visit us at gofundme.com. we are the absolute best effort. >> you can feel it. you can taste it. here we go folks. >> aew wednesday night dynamite live at eight on tbs and now streaming on max.

>> tragedies. they demand transparency, not a troop. i'm michael smerconish in philadelphia. i've often wanted to make a point about post-catastrophe pressers, only to then change my mind due to concerns about decorum. >> but not today. >> i'm talking about what often follows a school shooting, an air disaster or instance of terrorism. too often they become opportunities for grandstanding politicians when all the public wants is the latest information and to know whether we're safe. twice this week we needed that knowledge. >> first, after a 42 year old suspect drove through a crowded street in the iconic french quarter of new orleans on new year's day, killing 14 and injuring dozens. and again hours later, after a tesla cybertruck exploded outside the trump international hotel in las vegas. the briefings that followed became a study in contrasts. new orleans was notable for politicians sharp elbows. las vegas for a sober,

straightforward delivery of the latest information. new year's day in new orleans, there were two briefings, actually. in the first, the mayor of new orleans, latoya cantrell, referred to the event as terrorism. >> first of all, we do know that the city of new orleans was impacted by a terrorist attack. >> then the new orleans superintendent of police said the fbi would be taking over the investigation. whereupon we heard from the agent in charge. only she didn't call it terrorism. >> my name is alethea duncan. i'm the assistant special agent in charge for fbi new orleans. >> as chief kirkpatrick said, we'll be taking over the. >> investigative lead for this event. this is not a terrorist event. >> i don't know why she said that. i don't know why. agent duncan said it was not a terrorist event. perhaps more accurate would have been to say at this stage, we don't know. perhaps her

word choice explains doesn't justify, but explains what occurred at the second briefing that day. wednesday afternoon, a gaggle of politicians and law enforcement representatives assembled. you had a number of sheriffs, the police chief, state attorney general, plus the governor, a u.s. senator, a member of congress, and a representative of the sugar bowl, which, by the way, was prudently postponed for a day. sadly, because of the amount of tragedy and gun violence in our society, we've become accustomed to seeing these types of events in which politicians gather around a podium, some sporting outerwear that displays their names and or the insignia of their office. even if we already know who they are. this time there were nine different speakers at this press conference. the fbi special agent in charge said the truck attack was an act of terror, and there was gratitude expressed appropriately so for the cops who valiantly took down the terrorist. but there was also lots of praise for one another and their respective

agencies. essentially, these folks were congratulating one another for doing what they've been hired and elected to do. things took a worse turn when louisiana senator john kennedy was invited to speak. his contempt for federal investigators, i thought, was palpable and i believe, invited conspiracy thinking. >> i did talk to the secretary of homeland security a little while ago, and i told him that with all the respect i could muster, i need to tell the american people the truth and the people of new orleans the truth and the people of america the truth. i will promise you this. i will when when it is appropriate in this investigation is complete, you will find out what happened and who was responsible, or i will raise fresh hell, and i will chase those in the federal government who are responsible for telling us what happened. like they stole christmas.

>> look, his shtick has always been soundbite driven, a rather weak imitation of dan rather isms. you remember the election night when dan rather told us the race was hotter than a times square rolex? well, 15 minutes later, kennedy reinserted himself into the mix, this time elbowing out the fbi agent so that he could make a partisan quip about the media and repeat his distrust of the federal government can i say something? >> tell me who you're with. wdsu. wdsu, okay, and cbs. nbc is over here on the right. oh, that's unusual position. um. >> sad that that drew laughter the day of this tragedy. and you saw the senator muscle his way back into the podium, where he then said this once the fbi has a chance to investigate all of this, along working with state police, working with homeland security, working with the city of new orleans,

they're going to tell you what happened. >> i can promise you that. or i'm going to raise fresh hell. but right now, they're in the process of trying to catch the other bad guys, and i want to give them the benefit of the doubt for a while. >> maybe he was thinking of the fbi agents word choice earlier in the day. her refusal to use the word terrorism. but i doubt that anybody was worrying that the feds wouldn't be forthcoming until kennedy raised that specter. again, all praise to the cops who took fire and took down the bad guy in new orleans. but as for the aftermath, it was too many people with not enough to say to justify their presence. now compare las vegas because they're on new year's day. a tesla cybertruck exploded outside the trump international hotel. the 37 year old male suspect died by suicide and was an active member in the military. so far, investigators have found no direct connection between the vegas blast and the terrorist attack in new

orleans. they apparently both used the same app to rent their vehicles, and each served in the army, including stints at fort bragg. on thursday, i watched metropolitan police sheriff kevin mcmahill lead a las vegas briefing. and what a difference in comparison to new orleans. the sole speakers were sheriff mcmahill, the fbi special agent in charge of las vegas, and the assistant special agent in charge of the atf. in other words, no politicians, no personalized garb, no sharp elbows, no self-congratulations, no partisan jokes about the media, just cops and prosecutors dispassionately telling the public what it needed to know based on the best available information. >> every tip and lead that comes in, every piece of evidence that comes in, we don't discount it. we work it through. you know, it's an interesting thing during these kinds of investigations that if these turn out to be simply similarities, very strange similarities to have. and so

