good morning, to our viewers in the usa and around the world. i m john avlon. it is monday, december 18th. it s 5:00 a.m. here in new york, noon in tel aviv, where the u.s. defense secretary is scheduled to meet now with his israeli counterpart. secretary lloyd austin s mission is to press israeli officials on specific milestones for progress in israel s war against hamas, as civilian casualties climb. here s democratic senator chris van hollen talking to abc this sunday. we do have unacceptable levels of casualties. we see loose rules of engagement, way looser than anything that the united states would exercise. we would not drop a 2,000-pound bomb on a refugee camp to target a hamas commander. a senior defense official tells cnn that austin will, quote, want to hear very clear articulation of the israeli self-assessment today. that same official has confidence in the israeli military and so he s there to ask questions and learn more about their plan. elliott gotkine
what a story to start our day. thanks, andy. thanks for joining us. i m john avlon. cnn this morning starts right now. good morning, everyone. so glad you re with us. i m poppy harlow with phil mattingly in new york. there s a lot going on on this monday, december 18th. happening right now defense secretary lloyd austin is back in israel, his visit part of the international pressure campaign for israel to change its tactics in gaza and restart the truce talks, pressure growing after the killing of three hostages by soldiers. republican front runner donald trump using darker more extreme rhetoric in that final sprint, the white house slamming trump for what it calls fascist rhetoric. right now storms gusting up the east coast and the travel delays it could cause this holiday week. cnn this morning starts right now. we begin with defense secretary lloyd austin meeting right now with israel s defense min minister. pressure is growing on israel to change its tactics
reporter: the course will charge $175 for a round with a hover craft and caddie pilot. naturally we asked to give it a try. i felt like i was on a carnival ride in the middle of a golf course. this is a nuts experience. yes, it is. reporter: it may not be the future of golf everywhere, but guarantees fun even if your golf game stinks. darren rovell, abc news, springfield, ohio. looks like a lot of fun. i can t play to save my life, but if i get to drive one of those around and get to go over the water, sign me up for 18 rounds. you can be a cart girl. every tournament i played in beautiful cart girls. cart girls. ruins everybody s golf game. there you go. caddying for tiger. that s fine. i ll do it. what are you doing here, moonlighting for tiger. sure tiger s caddie does those, just reach into y