coming. i commend them in just being able to gather thoughts in that last minute when they didn't even know it was happening. . >> so chappelle said if they exceed the donations of those neutral or in favor, i will gladly step aside. if not, i will happily attend the naming ceremony, which we should mention was postponed. the principal said the stories -- the source stories have been inaccurate, devoid of context and neglected to include the nuances of art. as an art institution, we educate our students on the importance of media literacy and art as a free and open form of expression to both reflect and challenge society. what do you say to that? >> so what i say to that is, first of all, she is doing, in my opinion, a horrible job of fostering the students in her care now. her job right now is to groom and shepherd the artists in her care. not pander to one that came through 20 years ago when i finished -- well, dave finished duke ellington a year before i got there. so currently she is basically handing the keys to the kingdom to dave chappelle and not listening to the students. and it would have been okay if she had fostered a genuine space of communication between dave and the students. the concerned students. maybe they could have met offline and had a real conversation. and then all gone into assembly together to talk to the rest of the school. nothing like that ever happened. and frankly, you know, there are lots of things that could be named after dave chappelle after duke ellington. name the rehearsal studio, studio a, the hraoeb, the cafecalf taear -- the library, the cafeteria. the ones who are taking the stand is the ellington theater is sacred space. this is where they to and put their authentic selves on the stage. the ellington theater is always open to students. even as a student there, i would go in after a rough day and take a minute and just have some self-reflection and meditative time. for the kids who are feeling like dave chappelle mocks their existence, they don't want to walk under his name to get into that theater. it's a really sad situation that could have been handled a lot better. . >> allyson finch wilson, i want to thank you so much for being here. and the best to your son. i appreciate you being with us. . >> thank you. "new day" continues right now. welcome to our viewers here in the united states and around the world. it is monday, november 29th. i'm brianna keilar with john berman. this morning it's hard to tell which is spreading faster, the omicron variant or the fear of it. there's so much we don't know at this point. is it more contagious, is it more deadly, can it evade vaccines? simply, we don't know. it could be two weeks before we do know just how big a problem this new covid variant will be. now, overnight, the united states banned entry for noncitizen travelers from south africa and seven neighboring countries of south africa. at least 44 other countries are also imposing these travel restrictions. and a growing number of countries are now reporting confirmed case of the omicron variant, including canada. >> the variant has not been detected in the united states yet. but health officials say it may already be here. on sunday, president biden met with dr. anthony fauci and other members of the white house covid team and releasing this photo in a statement that reads, dr. fauci informed the president while it will take two more weeks to have more definitive information on the transmissibility, severity, and other characteristics of the variant, he continues to believe that existing vaccines are likely to provide a degree of protection against severe case of covid. want to bring in chief medical correspondent dr. sanjay gupta. sanjay, i went home from work thursday, it didn't exist. by thus night, the fears had really taken over the world. so what do we know? >> yeah. there are several things that we do know about this. and this is all very recent. and there are several things we don't know. let me talk about what we already know. we have been tracking this for just a little bit of time now. first of all, it was first described in botswana. and this was back on november 9th. that was the first sample that was collected at the time on november 9th. so, again, just two or three weeks here that we're talking about. it's now been detected in all of these other countries that you see on the screen. and it has all of these mutations. they are important because these are a consolation of mutations they have seen in other variants. beta, another variant, that was of concern several months ago because it seemed to have mutations that suggested it might start to escape immunity. it has some of those. it has some of the mutations of delta, which made it more transmissible. what happens? does it start to dominant all of the characteristics? some, none. that's what we don't know yet. here's a bunch of other things we don't know, the big things. how transmissible is it. i heard dr. karim earlier talking about this. it appears to be more transmissible because so many more people have become infected and the slope is just steeper than they have seen with delta. at least in that small area. how sick does it make people? i'm going to come pack to this in a second. we don't know this for sure. i'll let you know how they are tracking some of this data. will the current vaccines work against it? how about if you have been infected in the past and have infection-acquired immunity. we don't know that but