see the light of day? We'll get some perspective from a therapist who helps some of the women abused by the late
sex offender.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: Outgoing Republican lawmaker Marjorie Taylor Greene says she has no plans to run for the U.S. presidency in 2028. She addressed the
speculation on her social media over the weekend, saying, quote, "I'm not motivated by power and titles".
Greene announced last week she was resigning from Congress in January after clashing with the U.S. president over the release of the Epstein files and
the future of the party heading into the midterms.
Against a looming deadline, the U.S. Justice Department is asking a federal judge in Florida to reconsider unsealing grand jury material related to the
Epstein investigation. The convicted sex trafficker committed many of his crimes in Florida. A judge in that state has previously denied a request by
the DOJ to make transcripts from the case public.
Now, the Justice Department is being compelled by Congress to release all classified documents related to the Epstein case. But the Epstein Files
Transparency Act, signed into law last week, doesn't specifically mention grand jury materials.
What we don't know, then, is will the Epstein files ever be released?
Joining me now is Randee Kogan. She's a therapist working with some of Epstein's victims.
Thank you so much for joining us, because I know that many of them have spoken about not celebrating this law being signed, because at the back of
their mind, they're thinking there's always going to be a delay in the release of these files.
RANDEE KOGAN, THERAPIST TO EPSTEIN VICTIMS: That's correct.
FOSTER: I mean, what are they saying to you about it? Yes. Sorry. Just take me through how they reacted last week and how they're feeling now.
[15:20:04]
KOGAN: You know, there was -- there was joy with apprehension. They felt that it was a wonderful step forward. And to see the Republican Party and
the Democratic Party work together to support them towards releasing these files was a big step.
However, there is this skepticism. There is a matter of trust. They don't know who they can trust when it comes to the president, because one minute,
he's wanting to release the files and now, we're still waiting and we're waiting and we're waiting.
So, they are so concerned about I put my voice out there. I took an emotional risk. I took a physical risk. And I'm sharing my story. I'm
sharing the impact all of this is having on me. Yet, we're still not seeing any results.
So there's a lot of -- there's a lot of emotional fear associated with all of this.
FOSTER: Virginia Giuffre was very bold, wasn't she, in naming Prince Andrew, for example. But her family have been telling me that they're very
apprehensive about naming anyone else that she mentions in her book because frankly, it should be the authorities that should be naming them, because
they're the ones that should be investigating.
I mean, what are -- what are the other survivors saying about that? Why don't they just come out with the names themselves?
KOGAN: That's exactly right. And also, you know, how much are the survivors going to have to do to get justice? They have gone to Washington
twice already. They have done press conferences. They've done rallies, they've spoken to political leaders.
How much is their responsibility to receive justice or for these individuals who are in the files to be held accountable, how is it the job
of the survivors to be doing all of this and requesting for what is -- what should have been lawful from the beginning? So, it's very disheartening.
FOSTER: How are you motivating them right now?
KOGAN: Well, I'm reminding them how important their voice is. I'm reminding them that that each step that they take, more and more
individuals are supporting them. Each political party is becoming more, you know, more aware of who Epstein really was and who he was associated with.
So, we're hoping that, you know, this support will continue.
But there's concerns about retaliation as well. You know, we've seen a lot of that in the government lately. And they're concerned that, you know, the
administration is going to come after them for -- for using their voice and speaking publicly. So there's a lot of mixed emotions that are going on
here.
FOSTER: A lot of bravery as well.
Randee Kogan, thank you so much for joining us today.
KOGAN: Thank you.
FOSTER: Still to come, a major setback for Donald Trump's Justice Department. Details ahead on why a federal judge is dropping the cases
against James Comey and Letitia James.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:26:27]
FOSTER: Returning to our top story, U.S. president Donald Trump starting off the week with a significant legal loss, a U.S. federal judge has now
dismissed the indictments against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. The judge found the appointment of
interim U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan invalid.