we're not prepared to rule in or rule out anything at this point. >> the only thing for sure is that there will be more tragedy and more press conferences. so let's hope these two responses will be studied. one for what not to do, the other to be emulated. the goal is not to score political points nor plant the seeds of conspiracy nor posture for the cameras. we don't need performative outrage. we need leaders with information who can rise above the noise and offer facts and reassurance. and anything less will only deepen mistrust in our institutions when faith in them is already precariously low. federal agencies are now warning law enforcement officers to be on the lookout for potential copycat attacks. after shamsud-din jabbar, a u.s. army veteran and recipient of multiple military awards, rammed a pickup truck through a crowded street. jabbar was killed after exchanging gunfire with police. new exclusive video obtained by cnn shows the

suspect loading his pickup truck with an i.s.i.s. flag just after midnight. the fbi says that he was, quote, 100% inspired by i.s.i.s.. police also found improvised explosive devices inside his truck with a rare organic compound not previously seen in the united states before. the suspect appeared to have posted listings for guns and ammunition on a firearms website, with the caption quote, great for sending home invaders to hell. joining me now is bruce hoffman, senior fellow for counterterrorism and homeland security at the council on foreign relations. he's a professor at georgetown university. he's been studying terrorism and insurgency for nearly five decades. hoffman was appointed by congress and served as the lead author for the final report of the fbi's post nine over 11 response to terrorism and radicalization. his book, it's called inside terrorism. professor, good to have you here. does it matter whether the new orleans attacker was directed by i.s.i.s. or just drew

inspiration from i.s.i.s.? >> it does in the sense that if he was directed by i.s.i.s., this could, as the fbi initially suspected, be part of a broader conspiracy. if there is any silver lining in this terrible tragedy is that this person seems to have been entirely. self-radicalized, self-motivated, was suffering from a range of highly personal, idiosyncratic setbacks, and that appears to have set him on this path of attacking on new year's eve in new orleans. >> i thought that i.s.i.s. was in our rear view mirror. >> i think everybody hoped that they were in our rear view mirror. but the fact of the matter is, over the past year alone, i.s.i.s. has either carried out or been derailed from six significant attacks or plots. now, these include incidents such as occurred in iran last january in moscow at a concert venue last march. but also don't forget, it was an

i.s.i.s. threat that resulted in the cancellation of the taylor swift concert in vienna last august and in october in the united states, an individual associated with i.s.i.s. was arrested by the fbi, who was planning an attack in oklahoma city on election day. so we see that really 2024 was the year of i.s.i.s. resurrection. in essence, are individuals who are drawn to i.s.i.s. motivated by ideology? >> are they motivated, motivated by some warped sense of the islamic faith, or has it become a catch all for those with grievance, even personal grievance? >> you know, that's exactly right. is that there may be a raft of personal, idiosyncratic considerations, but as soon as you give it a political context, as soon as you wave an i.s.i.s. flag or claim an attack in the name of i.s.i.s., all of a sudden it gets outsized publicity and attention. and that certainly is a motivation as well. >> law

enforcement now, seeing the las vegas incident as as a tragic case of suicide, seemingly no direct connection between the two. perhaps coincidence that they used the same app to rent their vehicles had served in the military, including stints at fort bragg. your thoughts? >> i think they the two incidents probably are not connected, at least directly, but indirectly. i think they're very troubling in the sense that you probably had the las vegas bomber accelerate or move forward. his plot, because of the incident in new orleans. in other words, he too wanted to elbow himself into the limelight. and clearly by saying that he's carrying out this attack not only because of the personal physical trauma he suffered as a soldier during the global war on terrorism, but also because, he said, america is on the wrong track. i mean, that also puts it in a political context, and that is the indirect connection is that we have two incidents on new year's day expressing some

discontent politically, but certainly born of deep personal trauma or setbacks. >> professor hoffman, wipe the slate clean. big picture it for me. what worries you most? >> well, terrorism never occurs in a vacuum. it always reflects the tensions in society and indeed, the polarization in politics. well, right now we've got both of those in spades. and this is what worries me is there's enough conflict still in the middle east and upheaval and chaos. and that, of course, is terrorism, stock and trade. they seek to take advantage of that chaos, of that upheaval, to elbow themselves into the limelight and to attract attention to themselves and their causes. so that's the main threat. second one, as the fbi has repeatedly articulated, is that this might well inspire copycat attacks and that, of course, is is is a significant and present danger. >> and a related concern is the difficulty, i imagine, in policing the online content that i.s.i.s. puts out,

especially in the united states, where there's more respect for civil liberties among law enforcement than you would find, is the case overseas. >> yes. this is, i think, exactly an important point to raise is that i.s.i.s. hasn't slowed down in its dissemination of propaganda in its efforts to recruit and radicalize individuals, which means we have to constantly be vigilant against this threat and not see it as something that's in our rear view mirror. >> professor hoffman, thanks so much for your expertise. we appreciate you. >> you're very welcome. >> what are your thoughts? hit me up on social media. you can find me on all the usual platforms. we incorporate a number of your responses into the program in real time. tragic. possibly preventable. likely more to it than they are sharing. also likely it is in some way connected to the vegas explosion. i don't think so. again, the government never shares what they know and often shares fabrications. turner, your name on the the tweet from x you sound you remind me of senator kennedy in that regard. and i guess it's one thing for you who are not in the united

