i'm victor blackwell. welcome to "cnn newsroom." >> and i'm bianna golodryga. right now a powerful winter

storm moving east threatening more than a dozen states. depending where you are you may face blizzard conditions possible tornadoes or flooding in the next few days. >> this storm already pummeled the western u.s. blanketed california with snow. look at this. soda springs. got five feet of snow in just 48 hours. cnn meteorologist chad myers is tracking this for us. five feet in 48 hours is remarkable, but which areas are seeing the biggest threat now? >> central rockies. utah, colorado up into wyoming. parts of arizona and new mexico but it's running out of moisture. like a hurricane, runs on land. no moisture from the ocean anymore. all that changes when that storm gets there and starts to tap the gulf of mexico. coming onshore in california, putting down a lot of snow. not just snow, but inches of rain, or water, that will eventually melt and get into the

reservoirs they so desperately need out there in california. really, really good news. the snow that has fallen here, get into the colorado river and eventually lake mead, seen pictures being 180 feet below where it's supposed to be. there's the low. the clouds, going from des moines back into nevada. this is a big storm with a lot of fingers in it. a lot of things going on here from blizzard warnings and in the ranches properties in south dakota, nebraska and wyoming and also when it gets to that moisture in the gulf of mexico, it's going to get a lot stronger. all the winds you see in orange, 30 miles per hour or greater. also winds 25 to 30 in chicago. where we go from here. 6:00 showers pop in the warm sector. in the humid sector that's dragging this moisture from the gulf of mexico. by overnight tonight a very dangerous situation could occur,

because now potential for tornadoes after dark. tomorrow, moves farther east and so will the severe weather. by tuesday into wednesday, moves even into parts of the gulf coast. guys, a big storm with so many things going on with it that it really depends where you are compared to what you're going to get. >> all right. watch it over the next several days. chad, thank you. next hour, olivia a libya mg his first court appearance, charged for allegedly making the bomb that destroyed the jetliner over lockerbie, scotland. taken into custody over the weekend. >> the attack killed all onboard and 11 on the ground in lockerbie where the plane crashed minutes into its flight from london to new york. cnn's evan perez is outside that d.c. courthouse and cnn international editor nic robertson in london. evan, the significance of the

case. i believe the first suspect prosecuted in the united states. two prosecuted in europe. tell us the charges that he is facing. >> reporter: well, bianna and victor, at this hour we still have not seen the unsealed federal charges that he's facing. the only thing we know is from a criminal complaint filed a couple years ago, which listed destruction of an aircraft that resulted in death as well as some explosive charges. we are expecting those, perhaps, in addition to others, will be unsealed at the federal court here at a hearing at his first appearance in the next hour. obviously, this is something that the fbi, along with scottish investigators have been working at for so, so long. we know that a big part of this case, certainly the evidence that we're going to hear as he faces trial here in washington is a 2012 confession that he allegedly gave to a libyan interrogator.

we don't know whether that interrogator is here in the country yet. we know that the fbi went to libya, or rather to tunisia, to north africa, back in 2020 to do an interview with him and that is used, part of the evidence to bring charges against abu agila masud. >> nic to you, almost 35 years since the bombing and evan mentioned a 2012 alleged confession ftwo years since the charges. how has he evaded capture so long? >> because the country was run by moammar ga gdhafi until 2011. persuaded to give up two previous suspects, both intelligence officers, and according to the evidence that the fbi has in that affidavit that's been information taken

from that interview with masud in captivity in libya. he knew these two men and present with hem in molt a, whe the bomb was allegedly placed on the plane. going back to why he has evaded capture, the sort of awareness that he was involved in this just wasn't there, it seems, because the libyan government wasn't opening up. they put forward these two other suspects, and they'd gone for trial in what was a scottish court, but it was a compromise, because it wasn't located in scotland. it was actually located in the netherlands. one of them was found guilty. one of them was found not to be guilty. the guilty one did eight years in a scottish jail, was released in 2008. this is al magrhi released

