we are 90 minutes into the trading session. i will see you tomorrow. stay with fox business. varney and company starts now. stuart: good morning, everyone. a victory for terror. sony retreats on its north korea movie. they were threatened, they caved. the repercussions of oil's collapse rattle the world. look at cuba. private enterprise creates an oil slide.

we brought in the all-stars for this one. varney and company is about to begin. ♪ stuart: look at that dow jones industrial average. we are up 87 points as we speak this wednesday morning. down she goes. that is a big loss. 5% down for fedex. oil stay right there in the 55-$56 per barrel range. fifty-six on oil. look at cass. the downward spiral continues. it dropped another $0.02 overnight. $2.50 is the national average.

alan gross released today. part of a deal that will release some cuban spies that have been held in american prisons. president obama will announce talks. this is a very big deal. mary kissel, "wall street journal," right here. you say this is a bad deal? >> it is great news for allen and his family, but bad news for everyone else. they see with this deal that they should get something when they take americans as prisoners. what kind of behavior are we rewarding it darkly? why are we rewarding these people? stuart: we do have leverage.

that gives us leverage over cuba. >> there is no reason to do it. what will the president do about that? will he take cuba off the list? later this hour, marco rubio joins us. he will talk about this new deal with cuba. in the next hour, ambassador john bolton is here. our relations with cuba change. this is a big deal. the sony hackers now threatening 9/11 like attacks against any theaters which show the interview.

the movies to stars, seth rogen and james franco are canceling all media presences. dominick, i see this as a flat-out threat to freedom of speech. >> absolutely. we will see much more happen in this nightmare of a hacking that have hit sony. stuart: sony would be sued if there was an incident somewhere.

>> yes. that is very true. 9/11 and physical attacks on movie theaters. if something happens, they could be held liable. i am saying this is maybe the big one. now you have details of business deals being released. now you have threads to sony and the showing of these movies. the repercussions are endless. is it as big of a deal as i am making it out to be? >> here in hollywood, you can call this the story of the

decade. as for the mega- hack, if you thought target was where it was that, if you are in hollywood, this is a flood. i do not think we have seen the end of this. stuart: you have threatened, essentially, every private enterprise in the united states. >> absolutely. certainly, it has here in hollywood. we have seen attacks on hollywood, the tax on the pentagon. hopefully this attack is a wake-up call. you have to take cyber security very seriously. stuart: ouch.

dominic patten. thank you for joining us. i want to take a look at sony stock. it dropped about 5% over the past month. it has taken a hit. mary is still with me. i said the terrorists are stopping free speech. >> sony is allowing censorship. look, this is not a hacking scandal. stuart: we do not know who made this threat. >> need to know that there is cooperation between north korea, iran and others to develop this kind of thing elegy and terrorism.

you cannot view this isolation. this attack is a new form of terror. stuart: there have been details released about business deals. business deal elements revealed. that opens up new doors box. only corporations have done deals with other corporations. >> that is a form of corporate espionage. you are dealing with a regime that is in many ways predictable. you have to keep doing it.

sony has canceled the premier. the two stars will not go out promoting this. >> right. you have the president. this is very disturbing. it sends a message to other corporations. if you do these things, you will get results. stuart: if you were a lawyer at sony, what would you say? >> spend as much money protecting our system. let's clean out. let's have a new slate. let's try to rebrand our reputation.

stuart: okay. i will break away for one second. not exercising the leverage that we've got. >> not standing up for our principles. what is next? >> look at the big board. it is thursday lunchtime somewhere. late breakfast. let's not forget it is a sad day today. janet yellen yellen will make some comments later this afternoon. up 100 points. gas prices? another huge story here. slammed. that is a word for it.

casualty of much lower gas prices. back at $200 a share. this is no environment for tesla. >> morgan stanley has advice. tesla stock is down. they announced a competitive product. they still have an overweight rating. their advice is make batteries cheaper. also, a break in traditional engines. they also talk about the new model three. it will be a premium.

the question is, how many of them will they sell? stuart: by the way, everyone, my apologies. i gave the wrong day. it is wednesday. nicole: does it really matter what day it is? it's all good. stuart: i am going to new zealand and australia. i will lose an entire day out there. everybody happy? vladimir putin backed into a corner. economic sanctions. will he retreat on ukraine? ralph peters says this only makes putin more dangerous. more after the break.

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stuart: it is wednesday. all day. ninety-two points. the price of gold.

1197 is the answer precisely. cost cuts. higher sales at darden restaurants. that is the parent of all of guardian. where are we wednesday at lunch time? $56 a barrel. will president obama -- ralph peters is here. will they force putin to retreat a little from ukraine? if putin shows us some lag, we

could lift sanctions and weeks or days. stuart, i followed the russian media. it would be under chaos. it administers deputies trading accusations. russian consumers. spending the money, as many rubles as they can before further collapses. there is a couple of things we need to remember. first, the russian people are very different than americans. russians really expect life to

suck. they can take a lot more pain on a comfort level. they are draining faster than bathwater. even on fox business people say that putin's military is powerful. it is a mess. he has two. he is closing hospitals and firing doctors. he is in trouble. this guy never understood economics.

stuart: using president obama will let him off the hook. stuart: i am out of time. how about cuba? did we get a good deal with cuba? is it a good deal? are we exercising the leverage with which we have? speed and the man held hostage by the cuban government is coming home. this is not the time to loosen up. the cubans are all that are holding venezuela together. we will bring sanctions on them.

