courthouse. they believe to have been car bombs. police are seeking a third assailant and we'll bring you the latest developments here on the fox business network. thanks to kirsten, lee carter this morning. right now it's all about "varney & company" and mr. stuart varney. take it away. stuart: i will. thanks, dagen. today we begin with a money story, a trend story, how we live and spend our money. there's been a big shift. good morning, everyone, department stores in deep trouble despite growing consumer confidence. they had a very weak holiday season. some shopping malls will lose their anchor stores. we're just not buying what we used to buy and we're not buying it where we used to buy it. the holiday winners were the on-line guys, amazon in particular. it shipped a billion items. you will see this reflected on the market. huge declines for department

store stocks. the only exception would be, i think, sears is probably going to go up a bit this morning. the rest are way, way down in strong percentage terms. that's later. now to politics, donald trump is up and tweeting. this is a daily early morning event. the democrats, he says, led by head clown chuck schumer, now how bad obamacare is. [laughter] and what a mess they're in. he goes on, obamacare was a lie from the beginning. that's his response to senator schumer's charge that killin obamacare will make america sick again. and then there is this, in chicago, four black teens torture a mentally challenged white man. they force him to condemn donald trump. they stream this live on facebook. silence this morning from all those democrats who keep on saying trump is a racist. "varney & company" is about to begin. ♪

>> all right. money first, look at the market. we're going to be flat to slightly lower at the opening bell. at risk of founding like a broken record, we are, what, 57 points from dow 20,000. enough of that. ashley: 157. stuart: is it? >> i think so. stuart: oh, didn't do the math. no math on this show. >> british math. [laughter] >> leave it to the company to handle. stuart: moving on. ashley: yes, please. the big story of the day is department stores. macy's, kohl's, sears, nordstrom, red arrows in the early going, big time. we're not buying at department stores like we used to. that has consequences. macy's is going to close over 50 stores and layoff people. and sears closing 150 sears and

kmart stores, ripple effects hitting nordstrom stock as well. you know, a company i se basically ghost malls across the country. ashley: you are because there are already ghost malls out there. there are many malls converted into, well, like business centers, churches, you name it. others are just left crumbling with the latest news with more anchor stores moving out. it's just-- america, the whole consumerism landscape has changed and unfortunately, malls were a thing back in the '80s and have been slowly-- >> you can see the impact. as you drive around america, you're going to see the impact. it's not like some vague financial happening off in the distance. you're going to see this. liz: it's an issue for local real estate prices, right? because they attracted businesses, that's what malls were thought to do. what are they going to do with by ty warehouse malls. boomers could retire near the shopping malls. a sea change in the landscape here. stuart: that was then. liz: this is now. stuart: different. retailers, bricks and mortar retailers are getting crushed.

it's not because we're not buying stuff. it's because we've changed how we're buying. former reagan economist art laffer is here, we're talking about on-line sales killing the bricks and mortar team and changing our culture. >> it's the economics, stuart. you can't keep economics down ever. economics always reveils and the internet, the way they do the internet sales is far more efficient, far less costly and the malls just are at the wrong end of the cost structure and they're going to disappear except for some specialty companies that, you know, that you have to be there in person. stuart: wait a second, art. what's happening to the department stores is not indicative of a slowing economy. >> no, it's not. stuart: it farrom it. we've got a strong economy. >> it's shifting from mall sales and store sales to internet sales. that's what should happen because internet sales are far less costly, far easier for people to use and when you look at the total cost of things, i'm amazed it's not faster. stuart: okay.

i have to talk to you about the federal reserve. i put the buzzer on one side briefly. they seem to be confused. they say, quote, there's considerable uncertainty about trump's impact on the economy, on the other hand-- they're economists. on the other hand they say that tax cuts could boost economic growth. where are we going with this, art? >> well, i'm surprised they said the second part, but i'm very pleased that they said the second part. tax cuts can boost the economy and they're very collect on that, and the economy's going to look pretty nice, by the way. you know, when you look at the u.s. economy today, it's a very low bar for the trump administration coming in. it's very much the same way we had it in 1981, following jimmy carter, we had a very low bar and it was very easy for us to do well and i think that's very true for trump and the feds should realize that bar is very low and trump's probably going to do very well over the four or eight years he's in. stuart: reassure us, art. i've got about 30 seconds left.

but we're going to see three, maybe 4% growth in 2017. can we say that? >> would i say lower level for 2017, which is a hang on for the previous administration and also the anticipation of 2018, but beyond 2018 and beyond, you're going to see she high growth rates, stuart, i mean, very high. much higher than people are saying. stuart: i want 4% by the summer of this year and i expect you to deliver it. >> yes, sir, i will do it, captain, done! . [laughter] you notice how, stuart, i treat you with respect. i don't laugh at your math mistakes. [laughter] >> very good, very good. all right, art, we'll let you go. >> thank you very much, stuart. stuart: president-elect trump tweeting a storm by the obamacare showdown, several of them. the democrats led by head clown, chuck schumer. know how bad obamacare is, they

do the typical thing and blame. obamacare was a lie from the beginning, keep your doctor, keep your plan, it's time for democrats and republicans to come together and come up with a health care plan that really works, much less expensive and far better. a series of tweets up-- a storm of them, in fact, as usual from mr. trump this morning. look who is here with his own views on obamacare. >> love those tweets. what a way to start the day. stuart: it goes straight at it. >> imane the schumer household at breakfa this morning. [laughter] . stuart: you don't want republicans and democrats getting together to come up with another version of obamacare. you want to get rid of it. >> you're going to hate this. i don't think you do, either. because the premise of obamacare is that 20% of the national economic activity, which is health care, can be centrally planned and centrally managed from washington d.c. and it absolutely can't. it can't be done theoretically or practically. the motivation behind what i

believe donald trump wants to do is the free market. it's not going to be 100% free market. it's not totally free market, but the more it is, the more variety out there, choices, the lower prices will be. you and i from new jersey can buy insurance from montana because they're willing to buy a plan tailored for us. and the government would not force uso buy a plan with abortion which we woulnever use and pay for. stuart: you are as usual ignoring the politics. mr. trump is not ignoring the politics. >> he's going to be the president and i'm sitting here. stuart: he knows full well, you cannot just take something away from millions of people who have been given health care. >> that's where the constitution is on his side. because there are 20 million people who do not pay for health care in the united states as a result of obamacare. they either get it through medicaid or they get it through

a tax credit, which is the same thing, they end up-- >> you can't leave them high and dry. >> correct, the constitution prohibits taking away from it. if you take it away from it, if you take them out this have equation, know the their children and grandchildren, but take them out of the equation and make the rest of the free market, prices come down and product will get better. stuart: i believe we've established a truth in this relationip. >> and didn't i start this by saying you believe this, too. was art talking about me laughing. stuart: he is. and reports out of turkey, explosions, it's in the southern city. liz: yes, an enormous car bomb blast outside a courthouse. this is a coastal city, it's a vacation spot. at least three people, possibly ten injured. they've shot two assailants. one is still on the loose.

so, this comes a day after 20 isis supporters were detained by turkey. so, this happened near an entrance of a courthouse that judges go in and out of. it is a massive car bomb. we're staying on this story for you. stuart: what you're looking at is a live shot from turkey in the southern part of the country, a resort area. liz: that's right, a vacation spot. stuart: interesting. all right, terrible stuff. i'm moving onto a very serious, an ugly story. torture of a mentally disabled man in chicago forced to condemn trump the left on this issue, silent. this is the wind chill map what the temperature feels like, not the real temperature, it feels like, single digits and negative wind chills across the northern midwest. that's cold. on the west coast, ooh, 10 to 15 feet, i repeat feet of snow.

dangerous, yes, in the sierra nevada mountains. that's snow pack that will melt. in the 10:00 hour you've seen him before. his name is mike lindell, the my pillow man, he responds to being downgraded by the better business bureau. yes, we've got it all on "varney & company" and we'll be back.

>> how about this? apple pulling the new york times from the app store in china. liz, let me get to grips with this. that means if you've got an iphone in china, you can't get the new york times app so you can't read the new york times in china. liz: that's right. that comes at a time when apple was severely criticized for not helping out and tracking the san bernardino terrorists basically using a work iphone and the local government in california said, yes, you can go into the iphone.

here is the other thing going on, the new york times was looking at perks and subsidies given to foxconn apple's biggest factory and new york times ran that story and now the app has been removed. apple is criticized by places like washington post, what about the timing of this. you're basically doing a critical-- seeing a critical story about yourselves and the apple app is removed. stuart: apple caved to pressure from beijing to get rid of the new york times in china. liz: that's correct. they caved to censorship. stuart: they were quite prepared to keep the terrorist's iphone unlock, they wouldn't unlock it, they kept it locked and they're prepared to keep the times out of china. the judge is with me. what i just said. in california lawmakers hired eric holder as outside counsel to help legal battles with the trump administration.

this, as house democrats say trump's plan to repeal obamacare will quote, make america sick again. from the trump transition team, joining us now from trump tower, i believe that's where he is, and anthony scaramucci is with us. it looks to me like the democrats are doing everything they can to stymie the trump agenda. my question to you is, are they going to be successful in a couple of areas? >> well, listen, they seem super upset, stuart. you and i both know that. i actually don't think so. i think what they're underestimating will the president-elect, he has an instinct about the american people. i think that the american people are behind him on these things. we're calling for repeal and replacement of obamacare that will make it more affordable and deliver more services and once that plan is fully unveiled, i think the american people are going to be resoundingly behind it. it's going to be very tough for these guys. i'm on the air with a lot of

these guys. helping people get jobs and back in the united states and that's the former democratic base, they seem super upset about th as well, stuart. i'm yingo figure out who they like at this point. stuart: this morning, mr. trump is tweeting, he does every morning, he's tweeting up a storm and he's calling senator chuck schumer, the head clown. that's kind of strong stuff. now, we are-- hold on. we're told that nobody vets mr. trump's tweets, he doesn't run them by his communications people. he just tweets. what do you feel about that, anthony? >> well, listen, i mean, i think they're good friends. we're all new yorkers. i think that people can-- you can get a couple of eggs and tomato stains every now and then among friends. as it relates to vetting the tweeting, i would tell you, he's the president-elect. he should be able to tweet or say whatever he wants. i've had very long ersations with him specifically about the tweeting.