there is some concern that the previous immunity may not be as effective here. i was pulling some of the raw data out of this province where it saoepts to have originated. just looking at hospitalizations over there. over the past three weeks. and you can see hospitalizations have gone up. this is sort of their late spring season right now. so this is less likely to be flu. could this be an indicator of what is starting to happen? we don't know. again, that's the sort of data they're tracking to see, look, this is here. is it making more -- people more sick. that's track hospitalizations. >> and also, when you're looking, sanjay, at vaccination rate in south africa and surrounding countries, that's not helping for sure? . >> right. no. i think that's very clear. when you look at the vaccination rates, you can sort of align them with how quickly this sort of variant starts to grow. the big question, though, as we have talked about almost since the beginning with these vaccinations in terms of preventing infection versus preventing serious disease. we know that they can be very good at preventing serious disease across the board. that's likely to be the case here as well. there is something known as the cushion effect. i put this full screen together for you. i want you to look at this. when we talk about escaping immunity, people think, well, is the virus sort of getting around the antibodies? the way to more think about this is these vaccines provide this sort of cushion effect of antibodies, way more than you really need. against the current virus, it is 1 to 1,000 cushion effect. with the mu tated virus, it may start to drop off. that is the first indicator of this sort of escape in immunity. we don't know that for sure, but that is going to be a big concern. it makes a stronger case even for boosters you want to get more of that cushion effect so that no matter the variant, it can provide you some of the protection. >> sanjay, you said you were going to come back to the issue of is it making people more sick. we talked to the professor in south africa. and he said right now, no. but it's too early to tell. . >> yeah. i think that's the case. let's put up that hospitalization graphic again. this is that particular province that we're tracking very carefully. and if you look at hospitalization rates over the last three weeks, they have gone up. they have been higher at other place in the pandemic. but they are going up. this is their late spring over there. you know, we know, severe illness, hospitalization, seems to be a lagging indicator. two to three weeks. i'm going to be watching closely to see if the numbers continue to go up. again, we're not even sure that's directly related to this particular variant, omicron. but it might be. that's how granular they need to get to try and figure out is this in fact, causing the illness. >> a lot of maybes. i know it will take a few weeks. later today they will say vaccines and boosters are the best thing we can do if it becomes more serious. thank you, sanjay. the markets and businesses already reacting to this. what will this mean for the economic recovery? christine romans joins us now. . >> let's say mights and maybes are not good when you are talking about investing. uncertainty is the enemy of markets. omicron, that ricocheted around the world. investors reached for the worst-case scenario, this march 20th defensive crouch. the dow tumbled 905 point. big losses for the nasdaq and the s&p 500. oil prices, john, collapsed on the fear that the global economy will slow. this morning a feeling that might have been an overreaction. markets do tend to overreact. asian shares closed lower. europe has bounced abouting this morning. and you have slight games in stock index futures. does the new strain evade vaccines and immunity? and is it more transmissible. it could take a couple of weeks to start answering the questions. it's still a covid economy and there is a scramble on to understand how this could alter what is by all accounts a strong finish to the economy this year. does omicron mean the fed doesn't taper as soon as planned. do crashing oil price put an end to the 30-year-highen tphraeugz trend? could it be disinflationary. the s&p 500 is up 22% this year. it is double where it was spring 2020. and the reason stocks are up so much, companies are making money. the economy is heading into the winter pretty strong. home prices are at record highs, wages are rising. before friday,en tphr inflatione biggest worry. then omicron. we have a couple of weeks of watching and waiting. . >> it will be two weeks. it will be tough on the markets. but even will have to watch and wait. thank you so much. look, with so many questions right now with the science still at work here, the last thing anyone needs is politics. yet some still insisting on injecting it here. why ukraine's president said he could be the target of a coup attempt any day now. >> the tragic death of a college student in what is being described as an under ground fight club. at capella university, we know the world is pretty smart. wicked smart. so we made flexpath smart enough that you can finish the bachelor's degree in business you've started in 18 months for $18,000. that's smart. capella university. don't just learn. learn smarter. i brought in ensure max protein, with thirty grams of protein. those who tried me felt more energy in just two weeks! 