let's check markets here, dow industrials continuing this rally going into year end. dow industrials up 68. nasdaq up 20, s&p 500 higher by 8. mitch, do you think this continues into the new year? >> i definitely do. i would say, though, that the market is sort of priced for perfection, so we're going to have to see what fourth quarter earnings look like when they come out in january and february to see if this rally has got legs. maria: yeah. it's going to be a wild year in politics too, lee. we're really close to the iowa caucuses, new hampshire and then it's all about 2024 presidential election. >> all about 2024. and i think we're going to be hearing all about donald trump for the rest of the year. maria: we'll see. all right, guys. great to be with you, lee carter, mitch roschelle, thank you so much is, and thank you, everybody, for joining us. join us tomorrow, same time, same place. have a great tuesday. "varney & company" picks it up, david asman in for stu this morning. david: wonderful show, maria, thank you very much. good morning, everyone, ooh i'm david asman in for stuart

varney. the numbers don't lie and, boy, are they bad for biden. a new fox poll showing only 14% of voters say biden's economic policies have helped them, 46% say they have been hurt by them. if we've got a bunch of new polls, and they are mostly dismal that the white house probably doesn't want to see. and another thing the white house is trying to ignore, the surge at the border. we're looking at thousands of illegal migrants waiting to be processed. our own bill melugin says he's never seen anything like this during his years of reporting from the border. we have a live report from him on the ground coming up. to the markets where we are seeing more green on the screen. the federally, as we call it -- fed rally, is going strong. the dow jones industrials and futures up about a 16 -- 660, the s&p up about 7.25 -- 60. the 101-year yield, if we could put that up on the board, it's down 2.4 basis points, under 4%,

3.9. but the 22-year yield is up a little bit, 1.6 basis points coming in at 4.45%. bitcoin, which has been on a run, actually it's now up another $269. it was down a bit yesterday, but we've got some new reports about bitcoin coming up that will amaze you. and take a look at this incredible video. the icelandic volcano has erupted. it's forced evacuations and closures across the island. very dramatic video. more to come on that. it is tuesday, december 19th -- my wife's birthday. happy birthday, my wife. 2023. "varney & company" is about to begin. ♪ ♪ ♪ to face unafraid oh, the plans that we made -- ♪ walking in a winter wonderland ♪

david: our own dolly parton. we love dolly. she's looking great. she's singing great. everything about her is great. let's get right to this, border patrol can confirm at least 4,000 migrants crossed our southern border in eagle pass alone yesterday with one agent calls it the worst day he has ever seen of the migrants. this comes as the senate is still searching for a border security deal. good morning, lauren. washington any closer to securing our border? lauren: can i say no? [laughter] i mean, the talks are happening, they're grinding on. i think that's a good way to characterize it, but they don't appear to be getting anywhere. just 61 senators were present yesterday for the extended session. of course, the house is out on recess through the year. senator lindsey graham says it's best to just wait for the house to return instead of trying to jam in any last minute compromise that they can presidentially get, but you're right. i mean, the numbers coming from griff jenkins at the border,

look at this, over 4,000 crossed at one passage point alone in one day, yesterday. now the border patrol must speed up the processing and the transporting leaving, like, no one to do the patrolling. nearly 10,000 in eagle pass if you include those that are already in dust -- custody. border patrol confirms over 12,600 total migrant encounters along the southern border yesterday alone. bill melugin says if you give each of these cases to an immigration judge, they'd each have 4500 cases each. david teafd remember when jay johnson, the former dhs secretary, said 1,000 migrants overwhelmed the system? imagine 12,600 -- lauren: it's an invasion. david: byron york joining me now. byron, economics is still the first concern of voters, but this border crisis, i imagine the border is moving up as something that concerns americans right now coming up to the election. >> it is. and it's specifically the work

of one man, the president, joe biden. the president created this magnet if for people to come by suggesting that if they cross the border illegally into the united states, they would be allowed to stay. and that is the huge drawing fact if to have that's bringing people from -- factor that's bringing people from all around the world. not just mexico, not just central america, china, india, africa, everywhere -- david: and and, of course, americans and the dhs, even the fbi agent came out and said that the red lights are flaker about concern as to whether -- flashing about concern as to whether all of those are with good intentions rather than some who would want to do us harm. >> yeah. and there's no way to vet with that number of people coming across. and also with that number of people, 7, 8, 9 million, who knows how many exactly since joe biden became president, they are going to move all around the united states. do not if blame governor abbott

for this, they're not all going to a stay in eagle pass. so we have seen kind of the nationalization of the border problem. but i think what they're talking about on capitol hill is irrelevant here. the current situation really cries out for executive power. for a president to reinstate the remain in mexico program, to increase border enforcement and to begin returning people across the border. david: yes. >> not deporting people who have been here for years, but people who have just stepped foot in the united states, return them back across the border. david: we saw what executive power can do when donald trump used it to get the remain in mexico policy to put up more walls, etc. and the reverse of that, of course, happened when joe biden came in and by executive power got rid of all those things. he'd have to swallow his pride a bit to reinforce what donald trump put in, wouldn't he? >> yeah. exactly.

