>> he's going to surround himself with men and women from diverse backgrounds. >> really great people. these are really, really talented people. >> we did not have the kind of strong, bold, and pointed economic message. >> i cannot speak highly enough of nancy pelosi. she's a remarkable leader. >> we've got to move in another direction. >> this is "new day." with chris cuomo and alisyn camerota. >> good morning. welcome to your "new day." it's monday, november 21st. 8:00 in the east. and we do begin with breaking news. there have been four police officers shot in a series of ambush-style attacks in several different states. the attacks coming just hours apart. two officers were shot in missouri. one in florida, another in texas. the officer there died. >> a manhunt is intensifying in and around the san antonio area to find the gunman who killed a veteran officer. cnn paolo sandoval is live in san antonio with all of the latest details. what's the latest polo?

>> chris and alisyn as you mentioned that manhunt does continue to intensify as they try to track down the person or persons that could be behind this targeted attack. meanwhile outside the san antonio headquarters, this makeshift memorial continues to grow. officers not just here in south texas, but really across the country, on high alert this morning. four separate shootings targeting police officers across the country. >> unfortunately, like dallas, like baton rouge, it's happened here. >> reporter: a massive manhunt in texas for a man suspected of killing a san antonio officer, around 11:45 a.m. detective benjamin marconi was shot and killed while sitting in his squad car. the 50-year-old officer was writing a ticket during a traffic stop when a man walked up to his driver's side window and opened fire. he shot marconi in the head from outside the car and then the suspect reached through the window and shot the 20-year veteran, again. police releasing this photo of a man who may be in connection

with the shooting. and this photo of a car they say fled the scene. >> most families will be celebrating the holidays. sapd will be burying one of its own. >> reporter: hours later in st. louis a 40-year-old sergeant was waiting in traffic when a man wanted in other vie lept crimes pulled up to the driver's side of his patrol vehicle and opened fire. he shot the 20-year veteran twice in the face. >> the officer says he saw the muzzle flashes and felt the glass breaking in his window as the shots came through and struck him in the head. >> reporter: the suspect apparently worried about being identified now dead after a shootout with officers overnight. no other officers were injured. >> we were tracking him. we came to this neighborhood. we found him. he shot at police officers, again. police officers returned fire. >> reporter: another officer shot in missouri late sunday night in a traffic stop in gladstone. that's near kansas city. and in florida, a suspect already in custody after police say officer jared chiconi was shot while conducting a routine

traffic stop in sanibel. according to police he was on the side of the road when a suspect drove by and started shooting. he was injured, but has since been released from the hospital. investigators say that there is no direct link between any of these recent police shooting cases across the country and then lastly offering some fairly sobering statistics here now, directly from the national law enforcement officers fund. they now suggest that the number of officers killed in the line of duty this year has already exceeded the figures that we saw during 2015. chris we have seen way too many of these kinds of memorials outside of police departments throughout the country. of course here in texas. >> no question about it. lots of different causes for them. people are looking for solutions. now this chain, our thanks to polo sandoval. authorities don't believe these were coordinated attacks. but the timing is very suspicious and troubling. and we will stay on the story and get you new information as we get it. especially about that manhunt in

texas. so on the political side there are some new cabinet picks that we're being told that could be announced even today by president-elect trump. despite a packed schedule jammed with meetings and interviews, trump still finding time to do what apparently he likes to do best, tweet. escalating feuds with the cast of "hamilton." and with "saturday night live." cnn's jason carroll live outside the new white house annex. trump tower. in new york city. jason? >> kellyanne conway says what they have is a long short list of people they're looking at and not to put too much stock in what you see and hear. one of those scheduled to show up her later today at trump tower is former texas governor rick perry. said to be considered to head up the department of energy. one of the departments he said back in 2011 he could eliminate. but now, up for consideration.