states senate to offer those views, but as you can tell, i was troubled by the way in which he invited conspiracy at a time where i think there was no basis to do so in the immediate aftermath of the attack on bourbon street. am i willing to give him some slack? and those other public officials, because it was all so raw and it was their hometown, and 14 people died? i am, but when i saw the way sheriff mcmahill comported himself in vegas the following day, i said, that's the model. no politicians, unless they have value to add, leave the jerseys at home with your name embroidered on them, and instead give us law enforcement. those who are out there assembling the evidence and those who are going to have to prosecute the case. coming up, what's going on with 30 somethings? why aren't they getting married, owning homes, having kids? is it the economy? shifting priorities or social expectations? and speaking of the economy, the ragin cajun

james carville is here. what he says he got wrong about the 2024 election. i want to know what you think. james has inspired today's poll question. it's merchan. com. do you agree with james carville that kamala harris lost for one simple reason the economy or the economy, stupid. don't forget to sign up for my newsletter@smerconish.com. while you're voting. steve breen drew this for us. >> on the situation room with wolf blitzer weeknights at six on cnn. >> now's the time to go back in time and shine a light on the family journey that led to you. >> learn when they said, i do. when they became heroes, how they ruled the school. curious about what you might find with

billions of records, photos and more, you're bound to find some gems. ancestry can help you piece together the past. memberships are on sale now, so start your journey today rinse it out. >> every now and then i get a little bit tired of the things that just will never come out in the. >> rib cage. every now and then i rinse it out in just one wash. >> for more than a decade, pozega has been trusted again and again and again. pozega. ask your doctor about pozega. >> you don't stop being you just because you turn 65. but you do face more risk from flu and covid. last year alone, those viruses hospitalized nearly 1 million people 65 and older. 1 million vaccines lower

your risk of getting really sick so you can keep doing you. >> with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. my skin was no longer mine. >> my active psoriatic arthritis joint symptoms held me back. >> don't let symptoms define you emerge as you with clearer skin with tremfya. >> most people saw 100% clear skin that stay clear even at five years. tremfya is proven to significantly reduce joint pain, stiffness and swelling. >> serious allergic reactions and increased risk of infections may occur. before treatment, your doctor should check you for infections and tb. tell your doctor if you have an infection, flu like symptoms or if you need a vaccine. >> emerge as you with clear skin. ask your doctor about tremfya. >> want a next level clean swish with the whoa of listerine? it kills 99.9% of

bad breath germs for five times more cleaning power than brushing and flossing alone. get a next level clean with listerine. feel the. whoa! >> are you 50 or older? >> well, this news is for you. >> the cdc now recommends you get vaccinated against pneumococcal pneumonia. why? if you're 50 or older, even if you're healthy, you're six times more likely to be hospitalized. so schedule at facts assist. com. >> car. >> this isn't the way home. >> that's right james. it isn't. >> car. where are we going? we're here. >> right? >> the future isn't scary. not investing in it is. >> were you in on this? >> nothing gets by you, james. >> nasdaq 100 innovators one etf before investing, carefully read and consider fund investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses and more in prospectus at invesco. >> com closed captioning brought to you by book.com.

>> if you or a loved one have mesothelioma, we'll send you a free book to answer questions you may have. >> call now and we'll come to you. >> 800 821 4000. >> there are many out there who were sure that kamala harris would win the election. some democrats are still engaging in a blame game over who's responsible for the campaign failure. legendary democratic strategist james carville had this to say on my program. just a couple of weeks before election day. >> look, i think she's going to campaign hard in pennsylvania. >> i you know, i don't like to predict elections, but i like i said, i think this thing is going to break and i feel more comfortable that it will break harris's way to not. >> now, carville says it's time we shift our focus to the why of it all. in his new piece for the new york times entitled i was wrong about the 2024 election. here's why carville writes i keep coming back to the same thing we lost for one

very simple reason. it was, it is. it always will be. the economy, stupid. we have to begin 2025 with that truth. as our political north star, and not get distracted by anything else. i want to know what you think james has inspired today's poll question. it's merchan. com. do you agree with the ragin cajun that kamala harris lost? for one simple reason the economy. joining me now is james carville. he was the man behind bill clinton's 1992 campaign victory. he's the focus of the new cnn film, carville winning is everything stupid, which right now is streaming on max. james, you're killing me. i'm day four into a dry january, and i'm looking at your backdrop. i mean, come on. >> well, i like it. >> you know, it's saturday morning. you got to bring a little levity. and some of that life we've had. you know, from my vantage point, it's a terrible election. it's a gut wrenchingly horrible event in new orleans. so to the extent that i can add a little levity

to saturday morning, i'm happy to do it. it was very intentional. why? >> why we love you. why we love you. all right. make the case. i don't need to lead the ragin cajun. go ahead. take the floor and tell me why it was the economy. stupid. >> well, because we interact with the economy. people do multiple times a day. and even other issues. let's take an issue that has really worked for us. the abortion issue that is an economic issue to many people. i mean, i was thinking, you know, if you work at the walmart in ponchatoula, you probably 600 miles away from any abortion access, assuming you could afford to get there and you already have two kids and you're having a child in a state that leads the united states in children born into poverty. and we have a law that says you don't have any other option but to have that child. well, that's an economic issue also. and there's so many other things that you can frame as economic issues. but every day you go to the grocery store, you go to the drugstore, you go to the gas station, you go online, you have a 40, you

