it's a christmas like no other as people everywhere spend the holidays under extraordinary coronavirus restrictions. health authorities say anyone flying into the united states from britain will soon have to test negative for the virus. and a christmas storm is bringing extreme weather to the u.s. east coast. we'll tell you what states are affected. live from cnn world headquarters in atlanta, welcome to you our viewers here in the united states, canada and around the world. i'm kim brunhuber. this is "cnn newsroom. "

it's now christmas day in the u.s. and across much of the world, but this year's holiday will be unlike any seen in recent history because of the global pandemic. masks and social distancing are the new normal, and millions of people who have lost their jobs are now turning to food banks to feed their families. there's also growing concern over a new variant of the virus that was first discovered in the u.k. and appears to spread more easily. beginning monday, the u.s. centers for disease control and prevention will require a negative covid test for all passengers coming to the u.s. from the u.k. nearly 1/4 of all the world's covid cases are here in the united states. record numbers of new infections and deaths in the u.s. occur almost daily, and u.s. hospitals now have more covid patients on

this christmas day than ever before. more than 120,000 people, that's double what it was at the beginning of november. the white house has released a cheery christmas photo of president trump and the first lady. but ever since losing the 2020 election, the president has all but ignoring the crises facing the country. the modest financial lifeline to help struggling americans get through the holidays but the president went on vacation without signing it, and now it's not clear if he will. cnn's jeremy diamond as the details. >> reporter: after throwing financial relief for millions of americans into limbo, president trump decamped to his mar-a-lago resort and quickly set his sights on his golf game. the president hitting the links after a pre-christmas threat to sink legislation providing $900 billion in desperately needed coronavirus aid, even as the white house last night said

the president would quote continue to work tirelessly for the american people. his schedule includes many meetings and calls. as the president tees off, 20 million americans are out of work, 8 million have fallen into poverty since the summer, and supplemental unemployment benefits are set to expire at the end of the week. the president's refusal to sign the spending package could trigger a shut down. >> the big, ask for its immediate consideration in the house. >> reporter: as trump demand congress triple the stimulus checks, house republicans objecting tuesday to amend the provision by unanimous consent. >> it is christmas eve, but it is not a silent night. all is not calm. for too many nothing is bright, and for too many, they are not sleeping peacefully. >> reporter: the president

remains fixated on reversing the election he lost, complaining that his forever loyal vice president isn't fighting hard enough, repeating a call for pence to accept votes on january 6th, a breach of pence's constitutional duty. trump and pence spent more than an hour together in the oval office in the office before the re-tweet, and trump has been quote confused as to why pence can't step in to overturn the election. the president plowing ahead more controversial pardons. a day after pardoning two men who lied to special counsel robert mueller's investigators and three corrupt congressmen, trump issuing 26 more pardons including to long time political adviser roger stone who lied to investigators to protect trump, and paul manafort, the campaign manager who stopped cooperating with mueller's team and lied to prosecutors. >> you have a president who's

actively engaged in undermining the system of justice that he is supposed to protect and defend. it's remarkably disgusting. >> reporter: republican senator ben sasse slamming the pardons as rotten to the core. and trump's former fixer, michael cohen who did cooperate with prosecutors said trump's pardons show how broken the whole criminal justice system is. this is wrong. but that's not all. trump also pardoning his son-in-law jared kushner's father, charles kushner, who is prosecuted by republican chris christie. >> mr. kushner pled guilty. if a guy hires a prostitute to seduce his brother-in-law and video tapes it and then sends the video tape to his sister to attempt to intimidate her from testifying before a grand jury, do i need anymore justification for that. >> president trump certainly seems to be getting the kind of gratifications his bruised ego need at the moment. the president on thursday received a warm welcome at his

golf club as he went there for his first of what i assume will be many days of golf as he spends time in south florida at his mar-a-lago resort. the president had discussions with some of the members there, and friends and acquaintances who he often sees at the golf club and discussed the 2020 election and according to a person familiar with the matter, the president was still talking about how adamant he is about continuing to contest the results of this election. i'm told by a person familiar with the matter that the president is quote very resolute in continuing to want to fight the electoral college and the person said the president city thinks it's not over. jeremy diamond, cnn, traveling with the president in west palm beach, florida. >> joining me now is cnn political commentator, alice stewart. thanks for coming on. i want to grow with the growing golf between the president and the president essentially holding this bill hostage. people will lose their benefits, the government will run out of

