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as the trump team faces challenges to appear on primary bal ba ballots. california secretary of state released a certified list for the march 2024 primary that includes former president trump. the lieutenant governor worked remove the former president from the ballot based on his involvement in the january 6 insurrection. thisis is just houours aftfter secocond state b barred trump. the dedecision basased on the 1 amendment of the u.s. constitution which says in section three officials who "engaged in insurrection cannot hold office in the fututure ".". maine's totop electionon offici said t the bipartitisan group p brought compelling evidence that the january 6, 2021 insurrection occurred at the behest of trump. colorado made a similar decision a few weeks ago and another challenge is pending in oregon.

but other states have rejected the move. the chair of maine's republican party said secretary of state sheena bellows simply doesn't like trump. but bellows insists that the u.s. and state constitutions left her with no choice. >> our voting rights enshrined in the constitution are sacred to us. to have one particular person remove really the top candidate from the ballot because she dislikes that person just smells of politics that so many americans really, really hate now. >> wou >> looked at the weight of evidence and it became clear that january 6 was not only an attack on the capitol, but the rule of law and it was insurrection and the u.s. constitution does not toleraten

assault on our government, on the foundations of our government. and that election law and the contusion required, obligated me to act. >> katelyn polantz has more on this story and what happens next. >> reporter: the secretary of state in maine has decided that donald trump is not eligible to be on the primary ballot for the 2024 election in that state. so the secretary of state there is named sheena bellows, she is an elected democrat and she is the person who gets to make this decision. she looked at evidence, she had petitions before her from voters in maine, and she ultimately decided that, yes, january 6 was an insurrection, donald trump did engage in that insurrection, though she did say that was a bit of a closer call than determining that it was an insurrection but with the rioters alone, and then she said that because of his engagement, he is not qualified to be on the primary ballot for mainers going

to vote in the primary election that is upcoming in a few months. the other thing that she noted is that it is her responsibility to do that, that is a crucial finding from a secretary of state saying that, yes, she does have this ability to remove a presidential candidate. she notes in her ruling, i am mindful that no secretary of state has ever deprived a presidential candidate a ballot access based on section three of the 14th amendment. i'm also mindful however that no presidential candidate has ever before engaged in insurrection. the oath i swore to uphold the constitution comes first above all, so that is the decision out of maine the second time related to donald trump, related to this election cycle, that a state is pulling him from their primary ballots, colorado just did it a few days ago, their supreme court weighing in saying he also was an insurrectionist and could not appear on their ballot. and now the u.s. supreme court

will be potentially looking at what happened in colorado, if they can make that sort of decision, if there needs to be some clarity across the land, and in the meantime, trump's team has already said in statement that tell be appealing this decision to state courts in maine. and the way the law works out in maine, they will have to come to a conclusion in the court system in maine about whether trump is eligible for their primary ballots by the end of january. caitlkatelyn polantz, cnn, washington. >> a criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor in philadelphia is joining us now live from new york. always fantastic to speak to you and i'm always impressed by how energetic and well put together you are for these early hours in new york. so this is revolving around the 14th amendment specifically section 3 which says somebody should be barred from office if they had engaged in insurrection

or rebellion. talk to us about that language and what you think the threshold is for engagement in this case. >> well, that is the issue right there, that is the issue that we have that the states are having right now that we don't have a clear definition as to what is it to be engaged in insurrection. so that is ultimately what the supreme court is going to have to decide. you have different states saying he did not engage in an insurrection, and then you have the decision by colorado and now from maine and you have many pending decisions from other states that are also looking into it. so difficult to set one set standard to make that determination. did this former president who has been twice impeached, who has been four times indicted, did he engage in an insurrection. we already know that the january 6 committee determined that he did. you have colorado courts that said that he did.