desperate for anything that you can plug as a success. stuart: i would disagree to you to some degree. he is not prepared to play hardball which would really benefit america. that is my point of view. >> valley of the shadow. stuart: it comes out next year. >> may 5. stuart: colonel ralph peters, everyone. i will read that book on my way.

two brothers divided by politics. both arguing their points on tv. it is difficult to typical to pick her over politics at thanksgiving and christmas. well, their mother that differently. >> i am your mother. ♪

>> hasn't been easy. >> we love you, mom. stuart: how is that for a live tv surprise? the brothers join fox and friends to discuss the surprise. >> i worried what she was going to say, on was worried what i was going to say. i was just shocked that my mother would call in. >> we have bitter disagreements and we are both passionate about

our work and have decently high-profile jobs so it is hard not to talk about that. that is what you do everyday and it gets quite loud. "imus in the morning" when it gets quite loud. the question we have is this. is it normal for families to argue with real passion during the holidays? we will get dr. keith ablow's take on that, next hour. >> i was worried you were going to get patricia on the phone. stuart: who knows what she would say to me. we at lot of fun with our "varney and company" segment so we are going to give you one last chance to win a signed show born tied just in time for the holidays. what do i grow on my farm in the catskills? this may be trickier than the ones we brought you yesterday's so let's see how will you pay attention to this program. what does stuart varney grow on his farm in the catskills? submit your responses to win this lovely yellow tie.

we will reveal the winner in our next hour. malthus. senator marco rubio fired up over the obama administration's decision to open up talks with cuba. the florida senator joins us next.

stuart: senator marco rubio, republican from florida. at speetwo have you to comment on the possible deal between the united states and cuba. how do you view this deal? >> i think it is a 1-sided deal in the regime. let me start by saying we are happy mr. gross was reunited with his family. he should never have been there to begin with. he is not a spy. he is a hostage and he almost died in cuban captivity. all the a policy changes are horrifying. they will reestablish normal diplomatic relations with cuba and i imagine appoint an ambassador and allow more grievances to cuba, and the telecommunication and cooperation from cuba and they freed 53 prisoners who could go to jail tomorrow morning again if the the cause of freedom and democracy. my interest in cuba is not economic, my interest is democracy and freedom. let free cuban people choose what economic model which want

to follow. nothing the president has done will advance that cause. it will set it back because what they have done is provided a lifeline for this castro regime to make itself a permanent fixture for decades to come. stuart: america has leverage. we have power and influence around the world which we didn't have three months ago because of the collapse in the price of oil and that plays a role in relationship with cuba. why are we not using that leverage? >> this president is the worse negotiator that has been in the white house in over a hundred years. he has a habit of making unilateral concessions to dictators weather in iran or cuba. the bottom line, they practically don't know what they're doing on most of these issues. these are all unilateral concessions. is a big deal for the cuban government. will mean nothing for the cuban people in this absurd idea that cubans will be able to buy a few more american products and get more cash from their relatives in the united states that that will lead to a democratic opening of some sort or some

sort of second cuban revolution for freedom is absurd. the cuban government controls every aspect of life, economic, religious, family life, education, they control everything and they won't allow anything coming to that island that will undermine their control and this president gave them a huge lifeline at a time they were feeling the sting of the collapse of venezuela. stuart: you are a joint from across the aisle by democrat senator from new jersey senator menendez who says this vindicates the brutal behavior of the cuban government. across-the-board opposition to what the president is going to announce a half hour from now. >> the president will announce half an hour from now we have reestablished diplomatic relations with the most brutal dictatorship in the western hemisphere. the lead dictatorship officially in the western hemisphere the law would argue in nicaragua, ecuador, bolivia and venezuela are close behind them. the u.s. congress passed sanctions against human-rights

violators in venezuela. the president said he would sign those sanctions. we have listed sanctions, imposed sanctions on human rights violators and the president lifts sanctions on the people who taught the venezuelan government how to commit those human rights violations which is deeply imbedded in the venezuelan government. it is inexplicable. stuart: senator marco rubio, republican florida. we appreciate it. rich edson is at the white house. the president is going to speak about the cuba situation in about half hour. do you have any bullet points of precisely what he is going to say? >> administration officials when asked when the normalization process would begin said the president of the united states and president of cuba have decided relations between the two countries are normalized. just a matter of logistics' opening an embassy in havana. this is on the heels of the release of a political prisoner

who was a contractor who has been released and the administration says that is a separate deal, they traded one u.s. intelligence assets has been in prison for three cubans who were in prison in the united states for three years and as part of this normalization process began in spring time with meetings in the vatican and canada. they are easing a whole host of travel restrictions but not for tourists. that has to still go through congress but it is the beginning of diplomatic relations and a senior administration official responded to the points senator marco rubio made saying for the past 50 years the u.s. has been unable to affect much change in cuba and by establishing official relations that may cause change in cuba. stuart: thanks very much. we will carry with the president has to say at hour from now. back to the sony hack attack story. i say this is a victory for the terrorists as they are using the big packet back to limit free

speech. judge andrew napolitano as a few things to say about that. what sony has done is to reach read. they have been threatened about this new movie about north korea. they won't have a premium. the two starnes won't and a promotional material and theory runners and told you don't have to rent if you don't want to. is a diminution of free-speech. judge napolitano: i agree with you entirely. i wish these things didn't happen. i which the federal government could protect the right to free speech. this is a satire, this is the essence of an american way of mocking people in power. we can produce movies about the president of the united states and anybody, but apparently this hacking which we all thought was a little humorous at first when the e-mails him out, derisive e-mails about the celebrities, candid e-mails, this has accelerated into a very serious, potentially international incident that involved the state