president-elect donald trump interviewing potential cabinet picks, but has not yet made a decision on who will be secretary of state. >> we'll let you know soon. >> meeting with one of his top adversaries, 2012 gop nominee mitt romney. about possibly joining his administration. >> it was not only a cordial meeting, but a very substantive meeting. governor romney is under active and serious consideration to serve as secretary of state of the united states. >> reporter: the two men frequently sparring during trump's campaign. >> donald trump is a phony. >> romney choked like a dog. he choked. >> reporter: a steady stream of possible cabinet picks in front of the cameras throughout the weekend. including loyalists like former new york city mayor rudy giuliani. trump repeatedly praising james mattis, the leading candidate for secretary of defense. >> all i can say is he is the real deal. >> reporter: mattis, widely respected throughout the

military, could be the first former ranking general to become defense secretary in nearly 70 years. trump also considering billionaire investor wilbur ross for commerce secretary. ross, the type of administration official trump pledged to appoint throughout his campaign, a businessman with a history of resurrecting dying companies who has billions in the bank. but, in the middle of assembling his new team, trump making his grievances to twitter. this time, criticizing the cast of the hit broadway musical "hamilton." for this message delivered to vice president elect mike pence friday night at the end of their performance. >> we truly hope that this show has inspired you to uphold our american values, and to work on behalf of all of us. all of us. >> reporter: in a series of tweets trump says mike pence was harassed and that the cast was very "very rude." trump insisting they should

apologize for their "terrible behavior." >> i wasn't offended by what was said. i'll leave to others whether that was the appropriate venue to say it. >> reporter: but trump would not let it go. >> they were very inappropriate. >> so you have a number of people vying for spots in a trump administration and a chance to head to washington, d.c. but, two people who were apparently not be heading there any time soon, trump's wife melania and her 10-year-old son barron will be staying here in new york city so barron can finish out school. the school year. they'll be staying here at trump tower, or as chris calls the white house annex. alisyn? >> and that means you'll be standing there for four years to come. thanks -- >> ooh. >> thanks, jason. all right so we are joined now by republican congressman from tennessee marsha black burn, a member of donald trump's transition team. good morning, congresswoman. >> good morning. >> okay so we understand there

will be some cabinet posts announced today. what can you tell us? can you give us a little preview of what might be announced? >> i'm going to let mr. trump tell you when he's ready to tell you. but alisyn, i have to tell you, the transition team is moving along beautifully. it is organized. there is progress being made. some of the landing teams are already interfacing with those that are currently in the administration and you have the landing teams at justice, at dod, at the cia that are hard at work and ready to make this transition and to make it very smoothly. >> how many announcements do you think we'll get today? >> you know, i don't know. that is mr. trump's to do. but he's going to fold these announcements out. i think he is so right on track in doing the national security announcements first. and then moving to the economy

and then moving to the other agencies. quite frankly, for someone like me, who has had a focus on reducing the size, the scope and the cost of the federal government, i look the fact that he is bringing in individuals that are going to have fresh thoughts and fresh approaches as to how to right-size the federal government. to do more with less. >> so secretary of state, are rudy giuliani and mitt romney still the top contenders? >> they are certainly in the mix. you have heard mr. trump, and vice president-elect pence say that, and make that statement. there may be others that are in that mix. and i think that mr. trump is doing the right thing in making certain that he, and vice president-elect pence are going to have a good working relationship with whomever takes the helm. the secretary of state post is important. not only for the representation that that individual makes, but think about all of the agencies

that work under that program. the embassies around the globe. and so you want someone who is going to be able to look at both the outside and the inside of that structure, and continue the relationship that we have with our allies. >> yeah. >> and hold our enemies accountable. >> so congresswoman i know that you're focused on finding the right person for the job. but, were there no qualified women for attorney general, head of the cia, national security adviser, chief of staff for the president, and chief strategist? >> there are always qualified women. that are going to be putting themselves forward for positions, and you're going to see a diverse cabinet. and working through these first spots that i think it's important to have the most qualified person. you know, alisyn, you have to look at the fact that you look at the goals that you want to