and now you have the secretary of state of maine saying you engaged in an insurrection. so the question would be, will the supreme court look at this case and make that determination and that clarity for all of us to be able to follow. >> states control their own election process. >> and looking at it when you have the different states that have made different determinations an pending decisions that still have to be made. so the question would be is the timing of it all. will the supreme court look at this case, when will they look at this case, when will there be a determination. because the main thing, there has to be a definition as to what is it to engage in an insurrection, who makes that detetermination,n, what is t th standadard. do you havave e to have e been

coconvicted inin h having engag an insurrection in order to be disqualified from being able to run for office. >> so what is the process now in terms of if and when the supreme court will actually hear this and make a judgment? >> well, first off, there has to be filings. there has not been filings as to this specific issue. as you can see in the state of colorado, everything has been stayed pending there being an appeal to the supreme court. and that hasn't happened yet. in terms of maine, maine is waiting now for there to be an appeal to the courts itself because it was the secretary of state that made the determination unlike colorado where there was actually a trial to determine whether donald trump engaged in an insurrection. >> so if there are appeals and the supreme court hasn't heard this case before the primaries, will trump be able to proceed being on these ballots? >> as of now, he still can

proceed and be on these ballots, and that is because the rulings in colorado specifically say that it is stayed until there is a determination made by the supreme court. so in the meantime, he remains on the ballot. in terms of maine, the same thing will happen because the secretary of state did acknowledge that there is going to be some backlash, that there is going to be an appeal to the courts as to her determination. so she said that she would stay her decision until it has gone through the process of going through the court system. >> donald trump appointed three of the nine supreme court j judges. in your view in terms of interpretation, what do you think would be a likely outcome? >> well, that is the outcome. we're dealing with unprecedented

times. this has hasn't been dealt with before. so this is a first impression i'll say. and so even though former president trump appointed three of these justices, that is not to say that they will go in his favor. but what with do know is that all eyes will be watching to see what the supreme court justices do. because remember, like the election in 2000, we may be seeing something similar to that in terms of having a pivotal effect as to the election itself. >> would you anticipate that we'll see more and more states having this fight going ahead? >> absolutely. i see this is definitely going to be a domino effect about different states coming up with this issue. and having addressed this issue whether through their court system or through their elected official. but this is not going to stop here. we'll see this trickling down across the country.

>> thank you so much for joining us this morning. criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor. always appreciate your insight. blood shed and suffering in gaza are coming into sharper focus as the war approaches the three month mark. gaza's health ministry which that that mass controls says 21 people were killed after an israeli strike on a residential building. and rafah is supposed to be a designated humanitarian area but claims hamas fighters are hiding among the civilians. hamas controlled health men industry says the death toll in gaza now exceeds 21,300 all since october 7. though cnn can't independently verify those figures. meanwhile israeli prime minister

benjamin netanyahu says talks to free the remaining hostages is ongoing. he met with families thursday. a man has been missing in action since october 7. here is his father. >> our message to prime minister netanyahu was loud and clear, it is his responsibility to bring the hostages back home and he needs to pull any lever to bring them back. according to prime minister netanyahu, unfortunately the problem continues to be hamas. hamas is refusing to come back to the negotiating table and to take up any offers. >> elliott gotkine is joining us live from tel aviv. we're also learning about the israeli military report on the three hostages who were mistakenly killed earlier this

month. >> reporter: we are. this report outlines the tragic sequence of events that led to israeli soldiers killing three israeli hostages on the battle f field in. >> kendall: on december 14. the report outlines missed opportunities to rescue the three, a note saying save us scrolled on a piece of paper, or s.o.s. help three hostages being written on a building and that captured by drone footage. what seems to have happened according to this report is that the soldiers thought that when they saw these three hostages wandering around the battlefield shirtless holding up a make shift white flag, that this was an attem by hamas militants to entrap them as they had done in the past to go into a place where they could then be ambushed. what seems to have happened according to this report is that the soldiers when the three

hostages came out, they fired at them, they killed two, a third ran into a willibuilding and cat for help in hebrew. the commander called for the hostage to come out, ordering his soldiers to hold fire but two didn't hear the order and shot and killed the third hostage. so israel says that it failed in its mission in this situation. and it has drawn lessons and conclusions in particular the possibility that hostages could be just wandering around the battlefield rather than be hiding in tunnels or only being able to be reached by some kind of special operation. and it is also worth noting the context here which is that since hamas kidnapped more than 200 people as part of its murderous rampage through israel on october 7, only one hostage has been rescued alive by israeli soldiers, that of a female soldier. no other hostages have been freed by israeli forces. only those hostages released by