department, department of homeland security and in new york, new york city police department and the intimidation of a major, bring it to its knees, a major corporation. stuart: does that corporation have a choice? if they went ahead and ran the movie and there was an incident and somebody gets hurt that person sues, they knew the danger and did it anyway. judge napolitano: i don't know there is anything sony could do to insure or guarantee the safety of everybody that would attend these movies. stuart: you could change the legal system. i know you are laughing but this is constant. anybody can file lawsuits to get money out of somebody and impose responsibility -- judge napolitano: it is more than the lawsuit. it is the law as well, basically says when you are a public accommodation and you invite somebody on to your property for

their benefit and you is, you seldom something and they will pay you for it, you are a guarantor of their safety while they are on your property. look at what happened at the theater in colorado a couple years ago where it was about -- people thought was sound effects and a crazy person was murdered innocent people. these things happen. is almost impossible to guarantee the safety when you walk into a public accommodation a block from here to buy a sandwich or a book, last thing on your mind is somebody will kill you because you have gone in there. stuart: i don't know where i stand on this because that is an eloquent understanding of the situation. who pays? somebody gets injured or hurt, who pays? judge napolitano: ultimately it is the transfer of financial obligation weather from the insurance carrier derives money from premiums or the owner of the real-estate or the government which is the taxpayer. "imus in the morning" when it is an encouragement to turn every

conceivable negative into a money-making opportunity. judge napolitano: i was very distressed by this, the washington post was laughing at fees, suddenly this is not a laughing matter. this is profound. if they intimidate sony into rejecting its own product is what sony is doing, it has invested millions, who can they not intimidate? stuart: there is no american corp. inside the corporation to reveal embarrassing deals of a business deal or personalities and subject them to threats. it is a threat to everybody. it is a big day but thanks very much, appreciate it. an extraordinary headline. high school student make $72 million trading stocks on his lunch break. kind of grabbedy. two guys totally made up. that did not stop one respected magazine from running with it. we discuss the decline of

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nicole: i am nicole petallides, stocks are down for the weekend for the month but did a up arrows, dow jones industrial average new session highs, 146 points as we wait to hear from the fed this afternoon and energy stocks are climbing. look at the dow leaders, exxon and chevron leading the way, mcdonald's, coca-cola as well, and we are speaking about conoco

phillips, you can see connell co is up 5.7%. many of these names are up 4% or 5%. fedex package delivery company, overall volume is on the rise for airline maintenance, one of their expenses, stocks down 5%. they're getting a big order from the l a tv. several thousand police officers wearing body cameras. stocks jumped 7% or 8%. "varney and company" coming up. black you owned your car for four years. you named it brad. you loved brad. and then you totaled him. you two had been through everything together. two boyfriends. three jobs. you're like "nothing can replace brad!" then liberty mutual calls. and you break into your happy dance. if you sign up for better car replacement, we'll pay for a car that's a model year newer with 15,000 fewer miles than your old one.

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stuart: that is a rally. it is fed day. investors believe the federal reserve will not be in a hurry to raise interest rates when the whole world is slowing down. that is just a thought, maybe why we are up close to 140 points. shocking headlines about someone making tens of millions of dollars trading stocks on his lunch break. new york magazine which originally published the story didn't check the facts. here is their apology. we were doomed to. our fact checking process was obviously inadequate. we take full responsibility and we should have known better. new york apologizes to our readers. the host of media buzz joins us now. seems to me this is part of a pattern. journalistic standards are going down.

would you agree with that? >> how could you not agree with that? this story not only didn't pass the smell test, it created a stench that should have been evident throughout the entire news tremendous surrounding block. a kid and made $72 million on stock trades? if you were a reporter with 10 minutes of experience wouldn't you say crises stock records? which stocks did you buy? how this got published his mind blowing. stuart: what happened? the rolling stone example as well and the new york magazine incident. where are the editors? you and i came through the ranks and answers to an editor who said check that fact, that is wrong, this is right, what is your source? there's a barrier between we as writers and journalists and the public that is getting the stuff. what happened to the editors in this world? >> a systematic failure in both cases. in some ways new york magazine fiasco is worse than rolling

stone but in both cases you have a reporter who is too 94 too quick to believe a source or as a one source story because the kid told you he is worth eight figures and he showed a bank statement that i guess was not the real thing. you have editors whose a let me season documentation or we could be the laughingstock not just of new york city but the entire country. what made it worse the magazine didn't immediately retract the story when these questions were raised and the observer got this 16-year-old guide to a committee made it up, tried to cling to certain parts of the story before what you just read. stuart: is it possible leftist bias here? the left is pushing a narrative which they want to get out there but which is not actually factually true? in the case of mohammed islam whom made the money apparently that article was full of references to $400 lungees,

eating caviar. that seemed to me to be pinpointing the rich, wall street and having a go at them as if that is their life style, look at these people, look what they're doing making all this money. it was a pejorative -- i know you are laughing. you know my politics but i suspect there's a leftist bias in this. i you going to discounted completely? >> no i am not. is true that in the case of rolling stone and the alleged gang rape of the university of virginia at least a reporter, maybe the editors wanted to believe it happened so they could spread the alarm about campus rape. in this case even if you are right and it was a way to have a snarky view of wall street is so easy to make all this money that even a high school kid can do it, you still would want to protect yourself against the colossus the embarrassment of the story blowing up and did not being true. stuart: mary kissel, wall street journal editorial board, shaking