money. te time is running out. i want to get your reaction to the president kind of sowing chaos at this late hour. >> he's really holding the american people hostage that need this covid relief. i talked with a lot of congressional republicans and there's a lot of frustration with them because in the weeks leading up to their voting for this bill, they were under the impression that this was president trump's bill, treasury secretary mnuchin was complaining what the president wanted and they were okay with voting for the terms that were agreed to by secretary mnuchin and nancy pelosi. and they went ahead and voted for some of the aspects of this they didn't really like, some of the spending in this, but they voted anyway thinking that this was the president's bill. now come to find out, he has been talking about vetoing his own bill. they are frustrated. they feel as though they have walked the plank on this, and now the president has thrown them overboard.

the good thing is that there is relief in sight, i do believe. if the president decides he wants to veto this. this is a bipartisan bill and had tremendous support by democrats and republicans. and i see them moving forward with overriding the veto and getting help into the pockets of the american people exactly where it belongs. >> is that a politically dangerous move, overriding the president? >> not at this point, no. because at the end of the day, this is what the american people need. donald trump is just a few weeks away from not being in the oval office anymore, and the american people are just a few days away from losing precious benefits, from losing money that they need to keep a roof over their head and food on the table, and the reality is these members of congress, they are be holden to their constituents, not president trump. and they're getting calls and they're getting e-mails and they're getting pressed by

people in their districts that they need help, and at the end of the day, they're going to do what their constituents want, and the president's frustration with the fact that he did not win this election is going to take a backseat because help needs to be on the way, and they worked really hard to agree to this package and they want to see it implemented. >> you brought up the constituents, i'm justice, you know, want to ask you, since you're here in georgia, we're both in georgia where millions have already voted in the duel runoff election here, as a republican strategist, you have sort of been on the ground with the candidates trying to get the two republicans elected here. do you think that the chaos in washington, much of it, you know, of the president's making will affect the race? after all, as you kind of mentioned there, your candidates were running on this basically before the president pulled the rug out from under them. >> kim, i sure hope not because the integrity of our elections

is paramount, and it's the corner stone of our democracy, and anything anyone says to do anything to undermine the voting process is unfortunate. and i know there has been talk by some saying that the last election wasn't valid so don't come out in january. that's nonsense, and i have been on the ground here in the state of georgia, and people are motivated, on both sides, republicans and democrats, because they want their voices to be heard. we had record numbers come out in the election in november, and we're on tap to see record numbers in january. and look, whether you're democrat or republican, everyone should come out and vote, and everyone should have their voice be heard. i happen to think it's important to have a divided congress and have a check and balance on the democratic leadership. but the most important thing is for people to come out and vote, whether you're on the right or left, having your voice be heard is the most important thing and having confidence coming out to

vote and knowing that your vote will be counted is paramount. >> we'll have to leave it there. thank you so much for joining us, alice stewart. we really appreciate it. >> thank you, kim. when the british parliament meets next wednesday, lawmakers are largely expected to ratify a historic post brexit trade deal with the european union. the break occurs one week from today. getting to this point took nearly a year of negotiations and came down to the wire but on christmas eve, the prime minister announced a trade agreement with the eu had finally been reached. now there's plenty of uncertainty and chaos leading up to this moment, thousands of truckers bound for europe have been stranded for days in british ports while awaiting covid-19 test results. though the massive back ups were a consequence of the pandemic, they vividly underscored the urgency of getting a trade deal done before january 1st. cnn's abdelaziz has the latest from london.

