philadelphia. covid it seems has taken another turn for the worse. at first, scientists believe the highly contagious omicron was less severe than delta. but a new study from disease modelers at imperial college london not yet peer reviewed found that omicron is not any less severe. and at the risk of being reinfected of omicron is 5.4 times higher than with delta. and ultimately, an omicron specific vaccine will be needed. the epidemiologist who led the team study said, quote, this study provides further evidence of the very substantial extent to which omicron can evade prior immunity given by both infection or vaccination. this level of immune invasion means that omicron poses a major imminent threat to public health. omicron already having huge impact. the covid numbers are skyrocketing. and so are the number of changes in our lives. cases in texas, connecticut and hawaii, all up more than 50% from last week. the northeast, midwest and south are seeing the fastest jumps with 16 states trending in the wrong direction. new york state alone accounting for 10% of new cases in this country over the past week, and now shattering its daily case record. though, you can see hospitalizations remain comparatively low when compared with other case peaks. and the waiting lines for covid testing in new york city, now hours long. ohio's governor deploying more than 1,000 national guard troops to help in hospitals. office reopenings being put on hold. holiday parties being scrapped. the radio city rocketettes christmas spectacular now cancelled for the rest of the season. the ncaa basketball schedule looking like a snow globe, with games cancelled and three teams facing off. and the nfl, three teams off. poston three of the games, dozens players on the covid reserve list. it's hard to imagine a path back to normal when businesses and schools are shifting policies even among the unvaccinated. this week, california extended the state's coronavirus pandemic into next year. workers vaccinated and asymptomatic must stay home for 14 days even if they test negative or can return to work masked and social distanced for two weeks. and americans want to know is it okay to get on a plane? should i keep my kids out of school? is it okay to gather with family? dine out, go to church or holiday performance? i don't know about you while i am vaccinated and boosted i'm increasingly resigned to the fact that i'll probably get covid. i'm also confident that my vaccination status will enable for me to deal with it much better. and as for those that won't get vaccinated i'm convinced that no amount of brow beating will cause them to change their mind now. i don't wish them ill but there's a limit to my sympathy and my compassion, should they not take steps to protect themselves and the rest of us. final list, i'm resolved not to let covid stop me from leading a productive life. last night here on cnn, i spoke with dr. jay bhattacharya. it's possible to stop the spread and protect the vulnerable and learn to live with the virus. >> we turn covid into this thing if we get it somehow, we've failed. if we get covid and survive well, if you're vaccinated. that's exactly what the vaccine does. that's why we're recommending it. >> i want to know what you think, go to my website at smerconish.com this hour. and an this week's survey question. in view of the spread of omicron, should we return to early pandemic measures? i've looked, it's a very close vote. i'll give you the results at the end of the hour. joining me now dr. cody misener, chief of ped trat yiks at tufts children's hospital, professor at tufts school of medicine. dr. misener, nice to see you again. your thesis is protect the vulnerable. forget the lockdowns, learn to live with the virus. if i'm misstating it you'll correct it. but won't that lead to more cases, more hospitalizations, and ultimately more deaths? >> well, good morning, michael. and thank you very much for the opportunity to join you this morning. i appreciate it. i think that's a little bit of an over-simplification of my thoughts. let me just phrase it like this. i think at the beginning of this pandemic, people thought that measures that would reduce the transmission of this virus, essentially, the lockdown, would also help to. maintain our economic vitality, and i think as time has gone by, we've seen that's not the case. we're still, despite pandemics, despite all of our efforts at nonpharmacologic intervention, we've seen this virus mutate and continue to circulate. so, i think the reason there's so much uncertainty right now in this country is because we're really making a tradeoff between livelihood and economic vitality. and -- what some people incorrectly perceive as, i think, of freedom. and i agree completely with what you said. that the vaccine is showing us, or lead us the way out of this pandemic. there is absolutely no excuse for an adult not to have been fully vaccinated. there are various methods have been developed to try and induce people to get it voluntarily. and unfortunately, there's still about 60 million people in the united states who are unvaccinated. >> dr. meissner, that's the easy part. the easy part is everybody ought to get vaccinated. we agree and i'm glad to you have reassert that. but it sounds like you're doing a balancing act like, almost like that statue of lady justice and you're saying protect lives and