Trump hand-picked Halligan for the role amid increasing pressure to bring criminal cases against his political enemies. A short while ago, James
Comey responded to the judge's ruling on his social media. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAMES COMEY, FORMER FBI DIRECTOR: I'm grateful that the court ended the case against me, which was a prosecution based on malevolence and
incompetence and a reflection of what the Department of Justice has become under Donald Trump, which is heartbreaking. But I was also inspired by the
example of the career people who refused to be part of this travesty. It cost some of them their jobs, which is painful, but it preserved their
integrity, which is beyond price. And I know they will serve again.
This case mattered to me personally, obviously, but it matters most because a message has to be sent that the president of the United States cannot use
the Department of Justice to target his political enemies.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: So what we want to know is how will Donald Trump respond to this legal setback?
Joining me now is CNN legal analyst Areva Martin.
Thanks for joining us, Areva.
I mean, quite a triumphant message, actually from Comey there.
AREVA MARTIN, ATTORNEY & LEGAL AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Thank you.
FOSTER: But at the same time, we've heard from the White House that this isn't over and it probably isn't, is it. because it's legally complex?
MARTIN: Yeah. Rarely are lawsuits over involving the president when he loses that the district court level, we can and should expect that there
will be an appeal of this decision, because we know that James Comey and Tish James are on Donald Trump's retribution list, and he's not going to
stop with one district court judge's ruling in terms of his efforts to go after these two individuals.
But I think Comey put it best when he says, well, I guess that was, you know, his statement about incompetence. I think sums up best what we see
here today. The law is very clear about who has the authority to act as a prosecutor. And Halligan did not have that authority. The Justice
Department failed to take the steps necessary after the 120 days of her interim appointment ended to make her a lawful U.S. attorney general.
So, this is not a shocking decision by this court. And in fact, I would say it was anticipated.
FOSTER: The problem seems to be around her as opposed to the case, though, and the White House is making that point. The case isn't over. Probably is
for her though, right?
MARTIN: Well, absolutely. The judge did not reach the merits of the case. So, the White House is right in that regard. But where the White House is
wrong, is that the law that says that interim attorney general, U.S. attorney only has 120 days in that interim appointment before some action
has to be taken, is a constitutional provision. It's in federal statute.
So, to ignore that 120-day period and to act as if this was some kind of minor technicality, I think, is misguided by this White House and has
caused this this comedy of errors that we've seen with other interim U.S. attorneys who have faced very similar results from district court judges.
FOSTER: What is the strategy here? If we look back on how Donald Trump handles these events and his team. I guess this case in itself doesn't
matter entirely to them.
[15:30:03]
You know, in the past, they've just tried to get things in front of the Supreme Court, you know, a different sort of strategy, really, than what
we're used to. Is that what you think they're trying to do here again
MARTIN: I think that's a part of the Trump strategy, is to get all the cases. As you said before, this favorable Supreme Court or Supreme Court,
that has been quite open and receptive to cases filed by this administration and ruling in ways that are favorable to this
administration. But the reality here is he can't just leap over the district court, and he can't just ignore the fact that this interim U.S.
attorney did not have the lawful authority. She was not a lawfully appointed U.S. attorney that had the ability to sign the indictment, to
oversee the grand jury proceedings involving Comey and Tish James.
So, there is a lot of work to be done by this Justice Department and by this administration. I think, before they're going to have any success with
regards to either of these prosecutions.
FOSTER: For those outside the country who haven't followed the ins and outs of this, just explain how qualified Halligan was for this role.
MARTIN: Not qualified at all. This was her first criminal prosecution. She is not a career criminal prosecutor, which is what we've seen in some of
these other cases where the interim U.S. attorney has been disqualified. In those cases, some of those cases, at least you've had career prosecutors
who also were engaged in the prosecution.
This is a very unusual case because you have this very inexperienced lawyer who's never run a federal, you know, U.S. attorney's office, who's never
prosecuted a federal crime or alleged crime of this nature, who goes into a grand jury who oversees that grand jury, who herself signs off on the
indictment without the assistance of career prosecutors? This is important to note that the career prosecutors said there was no case, that this is a
case against Comey and Tish James that had no legs, and Donald Trump had to go out and find a loyalist in Halligan to move forward.