know, economic interactions every day. and you just can't remove that from people's lives. it just you just can't do it. and we've tried and i've tried to work around and i've said, well, maybe i'll have more money and better surrogates and more storefront field organizations can make up for it. and i was wrong. >> a number of the commenters to your piece, and i discussed it on my radio program as well. it's a great conversation starter, but a lot of them said they were bummed out in agreeing with you. here's a comment. i'll put it on the screen. i'll read it aloud. this is from the new york times uh, character, honesty, decency, intelligence, democracy. none of these seem to matter in our country when electing a president. i think that pretty much says it all. you would say what to that person? >> i say, well, first of all, i totally agree with that person. it's very depressing. but if you're doing political strategy, you know, if you have an airplane crash, you got to go back and find out what went wrong. you don't say, well, let's just

forget about it and move on. no, it was to flap, setting the right setting or, you know, was there something that the pilot didn't pay attention to? i don't know, but it is sort of depressing. but, you know, michael, there's the simple, basic rule of politics is voters want an election about them. they don't want an election about you or your opponent. and for too much, we lost that. i lost it myself. we made it about trump and we didn't make it about voters. and that's all. it's never a good idea. and how could i, at 80 years old, been doing this for 50 years, lapse into that level of stupidity. you know, i've got to ask myself and but i think we did. and, uh, you know, let's learn from this. it's a it's a disaster. i agree, it's depressing, but to have an event like this and not learn from it, i think is the biggest mistake we can make. >> looking forward to 2025 and thereafter. james carville says, stop talking about trump

and stop talking about extremism. that's going to be a very bitter pill for so many democrats and trump opponents to resolve, because they're so prone to doing exactly that. >> so the carville rule is this to choose to talk about one thing is to choose to not talk about another thing. and the idea we'll just talk about two things. no, no, no, no. so what i'm saying is democrats should pick three issues that unite the democratic party that have over two thirds approval among the american people, and something the republican party can't do. let's try codifying roe v wade that has two thirds support. it's all across the democratic party. they can't do it. let's talk about raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour. that unifies the democratic party. that has over two thirds support. do that. let's talk about taxes. over 400,000. don't let those tax cuts expire. take that money and put it into a first time homebuyers relief fund or rental relief fund. they can't do that. we can't. so always

right now we're an opposition party. do popular things that we like and they can't do and focus on those things. >> did biden and harris, by extension and ultimately harris, did they fail to sell exactly what james carville is preaching? here's another comment from the times. i'll read it aloud. biden's signature accomplishments investing in infrastructure, the clean energy economy, domestic manufacture of microchip processing components are all caps squarely benefiting middle class americans. did they have the cards and just not know how to play them? >> james well, i think by election time and remember, you had biden was in the race until july the 21st and the whole thing became about biden being in the race and biden not. is he was did many wonderful things as president. salesmanship is not his strongest point. i think he would say that himself. i mean, it's pretty obvious it's not.

but it became about that. and harris, i hate to be too critical because she gets the nomination any time and she's got to put everything together. she's got a convention of vice presidential pick and debate and all of the rigmarole you have to go through in a campaign. and we still came, you know, pretty close. but. yes, in selling is not you don't sell, you don't pick a period that we're going to sell. okay. all right. now it's selling season and then it's going to last for three weeks. and it's not going to be no selling season is even when you're sleeping, you sell and you sleep. and for some reason, certain. democrats or so, some democrats, not all don't like the idea of selling. we should be moral. we should feel better and superior about ourselves. and my answer to that is there's nothing more superior than winning an election that is the highest calling there is in american politics to win. and if you lose, you got nothing. and you're sitting around here trying to think of

three things we can be for it. if they can't, we have no power. we can watch them self-implode, which is kind of fun and i enjoy it, but that's going to advance us only so much. but the you know, it sounds really stupid and elementary, but you have to remind, you have to wake up every morning and says, the point here is to win. that's what we're trying to do. we're not trying to make people feel good. we're not trying. >> your final line in the essay, thus it was thus it is thus it forever shall be. is your advice to politicians at all levels or just at the presidential level? is this the mantra for somebody running for congress or township supervisor or the u.s. senate? >> yeah, you know, michael, you know, foreign policy, that kind of gray magazine that you buy an airport. so people think that you're smart and you never read it. they asked me to review a memo that cicero's brother do in rome, and i read it and i said, well, we've thought of nothing new. it was

the same. it was the same thing that we would be talking about today. and we're always looking for the next new thing in politics. and it never is. now what i am going to educate myself on is how people receive information. i don't think democrats fully appreciate that. i think they're much better at like what we would call alternative media, but i'm not sure alternative media is not the main place that people get information now. i mean, we need a massive media consumption survey because i can do the new york times. i can come home from college and people will see it. i'll get people will text me, they'll email me. but mostly i'm talking to people who agree with agree with my main thrust in life. am i disagree vehemently with some of my tactics to get there, but i want to know where these people are getting this goofy information from. and there's so much misinformation and you just can't correct it all. i mean, all of the stuff i see about the new orleans shooting