economic costs. and correct me if i'm wrong, but now it seems like you're saying let's prioritize the economic factors because we don't want to wipe out businesses or go about leading our lives? or am i misunderstanding? >> yeah, i would phrase it a little more generically. and i think people put different weight, michael, on certainly freedom, on health. on economic vitality. and it's understandable, because we know this is a disease primarily of the elderly. it's much less common in younger individuals. so, i think everyone, there is no right answer on what is the best way to balance the risks of transmission. versus the lockdown. people suffer different. >> a year ago when you put forth the great barrington declaration, it drew a rebuke, as you know, from the john snow group, not from the tv show. and an infectious disease expert at harvard said i think it's wrong, what you were saying -- i think it's wrong on state. i think it invites people to act in ways that has enormous harm. that was rochelle walensky, now, now, the head of cdc. why is she wrong? >> well, the cdc, everybody has been proven wrong by this virus, michael. this is a nefarious, very clever virus. and i think it's important for people not to make too many dogmatic statements. because we just don't know what's coming next. from this virus. >> so -- >> so -- >> yeah. >> go ahead, i'm sorry. >> finish your thought. i have another question i'm eager to ask. >> so there isn't -- i don't think it's helpful for people to say someone's wrong. because we don't know what the right answer is. and i understand, people would like to have a yes or no answer. but given our current state of understanding of this virus, it's very hard to do that. i fully concur -- >> dr. meissner, if omicron were mild, i think you'd have a stronger argument, a stronger hand, because then the idea would be, let's lead our lives. this virus is going to continue to spread. but at least, as long as you're vaccinated -- again, get vaccinated, it's not going to kill you. but if the uk data that i referenced at the outset of the program, not peer reviewed. but if that's true that it's not as mild as we hoped, then i think it harms your argument. you get the final word. go ahead. >> thank you. i think there are different interpretations of omicron. i think you're talking about one article. and look at the data from south africa. they are clearly seeing lower hospitalization rates. shorter duration of stay, less use of the intensive care unit. fewer deaths. so, that's a very different experience. and i think it's premature. the uk experience may be right. but, again, i would suggest caution here. let's wait until we've had a little bit more experience, before starting to initiate mastiff m massive lockdown. people should get the boost, vaccinated, absolutely correct. and get a booster, particularly in a high-risk group. protect yourself as best you can because i think most people feel that the immune response to the vaccine does protect against omicron. it may not last -- >> okay. >> but it does protect. >> it's a great conversation. just how much we should take protective measures, but on one thing, we're all agreed, get vaccinated. get the boost. dr. meissner, thank you so much. >> thank you. what are your thoughts? tweet me at smerconish or go to my facebook page. i'll read some responses throughout the course of the program. what do we have? smerconish, don't forget the immunocompromised people. it's not their fault if they can't get vaccinated. sdm, i try to point out every time we have this conversation. we need to take measures to make sure they're protected. there's no doubt. one of the issues is if you sake the laissez-faire approach and allow the virus to spread you can't segment the immune owe comprised and the most vulnerable because they have friends. it's complicated stuff. i want to make sure you go to smerconish.com and answer the question, in view of the spread of omicron, should we return to early pandemic measures? up ahead, harvard announced it's extending through 2026, it's covid-error policy of not requiring applicants to take test. does this zoom the s.a.t. or a.c.t.? plus, president biden hasn't finished his first term in office. beltway rumblings whether he'll run. and brett stevens has announced a radical proposal that president biden should announce now that he's not running. i'll talk to him. this is your home. this is your family room slash gym. the guest bedroom slash music studio. the daybed slash dog bed. the living room slash yoga shanti slash regional office slash classroom. and this is the basement slash panic room. maybe what your family needs is a vacation home slash vacation home. find yours on the vrbo app. ♪ what does it feel like to sell your car to carvana? 