and cdc reducing isolation time for health care workers have tested positive, as some of the airline industry push for the same. a guilty verdict for minnesota police officer kim potter after four days of deliberations. we will speak to daunte wright's mother ahead. hail the hero. tsa agent jumping over the conveyor belt to save a choking baby. all of that caught on camera. you're going to want to see it. ♪ good morning to our viewers in the u.s. and all around the world. it is friday, december 24th. very merry christmas eve. it is last call now for shopping, gift wrapping. santa likely already starting his deliveries. he's out there making the rounds. so is covid. for the second year in a row, the pandemic bringing a lot of folks the equivalent of a lump of coal. airlines struggle with a shortage of flight crews and operations staff. overnight, the cdc announcing a big change in its covid guidance. health care workers who test positive for covid-19 but are asymptomatic can return to work after seven days with a negative test instead of ten days. the isolation time can be cut even further to prevent staffing shortages. >> that's a big change. omicron surpassed last summer's delta surge in terms of infections. the daily average of new infections topping 182,000. in washington, d.c., covid cases breaking the previous record. the nation's capital has seen 386% increase the last search days. but keep this in mind, the key metric that we health officials are watching, and that is hospitalizations. and so far we are not seeing a drastic spike. omicron showing, at least for now, that it doesn't cause as severe illness. there is more good news. another weapon added to the nation's covid-fighting arsenal. the fda approving a second anti-viral covid pill, this one from merck. we'll have more on that just ahead. first, over to aviation expert pete muntean live at reagan international airport. the issue here is that some airport staff are testing positive, and that's causing trouble with flights. >> reporter: you know, that's right, jim. the omicron variant isn't really stopping people from traveling, but it is causing problems at the airlines. the uptick in cases is lead to go staffing shortages, and that is causing them to cancel flights. these are the latest numbers from flight aware. 165 at united airlines today. 115 cancellations at delta air lines today. we obtained this memo from united airlines which says this is all about the uptick impacting the flight crews and operational staff. in a statement, united airlines says we are unfortunately having to cancel some flights and are notifying impacted customers in advance of coming to the airport. we're sorry for the disruption and we're working hard to rebook as many people as possible and get them on their way for the holidays. the goal here, according to united, is to not strand people at airports where we saw long lines yesterday. the tsa tells us a little bit early the numbers of yesterday, 2.19 million people screened at airports across the country. that was to be one of the busiest days for air travel of this holiday travel season. and it continues this streak where we have seen numbers near or above 2 million people a day for about a week. you know, the tsa says just getting started, though, we will see about another 20 million people traveling by air between now and january 3rd. and that's when everybody begins coming home all at once. >> by the way, that's what the president, health officials say do. keep your vacation plans as long as you're vaccinated. the airline industry is asking the cdc for help to shorten the period for airline workers so they aren't faced with as many cancellations as they are seen now. any sense that is going to happen? >> reporter: we'll have to wait and see how this pans out, jim. the top lobby for the airlines and delta have both written to the cdc director rochelle walensky and say if we shorten from 10 days to 5 days, it will allow workers to avoid some of these operational issues we have seen and return to work more quickly. we will see how this goes. >> we know you'll be on it. pete muntean, thanks srefplt new york is seeing a record seven-day average of new covid infections. nearly 25,000. again, and this is the good news here, hospitalizations are not near, not near record levels. meantime, new york's new year's eve celebration in times square is still on, though it is being scaled back significantly. cnn's shimon prokupecz live for us in times square. how big will it be and what kind of restrictions will they take to keep it safe? >> reporter: certainly not as big as prior years. certainly bigger than last year where only front line workers were allowed to come here. the city is only allowing 15,000 people in each viewing area. normally they allow close to 60,000, about 58,000 or so people into these viewing areas. they're scaling that back because of the spread of the omicron virus. what they are doing is saying, okay, we're going to allow people to come here much later in the day, starting at 3:00 on new year's eve, and we're going to put about 15,000 people in each viewing