And we should note that there were some other mistakes that were made along with this presentation to the grand jury. So, again, no surprise here that
this U.S. district court determined that Halligan had no lawful authority. And really sending a message to the White House that it matters who brings
prosecutions under our federal system. And if you're going to have prosecutors bringing grand jury indictments, you better well -- you better
have the lawful appointment, which in this case, the judge made very clear it was not the case.
FOSTER: Yeah, it's pretty clear. Areva, appreciate you as ever.
Now to a fallout from an extraordinary video by six Democratic lawmakers urging U.S. troops to disobey any unlawful orders. The Pentagon is
threatening to recall one of those lawmakers, Senator Mark Kelly, back into active military service so he can be prosecuted. It says it's received
serious allegations of misconduct against the retired navy captain without giving details.
President Donald Trump, who didn't serve in the military, accused Kelly and other lawmakers of sedition last week, suggesting they be executed. He
backtracked from that but said they were in serious trouble.
Senator Kelly says, quote, "I've given too much to this country to be silenced by bullies who care more about their own power than protecting the
Constitution." He says he will not be intimidated by the Pentagon's new threat.
CNN's Natasha Bertrand has more from Washington.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: This appears to all stem from that video that Senator Kelly made with other Democratic
lawmakers, urging service members to remember that they have a duty to disobey illegal orders, and the Department of Defense, which now calls
itself the Department of War. They posted a statement on X saying that they have received serious allegations of misconduct against Captain Mark Kelly.
He was a captain when he retired from the U.S. navy.
And they said, importantly, that a thorough review of these allegations has been initiated to determine further actions, which could include recall to
active duty for court martial proceedings or administrative measures. That is extremely serious and the bottom half of their statement there. It also
kind of gets at why they're doing this. They say that, quote, all service members are reminded that they have a legal obligation under the UCMJ to
obey lawful orders, and that orders are presumed to be lawful. And they said that a service member's personal philosophy does not justify or excuse
the disobedience of an otherwise lawful order.
So just to give viewers a sense of what this is all stemming from, here's a little bit of that clip from last week that really, really angered
President Trump.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. MARK KELLY (D-AZ): Our laws are clear, you can refuse illegal orders.
SEN. ELISSA SLOTKIN (D-MI): You can refuse illegal orders.
REP. CHRIS DELUZIO (D-PA): You must refuse illegal orders.
SLOTKIN: No one has to carry out orders that violate the law or our Constitution.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERTRAND: Now, President Trump has been urging consequences for these lawmakers who made that video saying that what they did was sedition and
treason. And he has been extremely angry about it and urging the department to do something about it for several days now.
[15:35:04]
It's worth noting, though, that service members do have a duty to disobey illegal orders, and the lawmakers who have been in that video, they have
said repeatedly that they were simply issuing a statement of the law. Of course, President Trump does not see it that way. And the Department of
Defense now appears to be obliging him with this investigation into Senator Mark Kelly.
We should also note one last thing, which is that Kelly is not the only veteran in that video, but because he was a senior officer who retired from
the navy, he is required to remain available for recall to the military by law. The other Democratic lawmakers who are veterans, they completed their
service at a lower rank, so they are not eligible for that.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: Natasha Bertrand reporting there.
Now, the author of a report that led to a senior BBC executives resigning says he doesn't think the broadcaster's institutionally biased. Michael
Prescott, a former BBC editorial advisor, compiled a memo highlighting failings within BBC news, including the misleading editing of a speech
given by Donald Trump. Speaking to a parliamentary committee, Prescott says he doesn't believe the BBC is beyond fixing, but says the problems need to
be seriously addressed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL PRESCOTT, FORMER BBC EDITORIAL ADVISER: What troubled me was that during my three years on the BBC's standards committee, we kept seeing
incipient problems, which I thought were not being tackled properly. And indeed, I thought the problems were getting worse. If it had found that it
had been Kamala Harris misrepresented, not Donald Trump, I would have acted in exactly the same way, because I don't want the BBC's coverage skewed
this way or that way. I just want it to be impartial, accurate and fair.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Well, it's the final moments of trade on Wall Street, and stocks are up this week. So far, investors appear to be optimistic about a
December rate cut, fueling gains in all three major U.S. indices.
