some key trump allies warn against picking romney, who once called trump a fraud, and a phony. predictions of giuliani points to his business ties as potential source of trouble. live to palm beach, florida, where trump will be staying through the weekend. cnn national correspondent joining us from the mar-a-lago resort with the latest on this transition. ryan, what are you hearing? >> reporter: well, brianna, we don't yet know who the two staff appoints will be, but trump aides said this morning they will likely not be the type of picks that require some sort of senate approval. we don't expect any major cabinet announcements today. of course, the trump team never afraid to surprise us. we have to wait and see. those announcements could come at any time. trump aides said these announcements will likely be the last for the weekend. of course, trump and his family came here wednesday. spent the thanksgiving holiday at the mar-a-lago resort, and they are expected to leave here on sunday. what will be at least next weekend, earliest, before we hear about any of these major cabinet posts, and you mentioned the debate over secretary of state. that continues to be one of the fiercest debates inside trump's inner circle, as you said, trump met with mitt romney. romney is seriously considering that secretary of state role but many of trump's key allies, most vocal, expressing concern including trump's own campaign manager kellyanne conway, sending out a series of tweets about romney and that potential post. and also reporters were told today, a lot of palace intrigue and reporters shouldn't look that sfwhubl much into it. trump will continue to meet with a diverse group of candidates, someone that has the type of qualifications that also fall in line with trump's foreign policy vision and that trump may open up the field and look at other potential candidates including former cia director david petraeus. >> we shouldn't look much into it. it's hard to do that when you have kellyanne conway one of donald trump's top aides tweeting about the palace intrigue. i know that donald trump is working the phones. who has he been talking to? >> reporter: he spent the day on the phone today with several leaders from europe, including the prime minister of sweden shand the prime minister of hungary and spoke with leaders from south america including heads of state in panama. trump still very busy. even though we haven't seen much of him, spending most of his time behind the walls of mar-a-lago. you see the coast guard going back and forth in front of his estate. a new reality for those who live in this part of the world. >> and a split about republicans in the secretary of state job. a member of the presidential transition team is with us. thank you for being with us a day after the holiday here. >> happy day after thanksgiving, brianna. >> yes. happy day after thanksgiving. we're all recovering from the food coma. i wonder if you can shed light for us on these two staff announcements that are going to be made today? >> well, you know, i think it's super important not to steal the thunder here on the staff announcements. it's really not my role to do that, but what i would like to tell viewers about is the process and the discipline we're taking in terms of going through agency by agency and making sure that we've got a blend of business people, governmental people and academics. so i think the american people will be very happy with the eventual staff positions. not just the top 20 or 30 staff positions, but the 4,700 staff positions we're working on right now. what we have found is that if you can bring in some business people, some academics and people that have really good governmental experience, that blend will probably be the one that will intersect appropriately, that make the trump agenda flourish in the first six months of the administration. that's what we're working on. unfortunately we have to wait for the, the assignments, appointments, because the president-elect likes doing that himself. with a few of the people at the top of the food chain. >> sure. >> got to let him do that. >> you said academics. interesting. tell us a little more about that, because what we've seen so far in terms of the people announced and the people who seem to be in the lead for some of these positions is they have been in government or are in business. you're talking academics. what specifically are you looking for? >> yes. so basically one of the things that jared kushner has done, brought in a couple former professors from harvard that us on the transition team, the executive community level are interacting with to just make sure we've got the right organizational structure around the president-elect in terms of the way he manages, what his management style is like, and then additionally, we want to make sure that if you look at the blends of past presidential administrations, you typically have a blend, if you want to talk about ronald reagan as an example, sort of 55% business, 30-ish percent governmental people and the rest academics. if you look at the current administration, they've been more tilted towards the academic community, the legal community, and less so the business community. so again, i just want to make this, one of the resonating messages that we're not only looking at business people. we're looking at people from all walks of life. mr. trump made it very clear. the president-elect, excuse me, made it very clear that we're going to pick the a-plus-plus players irrespective what their prior roles were. as long as they're with us. one of the big things the president-elect said to us, we want people that are energetic can do more with less. think about the way we ran the campaign, probably out-spent 5-5-1. one sixth