area. you're also going to be required to wear a mask. and you're going to be required to be vaccinated. they're going to have police officers at checkpoints, checking everything, checking people in. so the party is going to go on. it's just going to be much smaller. this was going to be a big event for the city, for new york city. and the mayor wanted it to go on. so scaling it back was appropriate. of course, jim, as you said, for several days now, we have seen this virus just explode around new york city. across the state, close to 40,000 cases. this virus is continuing to spread the city and the state really seeing over 11% positivity rate. but as you said, hospitalization, and that is the key. the city, the state is not seeing anywhere near the hospitalization rate they saw during the peak of the virus back in march 2020. so that has given them some positive feeling that they can continue to do events, people can continue to live. of course the mayor saying don't hunker down, don't hide, stay safe and come out and stay safe, jim. >> hospitalization rates staying low. by the way, the show is going to go on. shimon in new york, thanks so much. joining us now to discuss the former secretary of health and human services under president clinton and former democratic florida congresswoman donna shalala. as everyone is trying to calculate how they should handle the virus and the holidays, we're told repeatedly testing is going to be key here. we know the testing issues that exist despite what is coming down the pike. dr. leana wen told the "washington post" she sees the failure of imagination and leadership that the administration she believes should have given tests as the same focus as vaccinations. would you agree? >> yes, i do agree. and also contact tracing as well. you know, this is a combination of things. we also need more positive messages. i really think we have to reset here. it doesn't do any good to tell people if you don't get vaccinated the chances are you're going to die. that's a negative message. and that has not worked. and so staying safe is a better message. a positive message that we can control this virus. we can't eliminate it, but we certainly can control it. but we need a more positive method to get people collectively to see we are all in this together. and during this season in particular, i think it's very important that we send that message. >> let me ask you about other steps. because we saw the cdc significantly shorten quarantine times for health care workers in part to avoid a shortage and in response to omicron not showing to be autos virulent as feared. do you think the quarantine time should be shortened for others as well? you have the airline industry asking, even folks at home. you have businesses, right, who have to grapple with this as well. >> it ought to be based on the science. and obviously shortening it to seven days is based on the science. it's not just omicron. we're learning a lot about how much we can shorten that. but we also have to emphasize to everybody, look, wear a mask. i'm in cleveland now, cuyahoga county. it's an epicenter. and i was shocked going into stores that so few people were wearing masks. but there has to be a positive message that we're all here together, that we need to pull together. and masks are one small piece of the overall strategy. >> it's interesting. you mentioned where you are. yesterday he was speaking with a doctor from the cleveland clinic. his hospital, i believe it was one of six in the area, that took out a full-page ad with the very simple message, help. is it your sense, and you talk about a more positive message, the easy thing we can do, mask. unfortunately, like so many things, has been politicized. do you think the messages from the front lines are getting through at this point two years in? >> i have always believed a grassroots effort, not just health care workers. health care workers we know, as well as ministers and all kinds of religious leaders, community leaders, everybody sending the same consistent message. there are things we can do beyond vaccinations that will make a difference. look, we are our neighbor's keeper. and we care about your communities. so we need this kind of grassroots approach now. >> so, schools, we heard -- i was talking to the education secretary earlier this week, that the biden administration's guidance is keep the schools open. we're not going back to virtual. you have seen at the university level some schools going virtual at least for the days after the holidays. is that a smart move? how long should it be? >> i do believe it's going to be relatively short-term. look, i spent the year teaching 125 students with a mask on, and they had a mask on. and they were all vaccinated. we got through this. but the kids want to be back in class. so we have to figure out everything we can possibly do. we're the adults in this society. we have to make sure if we can that the kids are vaccinated. but also that they are wearing masks. >> yeah. >> going back with masks i think is what we will end up doing. >> if only adults acted like adults