we're also going to get your forecast on the parade route in just moments. >> also this morning, china is vowing to retaliate after president trump signed two bills into law supporting human rights and pro-democracy activists in hong kong. of course the big question this morning is how that could impact trade talks with china. meantime, tensions are building between the president and senior military officers who say they're troubled by mr. trump's intervention in three war crimes cases and concerned about the behavior of the commander in chief. all of this as fired knarichard spencer wrote in an op-ed the president doesn't understand what it means to be governed by a set of rules and practices. we do begin on the parade route. miguel marquez is live for us in new york city. all right. last hour it was calm. how's the wind situation now? >> reporter: i got to say, i'm feeling pretty confident right now that we are going to -- stop with that turkey thing. that's my turkey thing. sorry. look. tom turkey is here. same as your turkey there. the winds are calm. what's giving me even more hope, all these guys in these very colorful uniforms, these are the balloon handlers. there's the man of the hour, astronaut snoopy. that's the 40th iteration of snoopy in the 93 years this parade has been going. incredible the long lasting nature of the peanuts characters. they will make the decision on whether the balloons fly just minutes before they step off at 9:00 a.m. eastern. i got to say, i am shocked at how calm it is right now. the wind howled for much of the night where i live. by the time i got here, though, it had calmed down quite a bit. as long as it doesn't get over that 23 miles per hour or gusting up to 34 miles per hour. they want to avoid what happened here in '97 where one balloon hit a lamp post and debris came down and critically injured a woman. they are trying to keep anything like that from happening this time. they can keep the balloons very close to the ground. they have done that in the past. and that may be the case today. but right now it's looking pretty good. but we are still waiting a final decision. >> all right. as we wait for that, we also want to take a look at the forecast. not just for the parade but also we've got a preview of another big winter storm that could cause headaches over the weekend. cnn meteorologist chad myers has the thanksgiving forecast. good morning. >> good morning, erica. last hour i showed you the european model saying wind gusts to 31. i just which switched it around to show the american model, wind gusts of 37. we will see. there's a lot of wind out there. don't get me wrong, it is howling over the poconos and through west virginia. the winds are 40 to 50 miles per hour. we're just down in this hole in manhattan that's giving us a little bit of an extra effect of a blocking effect. so that's great. the next storm we talk about, it's in california right now. it's going to move to nevada, lots of snow in oregon, and utah and colorado. that's great if you're skiing. unfortunately this is going to get to the northeast coast by sunday. and so a great day to drive tomorrow. saturday great. but then all of a sudden it gets cold enough to ice and snow by sunday afternoon. keep watching that forecast if you're driving across the northeast for sunday or flying out on sunday as millions and millions of people will be. john? >> or not. or not based on the forecast depending what happens. chad, thanks for being with us. there is breaking news. president trump has signed this bill which puts new sanctions on china having to do with the protests in hong kong. we're going to talk about that in just a moment. first let's bring in cnn political correspondent abby phillip and maggie haberman. mag fgie maggie, you have sources everywhere. are you talking to anyone close to snoopy? how are they thinking? what is he thinking about the parade this morning? >> i think snoopy is keeping his opinion a close hold as to whether he's going to be able to actually fly at 9:00. >> we're waiting to see his tweets. really the tweets are the picture. >> sometimes. not always, but sometimes you can know what snoopy is thinking when snoopy tweets. glad we did that, thank you. >> had to try. >> appreciate it. >> and let us know if you hear anything too. >> i'll be here some of the day. >> the president signed the bill which imposed sanctions on china having to do with protests in hong kong. this was passed by congress. seems he didn't have much of a choice whether to sign it. he was sort of forced into it. the president has expressed concerns it will get in the way of his trade negotiations with china. what's the current thinking inside the white house on this measure and what it might do to the negotiation? >> as you said, the president was in something of a box on this. he had to sun this. this had near unanimous support in congress. and they did not want to see play out in the coming months. you are seeing this white house basically taking potential issues off the field for him. this is one. the president tends to view these trade discussions as zero sum. anything that could impact them neg tuff ly he likes to get rid of. you saw the president not sure where he was going to go. but i think at the end of the day, the feeling was this was just not sustainable. >> as christine romans pointed out last hour, there may have been some work within the white house here to do this on the day before a holiday. not affect the markets. that's all smart. but what's fascinating, too, is after we get word from the white