because of suffering from terminal cancer. i met him in 2011. his family still professing his innocence. he died not long after, but no discussion around that time of the bombmaker, and that's who masud is alleged to be and this has come out because there's no dictator keeping a lid on all the information and the secret deals and dirty affairs that his intelligence agents were getting up to. >> evan, families of the victims waiting and seeking justice now for decades. we know the widow of one of the passengers aboard the plane held a press conference today. what did she say? >> reporter: the families here have been key, been relentless trying to make sure that everyone faces justice for what happened. victoria spoke at that press conference in miami. take a listen. >> this was the love of my life and i had promised him that i

would make sure until my dieing breath that i was going to do what i could to pursue justice, as have many of the other family members, because this has not been my quest alone. our hope is that we'll be able to find out what he knows and hopefully he'll be able to identify other co-conspirators so we can also bring them to justice. >> reporter: victor and bianna, still an open case for the fbi, still investigating obviously and we'll learn more once masud appears here in court and that trial finally gets going. >> significant development over are the weekend. evan perez and nic robertson, thank you. now to that spending showdown on capitol hill. in fewer than five days the government will shut down if lawmakers do not pass a spending agreement. >> this sounds familiar, it's because we've been here before. nearly every year. now, they are running out of

time once again to close a $26 billion gap between the democrats and the republicans. cnn's phil mattingly is at the white house and cnn's manu raju on capitol hill. manu, both sides say a shutdown is unlikely, but where do negotiations stand right now? >> reporter: well, almost certainly they have to punt again. the question for how long? this, of course, is a problem of congress' own making. they were supposed to have finished all 12 appropriations bills that fund the entire federal goal by september 30th. couldn't get a deal, punted that to this friday, december 16th trying to get a deal. a deal seems not within reach at the moment. they may have to extend government funding for another week and at that point have to decide whether they can pull all the bills together in one massive proposal. maybe roughly $1.75 trillion and try to pass it within a matter of days, but they cannot get agreement on the larger package they may have to punt this into the new congress and huge

ramifications for incoming majority, kevin mccarthy hopes to become the head speaker and if punted to next year one of the first big issues he'll have to confront in the new congress having to get a deal not just within his own conference, but the democratic side, led by democrats and a democrat in the white house. one big reason there's a major pou push to resolve this, this year. so many key issues ride along with it including $37 billion in aid to ukraine as well as changes to the electoral act to avoid another january 6th. still a big question whether they can get there. >> phil what about be trying to avert a government shutdown? what are they doing? >> reporter: the former important. particularly for dynamics manu eloquently laid out. a keen recognition inside the white house what not getting a full year spending package done would mean heading into a divided government. not just because of the very pitched political battle that

plays out whenever any new deadline comes but also what it means should they have to punt. basically maintain spending levels at current levels for however long lawmakers agree. significantly tough on ukraine aid, defense department operations. something the administration tried to leverage over the course of the last several weeks having the secretary of defense sending letters how bad it would be, having private classified meetings related to what not given new ukraine funding approved. manu knows more than anybody. it's capitol hill's ball game. the administration serves as assistant role to some drip with office of management and budget director shalonda young. there is an expectation getting involved getting further along in this process. no question about it. the white house doesn't just want to punt this. they don't just want to avoid a government shutdown. they want a deal on an entire

spending package, pushing towards right now. >> and foreshadows another potential battle looming in the new year nap is raising the debt ceiling. i want to switch topics, manu. there's still plenty of talk and reaction to news that kyrsten sinema will leave the democratic party. i know you caught up with joe manchin. what did he have to say about this move? >> reporter: a big question. what will joe manchin do? whether he will do what his like-minded democratic senator, once democratic senator now independent kyrsten sinema will do, leave the democratic party and become independent. i? ed asked whether he would follow her. he did not shut the door. >> i'll look at all of these things. i'll look at every circumstance and have no intention of doing anything right now. whether i do something later i can't tell you what the future will bring only where i am in my mindset and want to accomplish long as i'm here with the senate.

i want to work with her same as before. >> reporter: manchin up for election in 2024, not made a decision whether or not to run again and, of course, if he decided to run as independent a whole range of implications as well, but as you heard right there, certainly not planning do it but not that he won't leading to many more questions ahead. >> once that door opens, apparently. phil, one more for you. the administration, officials had a virtual meeting today with sister of paul whelan, detained in russia after brittney griner came home. what happened in this meeting? >> reporter: yeah. administration officials made clear they would remain intensely focused on paul whelan's case and playing it out now in days after brittney griner was released. a 45-minute virtual meeting with elizabeth whelan. members of the national security council as well as state department staff on that call.