of staff, still won the general election. a message from mr. trump we can do more with less, if we find the right people. that's the goal of our executive transition team. >> overall, outspent 2-1. i will say that approximately. maybe talking about -- >> bringing in some of the pacs as well. >> you did have less staff for sure. give you that. talk to you about what we're seeing between rudy giuliani and mitt romney. and i know that maybe this isn't exactly your wheelhouse, but it kind of is spilling out into the public. i think you may have an opinion about this. kellyanne conway, one of the president-elect top aides, actually tweeted out an article what has really become alice intrigue. in-fighting between supporters of donald trump's and people who think romney would be good, because some of his criticism of the president-elect during the election was so scathing. receiving deluge of social media and private comes re romney. some warn against romney add secretary of state is the article she links to, and then also tweeted kissinger and schultz as secretaries of state flew around the world less. counseled potus close to home more and loyal good checklist -- and were loyal. can you talk about that and how important that is in selection? i did just hear you say that one of the qualifications, as you try to cast a wide net is that you're looking for a-plus-plus people who are with you. now, with you now? or that have been with you all along? >> look, when i say with us, i really mean the agenda. the president-elect's agenda, what he wraunants to do governm. the agenda as i understand it and the people on our team wants it the president-elect wants us to be a problem-solving administration for the american people, and i think he's a very magnanimous guy and casting a wide -- giving people -- >> why is this becoming so public? we're talking about mitt romney here. there's a lot of -- i've heard republicans in the establishment who say, look, we know that this may be something that loyaltyists to donald trump doan adore, but mitt romney comes with a whole -- because he was the nominee, he comes with this attachment to a lot of resources, to a lot of advisors, to a lot of input. that rudy giuliani doesn't come with. why is this spilling out into the public? >> well, you know, i can't tell you why it's spilling out into the public. i love kellyanne conway and sure she had a reason for put out that tweet. what i can tell you is, i'm good friends with both of these people. i was on governor romney's national finance committee four years ago. mayor giuliani and i know each other, for 25 years, throughs process of living in new york and the italian-american community. i have enormous respect for both of those people. they are obviously different people and, sure you know, i do admire the mayor for being in the trench with us throughout the entire fight, but i think what i was really just trying to say to your viewers is that the president-elect is a very magnanimous guy, sort of feels we should be giving amnesty because of the fight prior 0 the election and look at the people clinically, are these the best people to be in that job? one of the qualifications for the job is going to be loyalty. whether or not the president-elect can trust that person when times get tough. i think governor romney fits that bill. i also think the mayor fits that bill, and brianna, one of best things you said about this segment, this is not really my bailey wig. i'm in the regulatory wheelhouse. it's outside of my bounds to opine on who'll should be the secretary of state. when that announcement comes, i will tell you, that person will be somebody that will be the voice, at least diplomatically, for the president-elect, and you better believe it's a person he has a lot of faith and confidence in and i think the american people will be very happy as they should be about the decision-making that's going on right now. think of this process. he is building a bridge to everybody, and bringing the best people into his auspices to listen to about the future of country. so -- >> anthony, i want to interrupt you because we have breaking news, pardon me. we now know that the president-elect is going to name k.t. mcfarland as deputy security national adviser and like mr. trump's other picks, mcfarland has pretty hard-line swlus it comes to the fight against terrorism. perhaps not unexpected she would fit into this area. very critical of president obama's approach, anthony, as you know. retired general michael flynn, trump's pick for national security adviser, who will be obviously her superior, just tweeted, so proud and honored to have k.t. mcfarland as part of our national security team. she will help us make america great again, and anthony, as you know, k.t. mcfarland is no stranger in washington. served as a white house aide under presidents nixon, fornd a ford and reagan, a spokeswoman at the pentagon under president reagan. again, we talked about, you're more the domestic side of things, but tell us about what you can about this appointment, and how this fits into, i guess the foreign policy world view of donald trump, as he considers his secretary of state? >> well, listen, i'm personally thrilled. i know k.t. very well. full disclosure, we worked together at fox news and fox business over the last several years. she's a brilliant person. and she is going to work super closely with general flynn, and my guess that they overlap in a lot of way, but have a little different expertise in certain ways as well. so she's going to be a very big complement. >> how do you see the differ expertise? where do you see that? >> well, i think that the general has an unbelievable understanding of our military intelligence, and is an unbelievable in