clear thanksgiving morning. and this great city. it is the annual macy's thanksgiving day parade. the holiday staple returning to its prepandemic form after no crowds were alolowed last year because of the pandemic. macy's estimates 2.5 million people are there this morning. this as new covid cases are about half of what they were one year ago, when no vaccines were available to the public. yet the threat of the virus still very much looms over this holiday. the u.s. is averaging just under 100,000 new infections every day. and dr. fauci says things could get worse, especially if unvaccinated people gather in large groups without masks. especially today. those warnings are not stopping travelers from getting where they need to be in time for thanksgiving dinner. tsa says it will screen 2.3 million travelers at airports nationwide, the most in one day since the beginning of this pandemic. and while it will feel good to be with loved ones, this may be the most expensive thanksgiving ever for families with prices hiked on everything from turkeys to cranberries and inflation has pushed the average dinner cost up 5%. that's according to the u.s. agriculture department. let's begin with some great news this morning, my friend miguel marquez joins us from the macy's day parade. what a day, miguel. people are back, by the millions. >> oh! >> reporter: it is spectacular, look, they are expecting 2.5 million people here for this parade. but, look, 28 floats, 15 big balloons, and the crowds today have been amazing. this side chanting happy -- let's hear it, happy, that side chanting thanksgiving. happy thanksgiving! >> happy -- >> thanksgiving! >> reporter: amazing. everybody has been so kind. the police officers as they come up and down get cheered. the sanitation workers as they're working get cheered. that's the parade just kicking off now, you can see tom turkey all the way down there. they have the floats. many new balloons this year as well, including baby yoda, that we're all excited about. but i want to talk to this family here, the mchughes from cincinnati, first time seeing this -- this is mom katie, introduce everybody here, katie. >> katie, this is littlliana, d and my husband. >> reporter: welcome to new york. what are you thankful for? >> our family and friends. we have an amazing support group in cincinnati. >> reporter: this parade was truncated enormously last year, how nice is it to be here and what does it say about where we are as a city, as the country, as the world. >> it feels like we're almost getting back to normal. we're able to be in crowds again and see family. we're visiting family in new jersey that we haven't seen in a long time. so, be able to see family and friends is great. >> reporter: what are you looking forward to? >> i'm looking forward to seeing family this thanksgiving because it has been crazy with covid. and it is kind of getting back to normal. >> reporter: do you want to see a float, balloon, which one are you looking forward to? >> pikachu. >> reporter: pikachu. of course pikachu with evie, a new float this year. very exciting. thank you very much. have a -- what are you thankful for, sir? this lovely family. >> our family and good stock market. >> reporter: that's a good one. i'm going to send it back to you. just a great day to be out here, the sun is shining, it could not be a better return for the macy's thanksgiving day parade. back to you. >> it is one of those perfect new york days. miguel, i want you to get one of those hats. i think you need one of those turkey hats for next hour. miguel, thank you very much. the tsa screened more people yesterday than on any other day since the start of the pandemic. more than 2.3 million people passed through security checkpoints ahead of today. that marks the seventh straight day that tsa has screened more than 2 million people. the holiday travel spike comes as the justice department cracks down on unruly air travelers, our pete muntean joins us from reagan national this morning. pete, good morning. happy thanksgiving. what are we looking at? >> reporter: the association of flight attendants said it is about time for something like this, for unruly passengers to go straight to jail. attorney general merrick garland is telling federal prosecutors, u.s. attorneys, that they must prioritize these cases, because the issue here is that the federal aviation administration, which oversees the skies, cannot press criminal charges against ugly unruly behavior on board flights. it can only assess civil fines. look at the numbers here. 5300 reports by flight crews to the faa of unruly passengers on board planes, just this year. 266 enforcement actions have been initiated by the faa, but of those, only 37 of the most extreme cases have been referred to the department of justice. so we're talking a tiny fraction here. passengers who assault, intimidate or threaten violence against flight crews do more than harm employees, they prevent the performance of critical duties that help ensure safe air travel. he also says the doj and the faa are committed to higher information sharing. the faa did just fine a new slew of passengers, including one $40,000 for allegely sexually assaulting a passenger on a flight this year. this is extreme, nothing we have seen like it before. any other year, these numbers are really off the charts, and it is happening as so many people are coming back to air travel, 2.3 million people, and likely that number will go even higher as we get later toward the end of this week. >> it is. and, by the way, let's not forget, these flight attendants were the people working through the whole pandemic, and being there for all of us. so to have to have this, it is unfathomable. i'm glad doj is getting involved and on top of it, pete, thank you. happy thanksgiving. as loved ones get together this week to celebrate thanksgiving, dr. fauci is encouraging everyone to be careful, all in hopes of preventing further spread of covid-19. listen to this. >> we can get the unvaccinated vaccinated. we can get those who have been vaccinated boosters. and we can be prudent and careful when we go to indoor congregate settings to make sure we follow the cdc recommendations of wearing a mask. if we do that, it is within our power to prevent a big surge. >> let me bring in, dr. william schaffner. happy thanksgiving. thank you for joining us today. >> good to be with you, poppy. happy thanksgiving to you too. >> happy thanksgiving to you. i'm one of many households in america, where we got most people vaccinated. but little kids, right, so my 3-year-old is not able to be vaccinated yet. my 5 1/2-year-old has one shot so far. i say this because i wonder what everyone going to someone else's hat or ha house can do to stay safe? >> we could go out quickly and get a rapid test for any number of people, right? that would let us know that if you're negative, then our confidence would increase, that we can get together safely. excuse me. and, of course, thinking about the next set of holidays coming along, christmas, kwanzaa, new year's and the others, it is still time to get vaccinated before then. we have all those people who are unvaccinated, the people who do need boosters and the children, 5 and older. we need to get them all vaccinated. >> that's right. okay. so one startling number that i saw just came out yesterday from the cdc, is that only one in eight eligible children in this country have received their first vaccine dose. only one in eight, you know. i have my daughter singing all i want for christmas is my two vaccines. she wants her second one. she literally made that up the other day. when you see a number like that, how troubling is it to you? >> well, it is a start in our vaccination program. yes, parents have to be reassured that this is a good thing for their children. ask your pediatrician and family doctor. they are trusted, they are there for you, please, have that conversation and i hope you will get your children vaccinated. >> what do you think is going on in europe right now? they're tightening restrictions. you've got the world health organization predicting europe could suffer another 700,000 covid deaths by march. why is this happening across the continent? >> yeah, as enthusiastic and warm as we are now here in thanksgiving, looking at europe, and actually some of our own states, which are seeing upticks in cases, it is too early for mission accomplished. you need to keep vaccinating the unvaccinated and the people who need boosters in children and continue to be cautious if you're older, you have an underlying illness, if you're immunocompromised, keep wearing those masks, particularly indoors. we need to protect ourselves because this delta variant can throw us curveballs as it is in europe at the present time. >> okay. dr. schaffner, good advice to everyone, thank you. have a nice holiday. >> and you. >> still to come this morning, ahmaud arbery's mother speaking out after all three men charged in the killing, the murder of her son were found guilty of murder and now face additional federal hate crimes charges. also, the rising cost of your thanksgiving meal likely a topic around the table this year. is inflation here to stay? we'll speak with kevin hassett, will get his take. and two more large scale robberies overnight, with groups of thieves targeting high end stores, making off with tens of thousands of dollars of merchandise. details on the recent wave of smash and grab crimes ahead. ♪i want to break free♪ (vo) ready to break free? let's get away to a place where we can finally be free. ♪i've got to break free♪ (vo) plan your getaway with norwegian. sail safe, feel free. sustainability is essential to creating a better tomorrow. that's why cisco is committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2040. and we believe our smart buildings solutions can help. providing power to reduce emissions, intelligence to eliminate waste, and collaboration tools that help the workplace and the planet. between meeting human needs and a sustainable future, there's a bridge. cisco, the bridge to possible. subway® has so much new they couldn't fit it in their last ad. like new smashed avocado and artisan italian bread. 