our colleague jennifer hanser spoke to elizabeth whelan after that call and said she appreciated energy of the call. largely a reset recognizing that they freed to figure out new pathways forward given the fact they continuously tried to find a deal to get both home and not able to secure such a deal. what options might they be willing to put on the table going forward? no specific details, guys, one thing we heard from administration officials from days since brittney griner's release, they that believe there are still options, formulations they think they can put on the table in weeks or months ahead to stur paul whelan's release. they've maintained close contact with the family and continued today. >> an effort to continue to talk about paul whelan and sport-fspor support for bringing whelan home. thank you. the special counsel moving fast on a criminal probe surrounding former president

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right? feeling about outcome of the midterm elections you might think because republicans took control that republican voters would be happy, but in fact we find more democrats were happy with the result. 43% happy versus 45% of republicans who are in fact disappointed. i should note 37% of democrats and 38% republicans were neither. i guess when expecting something, expecting a big night and don't get it, as in the case of republicans, much more likely to be disappointed than democrats. >> republicans, i assume, at least are happy they're taking control of the house. no? >> yes. if we get this idea, right, which is on the major issues. are you more confident in the republicans in congress or president biden? this is the split we talked about. right? well within margin of error. 51% to 49% biden, who you're more confident in on major issues. there are issues in which voters are more excited about the republicans. so will the gop control in the house have a positive, negative or no effect on the federal budget?

43% positive. 33% say -- 32% negative effect. on inflation, again, think the gop will have more of a positive effect 37% to 33% negative effect but issues on which americans are not necessarily so excited an the gop having control. will gop control on the house have a positive, negative or no effect? january 6th, plurality, negative. cooperation in d.c., never quite get 43% of americans gop having control would in fact have a negative affect. >> house leadership? views on kevin mccarthy, hakeem jeffries? >> opinion of kevin mariccarthy. just 1% pe19% favorable. hakeem jeffries, 17%, 19%. a lot of americans have no? who they are. paying attention to politics you

would, perhaps gives you idea, it's the holiday season. maybe not paying too much attention quite yet. >> people at least hear the name kevin mccarthy more than hakeem jeffries just yet. learning more in the weeks and months to come. harry enten, always good to see you. >> nice to see you. house committee investigating the january 6th insurrection, potential criminal ref referrals. >> calling it successful. former president trump and allies mark meadows attorney john eastman, former justice official jeffrey clark and former lawyer rudy giuliani. jessica schneider joins us with more. met over the weekend. when can we expect a decision? >> reporter: probably soon, maybe not soon enough, bianna. clock is ticking for the committee. looks like everything will cull minhate next wednesday. that december 211 asst coming

together from 1000-plus interviews over the course of this investigation, and next wednesday expecting also which the committee could issue criminal convictions. weighing for at least five people. including former president donald trump and former chief of staff mark meadows somewhat cooperated with this committee. previously handed over about 2,000 text messages where he discussed in those what trump should do and say after the ele election and during the january 6th attack. also trump's former lawyers, john eastman. rudy giuliani, rudy giuliani basely fraud claims and john eastman considering architect of plans to push mike pence to refuse to certify the election. something mike pence refused to do. the committee also is weighing a criminal referral of jeffrey clark a top official at doj. also pushed those false election

fraud claims. guys, any of these referrals that the committee makes to doj is in no way legally binding. really carries no legal weight. so the justice department is not compelled to charge anyone after a congressional referral that we're expecting. largely symbolic here, guys. still significant, but the justice department does not need to act on any criminal prosecution as a result of what this committee says. still looking out for it one week from wednesday. bianna and victor? >> their own special counsel-led investigation. jessica schneider, thank you for being with us. special counsel jack smith has been on the job for just a few weeks but already speeding ahead on two criminal probes involving donald trump. >> sources tell cnn the probes are focused on the former president's state of mind after the 2020 election and what trump might have known about plans to stop the peaceful transfer of power. cnn's kaitlyn pollens helped

