in the sex-trafficking trial for jeffrey epstein's longtime companion. what prosecutors and glhislaine maxwell's defense are claiming tonight. let's go out front. good evening, everyone. i'm kate bolduan in for erin burnett. outfront tonight, the cdc's new booster strategy. the agencies tasked with protecting the health of americans now emphatically saying all fully-vaccinated adults should get a booster. this new guidance, because of the omicron variant. and while there are still so many unanswered questions about whether it's more dangerous or resistant to current vaccines, today president biden urging calm in the face of new fears. >> this variant is a cause for concern, not a cause for panic. we have more tools today to fight the variant than we have ever had before. from vaccines to boosters. >> the president stressing the importance of what we've known, really, from the beginning. getting vaccinated is the only way out of this pandemic. though, as of tonight, there are still more than 60 million eligible americans who have not yet received any shots. and just moments ago, dr. anthony fauci telling cnn that while omicron's mutations may allow it to spread more easily, existing vaccines are likely still to protect against severe illness and death. >> we have every reason to believe, even though this is an extraordinary, unusual variant because of the number of mutations, there is no reason to believe that it will not happen that, if you get the level of antibody high with the regular booster to the regular vaccine, that you are going to have at least some effect and hopefully a good effect on ability to protect against this variant. >> and this comes, as the world is rushing to protect itself against the spread of this new variant. as of tonight, more than 50 nations, including the u.s., are restricting travel from countries in southern africa. a move that is being both embraced and criticized. lot of moving parts tonight. i want to start with kaitlan collins. she is live at the white house for us. kaitlan, what more is the administration doing or trying to do at this point? >> well, kate, what it comes to a messaging standpoint, you are seeing president biden come out and say, hey, i am going to urge a sense of calm here but i also want people to pay attention. and that's why today, when you saw the president come out, they don't know a lot more of the specifics than really what is publicly known, already. and so, the steps they are taking in the meanwhile is telling people who have not yet gotten vaccinated to do so and telling those who have not yet gotten their booster shots to also do so. because the president was highlighting the discrepancy today between those who have actually gotten the vaccine and those who have gotten the booster shot. and so, you see the cdc making that key change in the language tonight. it seems like a small change. but it is significant. saying that those who are 18 and older, instead of could get the vaccine booster, that they should get the vaccine booster now. that is significant, in and of itself. and, kate, it comes as we are now learning that pfizer is expected to seek authorization for its booster shot for those who are 16 and 17. right now, it's only authorized for people who are 18 and older. and so, it just speaks to the level of what's happening behind the scenes when it comes to them trying to essentially build this up -- this up with boosters until they find out more about this variant. which they say they think is going to take about a one week, maybe two weeks before they know more about whether or not it's spreading faster, causing more severe disease, and of course, the big question that everyone -- everyone wants to know -- which is whether or not it can evade vaccines. and so, those are two big factors, as well. but when you come -- when it comes to the white house and what's happening here, we do know that the covid-19 team is going to be briefing reporters tomorrow. they are also briefing the president on a daily basis. and then, you are going to see president biden speak, again, on thursday. the white house says that's to lay out his plan for what it's going to look like in the months ahead. of course, the winter months. people going inside and bigger concerns about the spread of coronavirus. but the president, himself, said as of today, that does not include more restrictions. of course, a big question will be whether or not that stands to be the case in several weeks from now. but that is what they are planning, so far. so really, kate, they don't know much more than we do so they are trying to urge a sense of calm but also they want people to be paying attention to what is going on. >> the world all if the same situation on this one, especially. thanks, kaitlan, appreciate it. and so many americans tonight, new questions and new concerns. amara walker is outfront. >> reporter: omicron arriving what feels like overnight is serving as a stark reminder that this pandemic is far from over. >> this is a new wrench that's been thrown into the fight against covid. >> reporter: armed with the concerning set of mutations, this variant is raising red flags and with it, plenty of questions. >> it just got more of things that we don't like the look of. but we don't have enough information about whether it's more transmissible, whether it's going to cause more severe disease, and critically, is it able to escape the effects of the immune -- of the vaccine? >> reporter: while it will take weeks to have any definitive answers, south africa -- the country that first