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>> i think that's definitely going to happen because we saw even stanford announced a couple weeks ago it was test-optional for another year. i think that put a lot of pressure on colleges and universities out there to go test-optional. when students apply to harvard, they're applying to other ivy league schools. it will be interesting to see what's happening. i bet in every state there are meeting thinking about what they're going to do. >> so, jeff, think about your experience, that you were there watching over the shoulders of admissions officers at three different schools. how much would it have changed what you witnessed if there were no standardized tests that they were relying on? >> well, we're going to find out this year, michael, because i'm going back into the schools for the paperback version of the book. in the meantime, the applicant pool would have been different. in fact, many of the admissions deans that i profiled in the book told me that last year. that students don't apply to some schools if they think their s.a.t. or a.c.t. score is not going to get them in. all of the schools advertise a score. if it's below that average. to them, it's a flashing red sign, don't apply here. so their application never even arrives. so, i think the big difference would have been -- they would be looking at applications. they would not have seen previously when they require test scores. >> i'm trying not to be gleeful about this. i was always a poor performer on standardized tests. >> so was i. >> also below the mendoza line. i am wondering to be fair, what is the common dominator? le how do they compare this, how do they compare one student from one school district and another from another district? they can't possibly be knowledgeable about every school district in the country. what do they do? >> even before they went test-optional, these schools looked mostly at a high school student's records. in other words, the courses they took and the grades they got in those courses. because four years in high school was more important than four hours on a test. so what they're really looking for is the context of that high school. what they get with every application what's called a high school profile. so, yes, they don't know everything about every high school. but the fact of the matter, particularly, at selective schools, they get a number of applications from those schools so over the years they do get to know the schools pretty well. and then the profile tells how many courses are available to students, a.p. students and number of grades and they had know enough about the profile that comes in. but you're right, they don't know everything about every high school, and that say problem. >> what i most like about the idea of getting rid of the s.a.t. and the a.c.t., kids will have more time on their hands. if they grow up in a neighborhood like mine, they're all taking prep. if they had dedicated all of that prep time to just learning how to play who knows what. you get the final word. go ahead. >> yeah, what i hope, michael is that high school only happens once in life. i hope that students get to enjoy it and get to do what they want. >> right. >> and i think so often in the last couple of years, the last couple of decades, we put so much pressure especially around test scores that they didn't get to do what they wanted in high school as a result. >> no doubt. too much time on test prep. too much time creating a fake life via social media. instead of leading one and getting into trouble every once in a while. thank you, jeff. appreciate it. >> great to be here. >> via social media, kathryn, what has come in. let's check it out. could be the beginning of the end of standardized testing. and if so, will result in a surge of applications and their fees to top universities making their admissions for the same number of opening even more competitive. wendi, here's my prescription, get rid of the common app. it's going to sound like the aged person i'm becoming. back in the day, how many schools did we apply to? three, four? five was a lot. today, as long as you've got the scratch to send in the application, 50 bucks or whatever it may be, the common app makes it too easy. everybody sits back and says, i probably won't get into harvard but what the hell for 50 bucks i'll roll the dice. and consequently, it gives the harvards the ability to say -- well, our rejection rate, our rejection rate is 95%. i'm sure they love that, the perception of that selective nature when, frankly, everybody was throwing the long ball to get in there anyway. i want to remind you, go to our website at smerconish.com. in view of the spread of omicron, should we return to early pandemic measures? up ahead, with recent school shootings still fresh in everyone's minds, the threat about more school violence on tiktok friday caused shutdowns in many states. add that to covid surging? plus, this "the new york times" column set off a firestorm, biden should not run again. and he should say he won't. its author brett steve stephense to explain that. >> he's got a long way to go and a lot do do in this term. based on what i've seen in the first year, it's pretty darn good. thanks for coming. now when it comes to a financial plan this broker is your man. let's open your binders to page 188... uh carl, are there different planning options in here? 