hamas as part of that exchange during that truce in exchange for palestinian prisoners being held by israel, only those ones have been released alive to israel. >> very important reminder. thank you for that. and we've heard from benny go ahead and answer again that if the world and lebanon don't step up to stop the attacks, idfgo ahead and answer again that if the world and lebanon don't step up to stop the attacks, idf will have to take it into their own hands. what does that mean for that much feared regional spillover? >> reporter: this is precisely what the u.s. and other people are fearing, that this war could escalate into another front. we've already seen attacked by houthi rebels firing drones toward the easy really really

southern city. and also towards israeli communities. tens of thousands of people there in the north have been forced to leave their homes and can't go about their daily lives. and on thursday more than 50 tacks fired towards israel and even north of haifa, home to israel's biggest port. and i think israel is getting to the point where its patience is running out, it feels that it has been relatively measured in its responses to hezbollah so far, but as benny gantz says thursday and we heard from the foreign minister and from benjamin netanyahu, from the defense minister, gallant, israel will be forced to take matters into its own hands and that would mean another front opening up for real rather than this kind of war that isn't a war that has been going on for

weeks now and has yet to be i suppose declared as another official front. but there are grave concerns that this will escalate and it could be perhaps a more serious war than the one that is going on in gaza at least from israel's perspective. >> elliott gotkine, thank you so much. shortages and suffering shows no signs of letting up. footage shows thousands desperate civilians overwhelming a relief aid compound. these are just two of the 88 trucks that entered gaza on tuesday. the emergency relief coordinator has called getting life-saving supplies into the enclave an impossible situation. these are staggering pictures. impossible situation for both the palestinians and those trying to help them. the food and agriculture organization said 2.2 million

people in gaza are now dealing with acute hunger. if you would like information on how to help with humanitarian relief efforts, please go to cnn.com/impact. there you will find a list of vetted organizations that are providing assistance. cnn.com/impact. we go to ukraine now where fire and explosions rattled multiple cities as russia unleashed a wave of new strikes across the country this morning. officials say the strikes left at least two people dead and 18 others injured in the capital kyiv. the attacks set buildings on fire and shut down at least some subway lines as well. while more casualties are reported in kharkiv, odesa and other cities where schools, hospitals and businesses were struck, but ukraine's prime minister says the air defenses still managed to shoot down most incoming targets. still ahead on "cnn

newsroom," nikki haley playing cleanup on the campaign trail. how she's clarifying some of those controversial comments on the civil war and slavery. plus a party with scantily clad celebrities sparks outrage in russia. we'll tell you what went wrong. and spacex rocket blasts off on a mysterious mission for the u.s. military. what we know about the secret mission, coming up.

welcome back. u.s. republican presidential hopeful nikki haley is in damage control mode trying to contain the fallout from a controversial exchange about the civil war and slavery. eva mckend reports. >> of course the civil war was about slavery. we know that. that is unquestioned, always the case. >> reporter: nikki haley playing cleanup after this exchange with a voter during a new hampshire town hall wednesday night. >> what was the cause of the united states civil war? >> well, don't come with an easy question. i mean, i think the cause of the civil war was basically how government was going to run. the freedoms and what people could and couldn't do.

>> in the year 2023, it is astonishing to me that you answer that question without mentioning the word slavery. >> reporter: after not mentioning slavery in her initial response, haley acknowledging in interviews and campaign appearances the civil war was about slavery. >> if you grew up in at south it is a given that it was about slavery. to me it is about freedom. it is bigger than slavery. that was such a stain on our history, but what do you take from it. >> reporter: and the former south carolina governor also claiming without evidence the questioner was a democratic plant, the audience member who asked the question declined to share his full name or party affiliation when asked by reporters. >> it was definitely a democrat plant. that is why i said what does it mean to you. and if you notice, he didn't answer anything. >> reporter: the episode sparking swift blowback from haley's primary rivals. >> i think this shows this is not a candidate that is ready