identified this variant -- is offering clues. >> it has mutations that are similar to the delta variant. so, we are expecting it to transmit faster and based on the early evidence we see in south africa, it's certainly transmitting faster than the delta variant. >> reporter: already confirmed in at least 15 countries, it's clear, omicron is making its way across borders. >> it's almost definitely here already. >> reporter: trying to slow the spread, the u.s., along with more than 50 other countries, have put travel restrictions against countries in southern africa in place. >> it's outrageous that south african and southern africa is being punished for having good surveillance and, you know, ensuring that we wanted to be completely transparent and to share this data with the rest of the world as soon as we knew it and confirmed it. >> reporter: these restrictions have not only prompted outcries, but have already left travelers in limbo. >> we have probably had about ten flights booked that were either cancelled or that we were not allowed to board. >> reporter: but what top-health officials continue to remind us is that vaccines are what will make the biggest impact. >> please, folks, if you've been on the fence, i'm not a politician. i'm a scientist. maybe we could even ask all the politicians to agree on this one. get your vaccine. get your booster. it's the best chance we've got to drive this covid-19 pandemic away. >> reporter: so, kate, bottom line is your best protection against this variant right now is to get vaccinated. as we've been saying, we don't know whether or not omicron can evade vaccines. but just in case it can, pfizer and biontech says that it is preparing to adapt its vaccine within six weeks, and ship out initial batches within 100 days. johnson & johnson, making similar plans. saying that it is pursuing an omicron-specific vaccine at this time. in the meantime, in new york, city officials there, highly recommending now that people wear masks indoors in public places to try to get ahead of this new variant. kate. >> amara, thanks so much. outfront be me now is dr. ashish jha. dean of brown university school of public health and dr. jonathan reiner. he has advised the white house medical team under president george w. bush. thanks both for being here. dr. jha, you say that this variant is not likely to set us back to square one in this pandemic. i saw you say this is not going to be march of 2020, which is very promising, i have to say, when i saw that. so, what concerns you then most about this new variant? >> yeah. so first, thanks for having me back. look. what concerns me about this -- the variant is two things. one, is pretty good circumstantial but good evidence that it is highly contagious. maybe, more contagious than the delta variant. and then, all of those mutations on the spike protein and areas tha our antibodies target, which really worries me about vaccine efficacy, i am not worried the vaccines won't work at all but i am worried the vaccines will take a hit on their efficacy. and if they do, that's going to make it harder to control this pandemic. >> and dr. reiner, i want to play something for you that dr. margaret harris -- she is a spokesperson for the world health organization -- she told me earlier today. which gets at that south africa should be applauded for its work and what it's done here, not facing travel restrictions. listen to this. >> south africa should get a gold medal for the quality of its science, and the quality of its transparency. as i said, we have not seen nearly enough of that -- of the transparency, particularly. and indeed, to then make south africa feel that doing all the right things leads to a very bad outcome is not good. >> you have got 50 nations now who are putting travel restrictions in place. i mean, do you agree with her? do you think travel -- these travel bans miss the mark? >> yeah, i do agree with her, kate. you know, there can be instances where a travel ban can buy a country some time and it may have actually done that at the very outset of this pandemic 22 months ago for the united states. although, we squandered that time. you know, if we were in a situation where we did not have a test that could identify this variant, which is not the case, you know, perhaps a few weeks would buy us the time to put in place those tests but we have that. so, i think this is really an illusion of protection. metaphor that i have been using, it's like locking a screen door. you feel like you've done something to protect yourself but you really haven't. this virus is almost certainly already in the united states. we will hear over the next day or two, that cases have been identified in the united states. and it's also important to understand that since october, the united states has had a requirement for all foreign travelers coming to this country to be fully vaccinated and tested. and -- and that's still in place. so i'm not sure what this ban will achieve, other than to add some disincentive to other countries that might be looking to do intense sequencing and identify variants. this might incentivize those countries to maybe, you know, back off on that a little bit because no good deed goes unpunished and that, i think, is what we've shown the south africans. so i am not a fan of this ban. >> that's exactly what the world health organization is fearing here. din incentives to do what must be done, which is right. dr. jha, we are also learning that pfizer is expected to seek authorization for their booster for some teenagers. the chief medical