100% wild-caught tuna. hold up! 100% wild-caught tuna ain't new! subway®'s always had 100% wild-caught tuna! y'all tried to sneak one in on the chuckster! from the very first touch, pampers, the #1 pediatrician recommended brand, helps keep baby's skin drier and healthier. so every touch will protect like the first. pampers sales are down from last quarter, but we're hoping things will pick up by q3. yeah... uhhh... doug? [children laughing] sorry about that. umm...what...it's uhh... you alright? [ding] never settle with power e*trade. it has powerful, easy-to-use tools to help you find opportunities, 24/7 support when you need answers, plus some of the lowest options in futures contract prices around. get e*trade and start trading today. the three men found guilty of murder in the death of ahmaud arbery now face the possibility of multiple life sentences in prison. but defense attorneys for travis mcmichael and his father gregory mcmichael and neighbor william "roddie" bryan say they plan to appeal the convictions. let's go to our national correspondent ryan young who joins us from brunswick, georgia, following this whole trial. ryan, good morning. the judge in the case has not even set a sentencing date yet, but the question is if paroled, there is a mandatory life here. but the question is the possibility of parole. and if he will allow that and it will be considered. what do we know? >> reporter: that would be -- that would be interesting, in fact, withe were asking the questions yesterday, haven't gotten an answer to that yet. sentencing could take place sometime soon. let's not forget, they could be facing a federal charge when it comes to this. you think about the emotions that were involved yesterday, you think about the two weeks, the more than two weeks that were involved in this case in terms of putting on this testimony. it was very interesting to watch how everything sort of just exploded when this verdict came out yesterday. especially outside. and just listen to wanda cooper-jones talk about that moment and how she moves forward. >> this is a second thanksgiving that my family and i will share without ahmaud. this is the first thanksgiving that we can look at that empty chair and say we finally got justice for you, ahmaud. i'm very, very thankful that god gave me the son of ahmaud, he gave me the assignment as ahmaud's mom. i'm very, very thankful for the people and the community, the people in the state of georgia, the people in the united states of america who stood with us, supported us through this huge long fight that we finally got the chance to say we got justice for ahmaud. >> reporter: you think about her composure, all the things she had to see in that courtroom, some of the video, some of the pictures were very tough to watch and then you have the defense attorney who talked about his hygiene at one point, all very emotional moments in court, and the sobbing that happened inside that court. you can all understand it. one thing that we can't really remember ever seeing before, a prosecutor walking out of koort to cheers, almost like a football stadium yesterday, with the amount of cheers that linda dunikoski got as she walked out. she talked about putting it in the hands of the jury. and you talk about that judge when is going to have to make that final decision when it comes to sentencing, that judge coming from chatham county, putting his strong hand on all of this, it was very interesting to watch how all this played out. the relief in this community is something you can feel. >> yeah. and how many prosecutors and d.a.'s hands this case went through before it even got to hers is just remarkable as well. ryan young, thank you for the reporting. joining me to talk about this our senior legal analyst former federal prosecutor elie honig. if it were not for so many things, elie, this trial may never have been, had that video not been turned over by one of them to the local radio station, i mean, there are so many things that came to play in this happening and now the sentence. you've got a mandatory life sentence for the malice and felony murder convictions and then the question of whether parole will be entered in. >> yeah, poppy. the judge under georgia law has to sentence all three defendants to life in prison. these offenses were eligible for the death penalty, technically, under georgia law, but prosecutors did not seek the death penalty here. only real question for the judge at sentencing is two questions. one, will he give each of the defendants a chance of parole, or no parole. parole means when under certain circumstances you can get released from prison early, would be way down the line, but the question for the judge is does he want to give any of these three defendants a chance, decades from now, to be released from prison? and the other question is will the judge impose one life sentence on each or multiple life sentences. sometimes people hear, well, this person was sentenced to five life sentences, rationally think, a person has one life what is the purpose of that. it is sometimes to make a point. the judge wants to make a point. you'll more see that where there is multiple decedents. if one person is killed three people, that's where you see three life sentences. here, even though they