achieve in the next couple of years. then you look at the skill sets. >> true. >> that individuals bring to bear. and you match that up. >> mm-hmm. >> and mr. trump is going to have women that are in those top levels of responsibility. he's going to have women that know how to work this process to get things done. >> mm-hmm. >> to achieve the goals and to deliver the product the american people want. >> who do you think will be the first woman to get a nod in the cabinet? >> i am not sure who that first woman is going to be but i know that you're going to see one. >> how about you? what position would you like in the white house staff? >> alisyn, you know, i've enjoyed working on the executive committee for the transition team. i also like being in representative government. i think that for me, i want to do everything i can do to reduce the size of the agencies. like the epa. that is something that could be folded into the department of

energy. >> uh-huh. >> look at what we're going to have the opportunity to do to reduce the size of health and human services. >> yes. >> look at what we're going to be able to do with the department of commerce to shift the focus so that you're focused on technology for rural america and solving this rural broadband crisis. >> yeah. >> that we have in this country. so, those problem solving is my forte. >> so, so -- >> and reducing the size and scope, waste, fraud and abuse, fighting that. >> so which slot would you want? given that that's your forte, what would you like? >> i'm not even going to go there with you, because i like serving in the house, and i'm going to be the one who say let me go deliver pink slips. let me put a red line through some of these extra agencies that we don't need. it is time for us to innovate. and to the entrepreneurial in how we deliver government services. we've grown so bureaucratic that the product does not get out to the constituents, and they're

tired of that. and we saw that in this election. >> mm-hmm. >> and you know, the left coast and the right coast, the elitism that exists there, and then you have this vast, fabulous, wonderful country. >> yep. >> that is saying we want these services. now is the time to solve that problem. >> mm-hmm. >> so rather than have a title, let's be problem solve efrs. let's get this job done, and then have the american people say, you came to washington, you cleaned -- >> yep. >> -- house. you restructured gocht. >> yeah. >> and fantastic. >> congressman black burn, thank you very much. come back when you have something to announce. >> i will do so. thank you so much. >> thanks so much. let's head to chris. >> the current president barack obama is back in washington from his last trip overseas. he's now facing a firestorm over his nsa director. two senior officials telling the nsa director needs to be removed. suzanne malveaux is live at the

white house with more. what's the answer? >> the two top officials first of all, the secretary of defense ash carter as well the director of national intelligence james clapper both of them over the weekend the news breaking that they about a month ago represented to the president that mike rogers head of the nsa be fired. and sources are telling us the main reason here is that he has failed to involve a restructuring that involves the agency here to attack cyber threats. that there's been embarrassing breaches of security that the morale is terrible, and that he really has not done his job properly. separately, chris, is what has happened on thursday. he is being considered by team trump, possible intelligence position for that administration, and he quietly went off to a secret meeting with trump at trump tower in new york, without telling his supervisors, and that raised some eyebrows. but it should be noted, too, that supporters of rogers say that this is all a political move here to make him damaged goods in case he is considered by a trump administration.

now we have not heard from the nsa. we haven't heard from the pentagon about this. but we did hear from the president who was asked over the weekend in peru about this and he said he called rogers a terrific patriot, and so we'll just have to see how this all shakes out. >> okay suzanne, thank you. we just want to let everybody know that we mistakenly showed pictures of mike rogers there. meanwhile in syria, first responders called the past six days the deadliest week the country has seen since the civil war first began five years ago. renewed airstrikes that killed more than 300 people and destroyed all hospitals in eastern aleppo. food and medicine are in short supply. the united nations has a new plan to help the syrian people but wants a blessing from all sides before it rolls out. >> we have breaking news out of the vatican this morning. pope francis granting all catholic priests the right to forgive abortion. in a letter to priests the pope writes that there's no question that abortion is considered a

grave sin under catholic law. but as, quote, there is no sin that god's mercy cannot reach and wipe away when it finds a repentant heart. the pope concludes every priest may provide support and comfort to facilitate reconciliation. this is a big deal for catholics. because, there is a culture within that faith of ostracizing people who do certain things. you used to not be able to receive communion when you got divorced. that's still on the books. so this pope has been trying to inch, the individual pastor to make the rules for their own congregation. >> right. towards forgiveness. minnesota congressman keith ellison, an early favorite to become the next leader of the dnc, so why does he think he's the best choice? we're going to speak live with congressman ellison next. (pop) campbell's tomato soup and grilled cheese. (more popping) go together like being late and being grounded. made for real, real life.™