he applies it to be a very powerful mechanism to come right over top of the media directly to the american people and i also think he's a little amused stuart, once he sends out the tweets, you see the breaking news banner everywhere, i think he likes that. stuart: he dominates. >> yeah. stuart: in 140 characters the man dominates the news agenda. >> i think it's one of the main reasons why he won. i'm sure there will be a presidential historian saying, how did he break the mold and make history the way he did? one of the things he did, he was unbelievably effective at age of 70 in social media. now, i think you have a computer, stuart, but i'm not 100 sure about that, but i know you very well. here ces a man, president of the united states, who has mastered social media. for me, ma shg, i'm okay with i know some people are upset about it, but it's been effective for him. stuart: anthony, go back to the

transition team, you're going 24/7. >> we're working hard, thank you, stuart. stuart: joining us in the 10:00 hour, this man, don't recognize in that outfit the rock star legend gene simmons from kiss. he is always outspoken and he'll join us for his take. we'll get his outlook on kim kardashian, forbes says she made a lot of money. does simmons think that's legit? wel ask hi we have to deal with a serious subject, a mentally challenged white man tortured live on facebook, forced to denounce donald trump by four black teens. judge napolitano, where are the call for hate charges. (bleep) trump. (bleep). hone ring]

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>> four anti-trump black thugs in chicago, in police custody after torturing that man, a white man. he has mental health issues and they streamed the whole thing live on facebook. we're not going to show you the whole thing, it's deplorable and disgusting. the judge is with us. wait a second, before we go to

you, judge. i was about to say i've not heard any democrat condemn this, but we do have a statement from a democrat. say it, tell us what we've got. liz: a democrat strategist simone sanders and cnn commentators, we can't go about classifying things as a hate crime. it's a slippery territory, it's not a hate crime. stuart: judge. >> it's hate and hate and it depends how hateful the person is. this is the problem with punishing mental states rather than physical behavior. what happened here, is about five or six different crimes, which if all added up would constitute about 20 years in prison for each of these. stuart: wait a minute, we've got to talk about the relationship of that crime as it unfolded on facebook in chicago and the prodding of-- by the democrats to label donald trump as a racist. it never stopped. >> correct, and what e-mack

just told us is the tip of an iceberg of democratic belief, which is, it is okay to hate donald trump. and it's okay to act on that hatred, and that attitude produces the monstrous behavior that we just saw in the tape. stuart: did this woman on cnn, did she say it's not a hate crime if it's against trump. liz: yes. stuart: give me that line. liz: she had worked for bernie sanders, by the way. she essentially said that's not a hate crime in connection with the president-elect donald trump. stuart: your case rests, and what an appalling story. >> hopefully the police will do the right thing. stuart: the opening bell, a theme for you. on-line companies have taken over and we're looking at big drops for traditional retailers, bricks and mortar department store guys. big drops coming and you'll see it.

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>> all right. we've got about 25 seconds to the opening bell this thursday morning. you know, i keep saying it.

we are fairly close to 20,000. i think i've been saying this for about three weeks. on every show, we're close, we're close. we always have been close, but never hit it. i think we've got about 25 points away at one stage. >> we did. stuart: right now we're 150 points away from it and trading begins now. here we go, sports fans, we're off and running and where are we going? we're down 17 points in the very early going, 19,922. my math was right! my math was right! we're not 150 points away from it. you see, that's why that-- that futures-- >> it's versus future. stuart: it's confusing, i don't want to use that. i don't want to see that futures nonsense again. it's confusing. ashley. ashley: it's my fault? banned from the producer? i was going by the number on the screen. stuart: don't ever use that futures thing again it confuses me. liz: and, me, too.

stuart: we've wasted 40 seconds talking about this. we're down 14 points. a lot of red o board. the s&p 500 is down .1% and the nasdaq, i believe it's slightly lower, yes, it's down .07. i'm saying it's a flat opening for the stock markets and price of all 53.75. price of gold, $1178 per ounce. where is gas? average price for regular is, $2.35 in this great nation as of right now. here is the big story of the day. macy's, first of all, closing 68 stores, laying off 10,000 people. weak holiday sales. same story at kohl's, weak holiday sales. sears closing 150 stores and kmart stores, they're together, of course. nordstrom, j.c. penney, they're all hit and sears is slightly higher in the early going. the bottom line is people are changing the way they stop and it will make a huge difference

in america. a shall-- ashley webster is here and dr barton joining us. i'm saying it's a huge shift in what we buy and how we buy it. what do you say, mr. barton? >> i agree, this is something going on quite some time now, many, many years. here is the interesting thing, macy's announced recently in chicago big stores they're closing to the surprise of local citizens here. the approach that they're taking is interesting. they're talking about the real estate being the valuable component and selling those off or leasing these out? these are grave yards because these stores are not going to be able to repurposed into hotels, condos. what do they do with the stores when they can't even sell the real estate? >> dr, is there a department store stock that you would buy at this moment?

look at this, 17% down for kohl's. >> not unless you call amazon a department store, stuart. we're in trouble across the board there. we talked about this shift. scott just mentioned. it's been an ongoing shift. the prediction, a few years from now, not too many removed, everybody is going to be buying macy's on amazon, nordstroms on amazon, amazon won the distribution gig. everybody doing their own on-line. stuart: amazon told us they sold, shipped i should say, shipped had a billion items during the holidays and expanding to bricks and mortars. . ashley: at makes no sense based on what we've seen. and in a mall there, this is the fourth one, they have one in seattle, one in portland, one in san diego and they are going to be selling in physical book stores, books you can sell

on amazon on-line. and for some reason they believe there's value for walking in. stuart: i hear noise in the background, larry levin, futu futuristic, and he's got two teslas. the future of retailing, it's got to be on-line. >> it's on-line and i think it's virtual reality, putting on a headset and seeing an outfit on and not going into shores. the only way malls can change is by giving a different experience. they're not even trying. stuart: you're the virtual reality guy on this program. i know you're into it. is there a program for these goggle, i keep doing it, goggle things where you can try on an outfit? are we there yet?

>> yes, we're there and it's in the beginning stages, but, yeah, you can already see yourself in certain outfits. a few years ago, lands' end was trying to do it on-line and download a picture of you and-- >> would love that. stuart: that is fascinating. i've got another amazon story, reportedly they're taking a look at the clothing retailer, american apparel. now, why would amazon why want to buy a-- i believe it's bankrupt american apparel. liz: here is one reason why, easing the donald trump line, it's an american made. dass does amazon want the brand na name? >> and it coul a play to

get on the right side of donald trump. amazon, ishaa buy at that level? >> scott martin first. >> if you have a couple of years. amazon h been trading curiously, hasn't it? we mentioned a billion items shipped and some of the recent earnings reports which besides some spending and costs raises, things have been pretty good for amazon in the last couple of quarters. if you're looking to get in amazon, you can get there cheaper. a year or two hold on it, i think. >> what does dr barton say? >> i like scott's perception. we've had a pullback from the all-time highs. it's not a bad time to put money to work. this is going to be a legacy stock, more and more things fudge -- funneling into the amazon world. >> and the dow industrials down 16, but we are at 19,927.

under amour releasing smart pajamas. they help your body recover after a workout and pay 80 to $100 for the after workout pajamas. ashley: can we wear them onset? >> no. >> tom brady branded. stuart: don't forget about the health insurers, yesterday they were down as the obamacare showdown went to capital -- capitol hill: pga tour announced they will use twitter exclusively as the global platform to stream 70 hours of coverage through the remainder of 2016-2017 season. that's enough to put twitter up 18 cents. another red flag from a retailer. weaker guidance from elle brands victoria's secret and bath and body works. >> they have henri bendel's as well. the stock is down 6%.

yesterday the retailers did well and today a turn around. a selloff across the board. they talked about weaker same-store sales and dropped 1%. this comes on the heels of what we're hearing from macy's cutting thousands of jobs and closing stores. sears, kmart, wal-mart, closing stores. all of these brick and mortar retailers are trying to figure out how to shift the consumer's desires to shop on-line where the foot traffic j us continues to dwindle, and we all say, hello amazon. stuart: okay. hello amazon. >> hello amazon. stuart: every day we've got an amazon story and why not, indeed. markets coming back a little, 10 now. not a real comeback. the fbi says sales of guns in america soared to record levels last year. now, hold on a second, ash. ashley: yeah. stuart: was this sales of guns or background checks? >> these are background checks, 27 1/2 million in total in 2016. 4.4 million more.