were convicted of three, four and five different counts respectively of murder, it all relates to one incident, one life sentence each. >> or for a general deterrence, motivation though, right? that's also something to consider if he were to give multiple life sentences. >> absolutely. judges want to think about deterrence, they want to send a message to other people, obviously the most unacceptable thing you can do to kill another person, judges also try to seek proportionality. one life taken, one life sentence. >> elie, ahead in february is another trial, and that is the trial over federal hate crimes charges, that, by the way, before georgia changed its law, not that long ago, couldn't have even been. these are additional criminal charges, can you talk about what that would look like and what that will look like? >> yes, poppy. so this is a completely separate indictment and this trial is scheduled for february 2022. it will happen, it would have happened regardless of yesterday's verdict. if they had all been found not guilty, if they had all been found guilty on everything, this one is charged a little differently because as you note, pop poppy, at the time of the murder, the state of georgia did not have a hate crimes law. they do now, largely because of ahmaud arbery's murder, but federal law has had a hate crimes statute on the books for a long time. but in the federal case, the big difference is the racial motivation is part of the charge. in the georgia trial, the racial motivation was a subtle subtext of the prosecution's case. but in the federal case, it is going to be front and center and if they're convicted federally, they're looking at federal life sentences and the state life sentences. >> elie honig, thank you on all of this. we know you'll be across it as we wait for the sentencing and the federal trial as well. happy thanksgiving. >> thanks, poppy. happy thanksgiving to you too. i'm sure the discussion today, thanksgiving tables, will be how expensive it is all is right now. inflation very much showing up at the thanksgiving table. we'll take the pulse on the state of this economy next. ♪ ♪ dad, why didn't you answer your phone? ♪ your mother loved this park. ♪ she did. ♪ this is the new world of work. each day looks different than the last. but whatever work becomes... the servicenow platform will make it just, flow. whether it's finding ways to help you serve your customers, orchestrating a safe return to the office... wait. an office? what's an office? or solving a workplace challenge that's yet to come. whatever the new world of work takes your business, the world works with servicenow. ♪ ♪ to all the kisses... ...that led... ...to this one. celebrate every kiss, with kay. president biden and his family are keeping to their tradition of spending thanksgiving on nantucket. this thanksgiving biden is largely expected to stay out of the spotlight. today arour arlette saenz is traveling with the president. what a great place to spend the holiday. we got a message from the bidens for the holiday. what do they have planned today? >> reporter: well, poppy, the biden family descended on the island of nantucket, massachusetts. a place they have been visiting for more than 40 years. the president skipped that tradition last year, due to the pandemic, but once again, his entire family is here, gathering for the thanksgiving holiday. a short while ago, the white house released a thanksgiving message from president biden and first lady jill biden where they talked about those who have lost loved ones, due to the pandemic. and also offered special thanks to the meilitary. take a listen. >> you know, as we gather together again, our table and our hearts are full of grace and gratitude for all those we love. as commander in chief, i'm especially grateful to our service members and their families for the sacrifices to our nation. >> reporter: now, the bide vnz been coming here for quite some time. if you walk down the streets and the stores and restaurants, often times people have stories of a waiter serving a cheeseburger to the president or him showing up at the annual christmas tree lighting. as president, he can't move as freely. we'll see if he pops up anywhere over the course of the next few days. >> okay, and, arlette, we are also learning this morning that president biden had a polyp removed during that colonoscopy last week. what more can you tell us? he seems in great health this morning. >> reporter: well, the white house last night released a letter from the president's physician dr. kevin owe coner who revealed that a 3 millimeter polyp was removed from the president during a colonoscopy last week. further testing showed that that polyp was benign, but potentially precancerous. he had a similar polyp removed back in 2008. and he's been advised he will get another colonoscopy in seven to ten years, but that letter from the physician last week, the initial summary, of course, did not include that detail, it wasn't until five days later that the white house revealed that had happened. >> arlette, thank you. have a good holiday. there is a lot to be thankful for this thanksgiving, including