house. then we get a separate statement from the president which really undercuts a lot of what we've just seen. >> the statement, frankly, doesn't make a whole lot of sense. he says he signed the bill out of respect for president xi and china hoping that both sides will come to the table and work this out peacefully. obviously the chinese do not see this bill as respectful. they've really rejected that notion all together. to say to xi jingping, i don't really mean it in some ways. that's the effect of the statement like that. and it follows a pattern for president trump on the issue of trade. he has been really hesitant to go too hard on issues like what's going on in hong kong. but on these uighur muslim camps in parts of china that have been, you know, condemned throughout the world, vice president pence has been one of the few people in this administration to talk explicitly about that and only this year -- we are two years into the trump administration, and years into the establishment of these camps. so the president has always been hesitant even while other parts of his administration want to speak more loudly on human rights issues. and it's because he wants to keep all his options on the table to get that trade deal. >> there's another development late last fight. this had to do with richard spencer who wrote an op-ed in "the washington post" once again criticizing the president's decisions and actions regarding eddie gallagher. that's the navy s.e.a.l. who was convicted of posing with a dead isis fighter. the president basically didn't demote him or overturned the demotion, made sure he got his navy trident. spencer did the interview critical of the president and now the op-ed. he writes, this was a shocking and unprecedented intervention at a low level. the president has little understanding of what it means to be in the military, to fight ethically, or to be governed by a uniform set of rules and practices. this is a scathing letter, maggie. did the president expect to get this level in this length of opposition from spencer? >> no. because generally speaking what you have seen in terms of the most extensive opposition for a couple of reasons has been jim mattis who resigned. his letter was, like, the nine compared to what spencer did. what you heard spencer say just now is what you have heard a number of people say privately or, you know, under the name anonymous in a book, right? but you have spencer putting his name to blistering criticism that we have all heard from a number of people around the president. that he does not understand the way the military works. he does not understand why military discipline is done the way it is and why the president has traditionally been hands off on it. to see spencer putting his name to this, while repeatedly admitting he made an error in terms of giving the president -- or giving esper ammunition against him by trying to have this kind of private conversation with the white house counsel related to the gallagher case, he is taking that off the table by acknowledging he shouldn't have done pit. that i think makes his criticism come through more clearly. >> he also points out and i thought was extraordinary that the whole thing started before the trial even began. and that the president called him directly. >> twice. >> twice. so, you know, he points that out to say that this thing has been irregular from the very beginning. the president went outside of the chain of command from the very beginning. going directly to the navy secretary to intervene in this case. and he makes the point that as a senior military officer himself, he tries to stay out of these things. so to have the president putting his hand in the case before it even goes to trial was extraordinary. and i think that gives you a window into why he thought he needed to speak up in this moment it's that important. >> it's also remarkable he does this one last detail saying then i sent the president is note. he had reached out to me and i said stay out of this. and i think the next day that he hears by the way this is exactly what we're going to do and we're going to restore his rank of chief which almost felt like a you tell me to stay out of it, i'll show you exactly how i'm going to do it. >> it's a reminder we have seen this president get involved in any number of things that should be left away from a president. we've seen this over and over again which is also why when the white house gets very angry at reports about the president interfering in a number of procedures or a number of actions, the denials become hard to believe in the face of on the record statements like this. >> all right, guys. stick around. a lot more to discuss. as we know spent years pushing a conspiracy theory that the fbi had spied on his campaign. well, it turns out -- i hope you're sitting down -- it's not true. new details from what the justice department inspector general found next. er, and i'm part of the team building the most powerful 5g experience for america. it's 5g ultra wideband-- --for massive capacity-- --and ultra-fast speeds. almost 2 gigs here in minneapolis. that's 25 times faster than today's network in new york city. so people from midtown manhattan-- --to downtown denver-- --can experience what our 5g can deliver. 