stuart: can we get to the banner at the bottom of the screen. ashley: what does it say. stuart: we did not sell 27 million guns last year. ashley: just because you have a background check doesn't mean to say the sale goes through however, a shows an interest and it's higher than the year before. it was on the fears that hillary clinton would win, but she didn't as we know. december was the first time in 20 months that we didn't break a monthly record. december 3.3 million background checks and that was down from the previous december. in other words, donald trump won so president obama who went on an anti-gun agenda, hard the pun, it back fired. >> oh. stuart: we got that, thank you. and you may have had the market there, ash. [laughter] >> the tesla story of the day, they're now producing battery cells at the huge giga factory in nevada. my question, how much help did

they get from the neda taxpayers. liz: about 1.4 billion in help. no property taxes and sales tax, why? profit is the final frontier at tesla. battery prices are going down. they're down 20% and plus this past year. are they going to sell battery? they need that battery, stuart, to hit that half million sales target for its tesla model 3 by 2018. can they do it? the cash burn is really dramatic here. they need that battery to sell those cars. can they sell those batteries on the open market when battery prices are going down? so, can taxpayers put up with this, for how long, can wall street? only one quarter since 2003 has posted a profit. stuart: we have to bring in our own tesla guy who owns not one, but two teslas. it's a battery company, is it not, larry? >> it's a battery company because the battery is so important for the car, stuart. that's the key and the model 3

is the whole future of this company. a car that starts at $35,000 and most people won't buy it on 35,000, they want options on there, the autopilot and costs extra money. the battery is so important for the car. that's the first main street electric car from tesla and if they can get that out there and put the battery in and another thing to keep in mind, deal with panasonic, i think you'll see more deals with that mainstream companies that are going to come on board with tesla and join into the technology they havement the company is amazing. it really is. stuart: he's fully invested in tesla. hold on a second, listen to this, more retail names moving lower. will you look at this? first of all, michael kors down nearly 6% and how about coach? i call them democratic luxury because it's luxury stuff that's attainable for middle america. they're down, too, nearly 5% down. what do you say here? >> i think we're seeing a result of all of these bad

numbers coming out from christmas with kohl's had a downgrade, significant downgrade of profit per share for 2017 and everybody, all of these retailers and even the specialty retailers are sucked down in this downdraft. stuart: wow, what a trend. fascinating stuff. i want to thank larry, scott, dr, thank you for a great show today. great success, thank you. check the loss narrowed down only 4 points, 3 points, all right. 5. [laughter] >> okay, down a fraction. president obama says there were no foreign terror attacks on u.s. soil in the last year and he said that in front of the military. we'll play you the sound bite. also, something we've been following on "varney & company," virtual reality becoming more mainstream. >> a video camera made for

virtual reality events after this. ♪

>> i want more on that breaking news out of turkey. e-mack. liz: so there was gunfire first in front of this courthouse and it's near an entrance where judges go in. and then a massive car bomb detonated. at least ten people now injured. two of the assailants shot dead and the third is still on the loose. izmir is a place in connection with the istanbul new year's eve nightclub attack.

stuart: it's a popular tourist resort. liz: that it is. stuart: okay, how about target stock down. retailers across the board are hit today. the department stores, especially, it's a ripple effect maybe on target. it's down 2%. did you catch this? here is president obama defending his record on terror attacks. he was in front of a very small crowd at a virginia military base. watch this. >> no foreign terrorist organization hascessfull planned and executed an attack on our homeland these past eight years. stuart: okay. no foreign-based terror group has successfully done an attack in america in the past, i think he said eight years. mercedes is with us. what do you make-- two things here, mercedes, what the president said and a small crowd at a military base that watched him. go. >> i mean, president obama, obviously, he carefully chose his words, but with what being said he should not be taking a victory lap on the war on

terrorism. when you look the a the fact, it's clear at that radical terrorism has spread in everyone regions in africa, in the middle east. >> you've seen these, we've seen an average of one terrorist attack on american soil since 9/11. it's very clear that, for example, the orlando nightclub terrorist attack was the second worst terrorist attack on american soil. this happened six months before that with san bernardino where 14 americans were killed. clearly, what we've seen is that president obama as he said before, he said that global warming was a bigger threat than islamic, radical islamic terrorism and i think it's very much clear based on his record we're not 100% safe on american soil. stuart: he's defending every element of his legacy. it's kind of desperation, but i want to carry this forward. it seems like he's going to live in washington d.c.

i think he wants to keep the leadership of the democrat party. he's not going away. >> no, he is not. it's interesting because you had president george w. bush who started painting. and has made somewhat of a second career out of it. he's stayed out of the politics, while president obama was in office. clearly, president obama has a different prrity. he wants to go back to being able to be almost a vocal, an outspoken critic of donald trump and i think he wants to stay very much involved in helping to shape the future of the democratic party. it kind of going back to his roots as a community organizer stuart: but who is the leade of the democrat party. charles schumer, nancy pelosi or barack obama? >> well, i think the fight to watch right now is what's going to happen at the dnc where you have two different segments of e party basicay trying to take control. you have, obviously, congressman ellison, who is

being supported by the progressives like bernie sanders, and then on the other side, you have, obviously, tom perez, who is the labor secretary under barack obama, who is also running for office. this is going to be a struggle of who is going to take control of the democratic agenda and according to nancy pelosi, she doesn't want-- she doesn't think they need to go in a different direction. they think they have a messaging problem. this is not a messaging problem, this is a policy problem for the democrats. stuart: yes, yes, how far left are they going to go, way out there. >> exactly. and obviously, that was clearly stated by these voters in november that they want america to go in a different direction. they were very concerned, many americans were concerned with the country continuing to go into what would be accepting a leftist agenda and it was clearly a rejection of not only obama, but his policies and his legacies. stuart: mercedes, thank you as always. >> sure thing.

stuart: check that market, down 5 points, we've got some green, we've got some red, got some go nowhere, a flat market, i think we can say that. next week, real big week for presidenelectrump and his cabinet picks. there are several confirmation hearings beginning. democrats promise a big fight across the board. we'll tell you what to expect. and the big beam at the consumer electronics show in vegas, virtual reality. how about this? a $45,000, 360-degree wrap around virtual reality camera. we're going to show it to you next. achoo! achoo! (snap) (snap) achoo! achoo! feel a cold coming on? zicam cold remedy nasal swabs shorten colds with a snap, and reduce symptom severity by 45%. shorten your cold with a snap, with zicam. ♪ guyhey nicole, happening here? this is my new alert system for whenever anything happens in the market. kid's a natural. but thinkorswim already lets you create cusm alerts

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>> ces, consumer electronics show in las vegas, we're going to take you there where our own liz claman is checking out cool stuff like virtual reality. all right, liz, i can see it, you've got this nokia camera, $45,000, virtual reality stuff. you've got to show it to me. liz: i'm going to show it to you. it's a skull-like creature, the biggest leap since black and white movies turned to color. it's by nokia, eight cameras, eight different microphones, it captures things in a completely

different way than what the old school cameras have done. it does synchronize 30 frames per second and stitches together in a 3-d way. an unbelievable, totally immersive experience. i'm going to show you a movie they put together called argo files, i put on the head gear and this enables you to pit something you've never witnessed before, your own murder. so you are the participant of the dead person. i know it's not really that enjoyable at the moment, but it's sort of a post apocalyptic world and you can see it's this abandoned warehouse and you're about to witness your own murder and solve it because they've taken the memory of the dead perp, you, out and you can then witness it. so, stuart i'm walking through, people are going by on scooters. this girl here, a tough chick. these' going to punch somebody in a minutbecause she looks angry look, this is from the point of vw of the person who died and that was their vision

and class of 2027, clearly not me. slapping and hitting each other and they've got deals with anyone from sony to disney, to disney nature and puts everyone on notice, everyone from panasonic. stuart: we've lost you to virtual reality. we've got a hard break. oh, what did she see? we'll come back, i promise you. in the next hour, you've seen him before, mike lindell from the my pillow commercials, he's on the show and going to defend his company after the better business bureau gave him a downgrade. look who is also on the show, rock star legend gene simmons, walking in as we speak. he's on the company for the entire 10:00 hour which begins in two minutes. ♪

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stuart: democrats try to brand donald trump are racist. it encouraged e appalling incident in chicago. four black teens tortured, a young, mentally challenged white man, beat him, tied him up and forced him to drink toilet wer shouting f trump and other obscenities directed at the president-elect. the torture scene was streamed live on facebook was one of the teens thought it was funny. this morning where are those democrats who were so eager to fire up the black vote with their charge of racism against trump? where are those celebrities who will not take part in the inauguration of a racist

president trump? nowhere to be seen. silence blues not good enough. time for the left an end it inflammatory and baseless rhetoric. the second our of "varney and company" is about to begin. ♪ stuart: let's start with the market. we are on the upside. the latest mortgage numbers for you. liz: out of freddie mac an interesting drop from last week's 4.32. look at this, 3.65% 30 year mortgage rate, still hanging in, record lows. stuart: we are down a fraction. liz: tween 9 straight weeks going up. stuart: another indicator looks at the service sector of the

economy. ashley: nothing but, but it is the same as november and adding 12 month hig we are not stepping back, but boosting ecomic data has been positive so that is another example. stuart: no effect on the market which is dead flat, no impact from those numbers. one big deal is the retail sector. we talk about the retail ice age. major retailers are struggling. will you look at kohl's for a start? that stock is down 17%, very disappointing holiday sales. how aboutacy's? down 13 percentage point drop, closing 68 stores, cutting 10,000 jobs. amazon on the other hand, the online kings, very strong performance, their stock is up $12 this morning and they report

they shipped 1 billion items of the holiday period, and they will open their own brick and mortarkstore coming up in manhattan this spring. they arelways the news an the stock is up 12 points as we speak. a big story from capitol hill. the senate holding hearings on the alleged russian hacking. ashley: the intelligence chief saying russia in other words has seeded false information, sowing doubt and confusion to weaken western governments, says the cyberactor which poses a major that tthe government, diplomacy, commercial and critical infrastructure. stuart: so what role did they play in the election? they did not change any votes. ashley: the emails and what they contained. stuart: the warning video, this could be graphic.