This is our business breakout.
The FAA predicts this will be the busiest Thanksgiving travel season in 15 years, with an estimated 17.8 million travelers expected to be screened.
Travel has now been steadily increasing throughout the year, with 2025 having eight of the busiest days in TSA history.
The trial of an older oral version of a semaglutide drug has failed to help slow down the progression of Alzheimer's disease. This, according to the
drugmaker Novo Nordisk. The trial was closely watched to see if GLP-1 drugs used by millions for diabetes and weight loss could slow down certain
declines.
Now, the 2026 Met Gala will be sponsored by Amazon boss Jeff Bezos and his wife Lauren, along with Conde Nast and Saint Lauren -- Laurent rather.
Critics of the move say their involvement shows a swift towards -- a shift towards billionaires controlling cultural institutions, and the money would
be better spent elsewhere. However, Bezos and tech firms have been involved with the event for years now.
Uncertainty over the economy has made many U.S. shoppers on edge this holiday season. That uncertainty is pushing retailers to find new and
creative ways to attract customers.
CNN's Vanessa Yurkevich met with the top executive at Old Navy, designer Zac Posen, to see how he's using his creative energy and fashion influence
to win over customers.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Zac and Old Navy, did you see it coming?
ZAC POSEN, CHIEF CREATIVE OFFICER, OLD NAVY: Never.
YURKEVICH: Okay, so what turned the tide for you?
POSEN: This was the opportunity of a lifetime. This is the brand that dresses America.
YURKEVICH (voice-over): Zac Posen, one of America's most well-known couture fashion designers, is now Old Navy's chief creative officer,
overseeing design, merchandise and marketing at the low cost retailer.
YURKEVICH: Where's the Zac Posen?
POSEN: Touch a few places, ill show you. I mean, I'm through out here. I can see different moments here. Beautiful color, story on top there. I
can't talk about holiday without talking about our jammies.
YURKEVICH: Yes.
POSEN: And our jingle jammies.
YURKEVICH (voice-over): Old Navy's holiday pajamas are one of its most reliable moneymakers. It sells millions of them each year during the all
important holiday season. But this year, the brand is betting on new to win over shoppers -- new occasion wear, beauty and a designer collaboration.
YURKEVICH : Anna Sui, that collection is the first designer collection with Old Navy. Was that you?
POSEN: It was.
YURKEVICH: Yeah.
POSEN: I was really proud. I was really excited.
YURKEVICH (voice-over): This season, retailers are taking bigger swings to stand out in a sea of cautious consumers. Americans are spending more
carefully. Tariffs, sticky inflation and rising unemployment are creating an unpredictable holiday season.
HORACIO BARBEITO, PRESIDENT AND CEO, OLD NAVY: If there's going to be uncertainty, we will not participate.
YURKEVICH: How do you not participate? It's inevitable.
BARBEITO: Because we're hosting customers and you know, were seeing them, you know, coming here and really being happy and engaging with merchandise
and, you know, prepare for family moments.
YURKEVICH: But I don't get it. How can you not -- how can you not participate?
[15:40:00]
Because you have to respond to that. The uncertainty.
BARBEITO: Well, we know that they're looking for value. They're looking for, you know, they're also looking for style.
YURKEVICH (voice-over): Old Navy, owned by Gap Inc., has been a key driver for its parent company. It just reported better than expected third quarter
earnings with Old Navy's revenue rising by 5 percent year over year. But tariffs remain a significant headwind.
BARBEITO: Tariff is something that is, you know, across a gross across the industry. Agility is super important. RFID, for example, that we are
rolling out in our entire fleet is giving us that accuracy of inventory position to better flow, better buy, better replenish.
YURKEVICH (voice-over): Here's how that RFID technology works, a shopper comes to the store looking for an extra small green flannel pajama pant,
but its not where its supposed to be. Using antennas in the ceiling and radio frequency to scan merchandise tags on the floor, the associate can
locate those pants anywhere in the store.