for primetime. >> reporter: and vivek ramaswamy saying when you try to be everything to everyone, you are nothing to anyone. president biden also weighing in saying clearly it was about slavery. haley's handling of the question also drawing fresh attention to her complicated public posture toward the confederacy. >> i saw that as a southern governor who removed the confederate flag off the statehouse grounds. and as a proud american about equality at home. >> reporter: and cnn found in 2010 haley said this about the flag. >> this is not something that was racist, this is something that is a tradition that people feel proud of. >> reporter: but in 2015, a shooting at a historically black church in charleston spurred then governor haley to call for the flag's removal from statehouse grounds. >> we heard about the true honor of heritage and tradition. we heard about the true pain

that many had felt, the confederate flag is coming off the grounds of the south carolina statehouse. >> reporter: the stumble by haley comes as she has steadily gained momentum in the gop primary with a recent new hampshire poll showing her securely in second place behind former president trump. but well ahead of desantis and chris christie. some of haley's supporters that we spoke to remain unswayed by all this and really are continuing to be very enthusiastic about the campaign. but she did get a appointed question from a voter who suggested she needed to redeem herself by categorically rejecting that she would ever be trump's running mate if asked. she didn't reject it, but instead leaned on a familiar refrain in which she says she is not in the contest to play for second place.

eis h eva mckend, cnn, new hampshire. >> and you heard what some of what her rivals are saying but here is a bit more. >> not that difficult to identify the role slavery played in the civil war. >> i'll make it easy for you. if someone asked me what the cause of the civil war was, it is easy. it is slavery. >> first contest in the 2024 race rapidly approaching. iowa caucuses set for january 15, and the new hampshire primary is january 23. and we have exclusive reporting that provides a behind the scenes look at the trump campaign's chaotic efforts to reverse his 2020 election loss using fake electors. so stay with us for that.

welcome back. if you are just joining us, let me bring you up-to-date with our top stories. russia launched a barrage of missile strikes on several ukrainian cities including kyiv and kharkiv causing casualties.

ukraine's prime minister says a maternity hospital and shopping center in eastern dnipro were also hit. donald trump has been removed from the republican primary ballot in the state of maine based on the 14th amendment section 3 insu insurrectionist ban. colorado removed trump but his name will remain on the ballot in california. exclusive reporting from cnn sheds new light on the trump campaign's actions after his 2020 election loss. cnn examined recordings and emails that provide a behind the scenes look at efforts to keep trump in office and plans to use fake electors to overturn joe biden's victory. mar she will cohen has the story. >> we've known bits and pieces of this story, but now we're getting the full picture. it comes from ken chesebro who in many ways was the architect of the fake elector's plot.

cnn obtained recordings of interviews and hundreds of emails that he turned over. they reveal the last minute scramble to get the fake certificates to washington, d.c. take a listen to chesebro describing what happened when trump campaign officials realized that the ballots from michigan and wisconsin were stuck in the mail. >> general counsel for the trump campaign is freaked out that roman reported that the michigan votes are still in the facility which doesn't look like that they will get to pence in time. so general counsel for the campaign was alarmed and was chartering -- didn't have to charter a jet, they did commercial. so yeah, a high level decision to get the michigan and wisconsin votes there.

they had to enlist a u.s. senator to try to expedite it. >> reporter: remember they wanted to have mike pence throw out the real electors. in the end the campaign didn't charter a jet. staffers booked last minute tickets on commercial flights and ferried the ballots to d.c. on january 5. once they got there, there was a series of handoffs and couriers that included help from senator ron johnson's office. they eventually reached the capitol in time, but pence team said he doesn't want them, he refused to go along with the plan. by the way this episode is vaguely referenced in special counsel jack smith's indictment against trump. sources say that some of the people who were on that flight

have spoken to smith's team but not clear how many details from the last minute scramble will factor into donald trump's criminal trial which is scheduled to begin in march. marshall cohen, cnn, washington. the u.s. justice department is threatening to sue texas over its new immigration law. it gives local law enforcement in texas the authority to arrest migrants and it grants judges the ability to issue orders to remove them from the united states. in a letter to governor abbott, the justice department wrote that the law violates the u.s. constitution and warned the u.s. would sue unless texas refrains from enforcing this new law. senate bill 4 was signed into law last week and set to go into effect in march. and liftoff of falcon 9. >> a successful launch for a spacex rocket on a secret