video streamed on facebook live of a disabled white man being tortured by four black teens. watch this please. >> donald trump. [bleep] >> it is not funny. stuart: we will get to the hate element in this but first i want to talk about mark zuckerberg and facebook and what they were doing about it. it was streamed -- ashley: 30 minutes. stuart: do we think it should have been taken wn? do we want facebook -- liz: absolutely. it is disgusting and depraved behavior and also equally upsetting is the lack of response from anybody on the

other side of the a political aisle. donald trump was cited in this. stuart: i was looking at the free-speech censorship kind. liz: facebook does not allow this and social media sites do not allow this to happen. stuart: dreadful stuff we just saw, jean simmons, and and starting in a negative fashion here. i want to know when the left. saying trump is a racist and encouraging events like you just saw. >> the apocalypse is just around the corn because you have silly guys like me with long tongues waxing poetic and prolific on all kinds of issues. having said that the preamble is my constitution being what it is and these are just semantics but

i'm not anti-semantic. a racist act is a racist ask whether it is from the left or the right or the middle. this is horrific, horrendous and it should be called exactly what it is, a racist crime. whether it is done to a white child or a black child, it should be against the law and those four teens whether they are purple or black or white should be taken down to the full extent of the law. president-elect is our president-elect. you can like it, leave it or promote a candidate, but the elect oral college as dictated by these constitutional amendments the founding fathers passed is the way presidents are elected. you don't like it, elect government officials that will do your bidding. the electoral college has spoken. our next president is donald trump. stuart: will you stay with us for the our? >> how much? i don't mean time. stuart: we are cheap on this program. ashley: i will not shine.

stuart: stay there for a second. moving on to other stuff. obamacare. there was a showdown on capitol hill. republican say repeal this thing, kill it. democrats say there is no replacement plan. president-elect trump tweeting a bunch of stuff. listen to this. suite number one. democrats, led by ted clown, chuck schumer, know how bad obamacare is and what a mess they are in. working to fix it, they do the typical political thing and blame. the fact is obamacare with a lie from the beginning, keep the doctor, keep your plan, time for republicans and democrats to get together and come up with healthcare plan that really works. much less expensive and far better. tennessee congressman marsha blackburn, republican from tennessee, also a member of the trump transition team.

what do you make of democrats saying you repeal obamacare and make america sick again. there's plenty of outrage, >> obamacare is working perfectly right and we just won the house, senate, white house by saying we are going to repeal obamacare. this is something they are not wanting to accept. stuart: it will be chaos. you got nothing to reple it with. can you give me theulle points again. >> absolutely. all your viewers go back to the blair healthcare summit in 2010, february of 2010. when we laid out private-sector

alternatives to increase access to affordable healthcare and democrats had a government based plan to try it. open up the insurance market place so you can buy an insurance product at a price you can afford to suit your needs, expand health savings accounts, get rid of the mandates obamacare required. make certain make certain report providers i made all through the process and cuts that were made to them. to stand up to obamacare you get the money back in the right place. everyone has access to affordable care. stuart: i know you are busy on this.

i went to get back to this retail, a huge financial story, down 17% and 14%, macy's and coals, department stores are taking a hit. i call it democratic luxury, brick and mortar applications down big time. coach is down 3%, 4%. michael cores down 4% going on 5%. brick and mortar people are in bad shape. ashley: 1 billion items shipped over the holidays. amazon decimating brick and mortar. a bookstore which is interesting, the fourth one. and two more plans, when in massachusetts, one in chicago, despite what they have done to

the brick and mortar stores, opening bookstores. >> ship the billion items, 1 billion. >> i love the towns of my own voice. that is truth, justice and the jean simmons way but let the tell you this. the old brands are losing track of an important thing, which is on-site implementation, words like gymnasium. it means the same old same old won't work anymore. 10,000 acs employees are being let go. i am sorry about that but macy's and other large retailers have to understand same old same old is not going to work. i was talking to one of your bright young female interns who loves foxbusiness, especially you, you are powerful and attractive man.

and the way she was talking abt retail was refreshing, going out shopping, and they had no idea if they were going to buy. like buffalo's going to the river. the retail, the wonderful people, this is was the age of celebrity, the age of aquarius retail, and brick and mortar situations. and 50% of won't work. new jersey at one of the malls. stuart: spotted outside the white house a moving truck by the west wing, 15 days to go until the obamas move out, on their way. president obama delivered his last military address, very

sparse crowd to watch him. he said no terror organization, foreign terror organization has attacked the us during his presidency. colonel allen west on that in a moment. california, buried by 10 to 15 feet of snow in the sierra nevada mountains, several feet formed in the sierra nevada. warned of possible flooding, mudslides near the san francisco and la, a boy in utah left dangling from a ski lift, his backpack caught in a chair unharmed. dangling 6 minutes or more. he is okay and we will be back.

>> where did you get the job? stuart: i recognize that, the rain dance. jean simmons is with me, did not have to tell me that. >> just quoting the second amendment. stuart: 27 million background checks by the fbi and potential gun owners last year is why we are showing you gun stocks. ashley: it was a record, more than 2015 but that -- that is what did it. stuart: president obama delivered his last military address in front of a sparse crowd yesterday. and that address no foreign terror organization has attacked america during his presidency. >> no foreign terrorist organization has successfully planned and executed an attack

on our homeland these past eight years. stuart: lieutenant colonel allen west is with us and i have two points to raise with you. number one, why was that a very sparse crowd as the commander in chief made his last appearance before the military and number 2, what is this about no foreign terrorist group attacked america? >> good to be with you and happy new year. i think the soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines planning and getting ready to execute the inauguration of donald trump, why they did not have a lot of people there but if you think of the words barack obama used yesterday, once again shows the obfuscation, denial and butter illusion of this president as he gets ready to leave. as if he believed terrorists organizations have to wear a jersey to show up, to say i am on this team, for you to

understand islamic jihad is him is an ideology and what has happened in the eight years of barack obama's presidency is an incredible explosion of the global islamic jihad. if you think of the attack that occurred at ohio state university, the mall stabbing in minnesota, the pipe bombings that occurred in new york and new jersey we can talk about fort hood, what happened in little rock, arkansas, san bernardino or orlando, this is coming from a global islamic jihad movement the president has allowed to grow and let me make myself clear. isis is not islamic. are they mennonite, methodist or southern baptist? stuart: sarcasm? low form of with. what do you make of the four gitmo detainees being released and going to saudi arabia? what do you make of that? >> gitmo is a tool for recruiting. and he is going to release these islamic jihadists back out there and we know the recidivism rate

is 35%. he is contributing to repopulating the enemy with their fighters the same as we ve a deserter for five members of the taliban and, and those members of the telegram, we lost track of them as well. stuart: an extraordinary story. i kept it short unfortunately. thanks for joining us. the senate is holding hearings on the alleged russian hacking over the past year. ashley: we heard from james clapper, director of national intelligence saying even more so than they were in october, russia indeed did use cyberattacks to try to influence the election but there is no evidence the vote tally was changed which is important to point out and no way to measure how effective this hacking was on the overall results. stuart: well said, we have this for yo china opening the world's highest, that is unusual,

highest bridge to traffic, that is 1800 feet above a river in the south of china. you want to take that bridge? all right. mike lindell, you know him as the my pillow guy. ceo of the my pillow company has been downgraded by the better business bureau. that man supports donald trump, he is on the show next. with the xfinity tv app,

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>> good for her. good for jessica simpson for having a billion-dollar brand. what -- you don't have to be talented. -- hi, how are you, nice to see you. are you leading the witness. stuart: you have a restaurant chain -- you are doing very well. i want to talk about resort casinos. >> it is an astonishing event. very few eateries, 1-of-a-kind

event, a singularity, doing $100 million and only a few years old. airports, two at lax, already the number one restaurant. stuart: why are you getting into resort casinos? >> we are making that announcement january 12th. in st. louis, we will announce on january 12th, the first casino resort which is going to change the way people experience these things. the public is not allowed in, we honor them and give checks, it is a fantastic thing. go to rock and brews.com because i said so. stuart: we are going to show you a picture of a fish, a big fish. a tuna, sold for $630,000, it

weighed 466 pounds, sushi, annual tuna sale in japan. >> sounds fishy to me. stuart: that are really walking into us right now, mike lindell, the my pillow guy, says he is being unfairly targeted by the better business bureau because he supports trump. we will be right back. how are you?

stuart: we have retail names moving lower. michael cores to start with, that is off 4.5%. try coach. i call them democratic luxury, down 3% and there are big names in the retail business. you know them and they are sharply lower. look at that. macy's, 14%, kohl's, 17% them away down. department stores especially taking it on the chin. next case, you probably know this man on the screen, the founder, mike lindell, founder of my pillow. you have seen his commercials with his company has been downgraded to a to f by the better business bureau. the bureau said the downgrade is because of the buy one get one free deal. they say is not a deal at all, just the normal price so they downgraded him. some people say the downgrade is because he is a strong supporter of president-elect trump and he is with us right now to state his case. i do know, welcome to the program. they did downgrade you. we contacted them this morning. they issued a statement saying

the downgrade has nothing to do with your politics would your response? >> they told me in august, running my head too long, i should take away my specials to the people, my first thing is to my customer, my customers come first, they went from a plus to f. stuart: just because of buy one get one free. i see that all over the place. >> they thought i ran it too long which i knew and were coming out in 2017, i want people to get a good deal for christmas. i can't tell my customers and the media that i wl pu my ads because of the regulations. i don't agree with them. stuart: the better business bureau of minnesota and north dakota. >> my home state of minnesota. 300 employees. stuart: the better business bureau of your home state downgrading you, very liberal state. were you very public with your support? >> republic, met him personally

in august, he's going to be the greatest president this country has ever seen. i believe that with all my passion and put everything behind him, made that publicly in minnesota and spoke at the rally he did there. stuart: did the downgrade come right after you met him? >> came after i that him and invited to the public debate republican convention, they told me to take the ads down. stuart: how is business? >> it is awesome. stuart: i see it everywhere. i got to believe -- >> we are so impassioned. the ad was successful in the united states, i make every part of my pillow in the united states which my employees are proud, 1800 of them. we want to help people. stuart: you are a private company, totally private, so you don't have to answer my question

but i will ask it anyway. how many my pillows have you sold since day one? >> over 25 million. we have 232 complaints and five years with the bbb and i have personally entered each and every one. i valued each customer like it is my only customer. why don't you buy the better business bureau? everything is for sale. stuart: a pleasure having you on the show. very successful business. >> my employees and support everything made in the usa. thank you for having me. >> another contentious subject, the un following their is real settlement though, they followed it with a new plan to blacklist certain is that work in the so-called occupied areas. >> first ever blacklist using