report the story. what are you learning? >> reporter: a team looking into the arc of the special counsel's office now in session three weeks. jack smith is stepping in to manage an investigation going on a long time and has really dug very, very, in a focused way and quickly into many, many things right around donald trump. that includes in recent weeks teams of prosecutors working on mar-a-lago and the january 6th investigations, asking a judge to hold trump in contempt for failing to comply with a subpoena related to the man mar-a-lago documents and getting national security documents back into the government and in the mar-a-lago investigation, bringing lots of top former officials advise rers, aides, in before a grand jury in washington, d.c. also been subpoenas going out in recent weeks especially on the january 6th side. and the other thing we're learning about this is, there are a lot of prosecutors at work

here, victor and bianna. we know now from reporting there are more than 20 prosecutors on the january 6th side combined with the mar-a-lago team, working for smith. that is essentially a double the mueller investigation. the previous special counsel that would have been investigating trump. >> i believe jack smith doing all this work still from europe, recovering from an injury. caikate k katelynn, a federal judge not holding trump in contempt and a special master dismissed? >> reporter: that contempt decision we learned friday after a sealed proceeding in the federal court in washington a hiccup for the justice department. but the other piece of this happening right now is that the justice department as of today, they are going to get access to thousands of pieces of evidence, documents, that were among documents marked at classified at mar-a-lago. whenever the fbi went into

search mar-a-lago in august, they found lots of materials. were able to quickly get access to their investigation into the classified materials but trump had gone to court and essentially cordoned off a lot more of the evidence there. what happened today was a federal judge trump tried to enlist for help in florida dismissed the case before her and unrolled having special master going through all that evidence so the justice department investigation on the mar-a-lago documents, victor and bianna, able to move ahead now. >> that is true. thank you. ukraine's defense minister speaks with cnn about the harsh winter there and why it may actually help their ongoing counteroffensive against russia. and treasury secretary janet yellen predicts a major inflation cool down while the country awaits a key fed decision on interest rates. that's ahead.

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the russian occupied reason of melitopol faced heavy fighting over the weekend and russia continues to strike the power grid as ukrainians face a harsh winter. >> will ripley is live in kyiv. will, we understand you just spoke with the ukrainian defense minister. did he discuss the strategy going forward? >> reporter: he did.

defense minister oleksiy reznikov said even though the united states was anticipating fighting to slow during the winter months, the exact opposite may happen. once the deep freeze kicks in the official start of winter days away and temperatures plunging by the day, easier to move heavy equipment and weapons through areas currently very muddy. swamplands very difficult to it traverse. ukrainians planning to retake territory currently occupied by the russians. the been intense fighting along the frontlines in the east and donetsk and in the south. ma mariupol, housed a hotel, sleeping quarters for russian mercenaries working for the currently owned vaudner group. an arm of the russian army unfortunately, of course, often accused in past conflicts doing the dirty work the russian military doesn't want to be officially tied to yet are

supplied with weapons and money by the russian government. these fighters are on the front lines fighting in ukraine. they're fighting in donetsk trying to retake a town russia has been setting its sights on in recent weeks. perhaps hundreds of them in a hotel sleeping hit with ukrainian rockets fired by u.s. military equipment and according to reports coming in, potentially very heavy losses sustained. certainly, if that indeed is the case it would be a significant, a significant development and victory for the ukrainians. the defense minister also talking about the constant bombardment by russians at the power grid. including kamikaze drone attacks that plunged 1.5 million people into darkness over the weekend. those, of course, the drones made in iran fired by russia that explode on impact. >> what's your best strategy to defend against these kamikaze drone attacks from russia?

>> every day trying to find the best solution targeting our infrastructure. they trying to ruin our energy supply, water supply, heat supply systems, because they cannot, to have a success against armed forces of ukraine trying to fighting with the civilian population and why they're trying to, to stop the energy or water to the houses. especially during this wintertime. >> reporter: on sunday ukraine's prime minister said all of this country's thermal and hydroelectric power stations have been damaged in wave after wave of russian missile strikes. now, the u.s. just announced another aid package for ukraine, actually announced friday. the ukrainian president spoke with president biden about that and other issues and participated in a group of seven's virtual meeting with president biden. notably off the list defense systems ukraine asked for but not yet received saying they're

badly needed on the battlefield. v victor? >> will ripley in kyiv. thank you. the nation's second largest city has its first female mayor. karen bass, how she plans to tackle the city's homeless crisis and renewed controversies surrounding the city's council, next. what's the #1 retinol brand used most by dermatologists? it's neutrogena® rapid wrinkle repair® smooths the look of fine lines in 1-week, deep wrinkles in 4. so you can kiss wrkles goodbye! neutrogena®