take us through this. what's next? >> well, the next is two parts, the british parliament has to come into session tomorrow, wednesday, and they will be approving, rather, wednesday, not tomorrow, but wednesday to approve this deal. it's 2,000 pages. a lot of christmas reading to do there. the eu will have to rubber stamp this. it will come after the fact, so kind of a guarantee there that that will pass and this goes into place in one week's time. prime minister boris johnson feeling this is a victory, something that's come on christmas eve, a gift to the nation, and he was ready and willing to celebrate it on social media. take a listen to what he said. >> tonight, on christmas eve, i have a small present for anyone who may be looking for something to read in that sleepy post christmas lunch moment. and here it is. tidings, glad tidings of great

joy because this is a deal. >> so finally, finally an agreement, and you can see the sort of tongue and cheek joy from prime minister boris johnson, a free trade agreement, zero quotas, they will not be taxed on the goods, and 2,000 pages to go through. the real test is when it goes into place, and how it impacts the economy, how it impacts average families across britain, how it impacts the eu. this country has been extremely divided over this issue for 4 1/2 years. it's been very divisive, polarizing and now comes the time to see which side was right. of course you had four and a half years of hearing the side stay in the eu. if we leave, it's bad for the country. the economy will be damaged. it's not good for the future. it's not good for jobs, and of

course prime minister boris johnson on the side of leave, saying this is the best deal for britain. britain needs to leave, and it's better to have them leave the union when they were a reluctant member in the first place. time for this to play out. the eu for it part says this is a fair and equitable deal, that they will continue to work in the partnership with the u.k. on issues like security and climate but that this is the beginning of a new friendship, a new relationship. >> a long new road ahead there. thank you so much, salma abdelaziz in london. coronavirus hospitalizations in the u.s. hit an all time high on thursday. after the break, why experts fear the christmas holiday will cause even more people to end up in the hospital. stay with us. dry, distressed skin that struggles? new aveeno® restorative skin therapy. with our highest concentration of prebioticic oat intensely moisturizes over time to improve skin's resilience. aveeno® healthy. it's our nature™.

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the u.s. is celebrating a christmas holiday in the chateau -- shadow of a pandemic that keeps getting worse. the country set a record for hospitalizations on christmas eve, more than 120,000 according to covid tracking project and several states set records for

new infections. more than 1 million vaccinations have been administered but the nation's top infectious disease expert said many more must be given to achieve herd immunity, 70% of the population. health experts fear holiday travel and gatherings will result in more hospitalizations and more deaths. here's cnn's alexandria field. >> reporter: even on this covid christmas, america's airports are packed full of people. >> i just came in from denver. >> mom really wants to see us, you know. you can only say no so long. >> reporter: on wednesday, a pandemic era travel record set, 1.2 million passing through airports, according to the tsa which has counted a million fliers on the last six days. >> we have lots of masks and z hand sanitizer, headrest covers

and gloves, and disposable things. >> reporter: dr. anthony fauci turns 80 today, staying home, and hopes others follow. >> i feel strongly that i need to practice what i preach to the country. >> reporter: a surge super imposed on a surge and dark january days ahead. >> i'm scared about what we're about to see. >> reporter: hot spots are spread out all over the country from maine to alabama to california which has passed the eye popping threshold of 2 million covid cases. a first for any state in the nation. >> a few months ago, we had five covid patients in the hospital. and now we're up to nearly 100, so that shows you within just a couple of months, how much it's accelerated. >> reporter: hospitalizations are at a record high. december will soon become the deadliest month of the pandemic, and we are careening toward a total of 330,000 deaths. that's 1 in 1,000 americans, killed by covid.

>> we need to tell everybody that this is not the time to have large indoor maskless parties, holiday parties. this is the time to hunker down. >> reporter: the cdc now projects as many as 419,000 deaths by january 19th. the institute for health metrics and evaluation upping its projections again after just one week. predicting as many as 560,000 death b deaths by april. they models suggest 33,000 lives will be saved by vaccinations. 9.5 million doses have been delivered, a million doses over pfizer's vaccines have been administered according to the cdc, much less than expected. here at mount sinai hospital in new york city, front line workers are continuing to be vaccinated. that job will continue through the holidays, in another sign that this christmas will be unlike any other along with letters to santa. pfizer, the maker of one of the

vaccines say they have received letters from children asking for not only enough vaccines for everyone but also a vaccine for santa. in new york, alexandria field, cnn. joining me now is cnn medical analyst dr. esther choo who is in portland, oregon. there's a lot to talk about with the new variance, given how the virus travels, how these were circulating possibly months ago. is it safe to assume that it is circulating here in the u.s.? and if so, does it mean we should change our behavior in any way? >> well, i do think that it's likely that it's here in the u.s., and there's reasons it wouldn't necessarily be detected because we do genetic sequencing of a very small sample of the virus in the u.s. i think that's due to change according to the cdc, but up until now, we haven't really aggressively tracked all of