138,000 plus in you and funds to build a database of private companies doing business in the west bank, areas of disputed territories, could this lead to un sanctions against those companies? they employ tens of thousands of workers, palestinians in those areas, this fast on the heels of the outgoing un secretary-general saying there is bias against israel at thehe israeli ambassador to the united states. welcome to the program. this is a troubling trend here. the un vote and this blacklist of israeli companies that do

it, those framers would run to international courts, international bodies to get us boycotted and sanctions. they are not doing this to get a better two state solution but to take us down. stuart: is it possible when he becomes president and two days time, donald trump can reverse all of

primary closest ally in the middle east will have to answer to the united states of america. stuart: thank you for joining us. very contentious issue. gene simmons with us. and this gadget -- more patent in the history of mankind. and there is no answer, making sure people have jobs and safety

and so on. the middle east needs israel to exist and all the palestinians who work in these blacklist it is really companies ask them how they feeabt losing their jobs if the company's move away. stuart: they don't have free speech, they are not allowed to enter. president obama, why didn't he veto this thing. >> a ball and chain, can't say the right thing with the wrong thing, every once in a while a figure who doesn't the squat what you think, without a filter what he believes. we desperately need people in positions, duly elected by the electoral college, stand up and say this is how we feel it it may piss some of you off but it is the right thing to do. stuart: i support the presidency, the electoral

college has spoken with a move to canada or stay here. i'm going to give president-elect trump a chance. there are some issues i agree and some i don't. stuart: why did hillary clinton, democrat in the presidential election, why did she get 68% of the jewish vote? >> it is a very complex issue. the cult of personality is often what it is all about. people listen with their eyes when they watch tv and issues are always admired in detail. stuart: why is the jewish vote locked into the democratic party when the lding democt does that to israel. >> it is not my favorite thing as i voted for president obama the first time i regretted some of the issues, the israeli question is not an easy answer but the easy answer is good economics equals good politics.

when israel creates these jobs it will be good for israelis and palestinians. want more from you. we will see about that. it refused to handle information to us authorities on the san bernardino terrorists, apple refused to unlock the iphone. apple is bending to china, china's will, by banning and apps that would put the new york times into china. will have the judge on this one as we have this. a tennessee cowboy roping a calf on the side of highway 79, henry county sheriff's office opposed to the video, it has been viewed 21/2 million times. the cow has been returned to its owner. crazy video all over the place.

the clintons are going and for is governor john kasich. more varney in a moment.

ashley: president obama defending his record on terror attacks in front of a very small crowd at the virginia military base. america is still not 100% safe. >> an average of one terrorist attack on american soil since 9/11. very clear the orlando nightclub terrorist attack was the second worst terrorist attack on american soil, 6 months before that san bernardino where 14 americans were killed, and president obama as he said before said global warming was a bigger threat than islamic radical islamic terrorism and i think it is very clear that based on his record we are not 100% safe.

stuart: focusing on retail today. retail stocks are way down. start with l brand, parent of bath and body works down 7%. we are down 13%, bad holiday sales numbers down 18%. even nordstrom more upscale down 10% taking it on the chin.

apple, the new york times apps in china, the times website has alreadblocked that. judge andrew napolitano is your. i know where you are coming from. listen to where i am coming from. you can now not read the new york times in china and apple caved to the chinese authorities which said we don't want the new york times here. apple caved. yet it is apple that refused to unlock the terrorist cell phone, terrorist iphone in san bernardino. that is a contradiction. judge napolitano: china has no choice but to cave to the government. here we have a judiciary that scrutinizes the excesses of the ecutive branch and that is what happened and apple was not forced to unlock t iphone. the constitution in this country, we have a written

constitution. stuart: so they cave to an authoritarian neo-communist regime. they can do what they like, just to do business there. but they will not cave, they will not unlock a terrorist's iphone which threatens the security of america. judge napolitano: they have the right to remain silent in this country because the constitution guarantees it. there is no such right in beijing. stuart: whose side are you on? judge napolitano: the side of freedom. the side of personal liberty. the side of a constitution that protects personal liberty. stuart: you are in favor of apple caving to the communists. judge napolitano: not of caving to the communists. i'm in favor of them resisting the justice department here and so were the judges who reviewed it. stuart: therefore in favor of them caving to the beijing authorities. judge napolitano: i think the more economic opportunities in totalitarian countries the sooner freedom will come about. the more iphones and the more

apps that are over there the freer the chinese people will be. >> isn't it true that in time, a war, don't kid yourself, a war by any other name is what is going on now, i deals instead of countries, can't the president override certain issues and declare emergency powers go in effect to protect the country, do almost anything. i want the name of that a-whole who did this and find out where he is and do it to justice in a court of law. judge napolitano: as much of i admire your work, two words which absolutely not. >> if i were the ceo of apple, god bless us all and a horrific thing happened to apple where buildings went down and stuff like that and the government knew the information i would go crying on my hands and knees and beg them -- stuart: you can't afford to be

the ceo of apple. judge napolitano: did you set me up with this? stuart: 15 days to the inauguration i will get this question to gene simmons. why are you not performing? >> the coronation was a wonderful group of american indians, too busy doing our joint venture which is the rock and brews casino. stuart: you are shameless. >> i am jewish. stuart: listen to this. breaking news, friend of the show vanessa carlson, fox news anchor, has been given the 7:00 pm to 9:00 news crunch. liz: the 9:00 spot. stuart: a 9:00 slot. liz: martha maccallum is at 7:00. stuart: i was getting contradictory information. tucker carlson will take 9:00, martha maccallum will take the

7:00. don't spoil this. judge napolitano: love them both. stuart: we are not going to put you on at 9:00. >> i will put in a good word with you with shine. stuart: we are going to charge you for all the commercials you have -- all right, all right. after this, the harlem globetrotter makes impressive shot at the oracle arena route in california. the player is called bucket blakes. he throws the ball into a hoop, there it goes. 100 feet. i have got it. there it is. what a shot. angry protests, in mexico, because of a 20% hike in gas prices. more varney in a moment for you. looking for balance in your digestive system?

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stuart: we have been discussing the democrats defending obamacare. here is what our viewers had to say. if obamacare is a great let trump say okay, you will all go on obamacare themselves, see how they change their minds with gerri says when you showed the second the democrats defending obamacare with the sound turned off i fell out of my chair laughing, looked like a retired mortician convention. that is a little strong. from gary. if we had to go through the government to buy things like houses, cars and groceries the costs would triple in the wait times with the excessive to the extreme so why on earth would we want to do that with our medical care? all good points and this is from russ. make america sick again. what a shameful slogan by a bunch of losers. their party is over. do we want to add anything to that? ashley: very astute in pointin out many things, a failed program being defended by a failed group of lawmakers who need to move out of the way

although as a republican i got to say the democrats keep the same leadership, fine by me. stuart: you don't say much but when you say -- do you want to add anything? liz: first point congress was saying do it by legislate not as i do, they moved to exempt themselves from law of obama care they passed so they didn't experience what many americans were experiencing. stuart: mister trump put the lid on it when he talked about the clown chuck schumer. that is a little strong. you heard it here and we will be back. you may think you can put off checking out your medicare options until you're sixty-five, but now is a good time to get the ball rolling. keep in mind, medicare only covers about eighty percent of part b medical costs. the rest is up to you. that's where aarp medicare supplement insurance plans

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stuart: in the years during which obamacare has been in effect life expectancy has actually gone down. this is a rare event in any modern society but it's happened in america despite obamacare. and, chronic life-threatening medical conditions have

increased. stroke, heart disease, diabetes, all up. if you said america has gotten sicker in the obama years, you would be accurate. sot was amazing to see top democrats declare that america would get sick if obamacare was repealed. what we saw throughout the day was the old guard democrat leadership desperately trying to hang on to failure, making america sick again. make america sick again, that was the sign right next to charles schumer and nancy pelosi, having ruined health care system, they now suggest the republicans will be responsible for the sickness if they themselves helped create. we sat here and watched this unfold with amazement. it has left to donald trump to sum up the nonsense with a couple of tweets. the democrats led by head clown chuck schumer, know how bad obamacare is. he went on.