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president and former california senator kamala harris, and as promised, her first act this morning as mayor declare a state of emergency on the city's skyrocketing homeless crisis. >> my emergency declaration unlocks too longs and powers to make sure we are using every resource possible at the scale that is needed to save lives and restore our neighborhoods. there will be no holding back on my watch. >> cnn's nick joins us now. the only mayor in the country trying to tackle this issue, but how does she plan on solving the problem specific in l.a.? >> reporter: bianna, she says urgently, strategically and cooperatively. listen, it is a massive problem in the city. just in the city of los angeles about 40,000 people are homeless. billions of dollars spent. plenty people pledged and tried to solve this problem, and yet it only just keeps getting worse. it was huge on the campaign

between karen bass and rick caruso, billionaire property developer opponent. both of them basically trying to outdo each other in terms saying how much they could and would do to solve this problem. now, karen bass has said she will create 15,000 new homes within her first year. she hopes to do this using her connections both on the state and federal level and trying to get people to cooperate. listen, she has made this the hill that she will be judged on. she has said this is going to be her core focus. so, you know, listen. as i said, others have tried and failed. she has said she will be judged on it, and the going to be a very, very tough job indeed. guys? >> hmm. let me ask you about this video we've seen embattled city councilman kevin de leon. remembers name. refused to step down after a group of city leaders recorded

making disparaging remarks about other city leaders but just involved in a fight with activists. tell us about it. >> reporter: this is kevin de leon one of the giants of the democratic part in los angeles and indeed california getting into what looks like a wrestling match with a local activist. de leon wearing a santa hat at tree-lighting ceremony with a bunch of kids present and de leon facing increasing and sustained pressure to resign after that audio you mentioned leaked a couple months ago, audio from a year ago of a meeting in which de leon and other council members were discussing in rather disparaging, rather racist unpleasant terms another council member and that council member's son. now, the president of the council, she apologized and resigned. de leon has been keep ina low profile, first step back into waters. this event he attended at which

this erupted. both de leone claim the other was aggressive. lapd now has this video and they will have to decide what they think happened, but, listen. general background here. a a lot of people in this city think that local politics is broken. got a new mayor trying to deal, she says, with the biggest problem facing the city, and you've got a guy in a santa hat wrestling with a member of the public. it's not a great look, guys. >> hmm. all right. nick watt, thank you very much. put that video back up we just watched, if you can. of the altercation. here. so -- this councilman tries to walk to a different room. and then this -- protester, hands up, though, shoves him in a corner, headbutts him several times -- i mean it is a bad look. >> it's a bad look.

>> but how long do we expect him to stand in that corner? >> yeah. >> as someone was physically pushing him into a wall? >> from that video, it's clear that the protester approached him. >> yeah. >> and he was trying to leave the room, and -- it appears he was trying to leave the situation, and he kept following him. again, no violence ever condoned but as i say, a time and place. not at a tree-lighting area where kids are involved. covid, rsv, the flu, putting strains on hospitals across the country, and that's prompting health officials in multiple cities to urge people to mask up this holiday season. what you need to know to stay safe. that's next. currants on top we wish you a happy holidaday, only at ihop. new gingersnap apple french toastst, part of our new holiday menu. try all three flavors. hi! need new glasses? get more from your benefits at visionworks! how can you see me squinting?

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china is bracing for an unprecedented wave of covid cases as a top doctor warns the

omicron variant is rapidly spreading across the country. the alert comes amid an official drop in cases and as the government begins dismantling many of its restricted zero covid policies. just today, authorities scrapped one of its covid infection tracking apps. dr. f. perry wilson is an associate professor at the yale school of medicine. he also wrote a book "how medicine works and when it doesn't." thank you so much for joining us. listen. we know that china's trying to portray this as a plan that they had in the works and the reason they're lifting some of these restrictions is because they say this is a milder variant. we know that's not true because they don't have the proper steps there waiting for these people as these factors are going to be lifted. they don't have the vaccines and they don't have hospitals ready. how concerned are you about what we could end up seeing in the next few weeks in that country? >> thanks, bianna. i'm quite concerned. china as a country probably has the highest percentage of