these mutations and they are things that happen routinely in viruses. viruss are constantly mutating and finding better ways to survive. the issue with this one is could this mutation mean that the vaccine that we're circulating isn't effective or as effective as it was in the original test, and that seems really unlikely just because the vaccine is polyclonal. it stimulates a number of different types of antibodies against the spike protein. and, you know, so it's likely that the vaccine will still be effective. if not, you know, we are watching constantly to see if that's the case, and we'll have to make modifications. ultimately, the virus does the same thing and that is that it's very good at attaching to our cells. it is easily transmissible between patients, i'm sorry, between people, and so the same things that keep the virus from spreading now will keep any new variant from spreading, which is

the social distancing, face mask wearing and hand washing, doesn't change anything. just makes us feel like we should be doubly committed to those things. >> that's not what i'm seeing. experts in hard hit california say the spike they are seeing now is driven by gatherings with people outside their households. just anecdotally, i see cars lined up on my street, either people have really big families or people are having those christmas parties that they're not really supposed to be having now. what's your practical advice for people over the next few days? >> i think if there's one thing we have learned over all of these holidays that lead to surges in covid cases is that it's so hard to ask people to not celebrate and to not gather with their loved ones. and so expecting people to not do it at all just seems impact ca -- impractical. we can aim for that, encourage it. many people are keeping their holiday celebrations small or

skipping it if they're able to do that. what we can ask people to do, if you are gathering, try to put some parameters on it. try to enforce face mask wearing. keep people spread apart, keep ventilation good. gather outside, if where you live allows that in terms of weather. keep gathering on the shorter side, don't linger for many hours in close quarters. change what you're doing. make it a little bit different of a holiday in some ways knowing that the best practice really is to stay home. we can celebrate christmas in july as the saying goes. it doesn't have to be right now when we're at the hardest part of the pandemic yet. >> speaking of staying home, i was reading that a person who went to work while they were sick was likely to have caused two separate outbreaks in your state of oregon. is the message not getting out there that if you're sick stay home or is the problem that the government or the government's

various levels aren't offering enough financial support for those who might have no choice or both, i guess. >> i really think it's both of those things and other forces. i mean, this case that you're talking about was so tragic. this person went to work feeling sick, and led to two separate outbreaks, and one of the outbreaks ultimately led to seven deaths from covid. imagine how that person feels. and i think that person probably, i don't know who that is. we don't know the workplace. that hasn't been replaced but i mention that person feels like a lot of us do. it's probably going to be okay. you wonder how much do my actions really matter, and yet i know if i don't go to work, my coworkers will have to pick up the extra work, or i'll lose income, and can't support my family. there are so many forces that lead us to behavior as we want to, back to normal times. i had a cough and low grade fever last week, and honestly,

kim, it took everything in me to actually call in sick. our practice is, if you can, be vertical, go to work. that is the culture in many workplaces. this habit of calling out sick, i mean, especially when you feel fine and you look fine, but you have a couple of mild symptoms. we're not in the habit of calling out. i'm sure you don't normally call out sick when you have mild symptoms that you can ignore or take a few ibuprofen. you might not be perfect in remembering to stay home when you feel sick. >> dr. esther choo, thank you so much for joining us. appreciate it. >> have a great holiday. the holidays are taking on a different feel this year. just ahead on cnn newsroom, a live look at what christmas looks like under lock down. stay with us.

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and welcome back, and merry christmas, to all of you watching in the united states, canada and around the world. i'm kim brunhuber, and you're watching "cnn newsroom," it's look looking like the demands u.s. president donald trump has made for the covid relief bill won't be met. big question is will he sign it anyway. it's not just aids for millions of millions of americans at stake but also funding for the government. >> the urgently needed coronavirus relief package, the government funding bill it's tied to has physically departed washington, d.c. on a journey to florida where the president will now have to decide what to do with it. we know it's going to arrive in florida. what president is going to do, that is still very much an open question. both republicans and democrats on capitol hill saying they have