the fact is, obamacare was a lie from very beginning. i will leave it at that. the third hour of "varney" and company is about to begin. ♪ stuart: we are 83 points away from dow 20,000 and we're down 23 points as of right now. check the price of oil. we got the latest read on invents. what is the number please? there was a drawdown a 7.5 million barrels. is that accurate? 7.05, a drawdown in the price of, in the storageevel of crude oil. and of course it is going up just a little, $53 a barrel as we speak. john lfield is with us. john, you're a stock guy. i want to talk to but the main stock item in the news day which

is the sharp decline in retail stocks. all of them, i mean almost across the board, john, they are moving lower. i think it is result of we're changing the way we shop. what say you? >> completely. look, you mentioned content is king. if you produce entertainment show you don't care if you get money from netflix or from major network. if you produce shoes otail clothing you don't carwhit is sold as long as it is sold. what we've seen amazon is selling, one competitor out there, walmart.com is one that could step up. place like macy ace and sears, they are behind the eight ball here. items are being sold. not being sold in physical stores. >> i think this is one of the trends that affects the way america looks. i think you will see ghost malls, because macy's will close 68 stores and lay off 10,000 people.

i don't know what you do with the ghost malls and you will see them across the country. >> you can't turn the real estate, if they become ghost malls, are not worth very much. make reits out of companies sold all real estate. walmart went into other communities in the south where they started, killed all the other small business. amazon is doing same thing. you will see the amazon distribution centers in the communities but you will see some jobs but retail stores will disappear. stuart: you manage money. you organize people's money. i take it you're not putting money into bricks and mortar retailers. are you there for going the other way, going to online sellers like amazons of this world? >> yes i am. waiting for a little pullback on amazon. i think it will come. i love amazon. i think they do great work. walmart to me is one of the best interesting online plays. acquisition of jet.com and ceo,

is one that could challenge amazon. they have almost distribution centers in every community in america. they could have same-day delivery without much effort. they have had this for quite some time. they have not been able to step is up. walmart, online, because of proliferation of walmart stores that could own amazon. i do own walmart. stuart: this is fascinating. but you wouldn't touch amazon at its current level of around 770? you wouldn't touch them yet? >> if you're buying for 20, 30 years, i think you're fine. i think i wait for a pullback. some type of a pull back. the market has had a incredible run since president-elect trump has been elected. wait for a pullback to buy the same stock. stuart: john if i had 20 or 30 years left i would buy amazon. you know what i mean. >> as good as you look, stuart, i think you can. stuart: you're a good man, john layfield. get back to the beach in bermuda. get back to my take. an editorial. do it at the top of the hour.

marc thiessen joins us, american enterprise institute scholar. welcome to the program. good to see you. >> good to s you, stuart. stuart: i'm saying that the democrats are stuck at this moment with old guard leadership which is desperate to try to defend what amounts to policy failure. am i going too far? >> no, you're not. you're 100% correct. you showed the picture of all the democrats standing there next to a sign that says make america sick again. that is not exactly brilliant communication strategy. they're the ones that made america sig again with obamacare. reality what americans are sick of today, is obstruction in washington. reason they gave presidency to the house and senate to republican party. they want unified government. they want change. they don't want obstruction and divided government we've had for these years. democrats and chuck schumer are making a terrible mistake staking their ground on obstruction. will obstruct any changes to

obamacare. will obstruct trump's nominees for cabinet mission. he is threatening obstruct the ne supreme court position. he doesn't even know who it is. at least rubcans waited until they nominated merrick garland. if they are party of obstruction, they are not learning lesson of 2016. stuart: what is the position of president obama here? after leaves his office he lives in washington, d.c. i don't think he is going away. i think he want to be the leader of the democrat party. what do you say? >> i think you're right. i think barack obama was the worst president since jimmy carter and he is getting ready to be the worst former president since jimmy carter. obama always talks about the positive example that george w. bush set in terms of the transition, about reaching out and helping the transition despite their policy differences. other thing he should have learned from george w. bush, when you leave office, leave. you don't hear george w. bush

going in and opining or interfering with barack obama's presidency last eight years. it is not the role of barack obama to become the leader of the loyal opposition in washington to donald trump. donald trump was elected. american people wanted change. it is time for democrats to start trying to reach out and work with republicans as opposed to obstructing them. stuart: mark, i see you as a very political person. politics is your, that is what you eat for breakfast every day, i know that, so i'm going to ask you a economic question. >> sure. stuart: there is some confusion. it is coming to us from the federal reserve. they're a bunch of economists and they say, on the one hand wenot quite sure what trump is going to do for the economy. on the other hand it looks like tax cuts will stimulate the economy. what do you think about economic growth in the future? do you have a point of view on this. >> i do. i think you have a lot of economic growth. i think you have a lot of pent-up policies republicans have been put forward, even

bipartisan report like tax reform have been pent-up from obstruction from barack obama and democrats in washington. now i think you have a chance to have real tax reform that will bring billions, if not trillions of money offshore back into the united states. i think, and it is going to be paired in a bipartisan way with infrastructure reform which is essentially barack obama's policy with spending hundreds of billions of dollars on infrastructure and trump supports it. there is opportunity for there to be some bipartisan support for economic stimulus policies that will have some elements of the democratic agenda, a lot of elements of the republican agenda simplify the tax code and get the economy going again. i think there is lots of reason for optimism. stuart: do you think trump is off to a good start? >> i think he is. he has picked one of the most conservative cabinets in any president in american history. look at possibilities of growth, he says he wants to impose tariffs on china and mexico. if we start getting into trade wars that will harm economic growth.

things could happen. if obamacare, if we don't come to some -- do repeal and delay as opposed to repeal and replace, obamacare could fall apart and would be, as he pointed out in the tweet, be careful republicans could get blamed for it. there is a lot of peril but also a lost opportunity looking forward. stuart: mark thanks for joining us. always a pleasure. >> my pleasure. stuart: show you video from mexico. protesters blocking highways, looting stores because of a hike of more than 20% in basic gas prices. the announcement came january the 1st, big hike in gas prices there. some violence in the streets, because of that. now this. president obama defending his legacy on terror in america. he says no foreign terror attacks on u.s. soil in the last eight years. mentions the san bernanadino and orlando attacks but doesn't attribute them to isis. bret baier is next. but first, listen to this.

>> no foreign terrorist organization has successfully planned and executed an attack on our homeland these past eight years.

stuart: hearings on capitol hill into the alleged russian hacking. ashley. >> telling lawmakers, russia launched what he called a multifaceted campaign on the 2016 election. however, it had no impact on the actual vote tally and how you can measure the impact on the hack of the emails at the democratic national committee, in fact chairman john podesta can not be measured. bottom line russia, they say poses a major threat from very sophisticated cyber program. bottom line. stuart: from the senate hearings going on right now. >> president obama gets the report this afternoon. donald trump tomorrow. we'll get a public one, unclassified one early next week.

so we all can have a good luck. stuart: we shall. ash, thank you very much. speaking to a military crowd president obama claimed, no foreign terror organization has successfully executed an attack on american soil in the last eight years. joining us now is bret baier, host of "special report." bret, i was watching "special report" last night and you picked up on the fact that there was very, very few people in attendance when president obama made that speech. that was, that struck me as being extremely unusual for the commander-in-chief on military base to attract a very small crowd. will you deal with that first? >> we don't know the circumstances who was invited or whether it was supposed to be like that but it was a sparse crowd and we just noted that it was, you know, interesting to see the way it was set up, that you know, empty seats all over theudorium. and you know, just noting the picture. i will say, stuart, what you mentioned there about the

statement was really interesting. i mean he is trying to thread a needle here is saying the actual foreign terror organization didn't attack but yet, people who are inspired foreign terror organizations or even communicated with anwar awlaki, in the case of the fort hood shooter, suddenly that doesn't qualify. that is really going between the words. stuart: that is a real stretch defending the legacy to the innth degree. that would be my interpretation interpretation -- nth degree. i think you agree with me. >> i don't think it is us. terror experts around the world, look at the boston bombing, look at orlando, you look at san bernanadino, you look at what has happened and transpired in the evolution of you how terrorism happens and how the attacks are pulled off, to say that that is a big plus in your past eight years, i don't think

is, tremendously accurate. stuart: you're a diplomat, bret bair, that is a fact. now will you the address the other issue about gitmo. four detainees are outnow, they're going to saudi arabia. we're told another 20 could be released before the inauguration. i'm not sure accuracy of that report, but if that is accurate, it would clean out gitmo and the president would have accomplished from day one in closing gitmo. is it going to happen? >> our pentagon are saying that is what they're hearing. there wi be an accelerated push to get at least 20, 24 more, but it would still leave some at "gtmo." it is kind a bold move to clean house, considering you have bipartisan looks at the people still left there and they are extremely dangerous.

the countries that are taking them don't have a great track record, some of them, about keeping track of them. stuart: is president obama when he becomes barack obama, former president, is he going to be the leader of the democrat party still, a couple of weeks from now? >> i think he's going to be a presence. i don't think he will be the leader of the democratic party. there are many democrats who are upset with president obama, and think that, that he led them down a path that has not left the democratic party in a great place. in fact democrats, you could say are in the wilderness politically, trying to find out which way to go. whether to go the elizabeth warren, bernie sanders way or more moderate identifying with business. there are many democrats who are saying this path needs to be clear before they get to 2018. stuart: i can't think of a name, a name brand democrat who fits that bill, centrist, pro-business, strong --

>> mark warner, mark warner from virginia. john delaney from maryland, there are a few others that fit that. you're right, fewer and fewer, of those democrats more leaning toward the progressive side. stuart: we will watch "special report" like we always do to find out what is really going on in politics. bret. >> eight years ago i took over for brit up human, stuart. it has been a great run. stuart: congratulations, bret, you have done a wonderful job. it is the best political show on american television. that's a fact. >> thank you, sir. stuart: you're welcome. come see us again. thanks, bret. look at this, this is what we call the windchill map, what the temperature actually feels like, okay? there is difference between the temperature and what it feels like. looking like what it feels like. single digits. negative windchills acss the northern midwest. it is spreadinaround. let me take you to the west coast, around california, 10 to