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(cheers) xfinity brought us together, after all! power your whole home this holiday with wifi speeds faster than a gig. click, call, or visit a store today. sing 2 will president biden run again in 2024? or more importantly, should he? this week vice president kamala harris told "the wall street journal" that she and the president haven't discussed the issue, quote, i don't think about it. nor have we talked about it. she told the paper noting it's their first year in office amidst a pandemic. that might make them the only two people in d.c. who haven't discussed it, especially when earlier this week, "the new york times'" brett stevens poured a little more on that smoldering topic with this column biden should not run again and he should say he won't. in the piece, he writes the argument against this would turn him into a lame duck president. and news flash, right now, he's worse than a lame duck because presenters prevented from making calls finding their lane. when i asked james carville, he said this -- >> what he's saying, talking about a strategic irrevable move. he would trade away his far. >> long time democratic strategist similarly skeptical. >> not even a year into the term. and bret stephens is a nice guy, he's got to think of something twice a week to put in the newspaper. maybe that's the best he could do this week. >> here is that nice guy, bret stephens is joining us right now. i guess the best thing to say is thank you, i've been feasting off your column all week long. >> sure. free money for you guys. >> so, begala concedes. he thinks your idea is bonkers but he concedes, this is the cloak room conversation. let's have. make your case. >> well, look, right now, the president i think is weighing on his party, not just because he's off to a pretty bad start as president, actually a disastrous start as president but because there is a broad suspicion that he isn't going to run known. so there's already a whisper campaign out there about who in the democratic party might succeed him. but that whisper campaign is not really allowed to take off in any way. no one -- no one in the democratic party can openly say that they're considering a run for the presidency. and we now live in a world, michael, where runs for presidency begin four years -- four years early. so the democrats are quite late to this. i think the president is -- at some point, i would be amazed if he runs for a second term. and the question is, is it smarter for him to announce this now. or is it smarter for him to say this after a disastrous midterm result after the democrats seem particularly weak. my argument is if he does it now, it seems statesman-like. he's still the president. he still has immense power. it liberates to deal with the task at hand. and rather than looking like forced by it a bad midterm result or some other event. >> you wrote in part, it's now considered horrible manners to raise concerns about biden's age and health, and doing so could only play into trump's hands as if the president's well-being is nobody's business but his own. you pointed out as well that these were conversations on ronald reagan's watch. everybody remembers the conversations with mondale when he said i'm not going to exploit my opponent's youth and experience. even mondale laughed. i want to ask you this in the context of build back better, does biden strengthen his hand or harm his harm following your prescription? because wouldn't he lose limited capital in trying to get that done not getting that done in 2022? >> i would be astonished that he's able to get it down. >> reporter: the nominee or not. look, michael, this is a country facing a series of urgent crisis from the possibility of res resurgent ukraine. and imagine how much it would serve joe biden's legacy if he said i'm going to do nothing but have a single-minded focus on the issues that are affecting the american people now. i'm not going to allow politics to get in the way of it. i'm going to clear the field to allow a fresh democratic face to come forward. and i should mention one other thing that's weighing on this that again is part of kind of the whisper conversation that needs to be candid is real doubt about whether vice president harris is a suitable heir apparent as the next nominee. the longer biden waits the more likely that she becomes the default nominee. and that's going to be very troublesome for the democratic party given just how unpopular she is. >> well, his numbers, kathryn, but up "the wall street journal" on the screen. his numbers are clearly underwater. he's got a 57% disapproval in the until "the wall street jou." do you also have her approval numbers? bret just referenced vice president kamala harris. you can put up her numbers as well. while you do, i'll say this to bret, the person who is rooting against your prescription is the vice president of the united states. because right now, no one can organize, no one can fund raise, no one can do anything, and the longer that situation continues, she's in the primary position of being able then to just step right in and assume that mantle if he doesn't run. >> and that's something that, michael, should panic democrats. i can't see the screen, but the average that i saw had her as the least popular vice president in the 21st century, that includes mike pence. there's a lot of talent in the democratic field. a lot of talent is not able to come to the fore. if everyone assumes that biden may in fact not run again or if the vice president has a preemptive hold as the default nominee. that's bad for the party. a lot of people are watching this saying bret stephens is conservative. he just wants a return to the republican party. the last i think i want is the country drawn to a weaker president biden or a weaker presidential nominee harris. democrats are going to need time to find a good, popular suitable candidate. >> if you're right, and he didn't run for re-election which