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clock on further irreversible joint damage. talk to your rheumatologist. right here. right now. humira. that could allow hackers devices into your home.ys and like all doors, they're safer when locked. that's why you need xfinity xfi. with the xfi gateway, devices connected to your homes wifi are protected. which helps keep people outside from accessing your passwords, credit cards and cameras. and people inside from accidentally visiting sites that aren't secure. and if someone trys we'll let you know. xfi advanced security. if it's connected, it's protected. call, click, or visit a store today. new questions this morning about rudy giuliani's involvement in u.s. foreign policy as new reporting says he sought business and big money from ukraine at the same time he was pushing for an investigation for only of those officials who investigate president trump's political rival joe biden. as you look at all of this when it comes to rudy giuliani, it would seem it's another instance of it really doesn't look good and it doesn't smell good. we've heard repeatedly rudy's his guy. the three times with zelensky -- >> i actually wonder if the president knew that this was going around when he gave an interview to o'reilly the other night where he said rudy's got a lot of other clients. he's got a lot of clients, not just me. that actually supports that. that's the first thing i thought of when we had this story. but in reality, i think it rises all kind of conflicts as he was trying to push on ukraine while al also -- with explanation on it repeatedly has been i thought about it but then i didn't do it. and we will see it if holds. >> we have that sound that maggie was talking about through the magic of television where you can hear the president. >> i know he was going to go to ukraine and i think he canceled the trip. but rudy has other clients other than me. >> the president's uncomfortable if he's not speaking in complete thoughts on sentences. he's stringing words together. >> usually they're together. the way it really mirrors what happened this president and michael cohen. a lot of the same language where he suggests that he had no idea what his lawyer was up to. that michael cohen and giuliani, they're working for other people. yet he has some pretty specific knowledge. he knew that giuliani had canceled a trip to ukraine. he makes sure to mention that in the interview. i would say to all of this, stay tuned. there's still a lot we don't know. follow the money. there seems to be a lot of money that is in the form of a promissory note. and giuliani himself believes it looks bad. that's one of the reasons he didn't follow through on it. the president's clearly trying to distance himself from his attorney. i think this starts to matter because giuliani has been claiming attorney/client privilege as one of the reasons he can't talk about the conversations that he's had with the president. if he wasn't working on behalf of the president, some people are going to have questions about whether that kind of privilege exists. >> look, republicans behind the scenes on capitol hill are practically begging the white house to cut giuliani loose. they have no love for him and they think he makes the president look bad. >> well, there's a new revelation almost every day at this point. what they're hoping for in the senate among republicans is that they're going to head into a trial and there won't be new information, new witnesses, new things that keep popping up. and they find themselves batting these things back one after the other. it does make their job much harder to the extent the public understands this. again, i always come back to that. but how much of this is breaking through to voters. i think it remains to be seen. >> the stuff is really complicated. that's what this really excellent story in "the times" reveals. there was a lot of stuff going on. giuliani was working or attempting to work with quite a few people. it's hard to keep it all together. but for the democrats, one of the things that they probably need to do is focus on what's clear here. talking about corruption, but the people working with the president were working with a lot of corrupt people. that dichotomy continues to exist. it suggests the explanations don't maic a lot of sense even to people who are not paying that close attention. >> on the subject of really interesting stories, adam goldman said the inspector general report which is due out september 9th is going to say there was no spying. there was no obama presidency administration ever to spy on the trump campaign. it will say no evidence that the wiretaps on carter page were politically motivated. there were omissions and errors on the application but that's different from what the president's camp has been saying. i'll give you a taste of what they've been repeating. >> major developments again tonight on the deep state. spying on the trump campaign. >> to spy on the trump campaign. >> spy on the trump campaign. >> i was shocked to hear they put a spy in the campaign. >> deep state spying schemes. >> spy inside the trump campaign back to the fbi. >> fbi spies. >> or maybe two spies. >> it looks as if there could have been a second spy. >> spy revelations. >> spies in this campaign. >> ran a spy ring. >> a spy to infiltrate his campaign. >> it is astounding when you stripg it all together. now the justice department inside the trump administration is going to find, no. no. what these people have been talking about. >> as wu say, the backup to this was made. it's reversed engineered after the president made a statement. the president tweeted he was spied on after he had a breitbart article shoved on his desk. then you had all of his allies trying to reverse engineer this. based on this report did not happen. but i think