if you remember several years ago in al-zawahri there was a governor -- in arizona there was a governor in jan brewer who wanted to enforce immigration policies adulter obama years, and -- during the obama years. and the obama administration's position was enforcing immigration laws the is -- is the sole authority of the president of the united states and, by the way, he doesn't have to do it, but it's his decision. and i think that's what we're seeing now with joe biden which makes what's going on in congress really irrelevant. this is not an issue of comprehensive immigration reform or some big bill that's going to talk about the amount that lettuce pickers get paid somewhere in the united states. david: right. >> this is a matter of border security, and the president alone is the person who fixes out. they'd dvd all right. quickly, let's get to these polls because they are dismal for the president. they hoe biden losing ground -- show biden losing ground with key demographics. 51% of voters under 30 went with

trump and just 4 -- 4 # 4% said they would vote for bidenen. women, 50% choosing the former president, just 46% for biden. so the big question is -- and we also have, by the way, 6 # 8% of voters are are unhappy with the way things are goingly speaking. 78 % of voters have a negative if view of the economy. can biden hold on to the 2024 elections, or will he be replaced? >> i think these numbers are a result of the fact that inflation touches everybody. it touches the voters under 30 that were measured in the fox poll and if there was a group with between 30 to 45. maybe some of them want to buy a house and they're having a very, very difficult time. so inflation touches everybody. as for biden's future, i mean, obviously, you're seeing democrats, they're pretty much saying the quiet part out loud. they're very concerned that biden is too old and that his policies are extremely

unpopular. on the other hand, dislodging a president of your own party is really, really hard. now, one interesting thing in the fox poll is it actually showed vice president kamala harris with a ever so slightly 1-point edge in popularity. in job approval. over the president. david: amazing. >> remember, the dilemma for the democrats is camilla a harris is even more unpopular than he is. well, he has come down to that level. david: byron york, wonderful to see you. thank you very much. merry christmas to you. >> thank you, david. david: well, we've got yet another fox poll or another part of it, only 14% say they have been helped by biden's economic policies. nearly half of americans say biden has actually hurt them. scott shellady joins me now. scott, voters are not happy with the economy. they think it's worse for them now than the it was before biden.

>> i want to try to wrap everything up in one big package for you, david. voters are unhappy with the economy or with biden, but, you know, illegal immigrants are happy with him. and they're worried about him. and so i think that you've seen this rush to the border because they watch shows like your show, they watch fox business and fox news. they have -- this is why we're going to see more and more and more up until the election, because they want to get over before he loses the next election. that's common sense, i've been saying that on my show for about a eight weeks. the other one is biden inflation versus bide mommicses. -- bidenomics. this is something i saw on the weekend shows this last weekend which is surprising because a lot of these folks don't know what they're talking about, because they keep saying this: inflation's coming down so prices are coming down. that's not the case. taye dvd right. >> the rah rate of change in prices going up is coming down, but prices are still going up. so the disconnect, voters have

not made that disconnect because a lot of television commentators haven't made that disconnect. they would like to tell you, david, that if i'm gaining weight at a slower pace than i did last year, that i'm getting thinner. [laughter] it's not happening, right? david: what's amazing, scott, what's amazing is that the people in the white -- i think the people in the white house live in such a bubble, they actually believe a lot of what they're saying about inflation and the economy in general and bidenomics working, but the people on the ground know. they don't live in a bubble. they have to shop every day, fill up the gas tank every day. they know exactly what's happening. they know now that their wages have not kept pace with inflation over the past two and a half years, and that's why they don't like the situation as it is. >> absolutely correct. and so we've had, you know, a little bit of reversal on that. there have been wage gains over the last two or three, maybe four months. however, your price at the grocery store, america, as you well know, are still going up. but those in the white house