officer for moderna, though, says that it could take two to three months for an omicron-specific booster, if needed, to be ready. and i'm -- i'm looking at both of these, together, and wondering what does this all mean for people thinking about getting a booster right now? >> yeah. what i would say is if you are thinking about getting a booster and you are six months out from your second shot, go get it. there is no question in my mind. because the -- the -- as dr. fauci said earlier, there is good reason to believe that a boosted person will have, still, a pretty good degree of protection against this specific variant. not perfect. maybe not 100% but still a good degree of protection. and whether we are going to need an omicron-specific booster or not -- that will be down the road. even if in 100 days, they can make one, they are going to have to make enough to make enough for americans, get it out there. so it will be a while before people will be able to get that. i would not wait for that. i would get a booster today. >> and, dr. reiner, in -- in this interim period when so much is unknown, it leaves kind of a -- a -- a space and a vacuum for misinformation. and we are seeing more of that today. soon after most americans started hearing for the first time about this new variant, republican congressman dr. ronny jackson -- the former-trump white house physician -- he put out a tweet in part it says, here comes the mev, midterm election variant. and what jackson is accusing democrats of here is manifesting this variant to try and help them in the midterm elections. he is an actual doctor and i am sure you've seen that tweet. >> yeah. i think, you know, ronny used to be an actual doctor. such a disappointment. you know, you would think that we would really benefit from having more medical doctors in congress during the time of a pandemic but not when you're spreading disinformation. most of us take the hip kratic oath when we graduate from medical school and part of the oath has us pledge to share information. but what ronny is doing is sharing disinformation and we also pledge to do no harm. and his disinformation does a lot of harm and it reminds me of sort of the original sin of the last administration's pandemic response, which was to -- to cause parts of the american public to doubt the severity of the pandemic. that it was a hoax. it was all going to go away. it was the flu. and when i hear ronny jackson -- a former physician -- talking that this is some sort of political ploy on part of the democrats to get more mail-in votes. it's incredibly distressing. and disgraceful. >> and only feeds into fears that are already out there and misinformed. thank you, both. it's very good to see you. thank you very much. out front for us next, the feud between congresswoman ilhan omar and lauren boebert escalating tonight. omar saying she hung up on the colorado republican after boebert refused to publicly apologize for his islam phobic comments. plus, police departments across the u.s. scrambling tonight to stop the wave of smash-and-grab crimes targeting retail stores. what can be done to stop them? 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or do you want. the place on the tv? tonight, republican congresswoman lauren boebert defiant after making bigoted anti-muslim comments against democratic congresswoman ilhan omar, suggesting that omar could be a suicide bomber when they shared an elevator. boebert and omar confirmed that they spoke on the phone today but it ended with omar saying she hung up on boebert. boebert took to instagram to say this afterward. >> make no mistake, i will continue to fearlessly put america first. never sympathizing with terrorists. unfortunately, ilhan can't say the same thing. >> and omar releasing a statement saying this, in part. instead of apologizing for her islamophobic comments and fabricated lies, congresswoman boebert refused to publicly acknowledge her hurtful and dangerous comments. so, there's that. ourt front with me now is republican congressman tom reid of new york. congressman, thank you for being here. you know, this really went from ugly to uglier just when you thought it couldn't get more ridiculous in the house of representatives. i mean, what -- what do you think of this? >> i would agree. i mean, first, obviously, i disagree and condemn the kind of comments that were made by my colleague in congress towards a fellow colleague on the other side of the aisle. but you're absolutely right. this is a pox on all our houses and i would just tell you, this rhetoric, this type of commentary has to stop. we need to focus on the american people and solving their problems. that's got to be the mission. but these -- these types of rhetoric exchanges are very disappointing. >> and look, i mean, you disagree vehemently with many of ilhan omar's policies and you don't have to like omar's politics to get this right. just as you just did. i mean, boebert's a flamethrower and clearly doesn't care. but this is, as you are getting at, this is bigger than her. it speaks to kind of a larger, more insidious problem of if you allow this type of behavior to slide. if you try not to give it oxygen or attention, congressman, hasn't the last congress shown that it only gets worse? >> i would agree, that you have to confront this but you have to look at the bigger picture here, too. like -- like you are articulating. this is the institution of congress, this is the people's house and we have to respect each other. we can -- we can disagree. i am a proud republican. i know colleagues