her head vigorously. >> not just a problem on the left. everybody wants to buy into their biases and i hear tv news reports all the time where some reporters bought into a line that the u.s. chamber of commerce has given them when in actuality there promoting crony capitalism deal the chamber supports. i don't think you can say this is a problem just on the left with checking sources and getting the real story. stuart: why do you suspect i have just been kissed on my own program? my own political bias? >> you have a diversity of views. the last point is everybody goes viral or picks up, new york post picked it up, cnbc invited the kid and he got cold feet and that is when the crazy hoax, part. stuart: don't be such a stranger to the program. it is good to see you. if you look at the new york city skyline and i do all the time you would see this brand new supertall, spindly looking

building shooting up in midtown. is that the building? that is not an office building. those are apartments and a penthouse does for $130 million.

stuart: via point of the day, and down the street clothes to 150. exxon, chevron, both dow stocks accounting for half of a rally both of them straight up because we'll is holding at $55, $56 a barrel approaching 57 if we reach the bottom in oil and bouncing back up go oil stocks and that remains to be seen. the national average of gasoline keeps falling, $2.50 is your price, down another $0.02 every night. where is the cheapest gas in the land? $1.75 for regular at common sense in nebraska.

$1.75. what are you frowning at? cheryl: anyway. stuart: if you have been to new york for the past year you have seen a giant building, a new luxury car go tower in central park, the pinholes kissel for $130 million. here is cheryl casone has new pictures of the interior. show the interior. cheryl: we have never seen the interior or renderings until now when the website finally went live. this is the penthouse. it is at 520 park, 12,000 square feet. will go on sale after the first of the year. it will be completed in 2017. this is a 54 story tower. this is becoming what we are calling billionaires' row.

61st street, at the upper east side of manhattan. this will be up brand-new sales record in manhattan if it sells at this price. stuart: the rest of the world where the billionaires are coming from is not in very good shape. look at russia and china slowing down. do you think that price level will hold? these billionaires' might not have all the billions. cheryl: a lot of these billionaires' put their money into other assets and have hidden their assets around the world. don't care if you from saudi, or russian or even some in western europe, many of these large-scale investors, multi-billion harris, one of the top as the classes in 2014 so i do believe this and also why will say in this penthouse to go back to this, this thing is extraordinary, there's something for the rest of us.

24 single units, 64 million for a whole floor in manhattan. that is pretty good. there is a swimming pool, screening room, you and your billionaire friends can hang out in the lobby and share hot chocolate. stuart: thank you very much. making history in the making. new relationship with cuba. the ambassador's reaction in two minutes. ♪ (holiday music is playing) hey! i guess we're going to need a new santa ♪(the music builds to a climax.) more people are coming to audi than ever before.

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stuart: president obama has been presented with a great gift called leverage. that means influence and power. the collapse of oil has dropped in his lap. he has been very lucky. case in point the rest oration possibly of full diplomatic relations with cuba. oil is a part of that story. cuba gets its oil from venezuela which is flat broke because of

oil's collapse. role castro's sees the writing on the wall coming in knows they will cut the supply or raise the price. finos he is in trouble so he allows the restoration of relations with the great enemy. the full extent of america's new leverage is not yet known. let's hope president obama uses his new power on the world stage. moments from now you will hear the president on his new deal for cuba. did oil have something to do with cuba's release of their american hostage? we will find out. is america, is president obama going to use the leverage with the drastic drop in the price of oil has brought to him? we are going to find out on this program right now. ambassador john bolton joining us before we go to the president for his announcement on cuba. the basic question stands. america has enormous leverage because of the collapse in the price of oil. of using it? >> not in this deal as best we

understand it. we will hear from the president but the fact is with cuba under an economic squeeze along with venezuela this is not the time to relax the pressure without getting substantial concessions from the castro regime which he did not get. that is the premise behind the embargo that has been there since 1959. stuart: marco rubio said it is a lousy deal and we caved to brutal dictatorship. senator menendez, democrat new jersey has said virtually the same thing. american politicians not happy with this deal suggesting we are not using the leverage which we of got. >> it is not a deal. stuart: why is he doing it? >> he is driven by an ideological fascination with what he sees as america's excess of power in the world whether with respect to iran, russia, china, now cuba. he believes if he says the united states has no designs on you, we just want peace. stuart: the president is

starting. listen in. >> changing its relationship with the people of cuba. the most significant changes in our policy in more than 50 years, we will end an outdated approach that for decades has failed to advance our interests and instead we will begin to normalize relations between our two countries. through these changes we intend to create more opportunities for the american and cuban people and begin a new chapter among the nations of the americas. there is a complicated history between the united states and cuba. i was born in 1961, just two years after fidel castro took power in cuba, and a few months after the bay of pigs invasion which tried to overthrow his regime. over the next several decades the relationship between our countries play against a backdrop of the cold war and america's steadfast opposition to communism. we are separated by 90 miles but

year after year and ideological and economic barrier happiness between our two countries. the cuban exile community in the united states made enormous contributions to our country in politics, business, culture, and sports. like immigrants before, cubans held remake america even as they felt a painful yearning for the land and families they left behind. all of this bound america and cuba in a unique relationship. proudly the united states has supported democracy and human rights in cuba through the five decades. we have done so primarily through policies that aim to isolate the island preventing the most basic travel and commerce americans can enjoy any place else and those this policy has been rooted in the best of intentions no other nation joined us in imposing these sanctions and it has had little