think that inflation coming down means prices are coming down means they need to go back to school and redo their economics degree. david: yeah. or they just need to do shopping on their own and realize what's happening -- la. [laughter] >> right. david: if they were to shop every day like normal folks, they probably would realize things are not as rose i as they make them up to be. >> they should just go through a drive-through. you can see it there too. just go live life, and you'll find out about inflation. david: scott shellady, have a wonderful, merry christmas. thank you for being here. of. coming up, nikki haley didn't hold back against biden in her new political ad. roll tape. >> i'll just say it, biden's too old, and congress is the most exclusive nursing home in america. tea david is she really saying what the majority of the country is feeling in and then back to the border crisis, thousands of migrants gathering in eagle pass, texas, yesterday. one border patrol agent said it was, quote, the worst day they've the ever seen there.

star reporter bill melugin has the report coming next. ♪ ♪ they're waiting for you. hey, do you have a second? they're all expecting more. more efficiency. more benefits. more growth. when you realize you can give your people everything, and more. thank you very much. [applause] ask, "now what?" here's what. you go with prudential to protect, empower and grow. with everything you need to deliver, you guessed it... more. one more thing... who's your rock? learn more at prudential.com

(♪♪) my plaque psoriasis was so bad... i couldn't get my hair done. my psoriasis was all over. then my joints started hurting, found out it was psoriatic arthritis. who knew they could be connected? for me, cosentyx works on both. 5 years and counting. did you know people with psoriasis on the scalp have a 4 times higher risk of developing psoriatic arthritis, which if left untreated can lead to permanent joint damage? cosentyx works on all of this and helps stop

further joint damage. talk to your doctor. find something that works for you. serious allergic reactions. severe skin reactions that look like eczema and an increased risk of infections, some fatal, have occurred. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms, had a vaccine or plan to, or if ibd symptoms develop or worsen. cosentyx. still workin' for me. ♪see me♪ find relief that can last. ask your dermatologist about cosentyx. ♪ ♪ david: the border patrol was overwhelmed yesterday with more than 12,600 migrants crossing our southern border. bill melugin join ising us now from arizona, but you were in texas yesterday. bill, have you ever seen anything like this? >> reporter: no, we haven't. and the numbers just keep getting worse. those the,600 encounters, that is the highest single-day total ever recorded beating the previous record just a couple of

weeks ago. and eagle pass is just getting completely overrun. take a look at this video, contact on the ground sent us last night. thousands upon thousands of migrants camped out waiting to be processed by border patrol. i've spent hundreds of delays -- days in eagle pass, i've never seen the situation that a bad there. and it is still going on this morning. take a live look at our fox news drone over eagle pass, you can see masses of migrants still camped out there the waiting for border patrol to take custody of them. cbp forces selling -- telling fox news they've got over 55,30n custody, and they're trying to transport another 4,500 for processing. the del rio sector currently over 2660% of their capacity -- 260% of their capacity. and as a result, the railway bridge has been shut down into eagle pass, also in el paso. cbp doing that to redeploy personnel to help border patrol with migrant processing, and union pacific is not happy about

that decision. they tweeted in part, quote, union pacific urges the eagle pass and el paso border crossings to be reopened immediately. roughly 450,000 rail shipments move across these two gateways annually. it would take over 1 is million trucks to move the same amount of goods. these locations represent 45% of cross-border union pacific business and include goods critical to the u.s. economy. so, essentially, they are shutting down international commerce in these spots to help speed up migrant processing. we'll take you to lukeville, arizona. last night we shot this footage where hundreds crossed illegally through a breach in the border wall. they start campfires in an effort to stay warm in the chilly arizona night. and back out here live you can see the results this morning, more people crossed illegally overnight. hundreds here waiting for processing. a large mixture of single adults, some family units. we talked to some people from if africa, from guinea, from liberia, others from bangladesh.

this tucson, arizona, sector had more than 3,000 illegal crossings yesterday alone, and we are told by cbp sources as of this morning cbp has more than 25,000 migrants in federal custody nationwide. that means a lot of mass releases are going to be on the way. david: and the ratio of migrants to the border patrol agents must be totally overwhelming. i mean, is anybody -- with all the processing, are any of those agents able to forward the border? if. >> reporter: no. almost all of them are in processing right now. very few are actually out on the front lines doing actual patrolling, and the agent ratios have gotten so bad in some areas, sometimes it's 1 agent to 200 migrants. david: unbelievable. bill melugin, wonderful work, as always. thank you very much for documenting all of this for us. listen to this, from a former dhs secretary, he was obama's dhs secretary, jay johnson, speaking back in 2019. roll tape.