understanding of the troops on the ground and the various areas around the world. and i think k.t. probably has more of that diplomatic background in terms of just, you know, being able to work well inside the context of the state department and the nsa. i think where administrations get in trouble in years' past is where we've had stove-types brianna and there hasn't been enough interaction between the two communities. one thing k.t. will bring to us, because of her experience and all of her relationships, not only around the world but inside of washington, i think she's going to be the type of person that knits this thing together. remember, another big resonating thing from the president-elect is that he's really pushing the team and togetherness as epooppd to the rivalry of the words team of rivals. his focus is on the word team and we're really trying to find people that lp do that. k.t. certainly fits that bill. she's a remarkable person, a personal friend of mine and i wish her congratulations and her new endeavor and am here to help out out in 234i any way i possibly can. >> anthony, appreciate you being with us. fascinating. brings background from the pentagon, general flynn and in recent years, in the obama administration, a little breakdown between the pentagon and so much really siloing of national security at the white house. we'll see if that is a different path now. >> this is a signal of that. >> we'll see that. anthony scarimucci, appreciate your time. have a great holiday weekend. thank you. and much more right after this. quickbooks introduces jeanette. and her new business: i do, to go. jeanette was excellent at marrying people. but had trouble getting paid. not a good time, jeanette. even worse. now i'm uncomfortable. but here's the good news, jeanette got quickbooks. send that invoice, jeanette. looks like they viewed it. and, ta-da! paid twice as fast. oh, she's an efficient officiant. way to grow, jeanette. get paid twice as fast. visit quickbooks-dot-com. i'm done. done with figuring it out for myself. i'm done with surprises. i'm done with complicated. if you're on medicare and ... ready to be done with complicated... turn to unitedhealthcare and our medicare advantage plans... like aarp medicarecomplete. these plans can combine your hospital and doctor coverage, with prescription drug coverage and more, all in one plan for a low, or even no, monthly premium. so call now. we can answer your questions, even help you enroll. i deserve to get the most out of my plan. we'll make sure your doctors are all connected... you know what your co-pays are... and you can save on prescriptions; plan members saved an average of over $4500 last year. medicare open enrollment ends december 7th. if you're done with complicated, so done... call now to enroll in a plan from unitedhealthcare, like aarp medicarecomplete. ♪ that just tastes better. with more vitamins. and less saturated fat. only eggland's best. better taste. better nutrition. better eggs. a transition of pourer alert. donald trump naming k.t. mcfarland as deputy chief. kirsten powers, cnn political analyst and columnist for "usa today" and warren forks, political reporter for "talking points" memo. interesting, guys. looking at who donald trump has in his national security apparatus. we have general michael flynn, nsa, and then this would be, i think, clearly, his key deputy. right? k.t. mcfarland, both obviously very hawkish. flynn very military-minded. we know former marine corps general mattis is being at the top contender for secretary of state. so what does this tell you, eugene, when you're looking at their world view, versus donald trump being a little more isolationist during the campaign? >> i think it's giving us an idea how trump may end up pivoting and who he'll listen to developing his world view in terms of national security issues. we just heard surface-level ideas from donald trump. no details. i think what we will hear within the next 100 days what he wants to do more intensely in terms of responding to a lot of these crises we've been talking about throughout the election. >> i think some people here, k.t. mcfarland, hear her name, something a lot of people are familiar with, with a lot of experience. a record. also a really important position. >> yeah. somebody who definitely sees the, a very mainstream republican foreign policy view, which donald trump does not. a lot of things said during the election were things bernie sanders could have said. very far to the left in templte his attitude about the iraq war, for example. the republican party came around and learning lessons from the iraq war. the question, are these people who are -- they're going to have to follow donald trump's lead. jit how much willing to follow that versus argue with him convincing him to move in a different direction? >> it's a dbig development for the trump campaign, during the campaign, national security advisors deeply concerned about him. 50 of them pen aned a letter saying donald trump is not our candidate. >> a number of then went for hillary clinton. >> exactly. a big, distinguishing point in terms of how he moves his team and how he builds them moving forward. >> i am wowed by what we're hearing leak out about this romney versus rudy giuliani contest for secretary of state. because if you're talking about the characteristic republican view, that's mitt romney. >> right. >> right? so jason miller is saying, don't focus too much on the palace intrigue. how do we not when donald trump's top advise's fwetweet b about it? >> and on thanksgiving day. what's interesting is the response that we're seeing from nu newt gingrich, and mike huckabee, taking heat. not excited to see someone so critical of trump considered for such a highly influencing