YURKEVICH: RFID sounds very efficient, but how does it help the bottom line?
BARBEITO: You don't lose sales or you minimize the sales loss. You don't waste customer trips, you know, which is so important, and especially now
that a lot of customers are coming back to stores.
YURKEVICH (voice-over): But lower income Americans, part of Old Navy's core customer base, are particularly under pressure, so the speed at which
the company needs to both provide affordability and broaden their customer base is even more critical.
POSEN: We were always about the consumer.
YURKEVICH: Right. But I guess in a way that this year maybe just a little bit different.
POSEN: Of course, every year has its challenges. Sometimes it's the economy, sometimes it's the weather, sometimes, you know, it's a change of
an administration. And at the end of the day, people want to look good. They want to feel good. And that line continues. And I think when things
can be more challenging, we rise to the occasion.
YURKEVICH (voice-over): Vanessa Yurkevich CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: Still to come, a head coach in the NBA enters a plea in an alleged mafia backed gambling ring. What exactly happened in court today? Up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:45:11]
FOSTER: Chauncey Billups appears in court for the first time since the NBA coach was accused of helping run rigged poker games for the mafia. Billups
pleaded not guilty in a Brooklyn courtroom on Monday as he faces federal gambling charges. He's now on leave from his role as head coach of the
Portland Trail Blazers.
Thirty other people are also charged in the case, including former NBA player Damon Jones.
CNN's Mark Morales joins us from New York with this, because this has huge repercussions, doesn't it, for, you know, so much of sport?
MARK MORALES, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT REPORTER: It really does. And when we're talking about the NBA, really frankly any sport but particularly for the
NBA because they're not immune to these kind of gambling or these kind of illegal situations. You remember a few years ago they had that referee, Tim
Donaghy, who also was involved in some gambling situation.
But when we talk about Chauncey Billups here, he's become sort of the face of this situation here. And as we've said, he already pled guilty to the
charges associated with him and what prosecutors are saying is that he lured unsuspecting gamblers to this underground mafia run poker game. The
catch was that these games were rigged. And these guys, who tend to be high rollers, had no chance of winning.
Now, he was the only one who appeared in court today that hadn't already gone before a judge, and he had to make a plea. The other 30 defendants
that were in this courtroom had already gone before a judge, and they were here for what was called a status conference, which is basically just the
prosecutors talking with defense attorneys and the judge to take care of housekeeping items. Now, when you have a case of this size, we're talking
about 31 defendants and a major issue here is evidence. There's so much digital evidence between all the cell phones that have been taken using
search warrants, even surveillance footage outside of the locations where they were playing the games.
And that's not even to mention the actual technology that they use to conduct this scheme, which involves x ray tables and card counting machines
that actually tell you what the cards were. So, they knew what hand they were actually playing.
And it was prosecutors who were saying that they wanted a protective order so that they could actually hand all this digital evidence to defense
attorneys. And a lot of the discussion today was how to make sure that this information is handed to defense attorneys in as quick a way as possible,
because as the judge said, he didn't want this case to drag on and was hoping that this could go to trial by sometime next September.
FOSTER: Okay. Mark Morales, appreciate your time. Thank you.
Still to come, Glinda and Elphaba "Wicked: For Good" enchanting duo are back casting a magic spell on the box office. A report on the much-awaited
sequel's opening weekend, after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:50:23]
FOSTER: "Wicked: For Good" cast a spell on the box office this weekend, earning a whopping $150 million after hitting the big screen across the
U.S. and $226 million worldwide. That after outperforming the first chapter of the musical saga.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Couldn't be happier.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's more important than ever that you lift everyone's spirits.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: The Hollywood fantasy film, the adaptation of the timeless children's novel the wonderful "Wizard of Oz", became the second highest
domestic opener of the year. Just behind the live action "A Minecraft Movie".
For more on this, let's bring in Grace Randolph. She's the host and creator of the Beyond the Trailer YouTube channel.
You've actually seen it, unlike me, I'm sorry to say. But you know what was driving the box office here? And will it continue, do you think?