>> i know that a thousand overwhelms the system. i cannot begin to imagine what 4,000 a day looks like. so we are truly in a crisis. david: well, vice president of the national border patrol council, john apson joins me now. if 1,000 a day overwhelmed the system, what happens with 12,000 a day? >> it shuts it down at this point. you know, we see -- we've been dealing with all year where agents can't do their job, people are getting away, and now all this does is end counsels more people because, unfortunately, we've gotten better at a processing people faster, and they just come, they just come out in droves because they know they can get through the system very quickly. david: well, and we just talked to bill melugin. he was documenting what's happening in eagle pass, now he's in arizona. it seems like every border entrance is overwhelmed. this is not just eagle pass we're talking about. this is the entire border, no?

if. >> that's right. you know, unfortunately, eagle pass seeing sort of the beginnings of what we had back in 2021 with that haitian migrant camp that set up, and we're basically no better prepared to teal with it today than we were then. we have more facilities, more detention capacity, but when these numbers just never stop, or we'll never if get caught up, and agents just won't be able to get back to do the job they were trained to do. david: that's what i was going to say. you guys have been through enormous, very successful training about guarding the border, but you're not doing it. you're just processing migrants, doing paperwork rather than what you were trained for, right? >> that's exactly what it is. and it's frustrating. some of the agents that have been around for a long time, we see what happens depending on who's in the white house. it goes up if down. but for some of the newer employees who have only been around for two, three years, they're having to question is this the job that they want to do. and it's also a causing fewer people to apply to even want to become an agent.

we're looking at serious retention issues right now, and they're projecting in maybe seven or eight years we're going to be drastically short on staff. david: now, john, i know you're aware of what's happening in d.c. where they're suggesting that we should be spending a lot more money on border security, but the question is whether the money we'd be spending would be for actual border security or whether it would just be for more processing of migrants. what's your preponderance on that in -- your opinion on that? >> right. we'll never know until the money's already spent. they can throw the all the money they want at border technology and infrastructure and all that right now, but unless it actually stops people from abusing the asylum system, all that's going to do is streamline their a ability to travel to us, to get along -- to get from the border to our facilities. david: well, what is your message for the politicians about how to stop this out of control process? [laughter] >> they have to consider what this is doing to the communities here at the border and the communities where they're going.

we've all seen the video coming out of new york and chicago. i can't imagine that anybody in d.c. thinks that's okay, and not to mention the people that are drowning in the river on a regular basis or dying in the desert, you know? this is only encouraging people to put themselves in unsafe situations, and then we have to try to rescue them, and a lot of the times we're not able to. teaf tead yeah. >> i can't imagine this is how anybody if thought this would go. david: we only have ten sends. remain in mexico, should we go back to it? >> yes, please. anything similar to that would be fantastic. david: john, best of luck to you. thank you for the work you do on the border. you guys, it must be the most frustrating job in the world, but with we thank you for trying to hold the lewin. appreciate you being with us. let's check the futures. the opening bell is next, and we are seeing green on the screen. let's hope it stays that way. we'll be right back. ♪ the fire is lowly -- slowly dying, and, my dear, we're the till good buying. ♪ but as long as you love me so,

let it know, let it know, let it snow ♪ in a rocky mountain setting? spanning over 280,000 acres, three forks ranch is the destination for luxury and adventure. enjoy private skiing with 23 runs for every level. kick back for intimate performances from the best in country music. enhance your wellness and longevity through our mayo clinic programs, or plan your meeting for a memorable corporate retreat. discover the west kept secret. go to threeforksranch.com to book your luxury experience.

(sfx: stone wheel crafting) ♪ the biggest ideas inspire new ones. 30 years ago, state street created an etf that inspired the world to invest differently. it still does. what can you do with spy? ♪ david: checking the markets, we

are expecting green on the screen when they open in a couple of minutes, but it has moderated its gains so far as we're looking at the futures. luke lloyd joining me now. luke are, first of all, look at the economy overall for us. it looks like the economy and investors are thinking the economy is gaining, it's on the gain now, it's on the mend. what do you think? >> so is why would we have rate cuts being priced into the market then? that's my big question. it doesn't really make sense that the stock market's pricing in five or six rate hikes -- cuts next year unless something major breaks. the only reason to have lower rates outside really bad economic conditions is from from political pressure. 2024 is an election year. lower rates still la ty. when 50% of government debt needs refinanced next year, one way is to just lower rate, and one way to get votes is to stimulate the economy. it's one of the reasons why i think the market's pricing in -- david: but, hoo luke, luke, luke, we have, supposedly, an independent federal reserve that