by the way is my instinct. i wish him well and i want him to live to 150 years old and healthy as a horse. and if you're right and she becomes the heir apparent, there is also this added dynamic among who among democrats is willing to step out and stand in the way of the potential for the first female president of the united states, who is also a person of color. i mean, is amy klobuchar going to get in the way of that? is elizabeth warren going to get in the way of that? i don't know that's a very highly charged situation. quickly. the final word. >> yeah, or pete buttigieg , th best thing to wish president biden a long and healthy life to say he's a president 45who is going to get a lot done in three years. stay where you are and put it up on social media -- i'll read it aloud. neva says, bret, you shouldn't even be discussing this. you're just putting fuel on the fire. what's your answer to that bret? >> i think that i am talking candidly about a conversation that's being whispered. sunshine is the best disinfectant, someone once said. and i'm trying to apply some sunshine on a conversation that has to happen in the daylight. >> and when i brought it up to begala earlier this week, he acknowledged this is what people are buzzing about. i agree. one more, if we have time for, put it up on the screen. the left are doing such a bad job that we will end up with trump again which would be an improvement, warts and all, says someone else. i have to say for parody, bret, last night, fareed zakaria was my guest. he wrote an essay in "the washington post." he said, look, biden is getting done wrong here. he's competent, he's likable. we live untiin very strange tim and he's not getting his just due in the polling data. you would say what to fareed? >> first of all, i don't think he's speaking to the majority of americans. at the end of the day, the press is won by popular vote, not by brilliant guys like fareed. the democrats have a real problem, i don't want to see donald trump who will i opposed consistently for four years return to the white house. but if you're serious and sober about that prospect, then you've got to open the field and let other democrats have a chance at winning the nomination. >> you have to love carville's comments about you. ah, the guy's got to put out two columns aces a week. this is the best he could come up. >> carville is a brilliant guy and gracious in his disagreement. i'll making a point that everyone is already talking about and have to have this conversation candidly. >> thank you for being here. go to smerconish.com at this hour and answer this week's survey question, in view of the spread of omicron should we return to early pandemic measures? still to come, friday, a tiktok trend of nationwide school violence led to multiple closures rattling the student body which has been a challenging year due to protocols of covid. and with campuses shutting down and cancelling sporting events. so what will the long-term effect be on this generation? 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("jingle bells") ♪ (doors knocking and bells ringing to the music) ♪ - [announcer] this holiday season, give the gift of grubhub. ♪ ♪ ♪ hey google. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ will america's kids ever recover from the trauma of living through these past few years? >> the latest jolt came when a vaig viral tiktok trend warned there could be nationwide school violence yesterday. this prompted widespread school closures despite authorities not finding the threats credible. since the outbreaks, covid has been buffeting kids through schools, changing policies with learning, masks, distancing. a little surprise that a recent surgeon general's report found during the pandemic depression and anxiety among young people have died. 2019 and 2021, suicide went up 51% for girls and 4% for boys. joining me is a professor for psychologist at san diego state university aurthor of a great book "igen" why kids are growing up completely unhappy. and what that means for adults and the rest of us. doctor, such a time to grow. you and seems like it became even more difficult this week. talk to me about that. >> it is. you know, today's kids face so many challenges to growing up right now. and that started before the pandemic. it starts when smartphones and social media became basically mandatory. around 2012, 2013. that's actually when the increases in mental health issues like depression and suicides began to increase. we were actually at a rate even before the pandemic hit with all of its disruption. >> you and i have had many conversations here on cnn and on radio, on sirius xm about the impact of iphones. about facebook. we've talked about instagram. what about tiktok? we've never discussed tiktok, and given yesterday's events, how this went viral and how schools had to shut down. there was his apprehension and anxiety. talk to me about that platform and how it fits into your big picture? >> yeah, tiktok, the recent phenomenon, but it is where igen is living these days in terms of social media. extremely popular. really took off during the pandemic. it's short videos. so a lot of them are fun. a lot of them are dances. they're doing funny things. so it looks harmless. the problem is that these so-called challenges of pretty disturbing things. so in september there was a tiktok challenge of destroying school