mission for the u.s. military. the falcon heavy rocket lifted off from the kennedy space center last night carrying the x-37-b space plane. it operates with no crew and destination and purpose a closely guarded mystery. the military says it will carry out cutting edge research. the landing of the twin boosters was squequally spectacular. in the u.s. daring surfers are braving the elements to ride some huge waves in northern california. pro surfers took part in the legendary mavericks competent it igs h competition in half moon bay, waves could reach up to 30 feet. nearly 10 meters. and scary sight just northwest of los angeles as a rogue wave swept away on

lookers. officials in ventura say 15 to 20 people were briefly washed down a street about 30 to 50 yards. eight people were transported to local hospitals. more than 7 million people are under wind advisories and 6 million under high surf warnings on the west coast of the united states. in california, the city of san diego is under a coastal flood advisory and high surf warning up monday and san francisco could see waves of up to 40 feet through friday morning. more details now from meteorologist relisa raffa. >> national weather service says this is exceptional, they are warning that the rip current risk is extreme, dangerous and could cause a threat to life from drowning. some of the waves have been so high, some already measuring up to 28 feet. and in some parts, they could be

even higher than that and cause some damage. we have multiple storms swirling up toward the pacific northwest and another one on its way that is packing a punch with intense winds as it works its way eastward into california going into friday. here a look at some of the coastal alerts from the u.s./mexico border up into oregon looking at high surf alerts for wave heights from santa barbara down towards san diego, warnings for up to 25 feet. for san francisco bay area, up to 40 feet. and they can be destructive, you are talking about damage to piers and jetties. and also you are talking about inland flooding. there are coastal alerts again from san diego up to san francisco for the minor coastal flooding, some low lying areas could get some inundation. because also on top of that, we

have the maximum high tide for the month so far, that is happening right now. so again adding insult to injury with some of these taller oceans that are kicking more and could send some flooding inland. and also packing a punch with the winds, wind alerts for the wind gusts up to 50 to 60 miles per hour going through the weekend. and you can see that happening especially going into friday in san francisco and areas to the north where you could get the gusts up to 60 miles per hour. but i want to point out, look at how intense the wind is in the heart of the storm over the ocean. that is why the waves are so intense because the winds are turning the ocean, picking them up and moving toward the california coast. so something they will continue to watch. because here is another wave, so this will continue, the threat, going if tif into the weekend. ukrainian staff says friday was the biggest russian attacks

since the beginning. we'll go live to kyiv after a break.

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we go back to ukraine which came under massive russian airstrikes this morning. officials say cities across the country took russian fire in recent hours, including kyiv, which caused fires, damage and casualties. the ukrainian general staff called it the biggest wave of russian air attacks since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. for more, we're joined by helena lins. you're in kyiv, one of the cities that was struck overnight. what was the experience of you and your team and tell us just how extensive and intensive this bombardment was. >> reporter: hello bianca. the explosions we could hear them early h hours in n the mor.

it was a loud morning here in kyiv. riright nonow we're in thehe ce area of f the city w whereas yon see this business building has been hit. it was notot being used, but stl some damage. when we arrived herere, there we parts s of it t on the road d a as a lot of shattered windows. and this was as you were saying a massive attack. president zelenskyy says more than 1 100 missisiles wewere la, around more than 80 shot down, 20 drones as well. but still there were damages in the cityty. so here in kyiv, there is this building and also a warehouse that c caught fire. and on thehe other s side of th city, a metro station was also damaged. as you know, a a lot of the met

stationsns are used as shelters. so this onone was damaged. the main entrance isis still closeded. teams s are workining on cleani the streets and repairing the damages. the metrtro statation n in kyiy where people can accccess the metro station from another entranance, but stilill this is of the parts of the city that t there wawas someme damamage. and as you were saying, this was a massive attack. so not only in kyiyiv, but also other parts of the country. kharkiv, zaporizhzhia, odesa, also registered explosions. and a city in the west not so common to be hit also registered explosions and damages. and a lot of people from the east take shelter there, so this was an attack to the entire country and unfortunately, there