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the democratic has long been known as the party for working-class voters. not anymore. not in this election for president. so what is the party going to do? leadership begins at the top. our next guest has thrown his hat in the ring for chairman of the democratic national committee. minnesota congressman keith ellison joins us now. congressman, always a pleasure to have you on the show. let's do what we do on this show and test the case. why you? >> well, because we need to turn out the vote. and i'm actually pretty good at it. in my state of minnesota, my congressional district used to have the lowest turnout in any congressional district. now it has the highest and we've been consistent on that.

i believe that by getting out the vote, in say milwaukee, detroit, flint, and in the suburbs of philadelphia, we could have changed this whole election. turnout is the key. we've seen actually hillary clinton got about 5 million fewer votes than brk brk. and even romney got more votes than trump. the real problem with democrats is we've got to help people believe and deliver the message to them. believe what? that we are absolutely, unshakebly on their side and we're going to fight for them every single minute. >> all right. so let's look at what the optics will be of the resistance. >> right. >> you have people who say, african-american guy, muslim seat this is all the democrats are about these fringe issues and pushing muslims on us and pushing all these cultural and political correctness issues. >> sure. >> they don't care about people like me anymore if i'm white working-class. that's the party of the elites with their big ideas. >> my district in minnesota is about 75% white. and most people don't have college degrees. and so i talk to white

working-class voters every single day. they elected me with 70% of the vote. and i've been doing that now for six terms. so i feel that, you know, that we've got to say, we've got to acknowledge that when plants are closing, when people are anxious, when you don't know whether you can retire, you've got $10,000, maybe, in the bank and you're 55 years old, people are really super nervous about that. and you know what? they need somebody who cares. and who's going to fight for them and talk to them and listen to them. we also in the democratic party got to strengthen the grass roots. power should be concentrated in the field. not in d.c. we got to get people the data, the training, the personnel, that they need to really connect with people 365 days a year. that's what we really got to be doing. >> you know in truth that doesn't get enough credit for why trump won. the rnc put a lot of money into their field organization having people in precincts where they needed help. they didn't do that autopsy plan like they needed two out of 2012 but they tapped into something

else, economic distress. one practical point that keeps coming up with you that it has to be a full-time job. do you accept that the head of the dnc has to be a full-time job? >> well i accept, yeah, but that doesn't mean that i can't do that job. i know i can do -- >> as congressman therefore would not be a full-time job. that would be two jobs. >> let me tell you i'm a very hard-working person. let's focus on what went wrong in the election. turnout. the problem was turnout. and so that's what we -- we've got to get somebody who is good at turnout. >> but turnout makes it sound like a process, right? and of course you do have -- >> no, it's substantive. >> so how do this happen? if it's so obvious now? i was raised by a democrat, a real one, today, pop would be called like a communist by today's political standards. it was always about the working family. it was always -- that's what the democrats were. it was blue collar democrats. white collar republicans. >> yep. >> now it seems to have shifted. how did you guys get in this whole? >> well you know i think that

one thing's for sure, we've got to go and connect to the grassroots much, much more and we've got to message that way. we've got to make sure that labor is a key and fundamental partner of what we're doing. >> you've got the unions. >> yeah. >> but there seems to be a disconnect between people who feel that the unions are for them, versus the unions are just part of the machine. another thing they've got to pay into. >> yeah you know i tell you this, too, the republicans, they -- all the mainstream republicans got rejected remember. in trump did successfully promise jobs. he promised to drain the swam. he promised -- and he did attack these trade models which i absolutely think are a problem, and i've been opposing. but i -- but he's not going to deliver on those things and it won't take long for it to be clear. he's already gotten a bunch of lobbyists and big time bankers -- >> he's trying to get them out. why aren't you giving him a chance? >> i am giving him a chance. he has selected bannon, he's talking about -- he's not talking about reform. he's bringing lobbyists in