on the other side who are proud democrats but it doesn't mean we go into that chamber not united as americans, first. we are american citizens that should be working together as opposed to engaging in what could be called antics of a high-school level nature at times. >> it speaks to, um, the definition or what you think the definition of leadership is. and kevin mccarthy -- the republican leader -- he has spoken privately with boebert. there was a lot of reporting about that. but he has not said anything publicly about her anti-muslim comments. what does your vision of a leader in the republican party do in this situation? >> well, i think when you are in a position of leadership, you have to stand up. you have to deal with it. i appreciate the fact that kevin called our colleague directly, discussed the matter with her. but at some point in time, you also have to stand up and just call it out for what it is. this type of rhetoric cannot be condoned. it cannot be upheld. but at the end of the day, too, you have to recognize that there is pox on everyone's house this year historically. we have degraded to a point in the institution of congress where we -- there is a level of hatred i've never felt before and we have to get over it and we have to lead the nation and we have to have leadership that says, you know what? we're going to disagree but we're going to do it respectfully. >> i want to ask you. i want to dig a little deeper in that because, you know, mccarthy is also being criticized from another on the kind of extreme faction of the right, marjorie taylor greene. she is angry with mccarthy that he isn't defending members like her, while she thinks doing nothing to punish members like you and other house republicans who voted for the bipartisan infrastructure bill. i want to play for you what greene said. >> 13 traitor republicans helped joe biden pass his agenda. handing their voting card over to nancy pelosi and nothing happens to them. kevin mccarthy has a problem in our conference. he doesn't have the full support to be speaker. he doesn't have the votes that are there because there is many of us that are very unhappy about the failure to hold republicans accountable, while conservatives like me, paul gosar, and many others just constantly take the abuse by the democrats. >> yet, congressman, and i looked at this with interest. there is one moderate republican -- unnamed -- who just told cnn that mccarthy's embrace of some extreme members in your party is, in this member's opinion, quote, taking the middle of the conference for granted. is that a fair criticism? >> yeah. i will defer on that question in the sense of that's for kevin mccarthy to answer. but, you know, what i see is a -- a colleague who -- who just thinks things of a black-and-white nature. and when i came in congress in 2010, i came on the tea party wave and i will tell you i have learned a lot in the 11 years i have been there. the problems of our country are much bigger than black and white. they are very complex, and that's what's going to take st states manship and leadership to solve. and when we engage in this type of rhetoric and this type of distraction, we are missing the point of what we should be doing in congress and that's leading by solving big problems for the american people. >> and it is a leading to -- i mean, we have seen rhetoric lead to violence. but we are in -- even of late, not even talking about january 6th for a moment but even of late, today, we heard the congressman debbie dingell's district office was just vandalized. and there is much more to learn about exactly what happened there. but you have also talked about threats to your office and to you, personally, that you have received over the past year. and the question then becomes, as you said, this rhetoric must stop. but how do you bring the temperature down? because it doesn't seem like anything is working. >> i think what i was raised by a mother who had a strong faith and a belief. single mom with 11 older brothers and sisters. you -- you do it by turning the other cheek. you do it by leading, by willing to listen to people. disagree with them. stand up to them, especially when you adamantly and passionately disagree with them but do it with respect. do it by listening. and do it in a way that shows other people, especially the next generation, that's -- that this is how you resolve disputes and conflict. by listening, respecting each other, and then, inspiring the hearts and minds of the american people. >> unfortunately, it seems there is a fear that doing that might also mean lower fundraising dollars which seems to be at the heart of a lot of this. it's good to see you, congressman. thank you very much. >> thanks, kate. outfront for us, next. cities scrambling to stop the rash of smash-and-grab robberies plaguing major cities across the country. what can be done to stop these brazen burglaries? the mayor of oakland is next. plus, prosecutors call her a predator. her defense? she is a scapegoat for jeffrey epstein. we are going to take you inside the dramatic first day of court for epstein's longtime companion and associate, ghislaine maxwell. exposed dentin to help repair sensitive teeth. my patients are able to have that quality of life back. i recommend sensodyne repair and protect with deep repair. a mountain of toys to fulfill many wishes must be carried across all roads and all bridges. it's not magic that makes more holiday deliveries to homes in the us than anyone else, it's the hardworking people of the united states postal service. 