is more than ten people dead already. and as you were saying, the prime minister of the country already says this is one of the biggest attacks in ukraine, a massive attack that hit not only metro stations, business buildings, but also reportedly hospitals, schools and drens shal areas as well. >> helena lins, thank you very much. stay safe. in moscow, some russian celebrities are facing intense backlash for showing up barely clothed at an am naked themed party, this as the country implements an increasingly conservative social agenda. have a look. dress code optional. quite literally. an almost naked themed party hosted by a popular blogger in the lead up to the holidays in moscow has gone viral in russia. a blogger organized the party.

and partygoers showed up half clothed or with barely anything on with outfits made of mesh, lingerie and other creative materials to strategically cover limited parts of their body. but photos of the almost naked partygoers have sparked outrage across some parts of russian society. internal criticism has mounted about how a paparty of t this ne could gogo ahead as russians continue fighting on the frontlines in ukraine. orthodox church officials, pro war activists have denounced the partygoers. attendees are now facing legal action. a court verdict against the party said the event was aimed at propagating nontraditional sexual relationships. a rapper who showed up wearing a sock covering his intimate areas and not much else has been found guilty of pet at the

hooliganism. he has been sentenced to 15 days in jail and fined 200,000 rubles. planned new year's parties organized by celebrities who attended the party have been rep replaced. and the blogger apologized posting a 21 minute video is being for forgiveness and a second chance. others have followed suit. in a previous video, she claimed the event was an opportunity to showcase photos created during her tenure as the chief editor of the now defunct russian edition of "playboy." she also faces legal action and hefty fines. a collective lawsuit filed tuesday by 22 people and initiated by a russian actor seeks compensation of 1 billion rubles, that is $11 million, for moral damages. backlash against the party comes as authorities in the country are pushing an increasingly

conservative and homophobic agenda. just last month the lgbtq community movement was deemed an extremist organization by the country's supreme court. paul whelan marked the grim fifth anniversary of his captivity in russia on thursday. in a phone interview with cnn, he revealed his state of mind after five years in detention. >> i make calls home, i write letter, i read books. but it is extremely difficulult being innocent and in prison and waiting for people to help you. it is a disintegrating experience. >> whelan was arrested five

years ago while visiting moscow for a friend's wedding and sentenced to 16 years in prison accused of spying. the ex-marine also had a message for president biden. >> i'm more than past for my return home and i'm asking for the federal government to come for me. the time is now to take decisive action and bring this to battle. president biden, please use every resource available to secure my release as you would do if your own son had been taken hostage. >> earlier cnn spoke with whelan's brother about his wrongful imprisonment and his concerns about his brother's well-being. >> i think unfortunately paul's mental health is breaking down, his resilience is starting to crumble. and that is not unexpected after five years. unfortunately, i think no matter how tirelessly the u.s. government wishes it could bring paul home, without the cooperation of the kremlin, it is unlikely to happen.

so i think that there is this very frustrating point with paul's situation where he may have to last another 11 years or some part of that before the u.s. government is successful bringing him home. >> u.s. national security adviser jake sullivan called whelan's detention an appalling milestone. stormy weather made for a scary landing for this plane at heathrow, that is coming up next.

we've got some stories in the spotlight for you. a passenger jet from los angeles experienced some serious winds while landing in london wednesday. watch this. >> oh, oh, oh!

oh, oh, oh, stop it! >> so british. an aviation enthusiast caught the moment on camera. heavy cross winds from storm gerrit shifted the plane causing the wild wobbling that you see. but fortunately everything was fine and the plane landed safely. this is a food fight like you've never seen before. dozens of people in face paint and military garb takes over the mayor's office and when people break the newly established laws, they pay off in real money all of which went to charity. and then the opposition restores order. this is part of a 200-year-old

festival. that was a lot. that does it here. i'm bianca nobilo. "early start" is next. have a wonderful new year. i'll see you in 2024.

right now, disqualified again. another state kicks donald trump off the primary ballot for