position. >> talking about romney, people view him, a lot of people, a unifying character with republicans and democrats so far apart after this election and i know so many democrats thinking, give me a lot of sort of comfort, if someone like mitt romney were secretary of state. that's pretty incredible at this point. >> sure. >> but it really does sort of speak to where we are and sort of that division maybe within trump tower. >> and a lot of democrats and republicans would be really worried if it were rudy giuliani. >> yeah. >> and i wonder how much of the kellyanne tweeted she's getting a lot of pushback from a lot of grass roots kind of people, i wonder how much is grass roots versus the newt gingrichs and rudy giulianis, the people who were the core of the campaign. >> there was grass roots campaign folks. they were really with him from the beginning. >> exactly. versus those who voted for him. not what they were voting about. they were voting about immigration, about jobs. this is not probably their primary concern but very upsetting laying it on the line for him, watching those who denigrated him and were putting him down. >> what do you make of that, when you see her tweeting that out? what is your read what her message is? she says she was not sending a private message, would say it in public. >> the first thing i thought, is she not having contact? why doing this publicly? she said she had been in contact with him. says to me, trying to do an all-out public campaign afraid he'll choose wrong. >> thank you all so much. next, an american service member killed in syria marks the first combat death for u.s. special forces in the war-torn country, not in that theater, though. details, after the break. a u.s. service member has been killed in northern syria. this happened yesterday on thanksgiving day after an ied blast. still trying to work out details, but defense officials say the service member was part of the multi-national force fighting isis in syria. the service member's name has not been released but this is theers u.s. service member to be killed in syria, though not in the iraq-syria theater. one of the many conflicts facing the new trump administration. to talk about it, joined by global affairs analyst kimberly dozier along with cnn intelligence and security analyst and former cia analyst bob bair. to you first, kimberly. a lot we don't know about this casualty we've seen in syria and you know, i think we feel it, too, because it happened on thanksgiving. this -- they're going through that process right now i think. we think about that. this is not the first death in iraq and syria, and this may not be the last. i think we can say that, because this is certainly an ongoing situation, but what do we know and what don't we know? >> we know that there are roughly 300 u.s. special operators and also the people who support them. eod, pbomb technicians. >> just in syria? >> just inside syria who go in and out fromatic, mostly based in that area. doing a couple missions. helping the defense, including kurdish forces really taking the brunt of the fight to isis in the outskirts of raqqah and embedded with turkish forces. the idea is, since the turks and the kurd don't get along so well, you want to have americans with each unit so there isn't a friendly fire situation. the americans tell each other where they are. so that the two allies don't fire at each other. so could it be someone from any one of those units? we don't know. >> these blended coalition units. >> the blended coalition units and sort of a 24-hour blackout that gives the defense department time to reach the family and make sure they have gotten notification from a government official with a chaplin before hearing it on the news. >> bob, you heard about this, obviously. what was your reaction to what happened and what the signals were for the conflict? >> well, it's still very messy. mosul has not fallen, of course. the islamic state is putting up resistance. putting a lot of car bombs out there. a couple days ago they killed some turkish forces, and these guys are crucial. especially for close air support, because what we don't want to be doing is bombing civilian targets. you have to lace up these trgets on the battlefield. it keeps down, as i said, civilian casualties. they're doing a great job. a lot of it is logistics and the index of the white house no casualties at all. as we've seen, it's not possible. >> one of the challenges the incoming trump administration will face and we learned minutes ago k.t. mcfarland will be the national security adviser. you have familiar with mcfarland and hearing from sources this is someone who has somewhat of a public affairs background. how steeped in policy is she? >> she, i think she's a brilliant choice. i've had dealings with her over the years. she's experienced. in the kissinger white house, well tied into the republican party, of course. the traditionalists, she's brilliant on china, iran and the rest of it. i'm very encouraged by this appointment, and i'd like to see her have a direct hand in conducting foreign policy and spending a lot of time with president trump. >> okay. so kimberly, this is just one of the conflicts. we're talking about syria, talking about iraq. you have the white house saying, keep an eye on north korea. with that in mind and this team around president-elect trump taking shape what do you think about their experience level? you just heard bob saying that k.t. mcfarland is someone who certainly understands more than just the middle east. >> you know from the intelligence community, u.s. intelligence community, already predicted pretty much what we all expect. it's that right after a new administration takes office, they frequently get tested by bad actors