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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i mean, how concerned are you? >> kate, it does. oakland had been successful at cutting gun violence in half, and sustaining those reductions for more than five years. but with covid, we saw that progress undone. and the horrid death of kevin is one example of so many tragedies. every injury, every death caused by gun violence is an absolute loss for the community. and we, for one, are committed to having a comprehensive and effective approach to stopping it. >> i think -- and the big question for you, mayor, as well as mayors in other major cities because these are happening in many cities now -- is what does comprehensive mean? and what is the solution to stopping this? i mean, what are you doing now to do that, to stop this from happening again? >> well, we already doubled down on prevention as well as standing up a nonpolice response option. but let me be clear. oakland needs more police. we have been impacted by staffing reductions. covid interrupted our recruitment and training processes. and the defund rhetoric is challenging our ability to attract and retain recruits. and we know that that is not unique to oakland. but let me be clear. we appreciate the incredible service of the hardworking men and women that are in our police department. oakland has been ranked number one by eight can't wait as the major department in the country that's been most successful at reducing racial disparities in arrests. we want people to be proud of being in this service to our community and we are going to be staffing up. that is a necessity at this moment where we are with our crime in this season. >> but look, mayor, i mean, you say you need more police. the police chief has asked for help. the police union says that the officers who are on the job right now are hitting a breaking point. i want to read for you -- and i am sure you have seen it -- what the president of the -- of the police union wrote in an op-ed. writing in part, many officers and their families have had enough of mandatory overtime, the lack of support, and the city's unwillingness to stem the tide of violence or even condemn it. they leave the cities -- meaning, these officers -- they leave for cities that value their service, experience, and professionalism. mayor, it does not sound like there is a quick fix to this. >> but that's why i believe now is the time that the leadership will come together to say we need to maintain basic levels of police staffing. that is what we are going to be demanding of all city leadership to get behind. and that's what i believe that we can do, together, because this unacceptable loss of life. we -- we know what has worked in the past. and it's not just police. we are looking at the interruption of our entire criminal justice system, the court system, the impacts of new policies with regard to bail. everything is on the table, as we look at a comprehensive approach to turn the tide of this spike in violence. no one is -- is absent from being part of the solution and we have to have better coordination. i mean, you talked about the coordinated impacts of these criminal caravans. we need state and federal resources to interrupt those efforts. lord knows, they're coordinated. we need to be coordinated, as well. >> mayor, thank you very much for your time. >> thank you. out front for us -- >> stay safe this holiday. >> thank you very much. out front for us next, prosecutors calling her jeffrey epstein's partner in crime. accusing ghislaine maxwell of luring teen girls into sex traffic -- a sex trafficking ring with him. plus, parents crossing the line. one school board member revealing to cnn what she is hearing online as parents target her child. >> kelsey needs to be in jail. because her youngest daughter is a boy. who knows your business. knows... your... business! expert bookkeepers who understand your business. intuit quickbooks live bookkeeping. [uplifting music playing] ♪ i had a dream that someday ♪ ♪ i would just fly, fly away ♪ tonight, a pyramid scheme of abuse. that is what prosecutors are accusing ghislaine maxwell of creating. today was the first day of her long-awaited trial for sex trafficking as the longtime partner of jeffrey epstein. prosecutors arguing today, maxwell recruited girls for years for epstein to sexually exploit. but maxwell's defense attorney fighting back that she is being used as, quote, a scapegoat for epstein who died in his jail cell before he could stand trial. brynn gingras is outfront. she has been following all of this. this has been a long-awaited trial and in opening statements, the prosecutors really used their time to try to portray her as a predator. >> yeah, they are essentially saying she recruited these women. she would go find these women who were impoverished, underaged, and try to get them to come to the houses of jeffrey epstein under this cover of a massage. and that, she was very much aware of what was happening behind closed doors. in fact, calling her the lady of the household and saying that she actually told the staff to look away, don't say anything, and she was all part of this. so, being a predator. you talked about this pyramid scheme. it got to the point prosecutors say where she not only recruited these women, but then she would get these girls to recruit each other. basically, trying to, you know, give them money, give them clothing, lingerie, all these reasons that they might want to take part in this. and even in one part, they allege that she took