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of course not. texas congressman labeled omicron the midterm election variant and claimed democrats are using it to win elections. on fox tv, in reference to secretary of transportation paoepblg, listen to this. . >> and now we see this. that is the answer. more lockdowns, more lockdowns, more fear. and therefore he doesn't have to do his job of fixing the supply chain. we will just keep this thing going. . >> always a new variant. . >> count on a new variant every october. . >> joined by se cupp. and john. . >> that didn't happen overnight where three people who are intelligent who have done this for a while. i know there's people decide, well, i have a big platform. i'm going to say a very dangerous new variant, 9,000 miles away. . >> potentially new variant. >> potentially dangerous variant 9,000 miles away, they are convinced the host country to believe in this, which sounds bonkers. it sounds bonkers. and yet all three of them kind of in unison, oh, yeah, cavalierly joking this is probably a political invention. it is irresponsible. but that's the floor. that's evil. that is evil. to get up and tell your viewers don't worry about it. it's probably just made up. so don't believe any of the other science. don't believe about vaccines or boosters or anything else because it's probably just democrats. i don't know another word for that. . >> it is certainly beyond cynical against the back drop of three-quarters of a million americans dead. they are playing to the cheap seats, two scenarios here. ronny jackson, who is a doctor, we will get to that. pandemics don't care about poli politics. >> it's absurd to think any democrat thinks this helps them. that is ridiculous in and of itself. either this is a real huge problem or it's not. let's hope it's not. but let's not spread lies while we're waiting. >> john knows this as well as anyone. there used to be moments of the past 100 years, very intellectually rigorous debate within the movement. the rise of ne-yo conse conservativism. the project of the republican party today is real similar. it's dumb in its simplicity. ready. part. tell people they are a grieved. part two, tell them who is to blame. anthony fauci is to blame. big bird is to blame. ill haar omar is to blame. you might think you are happy but you're not. you're aggrieved. that's the only project. it keeps repeating and repeating and repeating. it's working in con depositsing the base. it's not growing the pays, but it is certainly making them more rabid and susceptible. >> you keep people addicted to anxiety and anger. it goes back to the southern strategy here. . >> she. . >> at least there was a degree of civility and substance. that's out the window right now. so i think what we need to stay focused on is, look, mentioned we >> tony: what this new variant holds. we don't know the severity. the impulse to project your fears or polarize for profit off this stuff is almost irresistible to people month have a financial interest in this polarization. it is difficult to combat this onslaught that exists. but that's what responsible actors and journalists need to do. we will have to wait and see without freaking out. . >> that's a challenge. i do think the lies and the idoccy said, how do you tell people we have to wait and see, is this nothing to worry about. it is a high bar. . >> it is. here's a crazy idea. president of the united states should talk to their fellow citizens like reasonable faults. it might be lost on a lot of folks. it may be easier to try to play the base politics, scare the hell out of everybody and try to find somebody, you're aggrieved. talking people eye to eye instead of talking down to them, might actually work. that's what joe biden need to do. and the administration needs to know they are facing a huge d disinformation amplification team. they need to put the going us on facts rather than fears. . >> there has been this idea to kind of ignore the crazy. not to feed into it. i think biden needs to call this out and said what you just heard on fox is insane. it makes no sense. it's bonkers. and take it head on instead of pretending it's out there in the basement. it is not. it's above ground. . >> can i ask what you make of this back and forth between dr. fauci and ted cruz. i want to know if this is what you're talking about. let's play some of this exchange on cbs. . >> senator cruz told the attorney general you should be prosecuted. . >> yeah. i have to laugh at that. i should be prosecuted? what happened on january 6th, senator? . >> do you think that this is about making you a scapegoat to deflect -- >> of course. >> -- on president trump. . >> of course. you have to be asleep to not figure that one out. . >> it is a shame they have to take on that kind of criticism. tony fauci is not above reproach. he should be held accountable for the things he does and says. that's not what ted cruz and rand paul are doing. they're making him the avatar of all of your grievances because nothing matters and they don't have to prove it. so tony fauci is getting on television and says that's crazy and look in the mirror, senator cruz. you need more of that. >> you have to play offense with facts. the demonization of anthony fauci has been about they frequenting away from donald trump's horrific mismanagement of covid from the beginning. you see people fund-raising off demonizing anthony fauci and conspiracy theories emergemergi. you need to make sure you are not respond with add homonym attacks but things that are rooted