on the world stage. be that iran, china, north korea. people will start to press the envelope and see how far they can press a new administration and it's a tough time in that while each of these individuals might have some experience in the field, you have someone like, say, the new u.n. ambassador, nikki haley -- now, she's proven to be grace under fire with some tough situations in her state, but she doesn't have a personal relationship yet with some of the ambassadors that she'll need to negotiate with in the middle of a crisis. >> yeah. that will need to grow. kimberly dozier, bob bair, thank you so much. coming up, house democrats are gearing up for a very big week when they need to vote on their future. will nancy pelosi retain her role? we'll discuss after the break. whoa, this is awful, try it. oh no, that looks gross what is that? you gotta try it, it's terrible. i don't wanna try it if it's terrible. it's like mango chutney and burnt hair. no thank you, i have a very sensitive palate. just try it! guys, i think we should hurry up. if you taste something bad, you want someone else to try it. it's what you do. i can't get the taste out of my mouth! if you want to save fifteen percent or more on car insurance, you switch to geico. it's what you do. shhh! dog, dog, dog. house democrats will hold leadership elections on wednesday and this year the party will have two choices. continue with nancy pelosi and her 14 years as her leader or try some new. go with ohio congressman tim ryan. talking about that with michael blake, a former white house aide under president obama. michael, also considering a vice chairmanship with the democratic national committee, which we'll get to in a moment. first i want to talk to you about this election in house leadership, because i think it's pretty clear that tim ryan has an uphill climb against nancy pelosi, but this is also about the direction of the party. what are your concerns about the direction? >> well, it's clear that we are focused on where do we go as a party after the presidential and local elections that happened just about two weeks ago and we recognize that we have to double down on what's working in terms of organizing to make sure we're empowering local candidacies. whether em pow iring local, county, state parties. focusing on this. thinking about the election happening in congress, obviously congress members make that decision where to go on the democratic side, in terms of nancy pelosi and tim ryan. known and respect both of them many years. this is about us saying we have to are clearer where we're going. communicate to americans we have a working-class message, bringing communities together and not shy away from things that are working. it's very clear more people voted for the democrats rather than republicans across the country and have to make sure our direction and leadership across the board reflects that localized strategy people are hearing us and we're hearing them to make sure we reflect that in the democratic party. >> people in key places, the rust belt, clearly did not feel democrats were speaking to them. the democrats understood them. i hear you talking about doubling down on what works, but in terms of having a working class message. go beyond that. talk specifics and how you, not just communicate to people but make people in the rust belt say, you know what? this is something where i feel better understood by democrats, because clearly that's not how they felt. >> this is an opportunity for us to communicate across the country the progressive wins that happened across the country happened because of the democratic leadership. look at the fight for raising money mum wage, able to do here in new york, raising to $15 happened under democratic leadership and move in that way. talking about gay narg. obviously, happened under democratic leadership. components of a/k/ aca staying their parents plans, free conne conne colonoscopies. this happened under our responsibility. it's our sfobt make sure what's happening on the ground. you see that 20% of african-american american men deciding not to vote, we have to make sure we're communicating. here's what's as stake, nationally and locally. >> i want to ask you about the dnc quick. you are considering a vice chairmanship. what direction do they need to go and is ellison far left? saying he shouldn't do it or should be a full-time job? he's also a member of congress. give us your reasoning there and what you want to see. >> first, i want to be clear. 23409 not at all saying the congressman shouldn't run. s his decision, if he wants to pursue. many believe a full-time chairmanship should be considered. as it relates to myself and others that are considering leadership, it's for us to underscore we have to heal what's hatching ppening on the . for ten years it's been my vision, having a chance under president obama and both campaigns, trained by him to then run for office and be re-elected myself and underscore we have to recruit candidates. we should never have a scenario there's not a democratic candidate for a position. we have to be clear about our messaging and successful wins and therefore the direction of the party, not shy away from the progress making but very direct, consistent and clear that there is a choice that happens in these elections. so our approach as we're making this decision and considering this decision is to say now we need a collective new direction where we go and to be able to very clear, that the county party, state and national party, all the work from buckley on the state level, county parties across the country, we have to be very clear about building organization, having a grass roots approach and making sure people are excited about voting for democrats up