consistently. that's what i want for christmas. >> you read my mind, jim. i was thinking the same thing >> me too! >> we are all in agreement. pleasure to have you with us. happy holidays. >> happy holidays. the former police officer who drew her gun instead of taser found guilty of first-degree manslaughter. why that verdict surprised some legal experts. and we are following a tragic story this morning h out of los angeles. a teenage girl killed by stray police fire. she was inside a dressing room. >> heartbreaking. what took so long? full listen throated endorsement now from former president trump about a year into this. to all the kisses... ...that led... ...to this one. celebrate every kiss, with kay. feel stuck with student loan debt? move to sofi and feel what it's like to get your money right. ♪ ♪ move your student loan debt to sofi— you could save with low rates and no fees. earn a $1,000 bonus when you refi— and get your money right. ♪ ♪“i got you babe” by etta james♪ ♪ get groceries, gifts, & more fast and easy. so last minute guests are the only thing you'll be waiting on. ♪ joy. fully. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ experience the power of sanctuary at the lincoln wish list event. former minnesota police officer kimberly potter was handcuffed and escorted out of a minnesota courthouse yesterday after being found guilty on two counts of manslaughter. this for the killing of daunte wright. potter says she mistook her firearm for a taser during what was a traffic stop. outside the courthouse, supporters of daunte wright and his family celebrated the verdict. they say they got justice here. joining us now is criminal defense attorney joey jackson. good to have you on here. first of all, there were some lawyers who did not expect the trial to go this way at least on both counts here. were you surprised? >> reporter: i was not, jim. good morning to you. for the following reasons. it's a very difficult process we have in having 12 people reach an accord. so that is really built into it. then when you get the different dynamic facts here and you have an officer, people generally don't like to convict, there are going to be factions, infighting. it's oftentimes the case, believe it or not, where you have a jury that comes out and says, judge, we're really divided and we just don't know what to do. i'm summarizing of course. and the judge says go back and deliberate and reach a consensus. and that's what they did here. >> i don't want to draw lines between cases with fundamentally different facts. but fact is we have had a couple high-profile cases with derrick khchauvin chauvin. the jury's tendency has been to give police officers more leeway. do you see any trend there in terms of how juries are seeing cases like this, or is it, well, far too early? >> reporter: you know, jim, it's a great question. and the fact is i do. and i don't think it's early. i think when you look at what juries are doing, i think it's huge what they did. now, let's look and understand you had a jury, right, remembering six men, six women, nine white, two asian, one african american woman. a lot of people may have concluded because you have a jury that does not look like the defendant perhaps they wouldn't be sympathetic to that defendant's perspective. they were. and i think that says an awful lot. in an era with we haven't seen police held accountable, to see them held accountable back to back on largely different facts is ushering a new era of so much, equal protection under the law for all concerned, accountability, no matter whether you have a badge, no matter whether you don't, and people who need to be responsible for their actions in the event they engage in criminality. i do see it moving in that direction. . >> both of these cases, the video played a central role in the george floyd killing. of course video shot by eyewitnesses. in this case it was the body cam video. you saw this play out. as it happened and then the reaction of kimberly potter afterwards. that is central to these guilty verdicts. >> you know, interestingly enough, you mentioned whether there was a trend before. people say, two, is that a trend? i think so. to your question, i think we're going to see a trend as it relates to technology and courtrooms. we do have body cams on so many police officers throughout the country. in addition to that, we know we have video as it relates to people having cell phones everywhere they go and people having ring and so many other surveillance things. and so i think this technology is not going to be unique to kim potter. it's not going to be unique to george floyd. it's going to be out there. it's a very important thing because it provides context with respect to what occurred. we saw it also in the last case involving the mcmichaels, the videotape that was introduced. so, yes, it gives you another measure of what happened. and then you can argue and interpret what happened. >> sentencing coming up. oftentimes mistakenly we look at the maximum sentence here. the maximum for the first-degree, 15 years, second-degree, 10 years. she has no criminal history. about half that given her past. if you had to game this, what kind of sentence do you think she's looking at? >> yeah. just as we have this nice chart regarding sentencing, to your point, we have a statutory of 15 years to the top count. 