is immune to political pressure if. [laughter] you're laughing. >> i am. this whole world is dominated by politics. it's why we have to talk about politics when it comes to your money. the fact of the matter is everything or in our life is ruled by politics. no matter what actually happens next year, it's the perception that actual matters to the market, which is why we're recommending clients own the s&p 500 small caps -- david: and that basically tracks the russell 2000, correct? >> exactly. so instead of the magnificent 7, the marv plus 493 are going -- marvelous 493, we call them, are going to carry the next few weeks. yields have taken a nose dive, we think that's a going to continue to happen. small caps are still off 20% from their all-time highs, they've got a long way to go. >> and what is the etf? >> iwm, the russell 2000, and rsp. david: wonderful stuff, luke. thank you very much. of the opening bell, as you can

hear, is ringing. we're expecting modest gains as we come into the actual trading, and if you take a look at the big board, you see about a 50-50 split now. actually, i think there's one more red -- no, it's exactly 50-50, look that. 15 plus and about 15 negative. bottom line is it's a pretty moderate day. the s&p is up just 4.7% right now, and the tech-heavy nasdaq, if we can switch to the nasdaq, yeah, we will see games, a 29-point gain. that's not bad at all for the nasdaq. again, that's the biggest gain on all the indices we're looking at. let's look at the big board, big tech, if we can, see the big winners. alphabet, amazon, meta, apple all to the plus side. unfortunately, stuart's microsoft is not so, but it's just a fractional loss on microsoft. taking a look now on specifics, enphase energy, they're a solar are and battery system supplier.

are they cutting jobs? lauren: yeah, and this stock is down more than 50% this year. so they're cutting about 10% of their taffe, also ceasing operations at two of their plants, one of them become in the united states. high interest rates, i mean, now rates are starting to come down, but they've been high. they dipped demand for their solar inverters, and if they're saddled with all this inventory. stock's up 2%. stuart: stuart has -- david: stuart has a favorite. costco is where he likes to get hot dogs. they just hit a milestone. what was it? lauren: a $300 billion market cap valuation. all-time high of $6 # 81 -- 681 yesterday, the value that they offer buying bulk, beat inflation kind of deal. they had that $15 special dividend that they announced when they reported last week. since that earnings report the stock has been on fire. in the month of december it's up, like, 15%. david: jutte pulling back a

little, not much today. google's got this play store lawsuit going on. what's up with that? lauren: well, you can get a whole $2. [laughter] because the -- david: it's a class action suit. lauren: $700 million to settle claims that they operate an illegal monopoly -- david tied so lawyers get tens of millions, and i get $2. that's how it works. lauren: $700 million is a drop in the bucket for alphabet. a group of states said google allegedly stifled app store competition. so now google pays the money to settle those claims and make some changes to how they do business. so now developers can use an alternate billing system, they don't have to use google to charge their users and also some of the fees will come down. next up is apple. apple is also in the spotlight because of these same allegations. so we shall see. but google shares higher after news of the settlement. david: well, the biden administration's not going to like this, tesla is trying to save off workers from

unionizing. or what are they doing? lauren: raising pay. so if you're an hourly worker at the nevada factory, you're going to get paid more, between $22-34.50 per hour. not as big as the increases at the big three, but this is pretty sizabling. tesla hopes it satisfies the workers enough to save off unionization at those plants. tesla shares up 1.2%. huge registrations in china. i think that's why the stock is higher. david: lyft cofinder john zimmer just sold a big portion of his shares. lauren: yeah. the stock is now down 7%, he's been selling all year. zimmer sold $3.5 million worth of stock. he did it a little bit earlier this month. we found out about a it just now. that's not a sign of confidence, if you will, in the uber competitor. so it's getting trashed this morning, down 8. david: let's switch to boeing, it's selling jets to lufthansa. how many?