and down the ballot. this is our moment. when think about 2004, 2006 when we built, mobilized, in 2006, regained the senate. this is an opportunity to demonstrate we have many successful wins we can amplify and it's our responsibility to do so as democrats. >> seaabassembly maker blake, wg one hat. we hear that. hear your message on that. thank you so much for being with us. >> thank you. happy holiday, everyone. >> happy holidays to you as well. up next, the isis effect, even after some neighborhoods in mosul become liberated, the pain and loss is still right outside civilians' doors. a report from on the ground, when we come back. a nutritious formula with no artificial flavors. made specifically for indoor cats. purina cat chow. nutrition to build better lives. the medicare enrollment deadline is just a few days away. changes to medicare plans could impact your healthcare costs. are you getting all the benefits available to you? call healthmarkets and we'll help you find the medicare plan that's right for you. hi, i'm doctor [martin gizzi.] it's a new medicare year. that means more changes ... and more confusion. the key question is: what can you do now, to ensure you get the care you need in the coming year? call healthmarkets today. we have access to thousands of medicare options from leading insurance companies nationwide. plans that may... cost less... cover more ... with more choices... like dental and vision care ... and freedom to choose your own doctors all at a price you can afford. we help find the right plan for you. and we do it at no cost. make sure you have what you need to get the care that's right for you. if you miss the deadline, you may have to wait another year before enrolling. call [healthmarkets] now! we have another transition alert to report. cnn confirmed that don mcgann will be named white house counsel. mcgann served as president-elect trump's campaign lawyer. he is currently advising the transition team. he is the counsel on the transition team and he's going to face the complex task of keeping donald trump's business dealings separate from his presidency. in a statement the president-elect said mcgann has "a brilliant legal mind and will play a critical role in the administration." more on that as we learn more. the last six weeks, this is story we've followed. iraqi forces fighting to drive isis oust mosul. while the offensive made significant gains it's come with a heavy price. cnn correspondent phil black visiting one neighborhood liberated from isis but residents are reminded daily militants are never far away. we have to warn you, some of the scenes in this story are graphic. >> reporter: these people have just lived through the horror of urban warfare. they cowered in their homes for days, prayers and white flags, their own protection. their own protection as iraqi forces fought their way through the neighborhoods of eastern mosul against fierce isis resistance. now there is little food, water or medicine. no electricity. but there's much relief. isis is like a dark mark on your chest? >> yes, yes. dark. >> reporter: you can hear the fighting in the near distance. it's still dangerously close. isis has gone from these streets, but its ability to harm these people hasn't passed. just 24 hours ago we're told a family was sitting here outside their home when a mortar struck just a short distance away, and an 18-month-old girl was killed. her name was emira ali. her father omar is overwhelmed by grief. he cries, "what did she do wrong? she was just playing. she's gone from me and she's my own one." every day this makeshift clinic inside mosul sees the terrible consequences of mortars fired into civilian areas. it's a bloody production line. the wounded are delivered, patched up quickly and loaded into ambulances to transport to at times it seems endless as one ambulance pulls away, another military vehicle speeds in, carrying more wounded civilians. they're unloaded with great care as the medics work to help the victims of yet another isis mortar attack. but they can't save everyone. this man's 21-year-old son was killed. he says a mortar just fell in front of the door, we came and he was just a piece of meat. four or five of my neighbors were standing with him and they're all dead. here another parent falls to the dusty ground before the body of her son. these people endured two years of living under isis only to be killed by the group's desperate military tactics and its total indifference to the lives of the innocent. phil black, cnn, mosul, iraq. right now, u.s.-backed iraqi forces have completely surrounded the city meaning isis fighters are trapped inside. they can not escape, they can not call for backup and they can not get new supplies. let's discuss with colonel john dorian, spokesman for operation inherent resolve. thanks for being with us, as we hear iraqi forces say they don't expect an imminent victory, what is your assessment on the battle for mosul? >> we've reached the toughest part of the battle. isil is desperate, they're using brutal tactics, they're taking it out on the civilians around them. these are the tactics that just make these people the worst in the world. the iraqi security forces have conducted themselves in a manner that all iraqis should be proud of. they fought very bravely and are working hard to protect civilian life. as you can see, though, very, very hard wrenching situation, very difficult in mosul right now. >> as we see, for instance, isis back on its feet in places like mosul, we also saw this explosion, this bombing south of baghdad that killed dozens of people yesterday so even as you see isis back on their feet, i think people wonder, "t baback their feet" doesn't mean they aren't spurring on sectarian divides. how do you