10 years for the second count. guidelines call for between 6 and 8.5. then you have aggravating factors and mitigating factors. who on earth is that? annan aggravating factor is what prosecutors argue. you're a police officer, you used your authority, make it more, your honor. to your point, defense saying largely an accident. i do think there will be some deviation from the guidelines potentially lower, right. and i think just last point, jim, the judge did a remarkable thing. when the defense said keep her out. do not have her go out. the judge said i'm not treating her differently. i don't know that it will be six to eight and a half years based upon the uniqueness of this case. but she will be held accountable and will do significant time in jail, in my view. >> understood. joey jackson, good to have you on this morning. >> reporter: thank you, jim. new overnight, los angeles police promising a fast release of body cam video after a teenage girl was shot and killed by police. she was in a dressing room. police were firing on an assault suspect. police rushed to the scene on a call for assault with a deadly weapon in progress. officers tracked down the suspect and police opened fire on him after a shorten counter. following the shooting, that's when police found the 14-year-old's body behind the dressing room wall which had been penetrated by gunfire. the police chief calling the incident devastating and tragic. rudy giuliani sued by two georgia election workers who say his spread of misinformation made their lives a living hell. the supreme court standing between president trump and the january 6th committee. where does it go from here? 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. because you're forever connected by love... two touching center diamonds, representing the connection you share. forever connected. the perfect gift to give this holiday. exclusively at kay. 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. two georgia election workers suing trump adviser rudy giuliani and one america news network for election fraud claims in 2020. they say their reputations are destroyed and trump supporters have been harassing them. kaitlan collins live in washington this morning. what more are we learning in this suit? >> reporter: well, this is yet another lawsuit claiming that the right wing, especially oan, rudy giuliani, were pushing lies during the election, even defamatory. this is different because it is two absentee ballot processors. they were work, processing at the state farm arena in georgia after election day. they were on video. that video became part of this right wing narrative that there was election fraud, people accusing them of tampering with the ballots. georgia officials say that didn't happen at all. the two women say after it was circulated of them, they were docked. her name is ruby freeman. the fbi told her she needed to leave her house on january 6th, the day of the insurrection. she had to leave her house for safety because a crowd had gathered outside. she didn't return for several weeks. she was getting emails, text messages, even christmas cards that were threatening, messages to her that were quite harassing. and the other woman, moss, said people were showing up at her grandmother's house and were trying to make a citizens arrest. so we have asked for comment from oan and from giuliani in response to this lawsuit. we haven't heard anything back yet. they will have some time to come back, make their arguments in court. there is a long road ahead. it is a serious defamation case. but i can say right now we have already seen cases like this from places like dominion voting systems against julie, oan, and specifically against giuliani, it wasn't frivolous at all. a judge looked at it and allowed it to move forward toward trial. this really is a serious case that both the right wing media and rudy giuliani are looking to have to deal with in d.c. district court in the future. >> serious. and the few details of what these women went through, so disturbing and frightening. katelyn, thank you. asking the supreme court to weigh in and quickly after former president trump's latest appeal for the high court to block the release of his white house records. cnn's paula reid live with more. i guess the question is how quickly will the supreme court decide this? >> reporter: well, we never know how quickly the high court will move. but president trump asked them to block a demand for his records from the house select committee investigating january 6th. it comes after two lower courts rejected his arguments that the records are protected by executive privilege. the u.s. court of appeals also backed the legitimacy overall. now, president biden has refused to invoke executive privilege over the disputed documents citing the extraordinary circumstances of january 6th. now, the supreme court