is people are flapping their jaws. they don't know the first thing about what went on down there, what it's like now, that's okay. but people are getting other information like like like crazy. that doesn't make it just doesn't comport with the truth. and the truth doesn't always win. you find out so much, so much fragmentation. >> hey, quickly, while james is still here, put the response on the screen. i'd rather lean on him to reply to it. what do we have from the world of youtube? i think only reason. no way. that is stupid. she did nothing as borders are. that was as big of an issue as the economy. give me the 32nd response, james i.t. disorder will hurt you. >> and so people thought we had a disorder at the border. people thought it was disorder in pricing and inflation. people thought incorrectly. i would argue that that was crime. and so it was disordered. inflation is a signal of disorder and southern

border. they framed it as an economic issue. these people are coming to take your jobs. they're actually doing no such thing. but that got frightened as when they talked about it. they talked about it as an economic issue that they were driving wages down. and of course, they're going to find out just how important immigration is to this country in 27 days. >> i'm coming down there and we're going to tap what's behind you. thank you james, i appreciate it as always. >> all right. i call me before you come. i know people down here can probably get you a good table. >> thank you for that. i want to remind everybody go to my website at smerconish.com. james carville has inspired today's poll question. do you agree with him? kamala harris lost for one simple reason the economy still to come. your social media reaction to my commentary and what's going on with the millennials? 9% of those 30 to 40 still live with their parents. many are staying single and childless. what's behind that trend? be sure to sign up for my free and worthy daily newsletter when you go to

smerconish.com to cast a ballot, you'll get the work of great illustrators like scott stantis kobi believed in himself at the youngest possible age. >> it's one of the most remarkable stories in sports history. i don't want to be remembered as just a basketball player. kobe premieres january 25th on cnn one. >> a next level clean swish with the whoa of listerine. it kills 99.9% of bad breath germs for five times more cleaning power than brushing and flossing alone. get a next level clean with listerine. feel the whoa ooh stuffed up again. >> so congested you need sinus saline from vicks just sign x breathe what is wow. >> sinex. breathe. ah. >> hungryroot is here. and i

needed it because my fridge is super empty. >> 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. it is crunch time for our family. >> honestly, i barely have time to wash my hair, let alone meal prep. >> hungryroot allows me to get everything that i need so easy to just whip together a quick, healthy meal. >> hungryroot has been a huge game changer. >> head to hungryroot comm for healthy groceries and simple recipes, plus get free veggies for life. >> what's up? you seem kind of sluggish today. things aren't really moving. >> you could use some metamucil metamucil. >> psyllium fiber helps keep your digestive system moving so you can feel lighter and more energetic. metamucil keeps you moving and try the two week challenge at metamucil. >> com vegan ice i can't go back to jail. >> so what did you rob my bank? >> sharing is caring, bro. >> let's make like dice and roll. >> when you're the leader.

disaster cleanup and restoration. how do you make like it never even happened happen? fire it up, randy. >> yeah. >> by being prepared for anything whatever comes your way, there's a pro for that servpro. >> like it never even happened. >> we handcraft every stearns and foster using the finest materials like indulgent memory foam and ultra conforming inner springs for a beautiful mattress and indescribable

♪ ♪ with so much great entertainment out there... wouldn't it be easier if you could find what you want, all in one place? my favorites. get xfinity streamsaver with netflix, apple tv+, and peacock included, for only $15 a month. this for free for 14 days. you will be in love with this foundation. >> so i forgettable more than incredible. >> are you not entertained? guarantee we. >> unforgettable. it's pretty to watch on tnt, trutv and stream b r sports on max america. we're glad to have you all back. >> you can find me on all the

usual social media platforms. sound off. during the course of the program, i like to run through some live. i don't see them in advance. michael. the feds wouldn't be forthcoming. are you kidding? we need senators like kennedy to keep the government honest. totally disagree. happy to entertain your perspective, but totally disagree because i thought that the way that he physically inserted himself into that press conference so as to threaten the federal government, that he would, you know, reign a new form of hell or some such thing, i thought that did more to ignite conspiracy thinking where there was no room for any. and by the way, i fully acknowledge that the fbi agent in charge in the earlier presser was wrong in the way in which she handled it by saying that it was not an act of terror, the proper response would have been to say, this is very fluid. we don't know yet what we're dealing with, and we'll keep you advised when we know more facts. but no, i just disagree in terms of the way in which he comported himself. and as i said at the outset of the

program, it's not just kennedy. i've long wanted to make this point, and many times i've drafted a commentary addressing politicians more than law enforcement about how to handle the post-catastrophe presser. and then i've talked myself out of it on the grounds that it lacks decorum and and probably will be poorly received from a taste perspective. but this week, because i had the juxtaposition of new orleans and las vegas, i thought, no, now i'm going to do it because the people in vegas did it the way it should be done. forget the politicians. give me the investigators. give me the prosecutors. limit your commentary to the facts. and for god's sakes, don't make it a partisan issue. more reaction from some of your comments during the course of today's program so far. what do we have? absolutely no. this is on the question of whether you agree with james carville. harris didn't lose because of the economy. she didn't lose because she was a female or a person of color, as dems like to say, the reason she lost was because she was a terrible