lauren: up to 100. this is a big deal, because lufthansa is the largest carrier in europe, and it's their first order for a boeing single-aisle jet since 195. so going back nearly 30 years -- 1995. stock up at 261.83 after this deal. yeah, they placed an order with airbus too, but this is the one they're doing for boeing, so close to an annual high here, about a dollar away. david: checking the big board right now, take a look at the dow winners as we see the markets are up actually quite nice right now, a 56-point gain on the dow. we can look at the dow winners. there they are. walgreens is up, nike, salesforce.com, amgen and caterpillar. all right. and the s&p 500 winners, we saw -- let me see, we saw uber coming on the s&p yesterday -- lauren: yeah. first day listed on the s&p 500, yep. david: enphase energy, solar 'em tech, first solar and albemarle,

corporations all doing well. and the nasdaq winners, if we could switch to that, we have enphase again, lucid group, tradedesk, sirius is up. whoops, it just fell off. paypal and -- lauren: a lot of green stocks are higher today. also the dow and the nasdaq are up nine days in a row, so the gains are small, but the longevity is long. david: i would not look at my 401(k) right now just because i get other hi anxious, and then t goes up is bound to come down -- lauren: well, yields are coming down, there you go. david: that's right. yields are coming down nicely although right now it's just a small, it's almost equal. the 10-year yield has come down .1 basis e points to 3.932. -- 3.92. gold, there's an inverse relationship between the value of the dollar and the value of gold, gold is going up at the dollar comes down. gold is close to $250 an ounce, excuse me -- 2,050.

it's now $2,046. bitcoin is up about $38, it's trying to make up some gains for yesterday's loss. and oil, if we can switch to oil, is up just about 1%, up 665 cents to $73.if 12 for a barrel. natural gas is down a little bit. that may change as the weather changes as well. the average price, by the way, for a gallon of regular is now $3.08 and $4.01 is for diesel. coming up, trump's getting backlash for his comments on migrants crossing the border illegally. roll tape. >> they're poisoning the blood of our country. they're coming into our country from africa, from asia, all over the world. david: -- into that, former obama campaign manager jim messina says there is no path to victory with a third party candidate. it's just going to get donald trump elected more easily. does jason chaffetz agree with

that? he is here to talk about that. and global energy prices jumping as major oil companies halt service through the red sea. we've got that report and what to do about it with our own larry kudlow coming up. ♪ ♪ got that real big energy. ♪ got that big, big energy ♪

♪ students... students of any age, from anywhere. students in a new kind of classroom. ♪ using our technology to power different ways of learning. ♪ harnessing ai to plant new beginnings. ♪ so when minds grow, opportunities follow. you know what's interesting these days? bitcoin. look for bitwise, my friends. (baby cooing) - [joe] sacrifice. surrendering your desires for the sake of someone else. sometimes sacrifice is tedious.

sometimes it's rewarding. and sometimes it takes everything you've got. (man yelling) - i love you guys. - i love you too. - be careful son. (rotors whirling) (beeping) - [joe] sacrifice. surrendering your desires for the sake of someone else. sometimes it's tedious - [father] you're doing so great son. - [joe] sometimes it's rewarding. sometimes it gives you back more than you could've ever imagined. the sacrifice they made for our freedoms is priceless. will you please join me in making a small sacrifice for them by supporting disabled american veterans?

call and give $19 a month, just 63 cents a day. to help a disabled veteran who sacrificed for you. there's never been a greater time to show your support for our nation's greatest heroes. get this memorial dav blanket when you call and give just $19 a month as a reminder of the sacrifice our nation's greatest heroes have made for you. your gift, no matter how small helps veterans and their families get the benefits they need and deserve. please, call or go online now. if operators are busy, call again. or give right away to helpdav.org your gift today honors their sacrifice forever. hi, i'm sharon, and i lost 52 pounds on golo. on other diets, i could barely lose 10-15 pounds. thanks to golo, i've lost 27% of my body weight,

and it was easy. (soft music) ♪ ♪ david: commercial sea vessels are scrambling to find new shipping routes after houthi rebels continue to launch attacks at the ships. edward lawrence joining me now from the white house with the veriest. >> reporter: yeah, and the biden administration now has a coalition of military ships to

helpen enforce safe passage through the red sea. they're calling it operation prosperity guardian. now ten countries including the cites will help help pa if troll the red sea and address any attacks that come in by the houthis. you see the then countries right through. finish the ten countries. more than 1100 drone and ballistic missile attacks caused about a dozen companies to divert around the red sea, and that adds about a week, maybe ten days, possibly more than a week. it includes oil pick-up and deliveries by bp, and that pushed oil prices up yesterday. >> the united states is working with the international community, with partners from the region and from all over the world to deal with this threat. we are building a coalition. we are working to ensure that -- and rally the nations ofe an interest in seeing this stop. >> reporter: senator tommy

tubberville says we are seeing what happens when you appease iran. he says the biden administration relaxed oil sanctions adding money to iran's coffers. >> we caused this. now you've got yemen, you know, the houthis are shooting rockets at all the ships and the tankers. well, who's backing the houthis? iran. who's backing iran? we are. we're funding the terrors. >> reporter: it's not limited to the houthis. other iranian-backed proxies have attacked u.s. positions in iraq and syria at least 101 times since october 17th. former secretary of state mike pompeo believes the administration needs less talk and more direct action against specifically iran to tell them to back the proxies off. back to you. david: edward, thank you very much for that. joining me now is the great larry kudlow who was interviewing senator tuberville yesterday. he's always, he always hits the point, hits the nail on the head in terms -- in my opinion, ab what he's saying.