is not obligated to hear trump's lawsuit, which seeks to prevent the national archives from giving the house select committee documents that include active logs, schedules, speech notes which investigators believe could reveal some of what was going on inside the white house during the insurrection. now, trump has asked the court to block the records being sent to the panel until the overall issue is decided. following trump's request, lawyers for the january 6th committee asked the supreme court to act sooner than its normal rules call for, citing in disputable importance and urgency of the committee's investigation. they're asking for at least a decision on whether they'll take up the case by mid-january. now, the final decision in this case will have significant implications for the investigation as several key witnesses are refusing to cooperate citing executive privilege. >> watching that case closely. paula reid, thanks so much. joining us now, margaret toll of and managing director at access. nice to see you this morning. you know, as we look at this question of, you know, will they or won't they, will the court take up this case, there is a question that is surrounding that, too. what is going to be seen as more political? if the court chooses to take this on or if they choose not to? >> reporter: certainly. well, if this court, which is a 6-3 conservative court, three of the justices appointees, nominees of former president trump. if this court chooses not to take this case, it lets the lower court decision stand, and that's a big deal. it limits the former president's number of plays. and, look, the supreme court in the past has not always supported the president's executive privilege claims. let's look at richard nixon. however, if they do decide to take this case, there are two things to consider. it will set precedent for executive privilege. this is a fundamentally important question beyond, you know, what happens to donald trump in the january 6th investigation. but also it could take months. and the current majority in congress may not have very many months left. so part of the former president's play and those of others who have declined to testify or kind of taken things to court is to try and run out the clock. and the supreme court may decide they do want to weigh in with some sort of nuanced reading of exactly what is the line for executive privilege when a former president wants it and the current president says, no, i don't think that applies. but if they do decide to take it up, if they take as long as they typically do, it could be june easily before they come down with a ruling. >> yeah. >> reporter: so time matters. and whether or not they take the case matters. >> yeah, they both do. this is the new parlor game the next couple of weeks as we wait to here. meantime, what was really surprising is the recent reaction we have seen from the former president about the vaccine, touting both efficacy and safety in a recent interview. i want to play that in case folks haven't played it. take a listen. >> the ones that get very sick and go to the hospital are the ones that don't take their vaccine. but it's still their choice. and if you take the vaccine, you're protected. look, the results of the vaccine are very good. and if you do get it, it's a very minor form. people aren't dying when they take the vaccine. >> you know, it's interesting there. he is touting the vaccine's efficacy and safety. but at the same time saying, ah, but it's still your choice. still trying to have it both ways. >> reporter: yeah. erica, for sure former president trump trying to thread the needle there. this message that vaccines work is one that public health officials, scientists, the current administration had wished for months that the former president took. they wished he had taken that position when he was the president and when so many of these people said. it has become a huge cultural divide. the former president is obviously trying to take advantage of the fact that those vaccines were made during his presidency. he's trying to position himself as someone who saved lives. he's trying to position president biden as being responsible for covid deaths right now. but he's not acknowledging the role that he took for months in kind of down playing the vaccine or down playing the virus itself. the other thing that's going on is that research is showing increasingly a split. and what it is showing is that people who live in counties that voted for president trump are much more likely, like two to three times more likely to die from deaths related to covid-19. and so there's both the former president's political opportunity to hurt the sitting president but also to try to rehab his own image and reputation the way history or even the current, you know, kind of living history remembers his role or understands his role. and the truth is that in down playing the vaccines and the virus for many, many months, he helped set many of the patterns that led to this bifurcation now. >> perhaps one of the best examples we saw earlier this week when he said he was boosted