already. he's talking about -- >> he said lobbyists got snuck in there by christie and man afort and they're getting-thars taking them out. >> you know but they're still there now. and also you know, there's already headlines on how people -- big players in the financial services industry got oversized influence on his transition team right now. so my think is, yeah, we give him a chance already and put in bannon, he put in flynn and he put in jeff sessions, and to me, he's already made it pretty clear where he's going with this thing. >> they have a picture of jeff sessions celebrating a 50-year anniversary of civil rights that he is differ man than who he was 35, 40 years ago. do you give him that allowance? >> let me tell you, man, anybody who is rejected from a judgeship because of their record of racism, i just think you know you really got to be concerned about that. that's really a problem. and in this age when we're trying to bring americans together, of all colors, working

people of all colors, i think it's the wrong signal. >> or, it was in the eight times right, so it was a long time ago, or is this one of the things that the democratic party has to struggle with that if you're all about political correctness, and the optics of race, do you wind up risking stain in this cultural divide that you're in right now where you're seen as the political correct elite crowd, and the working people who just want to get passed it, and i don't care what the guy says, i just care about what he does, who don't focus on that stuff as much? >> you know chris, it's not either/or. in my view it's about the whole working class not just one part of it. people want to get -- they want to get a decent pay they want to retire they want to give their kids a future. everyone wants to do it. the democratic party should never stop being that big tent that includes all americans whoever they may be. we have always got to be those folks who absolutely are for the white working class, the black working class, the latino working class, women, men, we got to be those folks who are inclusive, but we've got to have

an economic populist message that really helps address people's core anxieties. i mean you know i mean when i graduated from law school, i had a $12,000 of debt. kids nowadays they pick it up, and it's -- the minimum wage $7.25 an hour. the tip minimum wage is $2.13. this is an outrage, man. we've got the democratic party should be leading the fight to change it. >> and this isn't new for you. you're fighting this in your own politics and you were with bernie sanders. keith ellison, good luck to you going forward. >> you bet. >> alisyn? >> well there's been a spike in hate crimes since the election. how can those be stopped? our all-star panel weighs in next. my dentist. definitely my wife. hey wait. we have better bubbles. make sparkling water at home and drink 43% more water every day. sodastream. love your water.

next thing i know, i got hands around my neck, i'm choked and another gentleman comes over, he shoves me up against the wall. >> all right that was a trump supporter who says he was attacked on the new york city subway for expressing his support for the president-elect. this is just one of many violent and hateful incidents on both sides that have been reported

since the election. this car belongs to a transgender woman in denver. she says she was on her way to work when she noticed the swastika symbol and the words trump and die spray painted on her vehicle. the southern poverty law center has counted more than 700 cases of hate crimes and harassment since election day. joining us now to discuss this is our all-star panel, we have cnn political commentators ana and a half oro and mark lamont hill and also director of development at the center of global policy. great to see all of you this morning. so, as we've said there have been these hateful incidents on both sides of the aisle but many more against minorities, muslims, people of color, than there have been against trump supporters. but there have been -- been violence against trump supporters. what are we to make of all of this, mark? >> that the trump presidency is ushering a new tone for the united states. not saying the united states was perfect before, they weren't anti-gay, anti-muslim before but people seem to be much more

explicit about it. i would suspect that anger against trump supporters will pass. all right. people won't see you voted for trump anger three weeks from now. but anger against muslims and other people seems to be ratcheted up. and his appointments seem to be making that even more normalized. >> who do you know people won't be angry at trump supporters three weeks from now? people who don't support donald trump can't understand what happened. they are angry at people who voted for trump. donald trump on 60 minutes said stop it. what would you like to hear the president say about these things? >> it's not what i'd like to hear, it's what i'd like to see him do. every one of his picks so far for his income administration almost all of them are anti-muslim bigots. they use language that's extremely severe and dangerous. flynn you've got calling islamic cancer. you've got folks saying muslim is a political ideology so we don't get constitutional protection. we're not a belief system. it's not what i'd like to hear from him although i don't have