candidate and could not answer questions coherently. jerry, my answer is to say all of these things played a role. i mean, my short explanation as to why the election turned out the way that it did is because of immigration. i agree with james carville, the economy, he's right to say immigration is also an economic issue. so i'll concede that the economy is number one. but also condescension. that's the way that i think of it. in other words, the browbeating that took place of people being told by institutions, including the media, you can't possibly vote for this guy. the more people were told what they shouldn't be doing, the more they they sort of bristled and decided, maybe i will do that one more, i think i have time, let's see what it is no, kamala became synonymous with woke, which was parodied as caring about everyone and everything except me. by comparison, trump's pronouns are me and mine. i think that too played a role, and i don't underestimate the significance. i think it was effective the

way in which trans participation in youth athletics and athletics generally was was a wedge issue, but in the end, i think carville is right that paramount among all these things was the economy. make sure you're voting@smerconish.com. still to come, the wall street journal had an interesting piece this week asking what happens when a whole generation never grows up? 30 somethings, they're not owning homes. they're not getting married, they're not having kids the way their parents had. we'll talk about that next. don't forget to vote on today's poll question. do you agree with james carville? kamala harris lost for one simple reason the economy. sign up for the newsletter while you're there. steve breen sketched this for us. that's funny right? and here's another editorial cartoon drawn exclusively for our website and newsletter, this one by jack ohman. can't fool myself.

>> it was the most exciting time in the world. >> his life has extremely joyful moments and some really difficult moments. >> you only come across an artist like luther vandross once in a lifetime. >> luther. never too much. >> tonight at nine, protect against rsv with rsv. >> rsv is a vaccine used to prevent lower respiratory disease from rsv in people 60 years and older. rsv does not protect everyone and is not for those with severe allergic reactions to its ingredients. those with weakened immune systems may have a lower response to the vaccine. the most common side effects are injection site pain, fatigue, muscle pain, headache, and joint pain. rsv is number one in rsv vaccine shots. rsv make it a rexhepi want a next level clean swish with the whoa of listerine? >> it kills 99.9% of bad breath germs for five times more cleaning power than brushing and flossing alone. get a next level clean with listerine. feel the whoa.

>> what if all i do for my type two diabetes isn't enough? or what if. >> once weekly mounjaro could help? >> mounjaro helps your body regulate blood sugar, and manjaro can help decrease how much food you eat. >> three out of four people reached an a-1c of less than 7%. plus, people taking mounjaro lost up to 25 pounds. >> don't take mounjaro if you're allergic to it, or if you or someone in your family had medullary thyroid cancer or multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome. >> type two. stop and call your doctor right away if you have an allergic reaction, a lump or swelling in your neck, severe stomach pain or vision changes. serious side effects may include inflamed pancreas and gallbladder problems. taking mounjaro with sulfonylurea or insulin may raise your low blood sugar risk. tell your doctor if you're nursing, pregnant or plan to be or taking birth control pills.

side effects include nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting, which can cause dehydration and may worsen kidney problems. >> i can do diabetes differently with mounjaro. >> ask your doctor about once weekly mounjaro incoming dishes. >> doc. >> dawn power wash flies through 99% of grease and grime in half the time. >> it absorbs grease five times faster. he even replaces multiple cleaning products. >> those suds got game. >> dawn power wash the better grease getter. >> if you're living with dry amd, you may be at risk for developing geographic atrophy or ga. >> ga can be unpredictable and progress rapidly, leading to irreversible vision loss. >> now there's something you can do to slow it down and get it going slower. ask your doctor about i survey. >> i survey. >> gaetz ga. >> going slower i survey is an a.i. injection. don't take it if you have an infection or active swelling in or around your eye. >> survey can cause eye

infection, retinal detachment or increased risk of wet amd. survey may temporarily increase eye pressure. do not drive or use machinery until vision has recovered after an eye injection or exam. eye survey is proven to slow ga progression, which may help preserve vision longer. i. >> survey gets ga going slower, so shift gears and get going. >> don't delay. ask your doctor about eye survey. >> kobe the making of a legend premieres january 25th on cnn. hid in the clouded wrath of the crowd when they said sit down, i stood up. >> to grow up the boss singing about growing up. >> but what about millennials moving out, owning a home, building a family. these used to be the markers for adulthood, but many of the 30

and 40 somethings of today say the standards of previous generations no longer feel attainable. according to the institute for family studies, a third of today's young people will never marry adults under 50 who say they are unlikely to ever have children has climbed by 10% in the last six years. a wall street journal essay by rachel wolf raises the question, what happens when a whole generation never grows up? wolf writes that amid steep declines in home ownership, marriage and birth rates, economists have long been warning that young people are struggling to meet the milestones of adulthood. although some 30 somethings are consciously choosing a less traditional path, many say these goals are simply out of reach. joining me now is richard reeves. he's president of the american institute for boys and men and author of of boys and men why modern male is struggling, why it matters, and what to do about it. richard, nice to see you again. i cited some data. is there one data point, top of your mind, that you think kind of sums up the issue that we're

here to discuss. >> yeah, for me, it's the fact that men in their 30s and 40s now who don't have a college degree, half of them don't have children in their home. and so this move towards having men in homes that don't have children in them, and particularly for working class men, it's like a very, very big change. and for me, rachel's essay and the data you've cited, it speaks to a change, an important change, which is the fact that these milestones aren't just being reached later. but for many people, they're not being reached at all. that we've gone from later, which in some ways can be a good thing to never, which is very rarely a good thing. right? taking a bit more time to get educated, take your time to form a family, maybe get yourself financially settled. that's arguably a good thing, but that's not what's happening now. what's happening now is that these milestones for many people are just not being reached at all. >> okay, you anticipated my next question, which is, is this necessarily bad news? might some of these individuals be happier in