and was booed by the crowd that was there to see him. you know, what else is fascinating to me, too, you have this new "axios" poll out which looks at whether people trust information from the federal government, and the drop in that number among unvaccinated individuals. there's clearly a connection there, margaret. >> reporter: it's very striking. our survey found among unvaccinated americans trust in the federal government dropped from 43% in the first half of the year to 22% in the second half. and it was even lower in white unvaccinated, down to 15%. if you were unvaccinated in june, maybe you just weren't sure but you finally did it. if you're unvaccinated now, you have made a choice and you are dug in and one of the hard resistors. the trust level is so low. the other interesting thing we found in the survey is the two groups of unvaccinated americans, republicans and black americans behave very differently, overwhelmingly black americans who have decided not to take the vaccine are wearing masks. they are very worried about the virus. they are trying to social distance. this other group of americans who identify as republicans, much less likely to wear masks, much less likely to social distance. still much more likely to say they returned to normal life. that is a real challenge for public health officials trying to get things under control in the age of omicron. >> and also circles back to what we were just talking about a minute ago. the interesting shift in tone from donald trump as we head into more elections. margaret, always good to see you. thank you. happy holidays. >> merry christmas. thanks. coming up, a second anti viral covid pill. the most powerful telescope ever built is about to launch into space. why it could drastically change how and how far we see into our universe. the fda has now authorized another anti-viral pill for treatment of covid-19 in high-risk adults who tested positive for the virus. merck's new pill is the second at-home treatment now available, following the approval of pfizer's anti-viral pill on wednesday. dr. barr, senior vice president of global medical and scientific affairs at merck. dr. barr, thanks for joining us this morning. >> my pleasure. >> as we noted, this is for people who test positive here. how effective, and do we know already, how effective this pill is specifically against the omicron variant, which is now becoming dominant here in the u.s.? >> well, we've tested the drug on omicron virus in vitro. it looks like it is effective. we are excited this is going to be an effective tool, including patients with omicron, going forward. this is going to be a really important part of the battle against this incredible wave of infection we're seeing right now. >> and the idea is you test positive. to head off the possibility of contracting serious illness and ending up in the hospital, you take this prophylactically, right, to prevent that outcome? >> well, right. so patients -- it's patients who have tested positive for covid, within five days of symptom onset and have a high-risk condition. that is, they have something that would make it likely that if they get covid they will have a bad outcome. and if there aren't any other possibilities for therapy. so basically you start to have symptoms, you have to call your doctor, get tested for covid, the medicine becomes available for you. he or she will write a prescription. and then you can take it in your home. . >> do you see this as at a later stage when supplies are bigger, frankly, that it would not be just for folks in those special categories, more vulnerable categories but could be for everyone to prevent what would be a less likely possibility of developing severe illness? >> well, we're studying the drug in patients who -- in people who have been exposed to somebody who definitely has covid to try to see whether the drug can prevent them from getting covid in the first place. so if those studies are positive, and they're being done right now, then indeed the drug would be available not only to treat patients who have covid but to also prevent them from getting covid if they spent a lot of time with somebody who has it already. >> that's interesting. so it could be preventive not just of getting severe illness but at some point preventive of just contracting the disease? >> right. if the studies are positive, that being the case. again, it's not a substitute for vaccines. but what it is if you have inadvertently come in contact with someone who has covid, it may prevent you from getting the infection to begin with. . >> understood. you mentioned the idea of this not being a substitute for vaccines. the advice on that has been consistent. we hear that from health officials and so on. in the nih guidance, though, on triaging patients, it says that the unvaccinated can receive priority access to treatments. and i wonder if you worry that that could have a negative outcome? in other words, some folks say i don't have to vaccinate because i have this backup pill that will save me if i get sick. >> well, i think it's important for people to be both vaccinated