in fact. you need to take the additional leap, look, we are going to call this stuff out, talk to you like adults, use statistics and science, realizing that some folks may be deep in the grip of this disinformation industrial complex. but we're not going to let that tail wag the dog in the national conversation right now. and we can have real criticisms that are substantive and fact paved without following into this partisan nonsense. . >> thank you both. ukraine now bracing for a possible coup and a russian invasion. yes, that's a warning from the ukrainian leader himself. former ambassador who testified in the first trial next. >> a stowaway is found in a miami plane's landing gear. exposed dentin to help repair sensitive teeth. my p patients are able to have that quality of life back. i recommend sensodyne repair and protect withh deep repair. your record label is taking off. but so is your sound engineer. you need to hire. i need indeed. indeed you do. indeed instant match instantly delivers quality candidates matching your job description. visit indeed.com/hire this black friday, do you want a tv? or do you want. the place on the tv? as a dj, i know all about customization. that's why i love liberty mutual. they customize my car insurance, so i only pay for what i need. how about a throwback? you got it. ♪ liberty, liberty - liberty, liberty ♪ uh, i'll settle for something i can dance to. ♪ liberty, liberty, liberty, liberty ♪ ♪ ♪ only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty, liberty, liberty, liberty ♪ ♪ (vo) reflect on the past, celebrate the future. season's greetings from audi. a dazed 26-year-old man found in a plane's lander gear in miami. a lot of people are looking and asking how could that person survive. >> reporter: typically they are not survivable, brianna. it has been happening sense the early days of aviation. this is a 26-year-old man. customs and border patrol said was hiding in the landing fear of 1182 from guatemala city to miami. you can see him stumbling around there which adds up there. the air not breathable. 33,000 feet. it is not pressurized like the cab in where you and i sit. also incredibly cold. maybe 50 depress below zero. he would have faced hypothermia and hypoxia. it says, persons are taking extreme risks when they try to conceal themselves in confined spaces such as an air cyst. this incident remains under investigation. the latest data goes to 2015. between 1947 and 2015, 137 people. of those, 76% were fatal. typically men who were very young. brianna. . >> pete, thank you so much for that report. ukrainian president zelensky says a group of russians is planning to carry out a coup this week. there is a russian troop buildup on the border that sparked fears of invasion. matthew chance is live in kiev with the very latest. matthew. >> reporter: yeah. that coup that the ukrainian president is warning about is scheduled to take place, planned to take place on the 1st of december or the 2nd of december. so just a couple of days from now. he didn't make any evidence public. he said the intelligence agency gathered things like audio recordings on had, you know, ukrainians and russians were captured plotting in conjunction with ukraine's richest man to engage in that coup. all this falls into the general threat that has gripped ukraine. you have these warnings of covert russian-packed action. and these much more overt concerns as well. u.s. government administration warning of a buildup of russian troops near the border of ukraine, possibly poised to invade the country for, you know, a second time. it's all taking place the few days and few weeks as the pressure builds inside ukraine and there is a sense that something bad is going to happen. it's a real crisis information here. there is political debate inside domestically. and debate in the united states as well. particularly around nord stream 2, a strategic fas pipeline. they are reuping their bid to have sanctions imposed on the pipeline. on the one hand to be warning of a russian in innovation of ukraine and on the other hand, biden administration pushing to keep sanctions away from that pipeline >> lucky to have you there watching the situation. please keep us posted. all right. let's get more with bill taylor, former u.s. spore to ukraine. you may recall he testified during trump's first impeachment hearing telling his employees to establish a quid pro quo with ukraine. all right. we are watching a lot of buildup of russian troops outside ukraine. we are hearing from the president about a coup. he says there is going to be a coup that coincides with a demonstration that is going to happen. do you think there is going to be a coup? . >> brianna, i don't think there is going to be a coup. either from ukrainians or from russians. clearly there will be a big demonstration later on this week, as your reporter said. those have to do with an intelligence operation that the plug was pulled on. and an anti-oligarch bill signed. the law goes into effect in the spring. it has caused a lot of concerning among people. they are demonstrating against that. this question of coup i think is an example of the concern about the russians. as you say, building up on the border. there's real concern about the military movement. the russians clearly don't want to have ukraine succeed. . >> so what is zelensky doing here? is he trying to get eyes trained on the region as there is concern about a russian invasion? . >> transparency helps