effect beyond providing of the cuban government with a rationale for restrictions on its people. today cuba is still governed by the castros and the communist party's it came to power after century ago. neither the americans nor cuban people are well served by a rigid policy rooted in events that took place before most of us were born. consider that for 35 years we had relations with china, a far larger country also governed by a communist party. nearly two decades ago we reestablished relations with vietnam where we fought a war that claimed more americans than any cold war confrontation. that is why when i came into office up promised to reexamine our cuba policy. as a start with lifted restrictions for cuban-americans to travel and send remittances to their families in cuba. these changes, once controversial now seem obvious. cuban-americans have been

reunited with their families and a the best possible ambassadors for our values and through these exchanges the end regeneration of cuban-americans is questioning an approach that does more to keep cuba closed off from interconnected world. i have been prepared to take additional steps for some time. major obstacles stood in our way. the wrongful imprisonment of cuba of a u.s. citizen and usaid subcontractor for five years. of from many months my administration has held discussions with the cuban government about alan's case and other aspect of our relationship. his holiness pope francis issued a personal appeal to me and cuba's president urging us to resolve alan's case and to address cuba's interest in the release of three cuban agents and jailed in united states for 15 years. today allen returned home, reunited with his family at long

last. alan was released by the cuban government on humanitarian grounds. separately in exchange for the three cuban agents cuba today released one of the most important intelligence agents the united states has ever had in cuba and has been imprisoned for two decades. this man whose sacrifice has been known to only a few provided america with the information that allowed us to arrest the network of cuban agents that included the men transferred to cuba today and the despising united states. this man is now safely on our shores. having recovered these two men who sacrificed for our country i am taking steps to place the interests of the people of both countries at the heart of our policy. first i have instructed john kerry to immediately begin discussions with cuba to reestablish diplomatic relations that have been severed since january of 1961.

going forward the united states will reestablish an embassy in half and and high ranking officials will visit cuba. where we can advance shared interests we will. on issues like health, migration, counterterrorism, drug trafficking and disaster response. indeed we have seen the benefits of cooperation between our countries before. it was the cuban, carlos finley, who discovered mosquitos carry yellow fever. his work health walter reed fight it. cuba sent hundreds of health care workers to africa to fight ebola and i believe american and cuban health care workers should work side-by-side to stop the spread of this deadly disease. where we disagree we will raise those differences directly. as we will continue to do on the issues related to democracy and human rights in cuba. i believe we can do more to support the cuban people and promote our values for

engagement. after all, these 50 years have shown that isolation has not worked. time for a new approach. second, i have instructed john kerry to review q via's designation as a state sponsor of terrorism. this review will be guided by the facts and the law. terrorism has changed in the last several decades. at a time when we're focused on threats from al qaeda to isil, a nation that renounces the use of terrorism should not face this sanction. third we are taking steps to increase travel, commerce and the flow of information to and from cuba. this is fundamentally about freedom and openness expresses my belief in the power of people to people engagement. with a changes i am enacting today it will be easier for americans to travel to cuba and americans will use american credit and debit cards on the

island. nobody represent america's values better than the american people and i believe this contract will do more to empower the cuban people. i also believe more resources should be able to reach the cuban people. we are significantly increasing the amount of money that can be sent to cuba and removing limits and remittances that support humanitarian projects, the cuban people and the emerging cuban private-sector. american businesses should not be put at a disadvantage. increased commerce is good for americans and cubans so we will facilitate authorize transitions between united states and cuba. u.s. financial institutions will be allowed to open accounts at cuban financial institutions and will be easier for u.s. exporters to sell goods in cuba. i believe in the free flow of information. unfortunately our sanctions on cuba have denied cubans access to technology that has empowered

individuals around the globe so lyle authorized increase telecommunications connections between the united states and cuba. businesses will sell goods that enable cubans to communicate with the united states and other countries. these are the steps i can take as president to change this policy. the embargo imposed decades is codified in legislation. these changes unfold live look forward to engage in congress in an honest and serious debate about lifting the embargo. yesterday i spoke with raul castro to finalize alan gross's release and the exchange of prisoners and to describe how we will move forward. i made clear my belief that cuban society is constrained by restrictions on its citizens. in addition to the return of alan gross and the release of our intelligence agent we welcome cuba's decision to release a substantial number of prisoners whose cases were directly raised with the cuban government by my team. we welcome cuba's decision to

provide more access to that its citizens and to continue increasing engagement with international institutions like the united nations and the international committee of the red cross that promote universal values. i am under no illusion about continued barriers to freedom that remain for ordinary cubans. the united states believes no cuban should face harassment or arrest or beatings simply because they are exercising a universal right to have their voices heard and we will continue to support the civil society there. cuba has made reforms to gradually open up its economy, we continue to believe cuban workers should be free to form unions just as their citizens should be free to participate in the political process. moreover given cuba's history i expect will continue to pursue foreign policies that will lead times be sharply at odds with american interests. i do not expect a changes i am announcing today to bring about