part in some of these acts. >> as young as 14 i think were some of the ages that we were hearing about. and there is a long way to go with this, of course. this is just the first day but are you getting any kind of window into the defense' strategy that they are going to be laying out? >> yeah. six-week trial is what it is slated for so we are going to get a lot but as far as opening statements were concerned, the defense is essentially saying that she is the scapegoat as you said for jeffrey epstein. that she shouldn't be criminalized for what jeffrey epstein did and we will see if that works. as you mentioned, there are going to be these alleged accusers who take the stand and they'll have a lot to say. but certainly, the defense is trying to paint this picture that they have some stake in this, that there is a jeffrey epstein compensation fund where they have already received money. so it behooves them to include ghislaine maxwell in their testimony to even get more money so we will see if that works. remember, this is the first time really in a me too era that a woman is the defendant in the trial. so we will see how jurors react to that, as well. >> it's -- i mean, it -- it's very, at the least, it is going to be so troubling to hear these women speak out. >> absolutely. >> as they should be able to speak up but my god, what they are going to have to go through to get there. good to see you, really appreciate it. out front for us next. parents are furious over a school board member's politics. they turned to targeting her child. plus, a former-top doj official could, soon, become the second person to face contempt charges for refusing to cooperate with the january-6th investigation. next up, carvana. oh, boy. carvana just doesn't seem to understand how the test drive works. they give their customers seven days. and if they don't like it, they give 'em their money back. wait, they take the car back? that's crazy! what if it was driven by like a zookeeper? or a mud wrestler? or a guy who's on the outs with the missus and he just needs a place to sleep for seven days? yeah. 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>> i can't unsee the things that have been sent to me. i think, with time, i will find forgiveness. >> reporter: kelsey is a school board incumbent defeated this year by parents angry over mask rules. >> masks should be a parent's decision. >> reporter: and diversity and inclusion programs. >> this community was very split. >> reporter: she voted for masking. she supported diversity and inclusion programs. choices that energized parents in a facebook group opposed to pandemic restrictions. the group was formed in july under the name conservative parents of hastings. a few weeks later, the name was changed to concerned parents of hastings. it's a small town. she knows a lot of the parents in this group. >> i am fine with it. that's -- that's politics. >> reporter: one day, a parent wrote a long post complaining about kelsey and masking and the replies, things got ugly. >> someone responded to that post by saying kelsey needs to be in jail because her youngest daughter is a boy. >> reporter: a parent outed kit because of kit's mom's politics. >> this was my most precious secret. the thing i -- i protected most and the thing i was most afraid of ever being used in a political way. i dropped to the floor and i cried. >> reporter: other parents, soon, piled on. one attacked the waits, calling them woke parents. another wrote my heart breaks for any child who has parents that push this [ bleep ] on them. one moderator of the group hid some of the ugly posts. but another moderator posted more. it kept going. >> it's just a kid trying to impress their woke parents. and i'm like, my god, i voted for bush every time he was on the ballot. my wokeness, if you want to say that my understanding of what it is to be transgender makes me woke, it's because kit woke me up. kit taught me, not the other way around. >> reporter: kit is 8 years old. uses the pronouns, they/them. the waits asked we not show their face on camera. i like that your socks never match. you got style, kid. >> for kit's fourth birthday, kit asked for one thing. they really, really, really wanted the kit kitridge american girl doll. and i was standing right there in the kitchen and kit walks up to me. and goes, mom, can you call me kit? and i said, sure. still, my little boy. and kit goes no, your little girl. i was like absolutely, sweetie, you got it. and then, i ran into the other room with a panic attack and called daddy in japan and said what the heck just happened? >> reporter: it was a journey for these parents. >> i remember a conversation i had with a family member that said, you know, have you ever just considered doing more manly things with kit and less nurtury things? and at that moment, it was kind of a, wait a minute, what am i trying to do here? and what -- what is really -- what's wrong with this? >> reporter: the waits decided the right course was love your kid. they let kit be kit. >> we lost our -- our friends when kit first came out and we lost family. >> reporter: the family kept all of this a secret from most people for a simple reason. safety. >> you out a kid before they're ready, you're subjecting them to that sort of behavior that's going to increase their risk of suicide. this is not about my parenting practices. this is about the lives of kids. >> reporter: after kit was outed online, kelsey realized the family might not be safe. she wrote a letter to the local newspaper. she appealed to decency. >> i