no sense right now, not from allies in the white house. not from anything the president has said and done. if the president is actually going to sign the bill. democrats imploring the president to sign the bill. democrats also challenging congressional republicans to join with them in addressing one of the president's concerns, and that is expanding direct payments that are in the stimulus package from $600 to $200. republicans, however, rejecting thatted ide that idea, likely to vote against it. where does that actually leave things, nobody knows, it's in the hands of one individual, an individual who is without question angry about election results, without question, frustrated about whatever the deal is that came together. multiple people make one point clear, this is not a policy issue at this point in time, this is a personal issue. there's nothing lawmakers feel like they can do on capitol hill to address the president's concerns. they have to wait and see, and one staffer told me it's hope

and pray time. this is a crucial point. there's no fall back. there's no plan b, there's no secret back up plan. this is a deal, a deal that took almost nine months to reach on the coronavirus relief piece, a deal that lawmakers say has to stand. plan a is the president signs the bill one republican told me. plan b is hope plan a works at this point in time. this is aid for millions of americans on the the unemployment side, direct payment side, eviction moratoriums, and it's also a government funding bill. if the president does not sign the bill by monday night, not only is he rejecting a coronavirus relief package, he's also shutting down the federal government. we'll see. phil mattingly, cnn, washington. new u.s. restrictions on travel could create headaches for people trying to fly out of the uk to the states. just a few hours ago, the cdc announced that starting monday, air passengers arriving from the u.s. in britain must test negative for covid-19, a new

transmissible variant of the virus, blamed for a surge of cases in england, and a soaring number of new infections across europe is putting a damper on holiday plans. some of the biggest economies there are enforcing tight restrictions during christmas and new year's in the hopes of stemming further spread of the virus. for more on that, let's turn to cnn's cyril vanier in paris. let's start with those new restrictions there. what does a lock down christmas look like in europe these days? >> well, it doesn't look like a merry christmas, kim, that's for sure. look, governments are trying to thread a needle here in the european union. they're trying to give people a break, and allow people to some extent to celebrate with their families over this holiday season after what's been a bruising year, but also trying to limit said interactions because they're very afraid of a third wave or as scientists, epidemiologists might put it, a continuation of the current second wave and many countries already anticipating a surge in the virus after this holiday

season so trying to thread that needle, each country doing it a little bit differently. in italy, they are considering the whole country a red zone during the holiday season, banning travel from one region even from one municipality to another. residents in italy only allowed to see two adults, family members, outside of their household. in germany, well, they're actually increasing restrictions over the end of this year because they've had a surge in cases and they're fearing that the situation could get even worse in the new year. in france, they lifted the evening curfew that normally starts at 8:00 p.m. for just one evening, kim. that was last night. when i stepped out of the office at 8:00 p.m., i wasn't breaking the curfew. that's already over. in austria, a big skiing destination, they have closed ski resorts to all but local residents and, in denmark, it's

the other way around. they have actually started a national lock down today with most shops closed except of course those that sell food and medication because they've just seen the highest number of new infections since the beginning of the pandemic. so going back to my initial point, kim, not a merry christmas here in europe. >> the only good news, vaccinations in europe start in a couple of days. thank you so much, cyril vanier in paris, appreciate it. several countries in latin america are now rolling out vaccines, they began vaccinating health care workers on thursday. it's welcome news for the region which has been hard hit by the coronavirus. cnn's has more from bogota, colombia. >> reporter: christmas has brought hope to millions of latin americans fighting against coronavirus. at least three countries, these are mexico, costa rica, and chile have finally started their

vaccination campaign. just on thursday on christmas eve, it's much welcome news for especially the health care workers, these countries have started vaccinating exactly the health care workers that are assisting patients and fighting against the virus on the very front line. mexico, costa rica, and chile. argentina has also received much welcome christmas presents in the form of the vaccine itself, which finally arrived in buenos aires on christmas eve, on thursday. the first doses of the sputnik 5, the russian vaccine arrived on a special flight from moscow to buenos aires. in vaccinating the health care workers and the population, and while americans of latin americans are spending christmas and are social distancing, some

under a curfew, others with a ban on alcohol sale bs on t, on number of people they can spend christmas with, the news of the vaccine is finally arriving is very much welcome this time at christmas. for cnn, this is stefano, bogota. 3,700 new cases on thursday, setting a daily record for the second day in a row. japan has more than 210,000 total cases and more than 3,000 deaths. south korea also set a new daily record, reporting more than 1,200 cases added thursday, and that's its highest daily count since the pandemic began. south korea is reporting more than 54,000 total cases with more than 770 deaths. this is "cnn newsroom," we'll have more to come, including fighting coronavirus in some communities isn't just about the