this, the u.s. recording its lowest weekly unemployment number since the beginning of the pandemic. the lowest since 1969. kevin hassett is with me this morning. he's distinguished visiting fellow at the hoover institution and also the author of a new book "the drift: stopping america's slide to socialism," a decade in the making. congratulations on getting it out. good morning. >> thank you, poppy. i hope you got your turkey in before you went to work today. >> i'm not doing it. my husband -- i'm making everything else. my husband is grilling the turkey for the first time. tbd on how it turns out. >> good luck. >> bless him for doing that. let's talk about the broader economy. we have inflation concerns which we'll get into. we have a really jammed up supply chain. but you got the lowest unemployment since 1969. you got retail sales up 16%. a record stock market, and the broader economic story is good for this white house, but consumer sentiment is at a ten-year low. why the disconnect? >> i think consumer sentiment is responding to the fact that inflation is the highest we have seen in a long time. and it is just like an economic reality, that people's wages don't adjust as fast as prices. so prices have gone up a lot this year. and maybe people's wages will go up a lot. i don't know when your salary gets changed, a lot of people it is january. and then maybe they won't be quite so unhappy because the wages will have caught up to prices. people don't have a lot of money left for food at the grocery store. on the claims data, there is a sense in which it is a negative sign because the firms are having such a hard time finding new workers, they have completely stopped letting goes of guys that maybe aren't performing. claims are about the lowest on record. economists talk about when you don't get many hires, you don't get many separations and the whole economy is congealing because firms can cas can't fin workers. >> moody's says a lot of this concern that the build back better plan is passed, it is going to have a limited impact on inflation. what do you think? >> i agredisagree with that. the bill, like, even if we accept the cbo score, i know the committees for responsible budget says it is off by a factor of two, forget about that right now. they have got a big expansion of the child credit or continuation of expanded child credit, big expansion of the affordable care act, maybe a couple hundred billion dollars for public housing, all of that money is more or less spent on first year or two. and then the pay course, so you say, okay, aggregate demand, aggregate supply -- so right now we have inflation running really high, and then we're going hit the economy with a dollop of more government spending in the next year and there is no way it doesn't make inflation go from the 6 we're at now to double. >> so most of the spending hits will start hitting next year, and is spread over a decade, but i understand your concerns. i think we're all concerned, we want the white house to be right that this inflation is transitory. we all hope so. but if it is not, the reality is, kevin, isn't it, that the administration doesn't have a lot of levers to pull. >> no, they don't. the lever to pull is what ronald reagan did, that inflation happens when demand runs ahead of supply, so if you want the fed can attack demand with interest rates, but you can also feed supply by having business friendly tax cuts, which i don't think those will possibly be on the table with biden. you're right, the spending is spread out over ten years. a they are shooting the fire hose at the economy next year of spending. and given the supply disruptions that we have right now, if the inflation ends up being transitory, then it will be one of the bigger shocks in my economic life and it will be the first time that has ever happened. once you get to six where we are now, you usually get to ten. >> i'll also say this say unique moment in that we haven't had an economy like this pulling out of a pandemic in this way. so there are a lot of unknowns. let's see, let's hope it is tran transitory. i want to ask you about the bipartisan, let me emphasize bipartisan infrastructure bill that passed. you got the former president trump targeting the republicans who voted for it, you, yourself, in your piece for the national review called infrastructure spending one of the better things the government does with its money. what is your message to any of your fellow -- any republicans who are targeting those 13 of their fellow republicans for voting for this thing. >> well, poppy, you know, you've known me for a long time, i'm not a political expert and whether it helps democrats in the next election or -- >> i mean, about what it does for this country. >> i don't know -- i'm saying, exactly so the piece i wrote was it is actually positive for the economy, spread out over many years, with inflation being high it is a good thing. the america infrastructure is one of the worst in the world. so spending money on that is really hard to get too excited about. the people getting upset about it are thinking politically about, oh if this passes, they get to do more over here