a transformation of cuban society overnight. but i am convinced that through a policy of engagement we can more effectively stand up for our values and help the cuban people, help themselves as they move into the 21st century. to those who oppose the steps i am announcing today let me say that i respect your passion and share your commitment to liberty and democracy. the question is how we are told that commitment. i do not believe we can keep doing the same thing for over five decades and expected different result. moreover it does not serve america's interests or the cuban people to try to push cuba towards collapse. even if that worked, and it hasn't for 50 years, we know from hard and experience the countries are more likely to enjoy lasting transformation if people are not subjected to chaos. we are calling on cuba to

unleash the potential of 11 million cubans by ending unnecessary restrictions on their political, social and economic activities. in that spirit we should not allow u.s. sanctions to add to the burden of cuban citizens that we seek to help. to the cuban people america extend the hand of friendship. some of you have looked to us as a source of hope and we will continue to shine the light of freedom. others have seen us as a former colonizers intent on controlling your future. jose once said liberty is the right of every man to be honest. today i am being honest with you. we can every race the history between us but we believe you should be empowered to live with dignity and self determination. cubans have a saying about daily life. it is not easy. today the united states wants to be a partner in making the lives of ordinary cubans a little bit

easier. more free. more prosperous. to those who have supported these measures i think you for being partners in our efforts and in particular i want to thank pope francis whose moral example shows us the importance of pursuing the world as it should be rather than simply settling for the world as it is. the government of canada which posted our discussions with the cuban government and bipartisan group of congressmen who worked tirelessly for alan gross's release and a new approach to advancing our interests and values in cuba. finally, shift in policies comes at a moment of renewed leadership in the americas. we are prepared to have cuba join other nations of the hemisphere at the summit of the americas but we will insist civil society join us so citizens, not just leaders are shaping our future and i call on all my fellow leaders to give meaning to the commitment to

democracy and human rights at the heart of the inter-american charter. that does leave behind the legacy of colonization and communism, the tyranny of drug cartels, dictators and sham elections, a future of greater peace, security and democratic development is possible if we work together, not to maintain power, not to secure vested interests but to advance the dreams of our citizens. my fellow americans, the city of miami is only 200 miles or so from havana. countless thousands of cubans have come to miami on planes, makeshift rafts, some with little but the shirt on their back and hope in their hearts. today miami is often referred to as the capital of latin america. it is also a profoundly american city, from a place that reminds us ideals matter more than the

color of our skin or the circumstances of our birth, demonstration of what the cuban people can achieve and the openness of the united states to our family to the south. [speaking spanish] >> change is hard in our own lives and the lives of nations and change is even harder when we carry the heavy weight of history on our shoulders but today we are making these changes because it is the right thing to do. today america chooses to cut loose the shackles of the past, to reach for a better future, for the cuban people, for the american people, for our entire hemisphere and for the world's. thank you. god bless you, god bless the united states of america. stuart: a new relationship with cuba. ambassador john bolton heard the entire presentation from the president. we have leverage.

america has leverage and power and influence for all kinds of reasons. did we use it? >> absolutely not. the president gave the castro regime in cuba something they have been seeking for over 50 years which is political legitimacy and recognition by the united states. has also given them an extraordinary economic lifeline pumping new resources in that will help prop up this authoritarian regime and he did so as we were saying before the president began for ideological reasons which he revealed tellingly in his own remarks equating american policy in cuba to colonialism after the war with spain in 1898, equating our policy with communism and what castro imposed on cuba. it is the most remarkably left-wing thing i believe president obama has said yet in his term in office. stuart: throughout the presentation from the president what did we get in return? >> we got i think the release of

50 plus cuban prisoners who can be rearrested by the castro regime tomorrow. we got one of american spy held for 20 years and presumably we got humanitarian release of alan gross. with all respect to those individuals that is insignificant compared to the shift in general american policy, not just bilaterally with respect to cuba but for the impression it gives around the world to friends and adversaries alike, that this president can reverse 55 years of american policy ideologically. if i were an american adversary in moscow and tehran and pyongyang i would be saying two more years of the obama administration, i will present my wish list because i think i can get it from this week president. stuart: david asman is here, formerly wall street journal, currently fox business. if we end sanctions on them, if we establish normal relations with them, does that set cuba

free? dave: of course not. the president was talking china still has a communist government but has a free market economic system which is basically true although i wouldn't call the free-market, cuba is not china. roll castro her person and be used to kill capitalists for that reason, he would literally take his pistol out and shoot people in the head because they were accused, it was a crime, of being capitalists under the communist regime. he is still in charge. he does not allow economic progress to take place. every time an individual tries to excel in the private sector they shutdown that part of the private-sector. they release it all little bit here and there, but when the private sector begins to grow they shut it down. there is economic apartheid in cuba. you don't have that in china. stuart: you were listening to the whole thing. what did we get? we gave this, what did we get? dave: we are the largest outside

supplier of food, despite the richness, how rich cuba is, tremendous minerals, wonderful school will, they need to import food because they don't have any semblance of a free-market system. there are a lot of exporters in the united states of food that a going to be very happy about this. archer-daniels midland has been sending food to cuba under certain agreements. they have a greater opening. other businesses in the united states have a greater opening to cuba, there are openings for certain businesses in the united states but i don't think this will lead to any opening in terms of private sector activity among cubans in cuba. stuart: they get back -- american banking facilities, telecommunications, some more access to the internet, we don't know how much, selling more food. >> and building materials as well. they opened up to building companies as well so things like

lumber to build buildings in cuba is actually -- stuart: it is not an economic deal. this is a diplomatic deal which seems to be 1-sided. i think it is -- its shores up president obama's legacy as the man who solve the problem of rogue regimes overseas. >> it is a political statement. it has been an article of faith on the left for decades that if only the united states would give away these regimes would become more open and democratic. it hasn't happened in china and won't happening cuba. dave: to suggest that castro's dow use are at all similar to our own is obscene and the president essentially did that. stuart: don't forget on this program earlier marco rubio around the condemned this deal and is matched by democrats, senator mendez who set i forget the exact quote but gives life to the authoritarian and brutal regime in cuba so it varies across the board opposition to

this and around this table. thank you very much indeed. cheap oil has given us diplomatic leverage. you heard about cuba. what about russia? the dow industrials are up 155. when the president started to speak just after noon we're 170, now we're up 150. i do not suggest for one moment that that speech had anything to do with the markets. that rally is all about the federal reserve. more in a moment.