it's quite clear. we dropped our sanctions, we were not applying the sanctions to iran that we used to during the trump administration. because of that, they have tens of billions of extra dollars, and they're using it to fund terrorists. therefore, in a way, we're kind of funding the terrorists, right? if. >> yeah. no, i think you could say almost directly. we've been a paper tiger with respect to iran and the various terrorist proxies the that iran finances. by the way, we've been a paper tiger on china. don't forget, david, china is buying the oil from iran. david: right. >> they're also buying oil from russia. so china is financing two wars against the united states. it's a terrible situation. i mean, the good news is so far we haven't seen much of an increase in oil prices at all, so that's the good news. the bad news is that the u.s., you know, i mean -- [laughter] the national security adviser talks about this we're going to

have a multi-national force. why didn't we take action months ago? why didn't we take action years ago? i mean, it's -- [laughter] everybody knows lifting the sanctions on iran -- and, by the way, i still can't figure out, maybe you have better information. this $10 billion electricity payment supposedly from iraq over to iran, not a humanitarian payment, it's an electricity payment, okay in has that gone through? i know the $6 billion was escrowed and stopped, or so i think. i know there's congressional legislation, david. but there's a $10 billion payment. that tad david yep. >> i certainly hope that has been stopped or i hope people in congress will stop it because that would make a mockery, each more of a mockery than has already been the case. david: i saw your interview with the senator, and as a he said, that's terrible, but that's nothing compared to the tens of billions, they got over $100

billion because we're not applying the sanctions. why are we not applying the sanctions to iran? if that wouldn't take a single troop. that wouldn't take any kind of hit on the hue thu rebels. we could put them off -- cut them off economically at their knees. >> yeah. well, there's about -- if you track through the numbers, there's about $40 billion, most of it's oil sales that iran has used in the past three years. so i don't know why we haven't stopped it. it's because the biden administration which has been infiltrated by iranian cutouts, they had to suspend this guy malloy -- or malley -- in the state department. but the point is they have not enforced the sanctions that were put into place in the trump years, and they were mandated by congress. david: that's a good point. >> they were mandated by congress. they try to make a nuclear deal with iran, they're trying to make peace. they think they can co-opt iran

into the middle east and make them civilized. you can't do that. you cannot possibly do that. david: larry, i've got to switc- >> so these are terrible blunders which, by the way, helped to lead up to this terrible, terrible hamas war with israel. david: i've got to bring you back home because what's happening with the economy, with my 401(k) is very nice, by the way, and i'm sure that the kudlow trust is doing pretty well with the markets doing well. to what extent do you think the fed is putting their finger on the scale forecasting all these rate cuts for 2024? are they working to get biden reelected? >> that's an interesting point, you know? kevin hassett, former cea chair, was on our show last night, and kevin said the fed is essentially a democratic institution, and they're looking for election year interest rate cuts. i don't know that, but it's an interesting theory. it's a theory that could well be the case. if i had one wish with these fed

guys, they should just stop their yapping. stop yapping. [laughter] you got jay powell says one thing and john williams and rafael bostick says another, mary daly of silicon bank fame was on the tape today or yesterday or last night or some bloody thing. i mean, why don't they just stop? it's confusing to markets, i think. yeah, look, it's great interest rates have fallen, market rates have father-in-law. that's good. there's -- have fallen. there's a whiff of deflation coming in from china it's not the worst thing in the world. i wouldn't worry about that. we had three years of rising prices, maybe we'd have a few months of falling prices that would help people during christmas and next year. david: right in time for christmas presents. larry, good to see you. and, of course, we'll see you at 4 p.m. eastern time today and every week today on the great "kudlow." wonderful show with a wonderful host. larry, thank you so much. we'll see you at four.