and to have access to these medicines. vaccination doesn't prevent people from getting the drug in the same way, having the drug is not an excuse for getting vaccinated. because, in essence, vaccination prevents you from serious disease from the get-go. you don't have to actually get sick before you start to have the -- you know, become eligible for the drug. who wants to get sick? you should get vaccinated and prevent that from happening >> for sure. how soon will this be widely available? >> well, already we have had hundreds of thousands of courses that are available in the next couple of days. and then within the next few weeks, a million courses. we've got 10 million courses in the factory ready to be packaged. the drugs will be available very quickly. again, for higher risk patients. and we look forward to being part of the solution to this omicron wave. >> well, we'll be watching. good news in the fight against all of this. dr. eliav barr, thank you for joining us this morning. >> my pleasure. coming up, vice president or an afterthought? brand-new reporting on concerns that vice president kamala harris is being sidelined in this administration. plus, -- >> they're bringing drugs. they're bringing crime. they're rapists. >> they're thieves, assassins, rapists. that's all they are. >> the populist candidate now being called the donald trump of france. ♪ i see trees of green ♪ ♪ red roses too ♪ ♪ i see them bloom ♪ ♪ for me and you ♪ ♪ and i think to myself ♪ ♪ what a wonderful world ♪ a rich life is about more than just money. that's why at vanguard, you're more than just an investor, you're an owner so you can build a future for those you love. vanguard. become an owner. because you're forever connected by love... two touching center diamonds, representing the connection you share. forever connected. the perfect gift to give this holiday. exclusively at kay. this holiday season, give your family the gift that keeps on... going? our very own energizer bunny! energizer ultimate lithium. [snowball splat and windshield wiper] the #1 longest-lasting aa battery. ♪ (vo) reflect on the past, celebrate the future. season's greetings from audi. ♪ limu emu... & doug ♪ ♪ superpowers from a spider bite? i could use some help showing the world how liberty mutual customizes their car insurance so they only pay for what they need. (gasps) ♪ did it work? only pay for what you need ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ spider-man no way home in theaters december 17th mom, hurry! our show's gonna start soon! i promised i wouldn't miss the show and mommy always keeps her promises. oh, no! seriously? hmm! it's not the same if she's not here. oh. -what the. oh my goodness! i don't suppose you can sing, can you? ♪ the snow's comin' down ♪ -mommy? ♪ i'm watching it fall ♪ watch the full story at www.xfinity.com/sing2 a polarizing far-right tv personality is electrifying france's presidential race. his controversial views on islam draw parallels to a certain former u.s. president. >> reporter: the political force shaking up france's presidential campaign. eric zemmour, anti-islam idealing on delivering his first official speech as a candidate. >> translator: obviously, i'm not a racist. you're not a racist. all you want is to defend your country, our homeland, the heritage of our ancestors. >> reporter: this is the reaction he's been getting. moments later, his campaign marred by violence. this is how zemmour supporters responded to an anti-racism protest. convicted twice, found guilty of inciting religious hatred and fined. he has drawn comparisons to another fire-breathing populist. >> they're bringing drugs. they're bringing crime. they're rapists. >> translator: they're thieves, assassins, rapists. that's all they are. >> they can try to steal the election from us. >> translator: don't let them steal the election from you. >> reporter: zemmour and trump, the parallels hard to miss. political outsiders who capitalized on their tv fame to launch an unlikely presidential bid. their promise -- >> we will make america great again. >> reporter: bring the country back to an imagined former glory. >> translator: the france of napoleon he says in his campaign announcement. he draws inspiration from donald trump, says his biographer. he loved that trump never backed down. whenever asked, he would just respond, build the wall. that's exactly how zemmour wants to run, he said. the french trump? almost. the former tv personality, still a long-shot candidate, is one part trump, one part tucker carlson. >> how precisely is diversity or strength? he's not from this country in that sense. >> reporter: zemmour, the ex-opinion journalist is a facsimile of the fox news star. same debating styles, same cable news platform, same enviable ratings, and the same obsession with culture wars. >> translator: we must choose names from the calendar, the names of christian saints. >> my name is -- >> your mother was wrong. >> reporter: he never had interest in running for office, until he did. cyril vanier, paris. hundreds of flights grounded ahead of christmas. what the airlines are