and that's just not a game that professional economists -- >> i hear you. all right. good for you for staying out of that. final question. and i'm really intrigued and confused by this, so obviously there is major pain at the pump for so many people. but, the president making this decision, which was at least in part political, if not more so, to release 50 million barrels from the strategic petroleum reserve, it is like 2 1/2 days of gas, gas experts say it will lower prices, best case 15 to 20 cents a gallon in a matter of weeks, which does matter. i'm interested in why you think the price of gas is so high. when you compare as an asset class oil to the rise we have seen in other asset classes, it is risen only half as much. so why is gas so much more expensive? >> you know, the gas market is a pretty weird one that i ended up spending a lot of time on. basically every state or every region has different rules about how much ethanol you need to have and things like that. you can't shift gas from one part of the country to the other part of the country very well. and so when you get pockets of the country that have disruptions, the prices, like right now in california, some places with five bucks a gallon, i pay $4 a gallen in connecticut on my way to massachusetts celebrate thanksgiving. those pockets are seeing especially high increases, but the release from the strategic oil preserve, another way to put it in perspective is that we build pipelines to stop the disruptions, and if you open the keystone pipeline, you deliver about a month the amount of oil that president biden released. so these localized disruptions explain the huge spikes in gasoline prices and some places where gas is still in the $3 range around the country. >> okay, hope for some relief for a lot of folks. kevin, have a wonderful holiday. >> good to see you too. a rash of smash and grab robberies targeting high end stores with tens of thousands of merchandise just gone. details just ahead. as i observe investors balance risk and reward, i see one element securing portfolios, time after time. gold. your strategic advantage. hey, it's ryan reynolds. as owner of mint mobile, my goal is to spend as little as possible on things like commercials so we can pass more savings to customers. and when i saw what they're charging for holiday-themed stock videos these days, well, you can see what i decided to do. and that means we can afford to offer the samsung galaxy a12 and premium wireless together for just fifteen dollars a month. so let's all just use our imaginations, 'kay? just imagine me someplace festive no, no, don't make it weird. ♪i want to break free♪ (vo) ready to break free? let's get away to a place where we can finally be free. ♪i've got to break free♪ (vo) plan your getaway with norwegian. sail safe, feel free. there's a different way to treat hiv. it's once-monthly injectable cabenuva. cabenuva is the only once-a-month, complete hiv treatment for adults who are undetectable. cabenuva helps keep me undetectable. it's two injections, given by a healthcare provider once a month. hiv pills aren't on my mind. i love being able to pick up and go. don't receive cabenuva if you're allergic to its ingredients or taking certain medicines, which may interact with cabenuva. serious side effects include allergic reactions post-injection reactions, liver problems,...and depression. if you have a rash and other allergic reaction symptoms, stop cabenuva and get medical help right away. tell your doctor if you have liver problems or mental health concerns, and if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or considering pregnancy. some of the most common side effects include injection site reactions, fever, and tiredness. if you switch to cabenuva, attend all treatment appointments. with once-a-month cabenuva, i'm good to go. ask your doctor about once-monthly cabenuva. what if you could have the perspective to see more? at morgan stanley, a global collective of thought leaders offers investors a broader view. ♪ we see companies protecting the bottom line by putting people first. we see a bright future, still hungry for the ingenuity of those ready for the next challenge. today, we are translating decades of experience into strategies for the road ahead. we are morgan stanley. the tempur-pedic breeze° makes sleep...feel cool. because the tempur-breeze° transfers heat away from your body... ...so you feel cool, night after night. save up to $500 on select adjustable mattress sets during the tempur-pedic black friday event. ♪ ♪it's a most unusual day♪ ♪feel like throwing my worries away♪ ♪as an old native-born californian would say♪ ♪it's a most unusual day♪ ♪it's a most unusual sky♪ ♪not a sign of a cloud passing by♪ ♪if my heart won't behave in the usual way♪ experience the power of sanctuary at the lincoln wish list event. frieze president biden is reaffirming support for ukraine. they're seriously considering sending military advisers and extra weaponry to ukraine as the country says nearly 100,000 russian troops are amassed near its border. this comes as the u.s. embassy in kiev warns american citizens of unusual russian military activity