making a conscious choice? >> yeah, that's the that's the million dollar question. if you were to look at this data and say, look, this is people that have got lots of choice, they've intentionally said, look, i don't want to get married. i don't want to have kids. maybe i don't want to do what my parents did. then you just say, sure enough, like the old people can can roll their eyes and say, oh, young people today. but that's just them doing it differently. but that's not what the data suggests. the data suggests that actually, men in particular still want to have children. they still want to get married. they still want to form families. it's just that for some reason they're not able to. and i think that's a mixture of it speaks a bit to your the segment you just had with james carville. it's a mixture, as always, of economics and culture. this is partly just, you know, young men in particular feeling like they're not they're not doing as well economically as they as they need to. but it's also i think this has to be said that there's a growing gap in many ways between young men and young women. we see that in politics. we see that in culture. and one thing i think we know for sure now is that a battle of the sexes is not great for the dating market,

and you're seeing some of that playing out. now, a third of men under 30 are not dating. 24% of men still living at living at home in their 20s, as you just pointed out. and so we're seeing something that, honestly, michael, i didn't used to worry about this delay. i'm now worried about it because i do think we're moving from this is just happening later to it's just not happening. >> i know that it's of concern to you, and it's a subject that i've discussed often here with with scott galloway, whose work i also have great respect for. okay, assuming it's problematic and by the way, it impacts women as well, because by extension, there's a domino effect here as between the sexes. what might change it? >> we've got to improve the economic prospects for young men. that is, if you're going to do one thing. so we need to have more investments in education system that works for men. so i know you've talked a lot about on this show, but vocational training, apprenticeships, the fact that male wages have flatlined over the last 20 years, this is not, as you've said, it's not just an issue for men, it's an

issue for our society. and the second thing is that we just need to lower the temperature around some of these cultural issues, some of these political issues that i think have really driven a wedge between many young men and young, young women. and so we've got to find a way back towards each other, this chasm that we now see opening up between millennial men and millennial women. i think that's an underlying factor that is driving a lot of the trends you've just described here, is that the thing is about men and women is that typically they're going to form families together. and so if both sides aren't doing well, that's a problem. we have to rise together. and right now it looks like it's the economic and social prospects of young men that are the big issue facing us. >> a quick final thought that i'd like you to respond to. maybe it was inevitable that generations wouldn't be able to continue to outperform their parents when we've reached a stage where everybody has a smartphone, or so it seems, and everybody has a flat screen. >> yeah. so that's always a problem that like as you grow as an economy, it's like, how much better off are you than

your parents are? what's what's good enough? what's enough to kind of form a family? there's no question, as rachel's essay in the wall street journal points out, that to some extent, this is just about our expectations of what's necessary to form a family are running kind of way ahead of where they need to be. but i think there's something going on here that is a bit deeper than i'd perhaps thought earlier, which is that we haven't created a culture in which it's easy enough for men and women to kind of form these families, to buy a home, to start out in life. and so for a long time, i've just been looking at this and thinking, look, maybe this generation's just hitting pause. it'll be fine. as this data is coming in, i'm worried that we haven't hit pause. for many of them, it's a stop. and back to your earlier question, michael. this is not what most of them say they want. like most men and even women want to have kids. they want to get married. they want to they maybe want to have a family later than their parents, maybe differently. they still want to do it. and right now, there's something about our culture and our economy that's just making that harder than it needs to be. and god knows it's hard enough anyway without making it harder.

>> your book is called of boys and men. richard reeves, thank you so much for your expertise thank you. quick social media reaction from the world of x. you can find me on all the usual social media platforms. let's call them the covid generation work from homies, line daters, or just plain lazy. what about the parents? where are they? it starts at home, i don't know, good for you. the implication is that parents could just crack a whip and say, you know, get to work and all these things are going to turn around. i think it's much deeper than that. and that the trend lines precede covid and the pandemic. scott galloway said something to me that that always resonates, which is that it's not so much that the pandemic changed things as much as it acted as an accelerant. and i think this is one of those instances you still have time to vote on today's poll question. it's birkenstock.com . do you agree with james carville that kamala harris lost for one simple reason the economy, when you go to vote, subscribe to the newsletter. while you're there, you're

going to get exclusive editorial cartoons. here are two more. first, from rob rogers. and second, from jack ohman. come on. >> i lay on my back, frozen, thinking the darkest thoughts, and then everything changed, dana said. >> you're still you and i love you, super man. >> the christopher reeve story coming in february on cnn. >> the first time you try bounce, it hits you. your laundry feels way fresher, softer. so you start to wonder if i put a sheet of bounce on the finance guy, will it make him softer? bounce can't do it all. but for better laundry, put a sheet on it with sale through the heart of historic cities, an unforgettable scenery with viking unpack once and get