coming up, you're going to need to pack your patience this holiday season and don't be like the mcal asters. roll tape. >> we slept in! ♪ run, run, rudolph ♪ if. >> did we miss the flight? >> no, you just made it. [cheers and applause] david: it's simple but it never gets old. meanwhile, aaa says more than 115 million americans are going to be heading home for the holidays, so plan ahead. we've got that report coming next. ♪ holiday road, holiday road ♪ sofi is helping me get my money right to achieve my ambitions. want to see? (♪)

like saving for the ultimate tailgate setup. with sofi checking and savings, i pay no account fees, and earn a competitive apy. sofi can help you fund all your ambitions, no matter how big... or small. ready break! like investing in the athletes of tomorrow. (♪) - when did doing business become more about culture wars and less about well, business? some companies today bring politics into the boardroom, then into our living rooms. that's why i use spotlight reports from 1792 exchange. here, i can search more than 2,000 companies, to see if they care more about divisive social issues than about running a sound business. isn't it time we got back to the business of business?

learn the risk to your company or family at 1792exchange.com. you can't buy great conversations or moments that matter, but you can invest in them. at t. rowe price our strategic investing approach can help you build the future you imagine. t. rowe price, invest with confidence. they're waiting for you. hey, do you have a second? they're all expecting more. more efficiency. more benefits. more growth. when you realize you can give your people everything, and more. thank you very much. [applause] ask, "now what?" here's what. you go with prudential to protect, empower and grow. with everything you need to deliver, you guessed it... more. one more thing... who's your rock? learn more at prudential.com

(announcer) enough with the calorie counting, carb cutting, diet fatigue, and stress. just taking one golo release capsule with three balanced meals a day has been clinically proven to repair metabolism, optimize insulin levels, and balance the hormones that make weight loss easy. release works with your body, not against it, so you can put dieting behind you and go live your life. head to golo.com now to join the over 2 million people who have found the right way to lose weight and get healthier with golo. (♪♪) my plaque psoriasis was so bad... i couldn't get my hair done. my psoriasis was all over. then my joints started hurting, found out it was psoriatic arthritis. who knew they could be connected? for me, cosentyx works on both. 5 years and counting. did you know people with psoriasis on the scalp have a 4 times higher risk of developing psoriatic arthritis,

which if left untreated can lead to permanent joint damage? cosentyx works on all of this and helps stop further joint damage. talk to your doctor. find something that works for you. serious allergic reactions. severe skin reactions that look like eczema and an increased risk of infections, some fatal, have occurred. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms, had a vaccine or plan to, or if ibd symptoms develop or worsen. cosentyx. still workin' for me. ♪see me♪ find relief that can last. ask your dermatologist about cosentyx. ♪ ♪ david: christmas less than a week away x travelers are getting ready to make their way home for the holiday. casey stegall joins me now from the dallas airport. casey, what can we expect for the holiday travel season? >> reporter: well, you can expect some lines, and you can

expect some congestion. there's no doubt about that, david. travel experts say that the busiest days to travel will actually be this upcoming thursday and friday, and then more specifically the four days after christmas. tsa, in fact, projects that it will screen some 2.5 million passengers over a 24-hour period at the nation's airports on those peak travel days. and as of right now, tsa says overall traffic at its checkpoints is more than 14% higher this year compared to last. the numbers also expected to surpass 2019's pre-pandemic levels when some 7.3 million took to the skies for the christmas/new year's holiday. this year that figure expected to be more than 7.5 million. passengers tell us the key to avoiding headaches is to get to the airport earlier and also anticipate the some potential hiccups. >> i i think just, like, typical

kind of, like, working through security, like, is there going to be a line, is there not going to be a houston, how long is it going to be. our gates have changed so many times too, so we're running all around the airport once we get there. >> reporter: all right. so a quick look at the flightaware misery rap -- map up to this hour showing 89 # 7 domestic delays and 31 cancellations today. the top three cities, piercing the most problems, jfk, boston and fort lauderdale airport in florida. so buckle up, it could be a bumpy ride. david: yeah. it was a heck of a storm in the northeast. that's slowed things up quite a bit. casey, have a wonderful holiday yourself. still ahead, jason chaffetz -- >> reporter: thank you. a. david: you're welcome. -- joe borelli and jimmy failla's going to be with us. the 10 a.m. hour of "varney & company" is next. ♪ then i saw mommy tickle santa claus --

♪ underneath the mistletoe -- his beard so snowy white. ♪ oh, what a laugh it would have been if daddy had only seen -- ♪ mommy kissing santa claus last night ♪ ..