govern against that? talk about that challenge. >> well, one of the most difficult things about this enemy is they don't care anything about human life at all so what we expect to happen after their terrain that they've controlled for so long is taken away, they'll devolve back into a terrorist organization and conduct these types of spoiler attacks. it's an effort to maintain relevance. the iraqi security forces are working very hard to prevent these types of attacks but it's going to be a very difficult situation and what we've done is we've prepared the iraqis and trained them and we continue to train them so that they will be able to create wide area security forces. the police forces that control these areas and try to reduce the amount of damage that isil can do. >> what can you tell us about the american service member killed in syria? first american service member killed in syria. important to note it's not the first u.s. service member killed in the theater. we've seen some special forces members killed in iraq as well. we know there are about 300 special forces in syria, a number of these are operators, a number of them are support staff. can you shed any light on the identity of the service member. >> well, we're not going to do that yet because we need to make sure that this hero's family has been notified and given the proper amount of time to deal with the enormity of the loss. our hearts and minds are with this member's family. his friends and his teammates because it's very, very tough fighting, this person volunteered for our defense of our nation and for all of us around the world and he made the ultimate sacrifice so we're definitely going to honor that. it's very tough fighting. this happened in syria and -- when the members vehicle struck a improvised explosive device. >> we do appreciate that. as we were looking to confirm that as well, we knew this had something to do with an ied, we weren't sure if it was a vehicle and as you said, and we believe this, too, our hearts are certainly with the family as they've lost their loved one on thanksgiving. colonel dorrian, thank you so much for an update, we'll check back with you in the days to come. we'll be right back. attention homeowners age sixty-two and older. one reverse mortgage has a great way for you to live a better retirement... it's called a reverse mortgage. call right now to receive your free information kit with no obligation. it answers questions like... how a reverse mortgage works, how much you qualify for, the ways to receive your money... and more. plus, when you call now, you'll get this magnifier with led light absolutely free! when you call the experts at one reverse mortgage today, you'll learn the benefits of a government-insured reverse mortgage. it will eliminate your monthly mortgage payments and give you tax-free money from the equity in your home and here's the best part... you still own your home. call now! take control of your retirement - today! americans elected donald trump to be the 45th president of the united states proving polls and pundits are not always accurate. this is the subject of a new book from cnn politics called "unprecedented." the author joining us now to talk about this. this was the story, thomas, of the election in the end. we think sometimes, you know, what it's going to be, we had no idea, right? we got to the end, completely surprise result, donald trump defied all odds and we didn't see the victory coming. he didn't necessarily see the victory coming, people close to him didn't see the victory coming. how did everyone get it wrong? >> i think a few things. he sort of scrambled the math and did this from the beginning when he decided to run a campaign not taking large corporate donations. he basically set this idea that he was with the voter and everyone else was against them. and once he managed to persuade a large swath of that it was very hard to change their minds of that. hillary clinton's campaign slogan was "i'm with her." he said "i'm with you, the voter" so scandal after scandal didn't seem to matter because he brought across this idea that he was going to drain the swamp, it was him against the crooked establishment, the crooked media, and people believe him. >> i think back to a moment we shared on the campaign trail, the bus tour we were on that hillary clinton did after the convention through pennsylvania through ohio and i look back and i think those stops through ohio in this area, the rust belt, that's where we saw so many protesters and she rolled into some of these stops. it was so pivotal. >> you're right. we came through on a rainy saturday afternoon, johns town, pennsylvania, and what did we see rolling a town? a sign that said "killery killed coal." trump went on there to win huge in cambria county that helped to provide the margin of victory in pennsylvania. >> it's stunning and those impeachments that are in unpresidented which has a lot of surprises that has been your baby, thomas, thank you so much, thomas lake, for sharing these things with us and, of course, you can check out that book as well. that is it for me. thank you for being on. i'll be back at 5:00 eastern. join us then on "situation room." the news continues right now. >> brianna, thank you so much, my friend. i'm brooke baldwin, you are watching cnn on this friday afternoon. here's what we have for you. moments ago we learned of two more people who will be helping donald trump when he is sworn in as our nation's 45th president here in just about over nearly two months. his national security advisor, retired general michael flynn tweeted "so proud and honored to ha ha have kt mcfar land as part of our national security team. she will become

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