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. as the coronavirus vaccine rolls out across the u.s., many african-americans are worried that they'll be left behind. some live in areas that lack basic services. as cnn's omar jimenez reports from chicago, the pandemic is just the latest crisis to hit their communities. >> how long have you lived in this neighborhood? >> all my life, 55 years. it's changed a whole lot. if they're going to roll out a vaccine, and they're going to roll it out to grocery stores and pharmacies, i see a problem. >> you feel just because the vaccine is available, it's not necessarily going to be accessible. >> that is correct. >> reporter: rochelle syke lives

in the predominantly black west side neighborhood of austin, has one of the highest covid-19 death rates in the city. and the barriers to getting a vaccine are taking shape, ranging anywhere from distance to pharmacies, confidence in health care, and even personal safety. as austin is also among the city's most violent neighborhoods. >> is it even worth the time, okay. you hear gunshots, you know, you have to get out and get in your car. you're doing carjackings and if you don't feel safe, you don't do it. >> down the street, loretto hospital was the host to the first covid-19 vaccination and the first to set up a community testing site in april, one they plan to soon turn into a community vaccination site. >> in order to stop the virus, we have to do our part and we want to involve everybody. we're experiencing three types of pandemic, violence, racism, as well as covid-19. >> reporter: it's an issue

leadership continues to wrestle with. >> where any part of the city is not supported enough, it indirectly impacts the entire city, not just that this is a let's make sure that we treat covid, it's about what are the root causes that have made these neighborhoods, these sub groups in chicago more vulnerable. >> parts of the downtown chicago area have a life expectancy of up to 90 years old, according to an analysis out of nyu. just about 10 miles down the road near here on chicago's south side, the life expectancy goes down to 59.9. that's a difference of about 30 years, which that same nyu analysis says is the largest gap in the country. >> all of a sudden, this virus came and took my sister away. >> reporter: emma washington is almost 80 years old, she lost her sister to covid-19 in september, and her brother to covid the day before christmas eve. and now she's considering what

getting a vaccine is going to look like with her pharmacy over a mile away, and no car to get her there. >> i have to take one bus, then i have to take another bus because there was only one place around walgreens, around my area. >> now she mostly has her medication delivered, but this isn't a new phenomenon. one study based on data from 2000, and 2012 found over 50% of the city's black communities were so called pharmacy deserts, low income neighborhoods where pharmacies are far from the population, and people don't have regular access to vehicles, compared with just 5% in white communities. >> this is not something that's going to get solved in a year or in five years. but how do we take the covid conversation and turn it into the conversation that links to chronic disease and homicide and infant mortality, and hiv, and opioid overdose. those are the five main drivers of disparate life expectancies

in chicago and covid has affected all of those. >> reporter: when it comes to covid, the vaccine shot is about more than medicine. it's about getting a fair shot without it being a long shot. >> we're in a lifeboat. they're on a cruiser. if you can come up with a vaccine within a year, why are we sitting in a community where there is no grocery store with fresh fruits and vegetables. >> reporter: omar jimenez, cnn, chicago. >> the west bank town on bethlehem is usually abuzz with christmas celebrations this time of year. the global pandemic has forced those events to be scaled back dramatically. we'll take you there after the break. stay with us. you can really save. save for being a new customer. save more for adding drivevewise. save even more for driving safely. take another look at allstate -and start saving. visit allstate.com or contact your local agent today.