and the security conditions could change with little notice. right now both russia and ukraine are reportedly stepping up military readiness with combat drills. let me bring in retired major general james spider marks. good morning. it is good to have you. i wish it were on better news. but you got -- there you go. your shot froze for a second. you got this warning from the state department which also follows a warning from the state department telling americans not to travel to ukraine, their advisory level is now at a level four. how plausible at this point is a wider war between russia and ukraine? >> well, what's really troubling about all this is that it does not look like what happened in 2014 when russia occupied c crimea. different circumstance. what russia has now is forces in ukraine in support of ukrainian separatists, they also have crimea which we understand, but they also have forces on the border. there are two corpses. what happened is russia infiltrated forces into crimea and on command the forces put on their uniforms and took over all the element, that infrastructure of government occupied. it was an elegant operation when you look at it. what we see now is the application of very precise, very large kinetic force. the likelihood is frankly it is really a tossup. the challenge is that clearly what putin does at the tactical level is he's very aggressive, wants to poke holes and find gaps in where those alliances and partnerships might exist within europe, and clearly with the united states. the challenge that we see now is clearly this administration, the biden administration is being tested. on the heels of what might be perceived globally as a form of, you know, decreasing power and influence. so that's where we are right now. this is brinksmanship, is what we're looking at. >> so what do you do if you're the biden administration, we know from our reporting they're considering sending weaponry, even potentially helicopters, would have been sent to afghanistan before the pullout, you got this proposed lethal aid package being considered as ukraine is warning publicly that an invasion they believe could happen as soon as january. there are some that are concerned that if the u.s. were to step it up and send weaponry, for example, that could be seen by russia as a major escalation. and that that could back fire. >> yeah, this is all about balance, right? look, the ukrainians in the united states have had a warming relationship, but we got -- we got issues because when we establish our relationships, we always have criteria that in many cases the other nation can't meet, right? a lot of corruption issues, et cetera. but in this particular case, the united states has said -- has had some very robust foreign military sales and some -- you describe as a lethal package of aid that has been available. we want to make that available. we also want to make sure the russians understand we have this dialogue with ukraine, they understand that, but that we are in fact going through with this aid package. and what we sent to the ukrainians is important. there should be defensive weapons systems. not anything that would give the russians the perception they want to try to push or extend what the current boundaries look like. because you have to acknowledge that the russians are in ukraine right now, supporting separatists. that i that needs to down. >> major general spider marks, thank you for your expertise. every day and special for coming on this thanksgiving. i hope you have a good one with your family. >> thanks so much. you as well, poppy. >> thank you. large groups of thiefs in california strike again, targeting two more high end retailers. up next, how investigators are responding to what has been a surge in the brazen smash and grabs hitting the state. ♪ ♪ there are beautiful ideas that remain in the dark. but with our new multi-cloud experience, you have the flexibility you need to unveil them to the world. ♪ with voltaren arthritis pain gel. my husband's got his moves back. an alternative to pills, voltaren is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory gel for powerful arthritis pain relief. voltaren, the joy of movement. from the very first touch, pampers, the #1 pediatrician recommended brand, helps keep baby's skin drier and healthier. so every touch will protect like the first. pampers feel stuck with student loan debt? move to sofi and feel what it's like to get your money right. (phone chimes) ♪ ♪ ♪ i jump up on the stage ♪ ♪ and do my money dance ♪ ♪ i throw some money up ♪ ♪ and watch the money land ♪ ♪ i do my, i do my i do my money dance ♪ move your student loan debt to sofi - you could save with low rates and no fees. earn a $500 bonus when you refi... and get your money right. ♪ i do my money dance ♪ ♪ limu emu... & doug ♪ ♪ superpowers from a spider bite? i could use some help showing the world how liberty mutual customizes their car insurance so they only pay for what they need. (gasps) ♪ did it work? only pay for what you need ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ spider-man no way home in theaters december 17th ♪ ♪ ♪ find the silver lining in flight