now asking from the cdc to help ease staffing shortages. and how many americans celebrate christmas with a real tree? >> a lot of sap in here. >> i just saw that movie the other day. harry enten has the tree data. it's the last minute gift sale. get up to 40% off storewide. ( ♪ ) this is how we shine. at zales. the diamond store. ♪ ♪ grandma, how wide are two reindeer? twenty-seven, twenty-eight, twenty-nine... ♪ ♪ we've been waiting all year to come together... it worked! have a happy and safe holiday season from lexus. nicorette knows, quitting smoking is freaking hard. you get advice like: just stop. go for a run. go for 10 runs! run a marathon. instead, start small. with nicorette. which can lead to something big. start stopping with nicorette. o man, that's a whole lot of wrinkly at least my shoes look good! looking good start with bounce wrinkleguard, the megasheet designed to prevent wrinkles in the dryer. families across the country set to gather today for the holiday weekend. before they headed out for the holiday, john berman and harry enten broke down the data on the celebration of christmas. take a look. >> reporter: it is christmas eve. many americans are preparing to celebrate christmas whether it's wrapping last-minute gifts, watching their favorite movie. here is senior data reporter harry enten. >>. ♪ i'm feeling the season ♪ >> you're looking the season. >> i'm looking the season because it's christmas season. you know what, it is probably one of the holidays that most americans celebrate. look at this. do you celebrate christmas? 92% of all americans do, 96% of christians. even 81% of non-christians celebrate it. it is a religious holiday and secular holiday. pretty much most businesses are closed except the deli and chinese restaurants. >> do you have a christmas tree in your home? 22% say no. ergo, me. but look at this, 55% say yes, but it is artificial. just 22% say yes and it's real. i've always been in the northeast. this is shocking to me. >> you are one of those northeastern coast elitists, i would say. >> favorite christmas movie. >> yeah. you know, die hard is not on here >> that's a crime. this is just wrong. these stats are wrong. >> these stats are apparently wrong. elf at 6%? i didn't realize it is this popular. "it's a wonderful life", 9%. a christmas story, you can't go anywhere without watching it. it's on all day. national lampoon's christmas vacation. >> unpopular opinion, a christmas story is kind of sad. i don't really laugh. i think it's kind of sad. holiday, a lot of stress. . >> there's a lot of stress around the holidays. what causes the most stress? maybe this segment for me. no, i'm just kidding. finding the right gifts, 28%. traveling, 24%. especially if you're home alone. being with family, yeah, 17%. nothing, no stress. good for you, folks. 16%. cooking, i don't know how to do that. 9%. just go to the chinese restaurant >> when are people done with their shopping? >> if you're still shopping up to this minute, you have a lot of people in your company. last ten days before christmas, 36%. good for you, the 32% done by december 15th. 22% done by december 1st. you folks are really amazing. no holiday shopping, i'm cheap, 7%. >> harry, what do you want for the holidays? ♪ what do i want for the holidays ♪ my bills are playing your patriots. it's a rematch. all i need is a win. just one. please! i'm begging. i'm begging, please. >> bill belichick is the grinch. >> with his real christmas tree in new england. >> mr. you got it. harry, happy holidays to you. >> happy holidays for you, my friend. >> in the dynamic duo right there. jim, real tree, fake tree? >> real tree. >> same. >> i cut it down myself. >> we did that growing up. >> but i did it in your yard. >> that explains the missing tree. favorite movie? i think "daddy's home 2". >> it has to be a wonderful life. nothing contends with that. the best christmas movie ever. >> how about miracle on 34th street, the black and white version. >> good, too. >> all right. we'll continue this discussion in the break. meantime, "new day" continues right now. ♪ and welcome to our viewers here in the u.s. and around the world. it is friday, december 24th, christmas eve. i'm jim sciutto. john and brianne are off and erica hill joins me. >> good morning. >> a lot of holiday travel plans could be disrupted by the omicron surge. hundreds of preschool flights have now been canceled because of a jump in covid cases among flight crews. they are shortening the required isolation time for airline workers who have been exposed. the cdc has done so for health care workers. this with overburdened health care workers this winter. vaccinated and boosted can return to work after seven days with a negative test. the omicron variant setting new records, easily topping daily case numbers set during the delta wave. the average number of daily new cases, 182,000. but, and this is really important to focus on, we are not seeing hospitalizations rise at the same rate. want more good news? well, for the second time this week, the fda greenlit an anti-viral pill for covid. this one is from merck for