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well, christmas day usually overflows with joy and hopes for the future, but the pandemic has muted many of the celebrations. there are some festivities, but with fewer participants. there are also scenes of quiet contemplation. that's all apparent in bethlehem where christians believe jesus

was born. elli elliot reports. >> reporter: midnight mass without the masses, because of covid-19 restrictions, only clergy were meant to attend this year's christmas eve prayers. earlier in the day, the annual scout parade to welcome the last time -- latin patriarch, and here, far fewer marching bands than usual. manger square's capacity was capped at 200, and only just made it after recovering covid. manger square would usually be heathing with out of town palestinians and international tourists, there would be carol s concerts, hotels and restaurants would be doing their briskest trade of the year, but a west bank lock down means nonbethlehem residents are banned. the skies are closed to foreign visitors. those who did come out had mixed

feelings. >> translator: this year is different than all years. there are no celebrations, because of the economic situation and the covid, it is a very sad situation. >> as you can see christmas is so sad this year, not too much participants. but at least we have the spirit of christmas. and this is what we wish for everyone all over the world. >> translator: i hope the new year will be better than this one and people around the world will get rid of this pandemic, although there is a pandemic, it is beautiful here. you just need to wear your mask and come enjoy it. >> reporter: as night fell, the christmas lights had manger square pretty much to themselves. in a church of the nativity where christians believe jesus was born, they prayed for better days. after a disastrous year for bethlehem's tourist reliant economy, it seems things can't get any worse.

cnn, bethlehem. a christmas storm system has brought a very white christmas to parts of the midwest, northeast and the south. areas that aren't coping with heavy snow are experiencing freezing temperatures and heavy rain. winter weather advisories are in effect for most of the east coast and in some places there's also a threat of flooding. let's get the very latest on the system from derek van dam, last time i spoke to you, you promised ne promised me a white christmas, and you delivered. there was snow in atlanta. >> you saw it, okay. good. that was the christmas miracle was talking about, kim, and you know, speaking of christmas miracles, santa stopped by my house. he left me a little present as you can see, and he had quite the tail wind behind him because this storm that is moving along the east coast, responsible for the snow in atlanta, it's got winds that are gusting up to hurricane force, along the coastal regions, it's a wet, soggy christmas day, along the

major east coast cities, new york to boston. i was in boston one week ago, covering a major snowstorm. record breaking snow across new york, vermont, new hampshire, now we're seeing a system move in as all rain. the snow that was on the ground, added with the additional rain that's falling now means the potential for flooding today and wow, really, you can see from the weather prediction center, we have a moderate risk of flash flooding across that region. another 1 to 3 inches of rainfall forecasts for the areas that saw the most snow last week, and look at the winds along the east coast, anywhere you see the shading of red, that's a high wind warning. wind gusts in excess of 70 miles per hour, along the coastline. it's a brutal christmas day. there is some snow bringing that white christmas to many across ohio into western pennsylvania, even downwind from lake ontario, and lake erie, that's where we're starting to see some of the lake effect snow bands picking up later today. frigid air mass, 20 to 30 degree temperature difference from this

time yesterday compared to now. it is an incredible difference in the air outside. if you step outside this morning. from indianapolis into cleveland, as well as knoxville, tennessee, i even look at new york city, you can see today's high temperature, 59, the cold front will sweep through tonight, and by tomorrow, a high of 33 degrees. more of the same in atlanta, we are drastically colder than what we were yesterday. that's why we saw the beautiful snowflakes that fell from the sky today. i'll leave it with that. positive note out of the difficult year and news we have had to report on. i'm supporting a santa hat today. it's international tv. trying to make you guys smile this morning. so hopefully it works. >> listen, it worked on me. that's all that matters. thank you so much. appreciate it. >> happy holidays. >> you too. no matter what's happening on christmas, even a pandemic, one thing is still the same. santa claus is coming to town. he's made a list, he's wearing

his mask, and he has already circled most of the world. the north american aerospace defense command is tracking his progress, and telling you exactly how many presents he's dropped off so far. so right now, the jolly old elf is, well, i'm being told he's done. he's heading back to the north pole. he's going to park his sleigh, put his feet up for another year, and i'm reliably informed he delivered something on the order of 7 1/2 billion gifts and you can, for the next couple of minutes, anyway, i think he's going to be back in four minutes, but you can follow him and his reindeer around the world on noradsanta.org. that wraps this hour of "cnn newsroom," i'm kim brunhuber. up next for our viewers in the united states and canada, a cnn special report, pandemic, how a virus changed the world in 1918. for our international viewers, stay with us for "quest means business, the future of travel."

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