basically said, there is still a line. don't cross the line and i continued my letter saying here are the great things. here's how we come together as a community. >> reporter: on facebook, some parents responded with glee. we made the paper, one parent wrote. >> they are proud of what they did. >> reporter: cnn reached out to parents in the group. we reached out to the moderators. no one responded. but concerned parents of hastings blocked us. she knows these parents. she sees them in the grocery store. they know each other. and yet, when it came to a political debate, they chose to out her child. how do you see that happening? where does that come from? what's going on? >> i think there's been a behavior like that that's been modeled by a lot of politicians in the united states over the past several years. i think normal people, who are looking at these small issues at their school board and their local elections say, well, there's not a consequence for those people and i'm just a small fry so there's not going to be a consequence for me. >> reporter: this family is not sticking around this neighborhood to find out what comes next. they're moving. >> that's where we are at right now. that there are people that we know that are not safe for our kids in our neighborhood. and that, we can't trust our kids alone at the bus stop waiting for the bus. not because of the kids, necessarily, but because of the parents. >> i mean, what a horrible reality to be facing. and, evan, this isn't the first kind of, i will say, like insane and terrifying school board incident that you have covered. but i mean, like, parents at home looking at this, what are they supposed to make of all this? >> the most disturbing of a series of disturbing stories i have done throughout this school board election, throughout this year of school board races. people like kelsey say is that things have really changed on the ground in american neighborhoods. we are used to hearing about national politics being ugly, attacking everybody. there is no, you know, sacred cows. but now, it's your neighbor. people who know you. and kelsey says that's going to actually drive people out of school board races and out of school boards that we need to help run schools that we have. it's a big change in america. >> neighbor taking on neighbor now. it's now the violence is coming directly to your home. so terrifying. amazing reporting, though, thanks, everyone. great to see you. out front for us next. the former-top justice department -- former-top justice department official that could soon face a criminal contempt the charge for refusing to cooperate with the january-6th investigation. be right back. is the planning e. this is how it feels to have a dedicated fidelity advisor looking at your full financial picture. this is what it's like to have a comprehensive wealth plan with tax-smart investing strategies designed to help you keep more of what you earn. and set aside more for things like healthcare, or whatever comes down the road. this is "the planning effect" from fidelity. like many people with moderate to severe ulcerative colitis or crohn's disease, i was there. be right back. but my symptoms were keeping me from where i needed to be. so i talked to my doctor and learned humira is the #1 prescribed biologic for people with uc or crohn's disease. and humira helps people achieve remission that can last, so you can experience few or no symptoms. humira can lower your ability to fight infections. serious and sometimes fatal infections, including tuberculosis, and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened, as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. be there for you and them. ask your gastroenterologist about humira. with humira, remission is possible. learn how abbvie could help you save on humira. 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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(excited yell) woo-hoo! ensure max protein. with thirty grams of protein, one gram of sugar, and nutrients to support immune health. 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. tonight, a former top department of justice official may soon become the second person to face contempt charges for defying the january-6th committee. jeffrey clark is his name. he refused to cooperate with the committee. he is accused of using doj resources to back former-president trump's baseless claims of voter fraud. according to officials who interacted with clark, he was in touch with trump repeatedly. if clark is held in contempt, he will join steve bannon as the second person to potentially face criminal charges for refusing to provide information to congress. bannon is facing up to two years in prison if found guilty. the january 6th committee is set to vote wednesday on whether to recommend the full house refer clark for charges. thanks so much for being here. i'm kate bolduan. "ac 360" starts now. good evening. we begin tonight with the very la latest and a concern that most people outside the public health community did not have going into the long-holiday weekend but they certainly do tonight. the newest coronavirus variant, the letter in the greek alphabet which we are all learning about now, omicron. late today, responding to the potential threat and the word potential should be underscored here. there is a lot we don't know. the cdc amped up its advice on vaccine boosters. the old word was that anyone 18 or older may get a booster. the new word from the cdc -- they've chosen i

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