that we have seen over and over again that it's not as if the white house is going to say you're right, my bad. they're going to shift it. number one, they've got impeachment which is their big issue right now in terms of suggesting their force out against the president. but there's also the part in that ig report that's going to focus on the procedural irregularities and around other aspects of the investigation. that i think is where you're going to see them shift their attention to. >> maggie's right. it's not i'm sorry about all of this. >> has there ever been a moment they said i'm sorry about all this? >> we should be -- i think everybody should be on the lookout for ways in which this report's going to be twisted to meet the president's needs at any given moment. especially around the time that these house judiciary committee hearings are happening. and -- but the report is going to say what it does. and i think the big headline for folks is that even with irregularities, these are human beings put together these applications, not robots. it doesn't change the substance of what was going on in these reports. and even in the carter page fisa application. >> it was properly predicated which is what some of the reporting has been. happy thanksgiving. >> happy thanksgiving. >> thanks for coming in. so the question of the day on this thanksgiving is this. will snoopy and the rest of the balloons -- those aren't balloons. those are real people in front of a balloon. will the balloons take off? it all depends on the winds. we have a live report ahead. 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>> hey, john. good to be with you. happy thanksgiving. i was thinking about that all last week. if i were still in the house of representatives as a republican, you and i have talked. i would vote to impeachment t t president. it's not a close call. right now the sad news is i would be the only republican in the house to vote for impeachment. dpe again, it's not a close call. this comes down to republican voters. republican police stations are like seals. they will do what they're told. they'll follow popular opinion. and if their voters move, if republican voters move, then i think you'll see republicans in the house and senate move on this president because last point, john, they don't approve of what the president did. and many privately will say it was horrific what the president of the united states did. pressuring a foreign government to sabotage our elections. but they won't have the courage to say that publicly unless their voters move. >> i'll tell you, i don't have the numbers right in front of me, but off the top of my head, some were around 68% of all voters say what the president did is wrong. 50% aftof all voters say they w the president impeached and removed. but 90% of republican voters don't want to see the president impeached and removed. so as it pertains to you in particular, joe, i am interested. again, you're running against the president, but every day that passes, it seems you're actually running more and more and more against your own party. does that make sense? >> yeah, it does, john. but here's what i think. i think trump's support is soft. i've been in new hampshire a bunch. i've been in iowa a bunch. i've been in a number of states. and obviously because i'm challenging trump in the republican primary, i'm talking to republican voters. and i got to tell you, john, they're tired of him. they're sick of his b.s. and lies. trump stood in front of his voters this week and made up a war on thanksgiving. we have a president of the united states -- pardon my language this thanksgiving -- who literally just makes it up. and when you talk to republican voters, they're generally tired of all of this. i've had republican voters, john, tell me they don't want to go through four more years of his crap. but what else am i going to do? what other alternative do i have? >> i mean, i will say nevertheless that when you ask them about, you know, approval rating, his approval rating among republican voters is still very, very high. and you know that if republican members of congress had any sense, if they caught any whiff of uncertainty, they might be willing to split. so they're not seeing that just yet. mark sanford, former south carolina governor and congressman, he was also in this primary. he got out. and one of the reasons he got out, i want to read you a statement he made. he said you've got to be a realist. what i did not anticipate is an impeachment. there's no appetite for a serious nuanced debate with impeachment in the air. is impeachment making it harder for you to run against the president? >> oh, gosh no, john. it only buttresses and enhances what i'm doing. look, i got into this race, john, because donald trump is unfit. he's a danger to this country. he cannot tell the truth. he cannot place the country's interest ahead of his own. i like mark sanford. good guy, but mark sanford ran because of the debt. look, you don't challenge donald trump because of the debt or his stupid tariffs. this campaign is about trump. and impeachment only proves that. it enhances that argument. and i'm telling you, john, look. it may be harder for me to get on tv because all everybody wants to do is talk about impeachment, but i go into iowa and i go into new hampshire and there are issues that voters care about. and they're tired of the trump reality show. they really are. >> it is an honor to be able to travel through new hampshire and iowa any time of year, but particularly in campaign season and