him. because if people are watching what the russians do, then they can't get away with any covert action. so that could be something that makes people look at what's going on in ukraine. he has concern because they have done it before. they invaded ukraine in 2014. mr. beauty in invaded ukraine in 2014 when mr. putin thought ukraine was slipping away from him. the pro-russian president fled and went to russia and mr. beauty in was concerned, so he invaded crimea. . >> when you're looking at where russian troops are, what russia is saying, as the foreign intel chief says, hey, there are no plans to invade ukraine, what do you see? . >> we see the capability. we see the capability both on the ukrainian border. we see russian troops building up in crimea, occupied crimea. so they could come up from the south. we see the russians and belarusians coordinating on the north. on three sides, ukraine is concerned about military action sponsored by, executed my the russians. so there is a real concern about capabilities. . >> all right. we'll keep watching. capabilities. is he going to move forward? we don't know at this point. ambassador, thank you. . >> brianna, thank you. >> up ahead, we will talk to the nba star who says he will legally change his name hours from now. a college student dies after an amateur fraternity boxing match. his parents join us next. it's the black friday sale. get 30 to 50% off everything. ♪ ♪ this is how we shine... at zales. the diamond store. my nunormal? fewer asthma attacks with nucala. a once-monthly add-on injection for severe eosinophilic asthma. nucala reduces eosinophils, a key cause of severe asthma. nucala is not for sudden breathing problems. allergic reactions can occur. get help right away for swelling of face, mouth, tongue or trouble breathing. infections that can cause shingles have occurred. don't stop steroids unless told by your doctor. tell your doctor if you have a parasitic infection. may cause headache, injection site reactions, back pain, and fatigue. ask your doctor about nucala. find your nunormal with nucala. serena: it's my 3:10 no-exit-in-sight migraine medicine. it's ubrelvy. for anytime, anywhere migraine strikes, without worrying if it's too late, or where i am. one dose can quickly stop my migraine in its tracks within two hours. unlike older medicines, ubrelvy is a pill that directly blocks cgrp protein, believed to be a cause of migraine. do not take with strong cyp3a4 inhibitors. most common side effects were nausea and tiredness. serena: ask about ubrelvy. the anytime, anywhere migraine medicine. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ experience the power of sanctuary at the lincoln wish list event. c'mon caleb, you got this! and if you don't, there are other options! umpire: ball! good eye! good eye! eyes are good for lots of things. like reading! be the best, caleb! statistically impossible, caleb. umpire: strike three, you're out! you'll get 'em next time! or you won't, probably won't. and it won't impact your future whatsoever! talk to us about college planning today. feel comfortable about tomorrow. massmutual. xfinity rewards are our way of thanking you just for being with us. enjoy rewards like movie night specials, xfinity mobile benefits, and the chance to win tickets to see watch what happens live. hey, it's me. plus, get holiday gifts for everyone on your list with great deals on fan favorites from today. join over a million members by signing up for free on the xfinity app. our thanks. your rewards. this morning a family is seeking answers after a life has been cut too short. nathan collapsed shortly after the bout and died four days later, according to statements from the university and from his family's attorney. according to an online flyer, valencia was one of the fighters participating in the card's main event. his family's attorneys tell cnn he had no prior boxing experience. on saturday night, what would have been his 21st birthday, a vigil was held to remember nathan. one fraternity brother said he was the best person that anybody could ever ask for. joining me now are nathan valencia's parents, cynthia and michael valencia, and joined by their attorneys nicholas sew and ryan zimmer. cynthia, i am so incredibly sorry for what your family is going through. we see these pictures of your son. we hear from his friend what he was like. he was clearly a beautiful, beautiful person. what can you tell us about him? >> he truly was. to me he was perfect. he was our baby. he was fold's greatest gift to us. our world revolved around him. he had such a great personality. and i think that's why everybody was drawn to him. he loved life. like, he had such charisma. fun loving, very loyal. i mean, he was just perfect to me. i thought because i was a parent i was biased. but hearing from all of his trends how he affected their lives, as a parent, he was just perfect. >> yeah. look, his friends love him and tearily miss him, as does his family. i wonder if you can tell us. look, we see -- we've heard this description of this being an underground fight club. if you look at it, this was an organized event. it was publicized. it was something to raise funds for charity. i wonder what you have learned about what happened and what happened to your son? . >> well, what i know is when he first mentioned to me that he was going to be joining that fight night. what i said, what do you mean fight night? he said it's fight night. and i said what do you mean? i