much hope of anything positive coming from there but seeing an administration that reflects the diversity of america. >> reince priebus, ana, was on one of the sunday shows yesterday, and he was asked about the possibility of a muslim registry, which is what donald trump had talked about at some times during the campaign. let me play for you his response. >> can you equivocally rule out a registry for muslims? >> look i'm not going to rule out anything. but i wouldn't -- we're not going to have a registry based on a religion. but what i think we're trying to do is say that there are some people, certainly not all people, chuck, there are some people that are radicalized. and there are some people that have to be prevented from coming into this country. if you want to come from a place or an area around the world that harbors and trains terrorists, we have to temporarily suspend that operation until better vetting system is put in place. >> okay. >> there are some aspects of the

faith that are problematic and we know them, we've seen it. but it certainly isn't a blanket for all people of that faith. >> all right so ana, do you understand where he stands given that he says we can't rule out anything, but we're not going to have a registry based on religion. i think don't think reince pretty much knows where he stands. i think i know where reince would like to stand. reince priebus is a very good guy. he's a decent guy who is inclusive. i am glad he's there next to trump, because i'm glad there's a cooler head, there's a voice of inclusion, there's somebody that works across the aisle, somebody that is a bridge builder that's going to be next to trump given that he's also chosen to surround himself by some folks that are just plain flame throwers and really inflame and provoke fear among so many americans. i think reince is trying to figure it out. but what i do hope is that when he is next to the president-elect, when he is next to the president, he uses his

voice and his platform and his access to forcefully argue against this. and i hope he prevails. not the other voice. >> marc, what's the answer here to stop this sort of tone as you describe it? >> resistance. we need to resist it at every level. we need to take to the streets as people have been doing. we need to challenge our members of congress to be bold and strong. when barack obama entered the presidency in 2008 there were blue dog democrats that were resisting some of his policies because they were worried about what would happen with their bases. we have to put that same amount of pressure on our members of congress. we need to take to the streets and -- >> take to the streets peacefully march is what you're suggesting? >> i'm saying they should resist. >> and what does that look like? >> looks like a lot of things. sometimes peacefully marching. sometimes other forms of disowe ped jens. we have to do one thing that we have to do that is ethical and humane in order to win. >> and violence free? >> yeah. >> what do you think? is that the answer? because right now republicans will control in january house,

the senate, the white house, and everyone believes that donald trump will be able to install people that he wants on the supreme court. so, that leaves people who are feeling disenfranchised pretty disenfranchised. >> people do feel disenfranchised. one thing i would note is that clinton won the popular vote. she was not the most popular candidate and she still won the popular vote. there's a mood as marc is saying correctly of resistance and that's exactly accurate. wherever he moves first he has to be stopped, blocked, checked. because otherwise it keeps going. how do you ask someone in your coalition to compromise on these core values, marriage equality, reproductive rights on immigration on muslim registry right on civil rights on human rights. there's no place where you can compromise with this man's agenda, because it's fundamentally dangerous the idea of democracy that's not a republican position, that's not a democratic position, this is about the idea of a liberal society where all people's rights are respected. >> ana what do you think the answer? >> look, i do think that people have the right to protest. i also think the media has a

duty to scrutinize the records of these people that are getting appointed. but i also call on republicans and congress, republicans in the senate, in particular, to be very vigilant, and to be very strong in their scrutiny and their questions that they ask. republicans are going to control the confirmation hearing. people like steve bannon, like michael flynn, there are no confirmation hearings, they are white house staff. but certainly jeff sessions, despite the fact that he's been a senate colleague, there is so much concern in the country about jeff sessions and his attitude towards african-americans, his attitude and actions towards hispanic latinos. i know that i'm going to be picking up the phone and i'm going to be calling my republican senator and friend marco rubio and telling him how concerned i am about jeff sessions having said, in 2006, that dominicans didn't have any skills to be bringing to this country. >> if ana navarro calling you on the phone doesn't get your attention, i don't know what will. thank you very much.

great to talk to you guys. what's your take on all of this? tweet us @newday or post your comment on facebook.com/newday. >> so kansas congressman say that five times mike pompeo is the president-elect's pick for cia director. pluses, minuses, we're going to scrutinize this choice with one of his colleagues, congressman peter king. next. ♪ (laughs..) here it is. ♪ ♪ hey dad! ♪ wishes do come true. the lincoln wish list sales event is on. get exceptional offers on the lincoln family of luxury vehicles.