interact with voters. i want to leave you with this thanksgiving morning as you have talked to voters around the country, what are you most thankful for this morning? >> i'm most thankful, john, that we have people like you -- i mean this. people on cnn, people in the media, a constitution, diplomats, patriots in our government. i mean this. who are devoted enough to restrain this guy in the white house who is a would be king. i'm thankful that we have people who are willing to call that out like you, john berman. i mean that. >> well, look. our job here is not to resist. our job here is to tell the truth and report the facts. and we promise to do that each and every day. congressman walsh, have a happy thanksgiving. our best to you. >> you, too, john, thanks. president trump has been invited to next week's impeachment hearing. will the president or white house lawyers show up? we discuss next. don't miss it! it's the kay black friday event. save up to 60% on black friday specials like this three-piece diamond set, under one-hundred dollars or this diamond ring, under two-thousand dollars every best gift ever... begins with kay. too many after-parties. new neutrogena® bright boost with dullness-fighting neoglucosamine. boosts cell turnover by 10 times for instantly brighter skin. bright boost neutrogena®. get the perfectly grilled flavors of an outdoor grill indoors, and because it's a ninja foodi, it can do even more, like transform into an air fryer. the ninja foodi grill, the grill that sears, sizzles, and air fry crisps. (children playing) (dog barking) ♪ (music building) experience the power of sanctuary at the lincoln wish list sales event. sign and drive off in a new lincoln with zero down, zero due at signing, and a complimentary first month's payment. you may have gingivitis. when you brush, and the clock could be ticking towards bad breath, receding gums, and possibly... tooth loss. help turn back the clock on gingivitis with parodontax. leave bleeding gums behind. parodontax. what are you doing back there, junior? since we're obviously lost, i'm rescheduling my xfinity customer service appointment. ah, relax. i got this. which gps are you using anyway? a little something called instinct. been using it for years. yeah, that's what i'm afraid of. he knows exactly where we're going. my whole body is a compass. oh boy... the my account app makes today's xfinity customer service simple, easy, awesome. not my thing. next week is shaping up to be another big one in the battle to impeachment president trump. the house judiciary committee will hold its first public hearing on wednesday. this time the president and his attorneys have been invited to participate. here to walk us through the next steps of impeachment is elie honig. okay. so they've been invited. of course the big question is will they show up. >> today we're getting a thanksgiving breather. but next week we're right back in it. on wednesday the judiciary committee is going to hold this hearing on the constitutional grounds for impeachment. we shouldn't expect to see -- we will not see live fact witnesses like in the past. we'll see scholars and constitutional experts laying out the framework. will the president send his attorneys? he's allowed to under the rules. one hand, why not take a shot to try to drag down the democratic argument. on the other hand, if the president sits it out, he can still claim this is an unfair process and there won't be pressure on him to articulate specific events. i think he will not send attorneys. also next week adam schiff told us soon after the recess he will be issuing his public report on his findings and recommendations. that'll be a big moment. that'll be sort of like the schiff report only hopefully a little more clear and conclusive than the mueller report one way or another. after that happens, the house judiciary committee, they can hold more hearings and call more witnesses. the big moment will be when the draft and recommend articles of impeachment to the full house, if any. at that point, we are on to the full house. of course the constitution gives the house of representatives the sole power of impeachment and the standard is treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors. the house will then vote on the articles. each one individually. they can vote for some and against others. that's what happened with clinton in '98 and '99. the house needs 218 out of 435 votes. that's just over 50% in order to impeach. if that happens, onto the senate. the senate gets the sole power to try all impeachments. now, we've had two prior senate trials in our history. 1868 andrew johnson was acquitted. noteworthy there. every democratic senator there voted to acquit. not a single one flipped over and voted against bill clinton in 1999. we actually have had an impeachment trial more recently though officials can be impeached too. federal judge thomas portias was convicted and thrown out of office in 2010. >> remind us how it works. when we get to the senate, what does this look like in eterms o a trial? >> do not expect this to look like a criminal trial. first of all, the chief justice of the united states supreme court john roberts will be presiding. the jury will not be 12 men and women. the jury will be the 100 members of the u.s. senate. the case will be presented by a team of house managers. probably members of the house of representatives who will serve as prosecutors. and the president can afford and appoint whoever he wants to represent him. quick question. who was the only person who prosecuted bill