said like box? he said yes. i said, no, you have to back out. he said, no, i can't back out, mom. this is for charity. so i made sure -- i kept asking him, are you going to be protected, are you going to be wearing head fear. and he said, yes, of course. this is for charity. so he was saying, mom, you worry too much. this is just a charity event. so come to find out, he was going to be the main event. and i was like how did this happen? but he was telling me -- he kept telling us, no, this is for people who didn't have prior boxing experience. because he never was a poxer. he truly was just to go this because it was for charity. >> and so what happened that night, cynthia? >> so that night we got a call from his life. she called nathan's tad saying that the fight was over, but they think that nathan suffered a concussion because he had collapsed. so we rushed to the hospital. but like what we've heard was he was laying on the floor waiting for paramedics for about 15 minutes. because they didn't have paramedics on stand-by at the site. >> and, michael, do you know if safety protocols were followed here? >> i don't think so. if there was safety protocols, my son would be at the house now and he would be 21. he would be having a good thanksgiving and everything. so i don't think there was safety in place. . >> can you tell us anything about what you've been told about who the referee was? >> well, i guess like in the past they have also had professional referees, right? but what we heard this time is they just pulled some random guy from capa, is that right? yeah, capa. that's what we believe. and we have videos showing the referee was drinking, as well as the judges. during the event. >> so you're saying this was a referee from a fraternity who was in charge of making the calls about obviously whether to go or stopping this. nick and ryan, maybe you can speak to this. as i understand it, and please correct me if i'm wrong here, this was an event that was held many years here annually practically. the weigh-in, is that right, was on campus at the school and publicized? what is the role of the school here -- what is the accountability of the school? . >> well, so, you are correct. the way it was held on campus, this was an event known to the university. it's been held many times in years past. so the school absolutely had notice of this. apparently had no care or concern for safety regulations, making sure the referees were professional and there were paramedics on site. so there was a lot of moving pieces of course. it just appears there were safety failures at every single step of this process. again, you were correct, the weigh-in was held on campus. that would have been a roomed reserved by kappa sigma from terpblt. there would have been social media posts. . >> the fraternity and unlv put out a statement. the fraternity also greatly saddened, sending their condolences as well. look, a lot of questions here to be answered i think just days after this event. and we're going to stay on this, scynthia and michael. before i let you go here, i just want to give you a chance to reflect on your son and tell us what you're going to miss about nathan. >> we're going to miss his great personality. i mean, you know, how can you move on from losing a child? you know, especially somebody who lost his life so tragically. it could have been avoided. i mean, like, our family's broken. i don't know. . >> look, i think it's very clear that this is senseless. but we're going to stay on this story, michael and cynthia. thank you so much for being with us and nick and ryan zimmer, we appreciate you being with us as well. >> thank you. >> thank you. just ahead, we're going to hear live from an american family now stuck in south africa as a new covid travel ban begins. china's new power play sending military jets into a taiwan defense zone and an nba player is changing his name, enes k kanter, in a few hours. ♪ dad, why didn't you answer your phone? ♪ your mother loved this park. ♪ she did. ♪ for people living with h-i-v, keep being you. and ask your doctor about biktarvy. biktarvy is a complete, one-pill, once-a-dayreatment used for h-i-v in certain adults. it's not a cure, bu with one small pill, biktarvy fights h-i-v to help you get to and stay undetectable. that's when the amount of virus iso low it cannot be measured by a lab test. research shows people who take h-i-v treatment every day and get to and stay undetectable can no longer transmit h-i-v through sex. serious side effects can occur, including kidney problems and kidney failure. rare, life-threatening side effects include a buildup of lactic acid and liver problems. do not take biktarvy if you take dofetilide or rifampin. tell your doctor about all the medicines and supplements you take, if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, or if you have kidney or liver problems, including hepatitis. if you have hepatitis b, do not stop taking biktarvy without talking to your doctor. common side effects were diarrhea, nausea, and headache. if you're living with hiv, keep loving who you are. and ask your doctor if biktarvy is right for you. ♪ it wasn't me by shaggy ♪ you're never responsible for unauthorized purchases on your discover card. it's the black friday sale. get 30 to 50% off everything. ♪ ♪ this is how we shine... at zales. the diamond store. taiwan's air force scrambled combat planes after 27 chinese military planes flew into its defense zone, this is the latest show