property. and a bunch of kids went and did this and filmed and put it on tiktok. and the most recent one is the violence which thank goodness didn't come to fruition. but the one with school property did. they're good kids that get caught up into this, because of that influence on social media because they're at the stage of where they want to go along with what their friends are doing and it can have really serious consequences. it just happened across the country where school property was destroyed costing school districts thousands of dollars. >> take our final minute and tell me, tell parents, how do we both protect our kids, how do we keep them safe, how can we be good parents amidst these factors? >> it is tough. i have three kids myself. and you have to try to figure out, well, what limits can we set that are reasonable on these devices and on social media? so that might be, first, no phones in the bedroom overnight. and then with social media, set some time limits. tiktok, half hour a day, hour a day. and let's talk about what you're doing on tiktok. and if there's something that seems a little off to you, let's have a discussion about that. and if they're too young, keep them off. they're not supposed to be on social yet at all until 13. that's actually the law. and when they're older, i would limit it to more like 16 or even 18. and these recent events are another example of what that should be. >> dr. twenge, thank you for your expertise. we appreciate it. >> thanks so much. still to come, your best and worst tweets and facebook comments. and we'll give you the final result of the survey question from smerconish.com. you can go vote right now. in view of the spread of omicron, should we return to early pandemic measures? 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what will covid bring in six months, a year? if you're feeling anxious about the future, you're not alone. calhope offers free covid-19 emotional support. call 833-317-4673, or live chat at calhope.org today. time to see how you responded to this week's survey question at smerconish.com. in view of the sproead of omicron, should we return to early pandemic measures? 16,000 who voted. no, we should not go back to where we were in march 2020. social media, here's some that came in during the course of the program. what do we have? no, we shouldn't return to the strategy that did nothing to prevent people from getting covid. time to live with the virus but the key is to live our lives. i can't go that far to say the strategy did nothing to prevent. i presented you disparate voices. get vaccinated, get boosted. we can have this conversation about which measures are necessary, but get vaccinated and get boosted at a minimum. what else? here's one more. what is brett stephens talking about? biden got us out of afghanistan and passed an infrastructure bill in his first year. he did. and i said to fareed last night he deserves credit for that. but the withdraw got ugly the the border is a sieve. i could go on and on. covid is not under control. are all of those his fault. if you're in that position, you own it i guess is what i would say. a quick programming note. since christmas and new year's fall on saturdays this year, this program will be on holiday break the next two weeks. i'll be back january 8th. in the meantime, you can find me here at 9:00 p.m. next week. most of all, merry christmas and happy new year. feel stuck with credit card debt? move to sofi and feel what it's like to get your money right. ♪ move your high-interest debt to a sofi personal loan. you could save with low rates and no fees. earn $10 just for viewing your rate and get your money right. ♪ we strip in the community garden. i've been stripping here for years. i strip before take-off. breathe right strips open your nose for relief you can feel right away, helping you take in air more easily, wherever you are. ho ho ho! not again. oh no. for the gifts you won't forget. the mercedes-benz winter event. get a credit toward your first month's payment on select models. xfinity rewards are our way of thanking you just for being with us. enjoy rewards like sing family fun nights! rent sing for $1, then belt out all your favorite tunes from the movie with sing karaoke. plus, see sing 2 in theaters with buy-one-get-one free fandango tickets. join over a million members by signing up for free on the xfinity app. our thanks. your rewards. try garlique healthy immune support formula. uniquely formulated with garlic, vitamins and minerals to support a strong, healthy immune system. garlique. good morning. it's saturday, december 18th. i'm boris sanchez. >> i'm paula reed in for christi paul. you are in the cnn "newsroom". >> paula, glad we didn't scare you off. >> so true. it's been a lovely morning being here with you. . >> we start with the biden administration redoubling efforts to get america vaccinated as covid-19 infections rise across parts of the country. while omicron is expected to become the dominant coronavirus variant in the u.s., experts say it is still the delta variant that's driving this latest surge. . >> and covid-19 cases are up everywhere, but infection rates are rising fastest in the northeast, midwest and south. new this morning, we're learning more about the white house response to the variants. the vice president said in a new interview that the biden administration didn't see th