clinton as a house manager in 1999 and now is in the u.s. senate and will serve as a juror if this case goes to trial? >> you're putting me on the spot here. i'm going to say lindsey graham. >> a-plus, erica. we will have the senate trial at the oend the hearing. the senate will vote. requires a two-thirds vote of the senate in order to convict and remauve. that would be 67 senators. right now we have 45 democrats plus two independents. that means 20 republicans would have to flip over and vote with all the democrats in order to convict. if that happens, the president is removed from office and disqualified. meaning can he run again in 2020? he cannot. a lot of people have that question. if the president is convicted, he is removed immediately. there's no grace period. the vice president is then sworn in as president and the 25th amendment tells us where to go from there to fill the vice president vacancy. the new president appoints somebody. that person has to be approved, ratified by a majority of both the house and the senate. >> there's a lot coming our way. >> this is going to be really interesting to watch. history in the making. >> it is. and it's good to have a front row seat to it. always good to have you here to walk us through it. happy thanksgiving. >> you too. >> trivia champ erica hill. two members of the cnn family are extra grateful this thanksgiving. the story of two little girls who were given the gift of life next. only tylenol® rapid release gels have laser drilled holes. they release medicine fast, for fast pain relief. tylenol®. for fast pain relief. it's the kay black friday event. save up to 60% on black friday specials like this three-piece diamond set, under one-hundred dollars or this diamond ring, under two-thousand dollars every best gift ever... begins with kay. i'm a verizon engineer, and i'm part of the team building the most powerful 5g experience for america. it's 5g ultra wideband-- --for massive capacity-- --and ultra-fast speeds. almost 2 gigs here in minneapolis. that's 25 times faster than today's network in new york city. so people from midtown manhattan-- --to downtown denver-- --can experience what our 5g can deliver. 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we talked to you in september when she was receiving a transplant. >> she's doing great. she's not a morning person that much, but she's happy to be here. she doesn't like early morning hits but she's very thankful. we're first very thankful for the donor family this holiday season. we know it's difficult for them. we're thankful for all the donors out there and we're thankful -- bless you -- we're thankful for our family and our daughter kai being able to spend the holiday together. and shout out to all the doctors at duke university as well. >> it is so good to see you all sitting there and to hear that everyone is doing well. give us a sense, how is your daughter doing? >> oh, sorry. go ahead. pardon me. >> no, go ahead. >> she's doing fantastic. she hopefully had what should be her last chemo two days ago. she's at home with mama bear with her brother ibrahim and with our latest who dropped 2 1/2 weeks ago, ten days early. a little christmas present. and it's so beautiful to see bakari's family and sadie and, look, there's no war on thanksgiving. muslims and jews teamed up to take out christmas but we're just grateful to have a happy family, to have a happy smiling daughter, to have a new liver to see our children smile and play. the small joys of life keep us going and i'm just so grateful to everyone at the cnn family to the liver donor sean who stepped up and to everyone who really prayed for us. people had innate kindness and decency, and they were able to oversee politics and come together for our families. thank you to everyone who is watching. >> these aren't the small things being able to laugh and enjoy your children. these are the biggest things. i'm watching sadie here who is a complicated morning show guest much like her father is. >> she wanted her own microphone. go figure. >> she watches her daddy on tv. so ellen, tell us about what you've learned throughout the last several months of this. >> you know, i think that the main thing as a mother, you just have to trust in god first and then also your doctors. the 93 days that we waited for sadie's liver, that was like the toughest time in my entire life, i believe, as a mother watching her suffer. and, you know, i played different scenarios over in my head and i never could imagine how it actually happened. but we are just so grateful and, you know, patience is a virtue. that 93 days was just terrifying and we're just so thankful this morning and this thanksgiving for all the donor families. and that we can spend thanksgiving with sadie because, you know, that was definitely a concern of ours throughout the wait. >> you both -- >> that we wouldn't have this day. >> you have all been through so much, and you have also helped to restart such an important conversation about donors and how important they are. and i was struck by the story of sean, the donor for our daughter. when the surgeon came out and said you're really lucky because this donor is such a good man. how important do you think that was, too, knowing not only how selfless this person was in coming forward and saying, i want to help but knowing they have that good heart and part of them is now helping your daughter? >> yeah, sean is an anonymous liver donor who stepped up thanks to a twitter message. one of the few times in life that twitter does good instead of divide. and he