of force by chinese president xi. will ripley is live in hong kong for us. will, tell us what's going on here. >> well, there have been nearly 200 chinese war planes flown near taiwan since october, john, and the motives behind this, according to taiwan's defense minister, intimidation of taiwan, testing taiwan's defense capabilities because they scrambled their fighter jets and defense systems every time this happens and they also want to send a message to the united states which just days ago sent a surprise delegation of lawmakers to meet with taiwan's president, tsai ing-wen. china would never explicitly reveal its reasons. china gets intelligence every time they conduct these missions and what makes this one on sunday unprecedented is that for the first time in addition to the 18 fighter jets and five nuclear capable bombers the y-20 an aerial refueling aircraft, which allows china to conduct longer-range missions potentially putting within striking range, analysts say, u.s. troops in okinawa and potentially endangering u.s. troops in ga tguam. this is aimed at taiwan but not so directly to the united states. the president was at a military conference where he told troops they need to prepare and train and get out there so they can have the upper hand in future wars. this is a president who has said repeated will i if taiwan does not agree to china's demand that it reunify with the mainland, they will retake it by force. china's communist rulers never controlled the island of taiwan, john. >> will ripley, keep us posted. thank you very much. so today is a big day for enes kanter, the outspoken center for the boston celtics. not only is he scheduled to become an american citizen this afternoon but he also plans to change his name to enes kanter freedom. joining us now is enes kanter. first of all, congratulations to you. this is a day where i feel like america wins by getting you as a citizen. congratulations. what does it mean to you? >> thanks for having me, john. i mean, dream came true. it's been six years that i am trying to become an american citizen and now finally i can call somewhere home. i mean, if you guys follow my story, i have been struggling with, a lot with my home country, turkey, and now i have a new home. i just want to start fresh, so i'm just like today answer probably the biggest day of my life. >> what does it mean to you, to be an american? >> i mean, i'll tell you a story, first time i came here in 2009, one of my teammates criticized the president, and i turned around and i told him, i was like dude, you're going to be in jail. what are you doing? he turned around and started laughing. "don't worry about it. this is not turkey." to me, america gives me everything. america gives me a home, a family. my teammates become my brothers and like my real family, so this means so much to me. i mean, i'm just finally going to call somewhere home and because the turkish government revoked my passport and i was waiting for this moment for years and years and finally here. >> talk to me about the name change, enes kanter freedom. >> um-hum. i think as you guys know, that's the one thing my whole life i tried to fight for. when i came to america, to me, it was so amazing because here, there is freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of expression, and freedom of press, which i didn't have any of those in turkey. that's why i wanted to -- and freedom also is the greatest thing that a human being can have, so that's why i wanted to make that word a part of me and carry it wherever i go, and that word definitely means the world to me. >> is that going to be on your uniform? >> yes, actually. we have a game on the 30th against philly and that's the first time i'm wearing a jersey where behind it, it says "freedom." >> are your teammates calling you freedom? >> yesterday, yes, my teammates started calling me mr. freedom. it was just a fun joke in the beginning and now it's actually become a reality, but i just cannot thank them enough, their support, giving me so much hope and motivation and fight to fight for what's right. they wanted to throw a party. i was like listen, all i want is cupcakes, red and blue cupcakes and i'll be fine. >> it's not like all i want is nothing. you actually comdemanded cupcak a good way to use the new freedom. the one thing i think people need to understand is you're not just taking this for granted. you are using your platform, you are leaning in to what it means to be an american and to promote freedom. >> you know, god gave me this platform to be the voice of all those innocent people out there who don't have a voice. so many people are struggling right now. there are so many people who become political prisoners because of what they say, what they think, what they tweet, so to me, it was important bringing awareness to all those people, not just in turkey or china, but all over the world. it was important to bring awareness and to be the voice. to me it's definitely my life mission. >> well, look, on behalf of the american people, your people and let me say we're lucky to have you, mr. freedom. welcome. >> thank you guys so much. i appreciate it. >> and j >> enjoy the cupcakes. "new day" continues right now. good morning to our viewers in the united states and all around the world. i'm john berman with brianna keilar. it is monday, november 29th. major breaking developments around the world as nation after nation takes action against the new highly mutated omicron