closer to iconic landmarks. >> local life and cultural treasures. because when you experience europe on a viking longship, you'll spend less time getting there and more time being there. viking exploring the world in comfort like a relentless weed. moderate to severe ulcerative colitis symptoms can keep coming back. start to break away from uc with tremfya with rapid relief at four weeks, tremfya blocks a key source of inflammation. at one year, many people experienced remission and some saw 100% visible healing of their intestinal lining. serious allergic reactions and increased risk of infections may occur before treatment. your doctor should check you for infections and tb. tell your doctor if you have an infection, flu like symptoms, or if you need a vaccine. healing is possible with

tremfya. ask your doctor about tremfya today. >> dry ice still feel gritty, rough or tired with my bow eyes can feel my bow. >> my bow is the only prescription dry eye drop that forms a protective layer for the number one cause of dry eye. too much tear evaporation for relief. that's my. bow. oh yeah. remove contact lenses before using my bow. wait at least 30 minutes before putting them back in. eye redness and blurred vision may occur. >> my bow bow. >> ask your eye doctor about prescription bow. >> want a next level clean swish with the whoa of listerine? it kills 99.9% of bad breath germs for five times more cleaning power than brushing and flossing my god, g

>> i love how easy the quiz was online. >> i just got my shade, dad. spot on. i took that 92nd quiz on their website to match me perfectly. insane. you guys can

try this for free for 14 days. it feels like i have nothing on my face hey gang, i'm sorry. >> i know that a number of you had difficulty voting today. there's a bug, thank god. 27,155 were able to vote. we'll figure it out for everybody else before next saturday. do you agree with james carville that kamala harris lost for one simple reason. i'm shocked by this. two thirds are saying no to the ragin cajun. i think he's right when he says it's the economy, stupid. here's some of the social media reaction that has come in during the course of today's program. maybe it's time we stop defining being a grown up as being saddled with a spouse, kids, and a mortgage. it's possible that they found a different way to live, and that's totally fine. i hope that's i hope that's the case. smoked manhattan. but i fear that it's not. i said to richard reeves, is this necessarily bad news? and his response was to say to me that, no, i mean, these are guys because it's a male oriented

issue that we're discussing who largely do want to have the same measures of success as their parents were judged. but i will tell you that. amelia. amelia, i hope you don't mind that i'm outing you, whispered in my ear. one of our producers, that young women and young men today perhaps seek different aspirations and goals than young women, or are happier in an unmarried situation. is that the way you said it to me? i think that it is. did i embarrass you? i apologize if i did okay, more social media reaction. what do we have? a good opener today? kennedy's grandstanding at the new orleans press conference was reprehensible. showed indeed everything that's wrong with current american discourse on problems long term and emergent. it was a partisan grandstanding, did nothing but plant fear. yeah, i mean, look, i had to single him out. he's not alone in that regard. and you know what i'd like to think? i'd like to think. well, i'd like to think there'd be no more catastrophe and gun violence that would necessitate a presser. but i'd like to think that the opening commentary today, to the extent it gets distributed, is going

to cause politicians to reevaluate how they comport themselves the next time it happens. see you next week have i got news for you? >> it's back for a new season, whether you like it or not. >> are those the only two choices? >> yes. you like it or you don't? >> i'm on the fence. >> this is going to be a long season. >> have i got news for you returns february 15th on cnn. >> we all love a surprise, but not if it's flu or covid. if you're 65 or older, vaccines are your best defense. getting your flu and covid vaccines cuts your risk of severe illness and hospitalization in half this season. protect yourself. so your surprises are the good ones. risk less, do more. get this season's vaccines doctor box. >> there were many failed attempts to fix my teeth. >> i retouched all my wedding

photos and it was even affecting my health. >> i trusted you because you specialize in dental implants. you created a permanent solution and customized my teeth. so it still felt like me. my new teeth have improved my life and changed my future. thank you. you're so welcome. >> finance the smile you want for as low as 148 a month per arch. schedule a free consultation for more than a decade for has been trusted again and again and again for s. e. cupp. >> ask your doctor about vasica want a next level clean swish with the whoa of listerine? >> it kills 99.9% of bad breath germs for five times more cleaning power than brushing and flossing alone. get a next level clean with listerine. feel the whoa! >> i wish my tv provider let me choose what i pay for. >> sling let you do that. hey,

where are you going? >> i wish my tv provider let me choose what i pay for and let me pause my subscription when i want. sling lets you do that to sling. i wish my tv provider let me choose what i pay for and let me pause my subscription when i want and have hundreds of free channels. >> sling let you do that too. >> mr. fish. >> choose and customize your channel lineup or watch for free. sling lets you do that. >> hi, i use febreze, fade defy plug and i use this. >> febreze has a microchip to control scent release so it smells fresh. >> stay fresh for 50 days, 50 days and it's refill. >> reminder light means i'll never miss a day of freshness. >> febreze plug are you 50 or older? >> well, this news is for you. >> the cdc now recommends you get vaccinated against pneumococcal pneumonia. why? if you're 50 or older, even if

z's bakery is looking to add a pizza oven, arissa's hair salon wants to expand their space, and steve's t-shirt shop wants to bring on more help. with the comcast business 5-year price lock guarantee, they can think more about possibilities for their business and not the cost of their internet. it's five years of gig-speeds and advanced security. all from the company with 99.9% network reliability. get the 5-year price lock guarantee, now back for a limited time. powering five years of savings. powering possibilities™. >> that's one( 800) 269-9522.