said right when he woke up, the first question he had from the surgeon, he asked the surgeon was, when can i donate blood again. and he visited musaba just a couple days ago. him and his wife came over and gave her a doll house and they compared scars, warrior scars. she lifted up her shirt. and that's a bond and a friendship. she got another surrogate father. and so many people have really stepped up and helped all of us. and i just want people who are watching, listen, you can save a life by being a liver donor. the liver grows back. i had no idea. within two months, it grows back. you can donate a river, a kidney. you can save a life. we had health insurance. the fact that we had health insurance gave us the ability to have a doctor, to have treatment and there are so many fellow americans who are dying because they simply cannot afford insulin. so thoughts and prayers are fantastic, but let's have everyone have affordable health insurance and, look, last year, thanksgiving, i was all alone because i was working. my family was away. in april, my wife and i did not think musaba would survive because she had so many complications. and i'm going to go back home and hug my daughter, my son ibrahim and my daughter khadija and my wife. my life is complete. what more do i need. this is everything. >> there's no better feeling than that. you've given us all an education. a lot of us did learn for the first time that you can be a living liver donor. as you say, it grows back. bakari, by the way, a special shoutout to twins in general. nothing better than twins, right? as a pair of twins, i know what an armful it can be, literally. and you all are part of our cnn family here. bakari and ellen, your family has really grown as you've gone through this whole process with all the medical professionals who have meant so much to you over the last few months. talk about that. >> yeah, our surgeons, dr. sudan, dr. vickerman, dr. mavis at duke university. it's amazing. we're teaming up with duke university right now to start a sa sadie ellen gift fund to raise awareness about children suffering from pediatric liver disease. we realize a lot of those kids going through the same thing we were going through didn't have resources so we want them to have an opportunity as well. so while she's harassing her brother like she does every morning -- yes. i'm talking about you -- we're really thankful just as waj is, and i plan on being a live living donor as well. we are encouraging more black and brown people to be living donors. >> yes. >> and to actually check the little box on your driver's license because not many black and brown families are actually organ donors. so we're just trying to do everything we can so everybody else can get the most amazing gift in the world, which is the gift of life. >> life. >> can i thank -- erica and john, can i thank the cnn family. a lot of folks don't realize i never reached out to a lot of the colleagues and anchors. they went out of their way while we were in desperate search for a tloiliver to promote the caus. over 500 people signed up to be liver donors for my daughter. so to every single person who signed up, this is a message on behalf of my life. it's as if you donated a piece of your liver for our daughter. we're very grateful. we hope to pay it back and pay it forward. >> you're doing it already, waj, just by being here and talking about it. we're so happy for all of you, and we send so much love to you, waj and your entire family. bakari, ellen, sadie, stokley. happy thanksgiving. what a happy thanksgiving. >> bye. >> sadie and musaba for president. >> i like it. >> that sounds like a fine ticket right there. >> happy thanksgiving. >> happy thanksgiving. thanks to all of our international viewers for watching. for you "cnn newsroom" with max foster is next. for u.s. viewers, we have a very important update on the thanksgiving parade balloons. "new day" continues right now. >> this is "new day" with alisyn camerota and john berman. >> that was so great. i'm sorry. that was so great. >> it's the best. and they're right. they were saying those are the small moments but the small moments are not small. they are big and they are moments with your family and knowing your children are healthy and that you can go home and hug them. >> all right. so welcome back, everyone. this is "new day." it's 8:00 in the east. alisyn is off. erica hill joins me on this thanksgiving morning. the turkey is here as well. the highest paid cnn anchor this morning. will astronaut snoopy soar above the streets of new york city this morning? the american people want to know the answer to that question as the countdown to macy's thanksgiving day parade enters its final hour. just moments ago, the new york city police department put out some good news. they wrote, as of now, the balloons will fly. >> yes! >> despite the strong winds that have had officials monitoring gusts to make sure it's safe. we'll bring you a live report from the parade route in just moments. >> something else to be thankful for. meantime, politics. you can be thankful politics still alive and well on thanksgiving. >> thank goodness for that. >> if they're on your turkey day menu, there's plenty to talk about. president trump angering china after signing two bills into law supporting human rights and pro-democracy protesters in hong kong which is raising questions about jeopardizing a trade deal with china. he's learning senior military officers are at odds in senior war crimes cases. navy secretary spencer is calling the president out in an s