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the parade of possibles will continue. more high level meetings for president-elect donald trump today. this effort of making an interesting pageant of the formation of his cabinet, and senior white house staff. he has already announced a couple of picks in key positions. you've got republican congressman mike pompeo for cia director. you've got jeff sessions as attorney general. joining us now is republican congressman from new york and member of the homeland security committee representative peter king. congressman, good to see you. happy thanksgiving in advance. >> you, too, chris. you and your family. thank you. >> so let us scrutinize a couple

of these picks. mike pompeo you can talk about his pluses all day long. the concerns are basically that he could be a return to a more invasive past that wiretapping is good. different torture techniques and waterboarding are good and effective. do you believe he embraces these types of behaviors? >> i believe that mike pompeo represents more realistic approaches. i think this president has been too politically correct, and i think what mike pompeo 1bz is saying is we're up against an existential enemy. like you say wiretapping. there's nothing illegal about any type of surveillance that mike pompeo is talking about. the nsa is essential. nice is ais essential. all these essential weapons to use against isis, against al qaeda. against islamic terrorism. and as far as going back to guantanamo, that's really an old

story right now but waterboarding was used against three people and it was very effective. i supported waterboarding. i was supporting today. it's not torture. it was used in three cases and it was very effective. >> but the finding was that it is torture and a lot of the intel people said it wasn't effective. it was only effective as a recruiting tool for your enemies because they were telling people you were doing it. why make this part of his -- >> i would disagree with that. i would disagree with that. people like michael hayden who supported it. people bringing this up from statements from mike pompeo made, you asked me about it. i wouldn't have brought up waterboarding. but mike pompeo in the past has made statements which i agree with by the way but i also having worked with him he's one of the smartest, most intelligence people i met. first in his class at west point, graduate of harvard law school and absolutely dedicated guy. he'll be an outstanding cia director. >> and one more beat on the

surveillance. the american people seemed fairly unified for us in our understanding collectively that we wanted less of that. we wanted the authorities to have to have a reason not just to surveil american opportunities, looking for something there that they should have something they're looking for specifically before they do it. >> but they didn't do that. chris, they didn't do that. they never did that. they never had open surveillance. what they did was intercept -- track, the nsa would track phone calls made from terrorists overseas to americans in this country. then they would go to court and have the court order to carry out surveillance. the same which is done against organized crime, drug pushers, child pornographers. that's all that was done. so much of this was exaggerated, overblown. there's not one instance yet of the nsa violating anyone's civil rights. >> can he work with both sides? >> yeah, i've seen that, i'm not trying to make this

confrontational. i've seen mike pompeo and you talk to democrats on the intelligence committee who would have some disagreements with some of his policy positions. that's what election is about. i don't think anyone would question his integrity or intelligence. he's really a good guy. this is not a confrontational guy. he's going to do an excellent job as cia director. >> jeff sessions you know him less well. but there are concerns about him because of what got him denied for a federal judgeship back in the '80s. comments about the naacp. comments about the kkk. active disagreement with aspects of the voting rights act up until present day. do you believe that these are legitimate concerns for his confirmation? >> well, i don't know jeff sessions to talk to him. i find him to be a dpeent guy, honorable guy. i talk to senators who have a lot of respect for him. you can always take a comment somebody made 35 or 40 years ago. i grew up in queens and i think of all ethnic remarks made 40,

50 years ago and if they were used against someone today, different context, different time. you look at his record it's been as far as i can tell there's been no racism or bias whatsoever. and as far as let's say disagreement with parts of the voting rights act, you can have legitimate debates over that as to how long certain aspects of that action stay in place. how long it should apply to certain states. that doesn't mean you're against voting rights. that's part of an honest debate. you may disagree with it but i don't see any element of jeff sessions of any racism at all in his record the entire time he's been in public life, and the person who comes from part of the country which has that obviously racial issues in the past, and all they can come up with one or two meants he may have made or may not have made 40, 45 years ago to me let's look at the entire package. i mean i can find people in public life on all sides, and especially even if you remark about the kkk. that was obviously a putdown of the kkk. it was a joke.