vulnerable people by which i mean people who have not been previously infected by covid or who have adequate immunization from a vaccine of every country in the world, and their first test after the initial wave will be the omicron variant which is highly contagious. we don't have much line of sight in here. china is not tracking its cases reliably anymore, so the way this will manifest is in hospitals, and that happens when people die who could have been saved. >> given they don't have immunity there, and most people don't have effective vaccines. are you concerned we could see a new, more lethal variant come up? >> well, i'm concerned about new variants. certainly every new infection is the opportunity for a new rar ja -- variant to emerge. that's the chance of genetics. more or less virulent is anyone's guess, and it could go either way, but it will

challenge the existing immunity that is here right now. so it's difficult to predict, but clearly we'd rather have less cases than more. >> let's come back to the u.s. because new york officials are now urging people to start wearing masks again since we've seen an uptick in cases and we're seeing a rise in flu cases as well, in hospitals that are starting to get more busy and busier through this holiday season. do you think that americans and new yorkers will start putting their masks on though, after they happen for so many months? >> yeah. i think so. i think the framework though has to be one of individual protection. so i was rounding in the hospital today seeing patients and i saw multiple covid patients, multiple flu patients. even someone with something, another respiratory infection that travels around this time of year. it's interesting to see how much virus there is this time of year, you know, when you are in a public place and you are surrounded by strangers, throwing on a mask for 30 minutes while you go shopping is not too much to ask just to

protect yourself. even if you are a healthy person, being sick for a week or two with flu or covid is not fun. >> no, it's not, but i have to tell you just from watching people here in the city, i don't see many people walking around in masks yet. that could change in the next few weeks. while we have you, let me ask you about another alarming development we have seen, and that's a shortage of over the counter medications and these are prescribed for fever reduction and pain typically given to children. we've seen an increase in covid, flu, rsv. how alarming is that, and what can parents do now? >> so many kids are sick. i've got three of them. they've all had their share of respiratory illnesses this season. parents need to know that, you know, fevers don't absolutely need to be treated, you know. kids with fevers, provided they're over 2 months old can be -- if they're feeling okay and they're just staying home and hanging out and, you know, watching tv and doing some homework, that's fine. they don't absolutely need to be treated. of course, talk to your doctor. kids under 2 months old, 100%

call your doctor if they have a fever. in the case where a fever is bad, you might have to call around stores to find that children's tylenol or ibuprofen. one more reminder, baby aspirin is not for babies. kids and adolescents should not be receiving aspirin for fever or anything else. you want to look for that tylenol, and you may have to call a few stores if your kid needs it. >> dr. f perry wilson, thank you. members of the biden administration met virtually with the sister of paul whelan. up next, new details on the efforts to bring the detained american home from russia. research shows people remember commercials with nostalgia. so to help you remember that liberty mutual customizes your home insurance, here's one that'll really take you back. it's cuomized home insurance

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high prices for everything, food, gas, rent, they're hitting americans hard, but janet yellen is optimistic things will turn around. >> i think we'll see a substantial reduction in inflation in the year ahead. >> but for families who are paying more at the grocery store, when 2023 comes around, do they need to be worried about a recession? >> there are always risks of a recession. the economy remains prone to shocks. >> so let's get into this with cnn's matt egan. so a big week. we got a key inflation report tomorrow, and a big decision coming from the fed this week already. what will you be watching? >> yeah, it is shaping up to be

a huge week for the economy, and the fed's war on inflation, and treasury secretary janet yellen is striking a cautiously optimistic view. she thinks a year from now inflation will be, quote, much lower than it is now. she's saying a recession, while it's a risk, it is not required to get inflation under control. many other economists, they have been overly optimistic on the inflation front, right? it's proven to be a lot more stubborn than people anticipated. we'll get another big check on inflation tomorrow. the cpi consumer price inflation. that is not good, and as you can see on your screen though, this would be an improvement. this will be the fifth straight month of cooling inflation, and the lowest level all year. that would be a step in the right direction, and that sets the stage for the fed meeting on wednesday. that's a slam-dunk that the fed is going to raise interest rates yet again. the question of course, is by how much? the market is betting the fed is going to slow the pace