delays. vacation starts at the airport with centurion lounge access. one of the many reasons you're with amex platinum. well, groups of thieves have once against targeted high-end retail stores in california. this time they hit an apple store, a nordstrom, making off with over $20,000 worth of merchandise. these are the latest in a series of smash-and-grab incidents across the country. here is the reporting. >> reporter: oakbrook, illinois, a coordinated smash-and-grab swarm overwhelmed security at a louis vuitton store, more than 100 grand was stolen. in downtown san francisco this past weekend, another vuitton store. >> this is not a problem limited to san francisco. >> just outside the city, burglars made their getaway from a nordstrom's saturday night. an employees was pepper sprayed during the brazen raid. >> probably saw 50 to 80 people, with ski mask, crowbars, a bunch of weapons. three arrests were made, two guns recovered. sunday night another raid 59 another bay area mall. >> the thing we are not used to is the these groups' willingness to use firearms and shoot at people. in downtown l.a. another store hit, $15,000 worth of damage. this mall had beefed you have securities after the protests that follow the murder of george floyd. >> you saw these bad guys with 20-pound sledge hammers having a difficult time to break a window, because all our windows have ballistic film on them. >> reporter: authorities promising. >> these people need to be held to account. we need to investigate they crime and break up these crime wrings and need to make an example out of these folks. >> reporter: in oakland this weekend -- >> we will have tactical teams deployed. >> reporter: but even when cops are quick to the scene -- [ bleep ]. >> this is insane. >> reporter: with a mob, many will still get away. so why is this happening right now? the store are fully stocked for the hole dales, and there's also a market for stolen goods this time of year. and some experts tell us, the penalties for this crime just aren't high enough. here in california, for example, if, steal goods worth $950 or less, that's not a felony. that's just a misdemeanor. nick watt, cnn, los angeles. nick, thank you for the reporting. a tense situation ends thankfully peacefully. next, what authorities say unfolded for more than 12 hours inside the home of everson griffins. pain in the... alice? if it's "let's wrap this up" season, it's walgreens season. sales are down from last quarter, but we're hoping things will pick up by q3. yeah... uhhh... doug? [children laughing] sorry about that. umm...what...it's uhh... you alright? [ding] never settle with power e*trade. it has powerful, easy-to-use tools to help you find opportunities, 24/7 support when you need answers, plus some of the lowest options in futures contract prices around. get e*trade and start trading today. ♪ ♪ cases of anxiety in young adults are rising as experts warn of the effects on well-being caused by the pandemic. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ small businesses like yours make gift-giving possible. now, comcast business has an exclusive gift for you. introducing the gift of savings sale. for a limited time, ask how to get a great deal for your business. and get up to a $500 prepaid card with select bundles when you switch to the network that can deliver gig speeds to the most businesses. or get started with internet and voice for $64.99 per month with a 2-year price guarantee. give your business the gift of savings today. comcast business. powering possibilities. well, the minnesota vikings offensive end everson griffen is out of his house without incident, getting the care he needs, after he allegedly fired a weapon in his home wednesday morning and refused to leave for a number of hours, he did tell authorities that someone entered his house and needed assistance. just so glad this ended passfully, coy. >> as you mentioned everson griffen is safe after posting a disturbing series of videos that have since been deleted deputies and mental health officials went to his home early yesterday morning after he called 911. he told dispatchers had he had fired a weapon, but no one was injured. no intruder was found. here's the vikings' general manager on the incident. >> their family is our family, and it's important at this moment that we respect the health, the safety and well-being of everyone involved in this situation. i notice he's receiving the care and the support he needs along with his families. >> the four-time pro bowler played his first ten season in minnesota, spent time with the lie jsz before returning to the vaccine. he has a wife, three children. the whitest post on instagram was a day ago, celebrating his wife and one of their sons' birthday. >> coy, thank you. happy thank gisthanksgiving. aim so pleased to be with you today. welcome to a special edition of "newsroom." it's beginning to look like a normal-ish thanksgiving. the parade, about 2.5 million people expected to be there. no crowds were allowed last year because of covid-19. americans get back to the normal holiday travel routines. the tsa screened 2.3 million travelers yesterday, the most in