15 feet, f, double e, t, in sierra nevada. not downtown los angeles. not get crazy. that is a lot of snow, help relieves the drought when it melts. got it. big theme today on this show, department stores in decline, big-time. online retail something really taking over. we'll be right back. ♪ your insurance company

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stuart: big financial story of the day certainly on the stock market is the performance of those department stores. all of them down big time. macy's will close 68 stores and they're cutting 10,000 staff. that is a very big deal. jeff flock with us now. he's live at a macy's in chicago. what are you going to tell me about the stock price of macy's, please? >> you know, it is a tough business right now. i remember, this was marshall fields store bought by macy's 10 years ago. they were increasing their brick-and-mortar footprint. you know, stuart, the deal is, this used to be the internet. you came to a store like this,

you used to be able to get anything. and now you go on internet and everything and that is the business. terry lundgren, ceo of macy's you know, we still do most of our business in brick-and-mortar. so we have to stick with the business but it is just not a growth industry. if you're looking for a growth stock, i guess the answer is, not here. stuart: okay. you look like you're freezing cold. >> you're right. stuart: looks like macy's in some trouble. i feel will see some ghost malls around the country when macy's closes 68 stores. some will be anchor stores in malls. look at stock performance. amazon, straight up 22%. last 12 months. macy's down 18%. jeff, thanks very much indeed. i'm staying on amazon, they're getting into the bricks and mortar business. they have bookstores on west coast and now here? liz: smart move.

why is it smart move? if you're a prime member, you will get charged full list prices. more way to get prime members and "alexa" voice activated echo. you can test out the gadgets. still 85% of all retail sales are still in brick-and-mortar this is way for more people to get them into prime. by the way, watch this, the amazon echo "alexa," order food. "alexa," i want sushi or cucumber sandwich or cup, whatever you have for lunch. go get it for me. you can order food on "alexa." stuart: amazon ship ad billion items. liz: there you go. stuart: make america sick again. that's the democrats response to repealing obamacare. we'll deal with that in a moment. first, remember when bill clinton said this? >> you've got this crazy system all of sudden 25 million more people have health care. then the people are out there

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>> you got this crazy system where all of a sudden 25 million

more people have health care and people are busting it, sometimes 60 hours a week wind up with their premiums doubled and their coverage cut in half. it is the craziest thing in the world. the insurance model doesn't work here. it is not like life insurance. it is not like predicting floods. it doesn't work. stuart: who knew? who knew? that was a month before the election and that was former president bill clinton calling obamacare a crazy system. however, look at that. make america sick again. that is what democrats are saying about the repeal of obamacare. so where do the democrats stand on obamacare? i'm going to bring in david goodfriend, former secretary staff secretary to president bill clinton. you are in a very difficult position, david, aren't you? >> not at all, stuart, because as you well know president clinton was not calling for the repeal of obamacare. stuart: i know that. but he called it a crazy system. faced with repeal of obamacare and they're saying oh, it will

make america sick. there is contradiction there, dade, i think you can see it? >> i think you're misstating his case. he said when people don't make enough to really afford the premium and yet make too much to get subsidy they're caught in a vice. his wife hillary clinton, was set out to close that gap and help people who do own their own small business to get a better subsidy. the fact of the matter is, republicans are getting what they want. they're in charge they have been saying for eight years they will repeal it. you have massive divisions within the republican party what to do. stuart: [laughter] >> don't laugh. stu -- stuart: how can you not laugh at this. >> let me finish the thought. the republicans don't know what to do. stuart: faced with being repealed. faced with repeal and all you've got, is repeal it, make america sicker. come on. >> well, you're a business channel at least in name. stuart: yes. >> so let's talk, let's talk about the hospital stocks, let's talk about the health insurance industry.

let's talk about physicians and pharma, okay? so if you look at what they're saying about the absence of full repeal, what they're telling their investors is, this is going to be a problem, okay? republicans know it's a problem which is why right now you're seeing republicans differ from their leadership on what to do. there is no coalescence. stuart: they're discussing a plan. they are discussing a plan. >> you tell me, stuart, what is the plan? stuart: they submitted it many times. tom price will run health and human services. he has a plan. >> get rid of i had. no one knows what it is not even you. that is the point. now you have the power to do something about it. republicans know that if they touch this thing, they're going to get blamed for anything that goes wrong and they're very worried about that. why you have republican senators voting with democrats, i can't make this up, on procedural measure yesterday, but they're worried about it. look, if we take set aside the politics -- stuart: everybody knows. wait a minute. everybody knows and we've

reported widely, that as of february the 20th, the republicans want a bill on president trump's desk which says, repeal obamacare. they will then come up with an alternative. they will do that. it is being discussed as we speak. there is a plan. it is from tom price. there is that plan. they're going to -- they will refine the plan. please don't go out there say no plan, will be chaos. just like nancy pelosi did yesterday. >> there is no plan republicans all agree on. you have some we ought to repeal and replace at same time. others who say we ought to repeal first, then as you say maybe some day think about possibly coming up with something else. meanwhile 30 million americans, 10% of our population is going to experience dressic changes in their coverage and not be happy about it. entire industry. stuart: the rest will get lower premiums and better health care. the rest will get -- >> very good, stu. i understand.

what you just said. stuart: i'm not agreeing with your point here. i will not agree with that. >> i'm not surprised. stuart: what you -- republican have a plan, implement it for the last seven years was a disaster and you know it and it fell to pieces. >> i don't know that. stuart: trying to make political capital out of its repeal. >> that is rich, stu. that is rich. making politicalital you have a bunch of republican politicians have been saying for seven years we'll do better and they don't have an answer. stuart: and did make political capital out of it because you lost the election. obamacare was one of the reasons why you lost. >> the conservative writer, the head of newsmax, his name is chris ruddy, he said let's assume i think fairly he said, obama won the argument on coverage, there are 30 million people need coverage, let's assume that. what he is saying as conservative, we need conservative answer to cover 10%

of the american population. what you gave it away, stu. let me finish. stuart: i tell you how you do it. >> you said everybody else will be fine. that is the problem republicans have. you are forsakes being 10% of the american population. stuart: no i'm not. >> not to mention people on medicare, medicade, who will be cut. stuart: utter nonsense. i do believe you know it. you're in a desperate position. you lost the election. >> read the ellis report on pharma. stuart: president obama is being shredded along with the rest of legacy and you haven't got a clue what to do about it other than -- >> come on man, read analysts reports out of insurance, hospitals, pharma. you're a business channel. read the business people's analysts to this. don't talk to politician like me. talk to the people who analyze the stocks. here is what you will find. stuart: they're all going up by the way. >> interesting. read the reports see what they say about coverage. if there are less people who can afford medicine what does that do to pharma? if there are less people that

can be insured for hospitals what does that do to hospitals. stuart: i think we can agree on this one. if obamacare had delivered what it was supposed to deliver, and absolute lowering of the cost of health care, if it had delivered on that promise, a lot more people would be covered today than are covered. i think -- >> more than 30 million. you mean more than 30 million? i wish more than 30 million new people on insurance, almost all of its promises and kept one promise you would have everybody covered today. and that is -- >> i think republicans will enjoy having 30 million americans pissed off at them forting care away health million. liz: liz: it is not 30 million. 19 million on medicaid. >> how bed medicare of the pa duts. good, medicaid. so are you saying they will preserve medicaid? because right now republicans are saying they are going to cut federal subsidies for medicaid. what about that, stu. stuart: because they have

alternative to medicaid. >> what is its. stuart: i don't know. >> precisely. stuart: there is no plan whatsoever, there is. i'm glad it is on this program. we'll have it out. >> and i believe in santa claus and unicorns. stuart: i'm done with this. >> you can take it like a man. you can do it. stuart: i'm done. i'm absolutely done with it. you lost. get used it. good bye, david. >> see you in '18. stuart: dear god. hold me down, please. ashley: deep breath. stuart: blood pressure. deep breath. our next guest, clearing his throat as we speak. writes that one of trump's most underrated parts of his campaign was outreach to the black community, here is the headline of his article today. trump and black americans. fdr offered the hope of prosperity. can the new president do the same? who wrote that piece?