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stuart: we are of highs of the day. we were up 170 points, now we are up 130. look at the price of oil. gain of 3.5%. that is significant. have we found a bottom for the oil market? will stocks are rallying because some investors think maybe we touched bottom around $54 a barrel, gas down another $0.02 overnight. national average up $2.50. that is money in your pocket. cheap oil has clearly given america a great deal of diplomatic leverage all the way around the world. joining us now, brenda schaeffer from georgetown university who specializes in international relations and russia in particular.

good to have you with us. our premise on this program has been today that america has extraordinary leverage because the price of oil has collapsed and that has really hurt our rivals and enemies. do you think we are going to exploit that leverage first of all with russia? >> let's look at the premise, does this actually give us leverage? first thing, like any commodity is about supply and demand. on the supply side united states has had tremendous growth in supply is overwhelming beyond any expectations from u.s. production. on the other side is a drop in demand and demand means a drop in the global economy, in economic growth so we shouldn't be too excited because the two things that are happening together, that wave affecting demand in china, germany and europe could also have implications for the united states. stuart: hold on a second. russia wind into ukraine, we put

sanctions on them and we are threatening more sanctions if they don't play nice in ukraine. that is leverage because they are collapsing. we will exploit that beverage which we do have over russia, will be exploited it? >> the announcement of president obama moments ago shows how limited economic sanctions can be as a foreign policy tool meaning of four decades in cuba, weren't able to change its foreign policy or its orientation. "imus in the morning" when you don't think we could change russian policy if we apply more sanctions where their economy is on the verge of depression, currency has flat out collapsed and they don't have money to repay the debts? you are not saying we have leverage? >> not sure economic tools, they are a crude instrument. sometimes they move regimes to change when there's a real consideration about what is good for the people there and

political process but sanctions or economic downturn actually galvanizes population in favor of its government. the united states is the fastest growing -- one of the best situations in the global economy yet if you look at who is looking for a deal on the iranian nuclear is probably a the obama administration, the regime in iran has rapid inflation, currency devaluations, sanctions for a long period of time. the strongest economy. stuart: before we close i will make this statement and see if you agree with me. america has extraordinary leverage because of the collapse of the price of oil. president obama doesn't understand it and won't use it and you say what? >> the united states has tremendous power. that is the truth and that leverage should be using a variety of places around the world.

not sure how much economic downturn, how much that changes foreign policy but power can change foreign policy outcomes. stuart: professor shaver georgetown university, thank you for being with us and sharing your expertise, good stuff. dr. keith ablow is up next, several topics for him. the sony hack, stress and dogs plus is it normal to argue with your family over the holidays? >> in raleigh, north carolina. >> down south. >> you are right i am from down south and i am your mother.

stuart: look at sony bouncing a little bit, 3%, not bad. it is come down after that hack attack. hackers fran 9/11 like a tax against theaters which shows the interview about plot to kill the leader of north korea. it is the comedy. that said this thing going casone is not allowing theaters that it is allowing theaters not to show the movie if they choose not to. they canceled the big premiere. is that where the movie was supposed to have been shown. >> the new york premiere would

take place in the sunshine theater. and the company has canceled the premier. a cinema ups, it is cancelled for thursday night. stuart: i think the terrorist threat worked because sony came to. the e-mails between snap chat's chief and sony executives have been leaked by visa hackers. in company which did business with sony and risk of having their private data leaked and therefore making them liable for damages? >> the level of damages, the e-mails refer to $15 million worth of deals that were supposed to be private with

divergence labs and in one of the exchanges they talk about the acquisition being supersecret, not secret anymore. one good thing, the film may be canceled but the premier, the famous commission still in business. nothing says that. stuart: whatever you say in new york city. more with the sony act. terrorists threatening to attack a movie theater that plays the interview. fox news medical aid team doctor keith abbott -- keith ablow, a we allowing terrorists to control us by sony's retreat on showing this movie? >> absolutely. i think people can vote with their feet. there are liability issues with a known threat, what does it mean to show this, and what safeguards do you have to additionally take to safeguard the public?