in no way was that endorsing it. and to take that seriously, that's the type of thing said on "saturday night live" every week and people would think it was great humor. >> well it's one thing when it's a comic saying it. it's another one when it's a member of congress but point noted. congressman peter king again the best to you and your family for thanksgiving, anybody from queens is always welcome on this show. >> there you go, chris, thank you. >> alisyn? >> how about jersey people? >> no. >> yes. college football fans were treated to a first over the weekend, the oldest player ever to hit the gridiron. so what was joe thomas sr. to hit the field? we're going to ask him next. (pop) campbell's tomato soup and grilled cheese. (more popping) go together like being late and being grounded. made for real, real life.™

so you see the south carolina state football game? nice little play, counterplay. >> what makes this special? >> don't you wish you could do that? they're too young, they're too strong. that guy who just ran the ball, the number on him is 42. should be 55. you know why? that's his age! that's joe thomas. he may be the oldest man to ever play division i ball. he is doing it great. his son joe thomas jr. is a linebacker on the packers. but here is the real deal, the senior member of the family, with us right now. joe thomas. how did it feel for you to get that ball on your belly once again just like in high school and take to the line at our age?

>> it felt good. and very excited. a little nervous at first. but once i touched the ball, i fell back to old high school days. >> and, joe, you always -- >> brought back memories. >> -- college football right? so what took you so long? >> well, growing up, i spent my -- college at the time. as i got older i felt i needed to do it, at least try it. >> so you built up more than your nerve. i'm looking at your arms and your legs right now. how have you managed to stay in such amazing shape, joe was telling us before we came to the segment that he could beat his son who is a professional football player in a race when he was already 50. he was still beating him. what is it that you do that gives you this strength and vitality at 55 years of age?

>> i just always believe in taking care of myself. and eat healthy and working out. >> that's it? >> it's all about staying flexible. >> flexible. >> you always want to stay flexible. yes, sir. >> so, so, working out eating right -- >> flexibility i think is part of it, too. >> joe, so, listen, your son joe jr., is on the green bay packers. what did he think about you getting this chance to play football? >> well he felt it was a great idea. always told me to follow my dreams. so, i stuck to that. i made a promise to him that i will do it. >> but wasn't he a little bit worried about what sort of play you would encounter? >> well, that's what i've been told. but i was okay. >> what did the guys think when you came out for the team? when did they realize, ooh, this

guy's the real deal? he still has it. what was that moment? >> it was a great feeling. they look at me, talk about the way i look, my age, bodywise, so, it felt good. they gave me a lot of respect. thank god for that. good group of kids. >> so this is your dream come true. what was that moment like for you? >> oh, very excited. >> all they want to do is go to college and play football. thank god he made it happen. >> how is the college part going? what are you studying? >> industrial engineering. how you finding it? you enjoying it? what's the next goal? >> next goal, oh, hope i can get into wrestling. >> wrestling? >> yes.

>> wants to get into college wrestling. >> he's got his varsity jacket on. mr. thomas you got a lot to be grateful for this thanksgiving. god please. i hope you stay strong and healthy. i can't wait to see you on the mats. >> thanks so much for being with us. have a great thanksgiving. "newsroom" with carol costello picks up after this very quick break. >> flexible. no, i picked the wrong insurance company. with liberty mutual new car replacement™, you won't have to worry about replacing your car because you'll get the full value back including depreciation. and if you have more than one liberty mutual policy, you qualify for a multi-policy discount, saving you money on your car and home coverage. call for a free quote today. liberty stands with you™. liberty mutual insurance.

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this is cnn breaking news. and good morning i'm carol costello. thank you so much for joining me. we do begin with breaking new this morning. police in texas hunting for this man. they say he may have information about the ambush-style shooting of a police officer in san antonio. the 50-year-old direct name ben marconi was sitting in his marked police car outside of headquarters when he was fatally shot in the head. this attack, one of four officer shootings in three