GRACE RANDOLPH, HOST AND CREATOR, BEYOND THE TRAILER: Well, I think that Hollywood is adjusting after the pandemic. And in a world of streaming. And
I think that you have event movies like look at Minecraft being the first one. The biggest, and then also movies aimed at women, I think is a big
thing here.
FOSTER: What -- is it better than the other one?
RANDOLPH: It's a lot more serious. I think the first one is more fun. And I think that's why this one's better, because so many people like the first
one. How about you, Max? Are you an Elphaba or a Glinda?
FOSTER: Well, I have no idea because I haven't seen it like I say, but I go for Glinda, which is easier to say, but it's really hard, isn't it? As
you know, sequels are so impossible to get right? So that's why people are so excited about this, because its worked and its really hard for you know,
the studios to get a franchise going, isn't it?
RANDOLPH: Yes, it is. You know, and I think Universal -- you know, Disney has traditionally had, you know, capitalized on this kind of movie with
their live action fairy tale adaptations. But now, Universal's taking this success and running with it because Sabrina Carpenter just signed on to do
a musical adaptation of Alice in Wonderland, which I think will be very popular.
FOSTER: Yeah. And the music, a big part of it, obviously, but is that clearly something that people are looking for? Is it just the season we're
in?
RANDOLPH: I think that women are looking for movies that are aimed at them. You know, for a long time, Hollywood has tried to get women
interested in the more traditional, like star wars, marvel, and, you know, with the exception of wonder woman, it hasn't really worked. But, you know,
barbie wicked. You know, when barbie came out and was such a massive success, Hollywood's takeaway was, okay, movies about toys. But a couple of
people were like, no, no, its movies aimed at women and the LGBTQ community. And I think this proves -- "Wicked" success proves that that is
the correct lesson to take away from these hits.
FOSTER: Well, they figuring out what women want because they've been targeting women all along, haven't they?
RANDOLPH: Yeah. That's right. You know, women have been very big in the book space. They've been very big in the small screen for a while now. But
I think Hollywood is finally starting to really figure out a way to get them to come out to the multiplex.
FOSTER: And what have you figured out? That you think women want from movies over the last year or so? I mean, what are they getting right here
RANDOLPH: I think it's a mix of, like, both barbie and wicked are very honest about the issues that women deal with. I think in the past,
Hollywood and many different venues have tried to, like, tell women what they think they want to hear. And instead, I think Greta Gerwig's "Barbie",
and then here "Wicked" have really spoken to what women are actually going through. And I think and but still managed to make it fun and celebrate
women. And I think that ends up at the end of the day, being honest, but still very positive.
FOSTER: So, what else have women got to look forward to this year coming out?
RANDOLPH: Well, they're going to see wicked a bunch of times. Some of my viewers saw the first movie 11 times in theaters.
FOSTER: Wow.
RANDOLPH: If this one has the same re-watchability. But I will say that Hollywood's really hopeful. You know, it's been a rough year for them, but
they're hoping and this is a good start to the holiday season. But they want to see "Wicked", "Zootopia" and "Avatar", all sequels, all perform
well. And this is a good start to that run.
FOSTER: Yeah, it's incredible, isn't it? Grace, thank you so much for joining us.
RANDOLPH: Thank you.
FOSTER: Jimmy Cliff, the smooth voice singer who helped popularize reggae, has died at the age of 81. A star since the 1960s, he helped bring the
sound of Jamaica to a global audience through hits like "Wonderful World" and "You Can Get It If You Really Want".
(MUSIC)
FOSTER: The Grammy Award winning artist cliff was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010, the only Jamaican apart from Bob Marley to
achieve that incredible honor.
Finally, tonight, a Ukrainian refugee who fled the Russian invasion wins an elite level sumo wrestling competition in Japan. The 21-year-old was
praised for his rapid rise to the hyper-competitive sport. After winning the November grand sumo tournament on Sunday. Japanese media say the sumo
wrestling governing body is considering promoting him to the second highest title.
I'm Max Foster. That's WHAT WE KNOW.
Stay with CNN. More after the break.
END
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