dan henninger, "wall street journal" columnist supreme. welcome to the program. >> so good to be here. stuart: [laughter]. can mr. trump fulfill the promise that his outreach to black america presented? >> i think he does have the wherewithal, stuart. 's talk about something that is actually hopeful in politics right now. and that is the fact that every president goes out there, campaigns and they include in their campaign doing something about inner-city poverty and black america. once in office, not much happens. four years later the same people are living in the same neighborhoods, going to the same failing schools and with dim economic prospects. nobody pays any attention to black america once the election is over. donald trump went out, for instance, went to a charter school in one of the toughest neighborhoods in cleveland, ohio, and gave a wonderful speech to a little audience, a quiet speech, saying i want to do something about the ladder of success. i define that as a good job and

good education and safety, which he call the new civil rights issue of our time. he didn't have to do that. supposedly he was out there targeting all lower middle class white voters, the ones who made him win the election. but trump spent time in inner city neighborhoods. i believe he is serious about finally doing something about conditions in the places those people live. stuart: i zeroed in on his new education secretary, betsy devos. >> yeah. stuart: who is a clear champion of school choice, the opportunity to choose which school your kid goes to. because you want the best for your kid. >> yeah. stuart: that is, that is my opinion and i think you share it. >> i completely share it. what is needed is competition with the public schools. betsy deif voss isoing into office not promising to eliminate competition but there

should be like in new york city. louisiana set up a school choice program. the obama just tis department in person of eric holder sued louisiana's school choice program to stop it because they felt it was attracting too many kids from one ramainly black people. that was the point. it wasn't integrated enough. there is no way the trump justice department will sue a school choice program in indiana, louisiana, ohio or massachusetts. they will encourage them. stuart: well-said. thursday, it is henninger day. >> indeed. good to be with you. stuart: this coming to us out of china, opening the world's highest, usually here about bridges being high but this one is. it is 1800 feet above a river in one of the southern provinces of china. they built it because it cuts the commute time three hours. liz: i can't look. stuart: not keen on heights. ashley: i would take the three

three hour trip. stuart: i would take the bridge. ashley: god bless you. stuart: a moving truck spotted outside of the white house. by the west wing. 15 days to go until the obama's move out. the obamas could make up to $40 million in book deals after leaving white house. remember when president obama said to wall street, at a certain point you've made enough money? we'll play the clip in a moment. promise. ♪

stuart: breaking news. paul ryan, speaker ryan, talking about obamacare. listen to this. >> i do support criminal justice reform. i think it's a long time in coming. i asked committee to pick up where they left off. bob goodlatte passed six or eight bills, i don't remember the number. i asked them to pick up where they left off. we ran out of time. we intend to picup where they left out and get moving on criminal justice reform. it is good policy, right thing to do, for a lot of reasons. yes this is priority of ours. back of the room. >> speaker ryan, appreciate it. can you commit the congress will have completed a repeal and replace of obamacare by this session? >> our legislating will occur this year. our legislating on obamacare,

our repealing and replacing and transitioning, legislation will occur this year. what date all of this gets phased in on is something we do not now know because we're waiting for the trump administration to be stood up. we're waiting for time price to be confirmed and secretary of health and human services. the question there, how long will it take for markets to put in place, for markets to adjust. that question we don't know the answer to but legislating on obamacare will happen this year. thank you. stuart: that was speaker ryan. he addressed obamacare, and he said, quite clearly there will be legislation on obamacare this year. now, i obama, that means more than just the repeal of obamacare. ashley: right. stuart: it will mean another system. ashley: what replaces it. stuart: a replacement put in place or a period of time in which we get a transition away from obamacare and into something completely different. liz: there has been a plan for a long time to replace it. stuart: there has.

liz: republicans voted to try to repeal obamacare day after it was passed. they were starting to think about it from that beginning. stuart: as i was trying to tell mr. david goodfriend on the show a few minutes ago, the republicans has a plan. tom price has a plan. hhs. he is the next, th is his job. put it, implement the plan. that is what he is going to do. ashley: yep. stuart: all right, i'm calming. liz: blood pressure. stuart: blood pressure. the state of california is about to hire or about to hire america's former top cop, eric holder. he is hired to combat the trump administration on issue of immigration, sanctuary cities. larry elder, salem radio nationally syndicated talk show host. you are from the california. >> i am. stuart: eric holder has been hired by the state of california to go against trump policies. you're a calfornian. what do you make of this? >> they couldn't have fired a more zealot attorney for their point of view.

eric holder, recall as ag sued arizona for its alleged harsh immigration law. arizona feels sanctuary cities are perfectly legitimate. he wants open borders. they have a very zealous advocate for their point of view. i don't blame them for having gone to eric holder. eric holder is dead wrong about all of this. i think it will be a showdown like nobody has seen in a long time over the issue of sanctuary cities. stuart: larry, seems like california is just splitting off, going in the opposite direction to the rest of the country, am i wrong? >> you're not wrong. and california, not unlike the rest of the country, we have coastal elites. on the east side of the coast and west side of the coast where all the rich white liberals live, who feel guilty the fact they made a lot of money. feel guilty about things like income inequality, pull the lever for tax, spends regulate. people inside of the state, blue-collar people are suffering because of these left-wing policies.

stuart: on issue of income inequality, the obamas, could make up to $40 million on book deals after they left the white house. however, larry, do you remember when president obama told his supporters that wall street already makes enough money? roll that tape please. >> i want to be clear. [applause] we're not, we're not trying to push financial reform because we begrudge success that is fairly earned. i mean i do think at a certain point you have made enough money. stuart: larry, you heard that. your comment please. >> [laughter]. with $40 million you can hire really good shrink to deal with the guilt. stuart: okay. larry, i got to transition to what is very serious, frankly appalling story. i'm sure you have seen it, larry, for benefit of our viewers, i repeat, this four black teenagers are arrested for torturing a mentally challenged white man. they streamed it on facebook,

they made the young man denounce donald trump. where are the calls for hate crime charges? we had judge napolitano on that. listen to this. >> democratic belief, which is, it is okay to hate donald trump, and it is okay to act on that hatred. and that attitude, produces a monstrous behavior we saw on the tape. stuart: larry, get to you in a second. ashley you have a update. ashley: this white victim was directly targeted and now say it could classify as a hate crime. latest from chicago. stuart: larry, my feeling on this is where are the democrats who constantly tried to paint donald trump as a racist? and i say, partly responsible for the kind of thing that we saw in chicago. what say you? >> well, you're absolutely right. the left is inconsistent about hate crimes. the head of the police chief department there, said that he is not sure it is a hate crime. sometimes kids do just, quote,

stupid things. are you kidding me? where is al sharpton? where is eric holder. where is loretta lynch, where is barack obama. when you look at interracial violent crime, every year there is 500,000 instances of them, stuart, 85% of time, black perp, white victim, only 15% other way around. where is congressional investigation? where is doj investigation? where is the lopsided nature of black-white interracial crime? stuart: i do want to make one point. when that young white man slaughtered nine black people in church in charleston, the response of those parishioners, the response of people was wonderful. it was truly american. it was christian. it was forgiving. i thought it was absolutely wonderful. that stands in such stark contrast to other race relation stories that we've heard. last word to you, larry? >> i agree with you. no one had any doubt there was racial motive behind it, nobody should have any doubt there is

racial motive behind the four teens who attacked and tortured this special needs white teenager and broadcast it live for 48 hours over facebook. nobody did anything. it is stunning to me. stunning. stuart: larry, thanks very much for joining us as always, sir. see you real soon. >> my pleasure. stuart: take you to the big board. show you twitter. show me the big board first. we're down. we're off 100 points at this moment. 111 to be precise. that's where we are. and there is some doubt about trump's policies and whether or not we'll get growth that we expect. there is some doubt in the marketplace taking us down 100 points. how about it twoer. where is that stock? pga golf people, twitter will be the exclusive global platform to stream over 70 hours of coverage through the remainedder this season and 2017. twitter gets the best publicity and can not make money. check the health insurers.

vice president-elect mike pence says he wants obama care repealed and sent to president-elect trump's desk on february 20th. betsy mccaughey, joins us in a moment. what will we get to replace obama care. member when the president said this? >> if you like your doctor, you will be able to keep your doctor, period. if you like your health care plan, you will be able to keep your health care plan, period. if you like the plan you have, you can keep it. if you like the doctor you have, you can keep your doctor too. when a cold calls... achoo! ...answer it. with zicam cold remedy. it shortens colds, so you get better, faster. colds are gonna call. answer them with zicam! zicam. get your better back. now in great tasting crystals.

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stuart: replacing obamacare. moments ago we had david goodfriend on the show, a former bill clinton staffer. watch this. >> 30 million americans, one 10th, 10% of our population will experience drastic population of our coverage. stuart: and the rest will get lower premiums and better health care. i do apologize for talking over the top of david there, the key number is 30 million americans covered under obamacare. is that the right number. betsy mccaughey with us, author of beating obama care. the number, 30 million.

>> no, that is complete lie. at most 20 million, that includes five million of enrollees in obamacare plans are newly covered. of the other 6 million had insurance, many cases they preferred. the rest of people are enrolled in medicaid under the new law. stuart: he is wrong on that. >> totally wrong, exaggeration. but the bigger lie there is no plan. threpublicans have been working -- stuart: said there is n plan. >> there is a plan. stuart: tell me the bullet points of the plan. >> first of all, medicaid. those 11 million, they're not losing medicaid. it has been around since 1965. the state has expanded medicaid will not do 180 and shrink it. so, those 16 million are likely totally safe. stuart: stay covered. >> they are covered. republicans would like to block grant funding to the states to get more medical value for each dollar. unfortunately for all e spending we don't see enough improvement in health care among those receiving it. stuart: that is taken care of block grants to the states for

medicaid. more bullet points about the plan. >> number two, you hair democrats demagoguing about people with preexisting conditions. everyone of the republican plans, stuart, protects people with preexisting conditions. stuart: next point. >> thirdly, the other few million, four or five million people enrolled in obamacare, they're going to get a better al. they will get some sort of a subsidy. the republicans are putting final ink on what kind. they will see much lower premiums and deductibles, more choice. that is so key. young healthy people don't want to buy one size fits all government-designed plan cram full of things they don't want. stuart: betsy, you know what you're talking about. thank you very much for straightening things out. betsy mack coy, everyone. good stuff. we've got it all. we're not done. we'll be back.

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stuart: big theme on the show today.

demise of department store stocks, bricks and mortar had a bad holiday season. online sellers who took everything away. those department store stocks, way, way down. theme of the show. let's see waps time. my time is up and niel it's yours. neil: thank you very much, a lot of it might have to do not only to retail stocks that you were alluding to but rand paul. the kentucky republican senator and former presidential candidate has gone on record saying he will oppose this obamacare repeal effort on part of republicans, not so much that he's against repealing obamacare, he remains very much for repealing it but doesn't like the mechanism that university -- republicans are using. 9.7