i will leave that to the lawyers but i like the idea of them saying we will release this by cable network so people can watch it at home on opening day in 7 theaters. so we will make this available on the internet whatever is they like but the idea we are pushed around by dictatorship or by terrorists is nothing i want as part of the story of america. stuart: thank you very much. i have to bring in kevin mccarthy joining us now. welcome to the program and. up against guana on time. i say this is a blow to free-speech. i say that sony has retreated, caved to terrorist demandss and that is a blow to freeze >> to all of us. stuart: an honor to be on your show. i think it creates an interesting balance because you

deal with the idea of freedom of speech and artist's creation of a movie but on the an end the ideas that what if people's lives are in danger. that is where the balance comes in and i personally will be going to the movie theaters to see the interview. i bought my ticket today and i will be there at 7:00 on wednesday. i think people should go to the movies. that is where the balance is, freedom of speech versus putting people in danger. stuart: well said. i will go see it approve the we should go and see it to beat these people. thanks very much. i want to switch topics and go back to dr. keith ablow. i did not say goodbye, i was a little fumbling. there are some studies that reveal the owning a dog reduces your stress level. are you buying that? >> dog owners knows this. i know this as a dog owner. it is common sense on the one hand. on the other there's a lot of

data showing a cardiovascular health may be improved. mental health may well be improved. therapy dogs are not anymore for the visually impaired into disabilities like that can challenges. they may be for much wider population and it almost feels like practical that when you feel like you think you know somebody lonely, and a cat or dog. actual evidence suggests that is not just to love the creature. and physiological changes. stuart: if you want a friend in washington, get a dog. it is holiday time. families and getting to get there, here is my question, is it normal for families to argue with real passion over the holidays. >> it is normal to argue with real passion at all times but

especially at the holidays because we are in close quarters. people are gathering and celebrating but at the same time people are gathering in number is they usually don't. for logger periods than they usually do. it is completely normal. i like to tell people, think of the others at these gatherings almost as your patients, your

♪ yourself when there is that does tres knippa think we will use our leverage over russia? oh what fun it is to ride. get the mercedes-benz on your wish list at the winter event going on now - but hurry, the offer ends december 31st. [ho, ho, ho!] lease the 2015 c300 4matic for $419 month at your local rcedes-benz dealer.

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50 points off of the highs of the day, dow up 152 points at 17,190. the s&p and nasdaq are higher, the s&p up 17. the dow leaders include energy and energy stocks tumble, chevron and exxon each gaining three%. the s and p leaders, energy names including trans ocean up 10.8%. this is a different story, apple saying it is causing online sales over to russia with a fluctuation and plunge in the ruble, stock of 1/2% and forged developing up the cost of the new f 150 recycling the aluminum. thanks.

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it is fair but very sobering. reality for people my age are 25, between 18 to 34. "imus in the morning" when you

cannot blame president obama for all of this, can you? >> there is a way to make a statement here because in 1982, 14.1% of millennials, were living in poverty. it is skyrocketed to 19.7%. here is the argument on will make. under president reagan he signed the largest tax cut in american history. when he did that and taxes were lowered youth unemployment plummeted in. it went down to 10.7%. that is a huge decrease. today, it has skyrocketed again under president obama. stuart: if we got four or 5% growth in america's economy in a year or two years, if that

happened, you think millennial poverty would be drastically reduce or trim around the edges? >> trim around the edges. they have high student loans. that is a reality for a lot of young people right now. we may see more young people going back to work. right now i just think young people are having a very tough time. stuart: the future in america is always brighter than in the past. i am a newcomer to the show. now to the story of the day. president obama easing relationships with cuba. listen to what marco rubio had

to say about that. >> my interest is democracy and freedom. nothing the president has done here will advance that cause. what they have done now is presented a lifeline to make this a permanent fixture for decades to come. stuart: chief oil gives us enormous diplomatic leverage. do you think president obama is using it? >> what is vladimir putin going to do. military activity and generally acting up on the military

strategy into this, that is what is coming from russia. vladimir putin will make very strong moves militarily because of what is happening. we are going to react to it. we will not get out in front of it. stuart: we are already talking about reducing sanctions. you say he is not going to take it. you think -- that is an extreme point of view. >> look at his history. he has already invaded crimea. expect more military action. this guy's back is against the wall. he has no other choice.

he has to appeal to his voters. it is crumbling right under his feet. we have to raise nationalism. things like that. stuart: you just love being a texan in new york city. western european countries, it is the cheapest economy. military action, what happens to the dow industrials? you sail around the world nonstop without any outside help. we have a man that will do just that next.

♪

to breaking news.

i think this is a bombshell. banning all fracking in the state. there is not enough scientific evidence to prove that fracking is safe. i would love to have more on this and we will. what do i grow on my farm in the catskills? the answer is trees. congratulations to ray. you got it right in seconds. i will describe him as a professional sailor. he makes money risking his life sailing around the world an extreme races. welcome back to the program.

he takes a team of 20 people working full-time on your team just in this race. >> that is correct. we are funded entirely by sponsorship. the interesting thing is it is not really about technical sailing. stuart: hugo boss gets really good publicity by sponsoring this. they pay you to race. you are a professional in this line of business. >> that is correct. there is a world championship every two years. stuart: barcelona to barcelona. around the world. do you stop anywhere?

>> no stops. stuart: one other person on board. >> i get along with him really well. intense hard worker. stuart: how long does it take? >> record is about 90 days. hopefully we will do it in about 95. we take freeze dried foods. we have the equivalent of about 14 paperbacks in a day. stuart: how much do you make out of this race? approximately $100,000 for three months work? >> for an entire year.

stuart: you have to get a job in tv. [laughter] stuart: when do you leave? >> new year's eve. stuart: we will be right back. ♪ she inspires you.

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ask your doctor about cialis for daily use and a free 30-tablet trial. my time is up. now here is deirdre bolton. deirdre: the interview premiere in new york city has been canceled out of fear. small business lender on deck with public today. the stock is soaring. the ceo is our guest. one of elon musk's biggest fans will be here. sony says do not worry if you do not want to show the interview. we understand. seth